Education Commons^™

Understanding Teacher Experience With Instructional Coaching To Inform Program Improvement Reflecting The Principles Of Adult Learning Theory: A Mixed Method Case Study, Shay Reitz

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

Instructional Coaching (IC) is a strand of Professional Development (PD) during which an instructional coach provides individualized support and feedback to teachers, focused on instruction, generally within the context of the teacher’s classroom (Kraft et al., 2018). This fully integrated mixed method case study examined teacher experience with IC in order to understand which operational and emotional components of IC had the greatest perceived impact, in order to inform program improvement. Adult learning theory served as the conceptual framework for this study; the process of teaching adults is known as andragogy (Knowles, 1980). Andragogy indicates that teaching adults in a …

Pedagogies Of Possibility : A Study Reconceptualizing The Teacher's Role In A Reggio-Inspired Urban Preschool Classroom., Christina Louise Angleton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education is an innovative and often imitated “way of being” with young children (Rinaldi, 2006). Reggio-inspired teachers enact rich pedagogical stances in their work with young children. In North American contexts, the approach is frequently associated with wealthy, suburban communities. Adopting a feminist methodology, this dissertation explores the pedagogical moves one teacher made as she enacted the identity of a Reggio teacher in an urban preschool classroom. The theoretical framework guiding this study is grounded in feminist poststructural, postmodern, and decolonization scholarship, each of which inform a movement known as Reconceptualizing Early Childhood …

When Healing And High-Stakes Meet: Restorative Justice In An Era Of Racial Neoliberalism, Dani O'Brien

Doctoral Dissertations

Based on a 3-year ethnography, this dissertation documents the story of Presente, an explicitly critical youth-led restorative justice group attempting to dismantle the school-prison nexus and create a more youth-centered culture at their high-reform high school. This dissertation addresses the questions: How does serving as a restorative justice peer leader impact students? What challenges and opportunities arise as the school tries to transition to more restorative practices? And how do the values central to restorative justice come up against, challenge, and get challenged by neoliberal education reform?

Democratic Education And An Urban Teacher Residency: A Case Study, Bryan P. Arnold

Theses and Dissertations

Over the course of American schooling scholars note that democratic education and citizenship have not been abandoned, but perhaps marginalized or pushed aside, as test scores and achievement have become the most desired outcomes. Democratic education must move out of the margins and into high priority. The current political climate of increased division and divisiveness could not illustrate this need any more. Another well-documented challenge within the American educational system, particularly in high need areas is the need for highly qualified teachers. Urban Teacher Residency (UTR) programs have offered a possible solution to this growing problem in recruiting, training, and …

A Sustainable “No Excuses” Charter School Model, Kelly Lerash

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

As a participant observer working in a charter school and researching charter schools, I critically examine a particular charter school in New York City. I begin with my educational journey and the challenge of being a participant observer. I transition to focus on a general overview of “No Excuses” charter schools in NYC, looking closely at Uncommon Charter Schools, Achievement First Charter Schools, KIPP NYC, Success Academy Charter Schools and Democracy Prep Charter Schools. Next, I share my experiences working for five years in a “No Excuses” Charter School, using a specific lens to examine what makes that school different …

The Role Of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy In The Preparation Of Secondary Teacher Candidates For Successful Teaching Of Diverse Learners: A Multiphase Mixed Methods Case Study, Rosalyn Taylor

Dissertations and Theses

The dramatic demographic shift occurring in this country makes it essential that our nation examines its policies, practices, and values as they relate to culturally diverse learners. That this student population remains underserved needs immediate attention. One arena that can become a part of the solution to the underachievement of diverse learners is teacher education and preparation programming.

The purpose of this research study was to give attention to this issue and to understand what an urban teacher education program (UTEP) with an educational equity and social justice mission does to prepare its secondary teacher candidates (STCs) to work successfully …

How Do Middle School Core Content Area Teachers In A Title 1 School Use Cooperative Learning In The Context Of High Accountability For Student Proficiency: A Multiple Case Study, Martha Cunigan-Wells

Dissertations

This action research case study describes how content area teachers in a middle school with low reading achievement levels utilize cooperative learning and curriculum integration (with a focus on the integration of literacy skills and thinking skills) in their content area given the current context of accountability for student mastery of tested core content outcomes. The participants were four urban middle school teachers from the core areas of science, social studies, mathematics, and language arts who had varying levels of training and experience with cooperative learning and curriculum integration. Data sources included audio-recorded pre-conferences, video-taped classroom observations, audio-recorded post-conferences, and …

Personalismo, Small Schools, And Latino Students' Academic Success, Isabel Mesa Collins

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of research indicates that Latino students continue to struggle academically presenting educators and school leaders with serious concerns about a cultural achievement gap. Guided by the work of Lee & Loeb, (2000); Lee & Freidkin, (2007) and Stevens, (2008) who have examined small personalized learning communities, this paper examines the concept of personalismo as a conduit for establishing a platform that may help narrow the achievement gap within the Latino population in the public school system. Through a series of T-Tests, conducted in two small public schools with varying levels of personalismo, within a Chicago Public School …

The Impact Of The “Universal Voyager Literacy” Reading Program On Reading Achievement And Instructional Practices In An Urban School District, Shanika L. Hope

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Founded in 1994, Voyager Expanded Learning is a provider of K-3 in-school reading programs, as well as K-8 reading intervention programs for school districts throughout the United States. Voyager Universal Literacy's systematic, precise framework fully addresses the five elements of reading instruction, through an explicit succession of ability growth. Voyager Universal Literacy was developed to be a comprehensive program encompassing the subsequent requisites: in-school broad reading program, progress monitoring methods, extensive-day and summer activities, home learning syllabus, implementation monitoring, and on-going professional development. Voyager Universal Literacy Program activities are organized to provide a thorough range and progression for reading instruction. …

An Investigation Of The Impact Of The Success For All Whole-School Reform Model On The Elementary School Proficiency Assessment And The New Jersey Assessment Of Skills And Knowledge In An Urban District, Winston D. Jackson

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Balanced Literacy Versus Basal Reading Instruction For Urban African-American, Title I Third-Grade Students, Julie Ann Perkins

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This study compared third-grade reading achievement of urban African-American, Title I students using a basal reading series with those using a balanced literacy program to determine whether the highly structured skills-based methods advocated by The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act actually foster or impede reading achievement in an urban school setting.

Two hundred forty-five third-grade African-American, Title I students from an urban elementary school in southeastern Virginia served as subjects for the study. Subjects were studied as intact groups to avoid disruption in the educational setting. Participants in the control group were third-grade classes of urban African-American, Title I …

A Comparison Between First-Year Alternative Certified Teachers And First-Year Traditional Certified Teachers Based On Students' Academic Achievement: The Case Of A High-Need Urban Southeast District In Virginia, Abdou Maty Sene

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Debate about teacher supply and demand has been renewed in recent years by an increased concern about the reduced numbers of students entering teacher education programs and the resulting teacher shortages. Thus, American schools are experiencing teacher shortages, especially in low-income urban areas, because of increased school enrollment, teacher retirement, reduction of class size, teacher attrition, and turnover related to low salaries, job dissatisfaction, lack of administrative support and influence over decision-making. Recently, the increased interest in teacher quality has been the topic of debate for educational policy makers, and many researchers have focused on teacher certification.

The purpose of …

A Meta-Analysis Of The Effects Of Multicultural Education On The Racial Attitudes Of Pre-K Through Grade 12 Students: A Comparison Of Curricular Intervention And Reinforcement Dimensions In Suburban And Urban Educational Settings, Ogochukwu Nkeiruka N. Okoye-Johnson

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This meta-analysis examined the effects of multicultural education on the racial attitudes of students in prekindergarten through twelfth grade. Multicultural education, which evolved as a direct result of the push for ethnic studies in schools, was operationalized for this study as programs and curricula dealing with racial and cultural diversity.

The findings of thirty selected studies were synthesized in this meta-analysis to examine whether students exposed to multicultural education developed more positive racial attitudes than students who did not. This meta-analysis compared the effect sizes of two dimensions of multicultural education, curricular intervention and reinforcement, to see the relative effectiveness …

Cognitive Complexity And Empathy As Predictors Of Leadership Style In An Urban College Student Population, Scott B. Harrison

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The amount of variation in leadership style predicted by cognitive complexity and empathy was investigated. Differences in cognitive complexity and empathic ability according to students' educational levels and leadership styles was also tested. Leadership style was determined by Fiedler's (1967) Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) measure; cognitive complexity was defined by the Cognitive Complexity Index (CCI), a subscale of the Learning Environment Preferences (LEP; Moore, 1987) instrument which measures Perry's (1998) scheme of intellectual and ethical development; and empathy was measured by Hogan's Scale of Empathy (1969) as scored on the Hogan/Em subscale of the California Psychological Inventory (CPI; Gough, 1987). …

A Study Of Efficacy Beliefs For Urban And Suburban School Teachers Trained In A Brain-Based Model Of Instruction, Linda Crescione

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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The Effects Of Applied Technology Instruction On Mathematics Achievement And Career Interests Of Urban Seventh-Grade Students, Eric M. Fischer

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The present study has been implemented to provide insight as to how, given limited resources, Technology Education curricula might be developed to best support the unique goals of an urban middle school aerospace magnet program. It was hypothesized that applied academic strategies, including interdisciplinary hands-on aerospace and computer-assisted instructional activities, would affect larger gains in mathematics achievement and would enhance career-interest development of urban seventh-grade students to a greater degree than would non-participation in such instruction. A randomized subjects, pretest-posttest control group design was used to assess treatment effects upon 71 urban seventh-grade students. Dependent variables were measured using the …

Sleep Patterns And The Behavior Of Children In The Second-, Third-, And Fourth-Grades In Urban Public Schools, Yolanda Cardelli Hampel

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This investigation examined the relationship between nocturnal sleep patterns and behaviors in the classroom of seventy-four girls and fifty-nine boys from second-, third-, and fourth-grades attending five urban public schools in Norfolk, Virginia.

The dependent variables were the classroom behavior that was subdivided into five personality areas for objective assessment of the student's adjustment areas labeled self, social, school, home, and physical. The objective assessment was observed and documented on a seventy-eight item questionnaire by their primary classroom teachers who were familiar with the subjects behavior. The parents observed and recorded data on a sleep log listing independent variables such …

A Study On Teacher Change To Developmentally Appropriate Practice In The Primary Grades Of An Urban Elementary School, Kerry Sullivan Lambert

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The purpose of this research was to study the process of change from traditional teaching practices to developmentally appropriate practices (DAP), following training. The population for this study consists of kindergarten and first grade teachers, in urban elementary school comprised of student at-risk for school failure. Quantitative and qualitative research methodologies were utilized. The quantitative measures provide evidence of the degree of change made by teachers and render a context for the qualitative findings. The variables of DAP were measured pre- and post-training to determine change in teaching practices that occurred after training. Two observation instruments were utilized to measure …