One Child\u27s Story of School-experienced Isolation and Rejection

Abstract For twelve years of school, a tiny girl endured isolation and rejection from her peers most likely due to a physical abnormality. As the girl remembers, the educators in a small, rural school district did little to support her as she was ostracized by her classmates and encourage other children to practice compassion. At times, the educators even participated in the rejection of the child. This is the story of a tiny, brown-eyed little girl who experienced isolation and rejection time and time again. Keywords: isolation, rejection, bullying, abus

Financially Sustaining University Lab Schools: One University’s Story

University lab schools connected to teacher preparation programs are based on the clinical teaching model. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education encourage teacher preparation programs to extend the hours required in clinical settings for teacher candidates. For years, some teacher preparation programs have championed the clinical teaching model. The university that was the focus of this study has implemented the clinical teaching model for over 87 years. Sustaining this model was not easy but through perseverance, this university did just that. The intent of this study was to determine the organizational practices implemented at this university that aided in financially sustaining university lab schools over time. Through a case study method, the researchers discovered lab schools were sustained by (a) creatively utilizing state funding and regular teacher candidate tuition to assist with lab schools’ support; (b) instituting childcare tuition to help cover costs; (c) using teacher candidate lab fees and including lab school teachers as university faculty

The Curry/Samara Model and The Model Classrooms Project Background and Research Foundations

The Curry/Samara Model(CSM) is an integrated, standards based approach to curriculum development that addresses differentiation from three dimensions (content, process & product). CSM is comprised of strategies related to curriculum, instruction and assessment that helps teachers to: (1) complement factual subject matter with rich, global concepts; (2) foster basic and abstract levels of thinking as related to core content; and (3) engage and assess students through traditional as well as innovative, authentic products

Insight for Teacher Preparation Program Administrators: Enhancing Pre-service Educators’ Intercultural Sensitivity and Deep Proficiency in Culturally Responsive Teaching through Short-term Study Abroad

Teacher preparation program administrators face the issue of expanding curricula to prepare teacher candidates for the diverse population of students they will encounter (Trent, Kea, Oh, 2008). Globalization demands that teacher candidates grasp how to function in a more integrated and interdependent society (McGrew, 2005). According to Smith-Davis (2004) students from non-English speaking countries compose the fastest growing United States K-12 student population, and those identified as limited English proficient were over 10 million in 2004. The United States Census reported in the \u27\u27New Census Bureau Report the number of individuals five and older who speak languages other than English at home more than doubled in the past three decades (2010). If teacher preparation program leaders fail to prepare future educators with the dispositions, knowledge, and skills necessary to meet the needs of the nation\u27s school population, the national security and economic development may be hindered, and the position of the United States in the world community may be challenged (Zanh, 2011). Teacher preparation program leaders are faced with how to strengthen teacher candidates\u27 level of intercultural sensitivity and to prepare them to implement culturally responsive pedagogy through course content and other activities (Lin, Lake, & Rice, 2008, p. 188). Integrating multicultural education throughout all courses instead of adding a stand-alone course dedicated to cultural awareness and instruction is one manner to enhance candidates\u27 level of intercultural sensitivity, and this means is supported by many researchers (Cochran-Smith, Davis, & Fries, 2004). Another way to heighten intercultural sensitivity and gain skill in delivering culturally-responsive teaching strategies is through cross-cultural experiences (Foster, 1995; Gay, 2000; McAllister & Irving, 2002; Nieto, 2006). One such cross-cultural experience that deans, department heads, and faculty may explore is short-term study abroad. Short-term study abroad is more affordable and attractive to university students who cannot or will not commit to a semester or yearlong study abroad experience (Donnelly-Smith, 2009). As defined by Donnelly-Smith (2009), short-term study abroad experiences are those where students participate for fewer than eight weeks. These experiences have the potential of positively impacting teacher candidates\u27 intercultural sensitivity (Lawton et al., 2006). DonnellySmith stated that little formal research was displayed in the literature that described study abroad outcomes (2009). The purpose of this paper is to reveal how a short-term study abroad experience affected teacher candidates from a Texas regional university, and thus enhanced their intercultural sensitivity and deepened their knowledge and skill in culturally-responsive teaching strategies. This study was unique from other studies presented in the literature because the focus was how another country implements early childhood education and prepares future teachers. Teacher candidates were afforded an opportunity to compare Italy\u27s early childhood education system to the system they were more familiar with in the United States

Middle School Single-Gender Science Classes: Self-Concept and Discourse Analysis

One southwestern, suburban middle school in the United States implemented a voluntary, single-gender science program. Although other studies have documented the effects of single-gender instruction and recent educational innovations have focused on its benefits, minimal current research has investigated the effects in middle school science classroom contexts. This study indicated that the patterns of discourse differed between single-gender and mixed-gender classes, with single-gender male classes participating in higher levels of discourse than females in middle school single-gender classes. Overall, the self-concept for females was low in science and school performance. The discourse analysis revealed that males and females used higher level utterances when placed in single-gender classrooms

Identification of Gifted Students from Underrepresented Populations in Texas

Over the past few decades, the numbers and proportions of racially and ethnically diverse students in public schools have dramatically increased. Recent research, however, indicated that in spite of the efforts of states to address barriers in identifying underrepresented populations, the number of gifted students from minority and socio-economically disadvantaged groups remained significantly below their proportion in the general population (Coleman & Gallagher, 1995; Mills & Tlssot, 1995). Unless identification procedures for gifted students from underrepresented populations are broadened, many students will have limited access to gifted programs and will miss the opportunity to develop their minds to the fullest (Awaya, 2001). Promising practices in the identification of gifted students need to be identified and reported so public school administrators have the opportunity to effectively identify racially and ethnically diverse students for gifted programs

Financially Sustaining University Lab Schools: One University’s Story

University lab schools connected to teacher preparation programs are based on the clinical teaching model. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education encourage teacher preparation programs to extend the hours required in clinical settings for teacher candidates. For years, some teacher preparation programs have championed the clinical teaching model. The university that was the focus of this study has implemented the clinical teaching model for over 87 years. Sustaining this model was not easy but through perseverance, this university did just that. The intent of this study was to determine the organizational practices implemented at this university that aided in financially sustaining university lab schools over time. Through a case study method, the researchers discovered lab schools were sustained by (a) creatively utilizing state funding and regular teacher candidate tuition to assist with lab schools’ support; (b) instituting childcare tuition to help cover costs; (c) using teacher candidate lab fees and including lab school teachers as university faculty

A University/School Partnership Leading to Student Content Gain and Teacher Instructional Change

University professors collaborated with a fifth grade science teacher to implement a mixed method study that investigated the effectiveness of a collaboratively developed planning model on fifth grade student science knowledge gain and the impact of coaching on teacher instructional change. For one school year, from the fall through the spring semester, the teacher implemented the planning model and was coached twice monthly by the professors. The research questions were: (1) what is the effect of the science planning model on fifth grade student science content gain on students receiving the treatment and those not receiving the treatment?; (2) what is the effect of the science planning model on fifth grade at-risk student science content gain and other fifth grade student science content gain when both groups receive the treatment?; and (3) what kind of change occurs in instructional delivery when content experts collaborate with and coach a fifth grade classroom science teacher? Science instruction integrating reading and writing strategies enhanced science knowledge gains of at-risk students. Coaching a teacher through the implementation of a planning model shifted instruction from teacher-centered to student-centered and placed the construction of science knowledge onto the students

Distinguishing Practices for Administrators: A Case Study of One University\u27s Lab Settings\u27 Journey to Academic Excellence

Determining effective or distinguishing practices implemented by academically successful educational institutions that lead to student academic success is crucial for school administrators today. In our high accountability environment fueled by the 2002 No Child Left Behind Act, educational leaders scramble to meet high standards, such as, testing requirements, reading and math expectations, and higher qualifications for teachers (Jennings & Renter, 2006; Odland, 2006). School leaders may turn to canned instructional programs with claims of scientifically proven practices, and oftentimes, require teachers to follow these programs in hopes that higher student achievement will follow. Even though, effective schools research emerged over thirty years ago which identified common characteristics of effective schools, numerous educational institutions struggle to meet national and state expectations (Effective Schools, 2008). For example, in the state of Texas, there are 1,235 school campuses including charter campuses. In 2009, only 117 or approximately 10% of these campuses achieved the state’s top accountability rating of exemplary, and 73 or six percent were rated unacceptable. Furthermore, results from the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress indicated no significant change in fourth grade reading scores, and eighth grade scores were only one point higher compared to 2007. Mathematics scores were higher when compared to 2007 scores at grade eight but unchanged at grade four. Academic gaps between ethnic minorities and whites are not narrowing (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2010). However, some schools have promoted student achievement. The intent of this study was to discover the organizational and instructional practices of one university’s educational lab settings that led to documented student academic success over time. Recent literature supports this effort of unearthing distinguishing or successful practices