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Papers by Gregorio Castro Ponce

The purpose o f this study was to analyze and synthesize the perceptions and experiences o f indi... more The purpose o f this study was to analyze and synthesize the perceptions and experiences o f individuals and groups responsible for implementing shared governance at Imperial Valley College. Consequently, this investigation sought to establish (a) who was directly involved with the governance process, (b) how the process was operationalized, and (c) the benefits, drawbacks, and unresolved issues for implementing the governance process. The design o f this investigation was a qualitative case study. Noting that the use o f multiple sources o f data collection adds to the reliability and validity o f a study, interviews, observations, documents, and the professional literature on governance were used to both gather and triangulate the data. Once all o f the data were accumulated, Guba & Lincoln's constant comparative method and Spradley's domain analysis worksheet were applied to discern the emergent categories and themes of the study. Finally, the findings were presented via a virtual roundtable discussion to provide readers with a better sense o f what was important to the stakeholders. An overall recommendation o f this study was the need to evaluate the governance processes at the state, and local levels, on an annual and biannual basis. The six major themes o f responsibilities, structures, processes, opportunities, participation, and communication, emerged from the analysis o f the data and brought forth the following recommendations: Key governance players need to (a) disclose, discern and inform governance stakeholders about their roles and responsibilities defined in statute, regulation, and policy, (b) sort out the inconsistencies created from the merging o f pre and post AB1725 governance structures, (c) generate clear, or revise vague, governance processes and insure their implementation too, (d) build upon the opportunities created by AB1725 to better guide its development and practice, (e) identify and attend to existing barriers and issues that shape the participation o f stakeholders, and (f) endorse, espouse, and ensure the use o f communication as means to enhance the flow o f information, understanding o f issues, and making o f decisions. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Dedicado a Dios y a mi familia. Dedicated to God and to my family. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I vividly remember seven years ago walking into the office o f Dr. Joseph Rost to discuss my application for USD's Educational Leadership program. "Why leadership?" he asked. "Because I can wing it only so long," I answered.

Teaching Children Mathematics, 2007

An illustration of effective instructional strategies for English Language learners. Problem solv... more An illustration of effective instructional strategies for English Language learners. Problem solving and conceptual development are discussed, along with sample problems and examples of student work.

The Mathematics Teacher, 2007

Algebra teachers find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that they have to... more Algebra teachers find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that they have to teach their students. One way to address this issue is to have teachers teach for understanding by focusing on concepts. The author shares how language can help uncover the core ideas that define the concept of function and provides activities that have been successfully used with students to introduce the core ideas and illustrate the usefulness of a function outside the classroom. Teaching functions is the vehicle for this process.

Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 2007

The addition and subtraction of integers is one of the first major avenues, and roadblocks, to st... more The addition and subtraction of integers is one of the first major avenues, and roadblocks, to student success in the learning of algebra. Unfortunately, many students cannot make, or have a very difficult time making, the transition from working with whole numbers to working with integers. Students who struggle and do not succeed in making this transition undoubtedly find themselves at a disadvantage when trying to make sense of subsequent mathematical concepts that rely on their proficiency with and understanding of the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of integers. Moreover, since “algebra is a prerequisite for virtually all other mathematics” (Usiskin 2005, p. 10), one is compelled to find ways to help students make progress with challenging material. The following activity, which has been used in the classroom, gives teachers some techniques and an effective bridge to help students overcome this initial roadblock to algebra.

Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 2008

Several activities that are based on the ancient method of false position, also called false assu... more Several activities that are based on the ancient method of false position, also called false assumption, are presented in this article as a way to motivate students to find the solution of literal equations in beginning algebra. With a historical connection, the activities described engage students in solving linear equations in a novel way. Extension exercise included.

The Mathematics Teacher, 2015

Line dancing is an effective—and fun!—way to convey core mathematical ideas.

... Click on any of the links below to perform a new search. ERIC #: EJ717773. Title: Overcoming ... more ... Click on any of the links below to perform a new search. ERIC #: EJ717773. Title: Overcoming the "Walls" Surrounding Word Problems. Authors: Ponce, Gregorio A.; Garrison, Leslie. Descriptors: Word Problems (Mathematics); Mathematics ...

2009 Latin American Web Congress, 2009

Abstract—The web contains objects that can be used to improve the learning process. However, the ... more Abstract—The web contains objects that can be used to improve the learning process. However, the task of finding these objects is hampered by a lack of tools to help users focus their searches and find what they want. This article describes the Learning Object Search Tool ...

Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 1995

ABSTRACT In this article I propose that in order to better understand leadership, people need to ... more ABSTRACT In this article I propose that in order to better understand leadership, people need to concentrate on the relationship that exists between leaders and followers, so they, both leaders and followers, can lead. This perspective of leadership is different from most of the literature on this subject which focuses, for the most part, on teaching managers, CEO's, administrators, and individuals on how to become a leader. In this article I articulate an understanding of leadership as: (a) the change that both leaders and followers intend, (b) the values of both leaders and followers that come into play, and (c) the influence that both leaders and followers bring into the relationship.

ACM Transactions on the Web, 2011

The Web holds a great quantity of material that can be used to enhance classroom instruction. How... more The Web holds a great quantity of material that can be used to enhance classroom instruction. However, it is not easy to retrieve this material with the search engines currently available. This study produced a specialized search assistant based on Google that significantly increases the number of instances in which teachers find the desired learning objects as compared to using

The purpose o f this study was to analyze and synthesize the perceptions and experiences o f indi... more The purpose o f this study was to analyze and synthesize the perceptions and experiences o f individuals and groups responsible for implementing shared governance at Imperial Valley College. Consequently, this investigation sought to establish (a) who was directly involved with the governance process, (b) how the process was operationalized, and (c) the benefits, drawbacks, and unresolved issues for implementing the governance process. The design o f this investigation was a qualitative case study. Noting that the use o f multiple sources o f data collection adds to the reliability and validity o f a study, interviews, observations, documents, and the professional literature on governance were used to both gather and triangulate the data. Once all o f the data were accumulated, Guba & Lincoln's constant comparative method and Spradley's domain analysis worksheet were applied to discern the emergent categories and themes of the study. Finally, the findings were presented via a virtual roundtable discussion to provide readers with a better sense o f what was important to the stakeholders. An overall recommendation o f this study was the need to evaluate the governance processes at the state, and local levels, on an annual and biannual basis. The six major themes o f responsibilities, structures, processes, opportunities, participation, and communication, emerged from the analysis o f the data and brought forth the following recommendations: Key governance players need to (a) disclose, discern and inform governance stakeholders about their roles and responsibilities defined in statute, regulation, and policy, (b) sort out the inconsistencies created from the merging o f pre and post AB1725 governance structures, (c) generate clear, or revise vague, governance processes and insure their implementation too, (d) build upon the opportunities created by AB1725 to better guide its development and practice, (e) identify and attend to existing barriers and issues that shape the participation o f stakeholders, and (f) endorse, espouse, and ensure the use o f communication as means to enhance the flow o f information, understanding o f issues, and making o f decisions. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Dedicado a Dios y a mi familia. Dedicated to God and to my family. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I vividly remember seven years ago walking into the office o f Dr. Joseph Rost to discuss my application for USD's Educational Leadership program. "Why leadership?" he asked. "Because I can wing it only so long," I answered.

Teaching Children Mathematics, 2007

An illustration of effective instructional strategies for English Language learners. Problem solv... more An illustration of effective instructional strategies for English Language learners. Problem solving and conceptual development are discussed, along with sample problems and examples of student work.

The Mathematics Teacher, 2007

Algebra teachers find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that they have to... more Algebra teachers find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information that they have to teach their students. One way to address this issue is to have teachers teach for understanding by focusing on concepts. The author shares how language can help uncover the core ideas that define the concept of function and provides activities that have been successfully used with students to introduce the core ideas and illustrate the usefulness of a function outside the classroom. Teaching functions is the vehicle for this process.

Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 2007

The addition and subtraction of integers is one of the first major avenues, and roadblocks, to st... more The addition and subtraction of integers is one of the first major avenues, and roadblocks, to student success in the learning of algebra. Unfortunately, many students cannot make, or have a very difficult time making, the transition from working with whole numbers to working with integers. Students who struggle and do not succeed in making this transition undoubtedly find themselves at a disadvantage when trying to make sense of subsequent mathematical concepts that rely on their proficiency with and understanding of the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of integers. Moreover, since “algebra is a prerequisite for virtually all other mathematics” (Usiskin 2005, p. 10), one is compelled to find ways to help students make progress with challenging material. The following activity, which has been used in the classroom, gives teachers some techniques and an effective bridge to help students overcome this initial roadblock to algebra.

Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 2008

Several activities that are based on the ancient method of false position, also called false assu... more Several activities that are based on the ancient method of false position, also called false assumption, are presented in this article as a way to motivate students to find the solution of literal equations in beginning algebra. With a historical connection, the activities described engage students in solving linear equations in a novel way. Extension exercise included.

The Mathematics Teacher, 2015

Line dancing is an effective—and fun!—way to convey core mathematical ideas.

... Click on any of the links below to perform a new search. ERIC #: EJ717773. Title: Overcoming ... more ... Click on any of the links below to perform a new search. ERIC #: EJ717773. Title: Overcoming the "Walls" Surrounding Word Problems. Authors: Ponce, Gregorio A.; Garrison, Leslie. Descriptors: Word Problems (Mathematics); Mathematics ...

2009 Latin American Web Congress, 2009

Abstract—The web contains objects that can be used to improve the learning process. However, the ... more Abstract—The web contains objects that can be used to improve the learning process. However, the task of finding these objects is hampered by a lack of tools to help users focus their searches and find what they want. This article describes the Learning Object Search Tool ...

Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 1995

ABSTRACT In this article I propose that in order to better understand leadership, people need to ... more ABSTRACT In this article I propose that in order to better understand leadership, people need to concentrate on the relationship that exists between leaders and followers, so they, both leaders and followers, can lead. This perspective of leadership is different from most of the literature on this subject which focuses, for the most part, on teaching managers, CEO's, administrators, and individuals on how to become a leader. In this article I articulate an understanding of leadership as: (a) the change that both leaders and followers intend, (b) the values of both leaders and followers that come into play, and (c) the influence that both leaders and followers bring into the relationship.

ACM Transactions on the Web, 2011

The Web holds a great quantity of material that can be used to enhance classroom instruction. How... more The Web holds a great quantity of material that can be used to enhance classroom instruction. However, it is not easy to retrieve this material with the search engines currently available. This study produced a specialized search assistant based on Google that significantly increases the number of instances in which teachers find the desired learning objects as compared to using