Campus Design: Assessing Outdoor Spaces at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo to Improve Student Experience

The outdoor space of university campuses is an aspect of design which still remains, to a certain degree, uncharted. There are merely not enough relevant case studies and research in creating foundational principles which adhere to the design of a functional outdoor space on university campuses. The success of the student body for a college, academically and socially, is dependent on creating a welcoming and holistic learning environment for students to thrive. Social spaces bridge the gap between the built and natural environment, therefore, providing proper physical components in an outdoor space becomes vital in creating a desired environment which serves the student body. Analyzing human interaction through observations and interviews will bring forward the necessity of creating an engaging academic experience outside of traditional classrooms and highlight how crucial outdoor spaces are for the social and academic success of students. This project draws inspiration from William H. Whyte’s documentary film and book “The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces.” As he analyzes the effective and ineffective plazas and public spaces across the United States, he creates dialogue around human behavior and the built environment. Holly Whyte shows how basic tools of observation and interviews allow for learning substantial information about the human relationship with public spaces. Following his reasoning and methodology, this project uses location criteria, accounts for natural elements, observes student activities, and analyzes the relationship among each of these. This study intends to understand how students utilize different outdoor spaces, the effectiveness of those spaces, and improvements students desire through observations and interviews acquired via activity scan forms and user intercept surveys. Ultimately, this study serves to create an identity for the outdoor learning spaces on university campuses to improve student success. Campus planners can create successful outdoor space by programming needs and analyzing the relationship between student behavior, activities, nature, and the built environment. Though, this project facilitates a conversation for creating effective outdoor spaces on university campuses, it is merely an introductory discussion of the intricate and imperative concepts of humanity and design

Effective Teacher-Parent Communication Tools To Empower Families To Be Active In Their Children’s Learning

Creating an environment that is conducive for learning is an essential component of education. In search of ways to achieve this goal through family engagement the question was posed, How can educators effectively communicate with families to empower them to take an active role in their child’s learning? Research has demonstrated that there is a link between student success and teacher-parent partnerships through one way and two way communication methods. The project involved creating a set of resources for educators to foster and maintain teacher-parent partnerships with the goal being student success. The resources are accompanied by a professional development session to provide educators with the rationale and motivation for the resources to be utilized. The goal of the project is to give elementary school teachers the tools they need to successfully connect with parents to create strong partnerships for students\u27 social and academic success

Collaborative Environment as a Means of Forming Success of a Future Teacher of Elementary Classes in Project Activity

Objective: The purpose of the study is to determine whether future elementary school teachers are successful in project activities and whether a properly organised collaborative environment affects the outcome of project activities. Background: In conditions when a person is the most important value and main capital of a society, the goal and product of the educational system should be human intelligence and personality. Therefore, for domestic education today, the issue of raising the status of the teaching profession and the modernisation of teacher education has become serious. The article reveals the problem of the successful formation of a future primary school teacher in project activities through a collaborative environment. The authors define the concepts of "project activity", "the success of the future primary school teacher in project activity", "projec", "collaborative environment". Method: The methodology for organising a collaborative environment in project activities is determined. The study involved two groups; the sample was 107 pupils. Results: A programme for diagnosing the successful formation of a future primary school teacher in project activities is presented. Criteria, indicators (motivational, cognitive, activity) and levels of success formation of the future primary school teacher in project activities (intuitive, reproductive, creative) are defined. Conclusion: As part of the study, the authors determined that a collaborative environment is an effective means of success for a future primary school teacher in design. A collaborative environment was defined as the collaboration of a teacher and pupils in solving a problem, completing a task, or creating a product

Creative Classrooms to Teach and Learn Grammar Lessons for Middle School Students with the Design of TIM

Project Abstract Creative Classrooms to Teach and Learn Grammar Lessons for Middle School Students with the Design of TIM This project focuses on creating a classroom as a learning environment to help to teach Middle school students at the level of 8th grade lessons on grammar. Also incorporated in this project will be the emphasis on the Torrance Incubation Model of Teaching and Learning (TIM). E. Paul Torrance, better known as “the father of creativity” was quoted once saying, “tomorrow’s world will be vastly different for today’s children. They will do kinds of work that do not exist now. This will require abilities, skills, attitudes and information that we cannot imagin today” (Torrance, 1993, p. 159). Today’s world is massively different, it still does require creative skills and abilities to achieve success and academic goals. Creating a classroom space that is encouraging to learning is an important task for teachers as well as for the student to learn. The purpose of this project was not only to make the classroom an educational learning environment, but also to design lesson plans that create a positive classroom environment which promotes learning and creativity for the students and for the teacher. When the classroom is a comfortable, yet an enjoyable environment, it makes it easier for the student to feel comfortable and learn; as well as for the teacher to teach the lessons. Not every child learns the same, but we can certainly try. Key Words: classrooms, creativity, lesson planning, middle school, TIM Christina M. Belesovski December 9, 201

Effective ways to lower Muslim immigrant students\u27 anxiety in ESL classes: A handbook for educators

ABSTRACT This field project is a handbook for educators that recommends effective ways of lowering Muslim refugee students\u27 anxiety in ESL classrooms. Schools are challenging for refugee and immigrant students as they have to navigate school systems that do not accommodate their unique needs. As a result, Muslim refugee students are often discriminated against, marginalized, and bullied in schools. They suffer from low self-confidence, high anxiety, and lack of motivation. Research concludes that educational institutions in host countries are ill-equipped in creating an equitable education and school environment for Muslim refugee students due to the lack of educators’ training and the flawed association between assimilation and educational success. Among refugee students, anxiety is known to negatively affect learning and to impede academic success. In this field project, educators are provided with (a) a brief description of Islam; (b) information on pre-settlement experiences of refugees; (c) recommendations on how to create a safe learning environment for these students; (d)a lesson plan designed to bring awareness to non-Muslim students in the classroom and honor Muslim students\u27 culture. I hope this project assists educators in recognizing the impact of pre-settlement experiences on Muslim refugee students’ post-settlement academic success and their social mobility. Furthermore, I believe this project can be instrumental in addressing discriminatory practices and curricula in US public schools

How Can An Advisory Program Be Implemented Into The Structure Of A Large Suburban High School To Foster Academic Success In Ninth-Grade Students?

The research question addressed in this project was, how can an advisory program be implemented into the structure of a large suburban high school to foster academic success in ninth-grade students? It documents the process from initial failed effort to the completion of a research-based design of an ideal advisory program for a large suburban school in the Midwest. Drawing on research from a wide range of sources and through interviews with teachers of students grades 9-12 the author constructs a well informed program design aimed at creating support structures to help students through the difficult transition from eight to ninth grade by reducing student anonymity in large high school, improving cultural competency of teachers of a diverse student population, and creating a more community oriented school environment that can more readily address student needs potentially leading to greater student success. Research suggests that advisory programs are most successful when designed around site-based needs of staff and students and when focused on supporting students’’ academic pursuits, introducing them to postsecondary options and helping them build the soft skills needed for success

Pedagogical Brief: CSR Consulting Project in an Online MBA

Research Brief: Corporate Partner Projects, Action Learning and Corporate Social Responsibility in the Online MBA Abstract Civic Engagement, Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) are learning objectives for many MBA programs but implementing real world projects in an online environment takes careful consideration. This paper describes the process of creating and delivering a consulting project for a completely online MBA class from initial data gathering, to project outline and final results. We share what worked in this process and its success from the faculty, industry partner and student perspectives. The bottom line, don’t miss out on this type of opportunity even though it can involve a lot more work, the results are rewarding

HOW TO HELP YOUR CHILD SUCCEED IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL A PARENT EDUCATION WORKSHOP

Over the last decade, research studies have demonstrated that academic success has a significant impact on a child’s long-term outcomes (e.g., Duncan et al., 2007). The purpose of this project was to provide parents with the information and skills to help their child succeed in elementary school. A 6-session workshop titled Helping Your Child Succeed in Elementary School was created which included the following topics: attachment, parenting style, positive discipline, and creating an enriched home environment. After attending the workshop, the four parent participants reported an increase in their knowledge of the importance of establishing a secure attachment with their child, the importance of a parent’s parenting style, how to discipline without punishment, as well as the importance of creating an enriched home environment. Results are discussed in terms of how parenting is a skill which can be learned, and there are many benefits for parents who attend parent education workshops, including how to help children succeed in school. Future workshops could consider including fathers, teen parents, teachers, as well as offering the workshop virtually

Creating a Personal Training Studio

The purpose of this project was to create a personal training studio that would provide a safe, clean, and welcoming environment for clients as well as help the owner create strategies for obtaining and retaining clients. I partnered with a local personal trainer, Joseph Adkins, who was aspiring to open his own personal training studio. Joseph has a degree in personal training and years of experience in the industry as a personal trainer and assistant manager at a large franchise gym and, most recently, as an independent personal trainer at a local gym. Joseph was not satisfied with the environment, the number of clients, and his client retention rates and thus wanted to open his own personal training studio. Joseph does not have any education in, nor does he have much experience with, the business side of the industry. Therefore, he requested my help in the process of opening the studio and creating strategies for obtaining and retaining clients. This project included the planning process, the process of creating the business and opening the studio, and the process of adjusting for success in the first year of being in business. The main area of focus for this project has been an extensive planning process including, but not limited to, research of the local area real estate market, research of the exercise equipment market, budgeting for startup costs, following through with purchasing equipment, signing a lease and other contracts, and renovating