Browsing by Author "Babinski, Leslie"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Embracing Culture and Connection: Asset-Based Approaches and Multilingual Learner Parent-Teacher Relationships
    (2023-04-25) Zimmerman, Sarah
    Although strong parent-teacher relationships are pertinent to students’ achievement and well-being, there are many common barriers to effective parent-teacher relationships, such as miscommunication and misalignment of beliefs or expectations. This study investigates one possible way to overcome these challenges: increasing teachers’ understanding of families’ cultural wealth and the application of that knowledge utilizing asset-based approaches. Through a secondary analysis of survey data collected from 23 classroom teachers and 44 parents, this study examined how teachers’ incorporation of families’ cultural wealth into the classroom and their interactions with families impacts parent perspectives on the parent-teacher relationship (as measured by communication, cultural wealth, parental engagement). The results of multi-level modeling showed no significant effects of teachers’ inclusion of cultural wealth (specifically familial or linguistic capital) into the classroom or relationships on parent sentiments regarding communication, cultural wealth, or parental engagement. The findings showed meaningful medium-sized effects of teachers speaking a little bit of Spanish on all three measured aspects of the parent-teacher relationship. These findings suggest measuring specific components of cultural wealth requires complex and nuanced measures with multiple sources of information (e.g., qualitative interviews, observational data) to capture the relationships between multilingual families and teachers.
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    How the Building Blocks of Reading Shape a Classroom: Teachers’ Perspectives on Phonics amid Science of Reading Initiatives
    (2024-05-28) McDougal, Abigail
    After decades of failed U.S. initiatives to boost reading outcomes, North Carolina’s 2021 Excellent Public Schools Act has put forth a plan to train teachers according to the Science of Reading as a solution. Existing research shows strong evidence that instruction aligned to the Science of Reading, like a sequential phonics curriculum, can help to close achievement gaps for at-risk readers. The Central Park School for Children (CPSFC) in Durham, a charter school built on a project-based learning (PBL) model, allows individual teachers to choose whether to implement systematic phonics instruction. At CPSFC, disparities in scores based on race and socioeconomic status remain on par with Durham Public Schools, despite school efforts to increase equitable access to high-quality education. Still, leveraging PBL's benefits at CPSFC means supporting teacher independence wherever possible. This mixed-methods project examines how Grade 1 and Grade 2 teachers’ decisions on whether to adopt an explicit, systematic phonics curriculum relate to their students’ success in reading. The statistical analysis uses two-sample independent t tests to evaluate how growth in overall reading comprehension varies, comparing classes regularly receiving systematic phonics instruction with those that do not. For 2021-2023, Grade 1 students at CPSFC who scored lower in foundational decoding skills achieved significantly greater reading growth in classes with systematic phonics than those without phonics. For Grade 2, the 2022-2023 data indicates that students at CPSFC showed significantly more improvement in reading comprehension within classes with no phonics instruction, regardless of whether they had mastered grade-level decoding skills. Three of eight teachers for Grades 1–2 agreed to answer survey questions, and all three who responded use phonics regularly in the classroom. Common factors cited in their motivation to teach phonics include access to trainings and instructional resources, the need to support struggling readers, and benefits for the whole class. Based on the findings, this report recommends strongly prioritizing phonics in Grade 1 and deemphasizing its importance in Grade 2. Potential steps forward include allowing teachers to switch grades based on their preference of whether to teach phonics and directly discussing the equity implications of different modes of instruction.
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    Learning Languages in Cyberspace: A case study of world languages programs in state virtual public schools
    (2018-12-05) Zhou, Yue
    Learning foreign languages has not been a priority of U.S. K-12 education. National enrollment rate in World Languages courses remains low due to lack of funding, course offerings, and qualified teachers. The rapid development of virtual education in recent years provides potential solutions to challenges faced by World Languages programs but stakeholders also question the effectiveness of the virtual classroom. This mixed-methods case study provides an overview of World Languages programs in state virtual public schools nationwide and examines specifically North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS) and its World Languages program. Analyzing the course offerings, enrollment pattern and enrollment changes of the NCVPS World Languages program over the last decade, the study finds that the program has made less commonly taught foreign languages more accessible to students and has benefited students from rural school districts in its initial years. The survey responses of NCVPS World Languages teachers along with four expert interviews reveal that the online program enjoys more resources such as private donation and partnership with universities compared to face-to-face classrooms. Many teachers expressed that the online and part-time nature of the program give them great flexibility. Analysis of teacher survey response also finds that holding students accountable is among the greatest challenges of virtual learning. Teacher opinions are mixed regarding whether learning a language online is better than learning in face-to-face classrooms.
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    Participant Perspectives of the School Readiness Planning Process
    (2011-08) Gifford, E; Evans, Kelly; Babinski, Leslie; Foster, Audrey
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    Pay for Success: Lessons Learned from Salt Lake and NC
    (2017-05-12) Warrier, Anu
    To expand social programs and access nontraditional streams of funding in fiscally conservative times, advocates have turned to use the Pay for Success (PFS) mechanism. In Salt Lake County, Utah, Pre-K advocates from different backgrounds decided to use PFS, also known as a Social Impact Bond (SIB), to expand a high quality Pre-K program in the County. In North Carolina, PFS was considered by government officials in early exploratory stages but was not developed further. This study discusses the challenges in development, launch, sustainability, and legacy of PFS by investigating Salt Lake’s Pre-K PFS project and North Carolina’s progress in PFS. In- depth key informant interviews were conducted with 18 stakeholders and scholars. The interviewees from Salt Lake and NC discuss the necessary conditions for PFS, the proper safeguards to take in cases of Pre-K as well as non Pre-K PFS, and the larger conversation around evidence-based policymaking. Overall, the findings from this study suggest that PFS should be considered a means to an end—an incomplete solution in what needs to be a larger context of cross-sector partnerships and long-term sustainable solutions.