Category: Education

Assignment Guidelines

APA: All assignments should follow the APA style manual, 7th edition.

Initial Action Research Action Plan:
Using the knowledge earned through your investigation and research into your DiP Problem of Practice,
our course materials and content, and materials and content from prior courses (e.g., the logic model from
EDU 972, your CCSOA from EDU 921), develop an initial action plan to help orient the intervention
stage of your DiP work. This assignment follows the same logic, approach, and format of the work you
started during the very first week of asynchronous coursework. It also constitutes the foundation of your
final project, the Final Action Research Action Plan, which should, ultimately, make a nice contribution to
your DiP. So, taking this work seriously now will pay dividends. Don’t let its simplicity fool you.
– Use the two tables provided.

Initial Action Research Action Plan Assignment Guidelines
a. Using the knowledge earned through your investigation and research into your
DiP Problem of Practice, our course materials and content, and materials and
content from prior courses (e.g., the logic model from EDU 972, your CCSOA
from EDU 921), develop an initial action plan to help orient the intervention stage
of your DiP work. This assignment follows the same logic, approach, and format
of the work you started during the very first week of asynchronous coursework. It
also constitutes the foundation of your final project, the Final Action Research
Action Plan, which should, ultimately, make a nice contribution to your DiP. So,
taking this work seriously now will pay dividends.

Academic engagement through active participation in instructional activities related to the course objectives is paramount to your success in this course and future courses. Through interaction with your instructor and classmates, you will explore the course material and be provided with the best opportunity for objective and competency mastery. To begin this class, review the course objectives for each Topic, and then answer the following questions as this will help guide your instructor for course instruction.
Which weekly objectives do you have prior knowledge of and to what extent?
Which weekly objectives do you have no prior knowledge of?
What course-related topics would you like to discuss with your instructor and classmates? What questions or concerns do you have about this course?
Participating in classroom discussions is paramount to the learning experience. Participating in the weekly discussions allows students and instructors to share experiences, investigate complicated subject matter, share expertise, and examine the content from new perspectives. The qualitative participation requirements are Follow-up responses to classmates’ initial answers or responses that integrate course theories with a practical application of the subject, offering a personal observation or experience, referencing real-world examples, or current events, or presenting current research on the topic.
Classroom interaction demonstrates deeper or broader thoughts beyond rephrasing what the textbook has presented on the topic.
Responses encourage further discussion and ongoing dialogue with other students and the instructor in the class.
Asking additional, relevant questions about the week’s topic.
Communications that are presented in a professional and supportive manner, and with a respectful tone.
The participation expectations in this class are:
Number of Required Substantive Posts Each Day: 1
Number of Required Days: 3
Topic 1: Perspective: Changing Lenses
Feb 2-8, 2023
Max Points:
30
Topic 2: The Education Pendulum
Feb 9-15, 2023
Max Points:
300
Topic 3: Diversity in Education
Feb 16-22, 2023
Max Points:
30
Topic 4: Global Education
Feb 23-Mar 1, 2023
Max Points:
30
Topic 5: Technology in Education
Mar 2-8, 2023
Max Points:
235
Topic 6: Leadership Strategies
Mar 9-15, 2023
Max Points:
30
Topic 7: Best Practices in Education
Mar 16-22, 2023
Max Points:
315
Topic 8: Predicting Future Trends in Education
Mar 23-29, 2023
Max Points:
30

Virtual Field Trip Project
To familiarize you with field trip procedures and make known to you the
purpose of field trips, you will be responsible for planning a hypothetical virtual field trip for a grade of
your choice (PreK-6). Be sure to think through all the fine points and give specific details in your paper.
Before you begin.
Virtual Field Trip
• Choose a virtual field trip for your “class” to experience. There are many excellent
options on a variety of topics. There are some good choices on the links below, but do not feel limited to these. Remember to include the link to your trip in your project.
• Include detailed descriptions of the hypothetical classroom including the grade level
(PreK through grade 6), the number of students (male and female) and learning styles or
special considerations for this specific group of students. Assume your class is diverse, with students
from various backgrounds and experiences. Include these details in your description. Assume you have at least one student with a special learning need (ELL, learning disability, struggling reader, etc).
Describe this student and how you will meet his/her needs as you prepare and implement this
virtual field trip.
Virtual Field Trip Description
• What trip did you choose and why? Provide a detailed description of the
trip. Include exactly what the students will experience. You will need to “take” the trip before your students experience it. Will the students experience the trip in one day or will it take several days?
What learning opportunities does this trip provide students? What materials will you need to guide their
instruction and learning? What equipment is needed to make this experience the most valuable for the
students?
Provide the link to your trip.
• List and explain the Alabama Course of Study objectives that correlate
with the educational reason(s) for this field trip.
• Provide the specific educational objectives for this experience. What should the students be able to do after this experience? How will you monitor learning?
Before, During and After
• Describe what activities the students would engage in before the virtual trip to prepare them for the experience. What prior knowledge will they need before the “trip”? How will you prepare them for this experience?
• Describe what activities the students would engage in during the trip. How will they experience the
trip? Will the students have choices? Will students experience the trip “alone” or in small groups? Will they interact with each other? If so, how? Is the virtual trip recorded? Is it offered in “real time”? What is your role in facilitating the trip?
• Describe the activities the students would engage in after the field trip to ensure that the field trip was as meaningful as possible and to assess student learning. What will they do to show their learning? Make sure this connects with your learning objective(s).
Parent Letter or Blog Post
Reflective Paragraph:
• Reflect on what you learned from this project. Write a reflective paragraph outlining what you learned and how you could use this experience to help you plan for your future students. Include what you see benefits of planning virtual field trips. What advice would you offer other teachers who would like to
plan a virtual field trip?
Resource List
• List any resources provided by the “destination” that will help you plan your “trip”. Include any
information from this source that you can use in your planning or activities. Include any resources that you use. It is certainly fine to get information from other teachers, journals, reference materials or
websites, but remember to credit these sources.
Writing Errors:
**Note: As stated in the syllabus, teachers are professionals and are expected to be
proficient in all areas of writing, therefore there will be a deduction of one point for each writing error.
Use professional language. Avoid using contractions or conversational language.

Select one of the lesson plans and rewrite it. Think of it as you are “editing” the author’s work. Your rewritten plan should reflect on what you thought about in questions 1-2 “Compare the lesson plan elements described in the text. What is missing? What should be re-written? Why?”

Prompt: Discuss how you currently involve parents/families in your classroom. Describe one specific new strategy you will use in the classroom to increase parental involvement. How can the scriptures from this week aid you in the challenges of connecting the school and home environments?
John 21:1-14
 Proverbs 16:16; 22:6
 Romans 12:12; 1:20
 Mark 10:13-16

A. Identify the following three dimensions in the attached “Introduction to Oceans Lesson Plan”:
1. Specific science and engineering practices (e.g., SEP1-Asking Questions and Defining Problems, SEP2-Developing and Using Models)
2. Specific cross-cutting concepts (e.g., CC1-Patterns CC5-Energy and Matter)
3. Specific disciplinary core ideas (e.g., PS2A-Forces of Motion, LS1D-Information Processing)
B. Explain how each of the three dimensions work together in the lesson plan to support student learning.
C. Explain how technology could be infused into the attached “Introductory Activity” at each level of the SAMR Model (i.e., substitution, augmentation, modification, redefinition).
D. Develop a formative assessment strategy for the lesson plan that will check for three-dimensional science learning. Submit both a summary of the strategy and the actual formative assessment you have developed.
1. Predict at least two potential student misconceptions about the topic addressed in the lesson, including your reasoning for the predictions.
2. Describe how the formative assessment could identify the predicted misconceptions.
3. Explain what you could do to resolve each of the predicted misconceptions.
E. Compare formative assessment and summative assessment by doing the following:
1. Explain how each type of assessment can be used to check for student understanding in the lesson plan.
2. Explain how each type of assessment could be used to adjust future teaching of the lesson plan.
F. Create a pre-assessment and post-assessment that will demonstrate whether students have gained scientific knowledge or corrected their previous misconceptions as a result of the lesson plan. Submit both assessments as part of this task.
Note: The pre-assessment and the post-assessment can be the same assessment tool. If this is the case, there is no need to submit the same test twice. Simply provide that information with your submission.
1. Explain how you would use the data from the pre-test and post-test to monitor and adjust future teaching.
G. Explain how you would differentiate instruction in the lesson for each of the following groups:
Note: This may include instructional strategies, learning tasks, or assessments.
a. Gifted and Talented students
b. English Language Learner (ELL) students
c. Students with Other Special Needs.

Use all library databases available to you locate a journal article on the posed topic to critique.
Reading and Thinking
• Read the article slowly. Don’t criticize anything just yet. Try to really understand the
author’s logic rather than questioning it.
• Mark key points and transitions as you read. Try to isolate at least one central point in
each paragraph.
• Review introductory and closing sections closely. Think about how the author moves
from opening statements to conclusions via the body of the article.
Writing
• Begin your written analysis with a blanket statement summarizing what the author does
in the article. Sometimes the author explicitly gives you his or her agenda in the introduction and/or in the conclusion. You should be able to relay this in one or (maybe)
two sentences.
• Summarize the key ideas used by the author in achieving his/her agenda. Look at the
parts of the article you have marked. Try to indicate how the author progresses from
idea to idea in the article.
• List important evidence used to support key ideas in the article. Indicate why the author
finds this evidence convincing.
Reflection
• How does the article impact your own teaching/leadership beliefs and practices?
• Identify something about your teaching/leadership that is demonstrated in the article.
• Identify something about your teaching/leadership that is different is demonstrated in the
article.
• What lingering question(s) does the article raise for you?
Finalizing
• Proofread your writing. Read it aloud. Try to use active verbs and concise modifiers.
• Verify that your analysis would be helpful to someone who hadn’t read the article. Don’t
assume that your reader can intuit what you mean by anything.
(For clarity and purpose, please include the prompt/question with each response.)

Reflect on these three characteristics:
Creating strong lesson plans
Set positive expectations for students
Strong classroom management
Which of these is your strongest characteristic? Which is the one you need the most improvement on?
Before you begin teaching, you can improve upon the areas that need strengthening and seek to find resources to make you the best educator possible.
In your paper, respond to the following:
Do you think a teacher can have one of the characteristics of an effective teacher (knows how to design lessons for mastery), but not the other two (positive expectations for students and good classroom management), and still be able to effectively deliver a lesson? Why or why not?
Describe which of the three characteristics you would like to enhance before your student teaching experience. Create a plan of action, with resources that will help you be successful.
The Strengths/Areas of Opportunity Paper
Must be four to six double-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference page) and formatted according to APA style.
Must include a separate title page.
Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph.
Must include at least 2 credible sources in addition to the course text.
Must document any information used from sources in APA style.
Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style.

In this assignment, you will review your school’s current levels of family involvement with diverse communities and identify possible gaps where family and community support would be beneficial, propose programs to fill the need, and design a communication document to invite participation.
As an equity-centered leader, you will have the opportunity to utilize your communication and advocacy skills, practice building relationships, serve as a school ambassador, and put into practice all you have learned so far about bringing diverse voices to the table.
Step 1. Research
Conduct research on best practices for building and maintaining family/community relationships and engagement with diverse stakeholder groups that are associated with improving academic and social success for students.
Step 2. Plan
Construct an agenda for the kickoff meeting of the task force. Base your agenda on the presentation you will develop in Step 4.
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Step 3. Create
Create a 10- to 12-slide presentation to guide the team meeting to communicate the charge to the team. The presentation should include:
Presentation of the research regarding best practices for building and maintaining family/community relationships and engagement with individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Discussion of the student and school community diverse demographics, vision, and goals.
Review of the school climate survey results from Module 4.
Review of current family/communication relationships and engagement programs at the school. (What are we doing?)
Analysis of current school alignment with best practices in serving diverse populations. Include results from the equity audit. (How does what we are doing fit with best practices?)
Brainstorming activities to determine additional relationship building and engagement opportunities aligned with best practices. (What could/should we be doing?)
Activity to achieve consensus on one or two schoolwide practices from the brainstorming activity to develop.
The presentation should include 10-12 slides (not including the title or reference slides) and other visuals. Use APA format for the reference slide. Access the resource linked on the Learning Objects page for suggestions.
Step 4. Communicate
Draft a letter or email that you would use to initiate contact with the prospective task force members to invite them to participate. Include a brief overview of the current state/needs, the anticipated process, the desired outcomes, why they were selected, and how to participate.
Step 5. Submit
Submit the agenda, the presentation, and the letter/email.
Optional Internship Activity for Self-Selected Hours
Collaborate with your mentor to identify 2-3 parents/legal guardians and community members and 2-3 teachers/staff to form a team. Assure the team represents the diversity of your school community. Hold either an in-person or virtual meeting with the team. Either keep or ask a team member to keep minutes for the meeting for submission in this assignment.
Introduce the meeting by reviewing the agenda. Share the slide presentation, pausing the presentation for questions, the brainstorming activity, and the consensus-building activity.
Build consensus around one possible parent/community engagement program that could be implemented at the school.
With the team, develop an implementation and communication plan for one new engagement program identified by the team for diverse stakeholders that:
Provides an overview of the program/partnership and how it supports the school mission or vision and at least one of its goals.
Provides a detailed descriiption of the selected engagement program activities/events.
Describes how it meets the needs of the diverse student population.
Describes how it utilizes the knowledge, skills, and assets of the family/community partners.
Identifies communication strategies for: 1) informing stakeholders about the program, 2) promoting the program, 3) eliciting participation from diverse individuals/groups, and 4) gathering feedback on the program effectiveness.
Identifies resources needed for implementation (human, fiscal, technology, and other resources) and timelines.

Choose one of the following issues in higher education that academic or student affairs leaders must address:
Student safety
Diversity
Faculty development
International affairs
Enrollment issues
Student debt issues
Developmental/remedial education
Student retention
Research institutional challenges related to your chosen issue.
Explore best practices for leadership collaboration in higher education.
Write a 1050- to 1400-word paper in which you explain the issue and provide recommendations for how the leadership of the academic affairs and student affairs departments can collaborate to address this issue. Your paper should:
Describe the nature of the issue.
Outline the factors contributing to the issue.
Explain the impact of the issue on students, staff, and faculty.
Recommend strategies for alleviating the issue.
Outline opportunities for collaboration between academic affairs and student affairs to address the issue. Considerations include:
What is the desired outcome for collaboration?
Who are the stakeholders? Who will interact to develop the collaboration?
What are some foreseeable problems in collaboration and strategies to reduce these problems?
Outline opportunities to collaborate with community partners to resolve the issue. Considerations include:
Funding opportunities
Mutually beneficial relationships.
Potential conflicts of interest.