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Teachers’ Perceptions and Experiences in Cultural Awareness Professional Development
Get PDFThe United States has experienced an increase in the number of immigrants arriving from various countries around the world over the last several decades. In fall 2014, 30 percent of all public schools in the United States reported student populations of at least 75 percent minority compared with 24 percent in fall, 2004. The percentage of students enrolled in public schools increased from 2004 to 2014 across all racial/ethnic groups (U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2014-2015). The process of changing teaching and learning practices occurs through professional development. The Every Student Succeeds Act relies on the research of Desimone (2002), Garet et. al. (2001), Guskey (2003), Hirsh et. al. (2014), and Wei et. al. (2009) to develop a set of criteria describing effective professional development. The six ESSA criteria of Job-embedded, Data-driven, Classroom-focused, Sustained, Intensive, and Collaborative. Professional development also occurs in either a traditional format or a reform format (Garet et al., 2001). These data indicate that effective professional development in cultural awareness is needed for teachers to successfully teach all students in their classrooms.
The purpose of the study was to determine elementary teachers in Minnesota school districts regarding their perceptions of effective professional development experiences in cultural awareness, the effectiveness of professional development they received in cultural awareness, their desire for additional professional development in cultural awareness, and their levels of confidence in incorporating cultural awareness into their practice. The study employed a quantitative methodology; quantitative data were gathered from Minnesota elementary school teachers school districts located in urban and rural communities.
The study of Teachers’ Perceptions and Experiences in Cultural Awareness Professional Development contributes to the current body of research knowledge by providing new research supporting the need for more professional development opportunities in cultural awareness for Minnesota teachers and the types of professional development in cultural awareness that were effective within their teaching practice.
A majority of teacher participants noted that they had 0-3 courses on cultural awareness during their benefit from professional development in cultural awareness and initial teacher education, but they had some professional development opportunities within their school districts. Teachers also indicated they know they in fact, it has positively impacted their practice. Based on the findings of the study, Minnesota Elementary teachers reported that the most effective type of professional development in cultural awareness was collaborating with other educators and members of the community. They also indicated that professional development opportunities focused on their learning environments and embedded within their jobs was more effective than intensive and data driven opportunities
Level of Preparedness for Conducting Teacher Evaluations as Reported by Minnesota School Principals
Get PDFThe significance of a principal as an instructional leader became a concept over 40 years ago (Jenkins, 2009). Edmonds (1982) noted one of the top five effective school characteristics was a “principal’s leadership and attention to the quality of instruction” (p. 4). Part of being an instructional leader for a principal is performing teacher evaluations by observing teachers’ instruction.
The process in which principals conduct teacher evaluations and observe most teachers is useless, unproductive, and a waste of a principal’s time (Marshall, 2005). According to Marshall (2005), principals need to improve in how they observe, support, and evaluate teachers to more precisely connect teacher observation to improving teaching and learning. Cooper, et al. (2005) noted teachers see the evaluation process as just another step they have to complete to satisfy their job requirements, not as a way to learn and grow in the profession.
According to the National Governors Association (2011), there is not enough time allocated in university college preparation courses for principals to effectively evaluate teachers. Qi et al. (2018) asserted that administrators need training and continued support to practice observing teachers in order to have valid and reliable performance ratings.
The purpose of the study was to ascertain Minnesota principals\u27 preparation with regard to conducting teacher evaluations, the types of professional development Minnesota principals receive for evaluating teachers and the usefulness of the professional development, along with challenges principals encounter with maintaining validity while conducting teacher evaluations.
This study will further examine all these areas in order to find ways in which principals can be better supported in performing the teacher evaluation process
Effects of Board Design and Managerial Ownership on the Level of Cash Holdings in Latin American Firms
Get PDFThis paper analyzes the level of cash holdings and the role of corporate governance in monitoring the potential agency problem. This research studies the relationship between cash holdings, the Board of directors\u27 design, and managerial ownership levels in Latin America\u27s public traded companies in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru. I find a positive and statistically significant effect of board size and institutional ownership on cash holdings. I also find a negative and significant correlation between board duality and cash holdings. The results show that board independence is positively and statistically significantly associated with cash holdings when controlling for firms\u27 characteristics
Demonstrating Spatial Patterns of Crop Productivity in a Minnesota Corn Field Using Hierarchical Multiple Regression Models and Ordination
Get PDFAccurate and timely assessment of within-field crop vigor heterogeneity is essential for detecting field-wide crop productivity and yield, contributing to improvements in the management of corn fields. Yet, studies designed to explore the spatial heterogeneity of crop vigor in corn over different productivity zones, where soil nutrient characteristics are known to limit crop productivity during the growing season, as yet been reported. We assessed whether changes in temporal weather conditions within a growing season, contribute to crop vigor variability. Furthermore, we evaluated whether within-season changes in precipitation and temperature contribute to variable nutrient concentrations within different productivity zones. More so, we utilized random forest regression to calculate the relative importance of predictor variables to crop vigor variability. We then employed hierarchical multiple regression (HMR) to build several regression models to determine whether the collinearity of variables (soil characteristics) showed a significant improvement in the R2 i.e., the proportion of explained variance in crop vigor response. The principal component analysis (PCA) was employed to find components that express as much of the inherent variability of the complete data set as possible as well as, to plot how variables map relative to field productivity or management zones. We inferred that, changes in precipitation and temperature during the growing season influence soil nutrient concentrations within productivity zones especially, potassium, calcium, nitrogen, phosphorus, and magnesium. We hypothesize that, significant and yet subtle crop vigor differences can be observed within field productivity zones attributed to the heterogeneity of soil macro nutrient concentrations within corn fields, using the combined utility of remote sensing and hybrid statistical approaches. Thus, aiding farmers to ascertain, early season, whether they will obtain a poor harvest or not, improve on soil nutrient use efficiency, and field management practices to ensure a bumper harvest
SLA NEGOTIATION TOOL FOR BETTER TRANSPARENCY AMONG THE CLOUD STAKEHOLDERS
Get PDFThe transfer of confidential data and software to the cloud environment from the on-site data center raises the cyber risk for users, mainly because a third party operates and maintains the cloud environment. In particular, the sensitive data and application pose multiple issues linked to a lack of accountability in protection. Transparency includes providing cloud service providers with information on security measures being introduced to protect and meet customers\u27 standards. It builds confidence in the relationship between service providers and consumers. Transparency is influenced by trust and confidence and without showing accountability it would likely hamper the use of cloud services. While technological aspects to ensure safety and privacy have been discussed, the emphasis on security transparency is still neglected. Few works of literature mainly discuss the question of transparency from the perspective of cloud providers. At the same time, the other works have provided viable techniques to compare and select the cloud service providers using criteria such as transparency and reputation. Despite the importance, there is still a lack of research to improve transparency between cloud consumers and vendors.
This study proposes an important service level agreement (SLA) negotiation tool to ensure higher transparency
Supporting Students on the Autism Spectrum and Gender Identity Spectrum
Get PDFThree issues guided this review. First, factors that increase the incidence of gender dysphoria among DHRC is examined. Second, the change in the generational view of gender identity will be reviewed and contrasted. Finally, school and community-based programs will be reviewed. Issues related to gender dysphoria among the population diagnosed with ASD is a specific focus. By identifying and defining Gender Identity, educators will be more equipped to support all students and create a gender inclusive classroom
Welcome to the Profession: Exploring Perceptions of New Teacher Retention Supports
Get PDFNumerous studies have identified a research to practice gap regarding teacher retention (Hagaman & Casey, 2018; Carver, 2003; CCSESA, 2016). In Minnesota, teacher retention is a concern as 51.32% of professional licensed teachers were not working as a public or charter school teacher during the 2019-2020 school year. (PELSB, 2021). The objective of our ongoing phenomenological study is to identify and address what common themes exist across multiple groups of educational professionals regarding retention rates of Minnesota teachers new to the profession. Our study employs grounded theory to analyze educational professionals’ reflective writings to expand insights regarding why half of the state’s fully licensed teachers are leaving the field, examine supports provided to new teachers, and determine what supports would be most beneficial for retention. This study compares the perceptions of beginning teacher supports through three different lenses (pre-service, in-service, and administrative). Insights gained from this study will inform preparation program content, alleviate the research to practice gap, and empower education professionals to be agents of change for improved teacher retention rates
School of Public Affairs 2020 Annual Report
Get PDFThe School of Public Affairs’ annual report presents a magazine-style look back at the school’s year. Contents include the stories and accomplishments of current students, alumni, faculty, and other community partnerships. It also celebrates the generous giving of donors. A limited amount of print copies are produced and mailed to constituents. Support and collaboration of the annual report is regularly given by University Communications, the St. Cloud State University Foundation, St. Cloud State University Alumni Relations, University Archives, and the Departments of Criminal Justice, Economics, Geography & Planning, and Political Science.
Note: The School of Public Affairs annual report evolved from seasonal newsletters. The first issue was published in April of 2018
University Chronicle [March 2021]
Get PDFSt. Cloud State University student newspaper, volume 96, issue 6, March 2021https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/chron/1015/thumbnail.jp
Wireless Mourning / Luto sin cables
Get PDFDuring the COVID pandemic and because of the sanitary measures in act, many families had to endure the added emotional pain of not being able to properly perform traditional funeral rites for their dear ones. In Mexico, the velorio, the traditional nine days wake, is especially important for bereaved families. Praying together and being close to each other, family members and friends share the burden of grief, while honouring the deceased and starting their emotional journey towards the acceptance of the passing. During the hardest moments of the pandemic, these forms of mourning were not allowed, and alternative outlets for coping had to be devised. These were often based on video-call technology (Zoom, Skype, etc), a fact that has allowed families to “be together”, while on the other it has exposed the generational and geographical diversity in the reception of such technologies. Our text is a personal recollection of the experience of losing a close relative to COVID-19 and a narration on how an average family in the Mexican province was able to perform the velorio rites through Zoom. This narration is an attempt to make sense of the impact that the pandemic has had on local communities in peripheral areas of the country, and to come to terms with the increasing importance of video-communication technology in mediating mourning and grief