Sexiles in the Classroom: Understanding Intersectionalities of Sexuality, Immigration, and Education

This paper presents an overview of literature on adult educators who are both queer and immigrant. Although very little scholarly writing exists, several scholars describe the experiences of queer immigrants as being anchored to systemic heteronormativity. Additionally, the experiences of immigrant adult educators suggest difficult encounters with racism and sexism.

Career technical education adjunct faculty teacher readiness: An investigation of teacher excellence and variables of preparedness

The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between teaching readiness and teaching excellence with three variables of preparedness of adjunct professors teaching career technical education courses through student surveys using a correlational design of two statistical techniques; least-squares regression and one-way analysis of variance. That is, the research tested the relationship between teacher readiness and teacher excellence with the number of years teaching, the number of years of experience in the professional field and exposure to teaching related professional development, referred to as variables of preparedness.^ The results of the research provided insight to the relationship between the variables of preparedness and student assessment of their adjunct professors. Concerning the years of teaching experience, this research found a negative inverse relationship with how students rated their professors' teaching readiness and excellence. The research also found no relationship between years of professional experience and the students' assessment. Lastly, the research found a significant positive relationship between the amount of teaching related professional development taken by an adjunct professor and the students' assessment in teaching readiness and excellence.^ This research suggests that policies and practices at colleges should address the professional development needs of adjunct professors. Also, to design a model that meets the practices of inclusion for adjunct faculty and to make professional development a priority within the organization. Lastly, implement that model over time to prepare adjuncts in readiness and excellence. ^

Community college faculty commitment to Florida performance -based funding indicators for academic programs

In 1996, the State of Florida implemented a performance-based funding program for the Associate in Arts degree offered by community colleges. Additional funds are allocated for distribution among public community colleges based on performance indicators. The indicators are comprised of 10 performance goals that refer to productivity indexed by overall degree completions as well as subgroups: special disadvantaged populations, transfers, job placements, and education acceleration. ^ This study examined the level of self-reported commitment of community college faculty to the 10 Florida performance-based funding indicators for academic programs. Also examined were the relationships between commitment and (a) self-efficacy in contributing to the achievement of the indicators and (b) personal financial reward expectation for contributing to the achievement of the indicators. The relationships between commitment and (a) gender, (b) academic rank, and (c) types of courses taught were analyzed based on secondary analyses. ^ The participants were 303 full-time faculty members of Miami-Dade Community College who taught courses taken by students pursuing the Associate in Arts degree. A questionnaire was developed to measure commitment, self-efficacy, and expectation of financial reward for each of the 10 indicators. ^ The mean composite commitment score for faculty members who responded to the survey was 4.07 in a scale of 1 to 5. Greater commitment was reported for indicators closely related to the traditional mission of community colleges (i.e., facilitating progress of special groups in earning the AA degree in preparation for transferring to a four-year university). Lower commitment was reported for indicators oriented to State priorities such as education acceleration mechanisms and job placements. Commitment was correlated with three variables: self-efficacy, expectation of financial reward, and types of courses taught. However, commitment was not related to gender and academic rank. Although a cause-effect relationship cannot be inferred from this study, the findings depict a positive relationship between faculty commitment to performance-based funding indicators and faculty self-efficacy to contribute to the achievement of the indicators. ^

The effects of student -centered and traditional models of teaching on reading skills

A pre-test, post-test, quasi-experimental design was used to examine the effects of student-centered and traditional models of reading instruction on outcomes of literal comprehension and critical thinking skills. The sample for this study consisted of 101 adult students enrolled in a high-level developmental reading course at a large, urban community college in the Southeastern United States. The experimental group consisted of 48 students, and the control group consisted of 53 students. Students in the experimental group were limited in the time spent reading a course text of basic skills, with instructors using supplemental materials such as poems, news articles, and novels. Discussions, the reading-writing connection, and student choice in material selection were also part of the student-centered curriculum. Students in the control group relied heavily on a course text and vocabulary text for reading material, with great focus placed on basic skills. Activities consisted primarily of multiple-choice questioning and quizzes. The instrument used to collect pre-test data was Descriptive Tests of Language Skills in Reading Comprehension; post-test data were taken from the Florida College Basic Skills Exit Test. A MANCOVA was used as the statistical method to determine if either model of instruction led to significantly higher gains in literal comprehension skills or critical thinking skills. A paired samples t-test was also used to compare pre-test and post-test means. The results of the MANCOVA indicated no significant difference between instructional models on scores of literal comprehension and critical thinking. Neither was there any significant difference in scores between subgroups of age (under 25 and 25 and older) and language background (native English speaker and second-language learner). The results of the t-test indicated, however, that students taught under both instructional models made significant gains in on both literal comprehension and critical thinking skills from pre-test to post-test.

Effects of Family, Child, and Teacher Demographics on Prekindergarten Children's Access to and Use of Numeracy and Spatial Materials in the Early Education Setting

Florida’s Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten program (VPK) aims to ensure that all 4-year-olds are prepared to excel in K-12 mathematics. Early numeracy/spatial skills are predictive of success in K–12 mathematics. No research has examined whether VPK classrooms are equipped with the materials necessary to teach numeracy/spatial skill. The Pre-Kindergarten Numeracy and Spatial Environment Survey was created to examine the frequency of access to and use of numeracy/spatial materials in VPK classrooms. The 69-item survey was completed by the lead educator from a sample of 62 pre-kindergarten classrooms in Miami-Dade County. Regression analysis results suggest the location of the pre-kindergarten center, the sex distribution of the children in the classrooms or the number of years of experience that the educator has as a lead teacher along with the extra training courses undertaken by the teachers does not affect the access to or the use of, numeracy and spatial materials in the classrooms.

The Effects of the Use of Technology In Mathematics Instruction on Student Achievement

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the use of technology on students’ mathematics achievement, particularly the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) mathematics results. Eleven schools within the Miami-Dade County Public School System participated in a pilot program on the use of Geometers Sketchpad (GSP). Three of these schools were randomly selected for this study. Each school sent a teacher to a summer in-service training program on how to use GSP to teach geometry. In each school, the GSP class and a traditional geometry class taught by the same teacher were the study participants. Students’ mathematics FCAT results were examined to determine if the GSP produced any effects. Students’ scores were compared based on assignment to the control or experimental group as well as gender and SES. SES measurements were based on whether students qualified for free lunch. The findings of the study revealed a significant difference in the FCAT mathematics scores of students who were taught geometry using GSP compared to those who used the traditional method. No significant differences existed between the FCAT mathematics scores of the students based on SES. Similarly, no significant differences existed between the FCAT scores based on gender. In conclusion, the use of technology (particularly GSP) is likely to boost students’ FCAT mathematics test scores. The findings also show that the use of GSP may be able to close known gender and SES related achievement gaps. The results of this study promote policy changes in the way geometry is taught to 10th grade students in Florida’s public schools.

Entering an academic discourse community: A case study of the coping strategies of eleven english as a second language students

This case study follows eleven non-English speaking students as they adapt to community college, content courses. The three classes examined are required freshman classes--Humanities, Social Environment, and Individual in Transition. In order to cope with the demands of these classes, students must penetrate the academic discourse community and have effective relationships with their instructors and their peers. The results of the study are based on interviews with eleven non-native speaking (NNS) students and their instructors and on an analysis of student writing assignments, course syllabi, and exams. Three general areas are examined: (a) students' first-language (L1) education, (b) the requirements of their content classes, and (c) the affective factors which influence their adaptation process. The case of these students reveals that: 1. Students draw on their L1 education, especially in terms of content, as they cope with the demands of these content classes. 2. In some areas L1 educational experiences interfere with students' ability to adapt. 3. The content classes require students to have well developed reading, writing, oral, and aural skills. 4. Students must use higher level cognitive skills to be successful in content classes. 5. Affective factors play a role in students' success in content classes. The discussion section includes possible implications of this data for college level English as a Second Language courses.

From Where Do We Teach? Potential Positions in Public Education

This thesis is a conceptual examination of the positions from which we teach in public education. As it is philosophical in nature, it takes no qualitative or quantitative data. It offers a review of selected relevant literature and an analysis of personal and professional experience, with the intent to pose critical questions about teaching and learning. The framework of this thesis represents the following contentions: First, from its inception, public schooling served capital by preparing skilled labour for emerging industrial markets. This history is the hegemonic shadow that hangs over public education today. Second, movements toward the standardization of funding, curriculum, and evaluation support the further commodification of public schooling. The “accountability” that standardization offers, the “back to basics” that it aims for, is counter to the potential that public education might critically inform citizens and seek social justice. Third, movements toward the privatization of public schooling under the guise of “choice” and “mobility”, brought on by manufactured crisis, serve only to widen socio-economic inequities as capitalist neoliberal interests seek profit in both the product of public schools and in schooling itself. If we recognize and understand the power of public education to inform vast numbers of citizens who will, in turn, either maintain or reform society, we must ask: What do we want public education to be? What are the effects of continuing down historically conventional and increasingly standardized paths? What do progressive pedagogies offer? How might teachers destandardize their pedagogy and pursue equitable opportunities for marginalized students? How might students name themselves and their world, that they might play a part in its reimagining? For whom do we teach, and under what conditions? From where do we teach, and why? For educators to ask these questions, and to employ what they discover, will necessitate taking substantial risks. It will necessitate taking a stand and cannot be done alone. Teachers must seek out the collaboration of their students. They must offer students the time and the space to find their own voices, to create their own selves, and to envision previously uncharted paths on which we might walk together.

An exploration of students’ perceptions and attitudes towards creativity in engineering education

This study used a mixed methods approach to develop a broad and deep understanding of students’ perceptions towards creativity in engineering education. Studies have shown that students’ attitudes can have an impact on their motivation to engage in creative behavior. Using an ex-post facto independent factorial design, attitudes of value towards creativity, time for creativity, and creativity stereotypes were measured and compared across gender, year of study, engineering discipline, preference for open-ended problem solving, and confidence in creative abilities. Participants were undergraduate engineering students at Queen’s University from all years of study. A qualitative phenomenological methodology was adopted to study students’ understandings and experiences with engineering creativity. Eleven students participated in oneon- one interviews that provided depth and insight into how students experience and define engineering creativity, and the survey included open-ended items developed using the 10 Maxims of Creativity in Education as a guiding framework. The findings from the survey suggested that students had high value for creativity, however students in fourth year or higher had less value than those in other years. Those with preference for open-ended problem solving and high confidence valued creative more than their counterparts. Students who preferred open-ended problem solving and students with high confidence reported that time was less of a hindrance to their creativity. Males identified more with creativity stereotypes than females, however overall they were both low. Open-ended survey and interview results indicated that students felt they experienced creativity in engineering design activities. Engineering creativity definitions had two elements: creative action and creative characteristic. Creative actions were associated with designing, and creative characteristics were predominantly associated with novelty. Other barriers that emerged from the qualitative analysis were lack of opportunity, lack of assessment, and discomfort with creativity. It was concluded that a universal definition is required to establish clear and aligned understandings of engineering creativity. Instructors may want to consider demonstrating value by assessing creativity and establishing clear criteria in design projects. It is recommended that students be given more opportunities for practice through design activities and that they be introduced to design and creative thinking concepts early in their engineering education.

Gobernar la educación a través de los padrespolítica educativa y construcción de subjetividades neoliberales en Inglaterra. (Governing education through parents: education policy and the construction of neoliberal subjectivities in England)

In this paper we explore the relationship between market norms and practices and the development of the figure of the parent within British education policy. Since the 1970s parents in England have been called upon to perform certain duties and obligations in their relation to the state. These duties include internalizing responsibility for risks, liabilities, inequities and the spectre of crises formerly managed by the state. Rather than characterize this situation in terms of the ‘hollowing of the state’, we argue that the role of the state includes enabling the functioning of the parent as a neoliberal subject, so that they may successfully harness the power of the market to their own advantage and (hopefully) minimize the kinds of risk generated through a deregulated education system. In this paper we examine how parents are compelled to embody certain market norms and practices as they navigate the field of education. In particular we focus on how parents are 1) summoned as consumers or choosers of education services, and thus encouraged to embody through their behaviour a competitive orientation; 2) summoned as governors and custodians of schools, with a focus on assessing financial and educational performance; and 3) summoned as producers and founders of schools, with a focus on entrepreneurial and innovative activity.

Governing through parents: a genealogical enquiry of education policy and the construction of neoliberal subjectivities in England

In this paper we explore the various spaces and sites through which the figure of the parent is summoned and activated to inhabit and perform market norms and practices in the field of education in England. Since the late 1970s successive governments have called on parents to enact certain duties and obligations in relation to the state. These duties include adopting and internalizing responsibility for all kinds of risks, liabilities and inequities formerly managed by the Keynesian welfare state. Rather than characterize this situation in terms of the ‘hollowing of the state’, we argue that the role of the state includes enabling the functioning of the parent as a neoliberal subject so that they may successfully harness the power of the market to their own advantage and (hopefully) minimize the kinds of risk and inequity generated through a market-based, deregulated education system. In this paper we examine how parents in England are differently, yet similarly, compelled to embody certain market norms and practices as they navigate the field of education. Adopting genealogical enquiry and policy discourse analysis as our methodology, we explore how parents across three policy sites or spaces are constructed as objects and purveyors of utility and ancillaries to marketisation. This includes a focus on how parents are summoned as 1) consumers or choosers of education services; 2) governors and overseers of schools; and 3) producers and founders of schools.

Positioning Australia’s contemporary health and physical education curriculum to address poor physical activity participation rates by adolescent girls

Lifestyles of higher education students: the influence of self- esteem and psychological well-being

Background The transition to higher education can affect lifestyle-related factors. Objectives: To identify lifestyles of higher education students and analyse the influence of self-esteem and psychological well-being. Methods Correlational cross-sectional study. A total of 4,314 students partici- pated in the study. Online questionnaires were used: Estilo de Vida Fantástico (Fantastic Lifestyle Assessment) [1]; Questionário de Bem- estar Psicológico (Psychological General Well-Being Questionnaire) [2], and Escala de auto-estima de Rosenberg (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale [3]. Results Most students (85.3 %) have a healthy lifestyle. Lifestyle is strongly correlated with self-esteem and psychological well-being (p < 0.001). While analysing the association between self-esteem and psycho- logical well-being and the various lifestyle domains according to gen- der, a positive and significant correlation (p < 0.001) was found among female students, except for the Smoking domain (p = 0.393); in relation to psychological well-being, positive correlations were found in all domains. Among male students, positive and significant correlations (p < 0.001) were found in most lifestyle domains and self-esteem, except for the Smoking (p = 0.992), Alcohol and other drugs (p = 0.181) and Other behaviours (p = 0.442) domains; in rela- tion to psychological well-being, positive and significant correlations (p < 0.001) were found in most lifestyle domains, except for the Smoking (p = 0.458) and Other behaviours (p = 0.128) domains. Conclusions Based on the results, higher education institutions should support intervention projects to maintain high levels of psychological well- being and self-esteem, promoting healthy lifestyles.