This annotated bibliography is reformatted and customized by the Center for Positive Practices. Some of the authors featured on this page include Fred Dillon, Joanna P. Williams, Karen S. Karp, Michelle H. Pace, Karen Peterman, Christopher L. Stockdale, Tom Loveless, Elizabeth Albro, Karen R. Harris, and Corey Drake.
(2015). Oral Language Needs: Making Math Meaningful, Teaching Children Mathematics. As a Title I kindergarten teacher, Michelle Pace, second grade teacher at Lake Mary Elementary School in Florida, has seen firsthand how oral language can create roadblocks for students in all areas of the curriculum, both academically and socially. At the time this article was written, the state of Florida had recently adopted the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) (CCSSI 2010), providing an opportunity to address mathematical concepts with more depth and meaning. Pace noticed a major difference between CCSSM and the standards she had been following. CCSSM requires students to deepen their learning by communicating explanations of their answers, in oral language and in writing. Additionally, CCSSM presents the Standards of Mathematical Practice (SMPs), which offer a teachers' guide to teaching mathematics with a focus on processes and proficiencies. Of the eight practices, SMP 6: "Attend to precision" focuses on students' ability to accurately use vocabulary when explaining their reasoning behind an answer. Teachers should strive to include this practice within their lessons to help their students deepen their mathematical understanding through communicating their thought process (CCSSI 2010). How do kindergarten teachers take a mathematical practice as advanced as "attend to precision" and make it happen in their kindergarten lessons? How do teachers like Pace overcome the major hurdles presented to them by kindergarten students coming from different levels of preparation? They must use oral language strategies to make kindergarten mathematics meaningful. In this article, Pace and Enrique Ortiz, an associate professor who teaches mathematics methods courses at the University of Central Florida, discuss how building a strong foundation and employing a vocabulary strategy are key to successful oral language development. A bibliography is included. [More] Descriptors: Oral Language, Mathematics Instruction, Mathematical Concepts, Elementary School Mathematics
(2015). Making Molecular Movies, Science Teacher. One of the most difficult challenges of incorporating literacy in the classroom–as called for by the "Common Core State Standards" (NGAC and CCSSO 2010)–is inspiring reluctant writers. Students are often unmotivated by essay assignments or having to write answers to open-ended questions. Some students may even view these as obstacles instead of learning opportunities, which means they aren't gaining experience in the scientific and engineering practice of obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information, as described in the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013). To address this shortcoming in the science classroom, the author implemented an ambitious project in which he substituted creating digital movies for traditional literacy assessments in his sophomore chemistry classes. His goal was to answer these research questions: (1) To what extent does creating a movie motivate sophomore chemistry students to read and write?; (2) To what extent does movie creation foster creative critical thinking and expression?; and (3) To what extent is the evaluation process of movies more engaging than traditional writing assignments? The author tested this activity with 153 of his sophomore chemistry students, using various reading levels. In his honors class, students were assigned to read a chapter on cellulose from Napoleon's Buttons (Le Couteur and Burreson 2003), a fascinating book that explains how 17 molecules affected human history, health, economics, and geopolitics. The chapter on cellulose details how glucose monomers link in different ways to produce the polymers known as cellulose. Students learn how slight differences in structure result in cellulose polymers having different functions and how cellulose affected the industrial revolution. The chapter draws upon "NGSS" core ideas from physical science and the crosscutting concepts of Patterns. [More] Descriptors: Chemistry, Science Instruction, Science Education, Molecular Structure
(2015). Measuring Primary Students' Graph Interpretation Skills via a Performance Assessment: A Case Study in Instrument Development, International Journal of Science Education. This case study was conducted within the context of a place-based education project that was implemented with primary school students in the USA. The authors and participating teachers created a performance assessment of standards-aligned tasks to examine 6-10-year-old students' graph interpretation skills as part of an exploratory research project. Fifty-five students participated in a performance assessment interview at the beginning and end of a place-based investigation. Two forms of the assessment were created and counterbalanced within class at pre and post. "In situ" scoring was conducted such that responses were scored as correct versus incorrect during the assessment's administration. Criterion validity analysis demonstrated an age-level progression in student scores. Tests of discriminant validity showed that the instrument detected variability in interpretation skills across each of three graph types (line, bar, dot plot). Convergent validity was established by correlating "in situ" scores with those from the Graph Interpretation Scoring Rubric. Students' proficiency with interpreting different types of graphs matched expectations based on age and the standards-based progression of graphs across primary school grades. The assessment tasks were also effective at detecting pre–post gains in students' interpretation of line graphs and dot plots after the place-based project. The results of the case study are discussed in relation to the common challenges associated with performance assessment. Implications are presented in relation to the need for authentic and performance-based instructional and assessment tasks to respond to the Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards. [More] Descriptors: Case Studies, Place Based Education, Elementary School Students, Elementary School Teachers
(2015). Enhancing Students' Understanding of Square Roots, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. Students enrolled in a middle school prealgebra or algebra course often struggle to conceptualize and understand the meaning of radical notation when it is introduced. For example, although it is important for students to approximate the decimal value of a number such as [square root of] 30 and estimate the value of a square root in the form of a[square root of]b, many would struggle with such assignments. Similarly, students frequently have difficulties understanding, remembering, and applying the properties of radicals. As a result, Jeff Wiesman developed an engaging and interactive activity to improve students' knowledge of this foundational mathematical principle. This activity provides an opportunity for students to strengthen their number sense and their ability to estimate, which are skills valued by the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM), NCTM Standards, and local curricula. To be sure, CCSSM standards for eighth-grade mathematics include truncating the decimal expansion of a square root, comparing the size of irrational numbers with rational numbers, and locating an irrational number on a number line (CCSSI 2010). Students enjoy this lesson because it includes a competitive component, which often enhances student motivation (Silver, Strong, and Parini 1997). By using an innovative technique to develop students' conceptual understanding of radicals, Wiesman is also able to promote situational interest and, therefore, improve students' intrinsic motivation to learn (Linnenbrink and Pintrich 2002). Finally, this activity can be used to provide additional practice, feedback, and clarification, which can all help to develop more efficacious students (Margolis and McCabe 2004). [More] Descriptors: Middle School Students, Secondary School Mathematics, Teaching Methods, Mathematical Concepts
(2015). State Policy Recommendations for Providing Educators Access to College- and Career-Ready Open Educational Resources, Achieve, Inc.. As states and districts transition to college- and career-ready standards and aligned assessments, the need for high-quality instructional materials is clear. Open Educational Resources (OER) offer a low-cost solution with high potential to assist teachers nationwide in helping students meet the demands of higher standards. More and more developers are choosing to publish their instructional materials as OER as an alternative to publishing with a traditional, all rights reserved copyright. In addition to this advantage, OER support the ability of educators to share and modify instructional materials for classroom use. With the advent of common, college- and career-ready standards in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), educators can seek out, customize or develop high-quality instructional materials and can share those materials with their peers across districts and state borders. The modern classroom incorporates modular instructional materials from myriad sources, and therefore instructional materials and the policies and practices related to those materials should support this new model. The model of one textbook per student in each subject is out of sync with a world where content is available digitally, through an array of methods, to meet the needs of students and teachers in 21st-century classrooms. However, as with the rest of the marketplace, the demand for materials has led to a flood of new OER instructional materials. The large number of materials presents a daily challenge for educators who are trying to determine the quality and alignment of the materials. It also underscores the importance of policy leaders with shared standards having a shared understanding of what constitutes quality and standards alignment for OER instructional materials, across districts and across states. This brief sets forth state policy recommendations for providing educator access to college and career-ready OER. Two appendixes include: (1) "The Case for OER–A Guide for Policymakers"; and (2) Related Resources. [More] Descriptors: State Policy, College Readiness, Career Readiness, State Standards
(2015). Three Strategies for Opening Curriculum Spaces, Teaching Children Mathematics. Many teachers experience the tension between using published curriculum materials and teaching in ways that are responsive to children. Teachers are often expected to use a particular mathematics curriculum series, but they still want to be able to build on and connect to children's multiple mathematical knowledge bases (MMKB). Children's MMKB include children's mathematical thinking and children's home- and community-based mathematical funds of knowledge (Carpenter et al. 1999; Gonzalez, Moll, and Amanti 2005; Turner et al. 2012). Children's experiences using mathematics as part of home or community activities, as well as family practices that involve mathematics, are all part of children's home- and community-based mathematical funds of knowledge. Children's mathematical thinking includes the multiple strategies that students use to solve problems, if given the opportunity, as well as common confusions or misconceptions that children might have. In several of its standards, the Common Core State Standards for School Mathematics (CCSSM) calls for students to use multiple solution strategies (CCSSI 2010). Students make sense of problems and develop multiple solution strategies by connecting problems to their own experiences both in and out of school and by using and building on all of their MMKB. In this article, the authors suggest three strategies for opening spaces for children's MMKB in the curriculum materials, and they provide examples of those strategies, using the Grade 4 "Everyday Mathematics" (UCSMP 2007, pp. 406-11) lesson. They focus on lesson changes that stay consistent with the stated lesson objective while opening spaces for children's MMKB. [More] Descriptors: Mathematics Curriculum, Mathematics Instruction, Relevance (Education), Problem Solving
(2015). How Well Are American Students Learning? With Sections on the Gender Gap in Reading, Effects of the Common Core, and Student Engagement. The 2015 Brown Center Report on American Education. Volume 3, Number 4, Brookings Institution. This 2015 Brown Center Report (BCR) represents the fourteenth edition of the series since the first issue was published in 2000. It includes three studies. Like all previous BCRs, the studies explore independent topics but share two characteristics: they are empirical and based on the best evidence available. The studies in this edition are on the gender gap in reading, the impact of the Common Core State Standards–English Language Arts on reading achievement, and student engagement. The report is composed of three parts as follows: Part 1 examines the gender gap in reading. Girls outscore boys on practically every reading test given to a large population–and they have for a long time. The gap is not confined to the U.S. Reading tests administered as part of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) reveal that the gender gap is a worldwide phenomenon. In more than sixty countries participating in the two assessments, girls are better readers than boys. Part 2 covers reading achievement also. More specifically, it is about reading and the English Language Arts standards of the Common Core (CCSS-ELA). It's also about an important decision that policy analysts must make when evaluating public policies–the determination of when a policy begins. Part 3 covers student engagement. PISA tests fifteen-year-olds on three subjects–reading, math, and science–every three years. It also collects a wealth of background information from students, including their attitudes toward school and learning. Additionally, a secondary analysis of several dimensions of engagement found in the PISA report are reported, such as intrinsic motivation, that internal reward that encourages students to learn and is an important component of student engagement. [More] Descriptors: Common Core State Standards, Academic Achievement, Gender Differences, Reading Achievement
(2015). Classroom Writing Tasks and Students' Analytic Text-Based Writing, Reading Research Quarterly. The Common Core State Standards emphasize students writing analytically in response to texts. Questions remain about the nature of instruction that develops students' text-based writing skills. In the present study, we examined the role that writing task quality plays in students' mastery of analytic text-based writing. Text-based writing tasks (N¬ =¬ 149) were collected from 27 fifth-grade teachers in an urban district, and teachers completed daily surveys (i.e., instructional logs) to assess the frequency of their reading and writing instruction (30-45 days total). Students (N¬ =¬ 793) completed a performance assessment of their text-based writing skills. Results showed that the large majority of writing tasks guided students to retrieve isolated facts or engage with surface-level features of texts in their writing (i.e., were of a low level of cognitive demand). The cognitive demand of text-based writing assignments predicted multiple features of students' writing performance, including students' ability to reason analytically about texts (effect size [ES]¬ =¬ 0.46), use evidence to support their claims (ES¬ =¬ 0.46), and organize their writing (ES¬ =¬ 0.35), even after controlling for other dimensions of literacy instruction. The quality (grist) of text to which students responded predicted one dimension of students' writing performance, use of evidence to support their claims (ES¬ =¬ 0.37). Designing cognitively demanding text-based tasks should be considered an essential part of writing instruction reform and professional development programs for teachers that aim to increase students' writing skills aligned to the Common Core. [More] Descriptors: Writing Skills, Writing Assignments, Task Analysis, Writing (Composition)
(2015). The Many Facets and Applications of Text Structure in Supporting Educational Trajectories of Elementary and Middle Grade Children in Content Area Reading Comprehension and Writing, Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness. Content area reading comprehension and writing have been a challenge for children in the U.S. schools for many years as evidenced by state and national assessments. One promising solution to the problem is text structure based instruction that promotes strategic selection, encoding, retrieval, and use of information for myriads of activities within the learning environment and beyond. The text structure based instruction has been researched extensively since 1975 (Meyer, 1975; Meyer, Brandt, and Bluth 1980; Meyer, Middlemiss, Theodorou, Brezinski, McDougall, and Bartlett 2002; Meyer, Wijekumar, Middlemiss, Higley, Lei, Meier, and Spielvogel 2010; Williams, Hall, Lauer, Stafford, DeSisto, and deCani 2005; Williams, Stafford, Lauer, Hall, and Pollini 2009) and has received considerable attention with the adoption of the Common Core State Standards by many states. The goal of this panel presentation is to showcase how text structure instruction can be designed for early and upper elementary school children and middle grade students. Brief descriptions of each presentation are provided and all other sections of the structured abstract presenting information about the large scale randomized controlled efficacy trials on the web-based intelligent tutoring system for the structure strategy (ITSS). ITSS is a web-based intelligent tutoring system designed to provide modeling, practice, assessment, scaffolding, and feedback to the learner. The study also posed exploratory questions to study whether the effect of ITSS delivered instruction about the structure strategy on reading comprehension varies depending on other factors, such as gender, initial reading comprehension proficiency, and locale. Children in the ITSS classrooms at all grade levels statistically significantly outperformed the children in control classrooms on all researcher designed measures of reading comprehension (e.g., comparison main idea quality, signaling word knowledge). Tables and figures are appended. [More] Descriptors: Text Structure, Elementary School Students, Middle School Students, Content Area Reading
(2015). Common Core in California Schools: Preparing Kids for Their Future. Fact Sheet. Today's students are preparing to enter a world in which higher education and the workforce are demanding higher-level skills than ever before. To ensure all students are ready for success after high school, the Common Core State Standards establish a set of learning goals that work grade-by-grade, step-by-step, to prepare them to meet challenges they will face both in college and career. Students benefit from this approach through a greater use of analysis, critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration skills. The standards are in line with the skills that all students need to become 21st century learners. Common Core was borne from the recognition that consistent, real-world learning goals would ensure all students–regardless of where they live–graduate high school prepared for college, career, and civic life. The standards were drafted by content experts and teachers, with significant public input, and were adopted by California policymakers on a bipartisan basis in 2010. They are widely supported by a diverse and broad spectrum of stakeholders. Common Core does not dictate specific content: it is a set of standards that sets expectations for what students should know at each grade level, like being able to count to 100 in kindergarten. It is up to local teachers and school leaders to decide how to help their students reach those goals. Implementing Common Core in every classroom in the state and using the Smarter Balanced Assessments to measure student progress is a significant undertaking, and challenges have been expected. None of these temporary difficulties, however, outweigh the long-term benefits of providing students what they need to be ready for a successful future. Teachers, students, and district leaders should be provided the time and support necessary to successfully implement the standards. [More] Descriptors: State Standards, Alignment (Education), Achievement Tests, English
(2015). Area Conceptions Sprout on Earth Day, Teaching Children Mathematics. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) (CCSSI 2010), many concepts related to area are covered in third grade: (1) Recognizing area as an attribute of a plane figure; (2) Understanding that a square with a side length of one is a unit square; (3) Measuring area by tiling figures and counting the squares it takes to cover without gaps or overlaps; and (4) Relating area to the operations of multiplication and addition. Area concepts take time and experience to work through and understand. Researchers (Battista 2007, Sarama and Clements 2009) have shown that when students first encounter area, they often find difficulty structuring square units in rows and columns. Students will overlap area units or will leave gaps between them as well as create nonuniform units. In response to these concerns, Miller (1984) and Wolf (1995) have documented that when students are allowed to use physical square units or tools, they are more likely to develop strategies consistent with multiplicative rules and also develop mental imagery. To build spatial awareness, students need to solve problems through mathematical modeling, allowing interaction with and sense making of their world (Lesh and Zawojewski 2007). This article describes a measurement lesson created by the authors to conceptualize the idea of area beyond the formula. The lesson centered on gardening and plant growth. Students investigated area and perimeter by constructing rectangular gardens using the same perimeter of fencing to see if and how this affected the area. Estimating, drawing, building, and checking were incorporated to help students develop and refine their conceptions of area. The lesson took approximately three days of instruction, one day for part 1 of the lesson and two days for part 2. A bibliography is included. [More] Descriptors: State Standards, Mathematics Instruction, Grade 3, Elementary School Mathematics
(2015). Epidemics, Exponential Functions, and Modeling, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School. The phenomenon of outbreaks of dangerous diseases is both intriguing to students and of mathematical significance, which is exactly why the authors engaged eighth graders in an introductory activity on the growth that occurs as an epidemic spreads. Various contexts can set the stage for such an exploration. Reading adolescent literature like "The Eleventh Plague" (Hirsch 2011), viewing a movie such as "Contagion" (2011), and describing the history of London's Great Plague during the 1600s are all possibilities. The activity presented in this article was created for eighth-grade students as a way to simulate a rapidly spreading epidemic in today's society, while providing a visual model that conceptually demonstrates to students the power of exponential growth. After conducting a classroom simulation, the authors asked questions about multiple representations of exponential functions, comparisons in characteristics of different types of functions, applications to new scenarios, and real-life considerations regarding variables that affect the spread of epidemics. The activity was taught in two classes of eighth-grade students. This activity addresses several of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSI 2010) at both the eighth-grade and high school level in the Functions domain. Specifically, this activity closely aligns with the clusters to construct and compare linear, quadratic, and exponential models and solve problems as well as to interpret expressions for functions in terms of the situation they model. Additionally, the activity addresses modeling with mathematics, as students work with exponential models within the context of epidemics and use appropriate tools, because students considered the advantages as well as the limitations of using such technology as a graphing calculator. [More] Descriptors: Diseases, Public Health, Mathematical Models, Mathematics Instruction
(2015). Learning by Doing Study: Analysis of Second-Year Results, Technology and Engineering Teacher. This is the third of a series of reports discussing the Doing-Based Learning study. The first report (Round 1) introduced the study, defined "doing" in the context of this study, described why students "doing" in the classroom is important, why there is a need for this study, and also provided some selected findings from the first round of surveys. The second report (Round 2) identified the methods used and results of the first-round data. This report identifies the purpose of the study, identifies where the survey methods may be found, provides the number and percentages of responses, selected findings, and the future of this longevity study. The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which U.S. public school students are doing activities in their classrooms. This five-year study asks elementary and secondary (middle and high school) science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teachers to respond to 13 statements concerning students doing in their classrooms. The first two statements are general in nature and were used at all grade levels. The remaining 11 statements are grade-level-specific and based on "Next Generation Science Standards, Standards for Technological Literacy", and "Common Core State Standards for Mathematics". The researchers sent emails to 5,232 teachers across the United States. The emails contained a cover letter explaining the study and provided a URL encouraging teachers to participate. Findings are presented in table format. [For the first article in the series, "'Learn by Doing' Research: Introduction," see EJ1048066. For the second article in the series, "Is 'Learning by Doing' Important? A Study of Doing-Based Learning," see EJ1048070.] [More] Descriptors: Response Rates (Questionnaires), Elementary Secondary Education, Class Activities, Research Needs
(2015). The Reflection of Social Values in Public School Reading Textbooks in the United States: A Critical Content Analysis, ProQuest LLC. In light of the recently published Common Core State Standards Initiative, public school curriculum has once again come under scrutiny. While curriculum debates have taken place since the very beginnings of public schooling in the United States, too few have taken more than a passing notice of the textbooks that, in many cases, comprise the majority of a classroom curriculum. This study examined the social values reflected in four reading textbooks popularly used in public schools in the United States in several historical eras of educational reform. Textbook content was sampled from "The New England Primer," "McGuffey Eclectic Readers," "The Silent Readers," and "Holt Basic Reading." Employing a methodology of qualitative content analysis, each textbook sample was examined for its reflection of social values, in particular those established by the Marshall, Mitchell and Wirt (1989) framework of social values: Liberty, Quality, Efficiency and Equity. Results of the study indicated that reading textbooks are value-laden and at least three of the social values of the Marshall, et al. (1989) framework often do appear in reading textbook content. The outstanding value of Liberty, rather than being reflected within a text, can most easily be seen in the social action that surrounds it. This study also provided additional evidence that the social values are cyclical in nature, as other scholars have suggested. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: www.proquest.com/en-US/products/disserta… [More] Descriptors: Social Values, Textbooks, Public Schools, Reading Instruction
(2015). Utilizing Readiness Tools to Support Student Success. Fact Sheet. Every teacher, principal, and school administrator wants their young students to thrive as they move through the transitional kindergarten and kindergarten years and into the early elementary grades. With the implementation of the Common Core State Standards and the Local Control Funding Formula, school districts have new opportunities to strengthen support for young learners. When students' strengths and areas for growth are identified and addressed early in their education, they are better prepared for future success. And when districts and communities broadly understand the readiness trends of students entering kindergarten, they can plan and allocate resources to ensure children are supported as early as possible. The statewide use of a uniform, valid, and reliable readiness assessment tool that measures children's learning and development holistically also provides the state with a meaningful way to gauge the diverse and changing needs of its youngest learners. State leaders need this information to better inform early childhood and K-12 planning and resource allocation, as well as to assess the impact of early learning investments and school readiness trends over time. Over half of the states (29) in the country collect kindergarten readiness information in a state-level data system, but unfortunately California is not one of them. There are promising readiness assessment tools that can be used for statewide purposes. However, successful statewide implementation of a readiness tool will require local- and state-level resources and support, as well as leadership, to build momentum among local educational leaders and other key stakeholders across the state. Therefore, policymakers must also play a role in moving California towards a universal, school readiness assessment system that provides uniform data on our state's youngest learners to support their future success by guiding smart and efficient policies at the state level and teaching practices in the classroom. [More] Descriptors: School Readiness, State Standards, Educational Planning, Alignment (Education)