Browsing by Subject "Education, curriculum and instruction"

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An activity theory perspective on academic language use by ELLs in a high school math classroom
(2014-09) Liu, Kristin Kline
Public reports of large-scale mathematics assessment data indicate that English language learners (ELLs), on average, are typically performing well below their fluent English speaking peers, and often well below grade-level expectations (Abedi, 2002, 2004; Abedi & Lord, 2001; Janzen, 2008; Secada, 1996). While some individual ELLs do achieve at higher levels, lower levels of group achievement are not unexpected for students who are learning academic content in a language in which they are not yet proficient. However, current federal legislation requires that schools and teachers find ways to increase the math achievement of all students and help struggling students reach grade-level learning expectations. One way that general education math teachers can support ELLs in the mainstream mathematics classroom is to focus on their academic language development to a greater degree. This interpretive case study of one sheltered high school pre-algebra classroom adds to the small, but growing, research base on students' use of academic language in math instruction. It relies on Activity Theory (e.g., Engestrom, 1999, 2001), as well as conceptual frameworks associated with the analysis of learners' second language complexity, accuracy and fluency (CAF) (e.g., Ellis & Barkhuizen, 2005), and academic English proficiency (Scarcella, 2003) to examine the real-time language use by ELLs and how that language use was influenced by the classroom context.Data analyses suggest that a number of elements in the classroom activity system shaped the expectations for, and opportunity to use, academic language. These elements included: (a) Classroom rules that reinforced the limited role of students in instructional activities; (b) the constantly fluctuating classroom community with a few members who could create a distraction from math learning; (c) the primarily teacher-centered division of labor between the teacher and students, and; (d) the presence of several potential mediating artifacts (e.g., a language-reduced, conceptually-based curriculum, consistent opening instructional routine, teacher language, collaborative student language) that could support, or detract from, the desired outcome of academic language production.CAF analyses of four African focal students' language production (David, Naomi, Jesse, Marie) highlight the lack of complex, academic language use by students in this particular classroom. Students' utterances were typically short, were often less than a complete phrase, used common everyday vocabulary largely did not include math terms, and incorporated few of the relevant language functions (e.g., explaining, justifying a solution, comparing/contrasting) emphasized by the curriculum and the teacher. Despite the presence of potential supports for academic language learning, there were three key tensions in the activity system that minimized academic language expectations and opportunities for students to use such language. The first tension was between the departmental policy providing remedial instruction and the state and federal mandate for grade level instruction. Students were quite aware that the instruction they received was well below grade level and that they might not pass state assessments or be allowed to graduate. A second tension was the teacher's struggle to balance the teaching of math and the teaching of language. She had been trained primarily as a math teacher and had difficulty seeing the language of her discipline, let alone making it transparent to students. The third and final tension was between adult and students' preferences for instructional approaches and activities. Some elements of best practice that the teacher implemented were resisted by the students, and some aspects of what the students thought of as good instruction were resisted by the teacher. Instead of creating a positive change in the activity system, as some tensions can do if they are addressed, these three key unresolved tensions created a barrier to academic language production, and to the teaching and learning of math content as well. The lack of access to grade-level content and the associated academic language observed in this particular classroom has been identified in the literature as constituting a serious lack of opportunity to learn that schools must urgently address if all students are to succeed academically (Abedi & Herman, 2010; Aguirre-Munoz & Amabisca, 2010; Bailey & Butler, 2009; Bigelow, 2010; Herman & Abedi, 2004; Wang & Goldschmidt, 1999). This study provides critical evidence that educational leaders in particular need to do more to ensure that content teachers who must do the difficult work of integrating academic language and content instruction are provided with clearly defined language learning goals, and that they are well-trained and fully supported in the classroom so that they can do their job effectively.
Being Hmong, being American: making sense of U.S. Citizenship
(2014-09) Simmons, Annette Marie-Miller
This ethnographic case study was conducted in one 12th-grade American Government class at a public high school in a large Mid-western city. The class included 10 Hmong students, and eight of these youth agreed to participate in the study. Multiple data sources were analyzed for themes, patterns, and issues, including classroom observations and document analyses of instructional texts and American Government curriculum utilized in the observed classroom. All eight participants contributed to at least two focus group interviews, and four of these eight students completed two additional individual interviews, acting as focal contributors to this research. Two formal and various informal interviews were also conducted with the classroom teacher regarding her ideas and intentions around citizenship education for her students.Three significant findings emerged in this study. First, the American Government classroom was a space for civic and political identity construction for Hmong youth. Second, the American Government classroom was not the only active political socialization agent; Hmong youth shaped and negotiated their citizenship identities with others including family members, and in other venues like youth clubs and cultural activities. Third, Hmong youth negotiated their citizenship identities in relationship to race, gender, and class. However, as Hmong youth prepared for adult, democratic citizenship, they experienced little opportunity in their American Government course to practice ways to navigate racialization, gender issues, and economic challenge in their personal lives. Ongoing professional development is needed to help social studies educators address critical issues around race, gender, and class in their classrooms and schools, especially for immigrant students.
Civic identity and transnationalism in rural Minnesota
(2014-08) Thompson, Jessamay Rose
This embedded case study was conducted in two racial and culturally diverse seventh grade Civics classrooms taught by the same teacher at a small town high school in rural Minnesota. Beginning in the 1990s, the high school and community experienced a rapid demographic change due to immigration. This study examined how young people from various cultural backgrounds (Bosnian, Latino, Vietnamese, and White) living in the town construct and negotiate their civic identity. Data were collected over the course of five months, from October 2013 through February 2014. I utilized qualitative research methods, including interviews, classroom observations, and document analysis, with the purpose to investigate how the curriculum, instruction, classroom climate, social interactions, family, and cultural backgrounds factor into how youth living in a rural community conceptualize their civic identity. Bronfenbrenner's (1979, 1988) ecological model of human development, transnationalism (Ong, 1999) and imagined communities (Anderson, 1983) form the framework that guides this study.
Co-creating community change: responding to violence through youth media practice
(2014-05) Sethi, Jenna Kristen
Young people have unprecedented access to media. They are not just "watching" media content; they are critiquing popular media and creating a variety of their own media projects to examine their lived experience (Sefton-Green & Soep, 2007; Chavez & Soep, 2005). The purpose of this critical qualitative study was to illuminate the ways youth, as active agents, address violence in their communities through producing media. The second purpose of this study was to better understand the youth work practices that support young people who examine and change their communities. The following questions guided this project: How do youth experience violence in their communities? How do youth create media to address violence? What does the process of creating media to address violence mean to them? What youth work practices support the efforts of young people in the process of creating media to address violence in their respective communities?Constructivist, critical and participatory theories guided this study (Guba & Lincoln, 2000; Friere, 1970; Cammarota & Fine, 2008). Semi-structured in-depth interviews (Kvale & Brinkman, 2009; Patton, 2005; Madison, 2005) with 15 staff and young filmmakers, mural and spoken word artists in three different urban communities were conducted in order to better understand this phenomenon. Findings expand upon our knowledge of young people's experience with violence. Their experience required a multifaceted analysis of violence including: physical, structural, institutional and emotional realities. Young people in this study created media to address these forms of violence through a sustained and complex process that included personal growth, building media skills and community development. Youth workers supported this process through creating an intentional sense of belonging attuned to young people's context, culture and community. They also co-created spaces where spiritual healing and critical hope could flourish by standing with youth to examine and speak back to injustice inspiring positive change.
Comics, curriculum and the classroom: the development and implementation of an arts-integrated Holocaust unit
(2014-08) Johnson, Jeremy Lee
Traditionally, the Holocaust has been taught to middle school students using a novel like Anne Frank: The Diary of Young Girl. However, with the recent adoption of the Common Core Standards many teachers must incorporate new ways of teaching content, including the use of graphic novels. This study examined how two teachers, an English teacher and reading teacher, worked collaboratively to create and implement a Holocaust unit that asked students to use comics to demonstrate their learning. While the premise of the study was to examine how teachers with no prior experience incorporated graphic novels into their classrooms, the study became something altogether different. I discuss how the teachers relied on me to teach students how to draw figures and explain the conventions of comics with the final goal of creating a research-based comic examining some element from the Holocaust. During this study I was present in the classroom four full days a week. Data collection methods included participant observation, interviews with staff and students and document collection and analysis. Findings could be categorized three ways and include resistance, gender stereotyping and the accuracy and authenticity of student-created comic narratives. Resistance occurred from both teachers and students. The English and reading teachers resisted use of the term "comic" because they considered it not serious enough for a discussion of the Holocaust. The art teacher resisted participation because he felt that comics were a lower form of art that had no place in education. Student resistance came in the form of a young man who, for example, did not believe that the school should be dedicating nine weeks to studying the Holocaust. A second significant finding focused on gendered stereotypes and how assumptions about gender were made visible through students' comments and perceptions of drawing. Interesting gender differences also existed in the ways students drew their final projects with male students' comics exhibiting depersonalization. Information was shared in an almost bullet-point manner whereas female students spent more time developing characters and exploring emotions. The final area of focus was on the ways in which accuracy and authenticity of narratives were brought into question through failure to emphasize citation of sources and inclusion of bibliographies as part of the students' research project, thus devaluing the factual value of their comic Holocaust narratives.
Cooperating teachers' lived expectations in student teaching; a critical phenomenologicale exploration of identity infusing arts-based research
(2014-09) Weiss, Tamara Rae
Through an examination of the identity of the cooperating teacher, this study interrogates the relationships that exist between the pedagogical and the practical in pre-service teacher education, specifically within the phenomenon of student teaching. An investigation of the lifeworld of the cooperating teacher, exclusively through her use of language, reveals the experience of living one's expectations for another (the student teacher). Through a close examination of the identity of the cooperating teacher as mentor, a complex and dynamic relationship between two people is revealed, comprised of a myriad of power implications. To understand what it means to be a cooperating teacher is to understand the meaning structures that have come to restrict, challenge, or question the nature of mentoring and, consequently, student teaching. This study takes investigative and analytical methodologies towards a more nuanced approach to performing research, specifically through Mark Vagle's post-intentional phenomenology, Gunther Kress's multimodal discourse analysis, Norman Fairclough's critical discourse analysis, and critical arts-based research in the style of Postcolonial activist artist, Jean Michel Basquiat. The result becomes multimodal critical discourse analysis- visual critical paintings that: 1) Challenge the dominant notion of research as that of written or spoken language and 2) Interrogate the power positions revealed in and through the language of the cooperating teacher participants.
Culturally relevant pedagogy in multicultural teacher education: a paradoxical objective
(2014-06) Smith, Chelda
Widespread under-representation of teacher candidates of color in schools, set against the backdrop of a rapidly increasingly diverse student body, has resulted in a national effort to diversify the teaching force. Additionally, national accrediting agencies have charged teacher education programs (TEPs) with the responsibility of preparing all teachers to meet the needs of all students. However, much of the research on multicultural teacher education focuses on White pre-service teachers and their assumed cultural incompetency. One popular approach to addressing the cultural disparities in classrooms is developing teachers as culturally relevant pedagogues who are able to develop and maintain cultural competency, critical consciousness, and academic proficiency with traditionally marginalized populations. Empirical research explicating the preparedness of faculty to do such work is lacking. Moreover, the experiences of pre-service teacher candidates of color (TCCs) are under-explored. This study seeks to explore how one teacher education program worked to develop culturally relevant TCCs. It explicates how TCCs enacted resistance to specific pedagogy, curriculums and content, but also the ways they negotiated engagement in multicultural education courses. Additionally, the study illuminates effective pedagogies employed by a teacher educator to facilitate transformations of consciousness that led to empowerment. Broadly, this project responds to gaps in education research regarding the academic and sociocultural experiences of TCCs and the salience of culturally relevant pedagogy in higher education.
Developing a critical eye (I), chasing a critical we: intersections of participatory action research, crisis, and the education of black youth
(2014-05) Lozenski, Brian David
As the field of critical participatory action research (CPAR) with youth (YPAR) (Morrell, 2004; Torre, Fine, Stoudt, & Fox, 2011) becomes firmly established in the milieu of critical pedagogy, it is incumbent upon educational researchers to continue to investigate and uncover nuance in CPAR as a social practice. This study resists the temptation to become a CPAR "victory narrative," and instead foregrounds the contradictions, contestations, and emergent crises that are inherent in positioning marginalized youth as critical researchers. This critical ethnographic (Madison, 2005) study is situated in the context of a community-school-university partnership where high school youth of African descent participated in a college course taught at an African-centered (Mazama, 2003) community-based organization in St. Paul, Minnesota, called Network for the Development of Children of African Descent (NdCAD). The study explores the development of CPAR as a pedagogical and methodological practice while being informed by the cultural and educational environment of NdCAD.This dissertation uses mediated discourse analysis (Norris & Jones, 2005a; Scollon, 2001) as an analytical tool to theorize various perspectives regarding participation. Specifically, it addresses whether or not CPAR is inherently participatory and how pedagogy can both encourage and limit participation within CPAR. The study theorizes the concept of "participatory subjectivity," or a way of being that recognizes benefit in the coalescence of individuality and collectivity as a vital, yet elusive, destination for youth engaged in collective research. Participatory subjectivity remained elusive for the youth in this study as they transitioned their research away from collective action on a community issue to more introspective inquiry that addressed the development of their personal worldviews. This shift in perspective complicates the ways in which CPAR is traditionally imagined, thus challenging researchers to gain clarity about what constitutes CPAR. Finally, this dissertation situates CPAR conducted with youth of African descent in the United States as a liberatory project that combats the historical trajectory of black education as a tool for the perpetual subservience of communities of African descent to the whim of structural white supremacy.
International students' language and culture learning experience in study abroad
(2014-08) Kong, Kaishan
This dissertation is a study of Chinese students' language and cultural learning experience through mediational means in a study abroad context. While there is extensive quantitative research to measure linguistic gains or cultural adjustment, there is limited research on study abroad participants' perspectives on their language and cultural learning experience through a sociocultural lens. This dissertation contributes new knowledge in Asian students' sojourn experience. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine, from Chinese students' perspectives, what mediational resources were used and how they used the materials to foster learning in a study abroad context. Data sources included in-depth interviews, ethnographic observations, focus group discussion, social media post and other documents. Sociocultural theory, mediation in particular, was adopted as the theoretical framework for this study because it resonates with my assumption that learning takes place in interaction between individuals and other materials and other people. Study abroad contexts are unique in offering multiple forms of resources that can be similar or different from the students' background. International students' interaction with materials and people in this study abroad community can be a mediational process that leads to learning. It also fits in my purpose of the study to examine the learning process but not the product. This study was not to measure the students' linguistic outcomes or cultural skills; instead, it was to attain more in-depth understanding of their personal experience in learning English and multiple cultures in the United States. Findings show that participants used multiple resources to mediate learning, including tools such as textbooks and on-line technology and semiotic systems such as language, email communication and peer review. Language, including dialogues with other people and private speech, stood out as powerful mediation means. Data also showed that emotions, identities and motivation played a crucial role in mediation. They not only influenced participants' choice of materials but also became mediational means themselves. These findings have significant theoretical and practical implications for study abroad students, instructors and program administrators. Students are encouraged to become reflective learners and to raise awareness of selecting multiple resources to mediate learning through various strategies. For instructors, this study also shows the importance of various pedagogies to address students' need and the significance of understanding students as individuals in a broader sociocultural context. It is also suggested that training, guidance and mentorship should be offered through the entire study abroad journey and beyond.This project confirms findings from many existing papers that study abroad is a complex experience. There are multiple affordances for learning but there is no definite causal relationship with linguistic gains. Students' interaction with mediational means can produce learning. It also extends the discussion of mediational tools and signs, by showing evidence of how emotions, identities and motivations mediated learning. This study exemplifies efforts to break the either-language-or-culture dichotomy that is often seen as the focus of research, and to inspire more future research on both aspects.
Intra-household differences in the reported experiences of elementary and middle school-aged orphans when compared with co-resident non-orphans in Haitian households
(2014-12) Olson, Kjersti Ann
There is continued concern that orphans may experience additional risks and disadvantages across multiple domains when compared with non-orphans. The concern for orphan vulnerability extends to differential treatment in the households where orphans reside. This exploratory study assesses if the Haitian households that care for elementary and middle school-aged orphans and co-resident non-orphans treat children differently based on their orphan status. It seeks to understand if, and to what extent, orphan care-giving family characteristics such as household, head of household, and child characteristics moderate intra-household experiences between orphans and co-resident non-orphans to impact orphans' mosquito net usage, years reported attending school, hours spent fetching water or wood, and hours spent performing domestic household work. Secondary data analysis of the 2012 DHS survey in Haiti was conducted. Six hundred ten households with elementary and middle school-aged orphans and co-resident non-orphans were analyzed for intra-household differences through matched pairs t-test, multivariate analysis of covariance, and univariate analysis of covariance. The findings indicate that there are intra-household differences in the reported experiences of orphans when compared to their co-resident non-orphans for mosquito net usage, years attended school, hours spent fetching water or wood, and hours spent performing domestic household work. However, the amount of intra-household difference between orphans and co-resident non-orphans is minimal and should be interpreted with caution. The findings suggest that different combinations of household size, household wealth, orphan gender, and an orphan's relatedness to their head of household can predict intra-household differences for reported mosquito net usage, years attended school, and hours spent performing domestic household work. No factors in the present study could predict differences in hours spent fetching water or wood. Moderating variables explained very little about intra-household differences. Although the findings of this study do not offer clear implications for policy or practice, implications for further assessment of intra-household differences and family functioning in international settings and in Haiti are specifically discussed.
Learner characteristics as early predictor of persistence in Online courses
(2015-02) Asdi, Ahmad Kashif
The purpose of this study was to examine how learner characteristics could be used to predict whether or not a college learner would persist in the first online course and, more importantly, enroll in the next two terms. The four learner characteristics examined were learners' pre-course basic verbal score, college application score, degree level, and start date. The data were collected from 2,674 learners who were enrolled in one of the online public service and health graduate programs at a large Midwestern university. A quantitative study was conducted to investigate the research questions. The chi-square test of association, a nonparametric statistical test, was used to determine if there were any significant differences between variables of the data. The following descriptive statistics were used to describe the data: frequency distributions, means, standard deviations, and percentages. Stepwise logistic regression was used to understand whether learner persistence can be predicted based on a learner's pre-course basic verbal score, application score, degree level, and start date.The tests results revealed a statistically significant difference between learners who completed their first course and learners who dropped out of their first course with respect to pre-course basic verbal, application score, and degree level. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups with respect to start date. The logistic regression model was found to be statistically significant (p < .0005); however, the model explained only 1.7% of the variance in learner persistence; hence, this model needs to be used with caution. Of the four independent variables, only application score (p < .0005) added significantly to the model. This study supports the idea that learners who have higher application scores are more likely to complete the first course and enroll in the next two terms.The findings of this study can contribute to the scholarly work in the field and potentially provide the base for future interventions to improve learner persistence in the first online course and enrollment in the next two terms.
Learning to teach as situated learning: an examination of student teachers as legitimate peripheral participants in cooperating teachers' classrooms
(2014-08) McDonald, Eric J.
Learning to teach science well is a complex endeavor and student teaching provides a time for emerging teachers to learn how to reason in this uncertain landscape. Many pre-service teachers have rated student teaching as a very important part of their teacher education program (Koerner, Rust, & Baumgartner, 2002; Levine, 2006) and there is little doubt that this aspect of teacher preparation has a great impact (Wilson, Floden, Ferrinin-Mundy, 2001). It is surprising, therefore, that the interaction between the cooperating teacher and student teacher represents a gap in the literature (Cochran-Smith & Zeichner, 2005). In fact, little effort has been made in science education "to understand the contributions of cooperating teachers and teacher educators" (p. 322). Research is needed into not only how teacher preparation programs can help pre-service teachers make this transition from student teacher to effective teacher but also how the expertise of the cooperating teacher can be a better articulated part of the development of the student teacher. This instrumental case study examines the nature and substance of the cooperating teacher/student teacher conversations and the changes in those conversations over time. Using the theoretical framework of situated learning (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Lave, 1996) the movement of the student teacher from their position on the periphery of practice toward a more central role is examined. Three cooperating teacher/student teacher pairs provided insight into this important time with case data coming from pre and post interviews, baseline surveys, weekly update surveys, and recorded conversations from the pair during their time together. Four major themes emerged from the cases and from cross case comparisons with implications for student teachers regarding how they react to greater responsibility, cooperating teachers regarding how they give access to the community of practice, and the teacher preparation community regarding the role it plays in helping to facilitate this process.
LGBTQ inclusion in Educator preparation: getting ready for gender and sexual diversity in secondary school settings
(2014-10) Hoelscher, Mary Helen
While many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students are able to resiliently navigate their public school education many others experience harsh school climates and negative health and educational outcomes. Harassment and bullying of LGBTQ students in school environments have been linked to numerous negative psychological and academic outcomes for students diverse in sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Preparing teacher candidates (TCs) to respond effectively to harassment and bullying of students and to create inclusive curriculum has been recommended to improve outcomes for students. Yet the development of these teaching practices has not been pursued broadly in educator preparation programs (EPPs) or specifically in science EPPs (SEPPs). This dissertation broadens the notion of diversity traditionally attended to in EPPs through three studies. The first study is a holistic single-case study of an LGBTQ-inclusive EPP. It focused on the following three research questions: What were the contextual features that surrounded the LGBTQ-inclusive EPP? What were the specific elements of LGBTQ inclusion in the EPP? And, what were the strengths and weaknesses of the LGBTQ-inclusive EPP? This study drew primarily from data collected from interviews with faculty and administrators in a large post-baccalaureate 5th year preparation for licensure program. Document analysis was used to triangulate and expand upon the data collected during the interviews. A framework for analyzing LGBTQ inclusion across the components of an EPP was developed as part of this study. This study has direct implications for the particular EPP, but also clarifies research needs around LGBTQ inclusion in secondary EPPs. While little has research exists about LGBTQ inclusion in EPPs, far less has been attempted and understood in the discipline of secondary life science. The second study thus narrows its focus from the particulars of LGBTQ inclusion in an EPP to the possibilities for LGBTQ inclusion in life science educator preparation. This study, thus, is theoretical as it sets about exploring possibilities for LGBTQ inclusion across life science education curriculum by drawing from the literature about the needs of LGBT and questioning students, the small amount of scholarly work related to science teacher education, and other scholarly work that relates to preparing teachers for gender and sexual diversity in secondary settings. The second study explored possibilities for LGBTQ inclusion in science teacher education. The third study, a holistic multiple-case study, explored science teacher candidates' adoption of LGBTQ inclusion in their praxis during a science EPP (SEPP). The research questions guiding this study were: what were science TCs' commitments to LGBTQ-inclusive praxis? What were science TCs' enactments of LGBTQ-inclusive praxis? And, what supports and barriers influenced TCs' commitment to and enactment of LGBTQ-inclusive praxis during the SEPP? Understanding these commitments, enactments, and the supports and barriers to them will benefit the particular SEPP and contribute to greater understanding of the capacities and needs of science TCs as they are challenged to fully welcome and educate the diversity of learners who enter their classrooms. The set of studies concludes with a discussion of implications for EPPs and future research that may lead to the realization of a vision of classroom practices that are inclusive of LGBTQ students for the benefit of schools and communities.
Optimal size for Online asynchronous text-based focus group discussions: a mixed methods study
(2014-11) Hatten, James Edward
For over six decades, focus group discussions have been a popular and effective methodology for qualitative researchers. Focus group interviewing is a specific type of post-positivistic qualitative research that uses groups of people and a set of predetermined questions directed to a specific conversation to elicit valuable data. Traditional focus groups are conducted face-to-face with participants and moderator all at the same venue. In the past 20 years, Internet technologies have given rise to online focus group discussions. However, as the method of conducting online focus groups has increased, scant research exists in the literature wherein optimal practices are examined in an effort to work toward a standardized form of the approach. This mixed methods dissertation study advances the field of online qualitative research toward a clearer understanding of the online asynchronous focus group methodology in answering the key research question: What is the optimal size for online asynchronous text-based focus group discussions? Using a comparison of online focus groups conducted in an evaluation of a PK-12 educator professional development workshop, it examines the yield differences of group size for six variables of interest: depth of discussion, breadth of discussion, retention rates, participant interaction, adherence to topic, and disclosure of sensitive information. Additionally, comparable qualitative data were analyzed in two areas: participant reactions and researcher/moderator notes. A total of eight online asynchronous text-based focus group discussions were conducted in the evaluation, each with the researcher as moderator and each normalized with the same questions, moderator interaction, and length of time. Three focus groups were classified as small (4-6 participants), three as medium (10-13 participants), and two as large (17 participants). In total, 84 educators (teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals, and support staff) completed the four days of online discussion, answering questions about the workshop they attended. In addition, participants responded to a discussion question regarding experiences in the online focus group and completed a post-discussion survey. Analysis of transcripts, notes, survey results, content, and statistics showed significant differences exist between the three treatment sizes. Medium-sized groups were found to be the most optimal of the treatment groups. While large groups yielded similar content results, the participant feedback and researcher indicated the large treatment was more taxing on them for what resulted in a similar net yield of data. Small groups were lacking in interaction and the depth and breadth of text-based conversation of either of the larger groups. Small group participants and the researcher also noted frustrations of the smaller group.
Pedagogies, ideologies, and secular Jewish identities in U.S. Hebrew Schools
(2014-12) Schneller, Renana Segal
Although heritage language teachers' processes of identity formation have been studied in recent years (e.g., Milner, 2007), much of the work on heritage languages has explored foreign language teachers' beliefs (e.g., Nespor, 1987; Pajares, 1992; Williams & Burden, 1997) and pedagogies. Overall, the context behind these heritage language pedagogies, specifically ethnic, religious, and national identities has been under-researched. Addressing this gap, this study explores Hebrew language teachers' beliefs, practices and ideologies and the way these ideologies relate to teachers' Jewish identities. Hebrew language teachers have various beliefs about their roles as teachers and about what needs to be taught in their Hebrew classroom as part the process of fostering students' Jewish identity. These beliefs relate to teachers' lived experience as learners (e.g., Alvine, 2001). Teachers' beliefs and practices suggest teachers' Hebrew language ideologies (e.g., Woolard, 2010), which are affected by teachers' Jewish identity (e.g., Avni, 2011). During a year-long study that included a semester of classroom observation and numerous semi-formal as well as informal interviews, three participating teachers from two schools were observed and classroom documents were collected. Guided by the theoretical framework of imagined communities (Anderson, 2006), data was analyzed and interpreted. Findings suggest that Hebrew teacher beliefs about themselves as learners relate to their beliefs about themselves as teachers. These beliefs map onto classroom practices most of the time. All three of the teachers share similar ideologies about how knowledge of Hebrew and knowledge about Israel are essential for fostering Jewish identities.
A phenomenological investigation of Online learners' lived experiences of engagement
(2014-10) Pazurek-Tork, Angelica L.
This study examined the phenomenon of learner engagement as it was experienced by adult learners while learning online. Learner engagement has been suggested to be one of the most significant predictors of learning and academic achievement (National Research Council, 2004; Russell, Ainley, & Frydenberg, 2005; Skinner & Belmont, 1993), and several instructional design models have been proposed to meet the challenges associated with supporting engagement among learners in online learning environments (Kearsley, 2000; Conrad & Donaldson, 2004). However, many of these models are based on abstract conceptualizations of engagement, which vary greatly, rather than how it is actually experienced by online learners. As online learning becomes increasingly more prevalent in various adult learning and postsecondary educational contexts (The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2010), educators are prompted to consider how engagement is actually being experienced by adult learners within virtual environments, what dynamics influence it, and how their efforts might help promote and foster it. A phenomenological understanding of learners' perceptions as they experience engagement while learning in online courses holds great potential to provide new insights into online teaching and learning from an authentic, learner-centered perspective. To this end, the purpose of this study is to help adult and higher education professionals, including online instructors, facilitators, and instructional designers, understand more deeply how adult learners may experience engagement in online learning environments by addressing the following research questions: (1) What is it like to be an adult learner in online learning environments? (2) What is it like to experience engagement in online learning environments? and (3) How do various elements of learning online and dynamics of the learning environment influence adult learners' feelings of engagement?This qualitative study utilized interpretive phenomenological methodology and a post-intentional phenomenological research design (Vagle, 2010a) to investigate four adult learners' lived experiences of engagement while enrolled in a completely online, graduate-level, university course. For eight months following the conclusion of the course, qualitative methods were used to collect data from the research participants' personal narrative accounts shared through individual interviews, written lived experience descriptions (van Manen, 1990, p. 63-66), and other digital media artifacts created as part of the learning activities while the course was in progress. Iterative cycles of phenomenological data analysis using a whole-parts-whole approach captured tentative manifestations (Vagle, 2010a, p. 7) of the phenomenon of engagement as it was experienced in online learning environments and revealed in shifting and changing ways. Thematic analysis (van Manen, 1990, p. 78) was also used to identify three themes of pedagogic significance: (1) The unbounded nature of learning online may significantly impact the overall learning experience, especially how engagement is experienced; (2) Engagement may be experienced online as a form of praxis; and (3) There is a temporal nature to engagement in online learning environments, suggesting that it changes over time and space, according to the influence of various dynamics. Research findings also suggest particular dynamics that influenced the lived experience of engagement online, including learner autonomy and shared decision-making. The insights gained from this study were used to propose a flexible online engagement model that suggests research-based pedagogical design principles to help promote and foster engaging online learning experiences.
Pragmatic family life education: moving beyond the expert-based, content-driven model of serving families
(2014-08) Hardman, Alisha Marie
The field of family life education (FLE) is shifting from an expert-based, content-driven model of education that is rooted in a positivistic epistemology of practice to a more collaborative, strength-based model that integrates scientific knowledge from family sciences with the values and experiences of families in communities. This study employs John Dewey's version of pragmatism as the guiding epistemology of practice for this emerging approach to FLE. A pragmatic approach to FLE is proposed through a summary and synthesis of concepts derived from a variety of perspectives, disciplines and fields that comprise the overall conceptual framework, which is comprised of two parts. The first is the philosophical framework, which draws from three principal perspectives: (a) family science, (b) critical science, and (c) human ecology. The second is the practical framework, which extends Bronfenbrenner's (2001/2009) bioecological model of human development to inform the development of interventions aimed as families; integrates concepts from disciplines and fields such as: the attunement perspective, helping relationships, home economics, and positive psychology in order to inform strategies and approaches for outreach and engagement; and finally reviews principles central to the philosophy of education.The study employs a convergent, multi-level intervention mixed methods design and is based on the evaluation of an existing demonstration project entitled Co-Parent Court. The existing Co-Parent Court evaluation design utilized a quasi-experimental, randomized control group with a pre, post and follow-up survey. Co-Parent Court is used as a critical case to explore and examine the pragmatic model of FLE articulated in this study. Findings indicate that intervention parents were more likely to be doing well on several substantively significant dimensions of family well-being than those in the control group. Lessons learned regarding what worked and what did not work in the particular case of the Co-Parent Court project are discussed in order to ground the findings in the immediate programmatic context. Additionally, eight promising principles of a pragmatic approach to FLE were developed based on a triangulation of practitioner wisdom (stakeholder interviews) and social science theory (conceptual framework) in order to contribute knowledge to the field of FLE generally.
Public pedagogy and the experience of video creators in the it gets better project
(2014-12) Hurley, Sara Jean
The It Gets Better Project (IGBP) launched in September 2010 as a grassroots response to highly publicized suicides of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQQ) youth. It provided an outlet for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) adults who felt they could not help the LGBTQQ youth who needed support. The project itself became a cultural force, with 50,000 videos garnering over 50 million collective views; but the act of creating and sharing videos had an effect on the adults who participated as well.This descriptive, interview-based case study of 35 participants was designed to develop a deeper understanding of the experiences and motivations of LGBTQ adults who created and shared videos, participating in the public pedagogy of the It Gets Better Project.Findings revealed that making a video was part of a larger and iterative process of reflection and action, with collateral benefits for the video creators. They engaged in dialogue about their videos and stories on multiple online platforms and in person, and many provided direct support and resource referrals to LGBTQQ youth who contacted them via YouTube. For a number of participants, this had transformative effects on their lives in increasing praxis or generativity.An essential component of this process involved video creators identifying envisioned audiences and taking personal responsibility for filling gaps in representation. I provide highlights of cases in which individuals were "speaking to the gaps" with their videos, constructing messages to show possible futures to LGBTQQ youth on topics ranging from visibility of racial or gender identities to visibility in a profession or locale. My research shows that the construction of the It Gets Better Project allowed video creators to engage in a praxis they otherwise may not have felt empowered to do and inadvertently required them to further engage with youth and adults who contacted them via their YouTube accounts. This research constructs a history of the It Gets Better Project and its participants, and challenges us to expand our conception of what kinds of interventions are valuable and why.
A study of teachers' integration of App affordances and early literacy best practices
(2014-05) Israelson, Madeleine Heins
As a variety of learning technologies become increasingly present in early elementary classrooms the question of how to integrate technologies into early literacy teaching and learning is critical. A great deal is known about best practices for early elementary literacy instruction in traditional print-based texts (Pressley, 2006). Additionally, there is much innovative research studying how to effectively integrate learning technologies into secondary and late elementary literacy learning (Beach & O'Brien, 2012; Leu et al., 2007). Given the increasing prevalence of a variety of learning technologies in early elementary classrooms (kindergarten through 3rd grade) there is a pressing need for research to examine and document how teachers approach the integration of new learning technologies, such as handheld devices (e.g., iPod Touch devices, iPads) and apps, with their knowledge of best practices for effective early literacy instruction and the actual affordances of these practices. In this study I sought to describe how early elementary teachers integrate technologies into the teaching of literacy when presented with new handheld devices from upper administration. I also examined how (and if) teachers integrate their knowledge of best practices for early literacy learning with multimodalities, affordances and value added literacy opportunities when reviewing and selecting handheld device apps for early literacy instruction. My goal was to describe what happens when handheld devices are actually used in early literacy instruction, focusing on app affordances. Undergirded by a theoretical framework that blended constructivism, pragmatism and social cognitive and social constructivist theories of learning, I employed naturalistic inquiry (Lincoln and Guba, 1985) and case study methodologies (Yin, 1994). I collected data in two phases. First, I conducted a survey with a selective sample of 25 K-3rd grade teachers. Then, I purposively sampled two information-rich cases of kindergarten teachers, collecting data through interviews, verbal protocol procedures, classroom observations and photographs. Findings indicated that teachers used apps most often for students to independently practice phonics skills, and rarely or never for literacy instructional that required students to engage in higher-order thinking or collaborate with peers. The use of handheld devices and apps yielded a variety of negative affordances that inhibited or detracted from learning, several of these unanticipated by teachers. Teachers' selection of apps to use for instruction was influenced by factors including the cost of apps, student-centered approaches to teaching and beliefs about literacy best practices. The presence of the devices in the learning environment impacted and shaped students social interactions and learning experiences in their kindergarten classrooms, both in both positive and negative ways. This study identified concerns and issues that warrant consideration as handheld devices and apps are integrated into early elementary literacy learning, if teachers hope to use these tools in ways that not only support students' traditional print-based literacy development, but also assure students develop digital literacies strategies and critical 21st century skills.
Within-case and cross-case analyses of questions posed by fifth-grade students working in small groups to investigate pendulum motion
(2015-02) Tisel, James Michael
The focus of this basic qualitative research is student questions in an unstructured inquiry setting. Case and cross-case analyses were conducted (Miles and Huberman, 1984) of the questions posed by fifth grade students working in laboratory groups of size three to five students as they investigated pendulum motion. To establish the conceptual framework for the study, literature was reviewed in the areas of cognitive theory (constructivism, conceptual change, and other theories), approaches to science, and the importance of student questions in the learning process. A review of group work, related studies of student questions and activities and relevant methods of qualitative research was also undertaken. The current study occupies the relatively unique position of being about the questions students posed to each other (not the teacher) at the outset of and throughout an unstructured inquiry activity with a minimum of teacher initiation or intervention. The focus is on finding out what questions students ask, when they ask them, what categories the questions fall into in relation to possible models of the scientific method, student motivation, and what role the questions play as the students take part in an inquiry activity. Students were video and/or audio-recorded as they did the investigation. They wrote down their questions during one-minute pauses that occurred at roughly eight-minute intervals. The groups were interviewed the next day about their experience. The recordings, question sheets, and interview accounts and recordings were analyzed by the researcher. Accounts of the experience of each group were prepared, and reiterated attempts were made to classify the questions as the main themes and categories emerged. It was found that students posed their key research question (most typically related to pendulum damping effects) midway through the first half of their activity, after having first met some competence and other needs in relation to measurement procedures and basic information. The main research question typically emerged gradually in an implicitly shared form. It was found that Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory (2000) with the core needs of competence, autonomy, and relatedness, served as a useful tool for categorizing and understanding the role of the questions. Basic questions about procedures in relation to gaining competence with measurement were considered by the researcher to be most prevalent. When compared to, for instance, Lawson's hypothetico-predictive model of doing science (2003a) it was noted that puzzling observations were not necessarily made at the outset, and key questions took place much later in the investigative process than what typical scientific models might suggest.Further, more focused research in the areas of self-determination theory in relation to student questions as they engage in inquiry could be of benefit in determining the motivations behind student questions. Educational programs that have, as their goal, authentic student inquiry should take into account that student research questions evolve over time as they meet various needs in the process of initiating their investigations.

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