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Title: ENGENDERING AGENCY: LITERACIES, SOCIAL ACTION, AND WANGARI MAATHAI'S GREEN BELT MOVEMENT.
Creator: Allen, Cassandra, Bell, Kathleen, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis analyzes the life and work of Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai, one of the foremost African woman rhetors of our time. Wangari Maathai--founder of Kenya's Green Belt Movement (GBM), Member of Parliament, and activist for democracy, sustainable development, and human rights--has cultivated a multidimensional literacy that has allowed her to truly understand and address the problems that post-colonial Kenyans face. Her strong solution-oriented approach has allowed her to...
Show moreThis thesis analyzes the life and work of Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai, one of the foremost African woman rhetors of our time. Wangari Maathai--founder of Kenya's Green Belt Movement (GBM), Member of Parliament, and activist for democracy, sustainable development, and human rights--has cultivated a multidimensional literacy that has allowed her to truly understand and address the problems that post-colonial Kenyans face. Her strong solution-oriented approach has allowed her to develop and refine operation of the GBM, which began simply planting trees, to produce a worldwide organization that works for sustainable development, human rights, and environmental conservation/restoration (among many others) by attacking the roots of disempowerment and challenging participants to become the primary agents of change. Through the overlapping lenses of Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Jacqueline Jones Royster's Traces of a Stream, and Filomina Chioma Steady's Women and Collective Action in Africa, I trace Maathai's emergence as a literate women in late 20th century Kenya who is able to effect meaningful social change. This examination of her life and work uncovers the convergence of literacies (academic, critical, civic, and cultural) that have created her unique worldview. Furthermore, it also examines her rhetorical construction of self through an analysis of her context, her ethos construction, and her mandates for action. At the heart of the study is an exploration of the GBM as an outlet of civic and environmental education. This discussion explores Maathai's approach to civic education as well as the potential pedagogical implications of that approach in the composition classroom of the Western university.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: CFE0001890, ucf:47401
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001890

Title: THE USE OF HANDS-ON EDUCATIONAL PEDAGOGY IN A STANDARDIZED SCIENCE CURRICULUM.
Creator: Alam, Sarah, Borgon, Robert, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Introduction The purpose of this project is to implement an innovative, and engaging knowledge transfer pedagogy for 5th grade science students. This project utilized Stealth Learning, a learning pedagogy developed by Dr. James Rosser.99,100,109,110 The program featured applied learning to develop skill sets in general and drone aviation, as well as minimally invasive surgery techniques. This was facilitated through the use of computers, table simulators, and drones. Methodology This project...
Show moreIntroduction The purpose of this project is to implement an innovative, and engaging knowledge transfer pedagogy for 5th grade science students. This project utilized Stealth Learning, a learning pedagogy developed by Dr. James Rosser.99,100,109,110 The program featured applied learning to develop skill sets in general and drone aviation, as well as minimally invasive surgery techniques. This was facilitated through the use of computers, table simulators, and drones. Methodology This project took standardized subject matter from the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) and converted it into content featuring the Stealth approach. The section that was converted was the "Practice of Science and the Characteristics of Scientific Knowledge" portion of the FCAT. This program includes curriculum workbooks and worksheets, mini drones, scientifically-validated video games (Super Monkey Ball 2), Stealth Learning music-vocab videos (Animotos), surgical simulation skill drills (Bean Drop), and competitions material (Spelling Bee). A website was also made to allow students to review material at home. This program was administered with the assistance of healthcare and aviation professionals to provide a mentoring component. The program included an execution phase consisting of seven sessions, which took place for 45 minutes each during the Spring Semester (April 2016). Preliminary Findings There are preliminary results for this project, which must be explored further in future studies. This project first analyzed the Science FCAT scores for 72 students in the 5th grade. Of the 72 students in the class, 22 (30.5%) passed the exam. Eleven of the students were enrolled in our program and 54% (6 of 11) passed in comparison to twenty-six percent of the students that underwent standard preparation passed the exam. Conclusion Especially for minorities and the socioeconomically disadvantaged, student performance on state standard exams is one of the most pressing challenges faced in education today. This study suggests that a state standard-based 5th grade curriculum can be converted into an innovative brain-based lesson plan to enhance performance on state standard exams. This initial investigation offers some encouragement for others to further pursue this research.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFH2000201, ucf:46022
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000201

Title: Transformative Learning:Improving Teachers' Cultural Competencies Through Knowledge and Practice of Ubuntu Pedagogy.
Creator: Blackwood, Alecia, Hopp, Carolyn, Biraimah, Karen, Little, Mary, Boote, David, Washington, Kevin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The pursuit of this ethnographic study was inspired by my lived experiences as an urban school teacher for 18 years, as well as, the experiences of a group of other urban teachers. The study explored the following question: Does knowledge and practice of Ubuntu pedagogy help to improve teachers' cultural competencies in an urban school? The research documents how knowledge and practice of the three pillars of Ubuntu pedagogy help to transform the perspective of urban teachers. The three...
Show moreThe pursuit of this ethnographic study was inspired by my lived experiences as an urban school teacher for 18 years, as well as, the experiences of a group of other urban teachers. The study explored the following question: Does knowledge and practice of Ubuntu pedagogy help to improve teachers' cultural competencies in an urban school? The research documents how knowledge and practice of the three pillars of Ubuntu pedagogy help to transform the perspective of urban teachers. The three pillars are (1) Humanism and Ubuntu Competency, (2) Collaboration and Partnership, and (3) Relationship and Learning Community. Data were collected using multiple techniques, which included semi-structured interviews, book study, reflective digital journal notes, observations and a focus group. Seven participants, who were interviewed, were selected using convenience sampling (Creswell, 2013). Transformative learning and Ubuntu pedagogy are constructs in the conceptual framework that guided the process of the research design. For the data analysis procedures, the description of the interpretation of the cultural-sharing group provided more insights about teachers' experiences in an urban school. Recommendations were made based on the data collected, which provided evidence of how the knowledge and practice of Ubuntu pedagogy helped to improve teachers' cultural competencies. The teachers' focus group, book study reflections and classroom observations revealed that all the teachers experienced levels of a disorienting dilemma, a shift in frame of reference that was more inclusive and self-reflective.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007157, ucf:52326
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007157

Title: Female Bias in Technical Communication and an Exploration of Pedagogical Strategies for Reversing the Bias.
Creator: Beeson, Rebecca, Applen, John, Jones, Daniel, Bowdon, Melody, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explores technical communication and seeks to establish that females outnumber males in the field while also holder more high-level positions. It further seeks to show why a field does not benefit from having one sex outnumber the other. The benefits of having an equal number of females and males contributing to the growth and expansion of the field are discussed. Finally, this thesis discusses potential pedagogical strategies which could be employed at the college level as a...
Show moreThis thesis explores technical communication and seeks to establish that females outnumber males in the field while also holder more high-level positions. It further seeks to show why a field does not benefit from having one sex outnumber the other. The benefits of having an equal number of females and males contributing to the growth and expansion of the field are discussed. Finally, this thesis discusses potential pedagogical strategies which could be employed at the college level as a means of attracting more young men to the field and allowing for maximum growth of technical communication as a field of study and work. The thesis begins by exploring the history of technical communication as a means of understanding how it came to be a field where women outnumber men. It then briefly explores the differences between the learning styles of females and males as a means of demonstrating the importance of including both sexes equally. Lastly, using research from other, related fields pedagogical strategies are suggested for drawing more young males into the study and practice of technical communication.The conclusions drawn in this thesis are as follows: 1.) Women currently outnumber men in both the study and practice of technical communication. 2.) Research indicates that any field will benefit the most from including the skills and experiences of both sexes. 3.) Pedagogy may be effectively used as a means to help attract more young males into the field, thus increasing the growth and development of technical communication.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005131, ucf:50680
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005131

Title: The impact of ongoing science professional development on standardized assessments of student achievement.
Creator: Torres, Leah, Murray, Kenneth, Storey, Valerie A., Doherty, Walter, Everett, Robert, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this study was to identify how ongoing science professional development impact students' achievement on standardized assessments. The students' end-of-year assessment and State Science Assessment data were collected from a Central Florida school district. The student data were divided into categories based on teachers' participation in on-going professional development opportunities. The teachers were categorized by the number of types of professional development opportunities...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to identify how ongoing science professional development impact students' achievement on standardized assessments. The students' end-of-year assessment and State Science Assessment data were collected from a Central Florida school district. The student data were divided into categories based on teachers' participation in on-going professional development opportunities. The teachers were categorized by the number of types of professional development opportunities they attended. The mean assessment scores of students whose all teachers did or did not participate were calculated, and t-tests were run to find the significance between the means. There was no significance in the difference between the means student scores of the participants and the non-participants in the science professional development opportunities. Two sub group data, 8th-grade free and reduced lunch students whose teacher attended one professional development, and 7th-grade students who scored a Level 3 on FSA mean scores on the science assessments scores were higher with significance in the 2015-16 school year, and were not higher the on the science assessments with significance in the 2014-15 school year.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFE0006810, ucf:51800
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006810

Title: Exploring Theatre of the Oppressed and Media Synchronicity to Supplement Virtual Learning Environments: Experiences with Mados.
Creator: Silva, Pedro, Kim, Si Jung, Lindgren, Robb, McDaniel, Thomas, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explored the application of Media Synchronicity Theory and its potential for translating Critical Pedagogy (specifically Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed) into a computer- supported collaborative work (CSCW) environment. It introduces the Maquina dos Oprimidos (Mados) prototype, a CSCW supplement to traditional asynchronous learning networks. Mados operates as a role-playing debate game, in which students debate a pre-selected prompt while performing assigned character roles. The...
Show moreThis thesis explored the application of Media Synchronicity Theory and its potential for translating Critical Pedagogy (specifically Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed) into a computer- supported collaborative work (CSCW) environment. It introduces the Maquina dos Oprimidos (Mados) prototype, a CSCW supplement to traditional asynchronous learning networks. Mados operates as a role-playing debate game, in which students debate a pre-selected prompt while performing assigned character roles. The study explores the prototype's potential to affect student's identification with their assigned character and personal attitude toward the prompt, as well as examining the effect of presence on students' performances.The study was performed with 38 8th grade students. Subjects debated a prompt which proposed a banning cell phones from classrooms. Results show that subjects collaboratively constructed solutions that compromised between both positions, while slightly favoring the anti- ban position. Results also show that subjects experienced gains in character identification after participating in the task regardless of assigned character, hinting at a separation between perceived similarity to characters and affinity for characters' position. The ability of subjects to defend their assigned character's position while inhabiting their own perspective, that of an 8th grade student, also hints at this separation. Additionally, results indicated correlations between subjects' control factors, a subset measure for presence, and total change in prompt agreement. Other positive correlation exist between subject's reprocessing attempts and task performance, as well as total presence and task performance.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004939, ucf:49627
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004939

Title: An Ethnographic Study Examining the Effect of Teachers' Socio-Political Bias on Latinx Students and School Culture.
Creator: McMaster, Jessica, Olan, Elsie, Jeanpierre, Bobby, Grissom, Donita, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Academics such as Geneva Gay, Christine Sleeter, Samy Alim, and Django Paris have conducted research that illustrates the importance of educators being not only aware of the culture of their students but implementing curriculum that supports the diverse cultures of their students. A common finding among this research is that a culturally sustaining pedagogy is essential to the inclusion of all students in the classroom and the level of academic success they have in schools. This study aims to...
Show moreAcademics such as Geneva Gay, Christine Sleeter, Samy Alim, and Django Paris have conducted research that illustrates the importance of educators being not only aware of the culture of their students but implementing curriculum that supports the diverse cultures of their students. A common finding among this research is that a culturally sustaining pedagogy is essential to the inclusion of all students in the classroom and the level of academic success they have in schools. This study aims to investigate the effect of teacher beliefs on the academic performance of Latinx students and on the culture and atmosphere of the school. The purpose of conducting this research is to show the necessity for implementing a culturally sustaining pedagogy and curriculum in schools. My research requires teachers and administrators to answer survey questions concerning their teaching practice, student population, and beliefs about teaching students, specifically Latinx students. I hope to discover how teacher attitudes, both positive and negative, can affect the academic performance of Latinx student and the culture of the school. Lastly, with such an emphasis I would like to use this information to help educators embrace the differences of their students and see the value in incorporating students lived experiences in the class curriculum. Using a survey modeled after Bandura's Survey for Teaching Self-Efficacy this thesis explores the following questions: Research Question One (RQ1): What effect does teachers' attitudes have on the culture of their school?, Research Question Two (RQ2): What effect does teachers' socio-political views have on Latinx student performance?
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: CFE0007684, ucf:52506
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007684

Title: TRANSFER WITHIN FYC: TRACING THE OPERALIZATION OF WRITING-RELATED KNOWLEDGE AND CONCEPTS IN COMPOSITION.
Creator: Martinez, Laura, Wardle, Elizabeth, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study traces the transfer of writing-related knowledge and concepts from the composition classroom into the writing assignments composed by students within the same course. Working in a first-year-composition classroom taught through a writing-about-writing curriculum, the researcher observed students as they navigated from the initial learning of concepts such as rhetorical situations, writing processes, and discourse communities, into an application of these concepts in various writing...
Show moreThis study traces the transfer of writing-related knowledge and concepts from the composition classroom into the writing assignments composed by students within the same course. Working in a first-year-composition classroom taught through a writing-about-writing curriculum, the researcher observed students as they navigated from the initial learning of concepts such as rhetorical situations, writing processes, and discourse communities, into an application of these concepts in various writing assignments, including rhetorical analyses and discourse community profiles. By analyzing a composition instructor's objectives for her assignments and observing the interaction between students and their instructor in a single composition course for the duration of one semester, the researcher traced how students operationalized knowledge from the classroom and applied it in their own writing. After tracing this operalization through interviews with the instructor, observation of class activities and analysis of assignment sheets and student papers, the researcher proposes that instructors may encourage transfer within their composition classrooms by adequately presenting assignment objectives to students, and by allowing sufficient scaffolding of writing tasks. In this way, the researcher explains that students may be able to understand the objectives of their writing assignments in a way that may encourage them to apply the knowledge they learned in the classroom to the writing tasks assigned by their instructor.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0003696, ucf:48829
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003696

Title: TEACHER AND STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES ON GIFTED STUDENT MOTIVATION.
Creator: Pappas, Chloe M, Sellnow, Deanna, Parrish, Adam, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explored teacher and student perceptions of classroom pedagogical practices as they may impact gifted children's motivation to learn. Because engaging gifted students can be uniquely challenging, teachers may need to tailor the teaching and learning experience to motivate them in ways that encourage them to succeed to their full potential. This exploratory study examined relationships among various pedagogical practices employed by a teacher and gifted student motivation....
Show moreThis thesis explored teacher and student perceptions of classroom pedagogical practices as they may impact gifted children's motivation to learn. Because engaging gifted students can be uniquely challenging, teachers may need to tailor the teaching and learning experience to motivate them in ways that encourage them to succeed to their full potential. This exploratory study examined relationships among various pedagogical practices employed by a teacher and gifted student motivation. Ultimately, results of this study may lay a foundation for best practices for teaching gifted students.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFH2000432, ucf:45730
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000432

Title: SIGNALS: THE INTERPLAY BETWEEN LITERACY, GENDER, AND SEMIOTICS.
Creator: Parker, Patricia, Preston-Sidler, Leandra, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this study is to examine adult literacy beyond its constraints as a social problem and instead consider the implications of illiteracy as a particular form of lived experience, analogous to women's oppression at large. Through a complex system of meaning making, the knowledge accrued by illiterate adults is qualitatively different, and examining these differences in terms of their correlation to coping mechanisms developed in the face of social alienation and diminished...
Show moreThe purpose of this study is to examine adult literacy beyond its constraints as a social problem and instead consider the implications of illiteracy as a particular form of lived experience, analogous to women's oppression at large. Through a complex system of meaning making, the knowledge accrued by illiterate adults is qualitatively different, and examining these differences in terms of their correlation to coping mechanisms developed in the face of social alienation and diminished professional prospects yields a greater understanding of class privilege and how nontraditional learners fit into a larger social structure. From the perspective of academic feminism, adult illiteracy presents several problems regarding the scope of an inclusive feminist community that acknowledges privilege and difference. The primary method through which information regarding feminism is conferred is printed materials, which utilize highly specific, specialized jargon, and unwittingly create an exclusive community marred by internalized racism and class stratifications. This study explores other methods through which feminist ideation might theoretically be possible, i.e. cultural "reading" communities and vocational and continuing education programs focused on cultural competencies, as women come out of their imposed silences and become aware of their circumstances in a way that resembles feminist thought, if perhaps without sophisticated language with which to communicate those ideals. In this way, feminist ideation and semiotics tie in together, as attitudinal change may occur without the semantic realization of what this entails. This goal of this paper is also, in part, to justify why acknowledging gendered learning differences and a particular female subjectivity for adult literacy clients will yield better results for their self-valuation, as gender is a component of diversity all but ignored within the scheme of adult literacy pedagogical theory.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: CFH0004266, ucf:44963
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004266

Title: E:Portfolios and Digital Identities: Using E-portfolios to examine issues in technical communication.
Creator: Moody, Jane, Wallace, David, Marinara, Martha, Bowdon, Melody, Dziuban, Charles, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Technical writing teachers have always struggled with understanding how to best deal with pedagogical issues including rapidly changing technology, audience construction, and transposing an academic ethos into a professional one. The expanding online world complicates these issues by increasing the pace of digital change, making the potential audience both more diffuse and more remote, and creating a more complex online rhetorical situation.E-portfolios provide a vivid way to examine this...
Show moreTechnical writing teachers have always struggled with understanding how to best deal with pedagogical issues including rapidly changing technology, audience construction, and transposing an academic ethos into a professional one. The expanding online world complicates these issues by increasing the pace of digital change, making the potential audience both more diffuse and more remote, and creating a more complex online rhetorical situation.E-portfolios provide a vivid way to examine this complex technological situation, and in this study, the author examines four cases of students creating online portfolios in a technical communication classroom. The author looks at both their e-portfolio process as well as their product, interviewing them to get a sense of how they used rhetoric, identity, and technology in an attempt to form a coherent professional presentation through a technological medium. In addition, the author looks at some issues inherent in e-portfolios themselves that may be applicable to a technical communication classroom, as this medium becomes ever more popular as a way of assessing both programs and the students themselves.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0004141, ucf:49062
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004141

Title: PROSPECTS FOR CHANGE: CREATING A BLENDED LEARNING PROGRAM THROUGH A CULTURE OF SUPPORT.
Creator: Leach, Bill, Murphy, Patrick, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Blended learning, a combination of traditional face to face (F2f) instruction and computer-mediated communication (CMC), is a popular trend in many universities and corporate settings today. Most universities provide faculty members course management systems, such as Blackboard, Angel, and others as a way to organize and transmit course materials to students. In order to assess the pedagogical value of blended learning in a university-level first year composition (FYC) environment, it is...
Show moreBlended learning, a combination of traditional face to face (F2f) instruction and computer-mediated communication (CMC), is a popular trend in many universities and corporate settings today. Most universities provide faculty members course management systems, such as Blackboard, Angel, and others as a way to organize and transmit course materials to students. In order to assess the pedagogical value of blended learning in a university-level first year composition (FYC) environment, it is necessary to view the environment through a critical lens and adequately train faculty in the need for and use of the features of the learning management software (LMS). The setting for this study is the Humanities and Communication Dept. of Florida Institute of Technology, a private university on FloridaÃ‚Â's east coast, consisting of around 6000 students. As I investigate the various pedagogical and theoretical issues of incorporating blended learning into the FYC environment, I critically examine the issues involved in implementing the program. I employ a blended research method to join the tracks of implementing a blended learning program and developing a culture of support together in the Humanities and Communication Department of Florida Tech. In examining program implementation, I use a combination of institutional critique, as advanced by Porter et al., together with an Ã‚Â"ecologicalÃ‚Â" methodology, as outlined by Nardi and OÃ‚Â'Day. In examining the feasibility of creating a culture of support through the design of a faculty workshop, I mainly use Richard SelfeÃ‚Â's methodology, although elements of the previous two methods operate as well. The results of my study provide a means by which faculty members can experience and realize the benefits, while avoiding the pitfalls, of implementing CMC into a f2f classroom and provide an action plan for other researchers to utilize in their own educational settings.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0003057, ucf:48303
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003057

Title: A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY OF NOVICE KENYAN PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS: WHAT MESSAGES TRANSMITTED BY THE TEACHER TRAINING COLLEGES ARE INTERNALIZED AND APPLIED?.
Creator: Kranz, Carol, Biraimah, Karen, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The method of instruction and the formal curriculum within two Kenyan teacher training colleges were studied in order to discover which messages regarding pedagogical practice are internalized within novice Kenyan primary school teachers and then actualized within their classrooms. An educational connoisseurship approach was utilized to give descriptive, interpretive, evaluative, and thematic insight. Three data streams were collected through interview, observation, and design evaluation in...
Show moreThe method of instruction and the formal curriculum within two Kenyan teacher training colleges were studied in order to discover which messages regarding pedagogical practice are internalized within novice Kenyan primary school teachers and then actualized within their classrooms. An educational connoisseurship approach was utilized to give descriptive, interpretive, evaluative, and thematic insight. Three data streams were collected through interview, observation, and design evaluation in order to establish structural corroboration and internal validity. The study found that the method of instruction by the teacher training college faculty was teacher-centered and utilized lower order cognitive methodology. Though the formal curriculum design was strong, it too promoted lower cognitive processes. These two messages, teacher-centered pedagogies and lower cognitive processes, are being internalized and applied by the novice teachers and maybe affecting the quality of education in Kenyan schools. The results of this study suggest that pedagogical skills promoting higher cognitive levels should be developed through in-service training in Kenyan training colleges and primary schools as a way to improve the quality of education in this country.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0003883, ucf:48729
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003883

Title: USING NARRATIVE TO IMPROVE REFLECTION IN TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION.
Creator: Brkich, Carrie, Flammia, Madelyn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explores why instructors should use narrative intentionally and effectively with reflection to better understand adult students' perceptions of experiential learning activities in technical communication. The frequent use of narrative in technical discourse reminds us that the tone of technical texts is often appropriately informal, personable, and reflective. A closer analysis of narratives provides instructors with valuable opportunities to learn more about the motivations for...
Show moreThis thesis explores why instructors should use narrative intentionally and effectively with reflection to better understand adult students' perceptions of experiential learning activities in technical communication. The frequent use of narrative in technical discourse reminds us that the tone of technical texts is often appropriately informal, personable, and reflective. A closer analysis of narratives provides instructors with valuable opportunities to learn more about the motivations for and barriers to learning for adult students and to better understand how these students situate themselves in larger social and cultural narratives. Narrative serves many purposes in technical communication. Not only does narrative add a human element to technical discourse, but it also invites interrogation and inquiry into the technical communicator's decision-making process. For these reasons, narrative is commonly paired with reflection exercises in experiential learning programs as a way for students to make sense of their learning experiences. If instructors can capture the essence of how adult students make sense of their learning experiences, they can determine if experiential learning is an effective pedagogical approach to teaching technical communication to adult students. Using examples of ongoing, initial and summative, and alternative reflection exercises, I illustrate how narrative can be used to facilitate the learning process in adult students and gain access to these students' perceptions of experiential learning activities in technical communication.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0003695, ucf:48827
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003695

Title: Understanding the Dynamics of Peer Review and Its Impact on Revision.
Creator: Kopp, Julie, Roozen, Kevin, Rounsaville, Angela, Hall, Mark, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Research in writing studies has focused on what happens as students, and often their teachers, talk about student writing. This line of inquiry has identified several strategies for productive peer interactions, including spontaneous talk (Danis; Dipardo and Freedman; Johnson, The New Frontier; Bruffee; Lam), a flexible environment (Dipardo (&) Freedman; Johnson, (")Friendly Persuasion(")), positive rapport (Rish; Thompson; Wolfe), feedback and support (Barron; Covill; Flynn; Grimm; Lam;...
Show moreResearch in writing studies has focused on what happens as students, and often their teachers, talk about student writing. This line of inquiry has identified several strategies for productive peer interactions, including spontaneous talk (Danis; Dipardo and Freedman; Johnson, The New Frontier; Bruffee; Lam), a flexible environment (Dipardo (&) Freedman; Johnson, (")Friendly Persuasion(")), positive rapport (Rish; Thompson; Wolfe), feedback and support (Barron; Covill; Flynn; Grimm; Lam; Yucel, Bird, Young, and Blanksby; Zhu), and reflection (Yucel, Bird, Young, and Blanksby). However, research invested in understanding the extent to which such interactions result in better revisions or make students better writers has been slower to emerge. To address this gap in the existing scholarship, this thesis involved case studies of two first-year undergraduates as they navigated multiple peer review interactions throughout one semester of ENC 1101. Data collection for this inquiry included observations of three peer review sessions, retrospective interviews with each participant, and participants' end of semester e-portfolios. Using conversation analysis as a lens (Black; Ford and Thompson; Kerschbaum), this project explores the extent to which peer interactions inform students' revision of their writing. The analysis of the data suggests that the amount of interruptions and control during peer interactions influences the amount of comments a student takes up in the revision process. The results of conversation analysis identify a power structure within peer interactions that are developed and constantly changing. Those power structures also show the relationship between social interaction and revision. Teachers can use this study to motivate students to use the comments given during peer review toward revising their papers. Also, with the development of more diverse case studies, researchers would be able to identify if these phenomena show up more consistently.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFE0006613, ucf:51284
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006613

Title: Writes of Spring 2014: Fostering Creativity in Theatre, Education, and Leadership.
Creator: Hodson, Alexandra, Weaver, Earl, Wood, Vandy, Siegfried, Judi, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Creativity is valued in many fields. In theatre, creativity celebrates the imaginative power of a theatrical experience. In theatre for young audiences (TYA), creativity is extended from the stage to the classroom, where theatre empowers learning through creative and imaginative teaching. Teaching artists and theatre makers in the field of theatre for young audiences utilize creativity as a means of connecting artistic and educational value. Through professional development and qualitative...
Show moreCreativity is valued in many fields. In theatre, creativity celebrates the imaginative power of a theatrical experience. In theatre for young audiences (TYA), creativity is extended from the stage to the classroom, where theatre empowers learning through creative and imaginative teaching. Teaching artists and theatre makers in the field of theatre for young audiences utilize creativity as a means of connecting artistic and educational value. Through professional development and qualitative research, this project demonstrates the importance of creativity and its role in the classroom and on stage.This study examines my role as Project Coordinator in Orlando Repertory Theatre's (The REP) Writes of Spring 2014 and the developments I add to enhance the educational and artistic value and project. Specifically, I survey the findings of selected students' submissions in a creative writing contest by developing and facilitating an arts integration professional development workshop for their teachers. By evaluating these findings I gain insight into the positive effect of enhancing creativity in public school classrooms.To project the value of creativity further, I apply a theoretical framework to my research. Specifically, I apply creative pedagogy, constructivism, and collective creativity to develop a fully-supported educational and artistic project. This project allows students to find writing inspiration through theatre, guides teachers to find clarity in new practices through creativity, and encourages artists to celebrate creativity in developing and producing new works.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005627, ucf:50209
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005627

Title: Examining Preservice Teachers' Performances and Pedagogies of Practice in an Urban Classroom Through the Use of a Simulated Learning Environment.
Creator: Jennings, Kelly, Szente, Judit, Hopp, Carolyn, Englehart, Deirdre, Dieker, Lisa, Hartle, Lynn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The failure to staff the nation's classrooms with highly qualified teachers, especially those in disadvantaged schools, is a problem in American education. Novice teachers who begin teaching in urban, low-income, diverse schools leave the field of education at alarmingly high rates. Schools are not being provided with the teachers they deserve; new teachers are especially ill-prepared to meet the needs of students in high-need urban settings. In return, these low-income schools are not...
Show moreThe failure to staff the nation's classrooms with highly qualified teachers, especially those in disadvantaged schools, is a problem in American education. Novice teachers who begin teaching in urban, low-income, diverse schools leave the field of education at alarmingly high rates. Schools are not being provided with the teachers they deserve; new teachers are especially ill-prepared to meet the needs of students in high-need urban settings. In return, these low-income schools are not retaining sufficient numbers of the teachers they do recruit. A teacher's performance has a tremendous impact on a child's learning and academic journey. Teacher preparation programs need to increase effectiveness by preparing teachers who perform at a proficient level or higher from the first day they step foot in the classroom. Preservice teachers must have an understanding of how to teach effectively through the use of pedagogical knowledge and culture. Universities can assist prospective teachers to simultaneously learn content and pedagogy through training. The revolving door of teachers leaving impoverished communities must stop. Students are not in warrant of substitute teachers, unqualified or uncertified novice teachers year after year. Teacher preparation programs have a vital role in shaping initial levels of teacher commitment. One way to build this bridge between preparation of teachers for urban or diverse settings is to consider new options for teacher preparation. While teacher preparation programs can offer theories and pedagogies of practice, the use of a virtual reality (VR) environment permits teacher preparation to provide preservice teachers with varied experiences in order to prepare them for a high-need urban setting. This fully immersive environment could allow preservice teachers to create an environment that best supports the needs of their learners, strengthening knowledge gained in coursework to examination in the field. A traditional teacher preparation program cannot offer this understanding of pedagogy in a consistent and constant format. It is the obligation of schools and colleges of education to improve teacher education programs. Universities need to prepare culturally responsive educators who can effectively perform in the urban classroom. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact a simulated learning environment had on preservice teachers' classroom performances as measured by onsite and virtual observations. Pedagogies of practice are described through categories of personal connections, life experiences, engagement and assessment of prior knowledge as demonstrated in reflective writing of preservice teachers who participated in a simulated learning environment versus those who did not. The researcher proposed the use of a VR to provide an expanded view to preservice teacher preparation within a simulated classroom. It was hypothesized this scaffolding of learning beyond typical textbook learning would deepen the knowledge of the preservice teacher, leading to effective performance within a high-need urban setting. A mixed-methods approach of the embedded experimental design was used for collection of both qualitative and quantitative data. The Chi-square Test of Independence, supported by Fisher's Exact Test and Cramer's V used to analyze data measured on a nominal scale for the experimental group and control groups. Data analysis showed a significant difference in teacher indicators in three of the four observations. Specifically the preservice teachers (experimental group) who participated in the simulated learning environment related and integrated the subject matter with other disciplines and life experiences and reviewed previous class material before instruction more often than the control group. Key words in context (KWIC), word count and content analysis were used to identify themes through language as demonstrated in the reflective writing. Underlying patterns were used to form relationships between performance in the urban classroom after participation in a simulated learning environment, followed by reflective writing in the categories of personal connections, life experiences, engagement and assessment of prior knowledge. The preservice teachers in both the experimental and control groups exhibited many of the teacher behaviors needed in a high-need urban setting through their reflective writing. However, the intervention of TeachLivE(TM) continued to be an outlier, which not only strengthened the preservice teachers' reflections but performance in the classroom. The simulated learning environment offered the preservice teachers in the experimental group a medium to learn through doing. Exposure to the tools and methods in TeachLivE(TM), followed by reflective writing, provided opportunities to improve pedagogies of practice, impacting preservice teacher's performances in the urban setting. Future research recommendations based on continued observations to gather further data of the study, improvement of performance over time, and an expanded observational group are presented. Academic achievement of the students in the participant's classrooms who took part in TeachLivE(TM) in order to analyze whether the variable of TeachLivE(TM) impacted preservice teacher performance in the urban classroom could be measured. Finally, faculty mentors at the university could design professional development opportunities for novice teachers in TeachLivE(TM), assisting in coaching and self-reflection of lessons taught, working towards understanding of content and pedagogy. Reflection afterward would be collaborative between novice teachers and faculty mentors based on observations. Scaffolding novice teachers learning while in a simulated environment can be motivating and effective in learning gains.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005187, ucf:50617
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005187

Title: PEDAGOGY FOR INTERNET-BASED TEACHING AND LEARNINGAND THE IMPACT OF THAT PEDAGOGY ON STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND SATISFACTION.
Creator: Kemerait, Janet Perkins, Holt, Larry, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this research was to identify appropriate pedagogical practices for Internet-based teaching and learning, determine the status of their use in the community college adjunct instructor's Internet-based classroom, and examine the impact of these practices on student academic achievement and satisfaction. Frequencies, measures of central tendency, percentages, and SPSS Cross Tabulation procedures described and analyzed data from student and instructor surveys to answer these...
Show moreThe purpose of this research was to identify appropriate pedagogical practices for Internet-based teaching and learning, determine the status of their use in the community college adjunct instructor's Internet-based classroom, and examine the impact of these practices on student academic achievement and satisfaction. Frequencies, measures of central tendency, percentages, and SPSS Cross Tabulation procedures described and analyzed data from student and instructor surveys to answer these questions.Internet-based best practice and recommended practice pedagogical methods and strategies were identified through extensive content analysis of the professional literature. Internet-based adjunct instructors at a Central Florida community college rated 43 selected recommended practices. Ratings were based on instructor perceptions of each practice's importance to student academic achievement in and satisfaction with their Internet-based learning experience. Students of community college adjunct instructors also rated these practices for their perceived impact on student academic achievement and satisfaction. Students identified from selected recommended practices the pedagogies that had been designed into the described Internet-based course in which they had been enrolled, providing better understanding of the current use of appropriate Internet-based practice in the instruction of adjunct community college instructors. To examine the impact of the use of those practices, average course scores were related to student-reported presence of practices in described courses and student-reported academic success and satisfaction in described courses was related to the presence of best and recommended practices designed into the course.Results from this study can provide guidance for community college Internet-based programs and for adjunct instructors in those programs as they strive to design and instruct quality courses with appropriate pedagogical focus. Results can also provide local data to the larger discussion of appropriate pedagogy throughout the Internet-based educational community.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: CFE0000110, ucf:46205
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000110

Title: A GENRE OF COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE: BLOGS AS INTERTEXTUAL, RECIPROCAL, AND PEDAGOGICAL.
Creator: Gramer, Rachel, Bell, Kathleen, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis investigates the rhetorical features of blogs that lend them dialogic strength as an online genre through the lens of Mikhail Bakhtin's theories of speech genres, utterances, and dialogism. As a relatively new online genre, blogs stem from previous genres (in print and online as well as verbal), but their emergence as a popular form of expression in our current culture demands attention to how blogs also offer us different rhetorical opportunities to meet our changing social...
Show moreThis thesis investigates the rhetorical features of blogs that lend them dialogic strength as an online genre through the lens of Mikhail Bakhtin's theories of speech genres, utterances, and dialogism. As a relatively new online genre, blogs stem from previous genres (in print and online as well as verbal), but their emergence as a popular form of expression in our current culture demands attention to how blogs also offer us different rhetorical opportunities to meet our changing social exigencies as online subjects in the 21st century. This thesis was inspired by questions about how blogs redefine the rhetorical situation to alter our textual roles as readers, writers, and respondents in the new generic circumstances we encounter--and reproduce--online. Applying the framework of Henry Jenkins' Convergence Culture and Pierre Levy's Collective Intelligence, this thesis analyzes how blogs enable us as online subjects to add our utterances to our textual collective intelligence, which benefits from our personal experience and the epistemic conversations of blogs as online texts. In addition, it is also an inquiry into how the rhetorical circumstances of blogs as textual sites of collective intelligence can create a reciprocal learning environment in the writing classroom. I ultimately examine blogs through the lenses of alternative pedagogy--informed by David Wallace and Helen Rothschild Ewald's Mutuality in the Rhetoric and Composition Classroom and Xin Liu Gale's Teachers, Discourses, and Authority in the Postmodern Composition Classroom--to suggest the potential consequences of a writing education that includes how we are currently writing--and being written by--our culture's online generic practice of blogs.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002402, ucf:47770
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002402

Title: Leadership Development Programs in College Athletics: An Exploration of the Student-Athlete Experience.
Creator: Obrien, Jeffrey, Cintron Delgado, Rosa, Owens, J. Thomas, Preston, Michael, Harrison, Carlton, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences and perceptions of twelve college student-athletes, from two NCAA Division I institutions, who participated in leadership development programs provided by their athletic department. There is a demonstrated need for this level of exploration as evidenced by the growing trend of college athletic departments providing leadership development programming for their respective student-athlete populations. However, there is not a...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences and perceptions of twelve college student-athletes, from two NCAA Division I institutions, who participated in leadership development programs provided by their athletic department. There is a demonstrated need for this level of exploration as evidenced by the growing trend of college athletic departments providing leadership development programming for their respective student-athlete populations. However, there is not a commensurate level of scholarship related to the effectiveness of these programs, nor is there an understanding of the lived experiences of the student-athlete participants that is grounded in research. Therefore, this qualitative study utilized Moustakas' (1994) Transcendental Phenomenology to explore the lived experiences and perceptions of college student-athletes who participated in leadership development programs provided by their athletic department. This study applied Dweck's (2008) theory of Mindset to distill the role effort, failure, and adversity played in the participants lives, and their leadership development. Textural and structural analysis of the data revealed six themes and the essence of the phenomenon. The themes were: (1) Personal Growth and Development; (2) Skill Development; (3) Engaging Pedagogies; (4) Meaning of Effort; (5) Meaning of Failure; and (6) Problem Solving Mindset. Recommendations for college athletic departments implementing leadership development programs include: Intentionality of design; focus on personal growth and development; provide tangible skill development; and include training on growth mindset.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007067, ucf:51996
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007067

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