Thesis (M.I.T.)--The Evergreen State College, 2010. / Title from title screen (viewed 7/7/2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-161).

Thesis (M.I.T.)--The Evergreen State College, 2010. / Title from title screen (viewed 7/7/2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 65-69).

M.Ed. (Educational Linguistics) / This study examined language barriers affecting a selected group of Grade Four learners from a disadvantaged community, to whom English, the medium of classroom instruction, was their second language. They were disadvantaged because their language proficiency had not been developed early enough to serve as a springboard for conceptualizations of academic aspects. They struggled to express themselves and grappled with simple linguistic concepts which they were expected to master at school. The purpose was to explore support structures and strategies that educators employed to assist Grade Four English second language (ESL) learners in developing cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP) in a linguistically diverse classroom. Research has shown that the acquisition and use of English at an early age at home strengthens linguistic ability in learning to read and write. Language depends on basic intercommunication skills (BICS), which are developed at a very young age, and later the development of CALP in formal schooling. BICS allows children to speak and pronounce basic words and have sufficient vocabulary to develop their receptive and expressive language in daily life, basic commands and social conversations. The problem was minimal exposure to the English language at early stages in the child’s life, hence BICS being developed in the vernacular. Effective linguistic communication depends on CALP, which allows learners to engage in abstract problem-solving activities and use complex academic tasks, namely reading and writing. The research design was a qualitative descriptive case study and participants were purposefully selected. Data was collected from interviews with educators, observation of learners’ work and observations on the playground. The findings revealed that ESL learners struggled with oral activities, listening and speaking, reading, writing, language and comprehension. These learners experienced difficulties in all five forms of language, namely phonology, syntax, semantics, morphology and pragmatics. Various support strategies were necessary to assist them through peer tutoring, curriculum differentiation, simplifying assessments according to their ability, implementing various reading strategies, and adopting diverse teaching methodologies. This study argued that the educator’s role is paramount in developing CALP in the language of learning and teaching (LOLT), in all learners, in order to facilitate formal school learning. A large class with an average of 45 learners proved to be a challenge for the educators, therefore it is recommended that fewer learners be placed in a class to enable educators to give more attention to the weaker learners. There is an urgent need for remediation to take place in the English class and the study concludes that various support strategies need to be developed for CALP in ESLs.

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Please read the abstract in the section 00front of this document / Thesis (PhD (Educational Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

Richmond School District successfully implemented in 1978-1984 an innovative approach to the teaching of writing--the writing process. This study sought to determine why teachers participated in developing a new writing curriculum in their schools, what characteristics of the setting promoted these curriculum development practices, and what curriculum leaders did to promote teacher participation in curriculum decision making. Historical evidence for this thes is included interviews with eleven participants in reform, including the curriculum leader with greatest responsibility for its implementation. In addition, various print and manuscript documents provided a basis for interpretation of pertinent events. As policy study this thesis described and analyzed the practices and experiences of the school district that embodied the implementers' values. A single teacher-leader in the district accounted for much of the change in teacher practice. A district-wide emphasis on writing process praxis was further supported by the school board and the district's senior staff. Specific social characteristics of the curriculum development setting, Richmond School District, help account for the adoption of the reform. The study argues for the importance of; (a) selecting the most appropriate innovation for implementation, (b) empowering participants in educational reform, and (c) an effective change agent to inspire participants. Implications for educators and recommendations for further research came from these insights. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

This thesis is a qualitative case study of a mathematics unit and a literature unit taught concurrently to a class of grades five and six students, the majority of who were English as a Second Language (ESL) students. The units were collaboratively planned with an ESL Resource Teacher. The study aims to illuminate the processes and products of student engagement with the two units. At the same time, it documents the teacher/ researcher's process of reflection. The study makes reference to the teacher/researcher's growing understanding of the role that prior knowledge plays in the classroom. For the teacher/ researcher, this study acted as a "voyage of discovery" as he made observations regarding the student's experiences and the role of prior knowledge. Students experienced considerable success with the literature unit, but had persistent difficulties with the mathematics unit. To investigate the reasons for this difference, concerning this difference in success, the researcher explored two matters of prior knowledge: prior classroom experience and the link between everyday language and technical language in student discourse. With respect to prior classroom experience, the students reported little prior teaching of relevant mathematical material whereas the literature material had regularly been taught. With respect to the link between everyday and technical language, the findings suggested that the students were able to draw on everyday language for describing persons in the literature unit, but were not able to draw on everyday language for describing patterns in the mathematics unit. More broadly, this suggests that students were able to draw on familiar social practices for describing persons but not for describing mathematical patterns. Implications are drawn for further research and for educational practice. / Education, Faculty of / Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of / Graduate

The school library resource centre and the collection of trade books that classroom teachers gather in their classrooms were the focus of an exploratory, descriptive study designed around the first stages of an action research model. Little research had been done on how effective classroom teachers have been at acquiring trade books for their classroom collections, and on how teacher-librarians, working in partially or fully integrated school library resource centre programs, helped make trade books accessible to elementary teachers and students. One instrument, The Survey of Elementary Classroom Collections. was designed to examine four descriptive areas: the contents and size of classroom collections, the source of trade books for these collection, the organization and management of classroom collections, and the use classroom teachers make of these trade books. The 205 elementary English language classroom teachers in one school district were sent a Survey and 80% responded. The series of interviews that followed were conducted with a stratified random sample of 30 classroom teachers, nine principals and seven teacher-librarians. The stratification was organized by Phases 1, 2 or 3 of school library program development, which were determined by the score on a second instrument. The Profile of School Library Resource Centre Programs. and from information on staffing, resources and teacher-librarian experience. Results were analyzed under the four areas explored in the Survey, by grade level and by Phase. A detailed description of the classroom collections led to the development of the Independent, Interactive and Integrated models for classroom collections. Each reflected a different concept of the classroom collection, its role in the literacy program and its relationship with the school library resource centre program. Indications were that a collaborative approach to trade book provisioning emerged in schools where the school library resource centre program was more fully integrated into the school curriculum. Details on a school-based/district-wide strategy to build a collaborative approach were given, as well as suggestions for a plan of action for individual schools and for further research to explore questions raised by this study. / Education, Faculty of / Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of / Graduate

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