Learner-centered reading instruction was underrepresented in novice K to 5 teachers' classrooms despite a district mandated requirement to use them. When learner-centered reading instruction is not used, students are less motivated to learn and less likely to become proficient readers. The purpose of this bounded qualitative case study was to explore novice K to 5 reading teachers' perspectives of learner-centered reading instruction and how they taught a comprehensive reading curriculum in their classrooms. The conceptual framework was based on the Arkansas Department of Education's science of reading and Weimer's learner-centered teaching. The research questions focused on exploring novice K to 5 teachers' perspectives of learner-centered reading instruction and how they taught a comprehensive reading curriculum in their classrooms. Purposeful sampling was used to select 10 novice K to 5 reading teachers. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and classroom observations. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and open and axial coding strategies, which led to themes. Participants identified that they were unprepared to implement learner-centered reading instruction and did not feel they had time to collaborate and plan learner-centered instructional lessons. Based on these findings, a professional development series was designed to support novice teachers' implementation of learner-centered reading instruction. The findings from this study and the resulting project may lead to positive social change when novice teachers implement learner-centered reading instruction leading to increased student motivation and reading achievement.

As online learning increases and classroom use of print textbooks are gradually replaced by web-based instruction, what features of online instruction prove beneficial to student learning? The present study has three purposes; (1) To examine the effects of conversion of textbook content to web-based instruction for an extant Internet search course. The researcher examined performance differences of an online textbook to web tutorial compared to a second version that included interactive features found in classroom instruction. (2) To investigate students perceptions of material that afforded high levels of learner control and compared responses to a more structured instructional module. (3) To document the design process used to convert textbook material to web-based instruction. GagnsÌ? Events of Instruction (1985) differentiated features for comparison and treatment online modules; one featured content-centered, the other learner-centered instructional strategies.

Homeschooling has become a viable educational choice for families; however, limited research has been conducted on the instructional strategies homeschooling parents use to instruct their children and whether these reflect a learner-centered teaching approach. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the learner-centered instructional strategies homeschooling parents use to teach their children mathematics. The conceptual framework for this single-case study was based on Weimer's learner-centered teaching model. Participants included 4 parents who homeschooled students in Grades 6-12 in a Western state and who received instructional support from a private school. Data were collected from interviews with homeschooling parents, online reflective journals maintained by homeschooling parents, and documents related to the homeschooling mathematics program. Data analysis included coding and examining emerging themes and patterns and discrepant data. The results indicated that the homeschooling parents aligned only a small amount of their instructional strategies with Weimer's learner-centered teaching model by trying to make mathematics fun, interesting, and relevant to their children's lives. They also differentiated instruction and chose curriculum that included some critical-thinking problems. The homeschooling parents taught using more traditional methods in which they were the primary instructors and made most of the decisions about the instructional content. The results of this study can contribute to positive social change by aiding curriculum designers and educators in their exploration of learner-centered and other instructional strategies they can use to design curriculum and instruct their students.

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Actively engaging students in the classroom and promoting their interaction, both amongst themselves and with the instructor, is an important aspect to student learning. Research has demonstrated that student learning improves when instructors make use of pedagogical techniques which promote active learning. Equally important is instructor feedback from activities such as in-class assessments. Studies have shown that when instructor feedback is given at the time a new topic is introduced, student performance is improved. The focus of this thesis is the creation of a software program, Virtual Clicker, which addresses the need for active engagement, in-class feedback, and classroom interaction, even in large classrooms. When properly used it will allow for multi-directional feedback; teacher to student, student to teacher, and student to student. It also supports the use of digital ink for Tablet PCs in this interaction environment. / Master of Science

The purpose of this descriptive, mixed-method study was to explore a possible relationship between teacher beliefs and their philosophy of teaching. A theoretical framework depicted connections among levels of science anxiety and science teaching self-efficacy, and their influences on elementary teacher instructional preferences for a traditional or inquiry-based model of instruction. A card-sorting methodology was adapted to create an interview protocol that examined teacher instructional practices within the framework of an inquiry continuum. Teacher groups were identified quantitatively with two existing instruments to examine science anxiety and science teaching self-efficacy. Subtests of both the Science State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI) were administered through an online survey and completed by 86 elementary teachers of science in a large urban school district. From the survey data teachers were grouped by levels of anxiety and self-efficacy in order to further examine their beliefs. Results identified three groups of teachers meriting additional investigation - low anxiety and high self-efficacy, high anxiety and low self-efficacy, and high anxiety and high self-efficacy. From these groups, eight total participants were interviewed using a semi-structured protocol consisting of a science teaching scenario card sort and open-ended questions to classify groups of teachers as primarily learner- or teacher-centered, and preferring a traditional or inquiry-based method of instruction. Based on qualitative coding for levels of inquiry and responses to questions probing teacher beliefs and practices, all of the teachers were classified as preferring a primarily teacher-centered model of instruction, thus upholding the theoretical framework for the high anxiety groups. In contradiction to the expectations described in the theoretical framework, the low anxiety and high self-efficacy group stated one of the strongest preferences for traditional instruction. In conclusion the low anxiety group may have preferred a traditional approach in order to meet campus expectations of instructional strategies that promote passing scores on standardized tests. Implications suggest that explicit instruction is needed on the essential features of inquiry for teachers during the preservice and induction phase of their careers, and additional professional development support for practicing elementary teachers. / text

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