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Teaching Contexts: ELL Project in Tanzania, Survey Research Curriculum, Computer Science Programming with Logo, and Resources for Gifted/Regular Education
by Thomas Walsh PhD
tomwalshjr@gmail.com
Home Page Contents:
I. Tanzania, Africa Teaching & AJOTE Publication
II. The Survey Toolkit - Key Curriculum Press with McGraw-Hill Publication
III. Exploring Computer Science with Lynx a Logo Computer Systems, Inc. (LCSI) Publication
IV. Exploring Computer Science with MicroworldsEX a Logo Computer Systems, Inc. (LCSI) Publication
V. Teacher Resources for Elementary and Middle School General Education and the Extended Learning Program (ELP)
I. Tanzania, Africa Teaching & AJOTE Publication
Instructional seminars was provided by Walsh through the Bethesda Lutheran Church Tanzanian ministry organization on teaching strategies and conversational English at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania (ELCT) secondary schools in the Pare region of Tanzania, Africa. Primarily secondary teachers representing Muslim, Maasai, and Christian faiths attended the inservice training. The staff development included training and support in the use of computer technology available at the schools, donated from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg, Germany. The seminars were provided at the dioceses schools in 2006, 2008, 2011, and 2014. Strategies to Promote English Language Conversation in Tanzania, Africa resource guide was written to support the training program. Publications in the African Journal of Teacher Education (AJOTE) discuss the training methodology and program provided to teachers located at the five schools in the mountain area of northern Tanzania. A Rotary Vocational Training Team (VTT) grant was completed in 2016 in which the program curriculum, with Walsh and three trainers, was used to provide staff development to teachers at four government and one Islamic school in Tanzania.
Find out more about the program by selecting the AJOTE publication button links. Information and the resource guide Strategies to Promote English Language Conversation in Tanzania, Africa was updated (2015-2020) and can be accessed to download by selecting the Download Guides button.
Strategies to Promote English Language Conversation in Tanzania, Africa resource guides and information
II. The Survey Toolkit - Key Curriculum Press with McGraw-Hill Publication
The Survey Toolkit* (Walsh, 2009) is a methodology, with lesson plans with activities, to guide student development of a survey research project. The scientific inquiry approach guides students in choosing a research question; developing and giving the survey; writing hypotheses; analyzing survey data using TinkerPlots; and sharing report summary results. The teaching methodology and development of the curriculum for Implementing The Survey Toolkit and TinkerPlots is reported in The Journal of Statistics Education (JSE) and Educational Research Highlights in Mathematics, Science and Technology publications. The Survey Toolkit Resource Manual supports the main resource guide with chapter readings and student activities with a URL link below for downloading. Find out more about the program curriculum and resources by selecting the button links.
Order The Survey Toolkit Publication (McGraw-Hill) and Program Description
Author's book profits support educational organizations (e.g., Tanzania, Africa teaching project)Journal Resource: Implementing Project Based Survey Research Skills to Grade 6 ELP Students with The Survey Toolkit and TinkerPlots in JSE Publication Vol. 19 No. 1 (March 2011)
Journal Resource: Implementing The Survey Toolkit and TinkerPlots published in Educational Research Highlights in Mathematics, Science and Technology 2017
The Survey Toolkit Resource Manual (c) 2011-2019 (pdf download)
View in the window page below by scrolling down pages. Select the right corner icon to download.
SurveyToolkitResMan2011-2019.pdfThe SurveyToolkit Resource Manual (link for additional information)
III. Exploring Computer Science with Lynx a Logo Computer Systems, Inc. (LCSI) Publication
Lynx is the next generation of Logo coding, after MicroworldsEX, developed at Logo Computer Systems, Inc. (LCSI). The Lynx platform is a cloud-based text-based programming environment for student coders, at the elementary and middle school level, to share projects across the curriculum. Lynx provides an early student coding foundation experience prior to going on to other languages like Python and Java Script. Information about Lynx and access to guides and resources is available using the button link below. The curriculum guide Exploring Computer Science with Lynx was edited from the earlier MicroworldsEX version for the Lynx platform and is available below.
IV. Exploring Computer Science with MicroworldsEX a Logo Computer Systems, Inc. (LCSI) Publication
Exploring Computer Science with MicroworldsEX* (Walsh, 2013-2017) is a published LCSI e-book for teaching Logo using MicroworldsEX. Students learn in a MicroworldsEX program environment to create geometry based graphics and programming projects. The e-book was developed from the author’s 25-year Logo teaching experience with students, along with dissertation research and journal publications supporting use of guided instruction for learning Logo programming. The program curriculum has been used with high ability students at the elementary and middle school level at Iowa State University Early Outreach Program (OPPTAG) in 2015-2019. NOTE: Exploring Computer Science with Lynx is replacing the Microworlds Logo version at LCSI.
V. Teacher Resources for Elementary and Middle School General Education and the Extended Learning Program (ELP)
Walsh has been an educator and teacher for almost four decades teaching primarily at the elementary level, including instruction and facilitating the Ames Middle School Extended Leaning Program (ELP) working with high ability students. Some of the activities used in the classroom have been uploaded to the site for teacher use. These files include reading strategies (e.g., Peer Assisted Reading or PALS), writing strategies (e.g., biographies and classroom publishing lesson) and math activities (i.e., TinkerPlots activity and text on teaching probability lessons). Select the EdDocResources button to view and download (pdf) files of curriculum resource activities and web links (updated in 2022) used by Walsh in the classroom.
Updated July 2023