Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Subjectivities In The Sandbox: Discovering Biases Through Visual Memo Writing, Bethany Lisi

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Having insider status at an organization under study can present a researcher with benefits and challenges. Insider researchers may have access to honest dialogue with study participants but may also be vulnerable to uncomfortable conversations and organizational conflicts. Insider researchers also have to contend with their own biases they bring to a study. By using the reflexive practice of memo writing, insider researchers can be mindful of their own subjectivities during data collection and analysis. The purpose of this article is to share one approach to memo writing that incorporates visuals into the analysis and reflection. Through my use of …

High Retention Of Minority And International Faculty Through A Formal Mentoring Program, Susan L. Phillips, Susan T. Dennison, Mark A. Davenport

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

In these economic times, retention of new faculty, particularly minority and international faculty, is a high priority. In this study, retention of new faculty from 2006 to 2013 was compared for participants and nonparticipants in a formal mentoring program. Retention was 92% for participating faculty and 58% for nonparticipating new faculty. For African American faculty, retention was 86% for participating and 56% for nonparticipating. Participating international faculty were retained at 100% and nonparticipating at 61%. The results indicate that mentoring programs including both individual and group mentoring provide a supportive community and self validation to new faculty, leading to high …

Connect, Change, And Conserve: Building A Virtual Center For Teaching Excellence, Anne M. Schoening, Sarah Oliver

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

In an era of limited fiscal and human resources, educational developers are seeking innovative ways to connect with their constituents. Developing a “virtual” center for teaching and learning (CTL) is one approach to consolidating development resources and reaching busy full time and adjunct faculty. This article will describe the process used to create and sustain a Virtual Center for Teaching Excellence (vCTE) at a diverse, mid sized university campus. This process required connection between departmental faculty developers and stakeholders, change of the campus mindset, and conservation of resources through shared efforts. Challenges faced and recommendations to overcome those challenges will …

Toward A New Creative Scholarship Of Educational Development: The Teaching And Learning Project And An Opening To Discourse, Martin Springborg, Cassandra V. Horii

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

This invited essay of To Improve the Academy’s special feature on Creative Scholarship presents one example of creative scholarship in educational development as a forward to other forms and approaches in the special feature. This example, the Teaching and Learning Project, merges documentary and art photography traditions with faculty consultation. Following a review of the literatures of visual interpretation and instructional consultation, along with their intersection, the essay presents the Teaching and Learning Project in three ways: (a) as images, analyzed using the disciplinary grounding of the visual arts; (b) as a consultation methodology and an educational development practice; and …

Don’T Box Me In: Rubrics For Ártists And Designers, Natasha Haugnes, Jennifer L. Russell

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Two faculty developers at a professional art and design university were met with uneasy faculty attitudes toward grading when they opened their CTL 13 years ago. Conversations revealed that the faculty artists and designers suspected that grading would somehow shatter the fragile muse of creativity, which is so central to the processes of producing art and design. The developers’ quest for transparent, consistent grading, and assessment practices resulted in an approach to rubric creation that taps into artists’ reverence for the critique. This narrative account reveals how the approach allowed an interactive introduction of rubrics as teaching tools, ensured their …

An Exploration Of Teacher Candidate Perceptions Concerning Their Political Role In Social Studies Education, Brian Zagrocki

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study argued that the purpose of social studies education is intimately connected with civic engagement. The function of civic engagement shifts in accordance with the political roles a teacher plays in the classroom (Westhaimer & Kahne, 2004). The literature review defined the possible parameters of these political roles. The research then explored how secondary social science and elementary teacher candidates, if at all, planned to address the political issue of civic engagement in education and their self-awareness as political actors. This research study aimed to expand the available body of research on this topic by exploring the perceptions of …

Making Your Traditional Text Work: Input, Scaffolding And Communication, Andrew J. Demil

The Coastal Review

Second Language Acquisition (SLA) studies provide evidence that comprehension activities that involve meaningful language production and communication promote language acquisition more effectively than mechanical drills. Recent studies review the state of foreign language textbooks and demonstrate that the majority of foreign language textbooks do not follow SLA research. This article provides ways that a second language instructor can use a traditional text to help lead to meaningful language instruction.

An Exploration Of Teacher Retention In Rural School Districts In Eastern Kentucky, Jeremy Watts

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

Teacher retention rates are staggeringly low across the United States. Nearly 20% of public school teachers leave their position from one year to the next, a majority of schools have a turnover rate of 50% every three years, and over 50% of teachers leave the education field within the first five years of employment. This retention problem impacts all type of public school systems—urban, suburban, and rural school districts.

This study examined teacher retention in elementary and secondary schools in three rural school districts in eastern Kentucky. Review of district and school documents about teacher retention informed the selection of …

Students' Reasoning Around The Functional Relationship, Michele Carney, Angela Crawford

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Proportional reasoning is related to flexible use of the scalar and functional relationships that exist in proportional situations. More specifically, in regard to the functional relationship, students’ understanding of the multiplicative comparison that exists between two quantities in a ratio is a key concept. We conducted student interviews with 12 high performing students to examine their conception of the functional relationship. Analyses provided initial evidence that the majority of students did not conceive of the multiplicative comparison when solving problems designed to press the functional relationship, indicating students’ written work that makes use of the functional relationship should not imply …

Entering The World Of University: The Literacies And Indentities Of Latino/A Youth In Their Transitions From High School To College, Luciene Soares Wandermurem

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This year-long ethnographic case study seeks to contribute to the body of literature on minoritized students' transitions from high school to college by drawing on sociocultural theories of literacies and identities to examine seven bilingual Latino/a students' academic trajectories from the spring semester of their senior year in high school through the fall semester of their first year in college. Specifically, this study explores how Latino/a youth's identities and academic aspirations were shaped by literacy practices across spaces - out-of-school, at a high school, and in college classrooms - over the course of a year. The study was conduct in …

Psyc 287: Psychology Of Personality—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Maital Neta

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

In this portfolio, I am assessing student learning in a mid-level Psychology course, Psyc 287: Psychology of Personality. The course introduces students to the major theories of personality, and covers a wide array of topics intended to provide a broad overview of issues in the field. The course attracts a somewhat representative sample of UNL students, including non-majors, and therefore most are from Nebraska. The course is not a prerequisite to any other courses, but it could be a useful foundation course for students pursuing a career in psychology research, and it could also help people to consider issues related …

Anth 474/874: Applied And Development Anthropology—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Wayne A. Babchuk

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

In what follows, I provide an overview of the Benchmark Portfolio developed for the upper level undergraduate/graduate course ANTH 474/874: Applied and Development Anthropology taught in the Spring Semester, 2016 through the Department of Anthropology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Topics include the objectives for the portfolio, description of the course including course goals, enrollment and demographic information, teaching methods, rationale, course materials and activities, analysis of student learning, planned changes based on this experience, and an overall assessment of the portfolio process. As an Assistant Professor of Practice in the Department of Educational Psychology and the Department of Anthropology, …

Nres/Metr/Bsen 479/879: Hydroclimatology—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Francisco Munoz-Arriola

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Rising temperatures and extreme hydrometeorological and climate events are evidences of a changing climate. An increasing population together with their demands for food, energy and water make changes in climate evidence the need to train a new generation of multidisciplinary professionals with a clear understanding of the effects of a changing climate in their activities. Historically, climate sciences were used for scientific and weather operational contexts and engineers applied stationary assumptions for multi-term planning. My goal is to identify elements built from classroom experiences about (a) the suitability of a hydroclimatology course for engineers and scientists; (b) the multidisciplinary skills; …

Civil War Diary Of Private Hawley V. Needham, 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, June 10 To October 2, 1864, Dieter C. Ullrich

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

On April 27, 1864, Hawley Varnum Needham left his family farm at Loda, Illinois and traveled to nearby Onarga to enlist in the Union Army. He promised his father he would return before the fall harvest. His adventures in the army would take him to the Jackson Purchase of Kentucky where he was stationed at the Federal bastion at Columbus and at military posts in Paducah and Mayfield. He captured his daily experiences throughout the turbulent spring and summer of 1864 in his diary.

Critical Pedagogy And Participatory Democracy: Creating Classroom Contexts That Challenge “Common Sense”, Lilia D. Monzó, P. Zitlali Morales

Education Faculty Articles and Research

In this response to “The Political Nuances of Narratives and an Urban Educator’s Response,” the authors applaud Pearman’s critical approach to deconstructing and challenging narratives of heroic figures who single-handedly change the world and agree with him that these narratives restrict the sense of agency that may propel citizens to become actively involved in social change efforts. We argue that it is important to question why these narratives exist and to understand them in light of the hegemonic capitalist structure that exploits the masses in service to the capitalist class. Although we agree with Pearman that democracy is best served …

Nsu Early Literacy And Reading Education Curriculum 2016, Nova Southeastern University

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice College Archive

No abstract provided.

"Boys Learn The Teacher, And Then They Learn The Subject": The Importance Of The Teacher-Student Relationship In Engaging High School Boys In The Writing Classroom, Leslie Ellis

Masters Theses

This thesis explores methods for engaging high school boys in the writing classroom. Chapter one describes the differing beliefs scholars have about boys' educational situation, specifically in English language arts. Several researchers and scholars describe boys' situation as dire because boys have failed to improve as girls have over the last sixty years. These researchers cite various reasons for boys' academic stagnation, such as learning styles, hormones, brain structure and development, the feminization of the classroom, motivation, engagement, and teaching styles. These factors may contribute to the gender gap in writing. Other scholars deny the urgency of boys' lack of …

Developing A Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program For Education Majors In A Non-English Speaking Country, Barbara A. Brandley, Jaime Colwell, Mindy Spearman

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This chapter describes how faculty can plan, develop, prepare, and lead a study abroad program in a non-English speaking country for students majoring in education. It presents an overview and timeline for directing a program, discusses how to plan and develop a program, tells how to recruit and prepare participants, and describes how to support participants while living and teaching abroad. It also presents issues that faculty should consider during each phase of a study abroad, and it provides suggestions for addressing these concerns.

The Power Of Autobiography: Unpacking The Past, Understanding The Present, And Impacting The Future While Establishing A Community Of Practice, Angela Branyon, Mark Diacopoulos, Kristen Gregory, Brandon Butler

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

How Can We Teach About The Holocaust To Seven To Ten Year Olds?, Eleanor Hersh

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Teaching about the Holocaust in a school setting is a debated topic. When and how to approach and teach the subject is not always agreed upon. In this research paper and unit plan you can see how a teacher can teach the Holocaust to children aged seven to ten.

Developing University Students’ Argumentative Discourse: An Ill-Structured Issue Pertaining To Black African Immigrants And African Americans, Olubusayo Olojo-Adeoye

Wayne State University Dissertations

The overarching goal of this three-article five-chapter dissertation was to develop university students’ argument-counterargument integration abilities in persuasive essay writing on an ill-structured issue pertaining to black African immigrants and African Americans. Article One consisted of using phenomenography as a research approach to identify the qualitatively different ways university students perceive black African immigrants and African Americans. The university participants had 24 perceptions in which 10 pertained to black African immigrants and 14 to African Americans. The perceptions were grouped into six descriptive categories. The variations in perceptions were then used as statements for argumentation. The study implies that university …

The Design Of E-Learning Resources For Part-Time Distance Education Students, Rowena Hennigan

Teaching Fellowships

This research assessed the current e-learning provision for Ibec postgraduate students at DIT. The current e-learning resources are delivered using Webcourses (Blackboard), which is the Institute’s Learning Management System (LMS).1 The first stage of the research involved an audit of the existing e-learning resources on Webcourses, discussions with colleagues and a review of the e-learning literature. This research indicated that there were five key elements required in the programme’s e-learning design, namely: user experience, assessment, module content, interactivity of content and the updating of module content. A number of amendments were made in order to provide standardisation and to enhance …

Informing Instructional Design By Cognitive Load Assessment In The Classroom., Luca Longo

Teaching Fellowships

Cognitive Load Theory is an approach that considers the limitations of the information processing system of the human mind. It is a cognitivist theory that has been conceived in the context of instructional design. One of the main open problems in the literature is the lack of reliable models and technologies to assess cognitive load of learners, thus limiting the application of the theory in practice. This project was aimed at tackling this open problem through the use of a previously developed mobile, responsive web-based prototypical technology, to assess the cognitive load of students in a typical third-level classroom. It …

A Cpd Programme For Out-Of-Field Mathematics Teachers: Programme Outline And Preliminary Evaluations By Participants, Fiona Faulkner

Conference papers

This paper outlines an innovative Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme established in the Republic of Ireland for out-of-field mathematics teachers in second-level education. Research on out-of-field mathematics teachers in Ireland conducted in 2009 (Ní Ríordáin & Hannigan) motivated the development of a unique two year, part time Professional Diploma in Mathematics for Teaching (PDMT). The PDMT was first offered in 2012 jointly by the University of Limerick (UL) and the National University of Ireland, Galway and currently has 550 graduates. The main research question that this project aimed to address was: Are teachers enrolled in the PDMT satisfied with the …

Arts-Based Education Research:A Critical Reflection From Two Irish Academics., Eric Bates, Karol Sadleir

Conference papers

This paper details the experience of two Irish academics as they engaged in Arts-Based Education Research (ABER). Between them both they have explored the following areas; an autoethnographic exploration of how experience of assessment throughout educational life can shape professional life and identity; an autoethnographic exploration of the notion of inclusion; an autoethnographic exploration of the transition into leadership; an autoethnographic exploration of being an academic in the Irish education system. While ABER is an unorthodox approach to research which they both found challenging, they nevertheless conclude that it has potential to reveal insights into professional practice that conventional research …

The Problem-Solving Process In A Mathematics Classroom, Enrique Ortiz

Transformations

Problem solving provides a working framework to apply mathematics, and well chosen mathematics problems provide students with the opportunity to solidify and extend what they know, and can stimulate students’ mathematics learning (NCTM, 2001). Using this framework, students may utilize ways to learn mathematics concepts and skills that are rich with meaning and connections, and pre- and in-service teachers may implement teaching and assessment procedures to establish teaching and assessment environments.

Function Concept: Learning From History, Ruthmae Sears, Dung Tran, Seoung Woo Lee, Amanda Thomas

Transformations

The importance of functions in school mathematics has grown tremendously within the past century. Functions have progressed from being scantly represented in school mathematics to being a core mathematical topic. C.B. Boyer (1946) acknowledged “The development of the function concept has revolutionized mathematics in much the same way as did the nearly simultaneous rise of non-Euclidean geometry. It has transformed mathematics from a pure natural science- the queen of the sciences- into something vastly large. It has established mathematics as the basis of all rigorous thinking – the logic of all possible relations” (Markovits, Eylor, & Bruckheimer, 1986, p. 18). …

Mathematics Anxiety In Society: A Real Phenomena And A Real Solution, Joseph M. Furner, Carol A. Marinas

Transformations

While math anxiety still remains a real issue affecting student performance and confidence, today it is even more critical with the greater emphasis on producing more students for careers in STEM fields. In an effort to understand ways to ease math anxiety and encourage adaptive achievement behaviors to deal with such anxiety, this paper will explore the topic and provide research-based practices in providing a solution to this existing problem in our schools. There are many studies that show using technology in the teaching of mathematics will help to alleviate math anxiety and encourage students to enjoy learning mathematics. GeoGebra, …

When Two Wrongs Made A Right: A Classroom Scenario Of Critial Thinking As Problem Solving, Hui Fan Huang "Angie" Su, Frederick A. Ricci, Mamikon Mnatsakanian

Transformations

Educators from kindergarten through college often stress the importance of teaching critical thinking within all academic content areas (Foundation for Critical Thinking, 2007, 2013). As indicated by the position statements of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, high quality mathematics education before the first grade should use curriculum and teaching practices that strengthen children’s problem-solving and reasoning processes as well as representing, communicating, and connecting mathematical ideas” The joint position statement of NAEYC and the National Council of” (NAEYC & NCTM [2002] 2010, 3). Through the educational and academic institutions critical thinking is identified as an important outcome for …

Winter 2016, Transformations

Transformations

No abstract provided.