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The purpose of this study was to determine how I, as a future teacher, can best combat inequities in technological access and fluency in my future classroom. In this study, I explored a range of literature on the role of technology in the classroom, the digital divide in home and

The purpose of this study was to determine how I, as a future teacher, can best combat inequities in technological access and fluency in my future classroom. In this study, I explored a range of literature on the role of technology in the classroom, the digital divide in home and school settings, and variance in digital literacy. Additional insight was gained through interviews and observing school faculty in three public school districts in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. This provided a better understanding of local context in order to gain a sense of the national and local realities of the digital landscape as they relate to educational equity in the educational settings where I aim to serve as a certified teacher.
ContributorsJakubczyk, Nicole Marie (Author) / Foulger, Teresa (Thesis director) / Barnett, Juliet (Committee member) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
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Inclusive education has become a global movement through the policies of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (e.g., Salamanca Statement). These policies led many developing nations to adopt these policies in their national policy agendas. Turkey has developed inclusive education policies that deal with the education of students

Inclusive education has become a global movement through the policies of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (e.g., Salamanca Statement). These policies led many developing nations to adopt these policies in their national policy agendas. Turkey has developed inclusive education policies that deal with the education of students with disabilities (SwD). However, although SwD are the largest group who are marginalized and excluded from educational opportunities, there are other groups (e.g., cultural-linguistic minorities) who experience educational inequities in access and participation in learning opportunities and deal with enduring marginalization in education. This study examined a) Turkish teachers’ and parents’ conceptualizations of inclusive education for diverse groups of students, namely SwD, Kurdish students (KS), and girls, who experience educational inequities, b) how their construction of students’ identities influenced students' educational experiences in relation to inclusive education, c) how their stories revealed identities, differences and power, and what role privilege played in marginalization, labeling, and exclusion of students within conceptualizations of inclusive education. I used cultural historical activity theory (Engeström, 1999) and figured worlds (Holland et al., 1998) to understand the teachers’ and parents’ interpretations and experiences about inclusive education. This qualitative study was conducted in four different schools in Maki, a small southwestern city in Turkey. A classroom photo, with a vignette written description, and a movie documentary were used as stimuli to generate focus group discussions and individual interviews. I conducted classroom observations to explore the context of schooling and how students were positioned within the classrooms. Classroom artifacts were additionally collected, and the data were analyzed using a constant-comparative method. The study findings demonstrated that students had different equity struggles in access, meaningful participation, and having equal outcomes in their education. The education activity system was not inclusive, but rather was exclusive by serving only certain students. SwD and girls had difficulty accessing education due to cultural-historical practices and institutional culture. On the other hand, Turkish-only language policy and practices created tensions for KS to participate fully in education activity systems. Although stakeholders advocated girls’ education, many of them constructed SwD’s and KS’ identities from deficit perspectives.
ContributorsKilinc, Sultan (Author) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Thesis advisor) / Kozleski, Elizabeth B. (Thesis advisor) / Swadener, Elizabeth Blue (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
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Definitions of quality child care are subjective, depending on who is defining quality, and constructions of quality remain a contested issue in the early childhood field. There are multiple ways of defining quality child care, most of which are from the perspectives of researchers, policymakers, and professionals. Few studies of

Definitions of quality child care are subjective, depending on who is defining quality, and constructions of quality remain a contested issue in the early childhood field. There are multiple ways of defining quality child care, most of which are from the perspectives of researchers, policymakers, and professionals. Few studies of child care quality take into consideration parents’ perspectives of what quality child care means to them and what they deem as important for the wellbeing of their children (Ceglowski & Davis, 2004, Duncan et al., 2004, Harrist et al., 2007, & Liu et al., 2004). This study compared parent perspectives to criteria for assessing child care used in Quality First, a statewide quality improvement and rating system for providers of center-based or home-based early care and education, to better understand the gaps drawing from ecological theory (refs – add these) and discuss the consequences of these different perspectives.

This study utilized a comparative qualitative analysis of ways in which parents and state agencies view determinants of child care quality. The data for this study were collected from interview responses to open-ended questions on a larger mixed-method study with parents of children under the age of 6 from the Central Arizona area. The quality indicators used by Quality First included the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS-R), Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS-R), Family Child Care Environment Rating Scale (FCCERS-R), and the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS), which were analyzed and compared to parent descriptions of quality factors in child care.

The findings of this study contribute to the discussion of ways in which parents’ perspectives are similar and different to that of quality rating scales, in this case those used by Quality First, and how the gap may be contributing to unintended consequences. In the study, I noticed that parents were more inclined toward affect qualities as quality indicators whereas the Quality First had more structural qualities as quality indicators. This led to the addressing of the need to bridge this gap to have a more comprehensive understanding of quality child care to meet different needs as identified by parents and professionals.
ContributorsCharania, Sharmeen (Author) / Swadener, Beth B (Thesis advisor) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Committee member) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014