In this study, I use aspects of ethnography to explore the role of cultural narratives in the educational experiences and daily life of the Chamorro people. The major method of collecting the data used in this study included official documents, interviews, and written surveys. These different sets of data collection allowed me to cross-check the data to triangulate the evidence and to refine and validate the study. The Chamorro culture and language still exist. However, the majority of homes are practicing an Americanized lifestyle because of the influences from the United States since their invasion in the 1800s. There has been a shift from the teaching of the history, culture, language, values, and stories of the Chamorro people from the home to the school. Data show that informants agree that teachers across all disciplines should implement cultural narratives into their teaching. The University of Guam and the Guam Community College need to add courses specializing in the Chamorro culture and make this part of the requirements for earned degrees in Elementary, Secondary, and Special Education. Participants agree that cultural narratives support Chamorro values and should be visible in all public and private schools from kindergarten through higher education. The main conclusions include (1) Guam does not have a set written policy for Chamorro cultural narratives although it is an accepted and recognized part of the Chamorro curriculum, (2) the Chamorro cultural narratives should be emphasized more and expanded across the standard curriculum for all grade levels, K-12, (3) the community, the family and the school must work more collaboratively and find more innovative ways to maintain the language and culture of the Chamorro people, and (4) Chamorro narratives should be implemented in both public and private schools.

This study addresses the importance of committing to redesigning how world history is taught at the high school level. Presented is a model for curriculum reform that introduces an approach to teaching revolving around a thematic structure. The purpose of this redesigned thematic curriculum was to introduce an alternative approach to teaching that proceeded from a "critical perspective"--that is, one in which students did not so much learn discrete bits of knowledge but rather an orientation toward learning and thinking about history and its application to their lives. The means by which this was done was by teaching world history from an anthropological perspective. A perspective that made archaeological data more relevant in learning about the past. The study presents how such a model was created through its pilot application in a high school world history classroom. It is through the experimental application of the curriculum ideas in the high school classroom that I was able to determine the effectiveness of this curriculum by following how easily it could be used and how well students responded to it. Therefore, followed in the study was the evolution of the curriculum model's development as it was used in the pilot classroom. Thus, I was able to determine the extent of its success as a tool for teaching critically and for teaching from an anthropological perspective.

<p> The purpose of this project was to create a cardiac rehabilitation nutrition education program with relevant nutrition topics. This program aimed to educate cardiac rehabilitation participants about Eating Heart Healthy as it relates to various topics leading to successful lifestyle changes. Therefore, this program may be used as a secondary prevention tool for post-cardiac event patients.</p><p> The eight-week nutrition education program consists of three modules: general dietary guidelines, dietary factors associated with heart disease, and food selection and preparation. Each lesson includes research-based curriculum, in-class activities, take home activities, and supplemental handouts to foster multiple learning styles. Evaluation forms for each session and the program overall were included.</p>

<p> The purpose of this project was to develop a curriculum related to the safety and effectiveness of dietary supplement use in athletes, including both recreational and competitive athletes. A review of literature was conducted to investigate current research and scientific evidence regarding dietary supplements and athletic performance. Using this evidence-based foundation, the curriculum was then designed as a series of three interactive sessions for athletes. The sessions incorporate lectures, case studies, discussion questions, and group activities to facilitate group learning. The project was reviewed by an expert panel and adjustments were made based upon their recommendations. This curriculum was designed for implementation at the community level and is adaptable based upon the needs of a particular community. An evaluation tool was developed for future program review and adjustment. The curriculum was not pilot tested.</p>

<p> This qualitative study addressed the problem of students' lack of trust of and interest in U.S. history and focused on students' experiences with official and unofficial versions of history in the middle school social studies classroom. A collective case study of five African American students was conducted in an eighth grade classroom at Carroll Academy, a public, urban charter school in Ohio. Interviews, questionnaires, observations, artifacts, and logs were collected and analyzed with a critical, interpretivist lens. </p><p> The findings included: (a) the students were suspicious of the official historical story in the form of their textbook and teacher; (b) they shared similar rationales for the perceived motivations behind the dishonest accounts in their textbooks, and the rationales changed in similar ways throughout the course of the project; (c) although they had limited experience with unofficial history before the project, they preferred to use unofficial historical sources with the condition that one eventually corroborates accounts with official sources; (d) the experience of studying family histories created race-related instances of contradiction between unofficial and official accounts in the classroom, and (e) students developed productive forms of resistance to the grand narrative in U.S. history by the end of the study. </p><p> The findings of the study offer implications for teachers of social studies. By using family history projects, teachers can engage students while helping them learn critical and historical thinking skills. They can provide a more inclusive social studies curriculum and can better understand their students' backgrounds and historical knowledge.</p>

<p>Since the early 1980s Holocaust education and genocide studies programs at the primary, secondary and post-secondary educational levels have become commonplace and an accepted element of public school curriculum. As these programs and their curricula gained acceptance within public education, efforts to increase awareness of genocidal events outside and beyond the European Holocaust as well as increased attention paid to ethnic studies programs have also gained traction in public schooling. These efforts manifested themselves in the mid to late 1990s to include the Great Irish Famine (1845&ndash;1852) as a sub-study of greater Holocaust/genocide studies in both the states of New Jersey and New York. More than ten years after the formal adoption of the official state-sponsored Great Irish Famine curricula, their impact, influence and utilization remain unclear. This paper examines the history behind the creation of both New Jersey and New York Famine Curricula, compares and contrasts the two documents, examines their use in both states&rsquo; public schools, and suggests potential revisions to each Famine curriculum. </p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-02, Section: A, page: 0641. Adviser: Peter Kuchinke. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 201-211) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Higher Education, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 3756. Adviser: Nancy Chism. Title from dissertation home page (viewed May 8, 2008).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Curriculum and Instruction in the School of Education, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-07, Section: A, page: 2902. Adviser: Terrence C. Mason. Title from dissertation home page (viewed Apr. 14, 2008).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, School of Education, 2008. / Title from home page (viewed on May 12, 2009). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-08, Section: A, page: 3014. Advisers: Mary B. McMullen; Christine I. Bennett.