Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2024, Curriculum and Instruction Mathematics Education (Education)

Mathematics is central to human activity and hence to education. Although the usefulness and importance of mathematics are unquestioned, many students find mathematics difficult, uninteresting, and dry. Based on my personal experience as a mathematics teacher, teacher educator, and researcher, I have witnessed numerous students expressing their dislike for school mathematics. There is a lack of research specifically exploring the perspectives of students who dislike mathematics. In this research, I explore the factors contributing to the dislike of mathematics and identify ways to mitigate these factors. The study comprises of two phases: the first phase explores students' perspectives on their dislike of school mathematics and the contributing factors. The second phase explores aspects of the undergraduate Quantitative Reasoning (QR) course that help mitigate this dislike. I chose the undergraduate Quantitative Reasoning course for its emphasis on innovative educational approaches such as real-world connection, project-based learning, and formative assessment. In this study, I selected a purposive sample of undergraduates who self-reported their dislike of school mathematics in the Spring of 2023 at a university in Midwestern part of the United States. Fifteen (15) participants took part in the Phase 1 of the study, and 14 continued and completed Phase 2. For each phase, I conducted a semistructured interview of each participant, one at the beginning of the semester and another near the end, except for one participant there were two interviews for Phase 2. Each interview lasted for about one hour. The interviews were audio or audio-video recorded and transcribed and coded using NVivo, a qualitative transcription and coding software. In Phase 1, most students first developed a dislike of mathematics in experienced elementary school, struggling particularly with multiplication and division. This dislike deepened in the middle and high school with subjects like (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Gregory Foley (Advisor); Allyson Hallman-Thrasher (Committee Member); Michael Kopish (Committee Member); Gordon Brooks (Committee Member) Subjects: Mathematics Education

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2010, Curriculum and Instruction: Educational Technology

This paper adds to the literature on student-centered teaching in higher education, answering the question of what is expected of instructors for them to teach in a student-centered manner. Building upon the existing literature regarding student-centered teaching, this paper defines a construct of student-centered teaching. In addition, two versions of a data collection instrument have been developed to measure the student centeredness of higher education instructors' teaching approaches, utilizing self-reported data. This paper also adds to the discussion on whether student-centered teaching is related to the teaching context or teacher demographic variables. Results indicated that there was no practically significant relationship between student-centered teaching and any of the contextual or demographic variables; course discipline and instructor sex were, however, statistically significant. This study took place within the context of a cultural change initiative at The University of Toledo, in which the university is creating a culture of student-centeredness.

Committee: Berhane Teclehaimanot (Committee Chair); Robert Sullivan (Committee Member); Gregory Stone (Committee Member); Leigh Chiarelott (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Higher Education; Teaching

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, East Asian Languages and Literatures

Framing the learning and use of foreign language as “performed culture,” this dissertation explores ways to train learners into performers who can embody physical interaction in their language use. In this dissertation, the researcher compares the pedagogy of performance as implemented in the performance-oriented Chinese language classroom to the instructional techniques used by kunqu practitioners to train performers of Chinese theatre. The dissertation synthesizes data from a study, involving classroom observations and interviews with students, as a source for considering the implementation of methods and techniques in the Performed Culture Approach to Chinese language pedagogy. The dissertation describes the tools of transmission in Chinese kunqu theatrical performance training, drawing connections between these two performance-oriented pedagogical endeavors. The researcher clarifies the role(s) of the Chinese language instructor in a physical performance-centric language learning environment and makes pedagogical recommendations regarding the training of teachers in the Performed Culture Approach. Through this dissertation, the researcher contributes to the theoretical foundations of the Performed Culture Approach to foreign language pedagogy and provides a practical analysis of the effects such pedagogy can have on learners. The dissertation concludes with practical recommendations for teacher training, including training modules on how teacher trainers can guide foreign language teachers to incorporate physicality into performable textbook dialogues to teach culturally specific behaviors. Foreign language teachers will benefit from this research by learning how a pedagogy of bodily performance positively impacts students' understanding of the target culture and language, and students will benefit from their teachers' fortified pedagogical approach by experiencing embodied language use that is culturally appropriate, meaningful, and memorable.

Committee: Xiaobin Jian (Advisor); Patricia Sieber (Committee Member); Mari Noda (Committee Member) Subjects: Foreign Language; Pedagogy; Teacher Education; Teaching; Theater

PHD, Kent State University, 2018, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies

The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to examine how college foreign language instructors implement communicative language teaching (CLT) to teach beginner-level classes across six foreign languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Russian, and Spanish. Multiple data collection methods were used to gather the data: one electronic survey, 48 classroom observations, document analysis, and a semi-structured interview with each participant. Findings revealed that the instructors' implementation of CLT was limited as a few CLT features occurred across the six classes, including providing positive feedback and accepting students' errors.Only two instructors (Chinese and German) used the target language extensively and used visual aids to support students' comprehension.There were several factors that hindered the instructors' ability to implement CLT: lack of teaching preparation and experience, lack of teaching freedom, the predominance of structure-based activities in the textbooks, the instructor's domination of the classroom communication and interaction, the instructor's explanation of language rules explicitly, and the classroom layouts. The findings also revealed that language differences played a role in implementing CLT. Five language instructors (Arabic, French, German, Russian, and Spanish) reported that it was challenging to implement CLT when teaching inflections in these highly inflected languages. By contrast, the Chinese instructor reported that the simplicity of Chinese grammar helped her engage students in communicative activities.The Chinese instructor's concern was teaching pronunciation and to what extent her implementation of CLT was effective in giving students feedback on their pronunciation errors. The implications of this study point to the need for strategies and techniques, such as using visual aids and follow-up questions to maximize the use of the target language and enhance the implementation of CLT in the classroom.Th (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Denise Morgan Ph.D. (Committee Co-Chair); William Bintz Ph.D. (Committee Co-Chair); Jessie Carduner Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Foreign Language; Teaching

Master of Arts and Education, University of Toledo, 2013, Spanish (Foreign Languages)

Research is beginning to emphasize the importance of the lexicon in second language acquisition. The purpose of this action research study was to determine if providing Spanish 1 students with illustrations during Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Story-Telling instruction would help them to retain short and long term lexical knowledge. Participants included 67 Spanish 1 middle school students from a rural school district in Southeast Michigan. Data implied that illustrations were useful for short term lexical retention but not for long term lexical retention. Future research is necessary to make the results more generalizable.

Committee: AnChung Cheng (Committee Co-Chair); Leigh Chiarelott (Committee Co-Chair); Kathleen Thompson-Casado (Committee Member) Subjects: Foreign Language; Secondary Education; Teaching