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1751. Reasons for Low Enrollment of Girls in High School Physics at a Southern California High School
- Creator:
- ONeill, Traves
- Description:
- This study investigates the reasons girls are enrolling in physics at lower rates than boys at one comprehensive high school in Southern California. The research was conducted using a digital survey consisting of 20 questions including Likert scale and short answers forms. There were 485 science student responses validated and analyzed ranging from grade 10-12, including 262 girls and 211 boys. Results were analyzed using independent samples t-tests and the iterative process. The data suggests seven key differences between girls and boys. First, girls perceive physics as less interesting. Second, girls have lower self-efficacy in math and science. Third, girls perceive physics as harder, less fun, and less applicable. Fourth, girls have less interest in physics related college majors. Fifth, girls are more likely to enroll in courses that prepare them for college. Sixth, girls are less likely to take a science course because they find it interesting. Seventh, girls are less likely to take a science course to be with friends. One key recommendation derived from the data is that parents, teachers, and counselors need to do a better job showing girls the importance of physics in relation to other STEM fields including chemistry, biology, and environmental science.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Thom, April
- Description:
- This project created a secondary education curriculum for an ecology unit in a Biology class that integrated the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and included supports for English Language Learner (ELL) students. This project researched what curriculum should be included to satisfy the NGSS, best science practices, differentiation strategies for ELLs, and growth mindset practices for recording student progress. The best practices for effectively teaching science include inquiry based learning, use of thoughtful lesson design, and discrepant effects and phenomena. Educators can support English Language Learners by incorporating the California ELD Standards, implementing academic science vocabulary development tools, as well as specially designed academic instruction in English (SDAIE) strategies, and culturally relevant pedagogy. Student learning is enhanced through the use of growth mindset strategies such as student designed experimentation and digital portfolios to track learning. This curriculum was implemented at Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California by five Biology teachers and modified during their Professional Learning Community to better support student learning.
- Resource Type:
- Project
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Chambers, Nicholas
- Description:
- Abstract Education is changing and this has provided more opportunities for families to choose their school. Schools that rely on enrollment for funding are competing for students. Going forward leaders will have to figure out how to navigate new waters as more students are choosing alternative schools. For funding reasons, leaders find it more fulfilling to operate a school at full enrollment. This allows for the maximum amount of dollars to spend on resources to help meet the needs of the students. For the stake holders of the school to enjoy the benefits of full enrollment, students within their boundaries must go to that schools. A survey of twenty-one parents who removed their child from The Road school, was done trying to understand what they valued when making the decision to change. The Road is one of the largest schools in San Diego County. The Road serves a diverse population and the school is facing two consecutive years of decline in enrollment. The aim of the research is to answer the question, “What is important to parents when choosing and evaluating schools”? The literature states that most families stay close to the home. Families will also change schools for performance reasons, economic reasons, and segregation. Twenty-one parents who left The Road School were asked eleven questions regarding school choice. The data shows that quality of education, and school performance are what these parents value the most. The data also shows that many parents did not have much information about the school in the zone they moved into. The data showed the need for the leadership of The Road to increase their effort in community outreach and community education on the strengths of The Road.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Steres, Victoria
- Description:
- With the federal mandate to provide students with disabilities access to a rigorous education in the least restrictive environment, schools across the country began adopting the inclusion model, which is a heterogeneous grouping of students with and without disabilities in a mainstream classroom. To address this new system of instruction, schools further adopted the co-teaching model, which partners for at least part of the day special education teachers and general education teachers in a mainstream classroom in order to provide the necessary supports to the students and teachers. The purpose of this qualitative collective case study was to identify the perceived opportunities and constraints of the co-teaching model at three sites in San Diego County. Five administrators and fifteen co-teachers participated in the study, which included separate open-ended surveys focusing on participants’ attitude towards co-teaching, impact on students, and various types of support provided and desired. The data was analyzed using a hierarchical category system, in which themes emerged from the categorization of related words and phrases provided by the participants. Those themes were: perception of the co-teaching model, social-emotional, academic achievement, administrative support, and effectiveness of training. The teachers’ data also revealed two additional themes: large caseload and relationships. While the majority of participants expressed positive perceptions of the co-teaching model, impact to student achievement and social-emotional development, and co-teachers’ relationships, some identified constraints regarding those same topics. Common planning time, staffing, and professional development were the primary constraints to the sites’ current model. The co-teaching model at the sites provides a range of opportunities and constraints that must be identified in order to make future decisions to continue to improve the system.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Carlyle, Lindsey
- Description:
- As educators continually face curricular change, school administrators must manage teachers and are responsible for the success of all students. Past studies have focused on teacher efficacy in regards to student achievement or leadership strategies to increase teacher efficacy. This study will focus on leadership strategies to improve teacher efficacy to best support curricular change. This two-part study will focus on teacher efficacy during the process of curricular change and leadership strategies for school administrators to use when supporting teacher efficacy and implementing affective curricular change. Teacher efficacy is explained through Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, which magnifies the connection between teacher efficacy and student success. Bandura also provides strategies for how school administrators can increase teacher efficacy, leading to more significant student achievement. Additionally, research-based leadership strategies will be compared and contrasted with the data collected in this study. While it is known that teacher efficacy is linked to student achievement, and critical leadership strategies lead to increased teacher efficacy; this study focuses on answering the question: How can school administrators increase teacher efficacy to best support curricular change? This research focuses on the impact of school administrators’ leadership strategies to improve teacher efficacy and support curricular change. The data for this study was collected using two online, anonymous surveys, one for teachers and one for school administrators from the same 7-12 grade suburban southern California school district. Teacher participants were all middle and high school mathematics or science teacher who have worked for a minimum of two years and have experienced recent curricular change in the district studied. School administrators (principals and assistant principals) have also worked for a minimum of two years and have experienced recent curricular change in the district studied. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected, and results show that school administrators who provide teacher-teacher collaboration and develop a clear vision for curricular change through shared decision-making will increase teacher efficacy to best support curricular change. Teacher and school administrator data led the researcher to identify the importance of providing vicarious experiences through teacher collaboration and the importance of a clear vision during a curricular change. Resulting recommendations include structured collaboration for teachers, increased teacher involvement in decision-making, and the development of a clear administrative vision. The information provided in this study will contribute to further research in the area of school administrators’ influence on teacher efficacy. Future researchers can use the survey results to identify teachers’ perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs concerning teacher efficacy and the leadership strategies they most preferred when addressing curricular change. The most significant findings of this study are the need for school administrators to instill a sense of security and self-confidence in their teachers’ concerning their ability to successfully implement curricular change.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Freeman, Kathryn
- Description:
- Middle school is a time when students may feel disconnected from their community. When applied in a school setting, Restorative Practice (RP) strategies proactively develop relationships and community and can rebuild connections between and among students, teachers, site leaders, and parents. It also changes the focus of discipline from punitive to restorative. This study focuses on how site leaders can implement RP at the middle-school level. The study uses data collected from site leaders (principals, assistant principals, and counselors) and teachers from five middle schools (grades seven and eight) in a suburban southern California school district. Data was collected using anonymous and voluntary online surveys that were emailed to targeted respondents during the spring of 2018. The survey was mixed method and included both qualitative and quantitative data questions. Quantitative questions were written to gather data on what strategies were currently being implemented at each school site and the site’s progress toward successful RP implementation. Open-ended qualitative data questions sought feedback on strategies that were successfully implemented as well as barriers to implementation. Responses from both teachers and site leaders were compared to identify trends in the data. The findings and recommendations are that successful implementation of RP at the middle-school level requires initial and ongoing professional training. Site leaders also need to develop and communicate a clear vision for RP implementation at their school sites. The survey results also revealed a disconnect between the beliefs of site leaders and teachers at all middle-school sites regarding different aspects of the implementation of RP at their sites. Finally, resources, in the form of time, funding, and curriculum are needed for support. The findings from this study will add to the existing body of research around RP implementation, which can assist other school districts by providing them with recommendations to overcome some of the barriers encountered by one district.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Rall, Marissa
- Description:
- This study investigates the current characteristics of the professional development (PD) sessions provided to educators in one school district to determine if the district is implementing research-based characteristics of effective PDs. Seven PD sessions in the content areas of math, science, and English-language arts offered to educators by one district were studied. One survey was given to presenters of each PD session and one survey was given to attendees of each PD session. Each session was also observed, and data was recorded using a checklist. The results of this study show that the district is currently implementing the components of effective PD.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
- Creator:
- Syrie, Adriana
- Description:
- Abstract When researching dyslexia, the focus is mainly on effective evidenced-based decoding strategies to help students with dyslexia. However, not much research has been done on effective evidenced-based reading comprehension strategies to help students with dyslexia improve their reading comprehension skills. The purpose of this mixed method research study was to identify effective, evidenced-based teaching strategies to improve reading comprehension skills for children with dyslexia. Quantitative data was collected in the form of student scores in pre- and post- assessments. Qualitative data was also collected which included students’ records reviews, observation field notes, and student work samples. The research question used to guide this study was: Will explicit instruction in using strategies such as retelling, previous knowledge, and the beginning, middle and end strategy help increase the reading comprehension skills for students with dyslexia? The study was conducted with a 2nd grade student and a 6th grade student with dyslexia. Student A was taught mainly in evidenced-based decoding strategies, while Student B was taught mainly evidenced-based reading comprehension strategies. At the end of the study both students were post-assessed. The results of these assessments determined that students with dyslexia need not just evidenced-based decoding strategies, but also effective-evidenced strategies in reading comprehension to become efficient readers.
- Resource Type:
- Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
1759. Social-Emotional Learning in Education: College and Career Readiness through Restorative Practices
- Creator:
- Preciado, Jaclyn
- Description:
- This project is an introductory curriculum to build upon English literacy in parallel with social-emotional learning intended for the beginning of a school year. It sets the foundation for a positive classroom environment while developing college and career readiness for students to learn strategies on how to effectively communicate and conflict manage in academic and professional settings. Additionally, the teacher will be introducing restorative practices as their behavior management system to support students in their social-emotional growth through accountability and conversation while preventing the need of exclusionary disciplinary measures to combat the negative impacts that suspension and expulsion have on students. The implementation of restorative practice will result in more students remaining in the classroom and receiving the academic and social-emotional support they need.
- Resource Type:
- Project
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education
1760. Reading For All
- Creator:
- Aronson, Jolene
- Description:
- Reading could arguably be one of the most important skills learned during childhood development. Most children typically learn to read by the age of eight. Unfortunately for some children, the ability to read fluently can come much later in the developmental stages leading to students falling behind their fellow peers. This can lead to negative self-perceptions, and consequently impact their self-esteem because of the inability to relate progress amongst peers. By creating this book series, it is tailored to students who are at the early/ emerging stages of reading who happened to be a typically older student. The books are formatted as a low-readability, high interest book. Currently, there are eight million students in the United States that are struggling with reading difficulties in the upper elementary and secondary schools.
- Resource Type:
- Project
- Campus Tesim:
- San Marcos
- Department:
- Education