This Was Not on the Syllabus!: An Examination of First-Year Urban Teachers' Self-Efficacy

Many first-year teachers find it difficult to reach the needs of all their students in part, because they feel their college coursework left them ill-prepared for the complexity they face in the classroom. This is particularly true among urban teachers who often face crowded classrooms of diverse students with a wide range of instructional needs. This study is a comparative case study of two University of Connecticut graduates during their first year teaching in urban schools. Using mixed-methods, the study draws on interviews, questionnaires, and videotape data shared as a part of a monthly teacher study group of similar graduates. I also draw on group conversations in which teachers discussed their ability to reach the needs of all of their students as this was related to their preservice coursework. My findings suggest that many first-year teachers feel university coursework failed to help them. One teacher felt it did not help her at all, while the other felt it helped her but she still could not meet all of her students' needs. Many first-year, urban teachers do not feel confident in the classroom as a result of their preparation from coursework. With this lack in confidence, the teachers may be more likely to leave their urban position, and this may contribute to the high turnover of teachers in urban placements.

Freshman Friendship and University Connection

The purpose of this study is to understand better the support systems available to freshmen students at the University of Connecticut and how those support systems impact their connection to the university. The study involves two questionnaires, one distributed at the beginning of their first semester and a second follow-up questionnaire at the end of that same semester. Two main research questions are the focus of this study. The first question is whether freshmen who make friends on campus feel more connected than freshmen who report having fewer friends. The second question concerns whether freshmen who feel more connected to the university report stronger feelings of support than freshmen who do not feel connected to the university. This study has found that support at the university level needs to be more focused on individual students because freshmen who make friends at the university report experiencing greater levels of support. Parents, faculty, and counselors need to reexamine the way in which they provide support in order to reach those students who are not connecting with friends. The First Year Experience Program could better serve freshmen students by focusing on the relationship between students, instructor, and mentor to build friendships within the FYE class, which will foster friendships and support.

Head and Neck Embryology: An Overview of Development, Growth and Defect in the Human Fetus

The purpose of this research is to explore the growth and formation of the head and neck from embryological development through puberty in order to understand how this knowledge is necessary for the development of dental and medical treatments and procedures. This is a necessary aspect of the medical and dental school curriculum at the University of Connecticut Health Center Schools of Medicine and Dental Medicine that needs to be incorporated into the current study of embryology for first-year students. Working with Dr. Christine Niekrash, D.M.D, this paper will cover the embryology and growth of the head, face and oral cavity. The goal of this project will be to organize the information and recognize the resources needed to successfully introduce this part of human physiology to the UConn dental and medical students. One area in which this information is particularly relevant is the facial and oral deformities that can occur throughout fetal development.