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Culturally Sustaining Indigenous Education Within Agricultural Education Curriculum
Get PDFWhen Agricultural Education was founded in 1917 from the Smith-Hughes Act, it was not inclusive to all students. Agricultural education and the National FFA Organization have excluded people based on their race, gender, and religion in the past. Though steps are being made today to right the wrongs of the past, there is still progress to be made. One group that has been left out and excluded from the agricultural education archives, are Indigenous students. Indigenous students face many challenges within the school system that stem directly from the intergenerational trauma that the westernized educational system has created. This capstone serves to answer the question: How can agricultural education teachers include a more culturally relevant curriculum that relates to their Indigenous students? Teachers must first research and understand the inequalities within agricultural education. Then, they must know the specific educational needs that Indigenous students have that differ from the westernized educational system. After that, a curriculum can be created that allows Indigenous students to be represented within the agricultural education classroom
Utilizing Public Involvement As A Driver For Conservation Efforts
Get PDFPublic lands have long been treasured by the citizens and communities that surround them. They provide a multitude of recreational opportunities to the people as well as needed ecological services to the greater ecosystems in which they are located. The management of these lands traditionally on governmental agencies or non-profit organizations. The goal of this project is to explore and develop avenues for public involvement in the natural resource management process and to answer the question of: How can land managers harness public involvement and understanding to advance conservation efforts? The Public Parallel Natural Areas Management System (PPNAMS) was developed through extensive research into the fields of conservation planning, environmental education, citizen science, human dimensions, and collaborative conservation. Processes and procedures from a variety of agencies and studies were referenced in the construction of the system. The resulting guide was designed to serve as a guide to land managers to build public participation into management activities. Future expansion, limitations, and policy implications are discussed
Engaging Secondary School Students in the Process of Writing with Expressivist Pedagogy
Get PDFThe composition pedagogy of expressivism, which grew out of process theory in the 1960s has been influencing academia’s approach to teaching writing for several decades. The major characteristics of this pedagogy first outlined by its most prominent champion Peter Elbow include the focus on the process rather than the product of writing, the personalization of academic writing with inclusion of personal experiences and pronouns, the lack of textbooks and prescriptive atmosphere, the use of low stakes writing assignments like freewriting and journaling, and the prevalent use of formative assessment techniques such as writing workshops, peer responses, and portfolios. Although expressivism facilitated a significant shift in the methods of teaching writing in higher education and the creative writing field, it has not impacted secondary schools to the same degree, leaving secondary students to outdated follow-the-rules mentality of writing to the test, thus preventing the development of their creative and independent thought. In this capstone project I examined the evolution of expressivism through the decades, its integration with other theories, and its value for engaging secondary students in the process of writing, which takes a new importance in the digital age. To spread the word and present an alternative to the overwhelming reliance on five-paragraph essays in secondary schools, I created a website called Teaching Writing Techniques found under www.teachingwritingtechniques.wordpress.com, which offers professional development for English teachers with ideas for incorporating expressivist pedagogy in their classrooms. Because of the pedagogy’s flexibility, these ideas can be implemented as stand alone activities without disruption of existing curriculum. Having researched, utilized, and taught expressivist techniques, I found that they significantly increase student interest and engagement in the process of writing
More than Social and Emotional Learning: Developing a Brain Aware SEL Curriculum for a Kindergarten Classroom
Get PDFResearch has shown that stress, negative emotions, and trauma all affect a students’ ability to learn and achieve in school. Thus, there has been a worthwhile movement to incorporate structured social and emotional learning programs into elementary schools. The goal of these programs are to help students develop critical social and emotion regulation skills that are required to adapt to school environments and achieve academically. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on teaching kindergarten students emotion regulation skills as well as make them aware of their own brain development. The content of the curriculum was influenced by by these books: The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: And Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist\u27s Notebook: What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us About Loss, Love, and Healing (Perry & Szalavitz, 2017) and The Yes Brain (Siegel & Bryson, 2018). Both of these works stressed the importance of teaching children about their own brain development in order to help them better adapt socially and emotionally at home and in school. The goal of this curriculum is to give students the knowledge to identify and cope with their emotions and educate them on how the brain grows and learns. The curriculum will also help them advocate for themselves and prioritize their mental well-being, as well as help them develop skills that are critical to achieve academically
Creating and Cultivating a Multitude of Relationships in an Elementary Classroom
Get PDFRelationships are a crucial part of the classroom experience for all parties involved. They occur between the student and the teacher, as well as amongst peers. This capstone project looks to answer the question: How do relationships, both in the classroom community and with teachers, affect student achievement, primarily in the elementary school environment? Research shows student-teacher relationship is the most powerful in a classroom, setting the tone for both academics and behavior. Relationships built on trust and caring lead to improved academics and behavior in the classroom, while conflict can lead to a negative school experience for all parties involved. The research served as a base for this capstone project, a website consisting of four main subjects that provides suggestions and strategies to teachers in helping build and maintain relationships. This website was designed in a manner prioritizing accessibility and succinctness. Teachers will use this website to reflect upon their own practice and supplement it, giving them pathways to build relationships between and with their students
Raising the Awareness of Somali Families: The Positive Impact of Dual Language Education on Student Success
Get PDFStudies have found that dual language education is powerful for all learners and particularly essential for the success of first- and second-generation immigrant learners in the United States. The learning model enhances students’ academic achievement, school participation, and healthy identity development. Students proficient in both their heritage language and culture and their new homeland’s dominant culture and language are also more likely to gain higher upward mobility and enjoy advanced cognitive development. While the benefits of dual language education (DLE) are explicitly illustrated in the literature, there are currently no Somali dual language programs found to be existing in Minnesota schools despite the large presence of the immigrant community in the state. This professional development capstone uses Knowles’s androgogical framework to raise awareness of families on the benefits of DLE so they can promote the instructional model in their children’s schools. The intended participants are Somali families whose children attend schools in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. Limitations, implications, and reflections on effectuating Somali DLE programs in Minnesota are offered in this capstone
Critical Race Theory: Measuring Anti-Black Sentiment In South Korean English Education
Get PDFThis research study examines how anti-Black sentiment influences Black teachers’ experiences in South Korea, using the critical race theory (CRT) framework to analyze various forms of anti-Black sentiment (ABS) and explore correlations between major tenets of CRT and types of ABS. Previous research has concluded that Black teachers continue to face overt racism in South Korea. Also, there continues to be a lack of empathy or disinterest in discussing racism in Korea. Unfortunately, the amount of research that focuses on the experiences of Black teachers teaching English in East Asia, primarily South Korea, is scarce. This study will add to the lack of research in TESOL (Teaching English to speakers of other languages) concerning the issues of anti-Black sentiment in Korea. I used data from a survey of ten (10) participants to measure instances of anti-Black sentiment that teachers experienced. In addition, more data was collected from a follow-up, semi-structured interview of two (2) participants exploring how forms of ABS correlate to eight tenets of critical race theory: interest convergence, critique of liberalism, storytelling, revisionist history, structural determinism, racial intersections, essentialism & anti-essentialism, and cultural nationalism/separatism. The survey and interview findings indicate that 80% of the participants experience ABS in Korea. Furthermore, Korean nationalism intertwined with White supremacy ideologies exported through imperialism is rooted in anti-Black sentiment. Overall, the findings show that critical race theory can be applied in any cultural context to deconstruct racist ideology and challenge English programs that lack proper multicultural education
How Infusing Music Into Elementary Mathematics Curriculum Affects Students’ Learning and Engagement
Get PDFMathematics is an academic subject that does not come easily to everyone. Many students who excel in extra curricular activities after school have a poor relationship with academics, but does it have to be this way? The research question addressed in this capstone project is: how does infusing music into elementary mathematics curriculum affect student learning and engagement? Research was compiled in regards to multiple intelligence theory, learning styles, teaching mathematics best practices, and music and math integration in the classroom. The capstone project was then developed in order to gain more insight into the potential benefits of incorporating music into elementary mathematics curriculum. This capstone project offers a revised version of 3 units of a second grade math curriculum. Within each of these unit plans, there are several opportunities for teachers to integrate music. Music is integrated during the lessons themselves as a teaching tool in the form of original songs with lyrics about different concepts, vocabulary, and procedures related to addition and subtraction. Music is also integrated within embedded brain breaks, calm music during work time, as well as in assessment options. Through this project, teachers have access to unit plans, lesson plan examples, three full lessons complete with slides and teacher’s script per unit, and a document containing lyrics to original songs. Each of these documents is editable and can be modified to meet the needs of individual teachers, learners, and classes. The goal of this project is to provide an access point to mathematics for students who do not thrive via traditional instructional methods while incorporating their passions, interests, and lived experiences.
How Can Music Most Effectively Be Used In The English Learner Classroom
Get PDFMusic is an omnipresent part of everyday life. Whether it’s in the background or the foreground, music is everywhere. This capstone project aims to deliver the best answer to the question: How can music most effectively be used in the EL classroom? Effectively using music in the EL classroom involves understanding how to thoughtfully select the right music for the right situation, how to use music to build community and social skills among students, and how music can be used to positively impact the language learning process. Through this project, educators are also given the opportunity to participate in a professional development workshop equipping participants with important information about how to use music in the classroom along with a set of music playlists that they will be able to use in their classrooms
Designing A Professional Development Series For Educators On The Benefits Of Mathematical Manipulatives For Elementary Students’ Understanding And Mindset
Get PDFResearch has shown that manipulative use has a positive impact on elementary students’ understanding and mindset during their mathematics instruction. Yet, some K-5 educators are not aware of the benefits or do not know how to effectively implement manipulatives in their classrooms. This led to the creation of a professional development series. The goal of the project is for K-5 educators to learn about the benefits of manipulatives on students’ understanding and mindset through active learning, practice and application. This is made possible through slides, videos, discussion and example lessons that utilize manipulatives. By participating in the professional development series, educators will be able to use what they have learned about effective manipulative use and create lesson plans to implement in their own classrooms