Office Hours:

  • Tues., Th. 10-12, Wed. 10-11, & by appointment
 
 
Home › Ella Cline Shear School of Education › Leigh O'Brien

Leigh M. O'Brien

Professor

Ella Cline Shear School of Education

 South Hall 222-D
1 College Circle
Geneseo, NY 14454
585-245-5396
obrienL@geneseo.edu

Leigh O'Brien

Dr. O'Brien has been a member of the Geneseo Faculty since 2006.

 
Faculty Information

Education

  • D. Ed., The Pennsylvania State University
  • M.Ed. + B.S., The Pennsylvania State University

Employment

  • Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ (9/1/04 – 5/30/06)
  • Nazareth College, Rochester, NY (8/91 – 8/04)

Research Interests

* Democracy and Education * Teacher Education/teacher identity * Inclusive early childhood education

Publications

  • O’Brien, L. M. (2011). “Holding the talking piece gives me a chance to make a sentence out of what I am thinking”: Children’s responses to the use of Peace Circles at one primary school in the U.S. Citizenship Education Research Network Collection.
  • O’Brien, L. M. (2010). Speaking our selves: The intersections of women educators’ personal and professional lives. Current Issues in Education, 13 (4). On line at http://cie.asu.edu/ojs/index.php/cieatasu
  • O’Brien, L. M. (2010). Caring in the ivory tower: Using one-to-one initial meetings to build student-professor relationships. Journal of Teacher Education, 15(1), 109-115.
  • O’Brien, L. M., Novinger, S., & Leach-Bizari, A. (2007). What does it mean to be a “good” early childhood teacher? An analysis of themes in application essays submitted to two early childhood education teacher certification programs. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 28 (3), 205-217.

Affiliations

  • American Educational Research Association (AERA)
  • The Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE)
  • National Association for Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE)
  • Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI)
My Classes

Eced 352:
Intro to Early Childhood Educ

    This course presents an introduction to current issues and trends in the education and development of young children, such as accessibility and quality of child care, infant/toddler programs, television viewing, bilingual education, and violence in children's lives. Students also become acquainted with various advocacy strategies, program options and child care policies. As a broader context for this introduction, the history of early education is examined and community involvement is encouraged. A field study of an early childhood program is required. Prerequisites: EDUC 214 and ECED 351 or permission of instructor. Offered once per year

Eced 355:
Diversity&Inclusion-EC Classrm

    The focus of this course is on understanding young students with disabilities and the effect of the disability on growth, development, and the teaching/learning process. Emphasis will be placed on selecting/modifying appropriate teaching strategies that are congruent with the young child's development and cultural environment for use in the preschool or early primary grades. Children with various types of disabilities or special needs will be examined including those who are gifted and talented, those with limited English proficiency, and those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Attention will be given to State Education Department regulations, various service delivery models, assistive technology and work with parents, administrators, and ancillary personnel. Prerequisites: CURR 213, CURR 316, and ECED 352. Offered once per year

educ 354:
Family & Community

    This course focuses on the role played by families and the community in children's development and the service networks designed to assist young children and families in adapting to their worlds. Factors affecting today's family structure are addressed. Particular emphasis will be placed on effective methods of communicating with parents and caregivers. Students will be expected to select and apply appropriate strategies for working with a wide array of parents including those from culturally diverse backgrounds. Attention will also be given to ways of establishing quality parent education/involvement programs. Prerequisites: ECED 353 and ECED 355 for Early Childhood Education; CURR 313 and CURR 317 for Childhood Education. CURR 313, CURR 317, CURR 320 and SPED 383 for Childhood with Special Education.