Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Perceptions Of Teachers Regarding The Efficacy Of Inclusion In Primary Classroom Settings, Tara Catherine Chapman

Theses and Dissertations

Students in the Brick Township School District in Brick, New Jersey are taught in inclusive classrooms, meaning that students with special needs learn alongside their typically developing peers. The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of teachers and their attitudes toward inclusion practices and to examine the factors that influence those attitudes. Brick School District teachers were invited to respond to an online questionnaire to share their views on inclusive education. Teachers' attitudes were discovered to be related to their beliefs regarding school factors, including support from administration and access to adequate professional development opportunities. Furthermore, teachers' …

Infusing Evidence-Based Practices In Pre-Service Preparation Program For Teachers Of Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Students, Su-Je Cho, Kathleen Doyle, Holly Rittenhouse-Cea

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This study evaluated the perceptions of graduates from a master’s level teacher education program on the effectiveness of their program that incorporated evidence-based practices (EBPs). Specifically, the study explored how the newly revised teacher education curriculum assisted them in becoming qualified in their certification areas. Seventeen graduates participated in the study. Using a checklist graduates indicated their use of various EBPs in three categories in classrooms with culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. They also engaged in a mini-focus group to discuss their perceptions of the educational experiences they participated in. The results revealed that the revised curriculum equipped graduates …

Factors Considered By Special Education Case Managers When Making A Decision To Mainstream Emotionally Disturbed Students From A Self-Contained Classroom To General Education Classes, Pamela Butler-Harris

Dissertations

Purpose: This qualitative comparative case study analyzes the perspectives, feelings, and beliefs of eight special education case managers who work with students who have been diagnosed as emotionally disturbed (ED), or exhibit ED type behaviors in Contra Costa County, California. It is the hope that through the identification of criteria leading to successful integration, policy makers and educators will be able to develop and implement effective strategies to successfully mainstream ED students, or students who exhibit ED type behaviors into general education classes.

Methodology: This qualitative comparative case study is designed around the following research question: What factors do special …

Collaborating Online: Tools For Improving Teacher Preparation In Literacy, Jennifer Van Allen, Lenora Forsythe

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

Teacher preparation programs face the continual challenge to provide experiences that foster collaboration between teacher candidates and go beyond the boundaries of particular programs and classrooms. Collaborative learning structures improve learner achievement, attitudes, engagement, satisfaction, and retention rates when interactions between learners are facilitated and fostered. These structures have the potential to foster genuine collaboration in which groups create products and processes that change individuals’ understandings and actions as well as those of the collective group. In this format, learning occurs not only from the instructor but from other classmates as well. Many agencies and professional associations are calling for …

Using Primary Sources In Content Areas To Increase Disciplinary Literacy Instruction, Salika A. Lawrence, Elise Langan, Julie Maurer

The Language and Literacy Spectrum

This paper describes how a three-day summer workshop on using primary sources helped teachers increase the emphasis placed on disciplinary literacy when teaching social studies and history. Two specific issues in teacher education and practice are addressed. First, increasing teachers’ content knowledge of history topics can help them plan lessons that connect local and global events. Second, content area reading requires literacy practices, which are unique to disciplines. Therefore, teachers need to apply historical inquiry and disciplinary literacy methods in the curriculum.

The Role Of Self-Efficacy And Use Of Teachers’ Feedback On Students’ Mathematics Performance In Tanzanian Secondary Schools, Florence Kyaruzi

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Self-efficacy has been found to have positive relationship with important educational variables such as choice of task, persistence, motivation, and academic performance. This study investigated the role of students’ mathematics self-efficacy and use of teachers’ feedback in improving mathematics performance among secondary schools in Tanzania. The study involved 2767 Form III students sampled from 48 secondary schools in Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro regions. A questionnaire was used to measure students’ mathematics self-efficacy and mathematics performance, while focus group discussions were used to explore students’ perceptions of the use teachers’ feedback. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling and content …

Promoting Teacher Professional Learning In Tanzanian Schools: Lessons From Chinese School-Based Professional Learning Communities, Mjege Kinyota, Patrick Severine Kavenuke, Rehema J. Mwakabenga,

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

This paper reports on the history, features, and challenges of School-Based Professional Learning Communities (SBPLCs) in China to elicit lessons for Tanzania towards improving in-service teacher professional development. Based on the Chinese SBPLCs, this review aims to provide some insights to educational planners and teachers in Tanzania on how to establish and maintain effective school-based professional learning. This analysis used 30 journal articles published over the past twelve years (2006-2017) to provide research-based evidence. The findings indicate that Chinese schools have registered significant achievements in SBPLCs by supporting teacher collaborative learning and research in both rural and urban areas. As …

Training Staff's Experiences, Perceived Needs, And Suggestions For Professional Development In A Military Training Organization, George R. Young Ii

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory case study was to understand the individual and organizational training needs of a military training organization (MTO), which trains battle staffs to inform professional development program design. The study findings might lead to an improved trainer professional development program design, which fully supports the organization’s and trainers’ efforts to deliver effective adult training. The exploratory questions used in this study were: (a) in what ways do participants in MTO perceive trainer and professional development experiences throughout their military and professional careers; (b) what are participants’ perceptions of training needs in MTO; (c) what are participants’ …

Supervision In Every Breath: Enacting Zen In An Elementary Education Teacher Program, Steven R. Haberlin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The field of teacher education is in tumultuous times. Criticisms and questions about teacher preparation have led to calls for reform, including grounding teacher preparation programs in clinically rich experiences. Responsible for preparing these teachers, university- based supervisors are under added pressure to provide opportunities that connects theoretical knowledge with field experience. Complicating matters, views of supervision continue to evolve and remain divided, creating uncertainty over how to best approach the role. In light of these challenges, I argue in this study that current conceptions of supervision need to be reevaluated and expanded by entertaining new views, namely those from …

Solving The Creativity Puzzle

DePaul Magazine

Since 2013, DePaul’s Offi ce of Innovative Professional Learning (OIPL) has partnered with educational organizations working on behalf of China’s K-12 schools to offer customized professional development to teachers—specifically, to help them bring creativity to the Chinese classroom. The work has been a challenge and inspiration for the College of Education faculty.

Intercultural Sensitivity Orientations Prior To Short-Term Study Abroad: A Qualitative Study On Prospective English Language Teachers, Emrullah Yasin Çiftçi, Nurdan Gürbüz

The Qualitative Report

Short-term study abroad programs can contribute to the multidimensional development of prospective language teachers. However, participants’ intercultural sensitivity orientations prior to the mobility period can significantly influence the quality and quantity of the outcomes gained from such programs. Therefore,in this qualitative case study, we explored the intercultural sensitivity orientations of a cohort of prospective language teachers from Turkey who prepared to study at three different universities in Italy. We also explored the participants’ perspectives regarding the potential contributions of short-term study abroad to their ongoing language teacher education processes. Following an interpretive analysis of qualitative data, our findings revealed that …

Engineering Design In Scientific Inquiry, Leslie Atkins Elliott

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Engineering Design in Scientific Inquiry (EDISIn) Project addresses the engineering preparation of secondary science teachers by embedding engineering design into a science course for single-subject STEM education majors (future secondary teachers), and developing a sequence of lesson plans and annotated video for faculty who seek to embed engineering design in their science courses. While undergraduate laboratories are rich with designed experimental apparatus, it is rare that students themselves play a role in designing and producing artifacts in the service of scientific inquiry. Our expectation is that (1) existing science courses offer opportunities for students to engage meaningfully with engineering …

How Online Teaching Made Me A Better Instructor On Campus, Michael Lohle Ph.D.

FDLA Journal

The role of industrial designer and best practices for effective online course delivery are evolving. This article discusses a narrative of the author’s lived experience applying online instructional design techniques in on campus courses. It provides an introduction confirming the state of the research, the narrative, and conclusions and recommendations for additional research.

Improving The Learning Process In The Higher Education Through The Use Of A Predictive Tool (Dashboard), Maria C. Sevillano Edd, Ruben De Jesus Liriano Edd

FDLA Journal

Improving the learning process in the high education through the use of a predictive tool (dashboard). De Jesús Liriano, Rubėn and Sevillano, María C., 2018: A Florida Distance Learning Association Journal (FDLA) Paper to be published in a special section of the US Distance Learning Association Professional Journal Distance Learning.

Interaction/Predictive Tools/Dashboard/Evaluation Learning Process/Automated Process/eLearning Environment/Learning Environment/Learning Management System (LMS)/Cloud Computing/ Learning Performance, and Learning Analytics.

The purpose of this study was the initial step in providing a clear understanding of the use of a predictive tool (dashboard) to improving the learning process in the higher education field. Through further …

Lowering The Stakes: Tips To Encourage Student Mastery And Deter Cheating, Trudian Trail-Constant

FDLA Journal

With the increase of online courses, many instructors utilize quizzes as a preferred method of assessment. This is especially true for large courses due to the flexibility and convenience that online quizzes can provide since they are often automatically graded by a learning management system. Consequently, it is important that online quizzes are effective in meeting learning goals and encouraging student mastery. This paper will explore how the use of low-stakes quizzes combined with meaningful feedback can help encourage student mastery and serve as a deterrent to cheating in online courses.

Creating A Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy: Examining Teacher Self-Efficacy And Their Discourse Patterns Through A Culturally Relevant Teaching Framework, Melanie Desmuke-Battles

Theses and Dissertations

America’s educational system has historically provided the best advantages for learners to use their potential to reach their learning, social, and professional goals. In contrast, it has also marginalized and oppressed the rights and opportunities of culturally diverse groups, i.e. African-Americans and Latinos, through the misrepresentation of, or the complete omission of, various ethnic groups and cultures in traditional instruction. This marginalization and oppression has contributed to the achievement gap between the dominant, white, middle-class and racial and socioeconomic minorities. This gap is accentuated by the cultural dissonance between teachers and their diverse student body population. Teachers must be equipped …

The Power Of A Self-Paced, Challenging, Process-Based, Online Mathematics Curriculum For Talented Middle School Students, Shari Stupp, Keith Nabb, Danielle Goodwin

Transformations

Talented middle school students in most public schools and traditional private schools do not have access to a curriculum that allows them to go at their own pace, adequately challenges them, or presents mathematics in a process-based way so that students can become familiar with behaviors of mathematicians (Gentry, Gable, & Springer, 2000; Rogers, 2007). Many gifted students are subjected to materials written at levels that are inappropriate for them and teachers that are not adequately prepared to teach them (Rogers, 2007).

Online Educator Entrepreneurship With Facilitator-Created Subject-Specific Targeted Videos, Jamie Anne Marcus

FDLA Journal

Miller (2017) suggests there is a lack of educator persistence and responsibility to assist the influx of adult learners entering programs in universities and colleges over the last ten years and who are not attaining degrees. Teachers College Columbia University (2013) exhaustive research study shows a 50% greater chance of failure for online student versus face-to-face and recommends the creation of effective online environment and an online presence. Vella (2002) explains that adult learners thrive with stimulation of their cognitive, affective, and psychomotor learning pathways and that adult learner audiences excel with instructor respect, collaboration, and the recognition that these …

The Power Of A Self-Paced, Challenging, Process-Based, Online Mathematics Curriculum For Talented Middle School Students, Shari Stupp, Keith Nabb, Danielle Goodwin

FDLA Journal

In the 1960s a talented team of curriculum developers began to create the curriculum that is today known as Elements of Mathematics: Foundations(EMF) (IMACS, 2006). The founders of EMFbegan with the process-based view that doing mathematics involved reasoning, making connections, problem-solving, representation, and communication – the behaviors of a mathematician – and developed a curriculum that was consistent with what NCTM (2000) would later call the “Process Standards for Mathematics” and what the Common Core State Standards (CCSSI, 2010) would later term the “Standards for Mathematical Practice.” Through the Ford Foundation, U.S. Office of Education, and …

Open Educational Resource (Oer) Adoption In Higher Education: Examining Institutional Perspectives, Rebekah E. Wright, Jennifer L. Reeves

FDLA Journal

The costs associated with education, including tuition and learning resources, continue to rise causing affordability issues for learners. It has been reported that the cost of traditional textbooks and materials has risen by as much as 103% over the past decade (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018). Due to this increase, many students have opted out of purchasing required textbooks for classes. A study conducted in Florida found that 67% of students did not purchase required textbooks (Florida Virtual Campus, 2016). Institutions of Higher Education are becoming increasingly concerned with textbook affordability and the impact on academic performance, achievement, and …

A Winning Mindset: How The Infusion Of Mindset Training Can Enhance Scholarly Work, Kevin Leichtman

Curriculum Studies Summer Collaborative (2011-2025)

Presenter will provide.

A Phenomenological Investigation Of Early Childhood Education Preparation And Experiences Of California Certificated Elementary School Educators Assigned To Transitional Kindergarten, Elizabeth A. Golchert

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This dissertation represents original, independent research that is a contribution of new knowledge to the field of educational practice. As a new phenomenon in the California public school system, transitional kindergarten (TK) is now bringing about a closer look by researchers at legislative practices, TK program implementation, local school district policies, teacher preparation, and teacher implementation of best practices related to the education of children of approximately four years of age. The purpose of conducting this study was to broadly examine these topics, but more specifically, investigate the problem of children being assigned to teachers who do not have the …

Academic Mindset Curriculum: Utilizing Systematic Mindset Training Derived From Athletic Training To Maximize Student Achievement, Kevin Leichtman, Anala Leichtman

Curriculum Studies Summer Collaborative (2011-2025)

Presenter will provide.

Learning Logic: Examining The Effects Of Context Ordering On Reasoning About Conditionals, Christina W. Lommatsch, Patricia S. Moyer-Packenham

Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications

Logical statements are prevalent in mathematics, science and everyday life. The most common logical statements are conditionals, ‘If H … , then C … ’, where ‘H’ is a hypothesis and ‘C’ is a conclusion. Reasoning about conditionals depends on four main conditional contexts (intuitive, abstract, symbolic or counterintuitive). This study tested a theory about the effects of context ordering on reasoning about conditionals. Researchers developed and tested a virtual manipulative mathematics app, called the Learning Logic App.

A total of 154 participants, randomly assigned to a context ordering, interacted with the Learning Logic App. Researchers collected data using a …

Exploring Pedagogies To Elevate Inquiry: Teaching Action Research In The Third Space, Sara B. Woolf

Publications and Research

This study chronicles a semester long inquiry focused on the impacts of pedagogical strategies informed by the tenets of third space theory on my own practices and understanding of students’ learning outcomes in an action research course. As I applied new instructional strategies to promote discourse and critical inquiry, I reflexively explored how these approaches enhanced my impacts on students’ learning and praxis of action research. This paper first provides a brief introduction to third space theory and then describes how I infused this framework into my course approach, the different types of data collected and analyzed to gauge the …

Transforming Professional Development For Today's Educational Environment, Amy L. Geurkink-Coats, Richard A. Regina

Dissertations

Professional development is vital to education. It provides an opportunity for continued growth and learning for educators throughout their career. While teachers earn credentials and certification through a university, professional development is intended to hone skills and help teachers evolve in an ever-changing landscape. The changing landscape may involve technology, generational needs, or broader societal interests. This research is an analysis of the implementation of transformational professional development in one large suburban Midwestern school district and one large Midwestern high school in another district. It analyzes data regarding professional development and examines literature that studies teacher participation, attitudes, and transfer …

Modeling Technology Integration, Megan Morris

Curriculum Studies Summer Collaborative (2011-2025)

Presenter will provide.

2019 Conference Program, Cssc

Curriculum Studies Summer Collaborative (2011-2025)

Conference Program for 2019

Teacher Perspectives On Student Behavior And Aces In Elementary Education, Bridget Mudd

Education | Master's Theses

Since 1998, substantial evidence has demonstrated rates of prevalence for different types of adverse or potentially traumatizing experiences that can happen during childhood, commonly referred to as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). In response, many studies have demonstrated the benefits of trauma-informed practices in mental health. Despite supporting evidence, policymakers have been slow to implement these practices in schools. Teachers are on the front lines of this issue. They are in a position to be most effective in supporting children and most impacted by student behavior yet their voice is notably absent from the literature. The purpose of this study is …

The Effect Of Coaching On Teachers’ Instructional Technology Use In A 1:1 Environment, Michael L. Mitchell

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Current research has reported the benefits of integrating technology into the learning experience for students to promote greater engagement and collaboration. Schools across the country have begun implementing one-to-one learning environments in which each student uses a mobile computing device. However, use of technology in the classroom has failed to produce the expected transformational benefits. In order for technology to be integrated effectively, current research suggests that teacher pedagogy must adjust to the one-to-one classroom approach, and requires professional development to facilitate growth in their instructional practices while integrating technology. Research shows that coaches working one-to-one with teachers can be …