<p> This action research study explored if changes in the reading curriculum, specifically implementation of critical literacy approaches that acknowledge bicultural students, increase student learning as perceived by teachers and students in a Catholic elementary school, where students have been chronically performing at the lowest level in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. By using critical pedagogy (Darder, 1991; Freire, 1970; Giroux, 1983; Macedo, 1994; McLaren, 1988) as a theoretical framework, this action research project investigated the effective elements of critical literacy (Cadiero-Kaplan, 2004; Shor &amp; Pari, 1999) that promote academic learning for Latino middle school students in a low-income Catholic elementary school. </p><p> This study explored the approaches and perceptions of novel studies, as a form of literacy, to increase student learning in reading at a low-income, urban, Catholic elementary school. Classroom observations, teacher interviews, teacher lesson plans, student work, student focus groups, and a teacher focus group validated the findings that critical literacy approaches positively impacted student learning in reading. </p><p> Changes in the school and reading curriculum, specifically the implementation of literacy approaches that acknowledge bicultural students, increased learning for Latino middle school students as perceived by teachers and students in this low-income, urban Catholic elementary school. Teachers implemented effective elements of critical literacy, including direct vocabulary and grammar instruction, analysis of literary tools, incorporation of Spanish, varying forms of assessment, and inclusion of student voice, through the use of novel studies. The school and classroom environments further promoted academic learning for Latino middle school students with high expectations, strict humor, and predictability where teachers, who viewed their students with promising futures, taught as a form of service. Although the school and teachers incorporated literacy practices, teachers fell short of practicing critical literacy because they failed to examine the underlying social ramifications of hegemonic forces.</p>

This study is a qualitative and quantitative examination of the teacher preparation and professional development of ESL specialist teachers in British Columbia. Data were collected through survey questionnaires and the findings were then compared with the qualifications that were espoused as essential preparation by the experts in the research literature to determine if discrepancies existed between best practice guidelines gleaned from the research literature and extant preparation of ESL teachers in BC. The findings of this research revealed that in general, the participants in this survey possessed the general levels of ESL preparation that were commensurate with the criteria recommended by the research literature and the criteria established by the British Columbia Ministry of Education ESL Policy Guidelines. Those who were situated in urban settings had the most access to and participated in the most ESL-related professional development workshops. They also had completed the most ESL courses and felt the most efficacious. Conversely, those participants situated in rural settings had the least access to and participated in the least number of ESL-related professional ESL Preparation and Pro-D iv development activities. They also completed the fewest ESL courses and felt the least efficacious. The majority of participants in this study felt more efficacious in the skills development elements of teaching ESL than in the cultural/social aspects of teaching ESL. Many participants voiced concerns with the lack of quality ESL services offered to ESL students in their respective districts and felt that there was insufficient preparation in the various teacher pre-service teacher education programs in British Columbia to teach ESL students. Further studies could examine why teachers view cultural/social knowledge as secondary to the skills development when experts in the field have asserted that both are essential for teaching ESL; why accessibility to ESL workshops and courses for rural teachers is still a challenge with the available technology; how the various stakeholders in education view ESL and what they foresee as changes to accommodate the demographics of the student population; and how ESL specialist teachers impact the graduation rates of ESL students and the BC Foundation Skills Assessment scores.

A pedagogy of multiliteracies, which has been advocated by numerous literacy specialists working in the field of literacy education, attributes literacy as multiple, dynamic and socially situated. Further, a pedagogy of multiliteracies stresses the multimodal features of communication, and students instructed from this pedagogical perspective explore the visual, gestural, spatial and auditory modes, as well as the linguistic ones of speech and writing. Finally, a pedagogy of multiliteracies was developed with the goal of creating a more equitable education system, in which learner diversity can be represented in the literacies of the English Language Arts classroom. In consideration of this goal, a multiliteracies pedagogy prompts teachers to include those literacy practices that students engage with outside of school in the English Language Arts classroom. The purpose of this research was, firstly, to learn about the literacies which secondary teachers are exploring with their students in the English Language Arts, teachers’ motivation for doing so, and how these literacies are being instructed. Secondly, factors that influence the enactment of this pedagogy in the English Language Arts as seen in the literature on the topic were explored. These factors were standardized tests, teacher education, access to resources and finally, teacher culture. The design of case study was used to answer the research questions, and qualitative research methods were employed to collect and analyze data provided by participants, all practicing English Language Arts teachers at the secondary level. The types of data collected included interviews, observations, field notes taken during the interviews and observations and finally, teaching artifacts such as assignment sheets. The findings of my study suggested that although many teachers are incorporating a range of literacies in their classes, the features of these literacies and the literacy skills needed to interpret multiple modes were not often addressed in the classroom. Participants noted the inclusion of a variety of literacies in their programs as a means to engage students in the skills and materials traditionally featured in the English Language Arts, or to expand on themes apparent in literature and connect these themes to contemporary culture. In addition, few participants considered the ideological elements inherent in literacy education in their integration of multiliteracies in their classes, nor did many of these teachers describe the need for students to develop critical literacy skills. The impediments that appeared to limit the enactment of this pedagogy were entrenched teachers’ views about literacy learning, lack of education in the foundational theory of this pedagogy, and lack of time for professional development, collegial sharing, and amassing resources that could support teachers towards incorporating a range of literacies in their programs. Despite the identification in much of the literature of standardized tests as a major impediment to the realization of this pedagogical approach in the classroom, such tests did not appear to significantly influence the participants’ implementation of multiple literacies in their classes. The findings of this study suggest that the teachers were incorporating a range of literacies in their English Language Arts programs, yet the teachers making these inclusions were not motivated by a desire to achieve the aims of increased equity in literacy education or to develop students’ understanding of the multimodal features of communication. Consequently, many of the goals of this pedagogy were not being realized in the English Language Arts classrooms of the research participants.

<p> The purpose of this qualitative exploratory research study was to examine the perceptions of K-12 educational leaders who have experience related to Response to Intervention (RtI) and Common Core State Standards (CCSS). This study was guided by the following three research questions: 1. What do K-12 educational leaders who have systems knowledge and experience, related to Response to Intervention and CCSS, perceive as the potential modifications needed to align the assessment components (universal screening and progress monitoring) of Response to Intervention with the CCSS for Language Arts? 2. What do K-12 educational leaders who have systems knowledge and experience, related to RtI and the CCSS, perceive as challenges that may result from any modifications to the assessment components needed to aligning the assessment components of RtI with the CCSS for Language Arts at? 3. What strategies do K-12 educational leaders who have systems knowledge and experience, related to RtI and CCSS, perceive might be utilized to address any challenges regarding aligning the assessment components (universal screening and progress monitoring) of RtI with the CCSS for Language Arts? </p><p> This research study utilized a qualitative exploratory design and involved eight educational leaders from Southern California. The findings from this study supported five practice recommendations. The first recommendation was for LEAs to develop a shared vision in regards to the role of RtI in supporting the CCSS for ELA. The second recommendation was for LEAs to develop teams of stakeholders to participate in the development of a comprehensive plan, throughout all phases of implementation, to align their RtI assessment tools to the CCSS for ELA. The third recommendation was for LEAs to develop RtI assessment tools that aligned to the CCSS for ELA. The fourth recommendation was for LEAs to select a College and Career Readiness (CCR) or 21st century framework, in order to help teachers to support the CCR skills embedded in the CCSS. The fifth recommendation was for LEAs to create strategic professional development plans to ensure that teachers receive adequate training to teach the College and Career Readiness skills embedded in the CCSS for ELA.</p>

No description available.

This thesis begins with the premise that strategies are important if students are to learn effectively, and that this applies no less to language than to any other field of learning. After issues of terminology and definition are addressed, there is a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the language learning strategy concept. Since the concept of proficiency is also central to the thesis, issues relating to the definition and assessment of proficiency are considered before previous research in the language learning strategy field is reviewed. This research was carried out in three stages in a private language school in Auckland, New Zealand. Part A, Section 1 used the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) (Oxford, 1990) as the basic instrument to investigate the relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency and to examine the strategy patterns used by more proficient students. Part A, Section 2 used the same data to investigate language learning strategy use according to learner variables (nationality, gender, age). Part B used interviews to investigate language learning strategy use by individuals and Part C used a classroom based programme to explore means of instructing students in language learning strategy use and also to construct an original questionnaire using student input (the English Language Learning Strategy Inventory or ELLSI). This questionnaire was used to further investigate the relationship between language learning strategy use and proficiency and also changes in strategy use over time as well as teachers’ perspectives on language learning strategy use. The results of the SILL phase of the study revealed a significant relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency (a finding supported by the results of the ELLSI study) and also significant differences in strategy use according to nationality, while the interviews revealed some useful insights regarding the use of language learning strategies by individuals. From the longitudinal section of the study it was found that those students who made the most progress were the ones who most increased the frequency of their language learning strategy use. The results of the teachers’ survey indicated that teachers regarded language learning strategies as highly important, an encouraging result in terms of positive implications for a good accord between teachers and students in the teaching/learning situation. The classroom programme, however, aimed at exploring ways to promote language learning strategy use among students, was only a lukewarm success and much work remains to be done to find ways of making insights regarding language learning strategies available to students. The thesis concludes by bringing together the key findings and suggesting areas for further research.

The aim of this thesis is to ascertain the degree to which high-stakes assessment for qualifications, such as New Zealand's National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA), act as a barrier to secondary English teachers' use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) with their students. Although the focus is on high-stakes assessment for qualifications, other factors, which might also facilitate or hinder English teachers' use of ICTs, such as professional development and infrastructural, technical and access issues, are also considered. The literature review summarises the factors which tend to constrain or encourage teachers' use of ICTs, with a special focus on the considerable constraint placed on secondary teachers by their role in preparing and assessing students for high-stakes qualifications. The literature review also highlights the lack of convincing research into the impact on learning of ICTs but reveals that, in the subject English, there is some evidence of a positive impact when appropriate ICTs are used by well trained teachers in appropriate contexts. Key NCEA foundation and implementation documents and publicity, achievement standards and assessment activities were analysed to ascertain the degree of official endorsement for the use of ICTs in secondary schools and English programmes in particular. To gauge the perceptions of New Zealand English teachers about the constraints and encouragers of ICTs in their teaching, all NCEA level one English teachers were surveyed. This was followed by face-to-face and online focus groups in which trends revealed in the survey were explored. Document analysis revealed considerable official optimism that the flexibility and internal assessment of the NCEA would enable teachers to make greater use of ICTs. The achievement standards and supporting assessment activities however, tend to situate ICTs at the margins of English programmes as optional extras which, if used at all, tend to support current practice. The focus groups confirmed survey findings that, although English teachers are significant users of ICTs in their personal and professional lives, although they believe in the educational advantages of ICTs and although they work in schools and departments which support the classroom use of ICTs, they face significant constraints which prevent them making as much use of ICTs as they would like in their teaching. Most significant among these constraints is pressure of course coverage and lack of class time (largely attributable to the need to prepare students for high-stakes assessments). Other constraints include lack of adequate access to ICTs and technical support, and lack of appropriate professional development and time to learn about ICTs. Based on the literature review and research findings, recommendations are provided for schools, policy makers and researchers. Key among these is the need to acknowledge the profound influence of high-stakes qualifications on secondary schools and teachers and evolve such qualifications to encourage and enable desired innovations. It is recommended that ICTs could be infused into English and eventually, inter-disciplinary programmes, through the creation of innovative, ICT infused achievement standards which could be combined into flexibly structured courses which better meet the needs of twenty first century students. Also recommended are approaches which enable greater access to ICTs for English teachers and methods of professional development which have proved effective with adult learners. / Subscription resource available via Digital Dissertations only.

This thesis begins with the premise that strategies are important if students are to learn effectively, and that this applies no less to language than to any other field of learning. After issues of terminology and definition are addressed, there is a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the language learning strategy concept. Since the concept of proficiency is also central to the thesis, issues relating to the definition and assessment of proficiency are considered before previous research in the language learning strategy field is reviewed. This research was carried out in three stages in a private language school in Auckland, New Zealand. Part A, Section 1 used the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) (Oxford, 1990) as the basic instrument to investigate the relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency and to examine the strategy patterns used by more proficient students. Part A, Section 2 used the same data to investigate language learning strategy use according to learner variables (nationality, gender, age). Part B used interviews to investigate language learning strategy use by individuals and Part C used a classroom based programme to explore means of instructing students in language learning strategy use and also to construct an original questionnaire using student input (the English Language Learning Strategy Inventory or ELLSI). This questionnaire was used to further investigate the relationship between language learning strategy use and proficiency and also changes in strategy use over time as well as teachers’ perspectives on language learning strategy use. The results of the SILL phase of the study revealed a significant relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency (a finding supported by the results of the ELLSI study) and also significant differences in strategy use according to nationality, while the interviews revealed some useful insights regarding the use of language learning strategies by individuals. From the longitudinal section of the study it was found that those students who made the most progress were the ones who most increased the frequency of their language learning strategy use. The results of the teachers’ survey indicated that teachers regarded language learning strategies as highly important, an encouraging result in terms of positive implications for a good accord between teachers and students in the teaching/learning situation. The classroom programme, however, aimed at exploring ways to promote language learning strategy use among students, was only a lukewarm success and much work remains to be done to find ways of making insights regarding language learning strategies available to students. The thesis concludes by bringing together the key findings and suggesting areas for further research.

The aim of this thesis is to ascertain the degree to which high-stakes assessment for qualifications, such as New Zealand's National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA), act as a barrier to secondary English teachers' use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) with their students. Although the focus is on high-stakes assessment for qualifications, other factors, which might also facilitate or hinder English teachers' use of ICTs, such as professional development and infrastructural, technical and access issues, are also considered. The literature review summarises the factors which tend to constrain or encourage teachers' use of ICTs, with a special focus on the considerable constraint placed on secondary teachers by their role in preparing and assessing students for high-stakes qualifications. The literature review also highlights the lack of convincing research into the impact on learning of ICTs but reveals that, in the subject English, there is some evidence of a positive impact when appropriate ICTs are used by well trained teachers in appropriate contexts. Key NCEA foundation and implementation documents and publicity, achievement standards and assessment activities were analysed to ascertain the degree of official endorsement for the use of ICTs in secondary schools and English programmes in particular. To gauge the perceptions of New Zealand English teachers about the constraints and encouragers of ICTs in their teaching, all NCEA level one English teachers were surveyed. This was followed by face-to-face and online focus groups in which trends revealed in the survey were explored. Document analysis revealed considerable official optimism that the flexibility and internal assessment of the NCEA would enable teachers to make greater use of ICTs. The achievement standards and supporting assessment activities however, tend to situate ICTs at the margins of English programmes as optional extras which, if used at all, tend to support current practice. The focus groups confirmed survey findings that, although English teachers are significant users of ICTs in their personal and professional lives, although they believe in the educational advantages of ICTs and although they work in schools and departments which support the classroom use of ICTs, they face significant constraints which prevent them making as much use of ICTs as they would like in their teaching. Most significant among these constraints is pressure of course coverage and lack of class time (largely attributable to the need to prepare students for high-stakes assessments). Other constraints include lack of adequate access to ICTs and technical support, and lack of appropriate professional development and time to learn about ICTs. Based on the literature review and research findings, recommendations are provided for schools, policy makers and researchers. Key among these is the need to acknowledge the profound influence of high-stakes qualifications on secondary schools and teachers and evolve such qualifications to encourage and enable desired innovations. It is recommended that ICTs could be infused into English and eventually, inter-disciplinary programmes, through the creation of innovative, ICT infused achievement standards which could be combined into flexibly structured courses which better meet the needs of twenty first century students. Also recommended are approaches which enable greater access to ICTs for English teachers and methods of professional development which have proved effective with adult learners. / Subscription resource available via Digital Dissertations only.

This thesis begins with the premise that strategies are important if students are to learn effectively, and that this applies no less to language than to any other field of learning. After issues of terminology and definition are addressed, there is a discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of the language learning strategy concept. Since the concept of proficiency is also central to the thesis, issues relating to the definition and assessment of proficiency are considered before previous research in the language learning strategy field is reviewed. This research was carried out in three stages in a private language school in Auckland, New Zealand. Part A, Section 1 used the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) (Oxford, 1990) as the basic instrument to investigate the relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency and to examine the strategy patterns used by more proficient students. Part A, Section 2 used the same data to investigate language learning strategy use according to learner variables (nationality, gender, age). Part B used interviews to investigate language learning strategy use by individuals and Part C used a classroom based programme to explore means of instructing students in language learning strategy use and also to construct an original questionnaire using student input (the English Language Learning Strategy Inventory or ELLSI). This questionnaire was used to further investigate the relationship between language learning strategy use and proficiency and also changes in strategy use over time as well as teachers’ perspectives on language learning strategy use. The results of the SILL phase of the study revealed a significant relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency (a finding supported by the results of the ELLSI study) and also significant differences in strategy use according to nationality, while the interviews revealed some useful insights regarding the use of language learning strategies by individuals. From the longitudinal section of the study it was found that those students who made the most progress were the ones who most increased the frequency of their language learning strategy use. The results of the teachers’ survey indicated that teachers regarded language learning strategies as highly important, an encouraging result in terms of positive implications for a good accord between teachers and students in the teaching/learning situation. The classroom programme, however, aimed at exploring ways to promote language learning strategy use among students, was only a lukewarm success and much work remains to be done to find ways of making insights regarding language learning strategies available to students. The thesis concludes by bringing together the key findings and suggesting areas for further research.