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Eric.ed.gov – Literacy at the Core of the Delaware World Language Immersion Programs

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Certain aspects of the implementation of language immersion programs in Delaware are unique given the state’s size, demographics, and role in national education initiatives including Race to the Top, Common Core, and Smarter Balance. The Delaware experience typifies what every state, district, or even school goes through as they try to provide students with more intensive, longer sequences of language learning that lead to high levels of proficiency. The state exports products to more than 160 different countries each year, cities across the state participate in 6 Sister City Partnerships, and Delaware regularly sponsors Trade Missions to locations including China, Germany, Italy, and even Pakistan. Residents in the state speak more than 80 languages combined. The Department of Education has Memoranda of Understanding in place with 9… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – A Final Case Study of SCALE Activities at California State University, Northridge: How Institutional Context Influenced a K-20 STEM Education Change Initiative. WCER Working Paper No. 2009-5

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This qualitative case study reports on processes and outcomes of the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded System-Wide Change for All Learners and Educators (SCALE) project at the California State University, Northridge (CSUN). It addresses a critical challenge in studying systemic reform in complex organizations: the lack of methodologies that incorporate technical, social, cultural, and cognitive elements. Guiding questions include (a) how the institutional context influenced the project, (b) whether project activities affected science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instruction, interdisciplinary collaboration on preservice programs, and inter-institutional collaboration on in-service programs, and (c) if and how change initiatives are accepted and incorporated. In-depth interviews (N = 34), relevant documents, and observation data were collected in 2006 and 2007. Findings identified several factors that supported and several that inhibited achievement… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Beyond the Basics: Achieving a Liberal Education for All Children

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Citing Aristotle, Franklin and Einstein as proponents of a broad, liberal-arts education, Finn and Ravitch promote the need for liberal learning as preparatory to the civic life needed for a well-functioning democracy. Drawing together the work of a number of educators, the editors have organized this volume in two sections. Part I, Liberal Learning: Its Value and Future, includes three papers that advocate both for liberal learning, and for a common curriculum. Part II, Restoring Liberal Art to the K-12 Curriculum, features eleven explorations of how to expand liberal learning by improving accountability systems, teacher training and education delivery. Maintaining that their support of liberal learning is well-documented, the editors conclude the volume by noting four opposing trends: (1) Gradual extinction of liberal learning in higher education;… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Perception, Curriculum, and Subject Matter: Reforming Instruction

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The purpose of this study is to illuminate the reciprocal relation between teacher leaders’ perception and practice to subject matter. The researcher conducted interviews and observations of 30 teachers from 8 urban elementary schools. The data and results evidently identify those teachers’ views of subject matter both shaped and were shaped by their teaching strategies. Teachers’ strategies for improving math instruction focused on external supports such as professional training in mathematics and building skills through sequenced instruction and curriculum. In improving literacy instruction, teachers emphasized the school community as the locus for development of literacy programs and materials that applied to a variety of academic subjects. (Contains 2 tables.) Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – A Math-Science Workshop: Mathematics and Science–Language, Communication and Problem Solving.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: A set of teaching and workshop materials has been developed to illustrate the different uses of mathematics in high school mathematics and science classes. It consists of this packet of workshop activities with detailed instructions on how to use them in a combined mathematics-science workshop and a related set of problems (with solutions) that focus on the mathematical topics most commonly used in science classes. The packet includes: (1) background information on the workshops; (2) description of materials provided; (3) workshop responses; (4) a description of four types of workshops; (5) directions for and strategies used in leading the different types of workshops; (6) things to look for during workshop discussions; and (7) viewgraph (overhead transparency) masters. (JN) Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – Promoting Effective Early Learning: What Every Policymaker and Educator Should Know

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Language and literacy skills are critical to success in school. For low-income preschoolers, increasing early literacy and math skills is vital to closing the achievement gap between them and their more advantaged peers. New research shows that an intentional curriculum and professional development and supports for teachers are important components of effective preschool classrooms and programs. A special focus on these strategies is important because many low-income children in early learning settings fall behind early and remain very much behind their peers in reading and math. This brief provides a blueprint for state and local policymakers, early learning administrators, teachers, families, community leaders, and researchers to use effective preschool curricula and teaching strategies to help low-income young children close the achievement gap in early literacy and math… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Instructional Interactions of Kindergarten Mathematics Classrooms: Validating a Direct Observation Instrument

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In this paper, the authors report research focused directly on the validation of the Coding of Academic Teacher-Student interactions (CATS) direct observation instrument. They use classroom information gathered by the CATS instrument to better understand the potential mediating variables hypothesized to influence student achievement. Their study’s purpose is to gather the kinds of validity evidences that match the proposed interpretations and uses of the CATS instrument (Kane, 2008; Messick, 1995). Therefore, they first explore the content aspect of construct validity by collecting information about the content relevance and representativeness of the observation instrument (Messick, 1995). Second, concerned about the consistency of the observation data collected across a number of independent observers, they measure inter-observer agreement. Finally, they focus on the criterion-predictive aspect of construct validity and investigate… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – MendelWeb: An Electronic Science/Math/History Resource for the WWW.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This paper describes a hypermedia resource, called MendelWeb that integrates elementary biology, discrete mathematics, and the history of science. MendelWeb is constructed from Gregor Menders 1865 paper, “Experiments in Plant Hybridization”. An English translation of Mendel’s paper, which is considered to mark the birth of classical and evolutionary genetics, is presented as an active document, with links to traditional reference material (e.g. glossaries, biographies, and the original German text) as well as images, tutorials, active commentaries, related Web sites, and animations. Users can choose to view any of several versions of the Mendel paper, each featuring different degrees of activity and annotation, and MendelWeb is designed to be accessible and useful to those running basic text browsers like Lynx, as well as full-featured browsers like Mosaic. MendelWeb,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Problem Solving in Math–A Study Approach for College Students.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This document points out the numbers of students who have difficulty in their required college mathematics courses. The four common syndromes identified with pupils who were experiencing a lack of success in mathematics were: (1) a lack of an adequate college or high school background in mathematics; (2) the tendency to feel that because they completed homework problems they really “knew their mathematics,”; (3) the inability to apply appropriate reading-learning strategies to their mathematics studies; and (4) a feeling of hostility over mathematics classes and anxiety over tests. These students are referred to as “underdeveloped learners,” who did not know how to study and learn mathematics. Twelve learning strategies that students should learn to apply are listed and described. A remediation strategy for these pupils that combines… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Talking Science in an ESL Pre-K: Theory-Building with Realia

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: What is realia and theory-building? Tim Kinard and Jesse Gainer explain that when students explore using “realia,” they are not just being exposed to abstract concepts or text on a page, they are using “real-life” objects to build understandings of the natural world while they builds vocabulary about it. Handling and discussing real-world objects (acorns, pine cones, flowers, bones, antlers, dirt), in both the first language of the students, as well as a second language learned in school, builds vocabulary quickly as students engage in meaningful communication with scaffolds bridging first and second languages. The use of “realia” and other visuals are one way to provide ESL students opportunities for meaningful communication in English. Creating strategic partnerships that pair ELLs with native English speakers is another effective… Continue Reading