Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Implementing Pbis In A Rural Junior High School: Reducing Negative Behaviors And Gaining Future Teacher Buy-In, Kelly T. Vourlos

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) improves student outcomes including higher graduation rates, improved classroom behaviors and management, less discipline referrals, increased student engagement, improved academic performance, increased faculty retention, and an overall better school experience for staff and students. Staff buy-in can be difficult to obtain, but is critically important for school-wide success of PBIS. The purpose of this project was to investigate if a short-term exposure to PBIS-like intervention would change buy-in for junior high school teachers in Belle Plaine School District and evaluate their opinions about PBIS, along with comparing student incident reports before and throughout the …

Veteran Educators' Perceptions Of The Internet's Impact On Learning And Social Development, Matthew Vincent Glowiak

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a time where some 2.4 billion Internet users exist worldwide, children are increasingly impacted by the Internet's influence, both directly and indirectly. With technology now playing a significant role in childhood learning and social development, many unforeseen shifts are occurring that will ultimately impact lifespan development. Although researchers have provided mixed results concerning the impact of the Internet on learning and social development, the body of evidence indicates that veteran K-8 educators who are comfortable and experienced with the Internet view it more favorably. This grounded theory study systematically generated the multisystem technological engagement theory (MSTET) to explain the …

Transformational Leadership And A Culture Of Efficacy: A Search For Correlation In The Alabama Two-Year College System, Johnny H. Mcmoy

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This research project explores the predominant leadership characteristics among community college presidents as measured by Bass and Avolio’s transformational leadership continuum, the degree of collective teacher efficacy among faculty, and any correlation that exists between them. The populations studied are the presidents and faculty of community colleges in Alabama. Two instruments were employed, the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) developed by Bass and Avolio (1995) and Goddard’s CE-SCALE (2000, 2002), as a measure of collective teacher efficacy.

The researcher found evidence of mid-range collective efficacy scores among faculty and strong evidence of pervasive transformational leadership characteristics among college presidents. The researcher …

Individualized Consideration: Poverty Countermeasure, Lawrence Wilson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite more than $1 trillion spent annually on poverty remediation, impoverishment in the United States persists unabated. With a U.S. poverty rate greater than 10% for more than 4 decades, economics are neither poverty's cause nor cure. As such, non-economic poverty remedies require exploration and expansion. Linking greater leadership and poverty theories, this non-experimental, cross sectional, quantitative, survey-based research effort correlated individualized consideration's (IC) practice with collegiate athlete graduation rates in order to identify and isolate possible leadership based social poverty remediation measures. Leveraging a two-stage random sample, this research effort correlated student athlete Multi-Factor Leadership Questionnaire (form 5X) responses …

Perceptions Of Higher Education Online Learning Faculty In Lebanon, Noha Adib Haidar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this case study was to explore faculty attitudes toward online learning in a Lebanese Higher Education Institution (HEI). The research problem addressed the disinterest among faculty at the Arts, Sciences, and Technology University of Lebanon (AUL) in enhancing learning using online technology. The research questions for this study explored the attitudes of the faculty toward applying online learning and the extent of the faculty readiness to adopt this technological change. A qualitative case study design was used that employed multiple sources of information including semi-structured interviews and existing literature. The target population was AUL faculty including full-time …

Oral Health Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices Among Secondary School Students In Nigeria, Johnson John Omale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

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An Analysis Of Teachers Who Teach Struggling Students, Brett Rankin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

After many years of reform efforts, educators are still searching for ways to better serve the needs of struggling students. The purpose of this study was to develop a grounded theory (GT) that reflects teachers' perceptions of students' behavior, students' need for support, and students' skill deficiencies. Discovering the ways in which teachers address students' needs could sharpen teacher practices and promote support for struggling students. Guided by Weimer's research on learner-centered teaching, this GT study created a conceptual understanding of classroom experiences from teachers' perspective. Twenty teacher interviews began with the grand tour question, "Talk about teaching struggling students …

Annual Impact Report 2014: A Report By The Impact Data Collection And Analysis Team, Part 2, Impact Management Team, Impact Assessment Team

IMPACT Reports

This is an annual report of Instruction Matters: Purdue Academic Course Transformation (IMPACT). IMPACT was created in 2010, and is a large collaborative initiative on the Purdue West Lafayette campus involving multiple key partners across campus including the Office of the Provost, Center for Instructional Excellence (CIE), Information Technologies at Purdue (ITaP), Purdue Libraries, the Discovery Learning Research Center (DLRC), and Purdue Extended Campus (PEC). IMPACT works with instructors to redesign large enrollment, foundational courses with the aim of engaging students more fully in their learning and creating a more student-centered environment, with the expectation that this will improve student …

No Teacher Left Behind: An Exploration Of The Current Teacher Performance Evaluation System In Florida, Tara C. Haley

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of standardized test scores to hold schools, students, and teachers accountable for their performance has been at the heart of education reform efforts throughout the United States for years. Recent reform efforts have been especially focused on including the standardized testing performance of students into the overall evaluation of teacher effectiveness. In several states throughout the country, including Florida, results from teacher performance evaluations are being used to inform professional development, tenure, retention, termination, and compensation decisions.

The purpose of this study was to explore the teacher performance evaluation system initiated in Florida in 2011 as perceived by …

Effect Of Ebooks On Reading Level, Reading Behaviors, And Attitude Of Second Grade Students, Annette Vanaken

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the effect of ebooks as a tool for providing small group reading interventions and independent reading practice to second grade readers in the classroom. A quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, non-equivalent control group design was used to compare whether instructional reading environments (ebooks only, traditional books only, or both ebooks and traditional books) affect reading level and attitudes towards reading, while a posttest only non-equivalent control group design was used to measure reading behaviors of second grade students. A convenience sample of 88 English-speaking students at a rural, public elementary school in Southern Michigan participated. Reading level was measured by …

The Difference In Act College Readiness Benchmarks Between Avid And Non-Avid Students, Stephany Eley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study examined the difference in college readiness (as measured by the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks) between high school students who were enrolled in AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) for three or more years and students who were never enrolled in AVID. A causal comparative research design was employed to compare high school students from a Central Florida school district containing both AVID high schools and non-AVID high schools. AVID students were demographically matched to non-AVID students for race, gender, socio-economic status (as measured by free and reduced lunch status), Title 1 status, and grade level. Independent t tests …

Effects Of Information Delivery Type On Reading Comprehension And Reading Enjoyment Level In Male Seventh-Grade Disinterested Readers, Douglas Damon

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In this quantitative study, reading comprehension scores and reading enjoyment level of forty-two seventh-grade males (N = 42) from a Mid-Atlantic private school were examined to determine the effect of information delivery type. In this true-experimental posttest only control group design, forty-two participants self-identified as disinterested readers. The control group (n = 22) received a traditionally printed excerpt from a novel, while the treatment Group (n = 20) received the same excerpt enhanced with embedded digital links through QR (Quick Response) codes. Upon completion of the reading, participants took a reading comprehension test, and completed a reading enjoyment questionnaire. Data …

Solution-Oriented Teacher Understanding Of School Accountability And How It Influences Perceived Self-Efficacy: A Case Study, Yolonda Bankston

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how accountability requirements influenced teacher understanding self-efficacy at one high school located in Southern Mississippi. Research questions focused on teacher understanding of how accountability requirements influenced their self-efficacy, the strategies that teachers reported they used to develop solutions to improve self-efficacy, and how teachers reported that administrative support, student discipline, and workload influence their self-efficacy as well. The researcher used field notes, interviews, and an online focus group to collect data from a purposive sample of 10 teachers. Survey results indicated teachers possessed high levels of self-efficacy. Six themes emerged …

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: Secondary Mathematics In An Urban Classroom, Julia Glissmann North

Honors Program Theses

Research and test scores have shown that African-American, Latino, Native American, and other minority students are underachieving in secondary mathematics. This is concerning not only to school personnel – who are under pressure to have students perform well on standardized tests – but also to the future of the country. When teachers adopt a culturally relevant pedagogy, diverse students will have a better opportunity to learn and retain mathematical content. When academic content is taught in a culturally relevant way, students are able to retain the information, improve their performance in school, and become more informed participants in society. Through …

Entry Planning : A Key Aspect In Preparing For School Leadership In Western Australia, Eleanor Maree Hughes

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Through my work in various contexts, as a senior leader, a curriculum improvement officer, a deputy principal, a project manager for professional learning and now as principal, I recognised from experience and dabbling in research that there were gaps in professional learning offered to aspirant and beginning secondary school principals in the public system. Undertaking research in this field would either confirm or refute my theory that support for secondary principals through professional learning in the Western Australian Department of Education was limited. The premise that quality leadership enhances quality teaching was a driver in establishing my goal, which is …

Raising Teacher Sensitivity To Key Numeracy Competencies In The Early Years, Kelly Norris

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Mathematical competence is a key capability for success in adult life, and yet many students do not achieve functional levels of numeracy during their school lives. Furthermore, many teachers report that they lack the confidence in teaching mathematics that they have for teaching literacy. Research indicates that it is possible to predict which students are likely to have difficulties in mathematics as early as the Pre-Primary year, and interventions can be provided which are effective in minimising such difficulties. The assumption framing this project is that raising teachers’ understanding of and thus sensitivity to markers of the skills most predictive …

Paper 1: A Proposed Pedagogical Approach For Preparing Teacher Candidates To Incorporate (Academic) Language, Woong Lim, Lynn Stallings

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

The edTPA is a performance-based assessment that aims to measure teacher candidates’ readiness for teaching. Beginning in the fall of 2015, this assessment will be a mandatory requirement for those seeking certification in Georgia. General agreement exists in the field of education about the basic knowledge and skills essential for beginning teachers to demonstrate in classroom teaching. Does edTPA measure the knowledge and skills essential for beginning mathematics teachers in particular? Assuming that edTPA can successfully measure that knowledge and skills for beginning teachers, the use of the assessment could be valuable.

One of the critical components of edTPA is …

Introductory Texts, Georgia Association Of Mathematics Teacher Educators

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

Coverpage

GAMTE Information

Letter from the President

Table of Contents

Paper 2: Design Considerations For Visually-Aided Discussion Prompts: Emphasizing Mathematical Reasoning In Teacher Education, Anne Marie S. Marshall, Kadian M. Callahan

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

The availability and familiarity of online discussion tools create new instructional options that teacher educators can use to foster prospective teachers’ understanding of mathematics. In particular, online discussion blogs provide an avenue through which teacher educators can press prospective teachers to explore mathematical concepts and share their mathematical reasoning with peers. Furthermore, by incorporating visual stimulations as a design component of these discussion blogs, prospective teachers can make sense of and respond to others’ ideas about mathematical concepts with greater clarity. This paper shares preliminary findings of a research study that examined the extent to which the design of a …

Paper 3: Differences In Beliefs Across A Series Of Four Mathematics Content Courses, Susanna Molitoris Miller, Caitlin Walkey

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

College students often ask questions such as, “Why do I have to take this class? Is there a point to it?” For Early Childhood Education (ECE) majors these questions may often take on a slightly different form, wondering, “How can I incorporate this information into my classroom?” or “Do I understand this well enough to teach this to my students?” It is especially important for pre- service teachers to feel confident working with the mathematical content that they are learning and for them to believe that they can successfully teach that same information to a group of students. Swackhamer, Koellner, …

Paper 4: Do You See What I See? Deepening Teachers’ Understanding Of Linear Equations Through Student Interviews, Tamara Pearson, Kelli Nipper, Catherine Matos

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

Many teachers have trouble transitioning their students between natural recursive thinking about the data and algebraic notation for representing linear functions (Zazkis & Liljedahl, 2002).

In this study, we interviewed eighteen middle school students to see how they used prior instruction to think about a geometric pattern and construct its corresponding linear equation. All students

were given the same task to complete and were questioned about their thinking during the interview.

We found that the recording of pattern recognition plays a substantial part in helping students recognize and write explicit patterns. By having students decompose the total perimeter into how …

Paper 5: Caep, Nctm, And Secondary Mathematics Program Revisions, Dianna J. Spence

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

Eight assessments were developed for CAEP (formerly NCATE) and NCTM recognition of our secondary mathematics program. These assessments include internship work samples, field evaluations, and candidate portfolios addressing content knowledge, pedagogical methods, and mathematics technology. Based on data collected from these assessments, alongside ongoing evaluation of the program, several curriculum and program revisions were implemented, including: 1) development of mathematics content-specific courses in classroom management, assessment, and secondary curriculum; 2) restructuring of a senior seminar course in mathematics education; and 3) an increased content focus in probability and statistics. The adoption of new NCTM standards in the CAEP review process …

Paper 6: A Mathematics Teacher’S Journey Of Identity Construction And Change, Anthony B. Stinson

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

Despite some gains, improving mathematics instruction remains an area of concern in the United States. The implementation of the Common Core Standards and the challenge of teaching the 21st Century student require mathematics teachers to examine their pedagogy to determine if they need to change or improve their practices. This paper provides a personal account of my journey when determining my identity as a mathematics teacher and how constructing my identity helped in changing and improving my practices as a mathematics teacher. The study was done using autoethnography, a burgeoning research method, and identity theory. This study has the goals …

Examining The Efficacy Of Adult Learning Of Government-Mandated Content Using Andragogical Delivery Methods Versus Traditional Pedagogical Delivery Methods, Richard Keith Sealana

Doctoral Dissertations

To protect society from incompetent, unskilled, or out-of-date practitioners; to keep abreast of advances in knowledge and technology; and to respond to public demands for accountability and consumer protection; continuing education (CE) and mandatory continuing education (MCE) programs have significantly increased in the past 20 years. Individuals and organizations invest significant time and financial resources to comply with mandatory education and training requirements. Although the mandates and demand for CE and MCE continues to increase, there is minimal research on the efficacy of various delivery methods. The purpose of this study was to examine and document the efficacy of andragogical …

The Approaches To Teaching Inventory: A Preliminary Validation Of The Malaysian Translation, Pauline Swee Choo Goh, Kung Teck Wong, Mohd Sahandri Gani Hamzah

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a Malaysian translation of the 22-item Approaches to Teaching Inventory for application in higher education. The Approaches to Teaching Inventory was a quantitative measure used by teachers of higher education to gauge their own teaching approaches that had been psychometrically assessed and widely used in western universities. Data in the present study came from 172 teachers in two institutions of higher learning. Principal factor analyses with varimax rotation and confirmatory factor analyses support a model with 17 items categorized into five sub-factors that were subsumed within two main factors. The alpha values …

A Tool That Can Be Effective In The Self-Regulated Learning Of Pre-Service Teachers: The Mind Map, Isil Tanriseven

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The aim of this study is to analyse the effect of task planning with mind maps on the self-regulation strategies and motivational beliefs of pre-service teachers. A quasi-experimental design, with a pre-test and post-test control group, was applied in the research. The research group comprised of 60 pre-service teachers taking “Teaching Principle and Methods”, in the second year at the Faculty of Education Elementary School Department at Mersin University, Turkey. Students in the experimental group planned their tasks individually by means of a mind map, whereas students in the control group directly realized their task. Before and after the experiment, …

A Cognitive Analysis Of Students' Activity: An Example In Mathematics, Jean-Francois Hérold

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In this paper, we argue for an engagement of productive connections between research findings and teaching, this since the vocational training of the teachers. We exemplify how analyses of written tests by using a cognitive approach lead to better interpretations and understanding of the learner’s knowledge. We show how a teacher can do it and we discuss the possibility of introducing it to the available scientific knowledge in teacher education, in order to include it in the current practices of teachers’ methods.

A Guide For Educators To Move Beyond Conventional School Playgrounds: The Re-Aim Evaluation Of The Lunchtime Enjoyment Activity And Play (Leap) Intervention, Brendon P. Hyndman, Amanda C. Benson, Amanda Telford

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Despite an increase in the provision of effective school-based interventions in recent times, there is an absence of literature for teachers focusing on the translation of promising interventions into real-world practice. The aim of this research was to provide a social-ecological guide for teachers of the external validity of implementing the Lunchtime Enjoyment Activity and Play (LEAP) school playground intervention. This research presents the process evaluation of a school playground intervention using RE-AIM (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance) as the theoretical evaluation framework. Data collection consisted of a mixed methods approach for two and a half years including a teacher …

Reconciling Dilemmas Of Social Justice In Literacy Lessons: A Case Study Of Preservice Primary Teachers, Beryl Exley, Annette Woods, Joanne Lunn, Sue Walker, Chrystal M. Whiteford Ms

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Literacy is promoted as one factor in overcoming disadvantage. In this paper, we employ Fraser’s (1997 & 2008) framing of social justice in order to analyse the disparate agendas of literacy education for improved outcomes in national policy. We do this to better understand the dilemmas confronting preservice teachers as they prepare to become teachers in complex education contexts. We then examine what 20 preservice primary teachers say about social justice in interview responses to a scripted scenario. Our findings demonstrate that most preservice teachers are trying to demonstrate that they have a well-placed commitment to teaching for social justice, …

Are They Genuinely Novice Teachers? - Motivations And Self-Efficacy Of Those Who Choose Teaching As A Second Career, Tili Wagner, Dalia Imanuel-Noy

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The research is based on the trend of broadening unique teacher training programs. It is a mixed-method research aiming to explore the motives of three groups of Graduate-Retraining-Program (GRP) who opted for teaching as a second career and their self-efficacy

The research population comprises 82 participants from three specialized teacher's education programs. Tools include a closed self-efficacy and a semi-structured motivation questionnaires and interviews.

Findings: motives relate mostly to psycho-ideological aspects; three efficacy dimensions relating to Teaching Tasks (TT), Teacher-Student Relations (TSR), and Influence in the Organization (IO); The TT dimension is the highest, while the IO dimension is the …