{"title":"Increasing Problem Solving Skills in Fifth Grade Advanced Mathematics Students","authors":"Jobrina Gale Ellison","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.2009.V3N1P15","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.2009.V3N1P15","url":null,"abstract":"Because No Child Left Behind (NCLB) calls for every student to make gains during every school year, even advanced students who are already performing at the top must make these gains. Teachers need to find areas to target with advanced students. One area that could be targeted to strengthen is problem solving skills. Research shows that daily practice and strategy instruction in problem solving skills will increase students’ problem solving abilities. I dedicated 5-10 minutes per day to problem solving practice and strategy instruction for a five week period. Pre- and post-assessment data were collected using confidence surveys constructed by the teacher and problem solving tests to show growth from the beginning to the end of the study. Results indicate that although confidence in problem solving did not show notable increases, there was evidence indicating an increase in problem solving skills both in correct answers and strategy knowledge.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"390 1","pages":"15"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-01-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78066228","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Collaborative Action Research and School Improvement: We Can't Have One Without the Other","authors":"Richard D. Sagor","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V3I1P7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V3I1P7","url":null,"abstract":"The issues confronted by contemporary educators are unlikely to be solved by the adoption and implementation of “proven practices.” Professional development must focus upon generating the new knowledge and insights required to tackle the challenges of an increasingly diverse student body. The author argues that given the nature of today’s students, universal student success is likely to be achieved only through a new ethic of professionalism. This article posits that effective teaching is predicated on two factors: an educator's mastery of the profession’s knowledge base and wisdom honed through a disciplined analysis of action. The author argues that through the collaborative use of the specific habits of mind that make up the action research process, teams of teachers will be able discover the knowledge and insights required to make universal student success a reality. The article concludes with a critical review of the Professional Learning Community (PLC) concept and discusses how when properly implemented, PLCs can become vehicles to support this new model of professionalism.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"94 1","pages":"7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-01-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81295743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Book Review: Creating Equitable Classrooms Through Action Research","authors":"Geoffrey E. Mills","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V3I1P64","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V3I1P64","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"237 1","pages":"64"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-01-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80075639","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effects of Video Modeling on Implementation of Literature Circles in Inclusive Content Area Classrooms","authors":"Chris O'Brien, L. Dieker","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P52-73","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P52-73","url":null,"abstract":"Trends in special education favor inclusion and concurrently the implementation of inclusive instructional practices. As students with learning disabilities are increasingly placed in general education classrooms, the need to assist general educators in establishing inclusive classrooms becomes a major priority. Cooperative learning, in the form of literature circles, is offered as a means of providing support to academically diverse student populations. In light of research-to-practice challenges, this study investigated the potential for students with learning disabilities and their peers to learn about literature circles by viewing video models of the practice in action. Students in the video modeling group demonstrated significantly more effective implementation of literature circles including cooperative behaviors suggesting that video modeling could serve as a means of improving the translation of research on effective instructional strategies to actual practice in classrooms.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"84 1","pages":"52-73"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88245617","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Daniel J. Boudah, B. Lenz, J. Schumaker, D. Deshler
{"title":"Teaching in the Face of Academic Diversity: Unit Planning and Instruction by Secondary Teachers to Enhance Learning in Inclusive Classes","authors":"Daniel J. Boudah, B. Lenz, J. Schumaker, D. Deshler","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P74-91","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P74-91","url":null,"abstract":"Teacher planning is a highly personal process, one that may be relatively complex when teachers attempt to differentiate instruction. Planning and individualizing instruction also may be problematic, particularly in secondary school settings, because of the curricular demands and the systemic variables that distinguish secondary from elementary schools (Cuban, 1993; Schumaker & Deshler, 1988). The purpose of this study was to explore how secondary teachers make decisions about differentiation in units of content instruction. Questions were developed and posed to the teachers during telephone interviews to document changes in teacher planning processes in conjunction with development and use of the Unit Organizer Routine. Detailed qualitative analysis of teacher responses revealed that they began thinking more carefully about their emphasis on certain aspects of the content, the organization of content as presented by texts, and the difficulty of learning certain aspects of the content. Despite these changes in planning and unit development, teachers’ classroom assessment methods remained unchanged.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"96 1","pages":"74-91"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76027267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Co-Teaching: A Simple Solution That Isn't Simple After All","authors":"M. Friend","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P9-19","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P9-19","url":null,"abstract":"Among the many programs that professional educators are developing to better help their increasingly diverse students reach their potential, co-teaching is emerging as an innovative and potentially effective approach. As a way to ensure that students with disabilities or other special needs have access to the same curriculum as other students and the opportunity to succeed in the general education setting, co-teaching occurs when two professionals, typically a general education teacher and a special education teacher or another specialist, partner in delivering instruction. Although the research base on co-teaching is still emerging, it suggests that co-teaching is far more complex to effectively implement than it might seem at first consideration. Challenges to co-teaching that have been identified and must be addressed include: arranging time for co-planning, building positive working relationships between co-teaching partners, clarifying roles and responsibilities, and ensuring administrative support. When creative strategies for arranging common planning time, building understanding and collaboration between co-teachers, planning and delivering instruction, and enlisting principal and other administrative supports are implemented, the potential of co-teaching for improving student outcomes is significant.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"1 1","pages":"9-19"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78883428","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Reading Instruction that is Liberating: Professional Development for Content Area Teachers at a School for Incarcerated Youth","authors":"Barbara Laster","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P92-121","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P92-121","url":null,"abstract":"In this article, the professional development activities at a school for incarcerated youth are described through a format that incorporates multiple voices of participants. Based upon input from the director and the teachers at the school, a professional development initiative included (a) specific strategies for word identification, including phonics, for students who were adolescent or adult beginning readers; (b) informal diagnostic assessment techniques; (c) teaching reading comprehension and writing; (d) metacognition for both word identification and comprehension; and (e) the professional concepts/language of literacy instruction, such as authentic assessment, miscue analysis, levels of reading and readability of texts. Outcomes of the project included the development of knowledge related to adopting literacy assessment and instruction for this special population and setting, new perspectives and empowerment of the teachers, and a sense of urgency to teach reading.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"23 1","pages":"92-121"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74536961","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Personalized Systems of Instruction Model: Teaching Health-Related Fitness Content in High School Physical Education","authors":"J. Hannon, Brett J. Holt, John Hatten","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P20-33","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P20-33","url":null,"abstract":"This study assessed the use of personalized system of instruction (PSI) to teach a high school personal fitness class. A course workbook was designed to provide the students with a basic introduction to the unit, class rules and policies, learning objectives, content-based modules, and methods of assessment. Based on criteria used to verify effective use of PSI in a physical education setting, implementation of the PSI unit in this study was successful. Student comments indicated that this self-paced mastery learning was a new experience for them. As students became more familiar with the model, they enjoyed the structure and material being presented. Teacher comments indicated that after explaining and establishing the PSI system, very little teaching time was spent on classroom management.The majority of teaching time was spent on providing individualized feedback to students. PSI offers an alternative approach to teaching and learning in physical education as well as other content areas.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"58 1","pages":"20-33"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80151742","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Algebra I teachers' perceptions of teaching students with learning disabilities","authors":"Angela Lusk, T. Thompson, C. Daane","doi":"10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P34-51","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3776/JOCI.%Y.V2I2P34-51","url":null,"abstract":"Although numerous studies have focused on teachers' perceptions of inclusion, there is a scarcity of subject-specific research on their perceptions of a specific disability. In this study, 63 Algebra I teachers in 27 school districts in Alabama were surveyed to uncover their perceptions of teaching students with learning disabilities (LD) and factors that might affect these perceptions. The results indicated that Algebra I teachers do not have an overall favorable perception of teaching students with LD in inclusive classrooms. Collaboration with a special education teacher and the number of students with LD in the general education classroom were found to significantly contribute to Algebra I teachers' perceptions of teaching students with LD.","PeriodicalId":31424,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction","volume":"40 1","pages":"34-51"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-05-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90867868","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}