A Guide for Best Practices in English 9 Essentials: Literature Strand

This project provides an overview of the English 9 Essentials program and examines that program through the lens of best practices for each strand of the curriculum. Once the English 9 Essentials program was reviewed, it was determined that the curriculum should be enhanced by the addition of a literature strand using the principles of The Parallel Curriculum Model (Tomlinson et al., 2002) [PMC] and Understanding by Design (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005) [UbD]. The tenants of PMC and UbD were explained and evaluated. These two design methodologies were then applied to creating an overview for the literature strand of English 9 Essentials. Using a template adapted from UbD, a single unit of literature curriculum was prepared as a prototype and peer evaluated

Examining Social Emotional Learning for Gifted Students

The purpose of this intrinsic qualitative study was to investigate the use of universal social emotional learning (SEL) curricula as a primary means for supporting the social and emotional developmental needs of gifted students in a large school district in the western U.S. The District, or case for this study, was not using any specific systemic social and emotional programming for their identified gifted learners. Through a constructivist social cognitive theoretical lens, the efficacy of universal curricula for gifted learners was explored. The increasing use of SEL in school reform efforts to improve academic success has provided much research on SEL curricula (Durlak et al., 2011; Elias et al., 1997; Zins et al., 2007). The goal of this study was to provide educational leaders a way to examine universal SEL programs’ efficacy for the affective programming needs of gifted learners. The large school district setting yielded participants purposively chosen to include one class in each of three elementary schools (n = 3) where gifted learners were included in regular education classrooms using three different universal SEL curricula – Well-Managed Schools, Second Step, and Conscious Discipline. A multi-step process was used to create an evaluation tool, the Social Emotional Learning for Exceptional Children’s Thinking and Emotional Development (SELECTED) Rubric™ (2017) with categories and sub-categories based on analysis of research-based best practices for supporting the social and emotional needs of gifted learners. Resources and references came from the National Association for Gifted Children’s (NAGC) standards, the state’s Department of Education, and others (e.g., Eckert & Robins, 2017; Neihart et al., 2016a; Robinson et al., 2007; Rogers, 2002; VanTassel-Baska et al., 2009). Data were collected via document analysis, 30-minute semi-structured interviews of the teachers and two district administrators, and the evaluation of the three universal curricula via the Rubric. The results of this study indicate that although teachers had various levels of knowledge about the affective needs of gifted students, they all saw weaknesses in their SEL interventions for meeting their gifted students’ needs. The findings of the study are based on a small sample size, yet the use of universal SEL curricula was not substantiated by these findings as an effective way to meet the unique affective needs of gifted students

Informing Writing: The Benefits of Formative Assessment

Examines whether classroom-based formative writing assessment - designed to provide students with feedback and modified instruction as needed - improves student writing and how teachers can improve such assessment. Suggests best practices

The Model of Instructional Design Based on Self-Regulated Learning using Modular Object Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment (MOODLE)

The objectives of this research are (1) to develop a model of self-regulated instructional design by using MOODLE; (2) to investigate how far an instructional model can develop students' self-regulated learning; and (3) to investigate the effectiveness of the instructional design model in increasing students’ study competency moderated by their self-regulated learning. This research used the R & D research method. The procedure of the research consisted of three phases, namely: preliminary study, model design and development, and model effectiveness assessment. In the preliminary study, literature reviews on MOODLE instructional design and self-regulated learning theories and a small-scale field survey were carried out to get an idea of the instructional design model on the basic concepts of Civic Education presently applied. In the phase of model design and development, a model draft was developed to be validated by experts before limited and extended field tests were executed. In the phase of model effectiveness assessment, an experiment using the model of the Matching-only Pretest-Posttest Control Group design and factorial design was conducted. There were 76 participants in this effectiveness assessment, consisting of 36 university students and 2 lecturers as the experimental group, and other 36 university students and 2 lecturers as the control group. The research instruments used test questions to measure the variable of the students’ learning result competency and rubric scales of learning independence to measure the learning independence covariance. The data analysis technique used the techniques of Independent Sample t-Test and ANCOVA. The results of R & D are as follows: 1) The instructional design is executed through the following steps: identifying core competencies, carrying out instructional analysis, carrying out students' characteristic analysis, formulating in-between competency, developing online evaluation instruments, developing instructional strategy, developing Learning Object Materials (LOM), designing and executing online formative evaluation, revising the program, and designing and executing summative evaluation. 2) The model of the instructional design based on self-motivated learning using MOODLE promotes a higher learning autonomy than the instructional design model using CD-ROM and e-mail. 3) The model of the instructional design based on self-motivated learning using MOODLE effectively increases students' learning result competency moderated by their self-motivated learning and is better than instructional design model using CD-ROM and e-mail. Keywords: instructional design, self-directed learning, and MOODL

Mexican-American learning styles in a socioliterate approach to writing for English learners

The primary goal of this project is to provide a unit of instruction that addresses the critical English skills of oracy, writing, and intercultural proficiency. The curriculum features the social-construction-of-knowledge approach and the socioliterate approach. In addition, it includes an emphasis on Mexican-American values, learning styles, and intercultural communication, showing how they are interrelated and how they affect oral and written language proficiency and intercultural communication competence

Competitive jazz festivals: what motivates Northern California instrumental music teachers to participate in them?

In this study, I explored the motivations of high school instrumental music teachers to participate in competitive jazz festivals, specifically those sponsored by the California Music Educators Association (CMEA) Bay Section. I was interested in learning the specific needs participation in competitive festivals satisfied for high school music educators. Based on the tenets of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), I investigated whether the three basic psychological needs of autonomy, competency, and relatedness were among the needs being satisfied. I was curious whether an individual’s background in jazz or any other factors had any bearing on their decision to participate. Through interviews teachers shared their experiences, both positive and negative, of participating in competitive jazz festivals. The following research questions guided this study: 1. What motivates high school music teachers to participate in competitive jazz festivals? 2. What specific needs are satisfied through their participation? 3. How does one’s jazz background influence motivation to participate in CMEA Bay Section events? In answering the aforementioned research questions, I chose a case study design. Interviews with twenty-nine high school instrumental music teachers were conducted at their respective work sites, except for three phone interviews and one via electronic mail. Five themes identified through data analysis about festivals specifically included feelings about competition, judging, negative feedback from adjudicators, hearing and seeing other groups, and a suggestion for the addition of a clinic for all participating groups. Six general themes about CMEA Bay Section or participants’ feelings included more progressive thinking, a perception that youth among adjudicators was inadequately represented, a notion that festivals provided opportunities for process and growth, a feeling that many were forced to weigh the costs versus the benefits of participation, an expressed feeling of isolation in the profession, and a lack of awareness on the part of administrators about their participation in CMEA Bay Section jazz festivals

Working With Children Having Multiple Disabilities: A Practical Guide

The aim of this investigation is twofold: (1) to explore best practices with regards to teaching autistic and blind students in formal and informal learning environments (2) to create a practical guide for individuals who work with this target population. As a production and evaluation thesis equivalent, the methodology utilized for the data collection and evaluation is based on an action research model in which I collaborated with experts and practitioners in the field to acquire better knowledge and understanding of what techniques and strategies work best in teaching children that are multi-impaired. Employing an interactive/iterative approach, I used a combination of the initial questionnaire, interviews and literature searches to provide the content for the creation of a practical manual for field workers. This manual is comprised of a compilation of teaching techniques and strategies obtained from the data collected as well as examples of best practices as identified by those professionals who provided feedback. In the first phase of developing the manual, data were gathered and analyzed and a first draft was completed. An evaluation was then undertaken with experts in the field as well as others working with this population to review it and point out any inconsistent/missing information, lack of coherence, or problems with regards to how information was presented. These comments were then incorporated into a revised text that was submitted, once again, to experts in the field for a final summative evaluation in English and its multiple translations (French, Spanish, Quechua). The final edited manual will be published in the form of a practical guide that will be made available to professionals, volunteers and parents

Investigating Traditional Instruction and Problem-Based Learning at the Elementary Level

The purpose of this study was to determine if Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is as effective an instructional method at the elementary level as traditional instruction in learning content. This study also is a contribution to the literature on PBL in the elementary classroom. The research design was quasi-experimental with a non-equivalent control group. A pilot study was conducted in science classes prior to the commencement of the research project in social studies. Eighty-eight students participated in the two studies. The control groups received instruction in a traditional format, and the experimental groups received instruction through the use of PBL. The research question dealt with whether or not PBL was as effective an instruction method as traditional instruction in student achievement. T-tests were run at the conclusion of each study to compare the means of posttest scores and presentation assessment scores. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to determine if the differences in means were because of treatment effect or by chance. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine if prior knowledge had an impact on the student achievement scores. After the science data were collected and analyzed, the researcher determined that there was a statistically significant difference in the student achievement scores between those involved in the PBL class and those taught traditionally on both the posttest scores and the group presentation scores. Students enrolled in the traditional class scored significantly higher than those enrolled in the PBL class. The researcher noted, however, that both groups made gains in achievement. Assumptions for normality and homogeneity for t-test, ANOVA and ANCOVA were not met for the social studies classes. Transformation of the data took place using arcsine because of a negative skew of the data. After the social studies data were collected and analyzed, the researcher determined that there was no statistically significant difference in the posttest scores for the PBL and traditional classes. The group presentation grades produced conflicting results. Transformed data indicated a significant difference in student achievement while non-transformed data indicated that there was no statistically significant difference in the scores. The researcher noted that both groups made gains in achievement