University of Southern Mississippi
Walden University
Liberty University
Aga Khan University, Examination Board
Edith Cowan University
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The Effect Of Mandating Algebra For All Students In Grade 8 Versus Grade 9 In A Small Suburban K-12 School District In New Jersey,
2018
Seton Hall University
The Effect Of Mandating Algebra For All Students In Grade 8 Versus Grade 9 In A Small Suburban K-12 School District In New Jersey, Peter Crawley
Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)
The traditional sequencing of the ninth- to twelfth-grade math curriculum in the United States has students taking Algebra 1 in the ninth grade, Geometry in the tenth grade, Algebra 2 in the eleventh grade and an optional advanced math course (e.g. pre-calculus, statistics) in the twelfth grade. In this traditional setup, talented math students are given the opportunity to take Algebra 1 in the eighth grade, which allows them to take two or more years of advanced math before graduating from high school. In an effort to create more equitable access to advanced math courses, many districts are considering ...
Supporting Student Connectedness And Social Satisfaction During Recess,
2018
Dominican University of California
Supporting Student Connectedness And Social Satisfaction During Recess, Elizabeth Teasdale Wells
Master's Theses and Capstone Projects
This project examines the effects of how recess preparation and reflection can be focused on providing students an opportunity to connect socially and strengthen overall happiness. By investigating the role social satisfaction plays in a child’s life during recess, educators may gain knowledge about how to foster social connectedness for every child. While most studies about recess focus on a child’s level of physical activity or negative behaviors, researchers have yet to investigate recess as a place to improve a child’s well-being and social satisfaction. This study was conducted at a public elementary school through qualitative interviews ...
Connecting Response To Intervention And Grade Retention: Implications For School Leaders,
2018
University of Wyoming
Connecting Response To Intervention And Grade Retention: Implications For School Leaders, Bret G. Range, Dorothy Jean Yocom
School Leadership Review
Within all classrooms of public schools, teachers greet general education students acknowledging broad differences in their learning readiness and social skills (Fuchs, Fuchs, & Compton, 2010; Martin, 2010). The needs of some students may be so diverse that educators find implementing differentiated instructional strategies with integrity extremely difficult. Many individually research-based strategies have been implemented to provide helpful instruction to all learners. This paper presents the concept of a merger between two of these strategies: Response to Intervention (RTI) and grade retention. As a result, the conceptual framework for this manuscript is anchored within the RTI and grade retention literatures, highlighting their reported ...
Leadership For The Long-Haul: The Impact Of Administrator Longevity On Student Achievement,
2018
Texas A&M University, San Antonio
Leadership For The Long-Haul: The Impact Of Administrator Longevity On Student Achievement, W. Sean Kearney, Albert Valadez, Larry Garcia
School Leadership Review
The average turnover of the principal position at public schools in the state of Texas is 3 ½ years (Fuller, Young, & Shoho, 2010). This fact raises a number of important questions. Perhaps the most important of which is also the simplest – So what? Does principal turnover matter? What is the impact of high principal turnover? Does this leadership shuffle lead to lower test scores? This study was conducted in order to find out.
Dennis Littky, The Educational Activist: Can His Model Revamp The Public Educational System?,
2018
Texas A&M University, Commerce
Dennis Littky, The Educational Activist: Can His Model Revamp The Public Educational System?, Dana Mitchell Barnes
School Leadership Review
When an individual observes a classroom of today, he will see many elements that are recognizable to anyone who attended school during the last one hundred years, students working from textbooks, repetitive worksheets, and rows of desks holding students completing tasks directed by the teacher. Even though societal and technological advancements are increasing rapidly, our school system has stayed stagnant. What this means for students is the lack of individuality, teachers’ non acceptance of personal interests, lack of personal voice, and in many cases, a non relationship between teacher and student beyond the classroom assignment (Castleman & Littky, 2007).
Framework For Understanding The Legal Structure Of Texas Public Schools,
2018
West Texas A&M University
Framework For Understanding The Legal Structure Of Texas Public Schools, Gary Bigham
School Leadership Review
Texas public school stakeholders consist primarily of students, parents, faculty and staff, administrators, school board members, business leaders, community members, and taxpayers. While each of these stakeholders has a vested interest in the local school district, many fail to understand how public schools came into existence and the legal rationale upon which they operate. The problem lies in the structural complexity of schools, which is prohibitive to a complete understanding by its entire constituency. While the multiple layers of politics and numerous laws and policies that define the Texas public school structure may be necessary for proper operation, the intricacy ...
A Messenger For Change,
2018
Hudson ISD
A Messenger For Change, Mary Ann Whiteker
School Leadership Review
It is now time for all educators to embrace the power of a social epidemic. Schools across Texas are embracing a “New Vision for Texas Public Schools”. This vision embraces schools where all students are engaged in relevant, rigorous, meaningful activities and where classrooms reflect innovation, creativity, problem-solving, collaboration, communication and critical thinking. In this new vision, daily standardized test preparation and boring fact-memorization skills are replaced with digital learning, curriculum standards relevant to real-world challenges, multiple assessments for student performance, and accountability that’s based on a combination of measures, not just one state mandated test. It is about ...
Partnering With Districts In Principal Preparation: Key Program Features In Strengthening Aspiring Principals’ Understanding Of Issues Of Equity And Excellence,
2018
Stephen F. Austin State University
Partnering With Districts In Principal Preparation: Key Program Features In Strengthening Aspiring Principals’ Understanding Of Issues Of Equity And Excellence, Betty Alford, Stacy Hendricks
School Leadership Review
The need for increased numbers of students of all ethnic groups to access and succeed in postsecondary education is a 21st century reality (Swail, Cabrera, & Lee, 2004). As Swail, Cabreraet al. (2004) reported, The act of going to college and earning a degree is more important than ever to today’s youth and our society. . . . Unfortunately, access to a postsecondary education is not equal in America. Students historically underrepresented at the postsecondary level – students of color, those from low-income backgrounds, and first-generation students- are still less likely to prepare for, apply for, enroll in, and persist through postsecondary education. (p. iv) For example, Latinos are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups, but only 19% of Latinos have completed an associate’s or higher degree (Excelencia in Education, 2010). While the number of Latinos accessing college is growing, a disparity still exists between minority group enrollment in college and white student enrollment (Swail et al., 2004). The principal has a key role in schools of creating the conditions wherein all students can be successful and access the next step of postsecondary education whether through a community college, a technical program, the military, or a university (Kaser & Halbert, 2009). As Kaser and Halbert (2009) stated, “Leadership creates the conditions in schools where all learners grow, progress, graduate, go on to some form of postsecondary learning and lead productive lives” (p. 20). Educational leaders can play key roles in advocacy for student success, recognizing inequities where they exist and working to overcome the inequities (Anderson, 2009; Papa & English, 2011).
Do Resources Matter? The Relationship Between Instructional Expenditures And College Readiness Indicators,
2018
Mesquite ISD
Do Resources Matter? The Relationship Between Instructional Expenditures And College Readiness Indicators, Treva Franklin, Casey Graham Brown
School Leadership Review
Public schools face seemingly endless scrutiny. Educators have experienced an increased level of accountability and demand to graduate students who are college ready or well prepared to enter the workforce. The topic of educational funding is often at the forefront of public discussion and debate in Texas. While policymakers recurrently examine the way public schools have been funded (Fermanich, 2009), school district leaders are forced to unrelentingly evaluate and assess the efficacy and results of instructional programs and performance measures. With the push for college readiness for all students, the topic of funding adequacy has continued to be an issue.
Preparing School Leaders For Special Education: Old Criticisms And New Directions,
2018
University of Texas at El Paso
Preparing School Leaders For Special Education: Old Criticisms And New Directions, David Dematthews, D. Brent Edwards, Jr.
School Leadership Review
In the context of accountability and high-stakes testing, professors of educational administration in Texas and across the nation are under tremendous pressure to develop innovative principal preparation programs that produce effective school leaders, especially as research methodologies emerge to disaggregate the effects of such programs. One area few programs adequately address, including more innovative programs, is special education - despite the fact that principals struggle with accountability for all students, but particularly those principals in schools and districts with limited resources and limited professional development opportunitie~ (Bays & Crocket, 2007; Wakeman, Browder, Flowers, & Ahlgrim-Delzell, 2006). Principals have long reported that their preparation programs did not prepare them with the legal and instructional knowledge in the area of special education (DiPaola & Walther-Thomas, 2003; Hirth & Valesky, 1990).
School Counselors' Perceptions About Lnterventions For At-Risk Students Including Grade Retention: Implications For School Leaders,
2018
University of Wyoming
School Counselors' Perceptions About Lnterventions For At-Risk Students Including Grade Retention: Implications For School Leaders, Bret Range, Mary Alice Bruce, Suzanne Young
School Leadership Review
The term at-risk is used by educators and policymakers to describe a wide variety of students who struggle in schools (Kronholz, 2011). Factors associated with labeling students at-risk include minority status, poverty, language difficulties, low school attendance, and poor family support (Re~ Akpo-Sanni, Losike-Sedimo, 2012; Stockard, 2010). For many at-risk students, reading at a proficient level is a primary concern for school leaders and teachers (Allington, 2011; McAlenney & Coyne, 2011), especially with increased accountability including school sanctions for not closing reading achievement gaps (Chappell, Nunnery, Pribesh, & Hager, 2011). Although a plethora of interventions have been proposed to assist at-risk students, requiring students to repeat a grade continues to be used as a threat for students who are not proficient, despite evidence that suggests grade retention is detrimental to students on various outcomes (Battistin & Schizzerotto, 2012; Webley, 2012).
A View From The Field: How Nclb's Good Intentions Of Accountability Damage Our Educational Leaders And Our Schools,
2018
University of Texas at Tyler
A View From The Field: How Nclb's Good Intentions Of Accountability Damage Our Educational Leaders And Our Schools, Vance Vaughn
School Leadership Review
School districts and campuses throughout the nation are working around the clock to avoid an unacceptable accountability rating under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001. In Texas the label has recently changed to "Improvement Required." An "Improvement Required" label forces districts and campuses into the Texas Accountability Intervention System (TAIS), a system implemented by Texas to satisfy the NCLB federal requirements, and to engage struggling districts and schools toward academic school improvement. The NCLB Act has good intentions; however, it might be creating a crisis in education. It is important to remember that NCLB, "the 2002 reauthorization ...
Pursuing The Principalship: Factors In Assistant Principals’ Decisions,
2018
Carroll ISD
Pursuing The Principalship: Factors In Assistant Principals’ Decisions, Amy Ellis, Casey Graham Brown
School Leadership Review
School administrators who are hired to lead and guide schools and districts must possess a number of characteristics that allow them to become successful leaders. The presence or absence of a strong educational leader can make all the difference in school climate and student achievement (Kelley, Thornton, & Daugherty, 2005). Educational leaders need to be cognizant of what constitutes an effective leader and which characteristics have the most effective impact on student achievement. Alford et al. (2011) stated, "while principals are engaged in the managerial tasks of the school, securing the building for safety, ensuring bus routes, student schedules, and the ...
Considering An Overhaul To The New Principal Preparation Program,
2018
University of Texas at Tyler
Considering An Overhaul To The New Principal Preparation Program, Vance Vaughn, Yanira Oliveras-Ortiz
School Leadership Review
Levine (2005) argued that university principal preparation programs for educational leaders are failing to provide a suitable curriculum to prepare aspiring principals to demonstrate the skills and competencies necessary to meet the challenges inherent in the increasingly complex demands of their school leadership roles. Teitel (2006) suggested that colleges and universities offer curricula that are neither coherent nor relevant. According to Candidates, Doctoral Cohort; Coleman, J. Craig; and Alford, Betty J. (2007), it is “a grave disservice [that] is done to university program graduates who enter leadership positions woefully unprepared for the awaiting firestorm” (p. 39).
The Augmentation Of Bilingual/Bicultural Courses In Educational Administration Core Requirements,
2018
Texas A&M University, Commerce
The Augmentation Of Bilingual/Bicultural Courses In Educational Administration Core Requirements, Ava J. Munoz
School Leadership Review
"Cultural competence should be a fundamental aspect of school principals' preparation and practice" (Hernandez & Kose, 2012, p. 513). However, educational leadership programs have been remiss, and somewhat lackadaisical, in exploring and including bilingual/bicultural curricular content in their principal leadership programs (Hernandez & Kose, 2012). Presently, few or minute advances in increasing bilingual/bicultural knowledge in the curricular content of educational leadership course requirements is the norm. Moreover, "when these topics are introduced, they are often special topics courses or seminars that are not part of the core curriculum of leadership preparation" (L6pez, 2003, p. 70).
The Impact Of High Stakes Testing On School Leadership,
2018
University of Texas at Tyler
The Impact Of High Stakes Testing On School Leadership, Yanira Oliveras-Ortiz
School Leadership Review
As I observed and recorded a classroom teacher at the beginning of the spring semester, I remembered how much I enjoyed working with teachers to help them grow and become master teachers. While reflecting on this master teacher's lesson, I pondered how drastically things have changed since I became a school administrator in 2001. I was amazed when the advanced academics teacher mentioned the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) need a source for ST AAR on a number of occasions throughout her lesson. The intent of her comments was to bring awareness to these young learners ...
Superintendent Transitioning: When Is The Right Time To Make A Move?,
2018
Stephen F. Austin State University
Superintendent Transitioning: When Is The Right Time To Make A Move?, Karon Radford, Kerry L. Roberts, Pauline M. Sampson, Wesley Vinson, Ralph Marshall
School Leadership Review
Leadership preparation programs prepare superintendents every year to enter the profession. One aspect that needs to be incorporated into this learning is the understanding of when it's the right time to leave as many superintendents leave their current position every year for one reason or another. These reasons can range from being fired to career advancements to leaving the profession. Leaving at the right time is crucial for your career and the district. Lashway (2002) posited that almost a quarter of the superintendents serve less than three years, there are many superintendents leaving positions.
Changes In Principal Evaluation Standards: A Case Study Of North Dakota Principals,
2018
University of North Dakota
Changes In Principal Evaluation Standards: A Case Study Of North Dakota Principals, Tsooane Molapo, Laura Parson, Cheryl Hunter, Janathan Butz
School Leadership Review
In recent years, increased demands and political scrutiny have been placed upon schools to improve student achievement. With these demands, a principal's role is paramount (Dufour & Marzano, 2011; Reeves, 2009). School principals are second only to classroom teachers in influencing student achievement (Grissom & Loeb 2011; Louis, Leithwood, Wahlstrom, & Anderson, 2010). Likewise, Fenton, Kelemen, et al., (2010) and Marzano, Waters, & McNulty (2005) conclude that principal quality accounts for nearly 25% of a school's total impact on student achievement.
Examining How Campus Contextual Factors Correlate To Teacher Morale In A Secondary Setting,
2018
Stephen F. Austin State University
Examining How Campus Contextual Factors Correlate To Teacher Morale In A Secondary Setting, Scott Bailey, Allison Marz
School Leadership Review
Far too often in education the term "burnout" is used to describe a teacher who has been disenchanted with education and seems to be waiting till the day retirement becomes available. A teacher suffering from burnout exhibits signs of low morale for teaching, involvement with staff and involvement in the school and community. There is no specific clue or symptom that leads to burnout, and there isn't a specific amount of years leading to teacher burnout. Interestingly enough, new teachers suffer burnout in aggressive numbers similar to experienced teachers. Alliance for Excellent Education (2005) found that 14% of new ...
Barriers To Pursuing Stem-Related Careers: Perceptions Of Hispanic Girls Enrolled In Advanced High School Stem Courses,
2018
Canutillo ISD
Barriers To Pursuing Stem-Related Careers: Perceptions Of Hispanic Girls Enrolled In Advanced High School Stem Courses, Veronica Vijil, Julie P. Combs, Rebecca M. Bustamante
School Leadership Review
Researchers indicate that the United States has fallen behind other nations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education (President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, 2010, 2012). A declining interest in the field of engineering as demonstrated by students who pursue degrees in STEM fields also threatens the U.S. competitive edge (National Science Foundation, 2013; Schneider, Judy, & Mazuca, 2012). Although some students perform successfully in STEM courses, an achievement gap between school-aged boys and girls is well-documented in the literature (e.g., College Board, 2007). Moreover, Hispanic students are underrepresented in science-related courses and careers (Hanley & Noblit, 2009) and even fewer Hispanic girls are attracted to the STEM areas despite the increase in the Hispanic population in general and in higher education (Dolan, 2009). In fact, few studies were located that addressed perspectives of Hispanic girls about their experiences and perceptions related to science and engineering (Crisp, Nora, & Taggart, 2009; Moller et al., 2015; O'Shea, Heilbronner, & Reis, 2010). Specifically, there is a need to attract girls and Hispanic students to mathematics and science coursework and careers. Therefore, the purpose of this collective case study was to explore and ...
