<p> This research examined the co-teaching method of instruction for students with disabilities in the inclusion classroom setting. Quantitatively, the study sought to explore the impact of co-teaching on student achievement growth and performance. Achievement growth and performance was measured using STAR scores and TCAP assessment scores. Qualitatively, the researcher investigated teacher beliefs and attitudes toward co-teaching using a survey including Likert-scale and open-ended questions. Co-teaching was found to be beneficial, since both special education students and general education students made equal academic progress in the inclusion classroom. A teacher perception survey provided the researcher with insight into the benefits, challenges, and beliefs about co-teaching.</p>

<p> The Common Core Math Standards are more rigorous than previous state standards and represent a large shift in both content and pedagogy across the grade levels. With the pressure on principals to implement the more rigorous Common Core Math Standards and to ultimately raise student achievement, it is important to look at the role of the principal as instructional leader in facilitating standards implementation. This quantitative study explored the leadership actions of middle level principals in implementing the Common Core Math Standards and how those actions related to improvement in math instruction and student achievement as measured by the change in the percentage of students scoring at or above proficiency for the building on the New York State Common Core Mathematics Tests from 2013 to 2015. The researcher used an electronic survey to ask middle level principals across New York State, with the exclusion of non-public schools and schools in the five large city districts, about their actions to support the implementation of the Common Core Math Standards, to assess and respond to their teachers&rsquo; implementation of the Common Core Math Standards, and to support the ongoing growth of their math teachers in general. From the responses, middle level principals demonstrated a trend for a deeper level of involvement with actions that required a more organizational or managerial leadership role than with actions that required the principal to act in more of an instructional leadership capacity. This study also found a statistically significant positive correlation between the actions middle level principals utilized to support their staff in the implementation of the Common Core Math Standards and student achievement. From the results of this study, the researcher recommends more comprehensive structures and supports to help increase the capacity of principals and districts to be able to navigate this significant shift in instruction required by the Common Core Math Standards. Skilled leadership is an important part of guiding staff learning and improving instruction and as Cotton (2003) found, &ldquo;studies have shown that principals who are knowledgeable about and actively involved with their school&rsquo;s instructional program have higher-achieving students than principals who manage only the non-instructional aspects of their schools&rdquo; (p. 25).</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to determine the student outcomes of implementing schema-based instruction on students in grades 3-8 identified with an educational disability and ascertain how students&rsquo; developed mathematical problem solving skills. After special education teachers in a metropolitan school district in the Midwest administered a pre-assessment, the researcher used the results to select 21 students with an educational disability to participate in the mixed-methods study. Special education teachers implemented Asha K. Jitendra&rsquo;s (2007) educational program titled, Solving Math Word Problems: Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities Using Schema-Based Instruction, during the 2013-2014 school year and taught participants using these techniques. The researcher measured student achievement by using both a pre and post-assessment and M-CAP benchmark scores on mathematical problem solving. In addition, the researcher gathered perceptions of schema-based instruction via surveys and interviews with special education teachers, general education teachers, and student participants. The analysis of quantitative data from the pre and post-assessments of students participating in the schema-based program as well as the analysis of qualitative data from student participant surveys supported a positive outcome on the use of schema-based instruction with students with an educational disability; the findings of this study reinforced the then-current literature. However, the student participants' M-CAP assessment data did not demonstrate the same amount of growth as the assessment data from the schema-based program. In addition, the analysis of survey and interview data from the two teacher groups also displayed discrepancies between special education teachers&rsquo; and general education teachers&rsquo; overall perceptions of the schema-based instructional program. Despite this, the preponderance of evidence demonstrated most students who participated in the study did learn as a result of the schema-based instruction and developed mathematical problem-solving skills. Therefore, the findings of this study corroborated the then-current literature and supported the continual use of the researched program; Solving Math Word Problems: Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities Using Schema-Based Instruction, by Jitendra (2007). The researcher concluded this program a valid research-based intervention to increase mathematical problem solving skills for students with an educational disability.</p>

<p> The mathematics classroom learning environment is often evaluated using numeric scores collected on standardized assessments. Research examining mathematics classroom environments and teacher practices has focused on ways to improve scores on these assessments. In contrast, this study centered on exploring teacher perspectives on creating classroom environments to support student growth beyond test scores. Qualitative case studies of four experienced high school mathematics teachers provided interview data to explore the concept of positive supportive classroom cultures teachers created for students. The cases showed the teachers&rsquo; intentions and actions that built culture and supported student learning in their classrooms. Findings revealed teacher professional communities influenced their classroom communities. The teachers valued organic collaboration among their peers. In their classrooms, the teachers created a climate of collaborative learning and engaged students as contributors. The teachers took pride in the cultures they created and had clear perspectives about the effects of the cultures on their students. Teachers noted the cultures they created supported three areas of student growth: students feeling safe in the classroom to ask questions and describe challenges, students improving their confidence through social comfort working with peers, and students showing improvement in self-confidence in learning, both in mathematics and in school overall.</p>

<p> Mathematics is an indispensable skill. Mathematical reasoning occurs when a person is taught the basic foundations during the elementary school years. With the pressures following implementation of Common Core State Standards and Race to the Top, school districts are tried not only to raise their state test scores, but also to prepare, strengthen, and empower educators to feel confident in their ability to instruct mathematics effectively. The Singapore approach to teaching math was the innovative program that created higher math scores in school districts in the United States. The country of Singapore, after developing this approach became the world&rsquo;s leader in math scores. As more school districts attempt to use a Singapore math-type approach, the secrets of success for its implementation are important. Math in Focus is the authentic Singapore curriculum. This study attempted to document which aspects that encompassed implementing this new program worked most effectively by utilizing a mixed-method approach. This study documented and analyzed professional development training and collaborative teacher planning. The teachers in this study had five professional development workshops and met weekly for collaboration. Additionally, state testing scores were analyzed for the academic school years 2011&ndash;2012, 2012&ndash;2013, and 2013&ndash;2014.</p>

No description available.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University / An enrichment activity in non-metric geometry for sixth grade children academically talented in mathematics.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University

<p> The purpose of this study is to examine the influences certain factors have on the mathematical motivation beliefs of students in a predominantly African American setting. Mathematical motivation beliefs, for the purpose of this study, are defined as the components mathematical self-efficacy and mathematical value, both represented as dependent variables in the study. 4 independent variables were studied as potential influences regarding mathematical motivation beliefs. The variables included parental influences, teacher influences, mathematical anxiety, and the environment/setting. This research was conducted using 2 high schools in a rural area in East Mississippi. The 1^st high school was predominantly African American and the 2^nd high school was predominantly Caucasian. 4 scales were selected for this research study. The Mathematics Confidence Scale, developed by Dowling (1978), Mathematics Problems Performance Scale (Dowling, 1978), Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scale (Fennema, 1976), and My Class Activities Survey (MCA, Schweinle &amp; Mims, 2009) were all used. Findings revealed that teacher influence predicted the mathematical motivation beliefs of students in a predominantly African American school environment the most. Findings also indicated that math anxiety significantly predicted math value and self-efficacy in both classroom environments. Lastly, findings revealed that mathematical problem solving was significantly predicted by mathematical self-efficacy for students in a predominantly African American environment.</p>