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A Phenomenological Exploration Of Superintendents’ And Principals’ Experiences In A Shared Professional Development Process, John R. Severson

Dissertations

For this qualitative study, I explored and described how superintendents and principals interpreted and experienced a sustained professional development process focusing on instruction and student learning, a form of Elmore’s Superintendents in the Classroom (SITC) Network. Specifically, I examined how the addition of principals in the SITC learning model experience changed the superintendents’ and principals’ knowledge and beliefs as well as their behavior in three areas: their individual experiences, the working relationship between superintendent and principal, and the way they now think about and encourage student learning.

For this phenomenological study, superintendents and principals were selected and individually interviewed from …

Explicit Teacher-Implemented Phoneme Awareness Instruction: Preschool Effects, Heather M. Osterhouse

Masters Theses

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the impact of explicit, concentrated, teacher-implemented phonological awareness instruction for ―at risk‖ 4- year-olds. Early childhood educators were trained to implement a 10-week program delivered for 20-minute sessions, four times a week, in their classrooms. The program focused on phonological awareness beginning at the level of letter-sound knowledge and advancing to blending and segmenting constituent phonemes in words. Pre- to post-treatment comparisons of phonological awareness and letter knowledge skills indicated that children in the experimental group made significant gains in comparison to the control group in phoneme blending and letter knowledge. …

A Scaffolded Instructional Model To Teach Doctor Of Pharmacy Students To Evaluate Randomized And Non-Randomized Medical Studies On A Similar Topic To Reach A Clinical Conclusion, Stefani Dawn

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

The goal of this study was to test a scaffolded instructional model in a complex Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) lesson where students evaluated three different medical studies (RCT, case-control, and cohort) on the same topic and used those studies to reach an evidence-based conclusion. The hypothesis was that the students literature evaluation skills and subsequent application of the literature to address a clinical question would more closely approximate the experts following implementation of the model. The results do not fully support the hypothesis. The conclusions were: (1) third-year doctor of pharmacy students at the college have a limited ability to …

Investigation Of The Perceptions Of Success Among Charter School Teachers As It Relates To Student Achievement, Kathryn Archibald Stakem

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of success among charter school teachers, along with their beliefs and self-efficacy, as it relates to student achievement. The researcher studied the successes of teachers based on their personal experience. The primary questions were designed to investigate teacher perceptions of their experiences and beliefs on achievement. The questions also addressed the influence that the charter school structure had on these beliefs and expectations. The participants in this study included 15 middle school teachers currently working in urban charter schools. A phenomenological study was conducted to gather information using the following …

An Investigation Of The Perceptions Of Students' Proficiency In Reading And Writing As Indicated By Twelfth Grade English Teachers And College English Instructors, Lara King Charbonnet

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in perceptions regarding students' proficiency in reading and writing skills between 12th grade English teachers and college English Composition instructors. A purposive, nonrandom sample of 12th grade English teachers and college English Composition instructors from West Tennessee were surveyed using an instrument whose indicators were based on the Common Core Reading and Writing Standards. The high school teachers rated how proficient students are in these reading and writing skills at the end of two semesters of instruction. The college instructors identified what percent of students were proficient in these same …

Preservice Teacher Perspectives On Field Experience, The Development Of Teacher Identity, And Professional Practice, Brian Kaelin

Doctor of Education (EdD)

This qualitative study examined the experiences of ten preservice teachers during the first semester of student teaching in Oregon public schools. The purpose of the research was to examine preservice teacher perspectives on how field service impacted professional identity development, instructional methods and the use of instructional technology. The results strongly suggest that field service contributed to the teachers' sense of professional identity. Field placement also largely determined the quality and nature student teaches' instructional practice, as well as the extent to which teachers were able to integrate technology. The study considered factors which influenced the nature and quality of …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Impact Of Reduced School Budgets On Their Ability To Meet Instructional Needs Of Their Students, Brenda D. Edenfield

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While federal and state leaders have been calling for increased instructional time, the U.S. has been undergoing an economic decline that has resulted in decreased education budgets. This decreased funding has resulted in fewer instructional days, fewer planning and professional learning days for teachers, and smaller school staffs. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the economic downturn on elementary instruction in southeast Georgia classrooms. The study design was quantitative non-experimental and employed a survey to gather data from elementary teachers across three southeast Georgia school systems. Results were examined to determine the impact of the …

Using The I-Learn Model For Information Literacy Instruction: An Experimental Study, Stacey Greenwell

Theses and Dissertations--Curriculum and Instruction

Given the proliferation of information and the lifelong importance of information literacy skills, there is a need to determine how to best design information literacy instruction in order to help students locate, evaluate, and use information more effectively. This experimental study examined whether information literacy skills instruction designed using the I-LEARN model increased student understanding and application of information literacy concepts as compared to how librarians currently provide information literacy skills instruction. The experimental group received an instruction session and an online library research guide designed using the I-LEARN model, and the control group received an instruction session and an …

Descriptions Of Clinical Teaching Excellence In The First Two Years Of Medical School: The Views Of Academic And Community-Based Preceptors, Patricia Anne Stubenberg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The changing dynamics in patient care, along with the increasing role of early clinical experiences and community-based teaching models, can be a catalyst in furthering important research and training for clinical teaching excellence. Curricular challenges as well as limited scholarly work generate educational possibilities for study. Embracing a strong educational doctrine of teaching excellence in undergraduate medical education will help shape the future of health care and ultimately enhance patient care.

This grounded theory study (a) described and explained descriptions of teaching excellence among first and second year academic and community-based preceptors in the Longitudinal Clinical Experience (LCE) program at …