Elementary Education and Teaching Commons^™

The Bank Street Program: Child Growth And Learning In Social Studies Experiences (1952), Charlotte B. Winsor

Bank Street Thinkers

"The teachers and psychologists who are the Bank Street group lay no claim to the discovery of any new axioms in educational practice. They have invented no method, no device, no gadget that opens magic doors to learning. What they have done is to establish principles based upon the needs and purposes of children, related to the world in which they live..." This article illustrates a program at City and Country School in which class jobs, such as running the school post office, supply store, and printing shop form the base for social studies experiences. Applying a philosophy similar to …

Imagination: Active In Teaching And Learning, Christopher Cunningham

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

This autoethnography tells the story of the author’s endeavor to examine my teaching during a sculpture lesson in three 2^nd grade art classes in a mid-western suburban Title I elementary school. I analyze my planning, teaching, reflecting through the lens of Stuart Richmond’s Characteristics of Imaginative Teaching as well as noted educational theorists’ conceptions of imagination and imaginative teaching and learning. These theorists include but are not limited to Maxine Greene, Kieran Egan, John Dewey, and The Lincoln Center Institute’s Capacities for Imaginative Learning. I conclude that imaginative teaching is an intentional act and that there is no …

P17 Black Male Summit, Brandon Jackson

Black Male Summit

Tale of Two African American Males and Their Journey to Ivy League Schools: A Case Study

How do we get more African American males to show their GREATNESS and academic prowess? Can Black Males attend Ivy League schools? How do we prepare our Black Male Scholars for college and career readiness to maximize their education?

P18 Black Male Summit, Brandon Jackson

Black Male Summit

GRAB “A Hands-On Approach to Student Engagement and Academic Performance for African American Males”

Can a handful of words change the trajectory of a persons’ life? Can this acronym G.R.A.B. lead to enhanced college and career readiness in addition enhance their quality of life?

Count Yourself In:Encouraging Students To Take The 180-Day Challenge, Takeysha Ray, Curlandra Lightfoot-Smith

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

In this presentation, participants will focus on the importance of a holistic approach addressing chronic absenteeism in schools. Participants are provided with tools to take to their district and community helping bring awareness to regular, punctual school attendance. We will provide exciting, hands-on, interactive experiences on initiatives and creative strategies addressing truancy.

Icontact: The Digital Feedback Process In A University Setting, Kathleen M. Wilson, Laurie A. Friedrich

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This practitioner research in the form of a case study examined the digital feedback process related to teacher growth in learning and instruction. Graduate students fulfilled course requirements utilizing iPad applications to generate assignments, coach undergraduate preservice teachers, and tutor low performing readers. Course instructors provided online written feedback on all written assignments. An analysis of data through the perspective of the formative process allowed four themes to emerge: (a) teacher learning through iContact, (b) immediate digital feedback and enduring learning, (c) creating an affinity space, and (d) transfer with a ripple effect.

Developing Culturally Competent Teachers: An International Student Teaching Field Experience, Michelle Salmona, Margaret Partlo, Dan Kaczynski, Simon N. Leonard

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study offers a theoretical construct for better understanding how experiential learning enables student teachers to acquire social and cultural variation skills, develop cultural empathy in the K-12 classroom, and the transference of these skills to new educational situations. An Australian and United States research team used a phenomenological approach to explore the connections between the skills student teachers acquire and the application of these newly developed skills to professional practices. Participants were a group of United States pre-teachers who enrolled in a 5 week teaching experience in Australia. Findings show that participation in cultural based events is part of …

Inquiry-Based Learning In Teacher Education: A Primary Humanities Example, Lou Preston, Kate Harvie, Heather Wallace

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Inquiry-based learning features strongly in the new Australian Humanities and Social Sciences curriculum and increasingly in primary school practice. Yet, there is little research into, and few exemplars of, inquiry approaches in the primary humanities context. In this article, we outline and explain the implementation of a place-based simulation as a vehicle for inquiry in a humanities subject in a teacher education course. Preliminary findings of surveys of pre-service teachers conducted pre and post the implementation of the inquiry model suggest increased engagement and enhanced learning outcomes. Further analysis is required in order to determine the depth of pre-service teachers’ …

Implementando La Educación Sexual Integral En El Conurbano: Interpretaciones, Practicas, Y Dificultades De Los Docentes De La Esi En La Escuela Secundaria / Implementing Integral Sexual Education In Grand Buenos Aires: Interpretations, Practices, And Difficulties Of High School Sexual Education Teachers, Alexcia Chambers

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The enactment of Law 26, 150—Argentina’s national Integral Sexual Education (ESI) program—in 2006 gave all Argentine teachers the opportunity, and the responsibility, to teach sexual education in the classroom. Although it has been eight years since the passing of this national law, it has not been universally implemented, and high school teachers in Greater Buenos Aires have yet to receive training on the new curriculum. Analyzing the opinions and experiences of seven high school teachers in the Greater Buenos Aires area, this study seeks to show the reality of sexual education in the Argentine classroom today through the teacher’s eyes. …

The Effect Of A Summer Oral Language And Literacy Intervention On The Literacy Acquisition Of At-Risk First Grade Emergent Readers, Mary Beth Stevens

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

The persistent achievement gap between children from low-socioeconomic and mid- to upper-socioeconomic homes is evident in both national and statewide literacy assessments. Although the summer months away from school are part of the problem, they also hold the potential for an effective solution. Interventions that accelerate literacy development during summer vacation, particularly for children of low-socioeconomic status, have the potential to shift the educational trajectory of our most at-risk students. We investigated the effect of a four-week summer oral language and literacy intervention on the literacy development of rising first grade students from at-risk elementary schools in Jefferson County Public …

Today's Dream Keepers: Exploring The Personal And Professional Beliefs Of Teachers Who Successfully Provide Literacy Instruction To African American Males In Grades 3-5, Lateshia Warren

Georgia Educational Research Association Conference

The purpose of this study was to describe the personal and professional beliefs of teachers who were successful with providing literacy instruction to elementary school African American males in a Title I elementary school. This study examined the literacy practices of teachers and their beliefs about African American males. It also investigated their use of culturally relevant teaching practices. It was hypothesized that by exploring the beliefs and practices of successful teachers with African American males, this research could provide evidence of effective strategies, which could be used to impact the literacy achievement of African American males. A qualitative case …

Distributed Leadership In Schools: Conditions For Success, Daniel Noble

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Teacher leadership has always been a necessary part of school dynamics. Through committees, union/administrative negotiations, formal and informal leadership roles, teachers play an important role in the growth and change of an educational institution. The purpose of this study is to examine teacher leadership through the perspective of distributed leadership theory; identify the conditions and components of both schools and administrators that support distributed leadership and identify essential steps to transform leadership practice to a distributed model.

This is a qualitative text analysis of current theoretical papers and relevant research on the subject of distributed leadership. The information was used …

Examining Elementary Teachers' Sense Of Efficacy In Three Settings In The Southeast, Steven Page, Beth Pendergraft, Judi Wilson

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

This study was conducted to investigate if teachers at urban, rural and suburban elementary schools differ significantly in their sense of self efficacy. The schools utilized for this research are located in the southeastern United States. Along with being in different geographic areas the schools are also different in their socioeconomic make-up and status. The Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy (TSES) created by Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy, was utilized. The authors found that, overall, the teachers at the urban elementary school displayed significantly lower scores on the TSES than did the suburban and rural schools. The implications for further research are …

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, …

The Perceptions Of Caucasian Female Elementary Teachers And The Overrepresentation Of African-American Males In Special Education, Thomas Seaberry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a disproportionate amount of African-American males in special education programs. Several factors have been offered by researchers as to why this phenomenon continues to be a problem throughout the county. The purpose of this study was to understand how Caucasian female teachers' perceptions of African-American male students might influence their overrepresentation in special education. This qualitative study employed an ethnographic case study method, and relied primarily on a pilot study and teacher interviews to obtain data related to this phenomenon. Using this research design, the researcher established six themes related to the research phenomenon: (1) cultural discontinuity between …

Integrating Music Into Samoan Primary Schools: Teachers’ Perceptions And Potential Benefits, Jennifer Fortin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study explores the knowledge-base of teachers’ beliefs and practices of music integration in Samoan primary schools, as well as the potential benefits it provides for young developing minds. Current Samoan teachers’ perceptions of the benefits of music are analyzed in light of data proving these benefits in Primary Education. Children gain only as much as teachers incorporate. Social benefits include a more positive learning environment, improved attention and attitude, as well as inspiration and motivation, along with academic benefits of increased verbal memory, abstract reasoning and reading development. Data was collected through a series of interviews, surveying, observation and …

The Effects Of Collaborative Strategic Reading On Informational Text Comprehension And Metacognitive Awareness Of Fifth Grade Students, Margaret Mccown

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the effects of Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) on informational text comprehension and metacognitive awareness of fifth grade students. This study tested the theories of metacognition and social cognition with a focus on self-regulation and self-efficacy. Participating students included a heterogeneous mix of regular education students, students with disabilities, and English learners (ELs). Using a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest nonequivalent control group design, this study examined the effects of CSR on informational text comprehension using the Qualitative Reading Inventory-5 (QRI-5) and Georgia's Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT). Metacognitive awareness was measured using the Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory (MARSI). Data …

The Impact Of Selected Initiatives On The Reading Criterion Referenced Competency Test Scores Of African-American And Disadvantaged Students In Grades 3, 5, And 8, Eric Fuller

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to examine the impact of selected research-based whole-school reading reform programs, Success for All (SFA), Core Knowledge, and Direct Instruction (DI) on the Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) reading scores of African-American students and students from disadvantaged subgroups in Grades 3, 5, and 8 in a large urban school system. The target sample consisted of 61 elementary schools and 16 middle schools. Student data consisted of 3,533 data points for African-American students and 7,550 data points for disadvantaged students attending reform and non reform schools respectively. A causal-comparative research design was the methodology …

Theory Guided Professional Development In Early Childhood Science Education, Soo-Young Hong, Julia C. Torquati, Victoria J. Molfese

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The importance of early and developmentally appropriate science education is increasingly recognized. Consequently, creation of common guidelines and standards in early childhood science education has begun (National Research Council (NRC), 2012), and researchers, practitioners, and policy makers have shown great interest in aligning professional development with the new guidelines and standard. There are some important issues that need to be addressed in order to successfully implement guidelines and make progress toward accomplishing standards. Early childhood teachers have expressed a lack of confidence in teaching science and nature (Torquati, Cutler, Gilkerson, & Sarver, in press) and have limited science and pedagogical …

Perceived Efficacy Of Beginning Teachers To Differentiate Instruction, Michelle K. Casey, Robert K. Gable

Teacher Education

A two-phase, sequential mixed-methods design was used to assess perceptions of teacher efficacy (10 item survey, alpha = .90) to differentiate instruction for N = 36 graduates from one MAT teacher preparation program. Research questions addressed levels of self-efficacy, perceptions of preparedness, teaching tenure, and number of certifications held. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA and t-test procedures. A focus group with N = 10 purposively selected 2010 graduates and interviews with N = 2 graduates each from the 2008 and 2009 classes, and N = 2 faculty were conducted. No significant relationships were found for tenure and …

The Effect Of Teachers’ Expectations And Perceptions On Student Achievement In Reading For Third And Fifth Grade Students, Alfreda Ragland Williams

Dissertations

All too often, a student’s lack of success is blamed on his or her background, and/or the parent or the parent’s educational level. Many factors such as socioeconomic conditions, student behaviors, attendance, and teacher demographics can directly or indirectly affect class environment, classroom management, interaction with students, and equal treatment of students. In addition, a teacher’s perception of students plays a vital role in the teacher’s expectations, interactions, and relationships with his or her students. The purpose of the study was twofold. First, this study investigated the relationship between teachers’ expectations of equal treatment of students, class environment, interaction with …

Growing Effective Cld Teachers For Today’S Classrooms Of Cld Children, Gayla Lohfink, Amanda Morales, Gail Shroyer, Sally Yahnke

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Using a case study design, this investigation examined the effective teaching characteristics of nontraditional, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) student teachers placed in rural, elementary schools with high populations of Latino/a students. Data collected reflected high percentages of effective teaching characteristics in multiple domains with specific indicators reflective of consistent teaching over time. A discussion of these findings considered aspects within the distance-delivery model that facilitated the CLD participants’ development of effective teaching and noted (1) consistent leadership, (2) explicit teacher instruction within CLD school settings, and (3) the strong cohesive nature of the CLD participants’ cohort as positively affecting …

The Status Of Students With Special Needs In The Instrumental Musical Ensemble And The Effect Of Selected Educator And Institutional Variables On Rates Of Inclusion, Edward C. Hoffman Iii

Glenn Korff School of Music: Dissertations, Theses, Student Creative Work, and Performances

The purpose of this study was to describe the current status of students with special needs in the instrumental musical ensemble and to examine the effect of selected educator and institutional variables on rates of inclusion. An online survey was designed by the researcher and distributed electronically to 600 practicing K-12 instrumental music educators in the states of Idaho, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, and Rhode Island. While 13.6% of the total school-aged population nationwide received special education services, demographic data provided by respondents revealed that students with special needs accounted for 6.8% of all students participating in bands, orchestras, …

Intersections: The Schooling Experiences Of African-American Females Inolved In Long-Term Foster Care And Their Transition Into Womanhood, Sonia Kennedy

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

African-American girls are entering foster care and experiencing longer stays in a system that was not intended to facilitate adolescents transitioning into adulthood. For African American adolescent girls many remain in care indefinitely and move from one temporary foster home, group home and institution to another, with little stability or preparation for the future. Although the Adoption and Safe Families Act (AFSA) of 1994 and other policy reforms were designed to guide the temporary placement of children in foster care, this has not been the case, particularly for African American females. Upon entrance into foster care, African American adolescent females …

Effects Of Classwide Self-Management Intervention On Second Grade Students’ Social Skills In Physical Education, Elian Aljadeff-Abergel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Maintaining students' on-task behavior and engagement with learning materials is difficult due to factors such as a large number of students and the increasing occurrences of disruptive behaviors in class. Students' acquisition of appropriate social skills can increase the teacher's ability to effectively teach in class and facilitate students' academic success. Self-management (SM) interventions in which students manage their own behaviors can serve as socially and ecologically-valid strategies for enhancing students' social skills in the classroom. Self-management programs have wide empirical support that demonstrates their merit for students' learning of social and academic skills. In school settings, self-management interventions were …

Does A Co-Learner Delivery Model In A Mathematics Methods Course Affect Pre-Service Teacher Candidates’ Self-Efficacy In Teaching Mathematics?,, John J. Ribeiro, Denise Demagistris

Teacher Education

This study is related to a previous study (Ribeiro, 2009) that examined teachers’ perceptions of teaching self-efficacy. In the first study the sample consisted of two groups of teachers that took the same professional development course in mathematics. The comparison group took the course in their school district with other teachers and the experimental group took the course with pre-service teachers in a university classroom. After completing the course, both groups were measured in three dimensions of teaching self-efficacy: student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom climate. Findings indicated that although both groups had significant gains in self-efficacy toward teaching mathematics …

Educators' Attitudes Toward Outdoor Classrooms And The Cognitive Benefits In Children, Carlie Speedlin

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

A case study was organized at a K-5 elementary school in Lincoln, Nebraksa. This school is Saratoga Elementary School and is a United States Title I Distinguished School1 under No Child Left Behind. It has a population of 266 students, with 47% being minority, 1% gifted, and 28% special education (LPS School Profile Brochure). 80% of the student population is eligible for free/reduced meals, implying that it’s a school with a lower socioeconomic status. At this school a garden space was constructed and an after school garden club was implemented for this case study. The club had been running since …

The Relationship Of Personality Traits To Satisfaction With The Team: A Study Of Interdisciplinary Teacher Teams In Rhode Island Middle Schools, Michele D. Humbyrd, Robert K. Gable

Teacher Education

Shared practice in schools has emerged; teachers are moving from isolation to team collaboration where personality traits could be related to quality interactions. Team personality traits and team satisfaction were examined. A survey and interview approach was used for N = 244 full-time teachers from N = 49 interdisciplinary teams at N = 7 middle schools. Descriptive, correlational, multiple regression analyses and coded themes about team members’ personalities and interactions were employed. No significant relationships were found between the BFI traits and Satisfaction with the Team. Team-level analysis indicated a significant negative correlation between Satisfaction with theTeam and Extraversion and …

Cultures In Our Community A Social Studies Unit, Anna Louise Buglino

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to create a yearlong unit for social studies that any teacher could pick up and implement into their classroom. It was designed using second grade standards, but can be modified for use in other grade levels. The units are integrated into all subject areas with the goal of teaching students about the community in which they live. It also was designed to create in the classroom an understanding of cultures different from their own. This will create a deeper understanding and awareness of diverse populations and their differences. The instruction of social studies education …

Emotional Antecedents Of Preprimary Teacher Learning, Elizabeth Anne Beavers

Dissertations

A study of the relationships between emotional understanding, the dispositional attributes to think critically, receptiveness to new learning and willingness to change using structural equation modeling was conducted. Data from 186 preprimary teachers were analyzed to confirm the relationships between the constructs yielding four key findings addressing the individual and collective relationships between the variables expressed. Specifically, the findings and interpretations of this study produced the following conclusions: 1) one’s willingness to change may stem directly from the individual’s emotional understandings; 2) there is a strong relationship between emotional understanding and critical thinking dispositions; 3) receptiveness to new learning precedes …