Melanie Shoffner's research while affiliated with James Madison University and other places
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Publications (16)
The paper explores how preservice ELA teachers’ expectations of teaching compare to the reality of their experiences during the first year of teaching. The authors consider common concerns of beginning ELA teachers and their implications for teacher self-efficacy. The paper is informed by narrative research, which provides practical and specific in...
Study abroad programs offer undergraduate students multiple benefits by providing academic, professional and personal learning experiences that cannot be fully replicated in the domestic university setting. Recognizing the unique positioning of preservice English teachers participating in a London summer study abroad program, the author created a q...
This chapter shares two English teacher educators’ use of self-study to examine the integration of technology and literacy in two English Language Arts methods courses. The purpose of this self-study was twofold: (1) to examine how technology was specifically used in two methods courses and (2) to consider how that usage informed preservice teacher...
During the 2005 Conference on English Education (CEE) Summit, English educators identified the importance of responding to linguistically and culturally diverse learners in the English classroom. The integration of English language learner (ELL) issues throughout and within the methods course is one way to successfully prepare secondary English pre...
English language learners (ELLs) are a rapidly growing population in the United States, accounting for 9.1 % or 4.4 million students in public K-12 schools (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2015). By the year 2025, ELLs are predicted to make up 25 % of the student population (National Education Association [NCES], 2005), with the largest...
This article explores the place of teacher dispositions in English teacher preparation by contextualizing the issue of dispositions in English teacher preparation. This allows consideration for the importance of developing professional dispositions during English teacher preparation by recognizing that various stakeholders (teacher educators, unive...
We examine preservice mathematics teachers' conceptions of writing as a tool for learning mathematics before and after participation in and reflection on writing tasks. We describe the use of two targeted activities incorporated into a secondary methods course: writing to learn mathematics (WTLM) and reflection on that writing. Prior to participati...
The use of and reflection on writing prompts in mathematics education can allow pre-service teachers to enhance their own mathematical knowledge and broaden their understanding of students’ learning needs. In this paper, we share results from a study with secondary pre-service mathematics teachers who were asked to respond to writing prompts relate...
If teaching is a complex act, it is additionally complex for first-year teachers’, who enter with the same responsibilities as veteran teachers yet encounter specific difficulties as beginning teachers. This paper uses existing research on beginning English teachers major concerns to frame the exploration of concerns faced by four beginning teacher...
Conceptions of literacy in the secondary English language arts classroom today have expanded in multiple directions, moving far beyond former emphases on reading comprehension and writing ability. This article presents the efforts of two secondary English language arts teachers in the Midwestern United States to expand the meaning of literacy in th...
The authors believe that by working together, teachers and school counselors can better support students and more effectively work for their success. In this article, we present our efforts in creating a collaborative class for preservice English teachers and school counselor interns. While offering an overview of English teachers and school counse...
Emotions and emotional states play an important role in learning to teach, encouraging teacher educators to consider the place of the affective domain in preservice teacher preparation. Preservice teacher reflection provides a means by which to constructively explore the affective domain in teacher preparation. This article draws from two qualitati...
Although numerous benefits to teaching and learning are associated with reflective practice, reflection is not a common professional behavior among practicing teachers, despite the flexibility of approach and application. Teacher educators continue to explore meaningful options when engaging pre‐service teachers in reflective thinking. The author,...
Teaching with technology is a complex issue, at best, bound by issues of access, funding, support and time for both students and teachers (Young & Bush, 2004). When English teachers effectively integrate technology into their classrooms, however, they have the opportunity to positively engage students in the learning process. Considering the specif...
Citations
... Teachers' expectations for responsive classroom management include inclusivity, quality, positive teacher-child relationships, personal and professional teacher competence, and instructional support. Teachers' expectations are influenced by their previous knowledge and experiences, and these expectations affect classroom practices and climate (Noel & Shoffner, 2019;Rubie-Davies & Peterson, 2010). It is noteworthy that the expectations of novice and experienced teachers differ. ...
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... Within the literature, teacher-focused study abroad programs have been found to foster a greater appreciation of diversity (Kyei-Blankson & Nur-Awaleh, 2018;Pence & Macgillivray, 2008;Stachowski & Sparks, 2007); generate increased empathy for and understanding of the difficulties faced by English Language Learners (ELLs) (He et al., 2017;Lindahl et al., 2020;Pilonieta et al., 2017); and offer valuable exposure to educational practices and philosophies outside of the home country (Baecher & Chung, 2020;Vatalaro et al., 2015). Additionally, research on educator study abroad has found benefits of increased confidence (Mikulec, 2019;Shoffner, 2019) and an awareness of "how culture and language relate to each other, as overlapping systems of meaning" (Smolcic & Katunich, 2017, pp. 51-52). ...
... Further, our research brings together factors that have been fairly separate bodies of research to better understand the dynamics amongst them. First, studies about professors' use of technology (Boche & Shoffner, 2017;Cheok et al., 2016) have not simultaneously explored professors' preparation of teachers for integrating technology into K-12 instruction as well. Second, amongst studies that examine how professors' characteristics are related to their technology use (Adnan & Tondeur, 2018;Christ et al., 2017;Meyer & Xu, 2009), only a couple of studies have also examined how institutions' characteristics are related to professors' technology use (Birch & Burnett, 2009;Kenney & Newcombe, 2011). ...
... Kganetso, 2016;Louie & Sierschynski, 2015;Sharma & Christ, 2017) and the notion of culturally-linguistically relevant pedagogy to facilitate the English and literacy learning in the mainstream classroom (see e.g. Islam & Park, 2015;Ladson-Billings, 1995;Lucas & Villegas, 2013;Lucas, Oliveira, & Villegas, 2014;Lucas, Villegas, & Freedson-Gonzalez, 2008;Nash, Panther, & Arch-Boardman, 2017;Oliveira & Shoffner, 2009). ...
... The positive outcome may be attributed to the nature of the medium used for reflection. In a particular study done by Shoffner [11] a significant factor that influenced students' choice of medium for reflection is the ease of use and accessibility. Students preferred to use a medium that is convenient and accessible for them. ...
... Although writing-to-learn studies are conducted in mathematics, they do not meet our criteria for inclusion. Either they are conducted before 1999 (Crocker, 1992;Kasparek, 1993), or they are not focused on effects of writing-to-learn instruction on students' insight and topic knowledge, but for instance on the teachers' skills to implement writing-to-learn in math class (Akkus & Hand, 2011;Eaton & Wade, 2014;Kenney et al., 2014). Why are effects of instruction in writing-to-learn barely studied in mathematics? ...
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... Given the variation in results and the significance of the topic, there is a need for further studies to determine the factors affecting teachers' attitudes towards the profession (Müller et al., 2009;Rimm-Kaufman & Sawyer, 2004;Schussler et al., 2010). Such studies can help teacher education programs in their efficacy to develop positive attitudes among student teachers towards the teaching profession (Jain, 2007;Parylo et al., 2015;Shoffner et al., 2014;Schussler et al., 2010). ...
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... This has a significant value because the information students absorb comes from huge resources with multiple formats on the internet, and thus, they will explore their literacy and language skills wider instead of the discrete ones. In this case, it is then expected that today's English classroom goes beyond single literacy, yet diverse areas exist in literacies, such as technology, multimedia, relationship, and culture (Shoffner et al., 2010). As a result, students are encouraged to perceive digital literacy as a predominant skill and to be the basis for supporting their language learning in today's era. ...
... In the classroom, writing assists students in constructing new knowledge through activities such as exploration, representation, investigation and justification (Countryman, 1992). Being a planned and conscious process, it strengthens current knowledge while building new connections at the same time (Kenney et al., 2013;Kuzle, 2013). Pugalee (2001) notes that in order to express one's thoughts through writing, inner speech has to be compressed maximally by connecting current knowledge to the new knowledge gained. ...
... Findings indicated that preservice teachers needed ample experience in methods courses in evaluating critically the effectiveness of various technologies to teach the English language arts in order to transfer those skills into field placements and beyond. Shoffner, M. (2007). Preservice English teachers and technology: A consideration of weblogs for the English classroom. ...
