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Eric.ed.gov – Where Teacher Education Students Agree: Beliefs Widely Shared before Teacher Education.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: A survey of prospective teachers’ beliefs about teaching mathematics and writing to diverse learners was conducted for the purpose of improving teacher education programs. Respondents were 319 elementary education students, 71 prospective secondary math teachers, 52 prospective teachers of secondary English, 23 noneducation math majors, and 19 noneducation English majors. Although there is much diversity between and among the subjects, there were some areas of consensus. In answering questions about student diversity, the respondents did not endorse stereotypes about gender differences or differences in content appropriate for students from different family backgrounds. In responding to questions about what would be helpful in learning to teach, they gave the expected endorsement of experience, as well as high ratings for classes of questions about generic and subject-specific teaching methods.… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – The Insiders: How Principals and Superintendents See Public Education Today. Reality Check 2006. Issue No. 4

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This is the fourth in a series of reports from Reality Check 2006, an ongoing set of tracking surveys on education issues. Reality Check surveys attitudes among public school parents, students, teachers, principals and superintendents on a regular basis. In surveys on education, it is not uncommon for the public, parents and teachers to see serious problems in schools nationwide, but still view local schools as reasonably good. This may partly explain why local school leaders are so upbeat. Perhaps some are reticent about criticizing their own districts when a research organization contacts them. Still, given the high-octane attention the math and science issue has attracted from everyone, from Bill Gates to Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, it is surprising so few principals and superintendents are concerned… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – An Evaluation of an Innovative Use of Computers and Volunteers in 7th Grade Math Instruction.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This paper summarizes a formative evaluation of a developmental project designed to maximize the potential use of computers in mathematics instruction through the use of volunteers. The project was conducted using a 7th-grade class at an intermediate school in Utah. Data were analyzed for 12 students in a special class for students not having the necessary basic mathematics skills to enroll in a regular class. Students used math computer lab twice a week. The volunteers determined what mathematics skills each student needed to practice by referring to the student files, determined what software program would be appropriate for the student, and managed all the necessary student data. Both quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed for: (1) achievement; (2) attitude about mathematics; (3) mathematics anxiety; (4) study habits;… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Gender Equity in High School Math: A Study of Female Participation and Achievement.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This survey of 316 Precalculus, Calculus AB, and Calculus BC students from markedly different socioeconomic levels in four district high schools in San Antonio, Texas, looked at factors that have traditionally caused women to avoid mathematics, and attempted to discover which of them continue to influence women’s decisions to reject the discipline. The questionnaire contained 25 questions based on assumptions drawn from literature on the subject. Reported and discussed are all differences in gender opinion above 9 percentage points, even though a difference of 11.4 percentage points would begin to indicate a statistically significant result. Findings where such differences occur showed that: (1) mathematics enrollment favored men, especially in BC Calculus; (2) female respondents more frequently perceived no bias in teacher expectations; (3) female students less frequently… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – School Improvement Grants: Progress Report from America’s Great City Schools

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This report measures trends in performance among urban schools receiving federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) awards as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The Council of the Great City Schools aims to document how member districts of the Council of the Great City Schools implemented SIG and specifically what effects the program had on student test scores and school “holding power”–the ability of high schools to move students through the system on a timely basis. Finally, based on interviews with district and school-based staff in several case study districts, common characteristics of successful and unsuccessful implementation of the SIG program in Council schools and districts are identified and described. Results of the analysis across states for grades three through eight in both… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Innovations for High Quality, Aligned Early Childhood Educator Preparation. IERC 2016-3

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Much attention during the past decade has been given to the need to develop a well-trained early childhood education workforce. In order to address this need, the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) awarded Early Childhood Educator Preparation Program Innovation (EPPI) grants to institutions of higher learning. The IBHE funded partnerships, comprised of two- and four-year institutions, to further develop models for early childhood educator preparation and build capacity in key areas of need. Recipients used grant funds to develop a wide range of seamless pathways for degree and credential attainment through innovative articulation and alignment of curriculum initiatives, strategies for advising and supporting transfer students, and aligning assessments to demonstrate candidate progress toward or attainment of key competencies. Promising practices to improve quality field experience placements,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Enjoyment and Value: Math Attitudes of Business and Elementary Education Majors.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This investigation compared the attitudes of business and elementary education majors on the enjoyment and value of mathematics. Fifty elementary education majors and 58 business majors participated. The mathematics attitude questionnaire contained two sections of questions: eight questions on the enjoyment of mathematics and eight questions on the value of mathematics. The attitude of enjoyment was not significantly different between the business and elementary majors. However, elementary education majors valued mathematics significantly higher than did the business majors. It was also found that both the elementary education and business majors value mathematics to a significantly higher degree than they enjoy mathematics. No significant differences were found between male and female business majors’ enjoyment and value scores. (Author/YP) Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – Innovations for High Quality, Aligned Early Childhood Educator Preparation. IERC 2016-3. Research Highlights

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) provided Early Childhood Educator Preparation Program Innovation (EPPI) grants to 20 partnerships comprised of two- and four-year institutions to further develop models for early childhood educator preparation and build capacity in key areas of need. Recipients used grant funds to design and implement a wide range of seamless pathways for degree and credential attainment through innovative articulation initiatives, systems for aligning assessments to demonstrate candidate attainment of key competencies, and strategies for advising and supporting transfer students. Promising practices to improve early math learning, bilingual/English language learning, infant/toddler development, and quality field experience placements were also developed. This qualitative implementation study provides a systematic review of the innovations and strategies EPPI grant recipients utilized in addressing common barriers and practice-oriented… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Innovations for High Quality, Aligned Early Childhood Educator Preparation. IERC 2016-3. Executive Summary

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) provided Early Childhood Educator Preparation Program Innovation (EPPI) grants to 20 partnerships comprised of two- and four-year institutions to further develop models for early childhood educator preparation and build capacity in key areas of need. Recipients used grant funds to design and implement a wide range of seamless pathways for degree and credential attainment through innovative articulation initiatives, systems for aligning assessments to demonstrate candidate attainment of key competencies, and strategies for advising and supporting transfer students. Promising practices to improve early math learning, bilingual/English language learning, infant/toddler development, and quality field experience placements were also developed. This qualitative implementation study provides a systematic review of the innovations and strategies EPPI grant recipients utilized in addressing common barriers and practice-oriented… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Teachers’ Definition of Math: Creating and Implementing an Instrument.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: After having secondary math education majors write an essay entitled, “What is Mathematics?” for the past 4 years, the first attempt was made to create an instrument based on the results of these essays that would measure math beliefs. Based on previous research which suggests that a math teacher’s beliefs influence the teacher’s methodology, the instrument was administered to elementary education majors to determine their methodological tendencies. The results are compared to similar data obtained from secondary math education majors (n=11) and urban, college-bound high school juniors (n=13). The results suggest that elementary education majors who expect to teach mathematics need a broader vision of what mathematics is. Appendixes contain the survey instrument and results. (Author/NB) Link til kilde