EDU 690 Master’s Curriculum Projects Fall 2014
Nicole Austin
Teaching the Alphabet
http://austne99.wordpress.com/
Project Introduction
A common theme throughout my research so far has been the importance of alphabet knowledge on the overall academic success of a student. Students need to know the letters of the alphabet along with the letter sounds before first grade. The earlier students are exposed to the alphabet the brighter their academic future will be. Throughout this project I will depict the importance of early exposure to the alphabet and successful practices to teaching the alphabet. These practices will provide students with meaningful learning experiences that are engaging and effective. The common core standards require students at the completion of kindergarten, students will know the letters of the alphabet and the corresponding sounds. There is a decrease in alphabet knowledge by the time students reach kindergarten (U.S department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 2005, 2006). It is detrimental to our students’ future that we as teachers provide the best practices possible and provide them with exposure to the alphabet as early as possible in the home and at school.
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Malorie Cummings
Title: Problem-Based Learning: Developing Scientific Understandings and Abilities
The science lessons provided enable teachers to transition from traditional instructional methods to cognitive-constructivist learning styles. As a result, students will engage in problem-based activities to discover how group behavior benefits the odds of survival.
Link: http://maloriecummings.wordpress.com/
Project Introduction
Educators are making the shift from traditional ways of instruction towards a more student-directed curriculum (Goodnough & Nolan, 2008). The instructional approach, known as Problem-Based Learning (PBL), is supported by John Dewey’s beliefs during the progressive movement (Akcay, 2008) and reflects the format of a cognitive-constructivist learning style (Rotgans, 2011). PBL affords students with the opportunities to become cognitively engaged and to collaboratively work with their peers in order to identify what they need in order to solve a problem (Hmelo-Silver, 2004).
Problem-Based Learning may be applied to any subject area such as mathematics or language arts. However, this curriculum project will take you to through a PBL experience suited for a third grade science classroom. Students will participate in life science activities that support the standard, LSD.D Social interactions and group behavior (Next Gerneration Standards, 2013). The PBL approach will help students solve problems and to ask questions such as: “Why is it beneficial for animals to be a part of a group” and, “Why do animals need to cope with changes”?
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Matthew Dixon
Title: Common Core Learning Standards and Special Education
Link: http://dixonyy18.wordpress.com/about-2/
Project Introduction
The 2014 classroom has evolved over the years, most recently with pushes towards national standard that exemplify students’ strengths in Math and ELA. A separate push is also being made for the science and social studies standards. The Common Core Curriculum Learning Standards has spread nationwide and is now beginning to hit its stride. Many questions began to arise when our nation adopted these new standards. How would students adapt to the transition to more rigorous expectations? How would teachers react to the more strenuous planning and curriculum implementation? These are all fair questions to be asked of such a new and different learning model. One question that a lot of people forget to ask however is, where will special education be left when things settle? In a field where students and teachers often struggle to find a balance between learning and time management, where will this field hear going forward.
As discussed briefly in the first paragraph, this Master’s Project is intended to look at the daily structure of a special education classroom. To dig even further, this project will look at a self-contained classroom. The reason I am choosing a self-contained classroom is because in a lot of inclusion and consultant rooms, most students are higher functioning and able to achieve national standards. It is in the self-contained classrooms when we begin to run into difficulties with the implementation of the new Common Core Learning Standards. These difficulties range from a variety of obstacles that the special education teacher must master. In this project, I will focus on a specific audience, making this project more unique than your average general audience. I want this to be a stepping stone into the professional development of a probationary teacher, and a guide for young teachers still studying in school.
Throughout this project, viewers will be exposed to how lessons become adapted to the special ed. curriculum. Teachers will be informed on what differentiates the different stages of special education, from inclusion to self-contained classrooms. We will specifically focus on different Assistive Technologies used in the field that may be the difference in a struggling and prospering student. This Master’s Project will view the commonalities and differences in the Common Core Learning Standards and the New York State Alternate Assessment Standards. What exactly is the New York State Alternate Assessment (NYSAA) and how has it progressed over the years.
This project looks at the Common Core Learning Standards Era and connects it with the special education curriculum. I look to show the audience how the two can work together and where they may need work.
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Katie Harrienger
Title: Sixth- Grade Integers: The Alignment of Common Core and Florida State Standards
Link: http://kharrienger.wordpress.com/
Project Introduction
When looking at the 6th grade math topic of integers: In what ways do the Florida State Math Standards align with the Common Core Math Standards?
The Common Core standards were developed in 2010 in order to ensure a competitive school system in the United States. The idea behind it being that all fifty states would have the same educational standards and be given National Standardized Tests. Students in Florida, as well as in New York, are working within the same curriculum standards.
The state of Florida, who according to the Educational Data rank placed 35 out of 50 in the 2013 school year, was all set to adopt the Common Core Standards for the 2014-2015 school year. The State of Florida was set up to be a “pilot” State for the PARCC exam, which would be the new the National Standardized Test. However, in October of 2013 Florida’s educational system proposed the HB 25 bill. This bill “Prohibits State Board of Education from continuing to implement common core standards until certain requirements are met; provides requirements for adoption or revision of curricular standards; requires state to withdraw from PARCC; prohibits state from implementing certain assessments & requires state to adopt & implement new assessments; prohibits state board from entering into certain agreements.” (MyFloridahouse.org) While this bill continues to be debated over in the House of Representatives, Florida has officially dropped the Common Core Standards and developed and released the Mathematics Florida Standards and the Language Arts Florida Standards. These are new standards that have been implemented for the 2014-2015 school year.
In this master’s project I will be implementing the 6th grade math unit: integers to six 6th grade math classes, roughly (120 students). The reason I choose to use the unit integers is because the Common Core standards has always had 6th graders working with integers, where in Florida integers was never introduced until 7th grade. Therefore, this is the first year in Florida that 6th graders will be taught integers. The lessons and curriculum map will use both the common core and the Mathematics Florida Standards. In turn, I plan to discover if the Common Core and Mathematics Florida Standard fully align with one another.
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Ashley Malinowski
Project Title: Utilizing iPads During Writer's Workshop
Link: https://ashleymalinowski.wordpress.com/
Project Introduction
Writing is a beautiful way to express our thoughts. I have always appreciated working with children in the primary grades. I feel that it is important for children to grasp essential writing skills during their emergent years. Reading and writing balance each other during the learning process. While technology is booming horizontally and vertically throughout our world, I noticed in 2014 it is especially advancing in our schools. “With multimedia infiltrating the classroom, storytelling has officially gone digital. Let your students’ voices be heard” (Adams, 2009, p. 35).
What would writer’s workshop look like if we encouraged our students to make use of iPad’s during the writing process? I was curious if educators have previously researched this idea. Once I began my research, I found that teachers are beginning to make connections between technology and writer’s workshop.
Ways for students to utilize iPad’s during a writer’s workshop was exactly what I wanted to learn more about. Many schools have vast access to iPads for the majority of the students and teachers housed in their buildings. “The simplicity of the iPad, the uniqueness of its user interface, and the familiarity of design all point to one thing: excitement for learning. No other pedagogical tool or technique in my experience engages students in a way that makes learning fun and leaves students feeling like they are in control of their own learning” (Harmon, 2012, p.31).
Writing foundations will always be necessary and useful components for learners of all ages. Teaching children ways to make the most of an iPad during the writing process will motivate their writing engines. I feel that this device is a beneficial tool to promote an increase of positive motives throughout writer’s workshop.
My Master’s Project will take you on a journey through writer’s workshop, digital storytelling, iPad integration, a variety of iPad applications, and ways to implement Lucy Calkin’s Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing. My project links with the New York State Common Core English Language Arts Standards, the New York State Common Core Math Standards, and the New York State K-8 Social Studies Framework.
Reference: Pin by Tracy Travis http://www.pinterest.com/pin/119626933821613102/