Education Commons^™

The Effects Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Students In The School Setting: The Adaptations Needed For Tiered Supports, Eleni M. Gajewski

Dissertations

This study aims to evaluate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on students in the school setting and identify necessary adaptations needed, particularly through a tiered system of support. The research aims for two primary objectives by employing a constructivist framework utilizing mixed methods for data collection. Firstly, it aims to provide districts with a foundation for understanding the social-emotional and academic consequences of the pandemic on students. Secondly, its purpose is to empower districts to leverage this comprehensive evaluation as a proactive approach to cater to the diverse needs of all students. This includes responding to the challenges posed …

Let ‘Em Talk: An Exploration Of And Challenge To The White Supremacy And Colonization Of Black And Brown Girls In United States Public Schools, Keara Small

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The United States Department of Education’s mission statement is described as evolving to “Promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.” A key piece of this statement is educational excellence and equality. The pathway to educational excellence and preparation is founded on public school students growing aware of their culture, identity, and history. My objective in this research is to discuss educators’ perceptions and misconceptions about Black and Brown children — especially Brown and Black girls—who attend public schools across the United States. Present-day research regarding school discipline policies and the “policing” …

Relationship Between Criminal Behavior And High School Equivalency Program Completion, Lashawnda Cabey - Washington

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

High School Equivalency (HSE) Programs operate in response to the national increase in high school dropout rates. These alternative learning methods are attractive to nontraditional high school students because they are designed to accommodate students who are unable to complete their high school diploma via the traditional classroom setting. However, even though these programs continue to thrive in many communities, many students are still unsuccessful at completing these programs. Therefore, there is a need to research the possible factors that prevent students from earning the equivalent of a high school diploma or general education diploma (GED) via these programs. Grounded …

Effects Of School Wide Positive Behavior Interventions And Supports In An African American All-Boys Urban School, Theresa Thomas

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract Teachers and administrators spend a great deal of time addressing minor to moderate school discipline behaviors with punitive actions such as suspensions and expulsions from school. Past research has revealed that such punitive actions do not correct the unwanted behavior, and extensive use of punitive disciplinary actions have been linked to negative outcomes such as repeated suspensions, repeating grades due to time missed from school, increased likelihood of dropping out of school, or potential involvement in the juvenile justice system. This single case study design addressed the following research question: How school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) affected …

Identifying Successful Strategies Within An Extrinsic Reward System To Improve Behavior In The Alternative School Setting, Christian Burner

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this Delphi study was to identify strategies that are successful within a school-wide extrinsic rewards system to improve alternative school student behavior in the alternative school setting. A second purpose was to rate the effectiveness of the identified strategies for improving alternative school student behavior in the alternative school setting.

Methodology: This study used a Delphi method, consisting of 3 rounds, to collect data from alternative schoolteachers who are experts in implementing strategies within a school-wide extrinsic rewards system. In Round 1, participants were asked to identify strategies to improve student behavior in the alternative school …

Self-Determination Theory And Faculty Behavior: A Quantitative Study Of Faculty Leaders' Use Of Assessment Evidence, Joseph D. Levy

Dissertations

Despite assessment of student learning being essential work in higher education, a number of institutions have noted faculty could more effectively be using assessment results (Jankowski et al., 2018; Kuh et al., 2015; Metzler & Kurz, 2019; Suskie, 2014). This study applied Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as a theoretical framework to provide context for faculty behavior associated with assessment actions (Fuller et al., 2016; Ryan & Deci, 2000). Mostly quantitative data were collected via electronic survey of faculty program leaders at a single institution, National Louis University (NLU). Results indicated a significant and positive relationship suggesting an increase in meeting the …

Analyzing Two-Year College Student Success Using Structural Equation Modeling, Jessica Taylor

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

The goal of this study is to more fully understand the scope of community college student success using the principles of mindset, engagement, and college readiness. Using structural equation modeling ensures this study is able to measure the combined effects these concepts have on student success, group differences, and the combined model of student success. Findings suggest student success can be significantly impacted by self-belief and mindset behaviors that can outweigh the initial effect of academically under-prepared students. Groups included in this study are non-traditional students, minority populations, first generation students, and Pell eligible students.

Influence Of Administrators Support On Third Grade Student Behavior In Schools, Alicia Vink

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research indicated that teachers' perceptions of administrator support behaviors, behavioral interventions, and students' classroom behaviors have a strong connection to students' academic outcomes. A lack of administrator support practices present challenges to teachers' effectiveness and students' academic and social success. The purpose of this quantitative study was to address the relationships among teachers' perceptions of administrator support, the FAST (Families and Schools Together) behavioral intervention program, and teachers' perceptions of student classroom behavior. Spillane's distributed leadership theory was used as a framework. The data were a subset of archival data from a target population of approximately 200 teachers working at …

Academically-Redshirted Males' Behavior And Academic Performance At The Middle School Level, Cassandra Ricciardi Capadona

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Male students appear not ready for middle school by exhibiting lower grades, learner disengagement, and/or behavior problems. The age in which male students initially enter school has not been fully investigated as a possible systemic issue of a lack of male student longitudinal success and learner engagement. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the differences between how academically redshirted male students performed academically and behaviorally compared to their non-academically redshirted grade mates at Grades 6-8. This study drew from the theories of early childhood constructivists: Piaget, Vygotsky, and Montessori. The research questions addressed the academic and behavioral …

Wild Primates In Documentary Films: Biodiversity, Behavior, And Pedagogical Applications, Crystal Marie Riley Koenig

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The representation of wild primates in the nature documentary genre could have important implications for conservation and education. However, no prior research has looked at the content of this genre or its use in education. To fill this gap, the current research included a content analysis of all available documentaries focused on wild primates (n = 210) and a survey of 219 college-level anthropology instructors, with an emphasis on determining how primate biodiversity was portrayed, whether primate behavior was realistically depicted in documentaries, whether mistakes and inaccuracies were common, and how college instructors use primate documentaries as resources in their …

A Case Study Analysis Of Elementary Teachers' Attitudes About Student Discipline And The Implementation Of Restorative Justice, Kaitlyn M. Spore

Education Dissertations

This study examined the attitudes of elementary school teachers regarding student discipline and the implementation of restorative justice practices. The present research was conducted at a public elementary school in the greater Seattle area. All participants were teachers at the public elementary school, and were purposefully selected based on their years of experience, age, gender, and grade level taught. The study utilized qualitative case study methods to analyze the participants’ attitudes regarding discipline, specifically the use of exclusionary discipline, and their views on implementing restorative justice practices as an alternative to exclusion.

Key Words: restorative justice, school discipline, exclusions, suspensions, …

Teachers' Perceptions Of School Training On Positive Behavior Supports For Behavior Intervention And Discipline, Kyle Gibson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School staff was concerned that disruptive student behaviors at an urban, middle school in central Ohio had continued even with positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) implementation and professional development (PD) for more than 4 years. The purpose of this study was to explore teachers' perspectives of school training on the implementation of the PBIS system. Skinner's reinforcement theory and Bandura's social learning theory served as the conceptual frameworks for this study. Specifically, this study explored the training of teachers using the PBIS framework in diminishing students' negative behaviors. This study used triangulated data from interviews, observations, and document analysis. …

Administrator Perception Of Management Skills Comparing Traditionally And Alternatively Certified Teachers, Candi Lynn Ring

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

Within the scientific literature there has been no examination of teacher preparation regarding classroom and behavior management skills comparing educators who obtained traditional teacher certification through a university-based education program and those who obtained alternative certification. Consequently, the goal of this study was to assess administrator perceptions of teacher effectiveness in managing the classroom and student behavior across four domains.
By identifying the group with more effective classroom and behavior management skills, school-based administrators will be able to implement the necessary professional learning to proactively minimize management issues from occurring with future educators, as well as close the gap among …

A Collaborative Approach To Address Student Behavior And Academic Achievement Across Systems, Beverly Ngozi Okereke

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Academic achievement and in-classroom behaviors are two significant child outcomes that affect student success in school. According to Systems Theory, in order to truly understand the factors that affect these outcomes for children, one must look to the major systems that encapsulate the child (including their school and home environments). This project is a meta-analytic review that examined the effectiveness of measures representing each system in predicting child achievement and behavior: School-Wide Positive Behavior Supports (SWPBS) for the school as a system, level of parent involvement (high versus low) for the home system, and student motivation (intrinsic versus extrinsic) for …

The Impact Of School Uniforms On School Climate, Attillah N. Brookshire

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Approximately half of the public schools in the United States require uniforms or a formal dress policy and many are intended to reduce discipline problems and improve school climate. A suburban school district in Georgia recognized that there was an increase in discipline problems in their schools that affected the school climate. In an effort to promote school safety and improve climate, stakeholders at a district campus adopted a uniform policy. The purpose of this survey study was to examine the differences in perceived school climate between a district campus with a uniform policy and a similar campus with no …

Patterns Of One-Course Cohort Participation In Online Teacher Education Programs, Janeal Crane Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Online higher education is a field that can benefit significantly from further research on innovative pedagogical methods designed to support students and decrease attrition rates. One method shown to improve engagement and retention of students in online environments is to include interactive engagement. This case study explored the patterns of students' interactions and assessment performance in an introductory teacher education one-course cohort. The study used a conceptual framework incorporating Bandura's social learning theory and Siemens' theory of connectivism. The study assessed archival data, from Adobe Connect recordings and records of competency pass rates, on the interactions and patterns of behavior …

A Purposeful Approach To Student Conduct With Deaf And Hard Of Hearing Learners, Heidi Lynn Jordan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teachers of deaf and hard of hearing students spend more time in conflict resolution than their general education colleagues do. Although emerging research suggests that both students and teachers benefit from an approach to student conduct that is more purposeful than traditional behavior modification models, further research was necessary to clarify how such an effective purposeful program would work. The purpose of this inquiry was to explore how teachers of deaf and hard of hearing students perceived and used a purposeful approach to student conduct. Deutsch's conflict resolution theory served as the conceptual framework. A single case study design was …

Engagement Behaviors' Impact On Course Success And Persistence Rates Of Community College Students, Van F. Whaley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

As enrollment in U.S. community colleges increased, both the percentage of students successfully completing courses and the percentage of students persisting to their second year decreased. This study focused on the problem of low student course success and persistence rates at a community college. The purpose of the study was to determine whether students who demonstrated engagement behavior by visiting a Center for Academic Success (CAS) either passed more courses, persisted more often, or both, than students who did not visit a CAS. Tinto's engagement theory was the theoretical framework as it postulated that students who interacted with school support …

Educators' Perspectives On Secondary Education Alternative Placement, Student Recidivism, And Treatment Models, John Anthony Anzalone

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The recidivism rate for disciplinary offenses has increased during the last 8 years in the secondary student population of a sizeable, urban school district in the southwest United States. Recidivism for this district is the act of committing a second disciplinary offense during a single calendar year following completion of a behavior program. Guided by Erikson's theory of social development, this case study was designed to collect a purposeful sample of 21 educators' perceptions of the impact of recidivism on students' education and the effectiveness of treatment models to reduce recidivism. Data were collected from qualitative semi-structured interviews and field …

Staff Member Perceptions Of A Behavior Student Support Team Approach, Elizabeth Bernadette Batto

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The implementation and sustainability of a positive behavior student support team (SST) were identified as a problem in a rural junior high school due to the number of discretionary alternative discipline placements that had occurred for students with disabilities. The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of faculty, staff, and campus administration regarding the use of a behavior SST to address discipline concerns in the classroom before they become problematic and result in a discretionary discipline placement. Response to Intervention and Positive Behavior Support provided the conceptual framework for this qualitative case study. Its research questions focused …

Using A State-Wide Survey To Determine The Impact Of Positive Behavior Interventions And Supports On Students' Self-Reported Perceptions, Feelings, And Behaviors, Rachel Youngblom

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This study examined student responses to the Minnesota Student Survey in 286 schools across the state of Minnesota. Of these schools, 143 of the schools had implemented PBIS and the other 143 schools had not. The study included elementary, middle, and high schools. The schools were coded as either small (under 150 students), medium (151-480 students), or large (over 480 students). For schools that had been trained to implement PBIS, fidelity of implementation was also considered and all schools were coded as having either high fidelity (80 or higher for SET; 70 or higher for BoQ) or low fidelity. The …

Principal Leadership And School Culture With A School-Wide Implementation Of Professional Crisis Management: A Redemptive Vs. Punitive Model, Mark Thomas Adams

Theses and Dissertations

Principal Leadership and School Culture within

A School-Wide Implementation of Professional Crisis Management:

A Redemptive vs. Punitive Model

By

Mark Thomas Adams

This qualitative study investigated the nature of the relationship between principal leadership and school culture within a school-wide implementation of Professional Crisis Management (PCM). PCM is a comprehensive and fully integrated system designed to manage crisis situations effectively, safely, and with dignity. While designed primarily to assist individuals in crisis situations, much of the system is comprised of non-physical interventions in the form of crisis prevention strategies and positive reinforcement that were effective with students at all points …

Achievement, Engagement, And Behavior Outcomes Of At-Risk Youth Following Participation In A Required Ninth-Grade Academic Support Study Center Program, Jeffrey P. Wagner

Student Work

Overall, pretest-posttest results for achievement, behavior, and engagement for at-risk boys not eligible (n = 13) and eligible ( n = 9) for participation in the free or reduced price lunch program who completed a school-year long academic support study center program were not statistically different over time and end of school year for cumulative grade point average scores, pre-ACT scores for English, math, reading, science, and composite, total credits earned, and participation in school sponsored activities. However, at-risk boys eligible for participation in the free or reduced price lunch program had statistically significantly lower total posttest office referral …

The Relationship Between Academic Achievement And School-Based Mental Health Services For Middle School Students, Lisa Ogle Williams

Dissertations

Mental health issues among American adolescents and children can negatively impact their potential for school success. As many as 10% of students among the general education population suffer from psychiatric disorders, yet only between 1% and 5% of those students are being served. The effects of mental health difficulties are problematic for students because they negatively impact academic performance, behavior, attendance, and school violence (Whelley, Cash, & Bryson, 2003). There are often barriers to academic performance relative to psychiatric illness and problems that include inadequate health insurance coverage, lack of transportation, shortages of child mental health professionals, and stigmas associated …

Bystander Behavior: Understanding Undergraduate Male Involvement In Dangerous Drinking Situations, Christopher Allen Waugh

Dissertations

Problem drinking leaves a troubling wake on college campuses throughout the United States. This dissertation explores to what extent male college student bystanders involved in dangerous drinking situations intervene and to what extent information and training in specific bystander skills improves their likelihood to be effective, engaged bystanders. Many germane themes emerge in this study, including: a priority for undergraduate males on social activities, a lack of undergraduate male empathy for male peers, and absent sense of undergraduate male responsibility for self and others. Further, the study presents a new typology for the disengaged male, undergraduate bystander, including recommendations for …

The Effect Of Explicitly Differentiated Reading Instruction Groups On Eighth-Grade Students’ Achievement, Behavior, And Engagement In A School Seeking To Reestablish Adequate Yearly Progress Benchmarks, Sean P. Dunphy

Student Work

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of explicitly differentiated reading instruction groups on eighth-grade students' achievement, behavior, and engagement in a school seeking to reestablish adequate yearly progress benchmarks. The results of this study supported student participation in explicitly differentiated reading instruction groups. Because students in High Reading Ability (n = 25), Middle Reading Ability (n = 25), and Low Reading Ability (n = 25) groups maintained average to above average achievement test scores on several measures with commensurate classroom grade performance, and appropriate behavior and engagement to support school success during eighth grade, the results …

Effect Of A Career, Academic, Personal And Social Growth High School Transition Program Option On 9th-Grade Students' Achievement, Behavior, And Engagement, Tiffanie A. Gauchat

Student Work

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a career, academic, personal, and social high school transition program option on 9th-grade students' achievement, behavior, and engagement. Students in the career, academic, personal, and social group ( n = 30) and the comparison academic/elective course option programs group (n = 30) maintained average to above average achievement test scores and course grades, appropriately low levels of absence and tardy frequencies, and athletic, co-curricular, and extra-curricular school engagement participation suggesting school success during 9th-grade. Faced with social and emotional changes associated with adolescence and increased academic demands to …

The Effect Of Decreasing Enrollment Patterns In A Title I School Surrounded By Economic Decline On 5th-Grade Students’ Achievement, Behavior, Parent Involvement, And Teacher Mobility Rates, Carolyn L. Grice

Student Work

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of decreasing enrollment patterns in a Title I school surrounded by economic decline on 5th-grade students' achievement, behavior, parent involvement, and teacher mobility rates compared to 5th-grade students' achievement, behavior, parent involvement, and teacher mobility rates in a nearby Title I elementary school surrounded by economic improvement and increasing enrollment patterns. Overall, results indicated that 5th-grade students at posttest in the increasing enrollment pattern school in a neighborhood of economic improvement had statistically significantly higher (a) Reading Total, (b) Math Total, and (c) Language Total mean achievement NCE scores compared …

The Impact Of Two Middle School Grade Level Start Points, 5th-Grade And 7th-Grade, On Adolescents' 8th-Grade Achievement, Behavior, And High School Preparedness, Elizabeth W. Standish

Student Work

The grade level at which an adolescent started middle school, 5th-grade (n = 40) or 7th-grade (n = 40) did not statistically significantly impact 8th-grade students' achievement, behavior or high school preparedness in this study. Regardless of middle school start points all 8th-grade students performed within the fourth to sixth stanines on a national norm-referenced test, solidly within the average range with mean core grade point averages ranging from a C+ (2.53) to a B (3.11). However, consistent with national findings all middle school start point groups demonstrated statistically significant declines in normal curve equivalences between pretest 5th-grade to posttest …

Establishing A Positive School Climate On The Playground For Students With Serious Behavioral Disabilities: A Collaborative Effort, Mildred Carol Fletcher Garcia

All Graduate Projects

Social skills deficits of students with serious behavior disabilities are often an obstacle to integration into the regular education system. Many of the most troublesome problems occur outside the classroom on the playground due to the lessened structure constraints of the playground environment. As a result, the students are labeled "bad kids" by the teachers and paraprofessionals, are socially rejected by nondisabled peers, and the downward spiral of a negative social "trap" is begun.

The purpose of this study was to create an inservice training packet promoting collaboration between teachers and paraprofessionals providing students with serious behavior disabilities a positive …