Classroom Research Projects
ETLP participants designed their research projects at our August 2008 institute. The information below is a snapshot of their work through the end of November 2008. Participants will provide a detailed overview of their projects on this web site in the late spring of 2009.
In early December, 2008, participants were asked to respond to any or all of these questions:
* What have you have learned so far from your project?
* What is the value of doing research in your classroom?
* How has the project has affected the way you think about teaching? |
| Researcher |
Project Description |
|
Reflection |
Sophie Adamson
Elon University
Foreign Languages
|
Exploring whether and how students use French language resources in their non-French academic coursework.
>Research methods
|
 |
I realize more than ever how lucky we are to have the opportunity to use our classroom as a research lab. My results may significantly affect how I view French language teaching. |
Stephen Bloch-Schulman
Elon University
Philosophy |
Investigating how students develop philosophical evidence-mindedness.
>Research methods
|
 |
I’ve recognized that my methodological questions are not mine alone, but actually run very deeply through the scholarship of teaching and learning in the humanities. |
Mark Byers
Alamance County
Western Alamance HS
Social Studies |
Determining how student learning occurs in "directed-discussion" through an analysis of student note-taking and reflection.
>Research methods |
 |
I am already observing more keenly how students attend to the class format as well as noting how they are creating and using their notes in class. |
Jeffrey Coker
Elon University
Biology |
Refining the pedagogy of student-designed experimentation.
>Research methods |
 |
I gained a better perspective on the differences between high school and college-level expectations, quality of work, and diversity. |
Ayesha Delpish
Elon University
Mathematics |
Understanding student approaches to problem-solving.
>Research methods |
 |
After hearing more about qualitative research, I tried audio-taping and while I was able to get some sense of how students were approaching the problem, I really needed to see their actions/ writing to get a clearer picture. |
Frank Felicelli
Orange County
Cedar Ridge HS
Social Studies/ History |
Investigating the affects of single-sex education in world history classes.
>Research methods |
 |
The unintended result of this is that the non-honors cohorts have seen the benefit, both boys and girls, tremendously. When they get mixed with their counterparts in the honors classes, the non-honors kids have stepped up to that challenge, and that has been eye-opening |
Christi Fitch
Alamance County
Southern Alamance HS
Science |
Analyzing how students use assessment feedback.
>Research methods |
 |
This project has already taught me a lot about my teaching and my student needs...
I have more students staying after school for review and more students understanding and mastering the goals of biology. I now go into the classroom ironically asking for more feedback from my students. Doing research in the classroom has given me a greater insight into my own teaching and is the most useful professional development any teacher could ever participate in. |
Pamela Fitzpatrick
District-wide Literacy Coach
Orange County Schools
C.W. Stanford Middle School |
Finding student voice in writing, using humorous text.
>Research methods |
 |
I am thrilled to discover that my research is so necessary to current writing scholarship. There is too little research-based information on teaching the writing process to all demographic and racial groups, particularly males. |
Megan Isaac
Elon University
English |
"Cudgel thy brains no more about it": Shakespeare and performance-centered learning.
>Research methods |
 |
I find myself rephrasing and rethinking how I present material…I have also made changes in the exams and assignments… when I initially designed the project I thought of it as a method to increase student engagement in the classroom; now I think of it as a project to increase their engagement in out of-class elements of the course as well. |
Mark Meacham
Alamance County
Williams HS
English |
Exploring word processing as writing intervention: student perception of Alphasmart vs. iBook usage when writing expository essays.
>Research methods |
 |
One of the most important lessons has to do with the nature of social science research. The child is a moving target. This makes for messy data. What this means is that I have had to alter my own perspective from one that is completion-oriented to one that is process-oriented. As the data began to show “other” trends, my original research question became irrelevant. I had to rethink the question and the design. Another thing I learned is that it is very difficult to play the role of researcher and teacher at the same time. |
Crystal Medlin
Orange County
Cedar Ridge HS
Science |
Analyzing student’s approach to problem-solving in the chemistry classroom.
>Research methods |
 |
In these last few years of my career, my philosophy of teaching has changed dramatically. The way that I view student understanding and my teaching so that they understand has changed a great deal. With this project as another layer to that I’m becoming more in tune with knowing truly where my students are. |
Jessie Moore
Elon University
English |
Investigating student perceptions of a service-learning field experience in TESOL.
>Research methods |
 |
My classroom-based research has extended my reflections about my teaching. I think I am more observant about what’s working and what’s not, and I am keeping additional informal assessment measures of students’ learning. My ETLP project has challenged me to re-implement note-taking and research journal strategies that don’t just help me as a researcher; they also help me be a more reflective teacher |
Paula Patch
Elon University
English |
Composing across contexts: Understanding the transfer of writing strategies from first-year composition to other first-year courses.
>Research methods |
 |
This finding has implications for composition studies, writing across the curriculum studies, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. |
Valerie Sellars
Alamance County
Graham HS
Science |
Exploring how feedback from diagnostic assessments is related to student mastery of concepts.
>Research methods |
 |
Doing this project it is making me reflect more. And it is making me actively seek meaningful ways to use strategies in my classroom. For the students, they are coming to me and they are asking me for work they are not getting graded for. |
Shawn Tucker
Elon University
Art |
Laughing and coping with cognitive conflict in first year college students.
>Research methods |
 |
Doing this research makes me very excited about examining how students really learn and what is actually happening in my classes. I like how this gets us beyond “traditional thinking” and “hunches” to really find out what is happening. |
