In order to support the new mission of education where students achieve at high levels, schools need infrastructure, in terms of processes, procedures, and capacity building, to support the collaboration between administrative instructional leadership and teachers' professional development with the goal of student learning and achievement. Walkthroughs are a tool used throughout school districts with a limited base of research. This mixed methods case study describes one middle school's journey with walkthroughs. This dissertation explores and describes three main aspects of walkthroughs: process, perspectives, and recommendations. Administrators and teachers shared their experiences through personal interviews, focus group interviews, the Concerns Based Adoption Model Stages of Concern Questionnaire, and documents. Findings suggest that classroom walkthroughs work best in school climates that have an established level of trust between administrators and teachers. Walkthroughs, with classroom observations led by all teachers in the school, allow teachers to engage in professional dialogue about expectations for teaching and learning for all students in all content settings. Walkthroughs are a process that takes time to implement, should be ongoing, and require a transparent flexible process to meet individual school needs. If the need or expectation is to change teaching practices, then teachers need to be involved in all aspects of instructional supervision in collaboration with administrators on a continual basis. / Ed. D.

Significant importance has been placed on STEM education to encourage students to enter into careers related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. United States education system is looking ways to provide a positive student-learning environment to improve student achievement, critical and rational thinking, analysis, and synthesis of information. In higher education, the role of community colleges is undergoing a major transformation in the United States education system. Researchers place community colleges as one of the most important innovations for higher education in the 20th century. Community colleges not only provide affordable education, but also offer a wide variety of programs ranging from vocational to transfer. With the growing number of adult/ nontraditional learners across higher education, it has now become an utmost national priority to engage and retain this student population. As per the 2011 data by National Center for Education Statistics, the adult population in undergraduate courses is growing steadily over the last many years to the extent that it could overtake the numbers of the traditional students enrolled in four-year colleges and universities. The AACC (American Association of Community Colleges) released Reclaiming the American Dream: Community Colleges and the Nation's Future, A report from the 21st Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges in 2012 during the 21st Century Initiative to offer recommendations and ideas to promote skills that are needed for students to be successful in college, careers, and life. Later, in 2014, they released Empowering community colleges to build the nation's future to help community colleges build a stronger community of students. P21's Framework for 21st Century Learning offers 4Cs, of which collaboration is mentioned as an important pedagogical technique, an educational outcome, and a key skill in various levels of education. This guide suggests that students learn best when they are provided collaborative learning environments; student achievements are higher when they are engaged with others in their learning environments. Students collaborate by working in teams; learn content by identifying problems and finding solutions. This can not only help build content knowledge, but can also develop critical thinking and creativity. Collaboration can actually help develop the other 4Cs. By implementing this unique pedagogical mode of instruction, in the form of collaboration in biology classrooms, improved student content achievement could be seen, thus improving STEM literacy across the nation. The purpose of this study was to explore the learning benefits of collaboration in a community college STEM classroom. The participants in this study consisted of students (n= 155) enrolled in Biology 101 or Biology 141 at Blue Ridge Community College (BRCC). A descriptive analysis of the students' assessment scores (pretest and posttest), science vocabulary familiarity scale (SVFS), and demographic surveys were conducted. Results revealed that collaborative learning approach in the community-college classroom results in changes to students' biology science content knowledge. The results of this study have direct implications for the STEM educator within biological sciences, and in future for not only other fields of integrative STEM education, but for non-STEM courses in higher education. Collaboration enables STEM disciplines to increase opportunities for knowledge sharing and exchange, thereby increasing knowledge and competence. In other studies, researchers have found that students who worked in collaborative environments retained information much longer and deeper as compared to students who worked individually in traditional classrooms. In addition, students who studied in an active and collaborative environment scored better in cognition and psychological activities as compared to students taught in traditional classrooms. The results of this study supported that collaboration was an effective means to improve students' learning outcomes in a biology-based classroom at the community college level. / PHD

A positive classroom is more conducive to learning than a negative one. Since the teacher creates the classroom climate, it is important for him or her to follow certain didactic guidelines for creating the right climate. This study investigated the implementation of specific didactic guidelines for creating a climate the most conducive to learning. Kruger and Van Schalkwyk (1992:104) are of the opinion that if a classroom climate is hearty, warm and appealing, everybody is relaxed, and experiences the togetherness as pleasant. Such a setting offers each individual the opportunity for being his or her true self, and the teacher as well as the students are willing to open up and become involved. Should the classroom climate be stiff, cold and clinical, however, the participants become tense, stiff, and introverted. They become unwilling to reveal themselves to one another. The study was aimed at answering specific problem questions, namely: • What does a positive classroom climate entail? • Which didactic measures ensure a positive climate? • What is the current classroom climate at secondary schools? • Which methods and techniques can be implemented to create a positive climate? • Which didactic guidelines can be presented to teachers for optimising the classroom climate? The first two questions were investigated by means of a literature study. Certain findings led to the answers to the problem questions. The third question was answered through an empirical study aimed at determining the climate of a specific secondary school. The study revealed that the students in general experienced the climate as positive. Two control variables, namely gender and language, however, showed slight differences of opinion. Although the results showed no practical statistical significance, a difference was noted between the opinions of girls and boys, as well as between Afrikaans speaking students and students speaking African languages. The questionnaires the teachers completed, were based on the same guidelines for creating classroom climate as were found in the literature study. In chapter 5 various recommendations for further research in this field, relevant to South Africa in particular, were made since it is believed that the school situation here is unique. Further research can offer solutions to persistent problems. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, 2000

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between sixth grade students' academic achievement levels in math and their perceptions of school climate. Student characteristics of socioeconomic status and gender were used to identify groups for the purpose of data analysis. Data was gathered using the five independent variables of the My Class Inventory (satisfaction, friction, competitiveness, difficulty, and cohesiveness) and the dependent variable of the Stanford Achievement Total Math scores. The results of the data collection were tested using a Pearson product-moment analysis and a backward multiple regression analysis. A univariate analysis of variance was also used to compare the five independent variables of the My Class Inventory as well as to compare socioeconomic status and gender with the Stanford Achievement Total Math scores. The schools selected for this study were from a city in Texas with a population of approximately 100,000. The sample consisted of 262 sixth grade mathematics students. The findings of this study are as follows: (a) The Pearson product-moment correlation analysis revealed little, if any, correlation for any of the five subscale predictor variables; (b) the multiple regression analysis revealed that all five classroom climate indicators combined together could explain only 10.5% of the variance in mathematics achievement; (c) the univariate analysis of variance revealed that there is a significant relationship between the climate factors of friction and difficulty when compared to mathematics achievement; and (d) the univariate analysis of variance also revealed that mathematics achievement scores vary significantly as a function of economic category membership, but there appears to be no relationship to gender.

Superstitions flourish in cultures around the word and in everyday life. Superstitions are so prevalent and influence personal and political decisions, therefore, we sought to develop a classroom demonstration of superstitious behavior that could be used to show quickly and effectively how powerful adventitious reinforcement could be in modifying behavior. An online game was developed and played by one hundred thirteen university students enrolled in a class on critical thinking. Participants gained points (reinforcement) arbitrarily during either 25% or 50% of each game's (A or B) 3 minute duration. Although points were non-contingent, students often engaged in superstations rules or patterns. Results of both self-reports and computer generated data showed, the games were successful in producing superstitious behavior patterns in about 50% of our participants. More students showed superstitious behavior in the 50% game than in the 25% game. We conclude that this is due to the higher reinforcement rate of in 50% game. For future studies, rearranging the stimulus array into a pattern that does not itself strongly control behavior could help refine the results.

A positive classroom is more conducive to learning than a negative one. Since the teacher creates the classroom climate, it is important for him or her to follow certain didactic guidelines for creating the right climate. This study investigated the implementation of specific didactic guidelines for creating a climate the most conducive to learning. Kruger and Van Schalkwyk (1992:104) are of the opinion that if a classroom climate is hearty, warm and appealing, everybody is relaxed, and experiences the togetherness as pleasant. Such a setting offers each individual the opportunity for being his or her true self, and the teacher as well as the students are willing to open up and become involved. Should the classroom climate be stiff, cold and clinical, however, the participants become tense, stiff, and introverted. They become unwilling to reveal themselves to one another. The study was aimed at answering specific problem questions, namely: • What does a positive classroom climate entail? • Which didactic measures ensure a positive climate? • What is the current classroom climate at secondary schools? • Which methods and techniques can be implemented to create a positive climate? • Which didactic guidelines can be presented to teachers for optimising the classroom climate? The first two questions were investigated by means of a literature study. Certain findings led to the answers to the problem questions. The third question was answered through an empirical study aimed at determining the climate of a specific secondary school. The study revealed that the students in general experienced the climate as positive. Two control variables, namely gender and language, however, showed slight differences of opinion. Although the results showed no practical statistical significance, a difference was noted between the opinions of girls and boys, as well as between Afrikaans speaking students and students speaking African languages. The questionnaires the teachers completed, were based on the same guidelines for creating classroom climate as were found in the literature study. In chapter 5 various recommendations for further research in this field, relevant to South Africa in particular, were made since it is believed that the school situation here is unique. Further research can offer solutions to persistent problems. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, 2000

Thesis (M.A.T.) -- School for International Training, 2006. / Advisor --Bonnie Mennell Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-116).

This study investigated whether Reality Therapy classroom management techniques could be used effectively to improve teacher attitudes, student attitudes, student achievement, and student classroom behavior. The findings of the study support the following conclusions. 1. Reality Therapy inservice education and implementation of Reality Therapy Teaching techniques in classrooms produce significant changes in the way teachers regard student discipline. 2. implementation of Reality Therapy practices in junior high classrooms produces positive changes in attitude toward school environment. 3. Implementation of Reality Therapy techniques in junior high classrooms does not seem to be effective in producing changes in student attitude toward self. 4. Implementation of Reality Therapy techniques in junior high classrooms can be effective in producing higher student grade point averages. 5. Reality Therapy techniques in junior high classrooms are not effective in producing lower rates of student misbehavior.

Thesis (M.A.(Translation and Linguistics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / This research was a case study of teachers’ conceptualizations and theories that underpin their classroom practices in a primary school in the Mankweng Township, Limpopo Province. The study sought to explore what these conceptualizations are, and what theoretical paradigms (or mix of paradigms) underpin them. However, rather than attempt to get teachers to articulate their conceptions (which may be too abstract and difficult an undertaking), teachers were required to engage with classroom practices different from their own and in the context of this engagement, confront their own beliefs about literacy and literacy development. The study also aimed to explore whether encounters by teachers with classroom practices based on sets of principles different to their own will lead them to revise their theories or principles underpinning their teaching practices. The empirical data was in the form of seven lessons by the regular teachers alongside six intervention lessons taught by the academic researchers. Key to the research design was to get teachers to critically and reflectively engage with their teaching and the teaching of others. Through the use of actual transcripts of teachers’ classroom practices and responses to the two sets of lessons as evidence, teachers’ classroom practices, actions and beliefs were made visible in this research. The data from regular lessons show a consistent yet disconcerting pattern in teachers’ classroom practices as learners were found to be writing far too little, and much of learning and teaching was predominantly oral. Teachers also seemed to lack theories of literacy teaching, and thus could not meaningfully engage their learners in academic discourse enabling them to cross the bridge between everyday knowledge and academic knowledge. Overall, the study suggests that pedagogic and content knowledge are key, in order to empower teachers with both knowledge of their disciplinary content and meaningful strategies of communicating the knowledge they have to their learners. Further current models of teacher professionalization through short training workshop do not seem to be very effective and alternative approaches need to be developed.

Increasing number of special needs students in mainstream school has imposed great challenge on educators as they are compelled to provide an inclusive classroom (Lim, 2016). However, limited knowledge on the broad scope of special needs and accessibility barrier to reach out to professionals such as occupational therapists (OT) results in delayed identification or provision of appropriate support for students with special needs (Kaur, 2013; Teng, 2017). As such, this doctoral project proposes an innovative tele-health service delivery model that utilizes the Teachable (2019) online software to create a 3-tiered intervention program. The intervention consists of 1) e-learning modules on the broad perspectives of classroom attention and participation, 2) e-consultation to seek OT support and, 3) discussion forum for educators and OT to discuss on scenarios and cases. This project is also a cost-effective service delivery model as the subscription plan and time-based e-consultation fees is aimed to cover the cost of running the online platform. Grant approval from Singapore Association of Occupational Therapists (SAOT) would be utilized for the start-up cost. Evaluation of the program content and service delivery model would be carried out as online survey using the Teachable platform. The evaluation outcome and dissemination activities to promote the program would aid in expanding the program as a teacher education curriculum for inclusive practice. The long-term impact of this program is to change the inclusive practice paradigm to a student-centered, holistic, performance-based paradigm!