The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the experiences of developmental mathematics students who, after successful completion of their developmental courses, chose a career in teaching and to gain a better understanding of how those experiences helped shape their decision to go forward with a career in mathematics education. With the intention of exploring the text and the context of the experiences of former developmental mathematics students as they have reflected on them and storied them so as to make meaning of them, I determined that a qualitative methodology was indicated; and the qualitative method selected was narrative analysis. Altogether 13 respondents met the criteria and were interviewed. Interviews conducted during the spring and early summer of 2008 were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for data relevant to the goals of this study. Analysis revealed that developmental mathematics students not only have the capacity to become competent students but they have the potential of becoming outstanding teachers and scholars. This potential is closely tied to affective qualities, such as self-efficacy, which are often profoundly impacted and enhanced by a teacher or mentor. The developmental student who has chosen a career in education frequently views the teacher/mentor as (i) a role model who he/she desires to emulate thereby extending that profound impact, and/or as (ii) a hero for whom future endeavors are viewed as a form of payback. The narratives also revealed that women developmental students typically had greater struggles and difficulties in meeting their educational goals because they bore the responsibility for caring for children and, in most cases, for their family?s financial support. Areas of study that warrant further investigation were uncovered while doing this research and include (i) an identification of teaching methodologies that both enhance mathematics capability and also bring a greater self-awareness of the increased capability, (ii) a determination of the impact of faculty/institutional behaviors and attitudes on adult developmental mathematics students who dropped out of their programs and did not complete their college education, (iii) the characteristics of the educational experiences of single mothers who passed through developmental mathematics and on to the teaching profession, and (iv) a deeper understanding of the teacher recruitment potential of cooperative learning groups, tutoring centers, and supplemental instruction.

The aim of this study is to investigate the changes in problem-solving abilities and learning attitudes of two elementary second graders after integrating picture books into problem-posing instruction and administering tests on addition and subtraction word problems. The case study approach was adopted; where two second graders, having difficulty in comprehending addition and subtraction word problems, were selected from the researcher¡¦s class. Both students were given addition and subtraction word problems problem-solving pretests and were interviewed afterwards to further analyze their problem-solving abilities and attitudes so as to refer to remedial instruction. After instructional activities came to an end, addition and subtraction word problems problem-solving posttests were then given. Students were interviewed to explore the changes in problem-solving abilities and learning attitudes. Data were collected by observations, interviews and collections of related documents (including two cases¡¦ addition and subtraction word problems pretest and posttest, problem-solving worksheets, problem-posing worksheets, learning diaries, researcher¡¦s teaching introspection record table, audio-taping, video-taping, etc.). The changes in cases¡¦ problem-solving abilities and learning attitudes were analyzed and the findings indicated were four. First, picture books create problem-solving context that can raise cases¡¦ learning motives. Second, with problem-posing process of all types of addition and subtraction word problems and practice, problem-solving abilities of the cases were improved in four dimensions (Being able to locate unknown in problem targets and the known conditions from word problems; being able to select appropriate schematic drawing and to identify its relationship with the problem; being able to set up equations; and, being able to examine whether answers were reasonable.). Third, the remedial instructions designed were able to raise cases¡¦ level of confidence in problem-solving. Fourth, implementing remedial instruction by integrating picture books into problem-posing instruction enables not only transforming one case¡¦s passive learning attitudes to positive but also maintaining the other case¡¦s original positive attitudes. The above four results indicated that implementing addition and subtraction word problems remedial instruction to two second graders by integrating picture books into problem-posing instruction helped to improve children¡¦s problem-solving abilities and learning attitudes. Implications on research and practice were also given.

Thesis (Ph. D.(Psychotherapy))--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-205).

The literacy skills of students have become a significant concern among legislators and educators. The federal government has responded to this by enacting legislation that increases state accountability to provide evidence-based interventions to struggling readers. In response, the State of Florida has mandated mandatory retention for third-grade students who are at risk for reading failure. Third-grade students who do not pass the Florida comprehensive Assessment Test-Reading (FCAT) are retained. Students who score at Level 1 are retained, and students who scored at Levels 2 through 5 are promoted. Research has indicated that retention has been an ineffective intervention to improve academic performance. However, it is difficult to compare research findings with Florida’s current retention plan. Previous research has not delineated the intervention strategies that were utilized during the retention year. Florida requires that all students are provided evidence-based reading remediation. The purpose of this study was to explore the association of Florida’s model of student progression and academic achievement. More specifically, the study investigated the academic outcomes of third-grade students who scored within 10 scaled score points below the student progression achievement cut-off, attained a Level 1 designation in 2003 and were retained, and students who scored within 10 scaled score points above the student progression achievement cut-off, attained a Level 2 designation in 2003 and were promoted to fourth grade. Results indicated that 87% of the higher performing retained students subsequently scored at Level 2 or higher in 2004 while 67% of the promoted, low achieving student scored at Level 2 or higher in 2004. Furthermore, gender, SES and race were significantly associated with the reading outcomes of higher achieving retained and promoted, low achieving students. This study contributes to the literature by examining the outcomes of a retention model within a framework of academic remediation. In addition, the utility of high stakes testing and retention decisions were also examined. Future implications for research include direct comparisons of retained and promoted students, a longitudinal research design to examine the long-term effects of retention, and the identification of more effective services and intervention strategies to target at-risk students.

A series of syntheses and consensus reports provides converging evidence regarding effective reading instruction (e.g. NICHD, 2000; Snow, Burnes & Griffin, 1998; Swanson & Hoskyn, 1998). However, findings from recent observation studies of reading instruction provided to students with learning disabilities (LD) are disappointing, with few scientifically based reading instructional components observed (e.g. Vaughn, Moody & Schumm, 1998; Moody, Vaughn, Hughes & Fischer, 2000). In addition, since 2001, only one observation study of reading instruction for students with LD has been published (Rieth, Bryant, Kinzer, Colburn, Hur, et al., 2003), and only two such dissertations (Brasnahan, 2001; Kethley, 2005) have been completed, all three of which were conducted in classrooms for students in middle or high school. Thus, no observation study of reading instruction for elementary students with LD has been published in the past seven years. Within this timeframe, however, systematic and wide-spread efforts have been made to bridge the gap between research and practice in the area of reading instruction (see Reading First Teacher Education Network at www.rften.org). The purpose of this study was to document the extent to which effective reading instruction was provided to students with LD served in the resource room setting. The amount of student and teacher text reading, grouping strategies used, and student achievement over the course of one semester was examined as well. Ten special education resource room teachers were observed during the spring academic semester. Information was gathered through direct observation and standardized measurement of student academic outcomes. All observations were conducted during reading instructional time. Results indicated a range of scientifically based reading instruction of average to high average quality. Students made no stastically significant growth on more distal measures of reading achievement. However, statistically significant growth was detected in oral reading fluency using passages one grade level below student assignment. / text

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本論文以「實施國中補救教學師資精進計畫之分析—以新北市國中國文科為例」為主題，旨在探究新北市政府與國立臺灣師範大學共同合作之國中補救教學師資精進計畫之現況、困境及相關建議。資料蒐集主要採取文件分析法及訪談法，結論如下： 一、參與教師年資偏低、正式教師比例僅佔一半，教師延續參加的比例偏低。 二、教師肯定師訓之精神及其辦理成效，但對偏遠學校有交通不便的困擾，也會干擾教師本身工作之進行。 三、教師能學會補救教學相關專業知能，並能活用教學技巧於其他教學場域，但備課時間過長成為教師之負擔。 四、學生學習成效在動機及語文能力部分有所進步，但很難有立即的成效。 五、政策本身缺乏強制性，造成在學生編班、教師招募、行政執行上有所困難。 最後依據研究結果提出具體建議，提供教育行政機關、學校及未來研究之參考。 / The purpose of the study is to investigate the topic-the analysis of qualified teachers of the EOQEDS' implementation. Take the major subject of Chinese Literature as an example. The main point is to discuss the current situation, difficulties and suggestions of the EOQEDS cooperated by New Taipei City Government and National Taiwan Normal University. The methods of data collection are adopted by the analysis of documentary and interview survey and the results are as follows: 1.Participating teachers have less seniority; the proportion of formal teachers is only half of the group; the proportion of teachers continuing participating in the group is relatively low. 2.Teachers agree with the spirit of EOQEDS and with the effect of EOQEDS' practice. However, teachers working in remote schools are sometimes annoyed by the inconvenient transportation problems, which may also interfere the process of teaching. 3.Teachers can acquire knowledge related to remedial teaching and utilize skills of teaching to other education fields, but it is a burden that preparation of teaching sources and materials takes too much long time. 4.The effects of the student’s learning are promoted on the motivation and the abilities of the literature, but it takes too long time to be revealed. 5.Policies themselves lack power of compulsory. As a result, it is difficult to group students into class, to hire teachers, and to execute education administration. According to the results, this study provides the conclusion and the suggestions particularly for the institution of educational administration, junior high schools and the research in the future.

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The purpose of the investigation was to examine the effect of training on the use of morphology and syntax of language delayed children. Performance with no instruction was compared to performance with two methods: (1) a Standard Remedial Instruction Approach and (2) the Individualized Instruction Approach. The intent was to determine if a standard method would be superior to no instruction; and then, if individualization of training procedures, based on a functional analysis of the child's approach to learning tasks, would facilitate progress over what might be achieved with the standard method. Finally, a follow-up test was done to check if skills were maintained. Three language delayed children in a Primary Resource Classroom served as the subjects. A multiple baseline across subjects design was employed, with a sequential multiple intervention component added. Using each subject as his own control, his performance was compared across adjacent phases. Instructional phases were introduced to subjects in a staggered fashion rather than at the same time to test the power of each intervention. The method chosen as the Standard Remedial Instruction approach was the Interactive Language Development Teaching method. The Individualized Instruction approach was devised from a functional analysis. Diagnostic teaching provided the means for doing the functional analysis, during which the child's responsiveness to varied stimulus, response, affective and cognitive dimensions of tasks was observed. Performance under the different phases of the study was measured by experimenter-made criterion referenced tests on the specific language forms being taught. Each test required a degree of generalization since novel stimulus materials were used. Visual analysis of the data was facilitated by use of trend lines made by the method of least squares, to determine changes between phases. Trend lines of adjacent phases were compared in terms of level and slope. The procedures described above yielded the following results: (1) All three subjects showed notable improvement in performance with Standard Remedial Instruction as compared to Baseline performance; (2) All three subjects displayed some improvement with Individualized Instruction over Standard Remedial Instruction, but by trend analysis, only one exhibited marked improvement; and (3) The performance of two subjects on follow-up testing was commensurate with the level of performance obtained during Individualized Instruction. The findings of the study indicate that, within the context of the public schools, improvement in morphology and syntax of language delayed children is dependent upon the use of systematic language instruction. Provision of such instruction, and the establishment of more efficient screening procedures for identifying expressive syntax problems, therefore seem warranted. If a standard remedial instruction program does not seem to be effective, an individualized program may be needed. A functional analysis of the child's learning characteristics appears to provide a sound basis from which to develop an individualized program. Speech and language clinicians, thereby, could increase their effectiveness by learning to conduct a functional analysis. The study further documents the promise of time-series research for use with a handicapped population. A public school system could use such a design to evaluate methods or programs. It would be relatively easy and inexpensive to conduct. A limitation of the particular design used for this study was that the effect of method two could not be separated from the effect of method one since it was always preceded by method one. An alternation of methods could alleviate the problem. A study of this type has minimal significance by itself but in a series can make a contribution.