Current Issues in Education (E-Journal, Arizona State University)
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âMore Than Just Farmersâ: Rural Agrarian University Studentsâ Sense of Community
No full textThis study utilizes narrative inquiry to interrogate the differences between the home and academic literacies of rural agrarian students. In particular, I have investigated how they navigate those differences in order to function successfully in more urbanized university settings. Using purposeful survey and convenience sampling, two rural agrarian students were identified for participation. Data from in-depth interviews and observations were woven into a narrative for each student. The study revealed that both participants formed communities of fellow rural students. These rural agrarian communities served as sources of friendship, support, and familiarity, and thus contributed to their perceived success. Although further research is needed to confirm these findings, educators of all levels are encouraged to promote the formation of rural peer groups and to encourage rural agrarian students to embrace and share their backgrounds, cultures, and unique skills and interests
An Analysis of Teacher Efficacy and Perspectives about Elementary Literacy Instruction
Get PDFAt the core of every teacher is a set of beliefs and knowledge regarding teaching and learning. As a teacher develops her expertise, curricular practices are refined and self-efficacy is enhanced. Teachers possess varying degrees of efficacy and perceptions that impact literacy instruction within their classrooms. Yet, often times they are mandated to teach in certain ways to achieve desirable student outcomes, even when they may not agree with the methods or processes wholeheartedly. The purpose of this study is to explore some of the issues that change teachers’ instructional practices in the classroom and to reveal some of the issues that influence as well as hinder instructional reform within that setting. This qualitative case study uses observations, interviews, and questionnaires to highlight teacher efficacy from four first-grade teachers. Testing data indicate students achieve both because of instruction and teachers’ willingness to implement the reading program with fidelity. Findings from this study can assist in setting up professional development, serving as a guide for providing warranted support for student learning and teacher knowledge, and fostering considerations for including teachers in the important stages regarding the planning and implementation of classroom literacy instruction
Teachers' Perceptions of High-Stakes Accountability in Florida's Title I Elementary Schools
Get PDFTeachers are catalysts to the success of high-stakes accountability policies, yet noticeably absent from previous studies is an examination of teachers’ responses toward being held accountable for their students’ performance on state-mandated, high-stakes assessments in low socioeconomic status (SES) school settings. An on-line survey instrument was used to determine how third grade, Title I classroom teachers in two southeastern Florida school districts believed they were capable of being held accountable for their students’ knowledge of reading and mathematics standards assessed on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Open-ended survey responses received from 61 respondents acknowledged the need for teacher accountability in terms of contingencies, students’ academic growth, and teachers’ instruction, but raised significant concerns regarding the fairness of high-stakes accountability policy and shared accountability for student achievement
Peeking Inside Pandora's Box: One University's Journey into the Redesign of Teacher Educator Preparation
Get PDFIn the last two decades, there have been various calls for reform in teacher education programs to address the needs of students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and students with disabilities. Consequently, many teacher education preparation programs are reviewing and redesigning their programs to meet the needs of the teacher of the 21st century. This manuscript will describe the development and implementation of a new certification program that integrates preservice teacher preparation, Special Education and English as a second language into a 123 hour degree program.
 
The Influence of Local Politics on Educational Decisions
Get PDFThis ex post facto, causal-comparative research study examined student reading performance data within a school district before and after a school district-wide decision to alter the reading curriculum in response to local political pressure from parents. Data analysis revealed that test scores dropped to a significantly lower level, especially for students who were economically disadvantaged, after the reading curriculum was altered. This study underscores the importance of making data-driven, rather than politically-influenced, decisions related to pedagogy, curriculum, instruction, and assessment by educational leaders.  
Exploring "The Ripple in the Pond"- A Correlational Study of the Relationships between Demographic Variables and the Teacher Change Agent Scale
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As a result of the proliferation of standardized testing and academic standards, there are new expectations for teachers and the role(s) they play in improving student learning and achievement (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1999; Garet et al., 2001). However, little is known about teachers who initiate positive changes outside of their own classrooms and even less about what they “look like.” As such, this study was designed to determine whether there was a relationship between the demographic variables of age, gender, years of teaching experience, grade level taught, and primary teaching responsibility and scores on the Teacher Change Agent Scale (TCAS), its subscales, and individual items. Bivariate correlations and means comparison (ANOVA) were used to analyze the responses of 652 teachers. Results indicate that: a teacher’s age is negatively correlated with teacher change agency and membership in a professional community, grade level influences a teacher’s overall mean score, and teachers of all ages need support in working effectively with their colleagues. Given that teachers are being charged with making schools “work” for all students, these findings represent a meaningful contribution to the teacher change agency research
Preparing School Psychologists for Working with Diverse Students: Does Program Accreditation Matter?
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to investigate the degree to which differences exist between accredited and non-accredited school psychology training programs on specific characteristics of training theorized to prepare graduates for working with racially, ethnically, and/or linguistically diverse students. Training directors from each of the 237 school psychology programs nationwide were solicited to complete a brief survey on program training characteristics. Independent-samples t tests and chi-square tests of independence were used to determine the existence of significant differences in training characteristics between the two program types. No significant differences emerged between accredited and non-accredited programs on any of the training characteristics theorized as important for working with diverse student populations. The results of this study can be used to draw inferences regarding the influence of accreditation bodies on the current presence of specific school psychology training program characteristics within training programs nationwide.  
Exploring Student Teachersâ Beliefs about Language Learning and Teaching: A Longitudinal Study
Get PDFThis paper presents a four-year longitudinal study of student teachers’ beliefs about language learning and teaching over the course of an English teacher education (ELT) program. The study attempts to track possible changes in the beliefs and to analyze the impact of an ELT pre-service program by taking the program itself as a dynamic variable. Interviews were conducted with 49 student teachers for four years, and the data were processed through a mixed-method design. The results of the study indicate that different phases of the program resulted in various changes at certain degrees. Student teachers’ engagement in the teaching practicum seems to have a higher impact on the development of the beliefs about language learning and teaching. The findings may be influential in developing and designing more effective ELT programs
Professional Faces: Pre-service Secondary Teachersâ Awareness of Issues of Self-disclosure on Social-networking Sites
Get PDFAn important component of teacher education is the emphasis on what it means to be a professional in the field. Teacher educators must help pre-service teachers recognize that what may be acceptable in their lives now may not be when they are looking for their first job or once they are in the classroom. One such issue is the use of social networking websites, such as Facebook, and how the information that teachers post can affect them as professionals. This paper discusses the results of a study of 68 pre-service secondary teachers and their understanding of the impact of self-disclosure on social networking as future educators. The results suggest that while pre-service teachers found many of the issues at hand to be common sense, they developed a deeper understanding of the ramifications of unprofessional self-disclosure on social networking sites after being presented with a number of case studies and examples
An Examination of School Resource Officers' Attitudes Regarding Behavioral Issues among Students Receiving Special Education Services
Get PDFFor many parents and educators, school safety is one of the most important issues in the United States. Despite anecdotal evidence that students receiving special education services are often negatively stereotyped by school administrators and educators for behaviors threatening school order and safety, and despite increased media attention to the interaction between students receiving special education services and law enforcement officers in schools, no research has examined perceptions of school resource officers toward these students. Because school resource officers are now a permanent part of the school culture, and because disproportionate numbers of students receiving special education services are disciplined (e.g., school suspensions and arrests) each year, research is needed to examine attitudes of SROs regarding the presence and behaviors of students receiving special education services. Data collected from 130 School Resource Officers (SROs) in Kentucky revealed that large portions of SROs perceived that behaviors of students receiving special education services had a negative impact on the school environments and these perceptions had little association with the SRO’s demographic and experiential variables. Implications for policy and future research are addressed