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Eric.ed.gov – Testing Instrumentation Validity for Measuring Teachers’ Attitudes toward Manipulative Use in the Elementary Classroom

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In this study a survey instrument was developed to test elementary teachers’ attitudes towards incorporating manipulatives in their math lessons frequently. Though the benefits of using math manipulatives has been reported, there seems to be a disconnect between the benefits of manipulative use and the number of teachers integrating them in their lessons on a daily basis. In this study a total of 22 regular education teachers in kindergarten through sixth grade and five learning support teachers in grades first through sixth from a rural elementary school were given a survey instrument to test its validity and reveal some trends in teachers’ views on manipulative use as well as possible causation for their views. Findings from the study show that though many teachers feel comfortable using and… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – What Makes Special Education Teachers Special? Teacher Training and Achievement of Students with Disabilities. Working Paper 49

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This paper contributes importantly to the growing literature on the training of special education teachers and how it translates into classroom practice and student achievement. The authors examine the impact of pre-service preparation and in-service formal and informal training on the ability of teachers to promote academic achievement among students with disabilities. Using student-level longitudinal data from Florida over a five-year span the authors estimate “value-added” models of student achievement. There is little support for the efficacy of in-service professional development courses focusing on special education. However, teachers with advanced degrees are more effective in boosting the math achievement of students with disabilities than are those with only a baccalaureate degree. Also pre-service preparation in special education has statistically significant and quantitatively substantial effects on the ability… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Increasing Expertise in Earth Science Education through Master’s Education

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The processes of developing and the results of testing a master’s degree program designed to increase the number and quality of secondary-level earth science teachers are described in this paper. The master’s program is intended to serve practicing secondary-level science and math teachers who lack subject-area endorsement in earth science. There is need for programs such as this because there is a nationwide shortage of qualified earth science teachers. By targeting teachers who are already trained and certified in science or math, the program can focus solely on earth science content and pedagogical content knowledge. The program can be completed in 2 y via online academic-year instruction and on-campus or field-based training during summers. Completion of the master’s program satisfies teachers’ need for ongoing professional development. A… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – In-Service Training Needs of Agriculture Teachers for Preparing Them to Be Effective in the 21st Century

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The purpose of this descriptive survey research study conducted with agriculture teachers in North Carolina was to determine their in-service training needs in order to be effective for preparing students with the 21st century skills necessary for students to be successful. This study reaffirms the need for continuation of leadership education as an important skill and integration of reading, writing, and math concepts into all agricultural education curricula for preparing students to be successful in the 21st century. The role of agriculture in global food security; application of problem-based learning; planning and delivering lessons to utilize higher order thinking skills; teaching leadership skills; and development of teamwork and student collaboration were identified as the five most important in-service training needs for preparing agriculture teachers to be effective… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Expanding Approaches to Teaching for Diversity and Justice in K-12 Education: Fostering Global Citizenship across the Content Areas

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Educators today must be able to respond to the needs of an increasingly diverse student body and to teach all students the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed for civic participation in a globalized, pluralist society. While state departments of education and national teacher organizations have begun to adopt global awareness in their teaching standards and evaluation tools, educators need to understand what globally competent teachers actually do in classrooms across subject areas and grade levels. This qualitative, multiple case study explores the signature pedagogies (Shulman, 2005) of 10 in-service teachers in one southeastern state who teach for global competence in math, music, science, English, social studies, and language classes across elementary, middle, and high schools. We found three signature pedagogies that characterized globally competent teaching practices across… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – What Are the Requirements for Pre-Service Qualifications and for Professional Development for In-Service Educators in STEM Subjects? 50-State Comparison: State K-3 Policies

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Following a high-quality early care and pre-K experience, the kindergarten-through-third-grade years set the foundation upon which future learning builds; and strengthening this continuum creates opportunities for later success. Key components of a quality experience in K-3 include school readiness and transitions, kindergarten requirements, educator quality, prevention, intervention and assessments, and social and emotional learning and mental health. Education Commission of the States researched the policies and regulations that guide these key components in all 50 states to provide this comprehensive resource and many others. The data in this document show at least 20 states require some form of math knowledge for pre-service teacher candidates. Five additional states only require professional development in math for in-service teachers, with three states having requirements for both teacher candidates and current… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Achievement Effects of Four Early Elementary School Math Curricula: Findings for First and Second Graders. Executive Summary. NCEE 2011-4002

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: National achievement data show that elementary school students in the United States, particularly those from low socioeconomic backgrounds, have weak math skills (National Center for Education Statistics 2009). In fact, data show that, even before they enter elementary school, children from disadvantaged backgrounds are behind their more advantaged peers in basic competencies such as number-line ordering and magnitude comparison (Rathburn and West 2004). Furthermore, after a year of kindergarten, disadvantaged students still have less extensive knowledge of mathematics than their more affluent peers (Denton and West 2002). This study examines whether some early elementary school math curricula are more effective than others at improving student math achievement in disadvantaged schools. A small number of curricula, which are based on different approaches for developing student math skills, dominate… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Improving Problem Posing Capacities through Inservice Teacher Training Programs: Challenges and Limits

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The paper presents the results of a study based on a training program for in-service mathematics teachers, targeting to improve their skills of problem posing and qualitative appreciation of problems. During this training program, we found an improvement in participating teachers’ availability to discuss and analyse math problems, but also resistance to adapt posed tasks to the students’ thinking. [For the complete proceedings, see ED597799.] Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – Mathematics and Outdoor Photography Experience — Exploration of an Approach to Mathematical Education, Based on the Theory of Dewey’s Aesthetics

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Based on Dewey’s theory of art, aesthetics, and experiences and photographer Barnbaums’ writing about expanded perception through photography, we conducted a one-day experimental mathematics education unit. Using photography in outdoor conditions had a positive impact on teacher students’ perception of the use of photography for teaching mathematics. To study the changes in students’ visual attention deeper, we used gaze-tracking to analyse one student’s visual attention when walking outdoors after the activity. The gaze data indicated that more visual attention was given to objects he had photographed or discussed during the group activity in comparison to other objects. Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – An Examination of Technology Training Experiences from Teacher Candidacy to In-Service Professional Development

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of in-service teachers concerning the effectiveness of technology training from a teacher education preparation program to in-service professional development. The findings of the study revealed that inservice teachers have had varying degrees of technology experiences from their teacher education preparation programs to professional development training ranging from no experience to applicable experiences to help foster transition into classroom teaching and learning. An effective training system in teacher education programs should be implemented to ensure that, with the presence and introduction of new technology in the classroom, the teachers are equipped with newly developed skills. The technology skills that in-service teachers placed the most value on achieving related to the technology tools associated with their discipline of… Continue Reading