Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 87-94).

The purpose of this study is to examine the process of stabilization and/or change in university students' notions of content and transmission and acquisition of knowledge. The subjects, 25 students of engineering, economics, medicine, and psychology, were interviewed at the beginning and the end of their training period. The main result of the study is that the students of psychology, both at the beginning and the end of their training, manifest the greatest variation in notions of content and in the transmission and acquisition of knowledge. They express five qualitatively different notions at these two points of time. Furthermore, practically all students of psychology develop a repertory of notions in the course of their training. This means that the students simultaneously express more than one notion of the content of their education. Initially, the students of economics express three different notions of content and of the transmission and acquisition of knowledge. Towards the end of their training, they have developed a fourth notion. Slightly more than half of the students of economics acquire a repertory of notions of the content of economics in the course of their training. Initially, the students of medicine express three notions of medicine. Towards the end of their training they express only two different types of notions of the content of medicine. Few students of medicine develop an individual repertory of notions. Initially, the students of engineering express three different notions of engineering. Towards the end of their training they express four qualitatively different notions. Some students develop a repertory of notions of enginee­ring in the course of their training. From the point of view of content, the students' notions vary between social and individual explanations and definitions of their respective subjects. The changes in the students' notions are analysed on the basis of the curriculum code of each programme. The programmes of medicine and engineering are dominated by a collected code whereas the programmes of economics and psychology are dominated by an integrated code. / digitalisering@umu

<p> English Language Learners (ELLs) are no longer a part of specific areas of America. They have crossed all classroom boundaries of the United States. This means as ELLs have integrated into the classrooms, educators are becoming versed in methods and strategies to help ELLs learn and achieve proficiency on standardized assessments. The purpose of this study was to determine if ELLs learned enough to be proficient in English to do well on a standardized test as their non-ELL peers. The Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) and the Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State to State (ACCESS) were the two exams used to compare proficiency results. The MAP is the standardized test given to Missouri students beginning at Grade 3. The ACCESS is a language achievement test developed by the World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) Consortium to track levels of English in students beginning in Kindergarten. Students in Grades 3 through 8 were the focus for this study. The exam results of ELLs who took both the MAP and ACCESS were analyzed and compared to their non-ELL peers. The results showed that ELLs who meet academic proficiency on their ACCESS test also have as much English comprehension to do as well on the MAP as the non-ELLs. All groups of students, Grades 3 through 8, showed that if ELLs have reached a level of bridging, or Level 5, they are capable of working with grade level material in English.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to contribute to available literature by ascertaining student perceptions of benefits of student access to technology as correlated to students&rsquo; standardized test scores. Students and teachers were surveyed for perceptions of technology benefits. Survey results were analyzed and Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were calculated comparing student perceptions to standardized Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) grade-level assessment results. As described in specific detail in this paper, it was found student standardized MAP testing data were positively correlated to the introduction of technology-integrated instruction in the classroom setting. Student perceptions indicated a more positive linear association to the support of technology in the content area of mathematics than communication arts. Teacher perceptions of technology integration into the classroom indicated the influx of technology into classroom instruction benefitted lesson preparation and availability of supporting materials.</p>

No description available.

<p> With the new goal of K-12 education being to prepare students to be college and career ready at the end of high school, education needs to start changing at the elementary school level. The literature suggests that teachers need reflective professional development (PD) to effectively teach to the new standards and to demonstrate change to their current instructional practices. This mixed-method multiple-case study investigated the impacts of a reflective professional development (PD) in changing elementary school teachers' instructional practices. </p><p> Teachers Instructional Portfolios (TIPs) were scored with a TIP rubric based on best practices in teaching mathematics problem-solving and science inquiry. The TIPs were also analyzed with a qualitative coding scheme. Case descriptions were written and all the collected data were used to explain the impacts of the reflective PD on changes in teachers' instructional practices. </p><p> While we found no predictive patterns in relation to teachers changing their classroom practices based on the reflective PD, we claim that teachers' desire to change might contribute to improvements in instruction. We also observed that teachers' self-assessment scores tend to be higher than the actual TIP scores corroborating with the literature on the usage of self-assessment to evaluate teachers' instructional practices.</p>

<p> Focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) literacy is a national priority for the United States. As competition increases internationally for scientific and technological innovations, the United States is concentrating on building its STEM capacity (Stephens, 2011). Despite the numerous STEM reform efforts there continues to be a decline in STEM graduates and STEM competencies (McNally, 2012; Langdon, Mckittrick, Beede, Doms, &amp; Khan, 2011; Herschback, 2011). With attention focused on increasing STEM college majors and occupations among the student population, the current research investigation centered on the role of parent aspirations, student self-beliefs, and activities outside the classroom to determine the outcome of middle and high school students choosing a STEM college major. Research suggested that students formulate their degree attainment during their middle and high school years, and even earlier (Roach, 2006; Maltese &amp; Tai, 2011); therefore, it was logical to investigate STEM persistence during middle and high school years. </p><p> The study analyzed NELS:88, a longitudinal national public data set created by the National Center for Educational Statistics that used 12,144 participants. The students' self-reported data spanned over a 12-year period. Students completed five surveys in the NELS:88 data collection (NCES, 2011). Binary and multivariate logistical regressions determined if activities outside the classroom, parent aspirations, and student self-beliefs influenced STEM college majors. Conclusions of the study found significant relationships between the variables and STEM persistence. Individuals who participated in STEM activities after school were more likely to major in STEM (p&lt;.001,Exp(B)=1.106). There was a significant positive relationship between parent aspirations and increased odds of choosing a STEM major (p&lt;.0001, Exp(B)=1.041). There was a significant relationship between student self-beliefs and choosing a STEM major as students with higher self-beliefs had a decreased odds of choosing a non-STEM major (p&lt;.05, Exp(B)=.988). When all three variables were considered together, self-beliefs were no longer significant (p&lt;.166) but parent aspirations, (p&lt;.0001, Exp(B)=1.034) and activities outside of the classroom (p&lt;.0001, Exp(B)=1.097), both significantly predicted STEM participation. </p><p> The results of the research inform policy makers in regard to funding decisions and the development of programs, especially ones that occur outside of the school day. The analysis may guide decisions for school administrators on how to influence student retention within the STEM pipeline. The findings add to existing research and provide a better understanding of predictors affecting student persistence in STEM.</p>

<p> Because of the increase of online education options and the continuously increasing demands on teacher time, this case study analyzed online mentoring's effectiveness for beginning teachers in one Midwestern school. Specifically, the case study analyzed what, if any, the effects were of including an online learning forum to modify the traditional teacher mentoring program as well as the experiences of the mentees. A further analysis was conducted considering the administrator's role in the creation and facilitation of an online learning forum for teacher mentoring. To guide the creation and maintenance of the online learning forum, the participating teachers completed the survey 'Beginning Teacher's Views on Practice' three times throughout the year of research. Both quantitative survey data as well as qualitative data including in-depth interviews and discussion board posts were later analyzed. From the survey analysis it was concluded that of the 12 areas of needed development indicated by the participating teachers, nine indicated minimal to strong positive growth. This level of growth indicated the online learning forum was able to provide beginning teachers with necessary career development. In regard to the experience of the mentees, through indepth surveys it was indicated that the online mentoring program often reflected aspects of previously conducted research; however, most importantly, the online learning forum experience provided a structured but personalized approach to learning. Considering the administrator's role in the facilitation of the online learning forum, it was concluded that the role is complex in that no matter the amount of trust and community built between the administrator and the beginning teachers, there is still a supervisor-subordinate relationship that is difficult to overcome. Although this case study offers a general context of an online learning forum for beginning teachers, further studies should investigate a larger number of participants who span several schools or several districts to increase participation and variety of perceptions and experiences. Further, it would be advantageous to investigate how multiple, non-administrative mentors who maintain the online learning forum affect the participants' experiences.</p>

This study investigates one teacher’s strategies and use of critical inquiry skills whilst teaching a senior art class about contemporary artworks. It has sought to identify the strengths and challenges one teacher faces whilst teaching contemporary artworks through a postmodern art curriculum. It looks at thinking and learning opportunities through critically responsive teaching and seeks to recognize the importance of an innovative and imaginative approach. / The research process comprised gathering information through a series of interviews and observations of one teacher over five consecutive theoretical lessons. The results of these recorded interviews as well as the observational notes and transcriptions provided me with ample data for analysis and discussion. The students’ responses were analysed in terms of the VCE art curriculum’s requirements using the interpretive frameworks and for the development of critical thinking in the study of postmodern list art. / The results indicate that developing thinking skills contributes to a students ability to problem solve and make decisions. Strategies for thinking and learning are enhanced in a quality learning environment which challenges students, promotes reflection and critical inquiry and involves students in meaningful learning opportunities. This study has shown how studying contemporary art contributes to overall development of the mind through innovative pedagogy. It has also shown that traditional teaching approaches to art curriculum design framed by postmodern perspectives have the ability provide students with comprehensive and interesting learning opportunities. / The significance of this study is that it has shown that the new curriculum with its emphasis on the interpretive frameworks can be taught with traditional methods. As the teacher gains confidence with the method he is also able to expand his approaches and adapt his teaching style to facilitate a productive outcome. This is seen in the growth of thinking skills and knowledge revealed by this small group of students in an outer metropolitan Victorian secondary school.

Thesis (MSc(R)) - University of Glasgow, 2008. / MSc(R) thesis submitted to the Faculty of Information and Mathematical Sciences, Department of Statistics, University of Glasgow, 2008. Includes bibliographical references. Print version als available.