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LISTENING TO STUDENT VOICES: FIFTH GRADERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR MATHEMATICS LEARNING WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF A MATHEMATICS REFORM EFFORT
Title
LISTENING TO STUDENT VOICES: FIFTH GRADERS' PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR MATHEMATICS LEARNING WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF A MATHEMATICS REFORM EFFORT.
Creator
Hoffman, Elizabeth, Killingsworth Roberts, Sherron, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
This qualitative study explored fifth graders' perceptions of their mathematics learning within the context of a reform effort. Students' voices are the focus of this study due to the paucity of literature on student learning from the students' perspective (Erickson & Shultz, 1992), particularly the elementary student (Gentilucci, 2004). The participants of this study, who in the past have been given a variety of labels including "disadvantaged" or "at-risk," clearly articulated, even in...
Show moreThis qualitative study explored fifth graders' perceptions of their mathematics learning within the context of a reform effort. Students' voices are the focus of this study due to the paucity of literature on student learning from the students' perspective (Erickson & Shultz, 1992), particularly the elementary student (Gentilucci, 2004). The participants of this study, who in the past have been given a variety of labels including "disadvantaged" or "at-risk," clearly articulated, even in nonstandard English, their perceptions of their mathematics learning. They passionately explained what helped them learn mathematics as well as what impeded their mathematics learning and were often incredibly insightful in their commentary. In an effort to hear and present the student voices, the data gathering methods used in this study included the use of focus groups, one-on-one interviews, and classroom observations as well as the use of a student survey. Several ethnographic methods and practices were employed to help ensure the credibility of this study, including triangulation and member checking. Data analysis involved a highly detailed, organic process which culminated in the emergence of a number of significant themes involving students' perspectives of mathematics, their mathematics experiences prior to fifth grade, and finally their perspectives of their learning during the first year of a mathematics reform effort. A number of valuable lessons learned as a result of this study are presented and translated into implications for the elementary mathematics classroom. These lessons, based on the students' own voices, urge teachers to prioritize mathematics instruction, effectively utilize manipulatives, games, and alternative algorithms as well as encourage classroom discourse about mathematics. If teachers would follow this outline, provided by the students' voices, students' mathematical power will be more deeply realized. Additionally, the promise of true reform due to the transformational power of students' voices is discussed and the possibilities defined.
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Date Issued
2006
Identifier
CFE0000973, ucf:46693
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000973
The Frequency of the Passive Voice in Freshman Academic Books
Title
The Frequency of the Passive Voice in Freshman Academic Books.
Creator
Moreb, Basma, Folse, Keith, Mihai, Florin, Young, Beth, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The use of passive voice has long been an area of difficulty for English learners. Celce-Murcia (&) Larsen-Freeman (2015) noted that it is learning when to use the English passive that presents the greatest long-term challenge to ESL/EFL students(") (p. 352). Because textbooks are a source of language input for English learners, this study investigated the frequency of passive voice verbs in samples from four academic textbooks in courses commonly taken by freshmen. The study also examined...
Show moreThe use of passive voice has long been an area of difficulty for English learners. Celce-Murcia (&) Larsen-Freeman (2015) noted that it is learning when to use the English passive that presents the greatest long-term challenge to ESL/EFL students(") (p. 352). Because textbooks are a source of language input for English learners, this study investigated the frequency of passive voice verbs in samples from four academic textbooks in courses commonly taken by freshmen. The study also examined whether there are significant differences between the frequencies by textbook. The data was collected from four General Education Plan (GEP) subject textbooks used in freshman classes at a large metropolitan university in the southeastern United States, namely English composition, history, psychology, and biology. The data was then compiled into a corpus of approximately 20,000 words created specifically for the current study, with 5,000 words randomly and sequentially selected from each of the four textbooks. The study utilized a table created by Folse (2009) to analyze differences between the basic passive voice tenses found in the textbooks. The study examined the be-passives, get-passives, and have-passives and their frequency in different tenses. The findings revealed that passive voice occurred in academic textbooks with an overall frequency of 7.06% (of all conjugated verbs). The results also found significant differences between the academic genres (p (<) 0.05). In this particular corpus, passive voice occurred more in biology than in the other subjects. Therefore, the results of the study indicated a need to explicitly teach the basic be-passive voice to English language learners to all English learners, but teachers also need to be especially aware that certain university subjects (e.g., biology) use more passive voice verb forms than others.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006695, ucf:51929
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006695