Analyzing Practice for Improving Schools: The Study of Vignettes

This article suggests a method for analyzing patterns of school practice for improvement purposes. In particular it describes outcomes of a study that point to some promising possibilities, in terms of encouraging teachers to reflect on their practice, for the purpose of improvement. It argues that by discussing and analyzing vignettes, teachers can improve their practice, not only individually, but also as a team. In addition, this analysis can help schools to develop as organizations. At the end, this suggestion is supported with an example which illustrates the potential of using vignettes for improving schools, whilst, at the same time, demonstrating how the procedure might be used.     

Making Critical Connections Between Social Studies Teaching and Student Achievement Using NAEP Data Explorer

In this analysis of promising practice, we demonstrate how social studies methods instructors can incorporate data analysis of the 2010 United States History National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP–USH) to facilitate pedagogical aims, engage teacher candidates in critical discourse, and investigate the contexts of teaching and learning. The NAEP data explorer application is a valuable tool for examining social studies theory and practice in relation to student learning outcomes. Our assessment of teacher candidates' responses to the activity leads to the recommendation that NAEP data analysis and results encourage self-evaluation of instructional practices while simultaneously supporting critical interpretations of the NAEP exam.     

Discovering Functional Programming Through Imperative Languages

The pedagogical desirability of functional programming is effectively swamped by an overwhelmingly imperative‐language‐oriented culture. Because a meaningful subset of the functional paradigm is accessible within imperative languages, it is possible to identify a subset of Modula‐2 that characterizes the functional paradigm subset. A series of list‐processing problems and their solutions in the Modula‐2 subset provides students with ample exposure to the practice and theory of functional programming. Extension to the full functional paradigm and migration to specialized functional languages are managed, in the worst case by initial pseudo‐Modula‐2 programming involving hypothetical extensions supporting higher‐order functions and polymorphism. More powerful solutions to this problem are foreshadowed, in the form of preprocessor implementations of Modula‐2‐ and Ada‐derivative functional languages.     

Participatory principles in human inquiry: ethics and methods in a study of the paradigm shift experience

In this paper, underlying principles for guiding participation in human science research are outlined. These research principles were originally utilized as a guiding framework for the author's phenomenological study of the change to a new world‐view identified as the paradigm shift (Dudley, 1987). Using this study as an example, the paper focuses on the integration of participatory concepts in research. The concept of participation as ethics discussed in this paper includes the following dimensions: integrity congruence among problem, paradigm, and method; process‐orientation a commitment to research as a shared journey of discovery; empathetic relationships an ethic of mutuality; and empowerment in community a view of knowledge as communal achievement. Finally, a participatory ethic is discussed in terms of its congruence with values that are at the heart of the new social science paradigm.     

Early Literacy Measures for Improving Student Reading Achievement: Translating Research Into Practice

The importance of early literacy instruction and its role in later reading proficiency is well established; however, measures and procedures to screen and monitor proficiency in the area of early literacy are less well researched. The purpose of this study was to (a) examine the technical adequacy and validity of early curriculum-based literacy measures, Letter–Sound Correspondence, Onset Phoneme Identification, and Phoneme Segmentation, developed for use within the problem-solving model in the Minneapolis Public Schools and (b) describe the district-wide implementation of these measures. In general, these measures were found to have adequate reliability and validity, have moderate to moderately high correlations with criterion measures (oral reading, report cards), and be sensitive to growth across the school year. A case study of how these measures are used for screening and progress monitoring to improve reading achievement within 1 school is included. Limitations and future directions are also presented.