Journals.uncc.edu (North Carolina's Urban Research University)
Not a member yet
968 research outputs found
Sort by
A Teaching and Learning Tightrope: Navigating Accountability Mandates While Maintaining Sound Pedagogical Practices
No full textThis article describes the antecedents and the implications of the ‘accountability climate’ and associated ‘compliance climate’ in early childhood education through an 8-week case study of one Government-funded preschool in an under-resourced urban community. With attention to the macro- and micro-systems that situates the preschool, this study describes how the preschool achieved compliance with external mandates while maintaining pedagogically sound teaching practices. This article reaffirms that quality early childhood education opportunities are possible acrosseconomic disparities if appropriate supports are made available to teachers, students, and families. The qualitative case study, complemented by video-based fieldwork, examines local instructional practices and investigates the policies and protocols facilitating these practices. The join impact between macro- and microsystems contributed to the teachers’ successfully privileging student academic and social success within a compliance-driven ecological system. This study offers a concrete example of how supports and leadership can contribute to early childhood contexts upholding regulated compliance mandates while privileging children’s needs
Study Abroad Participation and University Students’ Intercultural Sensitivity
No full textAmerican institutions of higher learning have long recognized study abroad as an educational practice which enhances and deepens the integrative educational experience of students. The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between College of Education students’ participation in a short-term, faculty led, study abroad program and their intercultural sensitivity. A total of 24 students (21% return rate) responded to an online survey (Intercultural Development Inventory v.3, IDI; Hammer and Bennett, 2010) to measure intercultural sensitivity. The IDI demographic questionnaire, scores and qualitative responses were used for both the analyses and to identify themes from students’ recollections of their intercultural experiences. The research established baseline intercultural sensitivity scores, demographic characteristics, and students’ perception of their intercultural sensitivity. The mean scores for students who participated in a study abroad program was higher than students who did not participate in study abroad programs
Book Review: Race, Education, and Reintegrating Formerly Incarcerated Individuals: Counterstories and Counterspaces.
No full textRace, Education, and Reintegrating Formerly Incarcerated Individuals: Counterstories and Counterspaces is a far-reaching multi-disciplinary analysis of racialized policies, education systems, and criminal justice processes. It is an inside look at the significance that race, education, and incarceration bear upon individuals who were formerly behind bars; written not only by those who work with or teach this population, but by formerly incarcerated individuals themselves. The book is an authentic and definitive work that highlights the inequities in educational opportunities and mass incarceration in communities of color
Saudi Arabian International Students’ Sense of Belonging at an HBCU
No full textA multi-participant descriptive case study approach was used to highlight how Saudi Arabian international doctoral students attending an HBCU perceive their sense of belonging and how contextual factors impact their sense of belonging. Data was collected from students enrolled at Umoja University (pseudonym), a mid-sized HBCU in the south. At Umoja University, approximately five percent of the total student population is comprised of international students, the majority originating from Saudi Arabia. This research study was framed using the theoretical concept of ‘sense of belonging’. The purpose of the study was to understand the experiences of Saudi Arabian international students and the ways that their experiences influence their sense of belonging at an HBCU. This research explores how institutional structures, campus climate, and participants’ internal issues help or hinder these students’ sense of belonging. The findings suggest that external factors like national politics, faculty, staff, and peers contribute to a sense of belonging or lack thereof. In addition, internal factors such as language proficiency, cultural, political, and religious issues also play a role. The findings of this study have implications for university personnel as well as students considering HBCUs as an educational option.
Keywords: sense of belonging, Saudi Arabian, international students, HBC
High Expectations: Increasing Outcomes for Black Students in Urban Schools
No full textThe underachievement of students in the United States is alarming and calls for more attention to solutions that will increase college and career readiness. In addition, the continuing narrative of the underachievement of students of color still thrives as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores consistently report gaps between White and Black students. Although much research has been conducted on the achievement of students of color, the data reveals that more work is needed to promote higher achievement for Black students. When thinking about high achievement for Black students, the impact of the multiple factors hindering increased student performance also needs to be considered. This research is concerned with re-visiting proposed solutions for increasing academic outcomes for Black students while providing concrete examples of how those solutions can move from proposals to practice
The Effects of a Whole-Classroom Repeated Book Reading Intervention on the Language Development of Children in Head Start
No full textLanguage development is enhanced by children’s opportunities to actively engage in meaningful language interactions with adults. This study employed a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental group design to examine the effectiveness of a repeated book reading approach and its impact on children’s language development. Participants included the children in four Head Start classrooms from a rural Midwestern Head Start program whose teachers had been trained to use the repeated book reading approach. At the end of the intervention, children who had experienced the repeated book reading approach registered significant gains in their discourse ability scores compared to children in the control condition. Further, they experienced growth in their vocabulary compared to their scores at the beginning of the year. This study extends previous research findings and informs early childhood practice by providing a repeated book reading model which preschool teachers can use to promote essential language skills