Education Commons^™

Mc Means Mentor The Child: Examining School-Based Hip-Hop Clubs For Youth Empowerment, Leadership Development, And Capacity For Change, Daniel Wolford

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

This dissertation examined the relationship between students in a school-based hip-hop club and their ability to develop leadership capabilities through club activities. This study followed a hip-hop club at an urban high school in the Midwest to better understand how hip-hop spaces impact youth participants. The participants included four current members of the club and three alums, all of whom were African American. This study used qualitative methods through heuristic inquiry to understand the phenomenon of hip-hop clubs. Data collection methods included session notes, musical creations, semi-structured interviews, and a Microsoft Teams group chat. Additional heuristic data was collected through …

Learning Journey Towards Reconciliation: Developing Teacher Self-Efficacy, Birgitte Biorn

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Current changes in curriculum and provincial teaching standards are intended to address the Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Teachers are responsible for implementing the changes but do not yet have the knowledge or skills to effectively manage the transformative changes being suggested. This organizational improvement plan (OIP) aims to address the problem of practice associated with teacher efficacy to incorporate Indigenous-Informed pedagogy (IIP) using the collaborative model of professional learning communities (PLC). The triadic determination of beliefs, skills, and environment of social cognitive theory by Albert Bandura is highlighted as a necessary structure to ensure that …

The Missing Link: Applying Embodied Cognition To Professional Learning, Jon William

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Post-secondaries have been implementing a hyflex delivery model, which is a far more complex pedagogical setting than more traditional modes of face to face or online delivery. This has fundamentally changed the way faculty experience the learning environment, with some faculty noting an increase in stress and a decrease in performance. Drawing on Organization A’s implementation of hyflex, this Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) observes professional learning (PL) for the hyflex environment focuses solely on technology and cognitive knowledge, with consideration to wellness and performance scantly discussed. This OIP proposes the missing link to address wellness and performance is the inclusion …

Engaging Health Professionals Toward The Redevelopment Of A Continuing Competence Program, Salima Thawer

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Continuing competence is the combination of knowledge, skills, abilities, and judgment of a professional, applied safely and ethically to their practice of the profession. Under the Health Professions Act in Alberta, health regulatory colleges must oversee the continuing competence of their registrants, ensuring they act in the public’s best interest. At Health Professionals Regulatory College (HPRC), over 3500 registrants are accountable to its continuing competence program (CCP). The current CCP, in place for over 15 years, has not integrated collection and analysis of diversity data that may influence individual competence, nor has it evolved with trends toward right-touch regulation that …

Hidden In Plain Sight: Finding A Balance Between Assessment And Learning In Competency-Based Education In Canadian Health Care, Scott Murray

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Due to its emphasis on skill development and alignment with workforce demands, competency-based education (CBE) has garnered considerable attention in recent years. My organizational improvement plan (OIP) focuses on the potential benefits of incorporating learners’ voices into CBE in Canadian medical education and proposes a corresponding implementation framework. The traditional CBE model often lacks a critical component: the learner’s voice. My OIP reviews the literature and outlines its theoretical underpinnings (e.g., systems theory, adult education theory) within the scope of authentic leadership. The findings suggest incorporating learners’ voices into CBE to boost engagement, motivation, and agency. In response to such …

Nurturing A Culture Of Responsible Conduct Of Research To Support Safe Disclosure, Grace Kelly

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Pressures to publish, which are prevalent in higher education, can lead to research misconduct and, in the absence of clear, safe disclosure policies—and mechanisms and structures to support them—individuals affected by research misconduct may fear retaliation when speaking up. This Organizational Improvement Plan examines how to foster a climate where individuals feel supported and are encouraged to speak up if they witness research misconduct at Forest University (a pseudonym), a research-intensive university in Ontario, Canada. In alignment with my values, the change process is guided by authentic and ethical leadership perspectives. The Change-Path Model, supported by Beckhard and Harris’ Change-Management …

Community Integration Through Cooperative Education (Cice): A Post-Secondary World Fit For All, Stephanie Kathleen De Franceschi

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Students with developmental disabilities are a growing and diverse population. Higher education landscapes are becoming increasingly complex. Despite academic and personal supports available to all Ontario college students through student services centers, Marshall College (a pseudonym) is experiencing a disconnect between the stated vision, mission, and values and the Community Integration Through Cooperative Education (CICE) program and its students. Diverse views have polarized senior administration, faculty, and staff on how to adapt to having students with developmental disabilities accessing post-secondary education through the CICE program. This Organizational Improvement Plan explores the organizational context of Marshall College and proposes an improvement …

Transformation Through Trust And Authenticity: Improving And Aligning Service Learning In An International Baccalaureate School, Christopher Wallace

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

The International Baccalaureate’s Middle Years Programme places service learning at the core of its curriculum. Yet, challenges with implementing it successfully are omnipresent in international schools. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) aims to support teachers with the implementation of service learning projects at a private, non-profit international school in Western Europe. It is guided and framed by a Problem of Practice (POP) that addresses the current state of service learning at Mountain Range School (MRS) where curriculum and independent service projects are inconsistently designed, implemented and supported. It includes an evaluation of school policies, curriculum, teacher capacity, resources and systems. …

Beyond Persistence: Increasing The Representation Of Women Faculty And Leaders In Academic Surgery, Dinah M. Frank

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

In demanding tripartite roles, faculty at Academic Health Sciences Centres provide surgeon training and patient care, while seeking discovery through research and innovation. The persistent imbalance of women in academic surgery has been empirically evident and an intense topic of discussion for decades, yet solutions remain elusive. There has been increasing analysis and scrutiny of the factors affecting women in this domain, while highlighting the disconnect between the current state and our affirmed belief in gender equity in both education and medicine. My Organizational Improvement Plan is focussed on the recognition and resolution of barriers and biases impeding the appointment …

Moving Beyond The Status Quo: Building An Intersectional Student-Centred Culture In A Registrar’S Office, Darran A. Fernandez

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

With an increasing number of students with diverse and complex identities attending colleges and universities, higher education institutions (HEIs) need to adapt to better serve their intersectional lives. At the centre of service delivery at most HEIs is the registrar’s office (RO), often offering services from before a student’s arrival right through to graduation. This Organizational Improvement Plan (plan) explores building a student-centred service delivery model in an RO at a large comprehensive university in Ontario. Organizational structures in HEIs are commonly vertically based on the specialty of work of the staff member rather than the horizontal crosscutting needs of …

The Experience Of Becoming A Teacher Leader, Cory G. Smith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Teacher leadership has become an increasingly important aspect of school reform and evaluation. Teacher leadership is often viewed as teachers leading either through formal positions or influencing others informally. There is a lot of research describing the benefits of teacher leadership, but there is little that describes the process of a teacher leader and the effects this experience has on the teacher leaders themselves. This study examines the experience of becoming a teacher leader as viewed through interviews with 11 junior high school teachers from a single school district.

The findings of this study suggest the importance of initial events, …

Cordes Chair Seminar: Teaching Authentically In An Age Of Reality Superstars, Casandra Cox

TFSC Publications and Presentations

The Teaching and Faculty Support Center is pleased announce that Casandra Cox, instructor in the Department of Agricultural Education, Communications and Technology, will present the November Cordes Chair Seminar from 2 - 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 30, in Home Economics 108. Her presentation is entitled, "Teaching Authentically in an Age of Reality Superstars." Cox has been on the AECT faculty since 2003 and has received numerous teaching awards, including the Bumpers College's John W. White Outstanding Teaching Award and the Jack G. Justus Excellence in Teaching Award. She is also a Fellow of the U of A Teaching Academy.

Reframing Behaviour To Foster Safe And Supporting Schools, Shannon L. Cassidy-Rouleau

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) examines educator support to students who present with chronically challenging behaviours. Educators are experiencing an increase in the frequency and severity of interfering student behaviours affecting classroom learning, school climate, and educator mental well-being (RRDSB, 2018a, 2019b; Santor et al., 2019). Educators frequently disengage from these students and their discipline is managed by administration (RRDSB, 2019b). These students, often already members of marginalized communities (Bailey, 2015), are further marginalized by the use of exclusionary, punitive measures. This mandates a social justice framework that benefits from the moral dialogue evoked by transformative leadership (Shields, 2018). In …

The Growth And Development Of Institutional Reputation, Neil A. Mort Mr

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Higher education institutions spend considerable effort developing and maintaining quality educational programs and experiences for their students. However, these great programs and experiences can become best kept secrets if the institution is unknown. A positive reputation can contribute to student recruitment; successful career placement for graduates; greater retention of students, faculty, and staff; overall student satisfaction; and greater opportunities for the institution. A poor reputation, on the other hand, can negatively impact its success in recruitment; graduate career placements; and student, faculty, and staff retention. How does an institution develop and build a positive reputation and become more widely known …

Creating A Unified School Culture In A Rural School Serving Families In Multiple Communities, Elliott Roellchen-Pfohl

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) addresses the fractured culture of School X resulting from an influx of staff and students from neighbouring communities following rural school closures. The problem of practice (PoP) presented explores ways that a unified school identity can be developed in a receiving school with a student population coming from three separate communities. Through the utilization of both distributed and authentic leadership, the methods that principals of rural schools can use to address this problem are explored. The focus of the problem when viewed through the social capital theory is that all stakeholders of the school have …

Virtually Constructed Leadership: A Study Of Accountability In An International Non-Profit Organization, Kristopher Ph Tharris

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Through the eyes of a leader within a virtual non-profit organization (referred to as the Centre), this Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) explores the lack of formal accountability amongst an international team of volunteers. The lack of formal accountability has the potential to hinder all interactions of the team, decreasing efficiency of the organization and ultimately decreasing its impact on beneficiaries. The relationship between the volunteer leaders and the Centre is described as organizational volunteerism, where organizations are voluntarily contributing their human resources to benefit the international community. This improvement plan examines a combination of complementary leadership approaches that form a …

Authentic Leadership And Knowledge Management In Public Libraries: Role Of Organizational Commitment Using Mixed Method Research, Shahbaz Sharif, Rab Nawaz Lodhi Dr., Muhammad Asif Munir, Farhana Yasmin Dr.

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Versatile leadership theories have been practiced to organizational sustainability last decade. Interestingly, authentic leadership has been proved to have effective practical implications to ensure organizational sustainability. Drawing from authentic leadership theory, this research aims at exploring the direct and indirect effect of authentic leadership on knowledge-management: explicit and tacit knowledge sharing behavior about public libraries in higher educational institutions (HEIs). This research employed an affective commitment mechanism to mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and knowledge-management. By using a sequential explanatory research design, this research collected data from the professors of public HEIs. The research administered 368 designed survey Questionnaires …

Evidence Informed Strategy To Improve Organizational Learning Engagement, Glenn G. Barton

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

The ability of an organization to effectively learn and apply knowledge not only equates with highly agile performance, it is increasingly important to surviving in a knowledge based economy. Organizational learning has been widely popularized in recent decades, however defining, coordinating, and maximizing this collective learning capability within organizations remains challenging. In part this difficulty may lie in conflicted views about the purposes of learning and who it benefits, varied ways in which learning or leading it can happen, and most importantly in employee’s different motivations to engage in learning at all. This plan examines organizational learning engagement and targets …

Change Management, Quality Assurance And Race: Advancing Race-Based Equity In Canadian Higher Education By Leveraging Established Institutional Mechanisms, Nadia Mallay

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Higher education in Canada has been well regarded for decades. Academically rigorous programs and institutions graduate strong students while also attracting top local and global talent as employees to their institutional communities. However, the field of Critical Race Theory, among others, explicates that higher education institutions are not equitable for all bodies. Individuals with intersectionalities inclusive of the Black Diaspora continue to be excluded from academic success and success as employee stakeholders in higher education institutions. Critically, Black bodies continue to struggle with entry to higher education and means to economic success post-graduation, as well as lack of inclusivity to …

Creating A Culture Of Data-Informed Strategic Enrollment Management At A Canadian Higher Educational Institution, Shawna M. Matthews

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Higher education institutions are focusing significant energy to attract and retain students through strategic enrollment management (SEM). This organizational improvement plan (OIP) addressed the lack of a data-informed approach to strategic enrollment management at a small Canadian University campus. Although the SEM process is complex, without a data-informed approach to SEM, institutions are wasting their time and resources. This organizational improvement plan used a cultural change approach as well as a combination of authentic and distributed leadership approaches to provide a solution to the problem of a lack of data-informed strategic enrollment management at a Campus X. With enrollments almost …

Leadership Theories And United States Demographic Shifts: Responsiveness In The Workplace, Sherry H. Latten, Jonathan Perez

Journal of Research Initiatives

As the United States becomes increasingly more diverse, it is imperative that organizations consider the implications of their leadership pipeline. Given the differences that can exist by social identity groups in experiences, values, interests, and communications, it raises a question about the responsiveness of current leadership theories to the changing demographics. This article explores the responsiveness of transformational leadership, authentic leadership, and leader-member exchange (LMX) theory to the demographic changes as a means of helping organizations consider how existing leadership norms and theories need to be expanded to encompass the future population of leaders across race, sex, and age.

The Perceived Impacts Of Positive Psychological Capacities On The Authentic Leadership Of Minnesota Secondary School Principals During Professional Critical Incidents, Marcia Welch

Culminating Projects in Education Administration and Leadership

The foci of the study are the impacts of positive psychological capacities (PsyCaps) of hope, resilient, self-efficacy, and optimism on the authentic leadership of Minnesota secondary school principals during professional critical incidents. A critical incident is “defined as an interruption in the expected behaviours and developments in one’s life that produces strong emotions and a need to ‘make sense’ of the situation” (Weick, 1995; WorksafeBC, 2002, as cited in Lenarduzzi, 2015, p. 254). A professional critical incident is a reminder that leadership consists of successes and failures. Critical incidents make and remake leaders who are courageous enough to participate in …

A Strategic Approach To Leading And Managing Low Teacher Morale In An Adult Newcomer Education School Setting, Lenny Dinanath

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

The purpose of this Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) is to produce a comprehensive and actionable plan to the problem of low teacher morale at Crest Wood Adult Education School (CWAES) which is a small, but rapidly expanding adult newcomer education school located in Ontario. Teachers’ morale and motivation increases when good working conditions exist and when they are offered opportunities to develop their professionalism and skills (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2005). A professional learning community (PLC) is central to the facilitating such learning opportunities which can be leveraged to improve students’ success and achievements. Leadership approach and style …

In Governance We Trust: Introducing A Comprehensive University Governance Education Program To Improve Institutional Trust, Erika Hegedues

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

In recent years, the governing bodies of several universities became the centre of attention for the wrong reason: they were implicated as the cause of institutional-level trust failures, involving senior university executives and chairs of the governing bodies. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) explores a Problem of Practice (PoP) that revolves around the university community’s lack of trust in the governing bodies of Organization Y due to an organizational-level trust failure. The review committees established after the event determined a deep-seated dissatisfaction of the community with the operations of the governing bodies, and with the culture and leadership of the …

Improving Employees' Experience With The Performance Appraisal Process, Melanie Molnar

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Organizational changes can be successful when approached with an appreciation for an appropriate change management strategy that aligns with the organizational context and the change that is being implemented. In this Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP), the performance evaluation process in place at University Y will be looked at and recommendations will be made for improvements. Special attention will be given to the requirements for a successful change management process. An authentic leadership approach is the preferred approach for the purpose of this OIP. Complex Adaptive Systems is a field within Complexity theories and will be used in order to address …

The Role Of Conversation In How Educational Services Assistant Superintendents Lead Change, Lisa Paisley

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological research study was to describe the behaviors that exemplary educational services assistant superintendents practice to lead their organizations through conversation as depicted by Groysberg and Slind’s (2012b) 4 elements of conversational leadership: intimacy, interactivity, inclusion, and intentionality. Methodology: A qualitative, phenomenological approach was used in this study in order to describe the lived experiences and behaviors of exemplary leaders. The target population was educational services assistant superintendents in Southern California. Participants were selected using a purposeful, nonprobability, convenience sampling. Data gathering took the form of semistructured, in-depth interviews, observations, and artifact collection. Interviews were …

Follower Commitment: The Impact Of Authentic Leadership's Positivity And Justice On Presenteeism, Caroline Antonia Drakeley

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Leadership behaviors are associated with organizational commitment for a unique niche of individuals - those who produce less work while in the workplace due to health-related problems, such as anxiety, stress, or depression. New research shows followers' perceptions of leaders' positive support and organizational justice (procedural and distributive) are significantly positively associated with followers' perceived organizational commitment. This quantitative correlational study explored the relationship between followers' perceptions of leadership support, leadership procedural justice, and leadership distributive justice, as well as their own perceptions of their emotional stability, and organizational commitment using the authentic leadership framework. Further research using multiple linear …

Changing School Culture To Engage Disengaged Students, Trisha E. Sotropa

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) examines how formal leaders (including principals and vice principals) and informal school leaders (such as influential teachers) can provide opportunities for greater engagement in the learning process for all students by changing the culture (Schein, 2010) of an increasingly diverse Alberta school. Educational leaders beliefs and assumptions about the purpose of education and the roles of teachers and students will impact their beliefs about student engagement (Vibert & Shields, 2003) in both teacher-led curricular and extracurricular activities. Several recent surveys, including surveys in Alberta schools (Learning Bar, 2016) and larger surveys in the United States …

Leadership, Nursing, And Patient Safety Within A Hospital-Based Learning Organization, Lara Murphy

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Within the complex and often changing Canadian landscape of healthcare, patient safety remains at the forefront of hospital corporate priorities and strategic plans. Drawing data from an emergency department in one Ontario-based hospital that was supported by 180 nursing staff and a three-member front-line leadership team (two coordinators and a manager), this study provides further insight into aspects of how safe patient care can be provided. An exploratory mixed-methods case study was used to understand how and why leadership attributes impact a patient safety culture and patient safety outcomes in a learning organization. It was hypothesized that nursing staff who …

Examining An Adult Education Partnership Through A Positive Organizational Lens, Lewis H. Burke Jr

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

This companion dissertation reports the findings of applied case study research on four community college organizational units that consistently meet or exceed standard performance measures. In addition, prior ample evidence confirms that performance extended significantly beyond what might be explained by available tangible resources alone. The case study contexts are common in higher education in general: a) an external partnership, (b) an ad hoc team, (c) a traditional, cross-divisional service unit, and (d) a grant-funded student service unit.

Emerging positive organizational theory and research show promise for revealing performance-influencing phenomena and behaviors that are not adequately represented in standard measures. …