<p> The most recent phase of curriculum reform in the era of accountability is the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) which have essentially reshaped the landscape of public education. Its objective of preparing K-12 students for college and career upon high school graduation have prioritized English language arts, mathematics, and science over social studies, which is not part of widespread high-stakes testing for elementary students. This qualitative case study investigated eleven intermediate elementary teachers&rsquo; perceptions of alignment between CCSS and the elementary social studies curriculum. Data gathering analysis included two semi-structured interviews and an archival analysis of the mandated curriculum. The data revealed that perceptions of alignment vary among teachers and were influenced by the perceived effects of inadequate instructional time and resources, lack of content knowledge, and insufficient district levels of professional support. Teachers perceived some similarities between the methods of thinking skills, such as historical thinking and higher-order thinking, and the English/Language Arts standards of the Common Core and their district social studies curriculum. Despite perceived inadequate instructional time and resources, teachers believed that elementary social studies must be an instructional priority and found ways to include social studies through interdisciplinary approaches. Recommendations include district-level professional development focused on an integration between CCSS and social studies modeled in classroom practices. These approaches may improve use of instructional time and resources and reduce the marginalization of elementary social studies.</p><p>

<p> The effects of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Free Secondary Education Policy (FSEP) on access to secondary school education in Kenya&rsquo;s Yatta sub-county have not been adequately explored in available public policy literature. Hence, this qualitative multiple-case study was designed to understand the effects of the 2 policies on both enrollment and dropout among secondary school age children in Yatta. The study was conducted in 1 mixed-boarding secondary school and 1 secondary day school in Yatta. The study was built on an adapted Huisman and Smits&rsquo; theoretical model on dropout among students in developing countries. The data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with 14 purposefully selected participants: 2 principals, 2 deputy principals, and 10 parents whose children had benefited from the CDF bursary scheme. Interview data were inductively coded and then subjected to Braun and Clarke&rsquo;s thematic analysis procedure, which aided in identification, analysis, and reporting of patterns (themes) in the data. Results showed that the CDF had contributed significantly to the improvement of enrollment with the establishment of new day schools that are more affordable, hence making secondary school education less costly and thus more available to low income families. The study&rsquo;s findings also showed that student dropout had declined with both the CDF and FSEP. The positive social change implications of this study are that it provides evidence for advocacy among policy makers for increased allocation of resources to the education sector through the CDF and FSEP. Increased allocations will contribute to Kenya&rsquo;s progress toward universal access to secondary education.</p><p>

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 97-100).

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 97-100). Also available in print.

<p>The emergence of social media technologies (SMT) as important features of life in the twenty-first century has aroused the curiosity of teachers and scholars in higher education and given rise to numerous experiments using SMT as tools of instruction in college and university classrooms. A body of research has emerged from those experiments which suggests that SMT may be useful in promoting student learning and improving academic outcomes. However, as of yet the evidence from that research is scant and inconclusive. The study described here was designed to contribute to that body of research by investigating whether or not requiring students to use a microblog&mdash;Twitter in this case&mdash;in a community college history course would help students display higher levels of attainment of content-based course learning outcomes on traditional types of assessments. Student activity on Twitter and performance on traditional types of assessments were quantitatively tracked and evaluated according to a number of specialized rubrics, the results of which were integrated into a series of hierarchical regression analyses. Qualitative data was also collected in the form of open-ended questionnaires in order to provide insight into how students perceived of and used Twitter as an instructional tool. Data obtained through both methodologies were integrated into the final analysis. The results of this study suggest that microblogs can be an effective platform for teaching and learning when the instructor is experienced in the use of the medium, deliberate in how it is used, and highly engaged during use. </p>

<p> A mini-economy is an ongoing classroom project in which elementary school students apply for jobs, receive simulated income, go shopping at the classroom store, and ultimately create their own businesses. This study uses design-based research methodology to find out what classroom practices emerge when the College, Career, and Civic Life Framework for Social Studies State Standards (C3 Framework) (National Council for the Social Studies, 2013) is used by elementary teachers as the basis for instruction in the context of a classroom mini-economy, and how analysis of those practices can be used to improve instructional design. Design-based research seeks to simultaneously create and analyze teaching materials, with the purpose of improving both the materials themselves and the research literature on which the materials are based. In this case, the goal of the teaching materials was to improve the authenticity and rigor of the teacher-participants&rsquo; classroom mini-economies. Therefore, the study draws upon research literature in Authentic Intellectual Work, as well as inquiry teaching in social studies, particularly in economic education. </p><p> Authentic Intellectual Work (AIW) is a way to think about curriculum, instruction, and assessment. It seeks &ldquo;to identify some kinds of intellectual work as more complex and socially or personally meaningful than others&rdquo; (King, Newmann, &amp; Carmichael, 2009). It consists of construction of knowledge, disciplined inquiry, and value beyond school (Scheurman &amp; Newmann, 1998). Inquiry teaching in social studies has taken many forms, most currently in the C3 Framework, which was the approach used in this study. The C3 Framework conceptualizes inquiry as &ldquo;the disciplinary concepts and practices that support students as they develop the capacity to know, analyze, explain, and argue about interdisciplinary challenges in our social world&rdquo; (National Council for the Social Studies, 2013, p. 6). Classroom mini-economies in particular fall within the realm of the social science of economics, so the study pays special attention to the literature on K-12 economic education. </p><p> The study reveals ways in which teachers were able to use the C3 Framework to build authenticity in the mini-economy, though it also reveals that teachers were willing to dilute the quality of the inquiry process when it fit with their larger goals. The findings suggest that inquiry as conceived in the C3 Framework can be used as a powerful tool for equipping students for an increasingly complex social world. However, the inquiry process is at its best when lesson materials that use it are carefully designed to meet teachers&rsquo; desires to provide interdisciplinary and real-world experiences for their students.</p>

<p>Education today needs to be different than the education that has been prevalent in U.S. public schools for generations of students, in part because of the rapid rise of technology in recent years. Students need to be able to employ 21st century skills in today&rsquo;s workforce. The current study&rsquo;s purpose was to measure the educational impact of Project Based Learning (PBL) in eighth grade social studies on students&rsquo; academic achievement, attendance, and discipline in a north Texas School district. The researcher analyzed historical State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) data, attendance data, and discipline data housed in the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS). Achievement results were measured using scale scores from the STAAR eighth grade social studies, reading, and mathematics tests. The groups (PBL and nonPBL) were then compared using independent sample t-tests and a series of MANOVA tests to compare the specific objectives within the subject tests. The results of the study indicated that PBL students performed better on the STAAR social studies test and all four of the social studies objectives tested by STAAR than nonPBL students. Attendance and discipline rates were then compared using independent sample t-tests. </p><p> The results showed that PBL students do not have higher attendance rates and lower discipline rates than students in nonPBL settings. Recommendations made by the researcher related to further expansion of PBL within social studies and science classrooms in the District as well as additional research opportunities. </p><p> <i>Keywords</i>: project based learning, accountability, student engagement, student attendance, student discipline, student achievement, 21st century skills </p>

En Communauté française de Belgique, la formation initiale des futurs agrégés de l'enseignement secondaire supérieur est régie par un décret datant du 08 février 2001. Cette formation est structurée selon quatre axes et vise le développement de treize compétences. Réparti sur un total de cent heures, l'axe des savoir-faire se focalise sur trois des treize compétences : des compétences relationnelles liées aux exigences de la profession ; la planification, gestion et évaluation de situations d'apprentissage et le développement des compétences réflexives. Pour ce faire, l'Institut d'Administration scolaire de l'Université de Mons a mis en place, dans la cadre de cette agrégation, un dispositif de formation dans un " contexte de laboratoire " (De Cock, 2007, p. 19) par micro-enseignement (Hatton & Smith, 1995 ; Paquay & Wagner, 2001 ; Wagner, 1998), rétroaction vidéo (Tochon, 1993) et remise d'un écrit de type réflexif (Scheepers, 2005 ; Jorro, 2005). Dans le cadre de sa thèse, Antoine Derobertmasure étudie la phase postactive de l'enseignement, c'est-à-dire, ce que les enseignants en formation initiale, grâce au visionnement de leur prestation ou lors de la rédaction de leur rapport réflexif, expriment au sujet de leur pratique. Cette analyse concerne deux aspects : l'un s'intéresse aux processus réflexifs mobilisés (Van Manen, 1977 ; Hatton & Smith, 1995 ; Sparks-Langer, Simmons, Pasch, Colton, Starko, 1990 ; Jorro, 2005) ; l'autre porte sur les objets de la situation d'enseignement-apprentissage au sujet desquels les étudiants s'expriment (aspects didactiques, ationnels, aspect relationnels, aspect pédagogiques, aspects cognitifs...). La réalisation de ce travail amène également à poser un regard particulier sur le travail de supervision entrepris par le formateur à l'université ainsi qu'à proposer des pistes de formation pour les maîtres de stage.

<p>Purpose: The U.S. Hispanic population is on the rise and will continue to be an important thread in the fabric of American society as a whole. However, in the midst of this burgeoning group lies its male subpopulation which faces its own unique challenges. One outlet that has demonstrated success for minorities is mentoring. Mentoring can provide Hispanic males with numerous benefits in a social exchange paradigm. Unfortunately the majority of mentoring research has focused solely on the perspective of the protege, thus leaving mentor perceptions, particularly those of Hispanic males, unexplored. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study sought to describe how participation in formal mentoring programs for youth impacted the dynamics of social exchange for Hispanic male mentors in the Coachella Valley. Methodology: This phenomenological qualitative study collected data via in-depth interviews of 14 Hispanic male mentors residing in the Coachella Valley region of Southern California. An interview script provided semistructured questions influenced by the framework of social exchange. Respondents were digitally recorded, and transcripts were reviewed. Triangulation included transcripts and artifacts. Findings: Five major themes emerged from the data to include (a) mentoring expectations and experiences, (b) perceived mentoring benefits, (c) the value of mentoring, (d) barriers to mentoring, and (e) the impact of Hispanic culture in mentoring relationships, all of which described how participation in formal mentoring programs impacted the social exchange dynamics for Hispanic male mentors in the Coachella Valley. Conclusions: The data and findings from this study concluded that: (a) Hispanic males set high expectations for themselves as mentors, (b) mentoring provides a positive outlet for the social development of Hispanic males, (c) mentoring can provide personal and professional development benefits for Hispanic male mentors, (d) previous mentoring experience of any kind promotes the value of mentoring and increased participation of Hispanic males, and lastly, (e) the sharing of Hispanic culture can strengthen mentoring relationships for Hispanic males. Recommendations: Further research is recommended to include expanding the study to all mentoring programs in the state of California as well as informal mentorships; replication of the study using a quantitative method; analyzing the impact of ?healing circles? on the mental health outlook of Hispanic male mentors; and investigating the effects of mentoring on their career development as well as their definition of ?success as a male.?

<p> Employee job satisfaction is an ongoing concern in the field of social work. High caseloads, low compensation, and the lack of job security are sources of job dissatisfaction for novice and seasoned social workers in managed care settings. Specifically, the purpose was to determine if there is a correlation between high caseloads, the lack of job security, and low compensation and job dissatisfaction among novice (<i>n</i> = 24) managed care social workers and seasoned (<i>n</i> = 86) social workers in Texas and the surrounding areas. The emphasis of these factors, if not recognized and addressed through interventions by health care administrators, can lead to novice or seasoned managed care social workers&rsquo; dissatisfaction and within their position and careers with an ending result of desirable professional leaving the field of social work. Herzberg&rsquo;s two-factor theory guided the study. The independent variables were selected for use in a multiple regression analysis at the .05 level of significance. No correlation was found between high caseloads and job dissatisfaction among novice social workers or between low compensation and job dissatisfaction among novice and seasoned social workers. High caseloads were correlated with job dissatisfaction among seasoned social workers. A correlation was found between the lack of job security and job dissatisfaction between novice and seasoned social workers. The research study collected data used in sealing the gap in the health care community by providing valuable information and directions for health care administrators to focus on in an attempt to reduce turnover, increase productivity, and improve the quality of patient care.</p>