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1997 Dissertation Abstracts: Part 5
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ORDER NO: ABA97-25425 EFFECTS OF A VIDEODISC PROBLEM-SOLVING APPROACH EMBEDDED IN CONSTRUCTIVIST-BASED INSTRUCTION IN MATHEMATICS METHODS COURSE ON PRESERVICE TEACHERS' DECISIONS ABOUT TEACHING MATHEMATICS STRATEGIES AND ATTITUDES TOWARD MATHEMATICS AND TECHNOLOGIES Author: KIM, MIN KYEONG Degree: PH.D. Year: 1997 Corporate Source/Institution: IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY (0097) Major Professors: ANN D. THOMPSON; JANET SHARP Source: VOLUME 58/03-A OF DISSERTATION ABSTRACTS INTERNATIONAL. PAGE 721. 231 PAGES Descriptors: EDUCATION, CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION; EDUCATION, MATHEMATICS; EDUCATION, TECHNOLOGY Descriptor Codes: 0727; 0280; 0710 Research on teaching and learning mathematics indicates that offering an appropriate constructivist-based teaching model of mathematics instruction to preservice teachers enhances their teaching abilities and confidence in their future teaching. The purpose of this study was to investigate preservice elementary teachers' decisions about teaching strategies and their attitudes toward mathematics and computer-related technologies in a constructivist-centered methods course which included the use of problem-solving multimedia. This study involved 73 preservice elementary teachers enrolled in an elementary education methods course at Iowa State University. Twenty-eight participants were involved in the treatment group, eighteen students participated in the comparison 1 group and twenty-seven students participated in the comparison 2 group. The treatment consisted of six hours of multimedia-enhanced instruction over two weeks. The remainder of the course was essentially equivalent for all groups. This study focuses on three mathematics education topics taught to each group of students: problem-solving, technology, and ratios/proportions. The results showed that the videodisc experience enhanced the constructivist-based mathematics methods course. The results suggest that constructivist-based instruction including the use of multimedia helped the participants develop more positive attitudes toward computer-related technologies and influenced their decisions to plan more constructivist-based teaching strategies than those participants in the comparison groups. This study offered a potential teaching model of constructivist-based instruction which included the use of multimedia that helps preservice elementary teachers improve their mathematics teaching. The results of this study may provide useful ideas for the design of an elementary mathematics methods course for preservice teachers. Future researchers may use the constructivist-based instruction including the use of multimedia as a foundation to explore subjects other than mathematics. Moreover, researchers may examine parts of this instruction model in greater detail to identify specific items or procedures that contribute to enhancement of preservice teacher education. Thus, the significance of the study has practical and theoretical implications for teaching elementary mathematics based on constructivist approach.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25412 This investigation compares academic achievement and employability skills of high school students enrolled in applied academics courses versus traditional courses. Outcomes from three American College Testing Work Keys assessment tests--Applied Mathematics (AM), Applied Technology (AT), and Reading for Information (RFI)--were used as measures of employability skills. Data were collected under quasi-experimental conditions on 1,321 students from 9 Iowa high schools. The data included school, type of course (applied or traditional), course subject matter, class within course, gender, grade, grade point average (GPA), Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) score, test content area, and test score. Findings included: (1) Group means for GPA, ITED, and all 3 tests were higher for traditional than applied students. (2) Students scoring below the minimum skill level assessed on the tests (Level 3) were not restricted to those with below average GPA or ITED scores. (3) Over 41% of students taking the AT test scored below the cutoff of 3. In contrast only 7.2% of all students taking the RFI test and only 2.5% of all students taking the AM test scored below the cutoff. (4) Males had higher average scores on the AM and AT tests, while females had higher average scores on the RFI test. Conclusions and recommendations include: (1) These findings should not be taken as evidence of a superiority of traditional teaching methods over applied academics. These were not equivalent groups being compared under true experimental conditions; nor can one discount the possibility of omitted intercorrelated independent variables in the regression equations. (2) Additional measures of employability skills besides test scores are needed to fully investigate the effectiveness of applied academics. (3) Growth of students' employability skills over time should be monitored. Data should be collected at periodic intervals for analysis and should include measures of performance in both school and workplace. (4) Independent variables, other than those included in the study, may account for significant variability related to test scores. (5) The results of this investigation should not be generalized to all Iowa high schools due to limited sample size and lack of an adequate cross-section.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25398 The purpose of this research was to describe and analyze the perceptions and experiences of six selected student athletes at a Midwestern university. The general research objects of the study were to describe and analyze the perceptions, expectations, and experiences of student athletes regarding: (a) school climate; (b) personal attitude; (c) teachers' interaction; (d) coaches' interaction; and (e) parental impact. The emerging themes elicited from the primary data were summarized for each of the five constructs. Two themes for school climate were: (a) some students adapt to the conditions of their school environment with differential behaviors and attitudes of teachers, peers and coaches rather than yield to them; and (b) discriminatory attitudes and racist treatment of athletes in classes contribute to an uncomfortable environment for them. For attitude, the themes were: (a) attitudes toward school assumes a negative approach around the ninth grade; and (b) attitudes toward academics could be as important as intellectual ability. The themes under teachers were: (a) an unsupportive relationship with athletes causes some athletes to feel unwelcome; and (b) insufficient formal and informal interaction with teachers adds to an unsupportive learning environment for students athletes. The emerging themes for coaches were: (a) they are viewed as "significant others"; and (b) they are instrumental in the athletes' development of self esteem directly affecting motivation for academic and athletic performance. For the final construct, parents, the themes were: (a) when parents give their student athlete a positive sense of competence the athlete is more likely to adopt an intrinsic orientation; and (b) when student achievement is not a parental priority, the athletes senses this and expresses frustration. This research could provide faculty, parents, students, coaches, and administrators at elementary, middle, high school, and college levels with a richer understanding of the different perceptions and experiences of student athletes who are involved in their programs. Further qualitative and quantitative research could focus on (a) the quality and satisfaction of the experiences of student athletes in colleges and universities; (b) the factors which cause student athletes to make decisions to drop out or persist in school; (c) the perceptions and experiences of ethnic minority athletes and factors that affect their retention in their academic disciplines; (d) perceptions and experiences of student athletes about their elementary and secondary educational experiences compared to those of non student athletes; and (e) the effects of incorporating principles of athletic development theory into classroom instruction.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25381 The Accounting Information System (AIS) is an important course in the Department of Accounting (DoAc) of universities in Taiwan. This course is required for seniors not only because it meets the needs of the profession, but also because it provides continual study for the department's students. The scores of The National College and University Joint Entrance Examination (NUEE) show that students with high learning ability are admitted to public universities with high scores, while those with low learning ability are admitted only to private universities. The same situation has been found by the researcher while teaching an AIS course in DoAc of The Public Chun Shin University (CSU) and The Private Chinese Culture University (CCU). The purpose of this study was to determine whether low ability students enrolled in private universities in Taiwan in a mastery learning program could attain the same level as high ability students from public universities enrolled in a traditional program. An experimental design was used. The mastery learning method was used to teach three groups of seniors with low learning ability studying in the DoAc at CCU. The traditional method was used to teach the control group which consisted of senior students of DoAc of CSU with high learning ability. As a part of the mastery learning strategy, a formative test, quizzes, and homework were completed by the experimental group only, while the mid-term examination was completed by both groups as part of the course. The dependent variable was the summative test, the final examination. It was completed by both groups upon the course's completion. As predicted, there were significant differences between the two groups' results on the pretest. There were no significant differences between the two groups' results on the posttest. These findings support the hypothesis of the study and reveal the effectiveness of mastery learning strategies with low learning ability students.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25336 This study examined the effects of type of instructional control and program mode on the achievement, option use, time in program, and attitudes of higher-ability and lower-ability university students. Ability level was determined using subjects' SAT and ACT scores. The instructional materials for the study were four versions of a computer-delivered instructional program on Competency-Based Instruction created by crossing the two control conditions (learner control, program control) with the two program modes (full, lean). Subjects were randomly assigned to the four program versions within higher-ability and lower-ability groups. The program-control versions consisted of a fixed number of screens to be completed by students, 196 in the lean version and 240 in the full one. Each student under learner control could add optional practice screens to the lean version or delete optional practice screens from the full one, enabling them to adjust the length of their program version between 196 and 240 screens. Subjects in the full program scored significantly higher on the posttest than those in the lean program, and higher-ability students scored significantly higher than lower-ability students. Posttest achievement did not differ significantly by type of control. Learner-control subjects chose to view 68% of the optional screens in the full program but only 35% in the lean one, and subjects also spent significantly more time in the full version. Subjects had more favorable attitudes towards learner control than program control. The higher achievement for students in the full version of the program was most likely due to their greater amount of practice, both under program and learner control. That subjects under learner control chose to view many more optional screens in the full program than in the lean one reveals a tendency for many students to follow the default path through their assigned program. The overall results of the study indicate that a relatively full version of an instructional program is more effective for improving student achievement, and that learner control in an instructional program is more appealing to students than program control.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25334 This dissertation addresses five critical areas of interest concerning metaphors within instructional settings: (1) an overview that establishes a context for the use of metaphors within learning and explanatory situations; (2) a specific operational framework for critical metaphoric concepts are given as well as suggestions for the viability of the Information-Constructivist (IC) framework for instruction , assessment and research purposes; (3) the procedures used to collect data concerning the instruments for measuring metaphoric comprehension and for determining the metaphoric comprehension of learners in alignment with scientific content and concepts; (4) the findings of an initial study within classroom settings based upon this perspective and framework and (5) a set of implications of the research findings relevant to metaphoric comprehension and use of metaphoric statements in curriculum, instruction , and assessment. Students enrolled in college preparatory chemistry completed (1) a pretest, immediate posttest and delayed post-'free-recall' content test and (2) a test of metaphoric comprehension constructed from specific metaphoric expression aligned with atomic structure and the Bohr and quantum mechanical theories (e.g., The atom is a solar system). Very few pre-, post- and delayed-posttest score differences were revealed either in the kinds of information students attached to these expressions or in the meaning students attached to these expression. Students consistently attributed high meaning to atomic structure-based metaphoric statements grounded in very little accurate information. There is no evidence that using metaphoric statements that refer to properties of atomic structure has the immediate, in-depth, accurate, and far-reaching consequences that advocates of the use of these particular metaphoric statements or metaphoric statements in general claim. Quantitative and qualitative data reveal that current assumptions and assertions about the impact of metaphors to aid content learning and accurate conceptions of phenomena are inappropriate and appear themselves to be misconceptions about metaphoric language.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25308 National standards published in 1995 addressed the importance of foreign language education. Five goal areas were identified: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. The study for this dissertation incorporated these five goals and examined the potential of electronic mail in foreign language learning. The subjects of the study were students in the fifth-semester Spanish Conversation and Composition class at a large public university in the United States. Two classes, with a total of 35 students, were involved in the project. The students of one class (the E-Mail group) used E-Mail to communicate with native Spanish speakers in Mexico, while the students of the other class (the non-E-Mail group) did not. The E-Mail communication lasted for 10 weeks. The purpose of the dissertation study was to examine (1) whether the language performance and confidence of these two groups differed, (2) what the E-Mail messages involved, (3) what the instructor and students' attitudes toward the use of E-Mail were, and (4) what problems the students encountered during the E-Mail communication. The data collection included a cloze test, class writing reports, attitude surveys, questionnaires, and interviews. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods were used to analyze the data: repeated measure, selective coding, survey design, and interview. The results of the quantitative data revealed that the students' performance and confidence did not differ significantly between the two groups. For the qualitative analysis, the content of the E-Mail messages was categorized into eight topics: culture, language, course management, social activity, books, class assignments, desire to communicate, and personal sharing. The findings of the analysis indicated that E-Mail motivated students, helped in learning culture, enhanced social presence, and assisted foreign language learning. The participants were in favor of the use of E-Mail. A follow-up study was conducted one year after the dissertation study was completed. One fourth of the participants continued the E-Mail communication after the dissertation study was over. One student was still writing to her Mexican pen-pals. The findings indicated that the dissertation study had a positive impact on the students over time. E-Mail could be a very useful tool for foreign language learning. It is recommended that educators integrate E-Mail into instruction. Since few studies of this kind have been conducted, more research is warranted to learn about the best use of this promising technology.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25135 The purpose of this study was to explore the issues and challenges degree-seeking adult learners face during their college reentry experience, using a qualitative case study design. The students' perceptions of themselves as self-regulated learners and the strategies they used to achieve their academic goals were examined. The six participants included three men and three women who reentered the same small private college as undergraduate students. Their ages ranged from 28 to 42. Four participants were Caucasian, one male was Mexican American, and one female was African American. Four received high school diplomas (two males and two females), and two completed high school graduation requirements in GED programs. Participants shared insights about their experiences during three separate interviews. Additional data collected from multiple sources were examined through a cross-case analysis, and themes related to the research questions emerged. The six working adults profiled in this case study provided candid views of their fears, challenges, frustrations, and coping strategies as they dealt with everyday pressures at home, on the job, and in the classroom. Their personal support system and the choices they made in adjusting to adverse circumstances influenced how life situations impacted their college experience. A summary of findings indicated: (1) Both male and female participants reported that their greatest challenges included coping with time management issues and balancing career obligations, personal/family responsibilities, and academic preparation. (2) Two factors influenced how effectively the six dealt with balancing career, family and academic obligations: the personal support system available to them and the coping strategies they used. (3) All six viewed the institutional support provided by the college as beneficial and positive. They cited the required reorientation course, personal attention from faculty, and small interactive classes as helpful. (4) No major gender-based differences in the adult learners' adjustment to college were evident other than differences related to age and communication style. (5) The six participants' perceptions of themselves as self-regulated learners changed over time.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25019 The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a popular, research-based self-determination curriculum on student involvement in various aspects of the IEP process. This study was primarily exploratory in nature as a new model for evaluating student IEP involvement was employed. This model of evaluation, The Florida State University Evaluation Model, examined the following four aspects of student involvement: (1) Student Attendance Status (SAS)--students' presence or absence at the 1996-2000 IEP meeting. (2) Perception of IEP Goals (POG)--students were asked to write or dictate two goals that they believed were on their IEP. (3) Preference Match (PM)--match between student preferences (transition outcomes) and written IEP goal/objectives. (4) Level of Involvement (LOI)--students' perceptions of empowerment and involvement in the planning process. Two instruments, the Student IEP Questionnaire, and the IEP Quality Checklist were developed and used to measure the aforementioned aspects. This study involved four groups of students who were described in terms of disability level (e.g., mild or moderate) as well as experimental conditions (e.g., training or comparison). Students in the training groups received instruction using The Self-Directed IEP curriculum while students in the comparison groups received typical special education instruction. The major findings in this study were: (1) Students in the training groups attended IEP conferences at greater proportional levels than students in the comparison groups. (2) Students in the training groups could report a greater number of IEP goals. (3) Students in both the training groups as well as comparison groups expressed an interest in a wide variety of post school outcomes. The training groups had overall greater percent agreements or PM between expressed post school outcomes and the written IEP. (4) The training group had higher planning domain means than the comparison group.
ORDER NO: ABA97-25005 The purpose of this study was to generate a select series of narratives through conversations with exemplars of the best trumpet pedagogical practice and theory. This was accomplished through interviews with twelve trumpet teachers of distinction. These interviews included broad-ranging questions relating to the studio structure, pedagogical sequence, and philosophies of each of the trumpet teachers. The study had three goals: (1) To synthesize and summarize the most interesting and useful information in these conversations into narratives that can inform the writer's own teaching as well as that of others. This included summarization of data collected and qualitative analysis of the information. (2) To understand the pedagogical and philosophical foundations of each master teacher. It was especially important to identify points where practices and theories converged among the teachers and points where practices and theories were unique. (3) To understand better the influence of master teachers' career paths on their studios (of particularly interest was the influence of having a concurrent or prior career in a major symphony orchestra, as opposed to a career as only a college or university teacher). Twelve questions were formulated and each was designed to elicit responses that would unveil the subject's philosophies and theories of trumpet teaching. The questions were conceived so that the following areas of trumpet pedagogy were explored by the study: primary influences on the master teachers (subjects); teaching concepts; curriculum; lesson structure; teaching assistants; masterclass; "high" trumpets (C-trumpet through piccolo); embouchure; scales/digital technique; transposition; practice; and daily routine. Subjects for the study were university trumpet teachers in the United States. Achieving a balance between teachers with prior or concurrent "major" orchestra careers and teachers without such a career was of interest. Subjects were selected by examining: reputation of studio (success of former students in auditions, competitions, number of graduate students, etc.); reputation of school (specifically music department or school of music); and recommendation of advisors and colleagues of the researcher. The subjects were: Richard Burkart; Leonard Candelaria; Vincent Cichowicz; Vincent DiMartino; Armando Ghitalla; Bryan Goff; David Hickman; Stephen Jones; William Pfund; John Rommel; Michael Sachs; Britton Theurer.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24908 This study assessed the expanded applications of the Advanced Technological Delivery System (ATDS) of Northern Arizona University 's modem-based instruction offered to graduate students of Point Loma Nazarene College and Northern Arizona University. Its intent was to measure student satisfaction with the system, discuss its ability to provide instruction equivalent to other modes of delivery, consider the various populations that may benefit from the ATDS, make recommendations regarding the future of ATDS, and expand the base of knowledge regarding this new form of Distance Learning (DL). DL's beginnings were correspondence study, but it has evolved into today's technologies of fiber optics and satellites. Studies from 1980 and early 1990, edited by Baker and Dede for the Office of Technology Assessment, comprised one of the earliest reference sources for modern DL. The research methodology was multi-method: a quantitative non-experimental questionnaire, a qualitative focus group activity, and the qualitative observations of a participant observer. Data were gathered by using a 40-question, Likert-scaled satisfaction survey; a 4-question biographical, historical section; a 6-member focus group activity; and the researcher's observations as a participant observer. The questionnaire surveyed a purposive/judgment sample of students who had taken one or more ATDS courses. Of the 141 students sent the questionnaire, 113 responses were returned. Data were collected via the INTERNET system, America Online (AOL). AOL allowed rapid communication with all the sources: Delphi group, group of judges, focus group, and survey participants. E-mail and the attachment of files were an effective means of gathering data. Regular upgrades to the INTERNET systems continue to improve its responsiveness. It appears that interactive, real-time, and similar online aspects of the INTERNET have great potential for instruction and related activities. The guiding purpose of this research was to provide insight into the question, "Is it possible to have the flexibility and responsiveness of modem-based instruction and still meet students' learning requirements and expectations?" The research concluded that in regard to student satisfaction the ATDS does positively answer that question and those of the "Statement of Problem." There were no negative responses by the population of this study regarding the ATDS.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24731 The current study was designed to investigate the relationships among demandingness, resistance, assumed responsibility, and teachers' sense of efficacy. The second purpose was to compare differences between special education and general education preservice teachers in their demandingness, resistance, assumed responsibility, personal teaching efficacy, and general teaching efficacy. Fifty-one preservice teachers in the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia who were working toward teacher certification at the elementary level were surveyed utilizing a three-part research instrument which assessed personal background information and responses to two surveys: (a) the Teacher Efficacy Scale, and (b) the SBS (the SBS Inventory of Teacher Social Behavior Standards and Expectations). It was predicted that preservice teachers who had high efficacy beliefs would also be those who were highly demanding (held high behavioral standards and had low tolerance for misbehavior), assumed more responsibility for students' learning and behavior, and were less resistant to placement of students with disabilities. However, according to the results, none of the SBS variables was significantly correlated with teachers' sense of efficacy. Although no significant difference was found between special education and general education preservice teachers in their demandingness, assumed responsibility, and teachers' sense of efficacy, general education preservice teachers were found to be more resistant than special education preservice teachers to placement of students with disabilities in their classroom. Finally, no significant relationship was found among personal characteristics and teachers' sense of efficacy. However, it was found that having previous experiences with children was positively related to perceived readiness for student teaching. Also, preservice teachers who felt that their teacher education program was difficult also thought that student teaching would be more difficult. In addition, preservice teachers who felt more prepared for student teaching also felt that their future academic instruction would be less difficult. Preservice teachers who felt that their teacher education program was difficult also felt that future academic instruction would be more difficult. Also, expectations of how difficult student teaching would be were positively correlated with feelings of how difficult future academic instruction would be. Furthermore, there was also a positive relationship between preservice teachers' feelings of how difficult their future academic instruction would be and how difficult future behavior management would be in the classroom.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24613 The purpose was to examine reported characteristics of community college remedial mathematics programs. Selected schools were categorized into upper and lower groups based on institutional mean score for students passing the TASP mathematics subtest after TASP-required remediation. An auxiliary purpose was to determine if differences existed among Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics in Texas community colleges on the mathematics portion of the TASP test for students passing on initial attempt and for students passing after TASP-required remediation. Significant differences in rank were revealed between all three ethnic groups when remediation status (no remediation required, and remediation completed) was held constant. Differences were also found between students completing remediation and those not requiring remediation when ethnicity was held constant. Additionally, analysis of interaction effects revealed significant differences within each ethnic designation for students not requiring remediation and for those completing remediation. A difference was also found in passing retake scores for Blacks and Whites who had participated in remediation. The survey of the developmental mathematics programs revealed separations of at least 20 percentage points for several categories favoring upper- over lower-level institutions. Contrasts occurred in the availability of self-paced modules for instructional support, and instructor utilization of writing activities, group work techniques, and manipulatives. The following conclusions were drawn: (a) low passing percentages (6.6% statewide) of Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics who participated in mathematics remediation and attempted a TASP retake suggest a need for identification and utilization of additional strategies to meet the needs of the least prepared students; (b) remediation did not obscure differences in scores for students passing the TASP mathematics test on initial attempt and those passing after participating in remediation; and (c) availability of self-paced modules for instruction , and instructor utilization of writing activities, group techniques, and manipulatives surfaced as potentially beneficial strategies.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24492 The major purpose of this study was to document and delineate the learning activities that contribute to perspective transformation among adult learners within the context of higher education. This study was designed and implemented in order to better understand the adult learner's perspective transformation and some of the ways in which the learner's educational experience may contribute to it. The instrument that was used, the "Learning Activities Survey," was developed and piloted by the author in a previous study. Recognizing that most of the research in this topic area had been done in the qualitative research model, the instrument was formatively evaluated and modified based on the results of ongoing trial runs of the survey and follow-up interviews. Benefits of using such methods of inquiry include a much larger sample and a standardized form of inquiry in different conditions and settings. The instrument is a questionnaire that has objective and free response questions. Mezirow's ten stages of perspective transformation are used as a basis for identifying perspective transformation. Information gathered in several items of the instrument is used to arrive at a rating, a "PT-Index," indicating whether the participant has experienced a perspective transformation in relation to their educational experience. The research was conducted among four private colleges in the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area; the sample size was 471. This research documents the percentage of adult learners in the sample who experienced a perspective transformation and examines the experience's relationship to demographic characteristics. Specific learning activities often cited as facilitating perspective transformation include: critical thinking skill activities and teacher involvement. In addition, the perspective transformation experience of first semester students was different than that of continuing students. These findings support the literature and provide a framework for both classroom application and future research. Especially important would be the use of the instrument to study the occurrence and nature of the perspective transformation experience with different samples and in different settings. Further research on demographic characteristics and personal traits would also yield insight into perspective transformation among adult learners.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24491 In 1992, the United States Department of Commerce reported that 195 million adults (over age 23) were involved in some form of higher education. However, these adults are considered to be nontraditional, not only because of age, but also because of varied ethnic, cultural, and educational experiences they bring to their learning environment. Many of those who are so classified find themselves underprepared for college. Various educators have explored the characteristics of the population and have written of the need for colleges to improve the undergraduate experience in order to help these students be more successful in their academic achievement. Others have focused on the use of learning style concepts to inform educators, to help faculty understand the organizational culture in which they teach and to redefine and redesign curriculum through the identification of the learning styles of students. The intent of this study was to determine what learning style variables exist among developmental English students and to determine whether any of these variables were significant in predicting academic achievement. Further, the study explored whether there were interrelationships between and among the measuring instruments used. A series of statistical applications suggests that the measuring instruments were not related. They appear to be assessing different aspects of learning styles. Future research should define what each instrument actually measures in relation to style and appropriate mode of instruction . Results also indicated that, despite a widespread practice of categorizing and labeling types of learning styles, there is a lack of uniformity in operational definitions. Therefore, there is a need for future investigation of what particular measures mean as they relate to the structure of learning environments. Lastly, more studies are needed to illuminate the connections and interactions among style, developmental stage, discipline perspectives, and epistemology.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24489 The purpose of this study was to identify and examine the teaching styles of program directors in hospital based certificate and college / university degree programs of radiologic technology. Level of formal education, years in position as program director, number of courses taught per semester, age, and gender were used to determine their influence on teaching style. Prior to this study, program directors of radiologic technology programs had not been surveyed to assess their teaching style. Of the 200 program directors that were sampled, 115 volunteered to participate in this study. Each respondent completed the Principles of Adult Learning Survey (PALS) and a demographic questionnaire. Results of this study demonstrated that there was no difference in the teaching styles of program directors in hospital based and college / university degree programs of radiography. Findings suggest that regardless of the location of the program, program directors prefer and practice the teacher-centered style of instruction. This style of teaching is considered to be incongruent with the collaborative style of teaching which has been supported by adult education literature. Of the five independent variables that were used to determine their influence on the PALS score, gender and years in the position as program director were found to be statistically significant at the.05 level of confidence. Findings revealed that directors who were female and had been in the position for 16 years or more obtained scores which approached the PALS mean score. The scores obtained by these program directors indicate a teaching style which may combine elements from both the collaborative mode and the teacher-centered mode. Because of the limited sample used, caution must be taken when applying the results to a larger population. Results of the study suggest that program directors of hospital based and college /university degree programs of radiologic technology are not aware of the differences between traditional and non-traditional students and thus, may not be addressing the needs of adult learners in their programs. This study suggests that professional development for program directors is needed because adult learners are changing the ecology of the radiologic technology program.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24465 Workplace education in the community college is an emerging field, one that blends the student-centered approach of an adult basic education (ABE) teacher with the business savvy of a contracted trainer. All aspects of the educational process, from assessment to evaluation, are customized to the needs and expectations of multiple partners. Work context has a tremendous impact on the experiences and activities of a workplace instructor, one that is not adequately appreciated or recognized by most community colleges. It is an underlying premise of this study that those who teach context-based, fundamental or basic skills in a workplace setting create a frame of reference, a definable perspective, through which they view events and choose actions in response. Identifying that shared perspective was the primary purpose of this study. A twofold data gathering method was employed: focused interviewing (Merton, Fiske, & Kendall, 1990) with six community college workplace instructors; and two follow-up focus groups, one of original interviewees and the other a purposive sample of non-interviewed instructors in similar roles. The constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) provided a systematic flow between data gathering and analysis, focusing on three core inquiries: (a) the perspective(s) of community college workplace instructors, (b) how one's perspective is related to responses to problematic situations, and (c) the role of reference groups in the development of the(se) perspective(s). Situations that were problematic or difficult for community college workplace instructors in this study centered around: (a) the need to balance multiple needs and interests, (b) the relationships with the college community, (c) interaction with the business environment and company personnel, and (d) establishment of an identity and support system in the academic community. The instructors' responses, defined at the novice, experienced, and master levels, revealed a common pattern of experiences and responses to problematic situations encountered as they adapt to this emergent role. This study offers an initial definition of an emerging profession in community colleges--workplace education.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24333 This dissertation examined the nature of academic writing (AW) in relation to its epistemological assumptions (foundational or relativist). An understanding of such epistemologies may reveal how AW has been a major hurdle for non-mainstream students to their completion of higher education and to their consequent access to social power. The literature review documented the nature of the foundational (norm centered) and relativist (focusing on contextual elements) epistemologies and the relationship between them and the characteristics of discourse conventions, particularly those of AW. Widely used approaches to writing (e.g., the process approach) were also analyzed to reveal the essence of each of them. The design of the study consisted of 18 interviews of AW instructors and/or administrators at 3 universities. The interview questions examined the epistemological assumptions underlying these instructors' views of the nature of AW, their ideal pedagogy, their writing program, and their status in the university. The findings from the interviews were in general consistent with the literature review: The most widely used approach to AW was the process approach and overall the interviewees held a foundational view of AW--there was an emphasis on the necessity of an unquestionable writing standard. However, regarding their teaching goals, the majority of the interviewees held a more relativist view--they considered context and audience awareness necessary for effective writing. Also, the 3 universities differed as to their leaning toward the relativist epistemology. This leaning corresponded with a development of writing programs moving towards more attention on individual student's needs, higher morale of the instructors, and greater flexibility in writing standards. It was concluded that contextualized critical analysis through dialogues was key to (1) the indispensable mediation in effective writing instruction --between concrete and abstract concepts--especially for non-mainstream students; and (2) awakened awareness of one's social and political contexts, which is the first step towards equity education and social justice. This study brought the epistemological assumptions of AW out of their mystifying shield of being the immutable truth so that the justifications of AW may be questioned and truly democratic learning environment be established.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24297 The purposes of this study were to determine the effects of being taught to use metacognition strategies while engaged in mathematical problem solving on preservice elementary school teachers' mathematical problem-solving achievement and attitude. A quasi-experimental study was designed. The study took place over a seven week period in the Spring, 1996, semester of a local college. Two professors each taught two elementary mathematical methods classes for preservice elementary mathematical school teachers. Each teacher taught one class metacognition strategies along with a problem-solving unit (experimental class) and taught the other class the same problem-solving unit with no emphasis on using metacognition strategies (control classes). Each class had approximately 25 students. Students were pretested and posttested with the following measures: a problem-solving achievement test which was constructed by the researcher, and the Fennema-Sherman Effectance Motivation in Mathematics Scale. Analysis of student worksheets and student interviews provided additional qualitative data to the study as well. A 2 x 2 repeated measures ANOVA was performed separately for each of the dependent variables. A Wilcoxon Matched-Pairs Signed-Rank Tests was performed on the individual subscores obtained for each of the questions on the pretest and posttest. The results of this study supported three of the six hypotheses. Students in the metacognitive treatment groups (experimental) significantly improved in both problem-solving achievement and attitude towards problem solving. The students in the non-metacognitive treatment group (control) significantly improved in problem-solving achievement but not in attitude. The metacognitive groups did not improve significantly more than the control groups on either problem-solving achievement or attitude toward problem solving. The Wilcoxon Matched Pairs Signed-Ranks Test revealed a significant improvement from pretest to posttest in all five areas of the problem-solving heuristic process for the control groups and in four of the five areas for the experimental groups. Overall, the study supports research which suggests heuristic training is necessary to improve preservice elementary school teachers' problem-solving abilities. While the addition of metacognitive training did not significantly improve the experimental students' problem-solving ability more than the control students, the interviews revealed the students felt the training was beneficial to the process.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24272 This study is one of six companion studies investigating ways of improving the overall role of laboratory experiences in science instruction. The primary purpose of the study was to explore the extent to which longer term inservice experiences with modeled inquiry-based instruction caused immediate reform in the approach that inservice teachers of physical science use in pre- and post-laboratory instruction , as well as their ability to restructure their physical science courses to give greater emphasis to the inquiry approach. A secondary purpose was to compare the findings of this study with those of the companion study by H. Priestley (1996) which studied life science teachers (LSTs). A full semester graduate level science education course entitled Science Education 716, The Teaching of Chemistry, developed by two experienced Temple University professors, provided the necessary modeled inquiry-oriented pedagogical approach. Pre- and post-laboratory sessions were videotaped and analyzed using the Modified Revised Science Teacher Behavioral Inventory to determine the frequency of occurrence of the teaching behaviors used. Inservice teacher behavior profiles were compared to the profiles of traditional and model teaching. Eleven of the 14 PSTs presented post-laboratory sessions that used student laboratory data and/or observations to provide a foundation for the follow-up discussion. Eight of these 11, demonstrated, to a considerable degree, the model approach to instruction. Within this group of 8, four indicated that they utilized the modeled approach prior to the inservice treatment while the remaining 4 showed that they could restructure their courses and reform their teaching behaviors to approach the model profile. While the exploration reported herein did not reveal statistical significance in the teaching behaviors between the PST and LST groups of teachers, these teachers did show significant differences in the amount of time used in conducting post-laboratory sessions. This study shows that modeled, inquiry-oriented (science) laboratory instruction coupled with longer term practice, support and follow-up is effective in preparing inservice teachers to reform their instructional practices and restructure their courses, adopting a more hands-on, inquiry-oriented approach to science laboratory experiences.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24222 This study identified perceived pressures and problems reported by first year intern teachers enrolled in the Intern Teaching Program of Temple University. Also, a comparison was made between the perceived pressures and problems reported in this study and those of the Miller study (1970) to see if there were any significant differences. Differences in perceived pressures and problems among selected sub-groups of interns were also examined. The sub-groups consisted of gender, age, race, content area taught, socio-economic status, marital status, public school versus private school teaching assignments, urban versus suburban school teaching assignments, and level of school placement. A questionnaire, developed by Miller, was employed to assess perceived intern pressures and problems. The questionnaire was administered to seventy-one first year interns. The following perceived pressures were reported with highest frequency and intensity. Interns reported high in frequency the perceived pressure of planning, time, clerical work, finances, marking papers, controlling classes, and teaching new material. The pressure of time and finances were ranked highest in intensity. These were followed by the pressure of planning and controlling classes. Ranked at a third level were the pressure of clerical work and non-teaching duties. It was found that perceived pressures reported by interns remain consistent with those findings of the Miller study. No significant changes in perceived pressures were noted in comparing the two studies. Perceived problems of classroom management and discipline, judging teacher effectiveness, test scores students earn, boredom and disinterest, and varying lessons were reported. It was found that perceived problems remain consistent with those findings of the Miller study. No significant changes of perceived problems were noted in comparing the two studies. The researcher concluded that in the course of two decades, first year intern teachers report the same kinds of pressures and problems. The same perceived pressures reported by first year interns are both most frequent and most intense. Both the current study and the Miller study reported discipline the top ranking problem. There is very little difference among sub-groups in reporting perceived pressures and problems. Recommendations for future planning and future studies were discussed.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24204 This study investigated the preferred structure and content of teacher newsletters from the perspective of both parents and teachers. A single site descriptive study of four second grade classrooms was conducted in a suburban school district. Data were collected through a parent questionnaire, parent and teacher interviews, and document analysis of teacher newsletters. The results indicated that parents and teachers agreed on two items important for inclusion in a teacher newsletter: (1) notice of tests, projects or assignments that are coming up, and (2) a description of topics that will be studied every month. In addition, three other items were identified that parents, but not teachers, rated as very important to include in a teacher newsletter: directions for helping their child learn certain skills; suggestions for study skills to help their child learn information being taught in school; and delineation of the goals and objectives for each subject each month. Although teachers felt it was very important to include titles of books for parents to read to children, parents did not rate this highly. Almost all parents preferred to receive a newsletter once per month or more frequently, and a one-page newsletter was considered as the ideal length. Agreement was almost unanimous that parents wanted to receive information about classroom activities and curriculum before, rather than after the fact. Overall, teachers and parents agreed in some areas as to what constitutes the desirable content and structure of a teacher newsletter, but there were also many areas of disagreement. Moreover, teachers identified several barriers impeding their use of teacher newsletters. Importantly, teachers believe that parents are satisfied with the level of information they give parents regarding the curriculum, but parents did not confirm this impression, particularly those with college -level education. These findings indicate that administrators should help teachers understand the purpose, and desired content and structure of teacher newsletters. Further, mechanisms to overcome barriers to writing newsletters need to be identified. Finally, teachers should use a formal process to assess whether their use of school-to-home communication is effective.
ORDER NO: ABA97-24184 In the 1980's there was significant criticism of America's schools and teachers. Teacher preparation programs were not exempt from this criticism and were included as systems needed restructuring. Stronger state and national standards for programs preparing teachers was a way that some suggested might improve teacher education and schools. In 1994 the National Association for the Education of Young Children revised the guidelines for preparing teachers of young children. This study was an evaluation of a kindergarten endorsement program at a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. The purpose of the study was to examine the perceived quality of preparation of kindergarten teachers by involving graduates, their cooperating teachers, and methods and professional course instructors. A survey, The Kindergarten Program Effectiveness Survey, was developed, piloted, and administered to graduates and their cooperating kindergarten student teaching supervisors who were involved in the program from 1989 to 1994. Instructors from nine professional and elementary methods courses were interviewed to determine how much kindergarten content and strategy they perceived to be included in their classes according to the Minnesota document, Kindergarten Excellence. The study found that, overall, the program was perceived by the surveyed groups to be of high quality for preparing kindergarten teachers. Several areas, however, were identified by both graduates and cooperating personnel as needing strengthening. These weaker areas were: communicating and working with families and communities, working with and modifying environments for learners with special needs, kindergarten assessment, and working with technology and computers in the kindergarten. The study also determined that those graduates who were teaching kindergarten were using strategies acquired in the preparation program, both in the kindergarten and elementary courses and avoiding strategies which the preparation program viewed as developmentally inappropriate. It was found that there was a wide variety of treatment of kindergarten methods and content in the elementary courses.
ORDER NO: ABA97-23710 A three part empirical study was performed to compare the effects on college students of learning C pointers with the aid of an intelligent tutoring system (ITS), learning with a multimedia tutorial, and learning with lecture only. Previous ITSs for teaching programming languages have given little consideration to the user interface. Both tutorials presented the same concepts and employed similar wording. The multimedia version of the software included sound, animations, and hyperlinks. The topics covered by both tutorials included: pointers to simple variables, pointers to structures, and arrays. The experiment consisted of tracking the scores of three groups of novice C programming students, on questions about pointers, throughout a semester. The control group consisted of 38 subjects who received lecture notes accompanied by classroom instruction during the fall of 1995. Treatment group one (T1) consisted of 42 subjects who received the same notes and lecture but were introduced to a text-based intelligent tutoring system covering the basics of C pointers during the spring of 1996. Treatment group two (T2) consisted of 34 subjects who received the same lecture and notes as the previous two groups, but were given the opportunity to use a multimedia version of the software during the fall of 1996. The subjects were all students who completed an introductory C programming course during each of the three semesters, taught by the same professor. A one way analysis of variance indicates no significant differences between the three groups in amount learned on pointers. However, some encouraging results did occur. Thirty-eight percent of the students chose to use the multimedia software. The multimedia users spent more time learning with their software than the ITS group. The multimedia software received higher ratings than the ITS. The multimedia software users in T2 earned midterm scores nearly eight points lower than those of the control group. But on the final exam, scores between the two groups had decreased considerably on the pointer questions. However, the subjects reported that they overwhelmingly (73%) preferred learning with an instructor, over learning with software (18%), with only 9% opting for utilizing both instructor and software to help them learn.
ORDER NO: ABA97-23973 To describe a set of practices for teaching writing I am calling a pedagogy of the personal, I wish to argue for two adjustments in the way we conceptualize first-year writing. The first adjustment, expanding the definition of the personal, has to do with attitudes toward students. I define "the personal" more broader than is traditional--as that which is particular and idiosyncratic to an individual--in order to expand the ways the "I" who speaks can become more visible in students' intellectual work and academic discourse. The purpose of an expanded definition is to view the individual writer as a social individual with a personal history, as someone who always has choices to make but who does not have complete discretion to behave however he or she chooses. The second adjustment I will argue for, recasting first-year writing classrooms primarily as sites for utilizing and exploring the complexity of relationships between people, supports renovating the definition of the personal and reflects the influence of cultural studies on composition pedagogy. Within this approach to teaching writing, dialectics are applied strategically in the classroom, as a method for cultivating deliberative habits among developing writing students, rather than for foregrounding traditional modes of argumentation and analysis that are usually pursued in first-year composition courses. To put it simply, Theorizing a Pedagogy of the Personal is an effort to upset the constructions of "teacher" and "student" transmission models of education have made familiar to us. Shifting ideas of what teachers do and what students do and how each interacts with one another in writing classrooms, for me, involves three simultaneous gestures: (1) developing genuinely reflective teaching practices, (2) making students more responsible for shaping the parameters of the learning environments they traverse, and (3) renovating how home and community values are brought within the bounds of academic writing. Although some qualitative research methods are used such as discourse-based interviewing and teacher-as-reflective-practitioner techniques, the work represented is primarily interpretive in its methodology. In addition to the influence of cultural studies, Theorizing a Pedagogy of the Personal draws from research and scholarship in composition studies related to literacy theory, feminist theory, critical theory, poststructuralist theory and postmodern theory. Stated more narrowly, the interpretive project is to articulate a writing pedagogy located within the tensions of expressivist and social construction paradigms that is relevant and responsive to the needs and interests of writing students. | ||||||||||||
