ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Learning across Disciplines: A Collective Case Study of Two University Programs That Integrate the Arts with STEM
Author: Ghanbari, Sheena
Date: 2015-06-09
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Art Education,STEM Education,Integrated Curriculum,College Curriculum,Case Studies,Student Experience,Learning Experience,College Students,Alumni,Interviews,Comparative Analysis,Universities,College Programs,Social Theories,Learning Theories,Experiential Learning

There has been some debate and research that suggests the arts are well-suited to be combined with science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines making the STEM acronym STEAM. STEM education is an educational and political priority in the United States and is valued as a means of strengthening national security and ensuring global competitiveness. The STEAM paradigm also emphasizes the importance of STEM education, but argues that the arts have the ability to open up new ways of seeing, thinking, and learning. This study aims to share student learning experiences in two established university programs that integrate an arts discipline with a STEM discipline. Student and alumni interviews are compared within a collective case study methodology. Framed by principles of sociocultural theory and experiential learning theory, this inquiry explores the role of arts integration, collaboration, and experience centered learning in knowledge creation.
Engaging Families through Artful Play
Author: Brown, Robert
Date: 2015-06-10
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Family Involvement,Play,Recreational Activities,Observation,Program Effectiveness,Art Activities,Recreational Facilities,Foreign Countries,Family Programs,Visual Arts,Artists,Creativity,Aesthetics,Handicrafts,Semi Structured Interviews,Program Evaluation,Experiential Learning,Dramatic Play

This paper explores how aligned arts and play experiences can extend child and family engagement in a public outdoor space. The importance of outdoor play for children is strongly advocated and in response local governments provide playgrounds and recreational open spaces. To extend further the experiences afforded in such spaces some local governments now employ &quot;play workers,&quot; whose role is to prompt exploration and facilitate connections. With the intention of animating an uninviting and underused outdoor public space, the ArtPlay Backyard program presented a series of artist-facilitated experiences that encouraged children and families to explore, interact and transform. Research into this program, undertaken through observations and in-situ interviews, mapped the views and actions of children, parents, early childhood professionals and artists. The study concluded that the program was highly engaging to families who were animated by &quot;artful play&quot;: experiences guided by artists, who, acting like &quot;play workers,&quot; stimulated imaginative, aesthetic, creative and social encounters with people, place, and materials.
BodyHeat Encounter: Performing Technology in Pedagogical Spaces of Surveillance/Intimacy
Author: Fels, Lynn
Date: 2015-06-10
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Video Technology,Theater Arts,Inquiry,Human Body,Technology,Imagination,Intimacy,Art Education,Instruction,Curriculum,Performance,Foreign Countries

What occurs when videographer and performer encounter each other through the lens of a camera? This collaborative performative inquiry focuses on embodiment and emergent narrative as realized through an encounter between technology and the visceral body--a relational body that smells, touches, sees, hears and feels the emergent world through impulse and movement. Who performs whom as we encounter each other through technology? Does our engagement with technology limit our field of vision, or expand the pedagogical imagination? What we are beginning to recognize is a paradoxical complexity; that within surveillance is an unsuspected possibility of intimacy. With the rise in techno-mediated arts, arts educators are offered curricular and pedagogical opportunities to reinvestigate the performative encounters of those who create through and with technology.
Improv and Ink: Increasing Individual Writing Fluency with Collaborative Improv
Author: DeMichele, Mary
Date: 2015-06-19
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Creative Activities,Writing (Composition),Writing Skills,Theater Arts,Quasiexperimental Design,Action Research,Urban Schools,Suburban Schools,Story Telling,Special Education,High School Students,Cooperation,History Instruction,Instructional Effectiveness,Educational Games,Writing Improvement

This article explores how short form/comedic improvisational theater impacts the development of writing fluency. Students in all disciplines need to be able to purposefully write, however by the time students reach high school many have already given up trying to express even their own thoughts in free writing. Two quasi-experimental action research studies in two school districts, one urban and one suburban, were conducted to determine if the length of the students' writing would increase after exposure to a sequence of improv story-telling and story-writing games. Data analysis revealed that both regular education and special education populations showed increases in both their word and sentence usage. The article examines how improv's collaborative nature supported by the rule of &quot;Yes, and…,&quot; may addresses deficits in both social-emotional and literacy skills that effect writing fluency.
Linguistic and Literacy Predictors of Early Spelling in First and Second Language Learners
Author: Keilty, Megan
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Error Analysis (Language),Spelling,Kindergarten,English (Second Language),English,Native Speakers,Comparative Analysis,Oral Language,Vocabulary,Syntax,Phonological Awareness,Reading Skills,Word Recognition,Alphabets,Writing Skills,Foreign Countries,Statistical Analysis,Predictor Variables,Regression (Statistics)

Error analyses using a multidimensional measure were conducted on the misspellings of Kindergarten children speaking English as a first (EL1) and English as a second language (ESL) in order to detect any differences in early spelling ability between language groups. Oral vocabulary, syntactic knowledge, phonological processing, letter/word reading, and alphabet writing fluency tasks were also administered. The speakers of EL1 and ESL achieved similar spelling sophistication scores despite lower oral vocabulary and syntactic knowledge for the ESL group. More sophisticated spelling approaches were related to better-developed phonological processing, syntactic knowledge, and early word reading irrespective of language status.
Engaging Post-Secondary Students and Older Adults in an Intergenerational Digital Storytelling Course
Author: Hewson, Jennifer
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Story Telling,Electronic Learning,Educational Technology,Postsecondary Education,College Students,Older Adults,Intergenerational Programs,Social Work,Workshops,Program Evaluation,Surveys,Knowledge Level,Student Interests,Attitude Measures,Program Effectiveness,Foreign Countries,Likert Scales,Qualitative Research,Statistical Analysis

A five day Digital Storytelling course was offered to Social Work students, integrating a three day workshop with older adult storytellers who shared stories related to the theme stories of home. A course evaluation was conducted exploring the Digital Storytelling experience and learning in an intergenerational setting. Findings from surveys distributed at the end of the course to students and storytellers revealed that students' knowledge of and interest in Digital Storytelling and its application was enhanced. The intergenerational component was positive for students and older adults. Students identified the intergenerational component as a highlight of the course which improved their awareness of older adult issues and knowledge of working with aging populations. Older adult participants enjoyed working with the students which increased their understanding of younger generations. This innovative course enhanced students' learning experiences, meriting consideration for the incorporation of intergenerational learning opportunities and Digital Storytelling into future social service and aging related courses to better prepare students for gerontological practice.
Creating a Model for Graduate Student Inclusion and Success
Author: Duranczyk, Irene M.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Graduate Students,Mentors,Academic Advising,Student Developed Materials,Professional Development,Multicultural Education,Inclusion,Student Attitudes

Mentoring and advising are critical aspects of the graduate student experience, and can have a significant impact on the professional lives of future postsecondary faculty and staff and a rippling effect throughout higher education and the global economy. This paper describes the process a new department undertook to create a graduate program that puts the inclusion and success of students first.
&quot;What Do You Mean I Wrote a C Paper?&quot; Writing, Revision, and Self-Regulation
Author: Feltham, Mark
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Writing (Composition),Revision (Written Composition),Metacognition,Writing Processes,Writing Instruction,Grades (Scholastic),Teaching Methods,Intervention,Interdisciplinary Approach,Surveys,English Instruction,College Faculty,Leadership Training,Females,Undergraduate Students,Workshops,Peer Evaluation,Writing Evaluation,Foreign Countries,Feedback (Response)

Students often express surprise at their grades on papers. This gap between expectation and achievement may stem in part from lack of facility with revision strategies. How, then, can teachers work with their students to foster more effective revisions? This question in teaching and learning has inspired an interdisciplinary collaboration: one of us is a management and leadership professor (Sharen), and the other is an English/communication professor (Feltham). In this essay, we describe a research study from winter 2013 in which we explored how a series of interventions improved students' mindsets about the process of drafting and revising reports for a second-year-university course entitled &quot;Women and Leadership.&quot; After outlining key aspects of this study that we feel are of general interest, we then present a series of reflective suggestions about how to teach revision derived from both our experiences and a selective survey of the literature on both revision and self-regulation.
Linking Errors between Two Populations and Tests: A Case Study in International Surveys in Education
Author: Hastedt, Dirk
Date: 2015-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Case Studies,Simulation,International Programs,Testing Programs,Measurement,National Competency Tests,Test Items,Comparative Analysis,Grade 4,Item Response Theory,Foreign Countries

This simulation study was prompted by the current increased interest in linking national studies to international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) such as IEA's TIMSS, IEA's PIRLS, and OECD's PISA. Linkage in this scenario is achieved by including items from the international assessments in the national assessments on the premise that the average achievement scores from the latter can be linked to the international metric. In addition to raising issues associated with different testing conditions, administrative procedures, and the like, this approach also poses psychometric challenges. This paper endeavors to shed some light on the effects that can be expected, the linkage errors in particular, by countries using this practice. The ILSA selected for this simulation study was IEA TIMSS 2011, and the three countries used as the national assessment cases were Botswana, Honduras, and Tunisia, all of which participated in TIMSS 2011. The items selected as items common to the simulated national tests and the international test came from the Grade 4 TIMSS 2011 mathematics items that IEA released into the public domain after completion of this assessment. The findings of the current study show that linkage errors seemed to achieve acceptable levels if 30 or more items were used for the linkage, although the errors were still significantly higher compared to the TIMSS' cutoffs. Comparison of the estimated country averages based on the simulated national surveys and the averages based on the international TIMSS assessment revealed only one instance across the three countries of the estimates approaching parity. Also, the percentages of students in these countries who actually reached the defined benchmarks on the TIMSS achievement scale differed significantly from the results based on TIMSS and the results for the simulated national assessments. As a conclusion, we advise against using groups of released items from international assessments in national assessments in order to link the results of the former to the latter.
Real Cost-Benefit Analysis Is Needed in American Public Education
Author: Stoneberg, Bert D.
Date: 2015-07-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Public Education,Cost Effectiveness,Input Output Analysis,Educational Policy,Measurement Techniques,Measurement Objectives,Educational Practices,Expenditure per Student,Scores,Educational Research,Evaluation Problems,Evaluation Methods,Educational Assessment,Educational Indicators,Achievement Gains,Achievement Rating,Robustness (Statistics)

Public school critics often point to rising expenditures and relatively flat test scores to justify their school reform agendas. The claims are flawed because their analyses fail to account for the difference in data types between dollars (ratio) and test scores (interval). A cost-benefit analysis using dollars as a common metric for both costs and benefits can provide a good estimate of their relationship. It also acknowledges that costs and benefits are both subject to inflation. The National Center for Education Research administers a methods training program for researchers who want to know more about cost-benefit analyses on education policies and programs.
A Practical Guide for Using Propensity Score Weighting in R
Author: Olmos, Antonio
Date: 2015-06-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Probability,Regression (Statistics),Computer Software

Propensity score weighting is one of the techniques used in controlling for selection biases in nonexperimental studies. Propensity scores can be used as weights to account for selection assignment differences between treatment and comparison groups. One of the advantages of this approach is that all the individuals in the study can be used for the outcomes evaluation. In this paper, we demonstrate how to conduct propensity score weighting using R. The purpose is to provide a step-by-step guide to propensity score weighting implementation for practitioners. In addition to strengths, some limitations of propensity score weighting are discussed.
Effect of Adjusting Pseudo-Guessing Parameter Estimates on Test Scaling When Item Parameter Drift Is Present
Author: Han, Kyung T.
Date: 2015-07-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Item Response Theory,Monte Carlo Methods,Scaling,Test Items,Guessing (Tests),Test Format,Equated Scores,Classification,Accuracy,Tests

In item response theory test scaling/equating with the three-parameter model, the scaling coefficients A and B have no impact on the c-parameter estimates of the test items since the cparameter estimates are not adjusted in the scaling/equating procedure. The main research question in this study concerned how serious the consequences would be if c-parameter estimates are not adjusted in the test equating procedure when item-parameter drift (IPD) is present. This drift is commonly observed in equating studies and hence, has been the source of considerable research. The results from a series of Monte-Carlo simulation studies conducted under 32 different combinations of conditions showed that some calibration strategies in the study, where the cparameters were adjusted to be identical across two test forms, resulted in more robust equating performance in the presence of IPD. This paper discusses the practical effectiveness and the theoretical importance of appropriately adjusting c-parameter estimates in equating.
Integrative Biological Chemistry Program Includes the Use of Informatics Tools, GIS and SAS Software Applications
Author: D'Souza, Malcolm J.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Biochemistry,Undergraduate Study,College Science,Geographic Information Systems,Computer Software,Technology Uses in Education,Biology,Chemistry,Physics,Mathematics,Statistical Analysis,Programming,Information Science,Student Projects,Experiential Learning,Interdisciplinary Approach,Obesity,Public Health,Curriculum Development,Geographic Location,Data Collection,Health Insurance,Age Differences,Socioeconomic Status,Family Income,Incidence,Correlation

Wesley College is a private, primarily undergraduate minority-serving institution located in the historic district of Dover, Delaware (DE). The College recently revised its baccalaureate biological chemistry program requirements to include a one-semester Physical Chemistry for the Life Sciences course and project-based experiential learning courses using instrumentation, data-collection, data-storage, statistical-modeling analysis, visualization, and computational techniques. In this revised curriculum, students begin with a traditional set of biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics major core-requirements, a geographic information systems (GIS) course, a choice of an instrumental analysis course or a statistical analysis systems (SAS) programming course, and then, students can add major-electives that further add depth and value to their future post-graduate specialty areas. Open-sourced georeferenced census, health and health disparity data were coupled with GIS and SAS tools, in a public health surveillance system project, based on US county zip-codes, to develop use-cases for chronic adult obesity where income, poverty status, health insurance coverage, education, and age were categorical variables. Across the 48 contiguous states, obesity rates are found to be directly proportional to high poverty and inversely proportional to median income and educational achievement. For the State of Delaware, age and educational attainment were found to be limiting obesity risk-factors in its adult population. Furthermore, the 2004-2010 obesity trends showed that for two of the less densely populated Delaware counties; Sussex and Kent, the rates of adult obesity were found to be progressing at much higher proportions when compared to the national average.
A Comprehensive Survey on Student Perceptions of Cyberbullying at a Major Metropolitan University
Author: Lawler, James P.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: College Students,Student Attitudes,Bullying,Computer Mediated Communication,Social Networks,Electronic Mail,Handheld Devices,Student Surveys,Knowledge Level,School Responsibility,Aggression,Victims,Pornography,Telecommunications,Gender Differences,Racial Differences,Ethnic Groups,Sexuality,Disabilities,Religion,Homosexuality,Help Seeking,Discipline,Likert Scales,Educational Environment,Institutional Characteristics,Student Characteristics

Cyberbullying is a concern for any college or university. Digital harassment incidents are featured daily in the news. The authors of this study examine the perceptions of students on cyberbullying at a major metropolitan university. From the findings of a student survey, the authors learn of high levels of perceptions on incidents as an issue but low levels of perceptions on institutional methods of response and sensitivity at the university. This study will be beneficial as cyberbullying is considered an issue more frequent in high schools than in colleges and universities.
Leadership in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Perspectives of Academics in Non-Formal Leadership Roles
Author: Hofmeyer, Anne
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: College Faculty,Leadership Role,Semi Structured Interviews,Educational Improvement,Qualitative Research,Teacher Attitudes,Faculty Publishing,Educational Quality,Team Teaching,Learning Experience,Educational Change,Organizational Culture,Mentors,Teacher Leadership,Nursing Education,Health Sciences,Medical Education,Pharmaceutical Education,Foreign Countries

Developing leaders and leadership are key factors to improve learning and teaching in higher education. Despite the abundance of literature concerning developing formal leadership, fewer studies have been conducted with academics in non-formal leadership roles that focus on how they develop their leadership in learning and teaching. Publication and funding metrics are evidence of leadership and success in research. Metrics in learning and teaching exist, but are less well accepted and valued. We undertook a qualitative descriptive study to examine how academics in non-formal leadership roles at an Australian university understood leadership and described their leadership in teaching. Following ethical approval, eight participants were interviewed using a semi-structured format. Thematic analysis revealed four themes: leadership is the ability to influence direction; all about the culture; becoming visible and speaking up; and learning leadership together. Participants said leading teaching teams effectively and influencing quality learning experiences for students and colleagues is &quot;evidence&quot; of leadership in learning and teaching. Some said a few research colleagues and formal leaders did not accept such &quot;evidence&quot; and continued to favour leadership of research teams. This paper contributes new strategies as possible ways forward to facilitate cultural change in higher education institutions that include: a need for formal leaders and academics to reach agreement about evidence of effective leadership in learning and teaching; academics sharing innovations to effectively lead teaching teams and to promote quality teaching experiences for students; and mentoring colleagues in learning and teaching.
Exploring Portuguese Heritage and Non-Heritage Learners' Perceptions of and Performance in Listening
Author: Santos, Denise
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Portuguese,Second Language Learning,Heritage Education,Scores,Surveys,Auditory Perception,Task Analysis,Inferences,Language Processing,Qualitative Research,Listening Comprehension,Second Language Instruction,Undergraduate Students,Family Environment,English,English (Second Language),Native Speakers,Questionnaires,Student Attitudes,Difficulty Level,Class Activities,Statistical Analysis

This article discusses perceptions of and performance in listening by a group of heritage and non-heritage learners of Portuguese. Our data include a survey containing background information and perceptions about listening, two listening tasks and a post-task self-report on how learners arrived at their answers. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the data revealed similarities and differences between the two groups. With regard to perceptions, and unlike non-heritage learners, heritage learners find listening easier than the other skills. However, both groups of learners perceive listening tasks as challenging and both think that heritage learners have an advantage over non-heritage learners while listening. The analysis of listening performance shows that, while heritage learners achieved slightly higher scores than non-heritage learners, they encountered difficulties in tasks requiring integration of information or inferencing. Also, neither group is able to deal successfully with those task demands on a consistent basis.