ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Returning Responsibility to the Home: Outcomes of Background Checks on Low and High Achievers in Middle Basic Mathematics in North Bank Suburb of Makurdi, Nigeria
Author: Abah, Joshua Abah
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Suburbs,Mathematics Education,Elementary Education,Mathematics Achievement,Elementary School Students,Family Environment,Parent Responsibility,Peer Influence,Family Influence,Homework,Family Role,Student Attitudes

This study is a correlational survey of the impact of home involvement on the mathematics achievement of Basic 5 pupils in North Bank suburb of Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. The study is the outcome of the first phase of a local intervention programme targeted at encouraging homes in the suburb to actively support the mathematics education of children at the Basic Education level. The participants of the study comprise 73 Basic 5 pupils along with their parents across three basic schools in the suburb. The mathematics achievement scores of the pupils for the First Term of the 2016/2017 Academic Session were correlated with home involvement scores generated from the adopted Parental Involvement Questionnaire. The correlational analysis established a weak positive relationship (r = 0.0177, p = 0.9241; and r = 0.174, p = 0.2884) between home involvement and mathematics achievement. Further interaction with pupils revealed that outside pupils' parents, certain friends, members of extended family and neighbours play vital roles, ranging from re-teaching class work at home to providing guidance for mathematics homework.
Blended Learning in Middle School Math: The Question of Effectiveness
Author: Fazal, Minaz
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Blended Learning,Mathematics Instruction,Middle School Mathematics,Instructional Effectiveness,Middle School Students,Grade 6,Mathematics Achievement,Charter Schools,Standardized Tests,Achievement Tests

Blended learning models can help teachers leverage the power of technology to customize student learning and differentiate instruction for students at varying achievement levels. Research on the effectiveness of blended learning in K-12 education has largely relied on case studies, and findings suggest differences in achievement outcomes based on content areas and grade levels. This paper reports findings from a quantitative comparative study conducted to investigate the effects of blended learning, specifically using the station rotation model, on the math achievement of 413 6th grade students. Scores on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR), as well as the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) were used. Student groups were selected based on teacher responses on a survey in which they were asked to identify what portion of their class was spent on blended learning practices and on face-to-face teaching. A t-test was conducted to determine the differences in the scores of students taught in traditional fully face-to-face classrooms and those taught in blended learning classrooms. Findings showed that students instructed through blended learning scored higher on the MAP assessment (M = 11.12, SD = 7.88) than students in a fully face-to-face environment (M = 8.84, SD = 7.40), t(411) = 3.02, p &lt; 0.01. On the other hand, students instructed in a face-to-face setting scored higher on STAAR (M = 29.96, SD = 11.84) than those in blended learning settings (M = 26.75, SD = 11.06), t(411) = -2.85, p &lt; 0.01. Blended learning was more effective in facilitating growth in math learning as compared to meeting grade level criteria. These findings indicate that schools can benefit from implementing blended learning particularly for students who are behind academically and need additional academic growth in one school year.
Developing Pedagogy and Course Design Skills in Novice Virtual School Teachers in Australia
Author: Cavanaugh, Cathy
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,National Standards,Online Courses,Communities of Practice,Computer Simulation,Networks,Novices,Teaching Methods,Faculty Development,Teaching Skills,Required Courses,College Admission,Secondary School Teachers,Rural Areas,Low Income,Access to Education,Instructional Design,Evaluators

Ten secondary schools in a large state-wide education system initiated a virtual school network to address the lack of upper secondary school courses for university entry in smaller high schools. This article highlights the yearlong professional learning program designed to prepare a cohort of classroom teachers, who were novices to teaching online, for developing and teaching fully-online courses. In accordance with program goals, data include pre/post measures of teachers' capabilities and external course reviews using the iNACOL National Standards for Quality Online Teaching. Results show that teachers grew in all standards of their self-reported online teaching skills, and reviewers rated two-thirds of the 21 quality items as being Very Satisfactory and Satisfactory for a majority of the courses prior to teachers beginning to teach students. Findings indicate areas of emphasis for the ongoing work of the cohort's professional learning community.
Exploring the Concerns of Online K-12 Teachers
Author: Farmer, Tadd
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Elementary School Teachers,Secondary School Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Online Courses,Distance Education,Teaching Experience,Teaching (Occupation),Occupational Aspiration,Teacher Certification,Time Management,Teacher Responsibility,Teacher Role,Grading,Technology Uses in Education,Computer Assisted Testing,Educational Quality,Open Enrollment,Student Placement,Teacher Student Relationship,Mentors

In this interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) study, we found that the experiences of online teachers are highly complex and individualized, and that the development of their concerns as teachers is largely unaffected by years of teaching experience. Because of the dramatic increase in online K-12 education, there is a need for additional research to understand evidence-based practices in online teaching. Few studies have attempted to capture the rich experience of online teachers through a careful analysis of their teaching concerns. In this study, educators from a large online K-12 institution were contacted via email and invited to participate. Final study participants were purposely selected to represent both new and experienced educators in order to understand the possible impact of teaching experience on the development of concerns. In total, seven educators were chosen to participate in two online video interviews and bimonthly journaling entries over a four-month period of time. These educators revealed numerous teaching-related concerns hereafter categorized by personal, instructional, and relational themes, along with categories found at the intersection of these three themes. The findings presented here encourage greater dialogue between teachers and organizational leaders to understand and mitigate the negative impact of these concerns.
Providing Counseling Services in High Schools: Partnerships in Higher Education
Author: Cicco, Gina
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: High Schools,School Counseling,School Counselors,Counselor Role,Counseling Effectiveness,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Partnerships in Education,College School Cooperation,Computer Uses in Education,Educational Technology,Elementary Secondary Education,Urban Schools,Universities

This article will discuss the importance and implications of providing high quality school counseling services in K-12 schools, and specifically in high schools. The delivery of comprehensive school counseling programs and related services such as mentoring and academic advisement have been linked to students' academic success, graduation rates, and post-secondary outcomes in terms of college admission and retention (Castro-Atwater, 2013; DeKruyf, Auger, &amp; Trice-Black, 2013; Engberg &amp; Gilbert, 2014). The multi-faceted roles of contemporary school counselors will be highlighted, with a focus on responsive services that they deliver directly and indirectly. Competencies that school counselors are expected to demonstrate in successful schools will expand beyond providing individual and small group counseling services to delivering comprehensive guidance curricula in academic, personal/social, and career development domains through services, such as classroom guidance, consultation, and coordination of special events (Schmidt, 2014). School counselors are charged with taking on advocacy and leadership roles to ensure that all students have equal access to a diversity of post-secondary options while offering training to enhance students' college preparedness and planning skills. To do this effectively, ethically, and responsibly, school counselors must seek to achieve multicultural competence and continual professional development (Davis, Davis, &amp; Mobley, 2013; Savitz-Romer, 2012). The impact of effective counseling programs and services will be reviewed as well as the need for students to obtain rigorous college and career preparation, which can be enhanced through technology and software geared towards delivering guidance curricula. An example of an actual high school and university partnership will be shared to illustrate the potential for high schools to partner with institutions of higher education to fulfill mutual goals while serving the community of learners. Institutions of higher education can contribute to K-12 schools by offering professional development on instructional technologies, particularly those utilized in career and college preparedness services for students, and by providing the expertise of trained faculty and their interns to supplement existing school resources (Gysbers, 2013).
Toward an Integrated Technology Integration Framework for Teacher Preparation: Instructional Technological Competence
Author: Korucu-Kis, Saadet
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Technology Integration,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Preservice Teachers,Preservice Teacher Education,Teacher Competencies,Technological Literacy,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Second Language Instruction,Foreign Countries

A number of technology integration frameworks have been introduced to gain a better understanding of intrinsic factors influencing teachers' use of technology. While some frameworks emphasize the incorporation of technology with pedagogy, others underline the critical role of beliefs in a successful implementation process. However, what is missing in these frameworks is to blend these separate but interdependent constructs into a coherent framework. Thus, the present study aims to close this gap by proposing a technology integration framework extending a previous research study that introduced the idea that student teachers' technological awareness, beliefs, knowledge, and skills should be addressed simultaneously in technology courses given that addressing these constructs in isolation impedes the continual interaction between them, thus causing student teachers to feel not well prepared to teach with technology. The proposed framework is intended to provide a common language for teacher educators to discuss how student teachers should be prepared to achieve technology integration in classrooms.
(Blended) Learning: How Traditional Best Teaching Practices Impact Blended Elementary Classrooms
Author: Anthony, Elizabeth
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Blended Learning,Elementary Education,Best Practices,Student Evaluation,Learner Engagement,Interaction,Teaching Methods,Educational Quality,Interpersonal Communication,Questioning Techniques

Decades of research have shown that the quality of instruction a student receives has a greater impact than any other factor on his or her learning, but the emergence of the blended learning model has caused many teachers and leaders to focus on innovation and changing practices rather than on developing the research-based teacher practices that have a demonstrated positive impact on students' learning. Through observations of and interviews with six teachers, this study shows that best teaching practices from traditional classrooms -- especially (1) demonstrating flexibility and responsiveness, (2) using assessment in instruction, and (3) engaging students in learning tasks -- do, in fact, have a substantial impact on student learning in blended elementary classrooms. These results should help leaders and teachers understand where to focus their time and energy in order to improve student learning with the blended learning model.
Neuroeducation and Early Elementary Teaching: Retrospective Innovation for Promoting Growth with Students Living in Poverty
Author: Allee-Herndon, Karyn
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Poverty,Cognitive Development,Academic Achievement,Executive Function,Early Childhood Education,Brain,Self Control,Stress Variables,Stress Management

The field of education is beginning to understand more concretely how specific conditions, such as poverty, affect brain and cognitive development and the related impacts on academic achievement. More than 10 million children who live below the poverty threshold attend public preK-12 schools, and over 1 million of these children attend public prekindergarten and kindergarten (National Center for Children in Poverty, 2017). Especially in early childhood, poverty poses the single greatest threat to children's well-being and educational equity. As educators, early childhood professionals commit to a mandate to ensure all students are afforded every opportunity for school success. Innovative approaches in the primary grades can apply emerging brain research to continue to build elementary-aged children's readiness for school, emotional resiliency, and abilities to be successful academically. Recent improvements in neuroimaging, a relatively new discipline using various technologies to image the structure and function of the brain, allow one to better understand how the brain develops, and this affects one's understanding of teaching and learning, specifically in the areas of executive function (EF) and self-regulation (SR). These increased understandings allow educational professionals to tailor instructional practices to best meet the needs of students, especially students living in poverty who are at greater risk for underperforming compared to their more resourced peers. To meet the needs of all students, but especially students living in poverty or other stressful environments, teachers offer learning experiences that engage children emotionally, socially, and cognitively in growth-promoting classrooms to increase children's chances for success in school and beyond. This paper highlights the salient connections between poverty and brain development, and then aligns neuroeducational insights with innovative, yet retrospective instructional strategies linked to the early childhood areas of language and literacy, dramatic and imaginary play, games and puzzles, and gross motor and musical movements.
Childrearing Experiences in Cross-National Families
Author: Xiang, Yajuan
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Child Rearing,Family Characteristics,Marriage,Parenting Styles,Conflict,Stress Variables,Spouses,Cultural Differences,Parent Attitudes,Place of Residence,Language Role,Family (Sociological Unit),Cultural Influences

Cross-national family is an understudied group. In the past, research on this group tended to focus on the challenges confronted by the couples in marital conflicts impacted by the unique stressors within the family including: place of residence, disparate language and cultural differences, societal attitudes, and extended families and friends. A relatively small proportion of the literature focused on multicultural parenting experiences which is recognized as a turning point for increasing conflicts within couples. Through surveys and selected interviews, this qualitative study provides insightful narrative descriptions to further understand how the unique stressors might impact childrearing experiences. Results describe parents' perceptions on their cross-national marriages and multicultural parenting experiences.
Differentiated Instruction: A Band-Aid Approach for a Flawed System
Author: Stone, Sandra J.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Individualized Instruction,Teaching Methods,Student Needs,Curriculum,Student Centered Learning,Accountability,Testing,Grading,Readiness,Student Interests,Cognitive Style,Course Content,Student Diversity

The United States currently has a system which was instituted almost two hundred years ago as a result of the Industrial Revolution. Education incorporated the efficiency of a manufacturing model into a way to educate the general populace. While the intentions were well-meaning, they were not based on an understanding of child development or even on how children learn. Through the years, different approaches have been used to make education more efficient. A significant approach was to use a more scientific method, termed the behaviorist approach, to maximize curricular instruction through lesson plans and objectives. However, the &quot;elephant in the room&quot; is that our educational system of grouping children by age for one-size-fits-all instruction is ultimately a flawed system. Respected authors and educators have called to &quot;throw out the whole system&quot; and pursue radical change. With the possibilities of inventing a new system, the &quot;Differentiated Instruction&quot; model is examined. This article seeks to demonstrate how differentiated instruction is simply a &quot;Band Aid&quot; approach for an educational system that is detrimental to the development and well being of diverse and unique children. This article proposes that a new and different system needs to be created to meet the needs of ALL children.
Educator Perceptions of Student Ownership and Self-Authorship: Building a Connective Framework between Two Constructs
Author: Stone, Brian J.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teacher Attitudes,Teacher Student Relationship,Individual Development,Student Empowerment,Teacher Surveys,Elementary Secondary Education

Student ownership in K-16 education is well defined in the literature, with multiple examples of the benefits to individual students. Simply defined, student ownership or autonomy is an &quot;action that is chosen; action for which one is responsible&quot; suggests that teachers help students develop ownership in the classroom by &quot;including students in school-decision-making processes, by ensuring that students have the opportunity to express their opinions about the way schools are run, and by creating school communities that are symbiotic.&quot; It is critical students actively interact in constructing the curriculum, and indeed, their own learning experiences. In close relation to ownership is the developmental construct of self-authorship. Self-authorship is a constructivist phenomenon, and is exhibited as an individual constructs or makes meaning of their relationship to the world around them. Achievement of self-authorship is therefore recognized in the coordination of defining identity, beliefs, and social relationships while critically considering external variables and perspectives. With an interrelation of ownership and self-authorship in healthy developmental processes of the individual, the authors of this study determined to qualify educator perceptions of these constructs, both in terms of assigned value and classroom manifestation.
Exploring the Power and Processes of Friendship through Picturebooks
Author: Crawford, Patricia A.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Friendship,Picture Books,Childrens Literature,Teaching Methods,Prosocial Behavior,Child Development,Social Development,Peer Relationship

In the daily news cycle, national and global debates constantly swirl around issues of justice, equity, and civility, with concerns raging about the core elements needed for individuals, communities, and nations to interact successfully. No doubt, children are impacted by the way these issues play out on the world stage. However, they also learn similar, more developmentally appropriate life lessons about key relationship values and what it means to engage fairly, successfully, and happily with others, through the power of personal friendships. Close, personal friendships evidence the potential to serve as both anchors and supportive scaffolds for the developing child; rooting children in the security of established, close relationships and giving them the confidence and assurance essential to engage in new ones. Thus, it is important that children have opportunities to learn about the meaning and power of friendship, and receive tangible support to develop the pro-social skills necessary to forge, navigate, and deepen these relationships.Children learn about friendship through many avenues, including observations of interpersonal interactions, their evolving participation in personal relationships, and the information about friendship that is presented through books and other media sources. High quality picturebooks provide an excellent source of accessible and developmentally appropriate information about the nature of friendship, revealed through informational tips, as well as through the stories of protagonists who grow through opportunities to alternatively embrace and struggle with different aspects of their personal relationships. In this article, the authors offer an overview of the role of friendship in the lives of children and consider ways in which children can develop the skills and habits of mind and heart needed to &quot;initiate&quot;, &quot;sustain&quot;, and &quot;navigate challenging areas&quot; within these types of relationships. Related touchstone texts are introduced in the discussion of each of these areas. Finally, they discuss pedagogical possibilities for effectively sharing friendship-based stories with young children.
Teachers&apos; Perspectives on Language Assessment and Effective Strategies for Young English Language Learners in Florida
Author: Szecsi, Tunde
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English Language Learners,Elementary School Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Student Placement,Student Evaluation,Correlation,Curriculum,Language Usage,Teaching Methods,English (Second Language),Student Rights,Family Environment,Kindergarten,Preschool Teachers,Grade 3

This article reports on the findings of an empirical study that examined elementary school teachers' views about the English language learners' (ELLs) program placement assessment, and progress assessment. Specifically, the interviews in the study explored teachers' perspectives on the effectiveness of these assessments and the connection between language assessment and curricular decisions. In addition, classroom observations were conducted to gain insights into language strategies that these teachers used to promote better teaching and learning for ELLs. In this article, an overview of the current assessment system for ELLs in Florida is provided, then the findings regarding the value of assessment are discussed as well as effective teaching strategies. The article concludes with implications for teachers, teacher educators and school district personnel.