Scholarship & Research
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/1
Browse
5 results
Search Results
Item Deepening human connection and understanding through diverse visual narratives in the ELA classroom(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2022) Erickson, Tasheena Mesha Angel; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Allison Wynhoff OlsenFor too long graphic narratives and film have been marginalized and excluded from English language arts (ELA) classrooms. Along with these modalities, the over use of the literary canon in classrooms has prevented voices of diverse races and cultures from being represented or heard in the stories teachers share with their students. This paper dives into all three of these topics: graphic narrative usage, film usage, and most importantly, diversifying the texts included in ELA curriculum. After presenting findings on each of these topics, an inclusive thematic framework has been included as a suggestion, a guide to teachers who wish to move away from the canon and towards a classroom that recognizes people across races, across cultures, and across modalities. This thematic framework includes text set suggestions, film suggestions, a grading guide for choice projects, and lists of questions that will help guide both students and teachers in their journeys to recognizing the human behind all stories.Item The ball's in your court: the effect of sports in rural English classrooms(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2020) Reierson, Elizabeth Anne; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Allison Wynhoff OlsenEducation in rural areas is affected by the place in which the education takes place. This affects how students interact with the community as well as the classroom. The most visible way in which the community interacts with the school is through spectating at high school games. The author interviews four English teachers in rural eastern Montana to explore the ways in which community, school, English classrooms and sports interact. Educators noted that while sports had many benefits, there was no sports literature being explicitly taught or being directly incorporated into the classroom. Furthermore, absences caused by school athletics create a tension between academic needs and extracurricular expectations. These absences are directly affecting the ways in which English teachers create their curriculum. The author offers next steps for teachers looking to create a connection between classroom and community through athletics.Item A critical review of genre based instruction in a writing and research course for second langauge graduate students(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2014) Mahoney, Shannon Kathleen; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Doug DownsThis study examines a recently developed EAP (English for Academic Purposes) course that was largely guided by the genre based instruction promoted by Swales and Feak and outlined in the textbook used in the class: 'Academic Writing for Graduate Students' by Swales and Feak. Although the theory behind and the acclaim for genre based teaching has received significant attention in literature in EAPs, limited studies have been published about its application in EAP programs for graduate students at language institutes. This project aims to contribute to filling that gap by outlining a course taught at an independent language school in Bozeman, Montana in the summer of 2014. The study looks at the ways sentence level and other larger textual features developed in the students' writing in response to the classroom activities, assigned independent work, and regular student conferences. The results indicate that to varying degrees and in varying areas student writing developed during the course. The study concludes that although the type of genre based instruction used in the course may pose some challenges for a class situated outside of the students' discipline and without disciplinary support, there is still much to be gained from it.Item Shakespeare and the English methods course(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2010) Long, Danette Marie; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Lisa EckertThis paper investigates the perceived lack of performance pedagogy in Shakespeare instruction in the secondary classroom, the role of active performance pedagogy for pre-service teachers when considering Shakespeare instruction in the English methods course, and student reactions to performance requirements in the Shakespeare classroom. Specifically, it argues the need for methods instruction to include actively engaging pre-service teachers in various types of performance pedagogy: tableaux, performing of scenes, choral readings, etc. in their preparation for future Shakespeare instruction at the secondary level. The focus of this paper is therefore threefold: to investigate the nature of the English methods course and how it approaches teacher candidates' Shakespeare instruction, to the benefits of performance-based pedagogy at the secondary level, and finally, student reactions to performance requirements in the Shakespeare classroom. To this end, I followed a mixed methods (Creswell, 2003) approach, blending both quantitative and qualitative data for evaluation. Methods of data collection included instructor surveys, student surveys both pre- and post-performance, student performance reflection papers, student rehearsals and student performances.Item Stolen identity(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2007) Shober, Kacie Ann; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Kirk BranchStudents' previous experiences have contributed to their loss of voice in writing. Through the examination of historical events that occurred within the basic reading and writing classroom, a significant separation between students and what is deemed as academically appropriate writing is apparent. By exploring the dynamics of students and the established curriculum, the argument can be made that through a multigenre project students are able to reconnect with writing and rediscover their voice.