The Equity Studies Research Center at Queens College is delighted to announce that five faculty members have been selected to serve as research associates for the spring 2007 semester. A mission of the Center is to create and examine, on both theoretical and practical levels, avenues toward equitable academic and professional opportunities for urban youth and their families. The work of the research associates is focused on a variety of activities that aid in promoting equitable access to education. Their projects are as follows:
Dr. Alpana Bhattacharya, Assistant Professor, will be conducting an analysis of Bengali and English middle school students’ word spelling and syllable underlining performances in an effort to create appropriate literacy instruction for multilingual children.
Dr. Jacqueline Darvin, Assistant Professor, will be designing and implementing staff development programs and conducting research on the use of CPV’s, cultural and political situations, in assisting teachers to practice the decision-making skills needed when working in diverse classrooms.
Dr. Jennifer Eddy, Assistant Professor, will be conducting an analysis of world language teachers and program directors’ beliefs, expectations, and concepts of performance assessment, curricular design, and best practices in an effort to obtain a better understanding of how language learners are assessed and how to apply best practices when implementing a program.
Dr. Mary Q. Foote, Assistant Professor, will be examining what are the equity and diversity issues that surface as teachers discuss their own mathematical thinking and that of children in their classrooms in an effort to create appropriate professional development training for elementary school mathematics teachers.
Dr. Natalis Guy Wamba, Associate Professor, will be examining whether paraprofessional-turned-teachers make effective instructors according to five key instructional behaviors (lesson clarity, instructional variety, task orientation, engagement in the learning process and student success rate) and five helping behaviors (using students’ ideas and contributions, structuring, questioning, probing, and developing teacher-learner relationships) as identified by educational researchers and considered essential for effective teaching. His work is part of a larger study which examines whether paraprofessionals are better prepared than traditional graduates of teacher education programs to work in high need school districts.
Once again, congratulations to the faculty on their achievement. We wish them continued success and look forward to updating you on their activities in the near future.
