Assignment 2: Identity & Classroom Culture Analysis

Purpose

This assignment allows you to analyze how teacher and student identities shape classroom culture. Building on Dena Simmons TED Talk and the Module 2 Identity & Classroom Culture Brief: Culturally Responsive Teaching, Identity, and Belonging (Whitfield), you will explore how emotional safety, belonging, and culturally responsive practices influence student engagement and success.

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Task Instructions

Write a 350500 word analysis that synthesizes ideas from:

• Dena Simmons talk: How Students of Color Confront Impostor Syndrome
• Module 2 Identity & Classroom Culture Brief (Whitfield)

Your analysis must address:

1. How student identity and belonging influence engagement and academic confidence.
2. How teachers can create emotionally safe, identity-affirming classrooms, using at least one idea from the Whitfield brief.
3. One specific culturally responsive action or strategy you plan to use in your own future classroom to affirm diverse student identities and reduce impostor feelings.

Your writing should be clear, reflective, anchored in the assigned materials, and aligned to APA expectations.

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Formatting Requirements

• Length: 350500 words
• Double-spaced, Times New Roman, 12 pt
• APA 7 formatting (in-text citations + reference list)
• Submit as PDF or Word document

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Submission Requirements

Upload your file directly to Canvas.
Only PDF or DOCX formats will be accepted.

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Due Date

• Due: Sunday, February 8, 2026 @ 11:59 PM
• Grace Period: Monday, February 9, 2026 @ 8:00 AM
• Opens: January 26, 2026

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Grading (50 points)

Assessment will be based on:

• Integration of Simmons key ideas
• Effective use of the Module 2 brief
• Depth and clarity of analysis
• Connection to culturally responsive practice
• APA accuracy
• Professional quality of writing

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Standards Alignment

• InTASC Standards 2 & 3
• CAEP Standard 1
• GSU Conceptual Framework: Knowledge, Skills, Dispositions

The purpose of the discussion forum is to create a collaborative learning space where ideas are shared, explored, and refined through meaningful dialogue. While instructor-generated questions may serve as a starting point, the discussion forum should not limited to responding to prompts alone. Students are encouraged to engage critically with the reading, connect concepts to personal and professional experiences, ask thoughtful questions, and respond constructively to peers.

Students will be assessed on the quality of their contributions, depth of reflection, engagement with course concepts, and responsiveness to classmates. Active, thoughtful participation that advances the conversation and supports collective learning is expected.

Here are some questions to get the conversation started…

1. How have you experienced self-directed learning in your own academic or professional life?
2. Which component of the SDL dimension do you find most challenging, and why?
3. How can the principles of Garrisons model be applied to online, hybrid, or workplace learning environments?
4. What are potential limitations or criticisms of Garrisons self-directed learning model?
5. Do you think all learners are equally prepared for self-directed learning? Why or why not?
6. How might cultural, institutional, or personal factors influence a learners ability to be self-directed? About me and learning: I am working on my second masters. I love to seek information and learn more, I am a hands-on learner, and I motivate myself by thinking of the end goal. I work at my own pace better, and interactive learning is beneficial as well. I am an educator in an inner-city high school. I work with seniors and promote independence.

Module 4 Evidence Portfolio

In this module, you will submit a Module Evidence Portfolio that examines professional responsibilities, collaboration, and reflective practice as essential components of instructional leadership.

The target evaluation lens for this module is LAER Domain IV Professional Responsibilities.

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Portfolio Requirements

Your Module 4 Evidence Portfolio must include all four sections outlined below.

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Section 1: LAER Target Statement

Identify the primary LAER domain and relevant indicators addressed in this module. Clearly explain how your professional focus aligns to LAER Domain IV Professional Responsibilities.

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Section 2: Artifacts (Two Required)

Submit two authentic artifacts drawn from your residency practice that demonstrate professionalism and reflective practice.

• Artifact 1: Professional practice artifact
  (e.g., mentor feedback, observation conference notes, professional communication summary, PD reflection)
• Artifact 2: Evidence of reflection or professional growth
  (e.g., self-reflection notes, revised practice based on feedback, collaboration documentation)

Artifacts must be clearly labeled and briefly explained to demonstrate alignment to the target LAER domain.

Refer to the Acceptable Artifacts by LAER Domain page in Module 0 for guidance.

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Section 3: Leadership Reflection

Length: 300400 words

Write an analytical reflection aligned to LAER Domain IV. Your reflection must:

• Reference both artifacts
• Examine how professional responsibilities and collaboration influenced practice
• Analyze how reflection and feedback informed instructional growth

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Section 4: Professional Action Step

Length: Up to 200 words

Identify one specific, actionable step you will implement to strengthen your professional practice. Explain how this step supports continued growth aligned to LAER Domain IV.

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Submission Format

• Submit one document (Word or PDF)
• Use the Module Evidence Portfolio exemplar as a guide
• Ensure all student and school information is de-identified

Part 1)

Answer the questions below about the Due March 1 (End of Day)

What would say this article is more of a how article, a why article, or both? Remember that a how article emphasizes how something should be taught or learned and a why article emphasizes why something should be done.

What is the author’s main argument? Respond using this sentence starter: “In this article, the author argues that …” Please state the whole argument in your own words in 1-2 sentences total.In this article, the author argues ___________.

In this article, the author explains __________.

In the article, the author identifies __________.

In the article, the author advocates to __________.

What evidence did the author use to support her argument? In other words

o Did the author collect data by observing an early literacy classrooms?

o Did the author use data previously collected by other researchers?

Why do you think the author chose to conduct this study?

Part 2) what is the authors argument ? Quote or detail to support the argument ( for the two articles attached )

Annotated Bibliography Assignment Instructions

Overview

For this assignment, you will select a topic of study for the Literature Review Assignment. Your chosen topic must focus on a curriculum and/or curriculum leadership issue. Careful selection of a topic is important since this paper may be useful later in your doctoral program by forming a base for the dissertation.

Instructions

Once you have identified your topic of study, complete an annotated bibliography of 10 scholarly sources that provide scholarly research surrounding your selected topic. Scholarly sources for research include recent articles, case studies, peer-reviewed works, and seminal theorists. The research sources should have been published within the last 5 years, with seminal theorist sources allowed to be older.

Each annotated bibliography source must include current APA style citations and a minimum 1-paragraph summaryor annotationof the source that critically analyzes the work. The annotation you provide for each source must be a thoughtful reflection that relates the selected content to the selected topic of study.

Refer to the Sample Annotated Bibliography for Graduate/Doctoral Students resource provided with this assignment for an example of how your annotated bibliography is to be formatted.

An appropriately formatted title page is required, and organizational leveled headings, spacing, and margins should follow current APA format. Before submission, be sure to view the grading rubric for this assignment and follow all included writing expectations.

Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.

Research Design Project: Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Pre-Matrix Table Assignment Instructions

Overview

The main assignments for this course are wrapped into the Research Design Project. This project has three pre-matrix tables that will inform three matrices. Each table and matrix address basic and applied research that is quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, action research and/or program evaluation. For each table, you will be finding education research articles on the same topic using the specified research design(s). For the matrices, you will be identifying methods information and critiquing the studies. This assignment helps you learn how to evaluate research, identify the main components of good research, and start building your literature review. You will use the articles approved in Modules 2-4 during Modules 5-7.

Instructions

You will submit 2 documents for this assignment:

• RDP: Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Pre-Matrix Table
• Zip-file with all of your articles (Naming convention: RDP QUAL MM Articles)

For the RDP: Qualitative and Mixed-Methods Pre-Matrix Table, you will

1. Select 3 research study articles published in a peer-reviewed journal related to your topic of interest.
   1. All articles must be educational studies published within the past five years.
   2. All articles must be on the same or connecting subject matter.
   3. Articles cannot be literature reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analyses or meta-syntheses, any other type of review or synthesis, longitudinal studies, instrument validation studies; all research evaluated must be original/single empirical research. Reports and dissertations are not allowed as they are not peer-reviewed journal articles. .

• Each of the 3 articles should have a different research design. You must select:
• For 1 and only one of your article searches, you are required to use artificial intelligence (AI) to find and verify your article.
• Be sure to download every article and save it in a folder on your computer. You may be asked to produce the article if the instructor has any issues downloading it. This will also ensure that the article is real!

1. Basic Research Article Qualitative (QUAL-B)
2. Basic Research Article Mixed Methods (MM-B)

And 1 of the following:

1. Applied Research Article Qualitative (QUAL-A)
2. Applied Research Article Mixed Methods (MM-A)

NOTE: Applied research cannot be using the action research design

a.You may only use M365 Copilot, LUs approved source for AI.

b.You may ONLY use AI to complete the components in the pre-matrix table for that single study.

c.You will identify for which research design component you used AI and include a copy of your conversation after your reference section in the template.

d.Please remember that AI is not always correct and you have to use your knowledge gained for the week in determining whether AIs information is usable or if you have to reprogram.

e.Remember to download the article!

Microsoft Copilot Software As a student, you have access to this tool as part of the Microsoft 365 software package. You can also access it from your myLU account > IT Marketplace > Scroll down to Microsoft 365 Software (under IT Marketplace Software).

HELPFUL INFORMATION

For help finding articles in general, refer to the Read: Suggestions and Tips for Determining Research Designs in the Learn section of this module for more information.

Any sections requiring textbook support must use the textbook from this course.

For help determining the research design for qualitative research (e.g., narrative, grounded theory, case study, phenomenology, ethnography), refer to the Read: Qualitative Research: Common Types of Data Collection, Analyses, and Research Design

For help determining the specific mixed methods research design used, please use your textbook readings, PowerPoint slides, videos, and the Read: Qualitative Research: Common Types of Data Collection, Analyses, and Research Design in this module and the Read: Quantitative Research: Common Types of Analyses and Research Designs in the previous module.

It is highly recommended that you search for articles in your capstone interest area. Additionally, higher-tiered journals are preferred over lower-tiered journals as they provide better information from top experts. The link to the tiered rankings can be found in the Resource section of the assignment description.

Using the provided Research Design Project Qualitative and Mixed Methods Pre-Matrix Template, provide the following information in a paraphrased format.

In the table

oArticle type

oArticle reference (must hyperlink DOI/URL)

oNarrative in-text citation

oParenthetical in-text citation

oRationale with support from article for how you know it is basic or applied (include page/paragraph number)

oSpecific research design (e.g., Qualitative-phenomenological, case study, grounded theory, narrative, etc.; Mixed Methods-identify what is quantitative and what is qualitative as well as the specific mixed method research design)

oRationale with support from article for how you know the design is correctly identified (include page/paragraph number)

oRationale with support from the textbook for how you know design is correctly identified (include page number)

oAI Identification if used for the study to AI Conversation heading which has already been bookmarked)

After the table

oYou will answer a few questions about how research design is encapsulated in a biblical worldview. You must include Bible verses to support each of your answers.

Reference page: Include references for Bible sources

AI Conversation (already bookmarked in template): You can go to the AI conversation in M365 Copilot and copy and paste it under this heading. I encourage you to copy and paste along the way in the event of a technological issue. See separate M365 Copilot Conversation document in the assignment instructions. This document provides information on how to hyperlink and copy information.

Current APA formatting is expected throughout your paper (see the APA Help Sheet or the link to the the APA Style Guide in the Resource section of the assignment description).

The Research Design Project Qualitative and Mixed Methods Pre-Matrix Table Sample has been provided for your reference.

Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.

Research Designs: Basic, Applied, and Evaluation

	Basic	Applied
Purpose	Purpose is to acquire or produce new knowledge or expand on existing knowledge based existing theories and previous literature	Purpose is to find solutions to practical or specific work-related problems by exploring the value of basic research knowledge (for decision-making in schools and policymaking)
Theoretical Connection	Theory selected to test a hypothesis (quantitative) or frame (qualitative) a research study	Existing theory, models or guidelines is selected to address the problem being explored
Types	Types can be exploratory, descriptive, or explanatory as the goal is to understand and explain things. Sometimes it may look like program evaluation, but it is an efficacy study	Types can include action research, research and development, and program evaluation studies (effectiveness/impact) where the goal is to solve a problem. Program evaluation judges the program, its strategies, or its processes to improve effectiveness and/or efficiency to see if it is meeting the needs of a school/school district
Findings	Findings are more generalizable to larger populations	Findings are more pertinent to the demographics of the sample studied
Designs Used	Quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods used to design study and determine sampling, data collection, and analysis. Usually in an artificial setting such as a laboratory or a highly-controlled authentic setting	Quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods used to design study and determine sampling, data collection, and analysis. Usually in an authentic setting like a classroom or school

Note: Adapted from tables and information in our textbook in Chapters 1 and 9. Kitsantis, A., Cleary, T. J., DiBenedetto, M. K., & Hiller, H. E. (2023). Essentials of research methods for educators. SAGE Publications, Inc.

Course Project: Annotated Bibliography Sources 1 8 Assignment Instructions

Overview

You will complete two annotated bibliography assignments during the course that will serve as the research foundation of your final paper. You will submit the first one in this module and the second one in module 4:

Course Project: Annotated Bibliography Sources 1 8 Assignment (8 sources)

Course Project: Annotated Bibliography Sources 9 Assignment (8 sources)

Instructions

Each annotated bibliography must follow the current APA format and include the number of scholarly sources required in the assignment title.

You are to include eight references with full citations and annotations in this assignment. You may use the references that you used in the Course Project: Develop a Topic Assignment. You will need to create a different syntheses table (or tables) than you used in the Develop a Topic assignment because the headings will be different in the final draft/final paper. There are sample templates included in the module for this, or you can create your own using an Excel spreadsheet.

At least five of the scholarly resources you provide for each assignment must be current and published in the last five years. The others must have been published within the last 10 years. These must be empirical, peer-reviewed journal articles and professional books. All sources must be directly related to your research topic.

Place your topic at the top of page 2 of the annotated bibliography. Under the topic, write the full citation for the reference, followed by the annotation. The text in the annotations must be indented so that the authors last name is the only text that is flush left due to the hanging indent required in current APA format.

Each entry should include:

1.An APA formatted reference.

1. An annotation summarizing the main points in the reference.
2. A statement of how the information will be beneficial and contribute to the final draft you will be writing in the Course Project: Final Paper Draft Assignment and the final paper in the Course Project: Final Paper Assignment. The explanation of how you will use the information in your final paper should be written in 1^stperson. What benefit does this source provide? What section might it contribute to? Do you see any interplay between this source and others you have selected? In what section of my paper can I use this information?

In the resources summary, focus on the purpose of the research study/reference and the findings/conclusions. You do not need to include the details of the research study, such as the number of participants or the research method used. The annotations are designed to help you and your instructor better understand how your sources connect to your research topic. The summary of the main points of the reference should be written in 3^rd person. No in-text citations are needed in the summary because all of the information is from the reference you are annotating, and the citation is above the annotation.

Note: Do not cut and paste from the references, as this constitutes plagiarism. Most of the time, this occurs as an innocent oversight on the part of the candidate. Regardless of the reason, in the event of plagiarism, you will receive 0 points for the entire assignment per Liberty Universitys policy on academic dishonesty.

Formatting Requirements

Each annotated bibliography must have a title page with a running head and page numbers, following the current APA professional format.

No abstract is required. No reference list is required.

Each annotation must be 150 words.

• Annotations must be organized alphabetically, by reference.

Important Notes

• In addition to these instructions, consult the grading rubric for details on grading and quality. Refer to the Course Project: Annotated Bibliography Sample located under the Assignment Directions in this module for a sample paper that is written and formatted correctly.
• A research paper is not a summary of the main points of each source written in separate paragraphs. When information is synthesized, the reference information from all of the different scholarly references is combined. You put together the ideas and findings to put your voice (the writers voice) to the overall points being explained. You must keep track of and document the information used in each section of the paper by taking notes as you read and then transferring your notes into a synthesis table.
• As you read and annotate references, you will start to see different themes or subtopics emerge. An effective way of documenting information for these different themes and subtopics is to use a note-taking method and then move your notes into the table. This will assist you in synthesizing or combining the information from the different references when you write the final draft. This was explained in the Develop a Topic Assignment. There are sample synthesis tables that you can use in this module, or you can use an Excel spreadsheet. You can move the information from the synthesis table you created for the Develop a Topic paper into the synthesis table (or tables for this assignment).

Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.

I am a student in an education program and would like an in-depth explanation of how technology and media can be used effectively in teaching and learning. Please explain the benefits, challenges, and practical classroom examples, especially in language teaching or general education contexts.

EDPT 514: Assessment Strategies for Diverse Learners

Chapter 3: Descriptive Statistics

Part I.

1. In this set of data, what measures of central tendency are represented by the number 77?65, 66, 82, 95, 77. Answer:

1. If the heights of all fifth-grade elementary students in one large city were measured, in what manner would the resulting data be displayed? Answer:

1. Why is the following set of data interesting? 22, 47, 88, 62, 65, 22, 63, 89, 55, 74, 88, 99, 44, 65, 100. Answer:

1. In a university, all students are given a new student identification number upon registration. These numbers are on what scale? Answer:
2. All fourth-grade students in a Little City School were asked to participate in a reading contest to see which students could read the most books in a three-month period. At the end of the three months, the winners were determined. The ten students who read the most books were awarded prizes. On the final day of the contest, the students anxiously looked at the list where the names were in___, from the highest number of books read to the lowest. Answer:
3. The mean, median, and mode make up ___. Answer:
4. A seventh-grade pre-algebra class completed the first test of the new school year. Here are the data resulting from the first test: 100, 99, 95, 90, 89, 85, 84, 82, 81, 80, 79, 78, 77, 76, 70, 68, 65, 62, 60, 59, 55. In this set of data, what does the number 45 represent? Answer:
5. The following set of data has what type of distribution? 88, 33, 78, 56, 44, 37, 90, 99, 76, 78, 77, 62, 90? Answer:
6. A set of data has a symmetrical distribution of scores with the mean, median, and mode represented by the number 82. This set of data represents a ___. Answer:
7. What term describes a set of data in which the mean is less than the most frequently occurring scores? Answer:

Part II. Statistical Calculations

1. Rank orders the following data. Complete a frequency distribution and a frequency polygon. Calculate the mean, median, and mode. Find the range, variance, and standard deviation. Identify scores that are significantly above or below the mean.

Data Set:

85, 85, 99, 63, 60, 97, 96, 95, 58, 70, 72, 92, 89, 87, 74, 74, 74, 85, 84, 78, 84, 78, 84, 78, 86, 82, 79, 81, 80, 86

Mean:

Median:

Mode:

Range:

Variance:

Standard Deviation:

Scores that are a significant distance from the mean are ( 1 SD):

Part III. Multiple Choice Items (Please highlight or underline the correct response)

1. When students enroll in school and are provided with an identification numbera combination of letters and numbersthis number is on the ___ scale.

1. Students who participated in the science fair were ranked by category and received first-, second-, and third-place ribbons.This is an example of what type of scale?

1. This scales numbers are used for identification that ranks greater or lesser quality or amount.The numbers are equidistant on the scale.

1. This scale is used for direct comparisons and mathematical manipulations.The numbers on the scale are equidistant from each other and have a true meaning of absolute zero.

1. Which number is representative of a raw score?

• Total test items = 25
• Correct answers = 20
• Incorrect answers = 5
• Ratio = 20/25

1. This term is used when a national sample of students of the same age/grade take the same assessment and establish a mean and standard deviation.

• Norm-referenced
• Standardized
• Derived scores
• Measures of central tendency

1. Organizing data to see how the data cluster is called

• Measures of Dispersion
• Measures of Central Tendency
• Frequency
• Normal Distribution

1. Organizing data to see how the data spread away from the mean is called

• Measures of Dispersion
• Measures of Central Tendency
• Frequency
• Normal Distribution

1. What does the vertical line in the normal distribution represent?

• Median
• Mode
• Mean
• Central tendency
  • 4.11
  • 10
  • 79.33
  • 16.8889
  • 4.11
  • 10
  • 79.33
  • 16.8889

Using the information below, answer the questions that follow.

Miss Bridget teaches in a small learning support class.The follow are the data from a recent math assessment from three of her students:84, 80, 74.

1. What is the variance?

1. What is the standard deviation?

• A graph of class data is below.What is this type of graph called?

• Frequency distribution
• Normal distribution
• Bell curve
• Frequency polygon

Using the bell curve below, answer the questions that follow.

b.

a.

1. Point a on the normal distribution represents the IQ cut-off score for which disability category?

• Learning disability
• Gifted
• Mental retardation
• Autism

1. Point b on the normal distribution represents the IQ cut-off score for which disability category?

• Learning disability
• Gifted
• Mental retardation
• Autism
  • 69
  • 63
  • 26
  • 67

Using the data set below, answer the questions that follow.

Score	Tally	Frequency
76	lllll	5
72	l	1
69	l	1
68	ll	2
67	l	1
52	l	1
51	l	1
50	l	1

1. What is the mean?

1. What is the mode?

• 26
• 76
• 68
• 69

1. What is the median?

• 69
• 76
• 26
• 67

1. What is the range?

• 50
• 76
• 29
• 63
  • Positive skewLarge number of scores occur below the mean.
  • Positive skewLarge number of scores occur above the mean.
  • Negative skewLarge number of scores occur below the mean.
  • Negative skewLarge number of scores occur above the mean.
  • Positive skewLarge number of scores occur below the mean.
  • Positive skewLarge number of scores occur above the mean.
  • Negative skewLarge number of scores occur below the mean.
  • Negative skewLarge number of scores occur above the mean.
  • 14% of the students in that age/grade.
  • 84% of the students in that age/grade.
  • 85% of the students in that age/grade.
  • 15% of the students in that age/grade.
  • Decile
  • T-score
  • Stanine
  • Z-score
  • Decile
  • T-score
  • Stanine
  • Z-score

1. What type of distribution is depicted below?

1. What type of distribution is depicted below?

1. A person who scores at the 85%tile scored as well or better than ___.

1. When the mean score is represented as 2, what type of score is this?

1. What type of score is derived when scores are divided into 10 groups, and each group represents 10% of the obtained scores?

1. A person with an obtained IQ score of 115 would have a z score of:

• +1
• +2
• 0
• -1

1. What is the percentile rank that is equivalent to the mean?

how to increase STUDENTS LEARNING ATTITUDE DEVELOPIN CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT AND ITS EFFECTON THEIR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT