Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Analysis Of Students’ Proportional Reasoning Strategies, Michele Carney, Ev Smith, Gwyneth Hughes, Jonathan Brendefur, Angela Crawford, Tatia Totorica

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Proportional reasoning is key to students’ acquisition and application of complex mathematics and science topics. Research is needed regarding how students’ progress towards and come to demonstrate key developmental understandings within proportional reasoning. To this end we created and administered assessment items to 297 middle grades students. We categorized student solution processes qualitatively, followed by Rasch analysis to examine item difficulty and strategy use in relation to an anticipated trajectory. Our findings indicate that different strategies manifest themselves in a hierarchical manner, providing initial confirmation of categories based on strategy efficiency and emphasizing the importance of teacher (and researcher) analysis …

Assessment And Data-­Informed Decision-­Making In Preservice Teacher Education, Jennifer Knutson, Stacey Ness, Lisa Share

2010-2016 Archived Posters

The presentation highlights a 2-­year study regarding assessment knowledge and data-­informed decision making skills of early childhood education (ECE) and special education (SE) preservice teachers. Challenges included internal program and field experience changes, external standards revisions, and obtaining a sizeable sample. Data analysis led to program changes to improve teacher candidate performance.

Spanish Language, Cultural Knowledge And Teachers’ Professional Development In An English-Only Environment, Sara Soledad Garcia

Teacher Education

This study documents the findings of action research projects generated by two teachers with different cultural backgrounds and grade levels; one is a bilingual Spanish-English high school teacher and the other is an English monolingual first grade-reading teacher. Teachers’ cognitive and professional development is examined by taking into account the results of the action research project on the literacy needs of their students. Qualitative data from teacher interviews and reflections have been collected and analyzed. These teachers as researchers of their own practice plan and integrate cultural interpretation produced by the children to better understand how learners construct knowledge through …

Peek Into The Future Of Education Using Glass, Allison Berger, Victoria Brown

FDLA Journal

Glass, an everyday material found in every home and school, now finds new life as part of some of the most cutting-edge technology available. Through their invention of Gorilla Glass®, Corning Glass Works has introduced a new type of glass that is both stronger and thinner. The enhanced glass finds new life in interactive glass walls, collaborative worktables, and even augmented reality glasses. As glass technology moves from the stuff of futuristic fantasy into actuality, the possibilities for its use in the world of education are numerous.

Building An Online Learning Community For Technology Integration In Education, Jennifer Lyn Reeves, Jason Karp, Gabriela A. Mendez, Julie Alemany, Maureen Mcdermott, Jia Borror, Berta Hayes Capo, Charles Andrew Schlosser

FDLA Journal

Our professional learning community (PLC), or the Technology Integration Learning Community (TILC), consists of nine professors from the Fischler College of Education at Nova Southeastern University who embody a wide range of knowledge and skills related to instruction, research, and technology. Our TILC provides a supportive, collaborative, safe, and non-judgmental environment for sharing that knowledge (and questions) about technology tools and ideas that can be used to enhance both instruction and learning. Through a self-study, the TILC developed a framework for members to improve their own effectiveness when working with students enrolled in their courses at both the graduate and …

Adolescents' Characterization Of Their Neighborhood Through An Art-Based Community Project, Eileen Finnegan

Wayne State University Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to study adolescent participation in the development of a neighborhood mural as an art-based community project. I examined perceptions of the adolescents regarding the awareness of their community and neighborhoods. Additionally, I explored adolescents' perceptions of their own development in terms of building their self-confidence. To accomplish this, I facilitated the creation and design of a mural that depicts their perceptions of their neighborhoods, using art as a modality for expression. Fourteen seventh grade students attending a parochial school in a low socioeconomic area of a large metropolitan city participated in the study. They …

Creating Opportunities For Learning: Play As A Scaffold For Format Based Informational Text Features, Susan Fisher Dandalides

Wayne State University Dissertations

Abstract

A play intervention was used with second grade students to help them develop a deeper understanding of format based informational text features. On Day 1 of the intervention, groups of students role played as reporters as they observed classmates at play. During Days 2 - 5 of the intervention, the same students wrote an informational book about the play they had observed. A pre-interview was used to determine which format based informational text features were noticed and/or explained by the students in an informational trade book. The text features that were included in the trade book were: table of …

College Student Adjustment: Examination Of Personal And Environmental Characteristics, Aleksandra M. Stoklosa

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study used a multi-dimensional model of college adjustment to examine the relationships between multiple layers of personal influences and college adjustment (academic, social, personal/emotional, attachment to the institution, and overall adjustment) among emerging adults in a large urban university. The sample included 177 undergraduate students, ages 18-25, attending Wayne State University, who completed on-line questionnaires. Race and cumulative college GPA were related to academic adjustment. Being Arabic/Middle-Eastern was a consistent predictor of college adjustment. It was found that higher college GPA and being White was related to higher academic adjustment, while being Arabic/Middle-Eastern was related to lower academic adjustment. …

Attitudes And Perceptions Of High School Principals With Regard To Bullying In Their Schools, Cornelius James Lewis

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study examined attitudes and perceptions of high school principals/assistant principals with regard to bullying in their schools. Bullying is a pervasive, unacceptable form of aggression that has negative consequences, both for the bully and the victim. School principals are charged with the responsibility of creating a safe environment for students, by effectively combating any aggressive behavior that could harm a student. The extent to which principals are able to combat bullying, may depend largely on their attitudes and perceptions of bullying behavior in their schools. This purpose of the study was to compare the attitudes of high school principals …

Bringing The Outside In: Connecting Literacy Practices In A Layered, Technologically-Driven Seventh Grade Honors English Curriculum, Geneva L. Scully

Wayne State University Dissertations

As technology consumes our society today, it was one intention of this study to examine whether purposeful curriculum design that both scaffolded and layered technological tools into a unit of study in a seventh grade honors English classroom would lead to more critical and creative thinking. Through a qualitative design, case study analysis of three students whose experiences demonstrated how students were able to achieve increased levels of critical thinking was described. Another intention of this study was to examine whether or not students connected their in-school and out-of-school literacies through this experience in a more meaningful way as contributors …

Literacy Instruction In High School: Examining The Perception Of Bilingual And Monolingual Students Of Middle Eastern Origin, Youssef Mosallam

Wayne State University Dissertations

With the growing need to close the gap in instruction for all students there needs to be more of an emphasis on instructional strategies that assist students to achieve in literacy and a focus on their perceptions of the instruction. There is a specific need to support English language learners as they are the fastest growing subgroup in U.S. schools. Moreover, there needs to be a focus on professional development for teachers to support English language learners, multicultural students and all other students that struggle with literacy.

The purpose of the research study was to examine the instructional practices used …

Teaching Information Literacy Skills To Sophomore-Level Biology Majors, Leigh Thompson, Lisa Ann Blankenship

Collier Library and Information Services

Many undergraduate students lack a sound understanding of information literacy. The skills that comprise information literacy are particularly important when combined with scientific writing for biology majors as they are the foundation skills necessary to complete upper-division biology course assignments, better train students for research projects, and prepare students for graduate and professional education. To help undergraduate biology students develop and practice information literacy and scientific writing skills, a series of three one-hour hands-on library sessions, discussions, and homework assignments were developed for Biological Literature, a one-credit, one-hour-per-week, required sophomore-level course. The embedded course librarian developed a learning exercise that …

An Exploration Of The Formal Agricultural Education System In Trinidad And Tobago, Nathan W. Conner, Christopher T. Stripling, Jessica Blythe, Aaron Giorgi, Eric D. Rubenstein, Angel Futrell, Jenny Jenkins, T Grady Roberts

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Faculty Publications

A team of nine researchers from the United States spent 10 days exploring the formal agricultural education system in Trinidad and Tobago from primary education through postgraduate education. Data were collected from interviews and observations from students, teachers/instructors, and agricultural producers. The team concluded that (a) the people in Trinidad and Tobago involved in agriculture (teachers, students, and producers) are passionate about agriculture, but believe that the general public demeans agricultural workers and work; (b) Trinidad and Tobago has the capacity to develop a well-trained workforce through a comprehensive agricultural education system that spans from primary education to doctoral instruction, …

Developing Agency For Advocacy: Collaborative Inquiry-Focused School Change Projects As Transformative Learning For Practicing Teachers. The New Educator, Kathryn Brooks, Susan R. Adams

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Many mainstream educators of English language learners (ELLs) have experienced neither adequate pre-service preparation nor appropriate in-service professional development. Yet, ELLs are one of the fastest growing student populations in the United States. While practicing teachers typically espouse the view that all students can learn, they often lack the knowledge and skills necessary to support ELLs in their academic and language development.This gap in preservice teacher education programs often leads general education teachers to rely heavily on bilingual paraprofessionals and language teachers for educating ELL students. This paper describes a 5-year professional development initiative, Project Alianza, during which the researchers …

Putting The Framework To Work: An Ethnographic Exploration Of Race-Based Professional Development, Susan R. Adams, R. Helfenbein

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Louie F. Rodriguez’ (2012) Teachers College Record conceptual paper issues a call to “researchers, practitioners, and policy makers [to]…problematize the concept of recognition…and to introduce a conceptual framework to understand, examine, and help rectify the crisis facing [Latina/o youth]” (p. 1). Though Rodriguez has explicitly named Latina/o youth within the title of his Framework of Recognition, Rodriguez clearly states his intent to extend applications of the Framework beyond Latina/o youth to include other marginalized students, including “students with disabilities, English language learners, immigrants, gay/lesbian/bisexual youth, and students who identify with alternative forms of music, art, and culture” (p.25). Indeed, Rodriguez …

Book Review: Talking Diversity With Teachers And Teacher Educators, Ryan Flessner, Susan C. Adamson

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Book review of "Cruz, B., Ellerbrock, C. R., Vásquez, A., & Howes, E. V. (2014). Talking diversity with teachers and teacher educators: Exercises and critical conversations across the curriculum." by Ryan Flessner and Susan C. Adamson.

The Effects Of Assessment Preparation For The Improvement Of Course Placement And Student Satisfaction At Tacoma Community College, Kari Twogood

All Graduate Projects

There is significant focus on graduation rates and persistence of students in higher education. Lengthy sequences of developmental education have been shown to have detrimental effects on the persistence and graduation rates of students. This study reviewed the research that has been performed concerning persistence in developmental education. A survey of incoming or current students was conducted to study the effects of offering an ACCUPLACER® preparation workshop at Tacoma Community College. The survey collected 733 unduplicated responses. The data indicated that students feel more anxiety as a result of attending the workshop prior to taking the ACCUPLACER® assessment. The data …

An Examination Of The Relationship Among Iraqi High School Students' Science Achievement And Perceptions Of The Value Of Education, Parent Support, And Peer Support In The United States, Samir F. Al-Mandwee

Wayne State University Dissertations

The objective of this dissertation was to quantitatively study Iraqi students (N=90) who arrived in the U.S.A. in the last 20 years. A non-experimental, descriptive research design was used for this study, which took place in one of three high schools in a large Midwestern suburban school district, during the 2013-2014 academic year. Three factors, including the students' perception of the value of education, the parental support, and the peer support, were examined using the Facilitating Conditions Questionnaire. The three subscales were part of a larger self-administered questionnaire used by McInerney (1997). In addition to the FCQ survey, a student …

The Impact Of A Professional Development Program On Teachers' Practice And How Context Variables Influenced Such Practice: A Case Study, Sandra Lynn Yarema

Wayne State University Dissertations

This case study investigated how context variables influenced the impact of a state-funded longitudinal professional development (PD) program on the participant teachers' practice. Data was collected to compare differences in Science Content Knowledge, Science Pedagogical Content Knowledge, and the teachers' practice over the course of the PD program. Contextual variables related to district restructuring and school implementation of district policy evidence a direct effect on time spent on science instruction, specific instructional strategies used, and on the development of a professional community among the participants. This case study substantiates the implication that districts and school policies must provide adequate support …

Elementary Teachers Committed To Actively Teaching Science And Engineering, Julianne Radkowski Opperman Phd

All Student Scholarship

Committed elementary teachers of science and engineering, members of a professional learning community called Collaborative Conversations in STEM, were studied to elicit their perceptions of experiences that influenced their commitment to, and their pedagogical content knowledge of, STEM teaching and learning.

From Local To Global: Purpose, Process, And Product In The Narratives Of Eighth Grade Language Arts Students, Amira Saad Kassem

Wayne State University Dissertations

Using a convenience sampling of 10 eighth-grade language arts students, this exploratory case study examined in depth the literacy processes used by ten 8th grade students to generate various multimodal artifacts that comprise their final projects and the nature of the literacy transactions that fostered these processes over the course of one year in this language arts classroom. Following closely (via the case studies in Chapter Five) how four of the ten students used the literacy events of the classroom to claim spaces to perceive and perform their voices and visions, the study revealed how these students were able to …

Introduction To The Case Studies 2015 : A Compendium Of Cases & Voices From The Field, Mola Dad Shafa, Khadija Khan

Professional Development Centre, Gilgit

No abstract provided.

Program In Faculty Development 2015-2016

Program in Faculty Development

Welcome to a new academic year and to opportunities to improve your skills as an educator, scholar and leader in the academic health professions! This booklet will provide you with information about the TJU Faculty Development Program for the 2013–2014 academic year including course listings, registration information, and general program information. This booklet features two “At-a-glance” outlines of the faculty development programs: a course outline for each of the three faculty development program focus areas (education, research/scholarship, and professional development and leadership) and a month-by-month calendar of activities. Detailed program information for each focus area follows. The faculty development programs …

The Role Of Occupational Therapy In Primary Care, Priti Patel

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

The Capstone Project is focused on communicating, influencing and educating other health care professionals regarding the role of occupational therapy in the future model of primary care delivery initiated by the adoption of the Affordable Care Act and the Triple Aim Initiative. Currently, primary care, the largest health care platform in United States, is not inclusive of occupational therapy services. Occupational therapists have the scope, knowledge and understanding to be part of the redesigned team model of primary care. Educating those currently working in primary care about adding occupational therapy services can have a significant impact on the profession of …

Administrator Perceptions Of How Developmental Education Impacts Student Attrition, Jennifer Michelle Price

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nationally and locally, developmental education students attending community colleges are not persisting at a high rate. This growing attrition problem affects many aspects of a local community college including enrollment, completion rates, and tuition revenue. The purpose of this study was to analyze community college administrators' perceptions of developmental education and how developmental education affects student attrition. The conceptual framework of this study, social constructivism, provided a foundation to better understand the role each administrator plays in this social group. A qualitative study through structured interviews was conducted, targeting 10 college administrators from 1 local community college, from each of …

Countering Student Apathy To Increase Student Engagement, Rebecca Ann Schou

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

At a suburban elementary school in Maryland, 3 years of data revealed that the school is grappling with the problem of student apathy. While there is a growing body of research on apathy and its effects on student achievement, few researchers have examined the problem from the perspective of the apathetic student. The purpose of this qualitative case study, grounded in the social learning and cognitive development theories of Vygotsky and Piaget, was to explore student apathy and the learning environment at the target school through the perspectives of 8 former students and their parents. The research questions focused on …

Wisconsin's Quality Improvement Initiative For Childcare Programs: A Case Study, Betty Jane Bohleber

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Wisconsin's Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) was implemented in 2010 to improve quality of care for young children enrolled in childcare programs. Due to the recent initiation of the state's QRIS, empirical evidence on the effectiveness of the initiative to improve quality care for young children is limited. This qualitative case study explores childcare stakeholders' perceptions on the effectiveness of Wisconsin's QRIS as a quality improvement program. Bronfenbrenner theorized that exosystems such as state governments impact early childhood environments and the development of young children through initiation of programs. The research questions address the efficiency of the state's QRIS …

An Examination Of Teachers' Reading Instructional Challenges In An Alternative School Setting, Leslie Bowen Retchko

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a suburban alternative school, educators of at-risk students reading below grade level often struggled to provide effective reading instruction. As a result, these students were likely to continue to experience academic difficulties, which could limit their career options and their opportunities to contribute to the betterment of society. This study addressed the gap between reading strategies teachers actually used in the classroom and the reading strategies they learned during professional development. The research questions focused on the instructional challenges teachers experienced while working with struggling readers in an alternative school setting. Mastery learning theory and the adult adragogical theory …

Effects Of Common Core Curriculum Standards On High School Students With Disabilities, Nancy Beth Thompson Loedding

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This case study examined the effect of implementing the Common Core Curriculum Standards (CCCS) on students with disabilities (SWD) in a county in northeast Georgia. The study investigated teachers' perceptions regarding the effect of implementing the CCCS in high school English language arts and mathematics classes on the academic success of SWD and their ability to graduate from high school with a regular diploma. Information was also gathered to determine if teachers offered additional supports to SWD as part of the increased academic expectations of the CCCS. In addition, teachers were asked about the preparation they received prior to teaching …

Factors Influencing The Adoption Of Learning Management Systems By Medical Faculty, Kristy Burrough

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite recommendations by the Association of American Medical Colleges regarding

the adoption of technology in medical universities, faculty are still reluctant to adopt new

learning technologies. The purpose of this qualitative interview study was to determine

the factors existing in the adoption of learning management technology among late

adopters within the faculty of colleges labeled as comprehensive academic medical

centers. Using the Everett Rogers diffusion of innovations theory as its framework, this

study sought to ascertain the factors late adopters identify as preventing them from

adopting technology and to determine what measures they suggest to increase technology

adoption among their …