Learning Disrupted: The Effects Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On The Student Teacher/Supervising Practitioner Relationship, Bethany Tremblay-Price

Educational Studies Dissertations

In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the lives of educators across Massachusetts when schools closed their doors to in-person learning for the school year. Online teaching and learning became the norm as teachers quickly adapted their lessons for virtual classrooms. Student teachers were among these educators, finding themselves quarantined for the final months of their teacher education programs. Literature suggests that the student teaching semester and the relationships formed within it are integral to teacher education. How would these relationships fare through this interruption to the field experience? This qualitative case study examined the relationships between student teachers and …

Promoting Positive White Racial Identity Development In K-12 Teachers: A Qualitative Case Study, Johnny Cole

Educational Studies Dissertations

The process of racial identity development (RID) is widely agreed to be the process by which an individual comes to understand the role race plays in their sense of self, how it influences their ability to acquire information and reach goals, how it affects their interpersonal interactions with others, and the manner in which it assigns group membership in the larger society. The formative years students spend in K-12 educational environments can play an important role in their RID; thus educators’ awareness of these developmental processes can potentially help dismantle the systems of inequity within a critical race theory framework …

Elementary School Teacher’S Experiences Of Open Studio Process In Examining Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Topics, Tiffany Thompson

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This qualitative research study examined the experiences of two Black female teachers and six White female teachers who participated in five Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) workshops that incorporated Open Studio Process (OSP) using Expressive Therapy Continuum (ETC). It is informed by research on defensiveness and resistance that often accompanies and presents barriers to effective DEI training.

All eight study participants were elementary school teachers, ages 22-56. Participants engaged in five workshops that used artistic mediums to explore DEI topics. Participants visually and metaphorically represented their experiences. Results were analyzed using qualitative techniques.

Findings are that OSP using ETC …

How Sensory Exploration Using Expressive Arts Provides A Cohesive Experience For Children With Multiple Diagnoses, Chanelle Goguen

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This thesis looks at the potential benefits and cohesive experience of sensory exploration for children with multiple diagnoses through a trauma informed lens. The researcher was inspired by Prendiville’s (2021) idea of how interactive sensory exploration and art making can help foster and develop reciprocal communication and socio-affective relationships influenced the researcher to design a method that would be used to collect data about potential similar findings. In the method, the interaction of the sensory-specific art mediums were reflected through the expressive therapies continuum (ETC) framework. The research of this thesis acknowledges and explores how trauma and adverse childhood experiences …

Cultivating Massachusetts Public Elementary School Formal Teacher-Leadership, Amy Mitchell

Educational Studies Dissertations

In Massachusetts public elementary schools, teaching and leadership roles are perceived as mutually exclusive rather than interwoven. Despite credentials that would recognize Massachusetts public elementary school teachers as leaders beyond their classrooms, the leadership frame of reference attests that those who have the position, power and authority to lead (e.g., superintendents, directors, principals) are the leaders of schools and school districts. Because of this, the prospect of an expanded pathway for formal public elementary school teacher-leadership is challenged and there is a dearth of literature pertaining to formal teacher-leadership practices in public elementary schools. This study sought to understand this …

A Critical Inquiry Exploring The Relationship Between Critical Consciousness And Community Engagement Educators, Carol Difalco

Counseling and Psychology Dissertations

Community engagement programs are shaped by the educators who facilitate them. Due to a curtailed critical consciousness, such programs are not always sensitive to the negative implications for the communities they are attempting to support. Guided by critical ethnographic and interpretive phenomenological analysis, this study examines how educators perceive their relationship with critical consciousness, its impact on their community engagement initiatives, and what we can learn from educators using community engagement to work towards social justice issues. As expected, results from the participants revealed varying awareness and understanding of how structural power and institutional oppression impact community engagement initiatives. Some …

Therapeutic Presence In Music Therapy Education: An Arts-Based Phenomenological Inquiry, Elizabeth Jane Eggerding

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

Little music therapy research has been published on therapeutic presence (TP). This study explored the inclusion of TP in music therapy education. Participants were eight credentialed music therapists who identified as music therapy educators and/or clinical supervisors. They attended one of two focus groups and were asked to submit a 1-minute excerpt of themselves improvising a reflection of their focus group’s discussion. Focus group data revealed four themes: (1) Defining TP; (2) Education and Supervision Responsibilities; (3) TP is Taught Through Experiential Learning; and (4) Learning TP is a Developmental Process. Participants defined TP as simultaneously incorporating both states of …

Mindful Artmaking In Elementary Classrooms: A Path To Emotional Regulation, Christine Gober

Mindfulness Studies Theses

Abstract

In an era dominated by technological advancements and mounting external pressures, the emotional and mental well-being of the younger generation is a growing concern. This research paper explores the intricate relationship between mindfulness, art-making, and emotional regulation within the context of elementary classrooms. The modern world, filled with a plethora of stimuli, has escalated stress levels among individuals, especially children, leading to a surge in mental health issues. Mindfulness, deeply rooted in ancient traditions, teaches individuals to stay present, fostering a non-judgmental awareness of their thoughts and emotions. Art-making, on the other hand, serves as a medium for emotional …

A Qualitative Study Of Teachers’ Knowledge Of Anxiety And Their Feelings Of Preparedness To Support Students With Anxiety, Jessica Minahan

Educational Studies Dissertations

The incidence of anxiety disorders, one of the most prevalent mental health disorders, in students has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, these disorders continue to be underdiagnosed and untreated in schools, leading to impaired learning, social relationships, and health issues. If teachers, who spend a considerable amount of time with students, identify anxiety and enforce successful interventions, it can lead to positive student outcomes. Therefore, this qualitative study examined teachers’ knowledge of anxiety and their feelings of preparedness in teaching students with anxiety. Thirteen general education elementary teachers with two to three years of experience were interviewed. The participants …

Charter School Leaders And Their Students’ Resilience, Katy Bridget Angelone

Educational Studies Dissertations

The purpose of this multiple composite case study was to develop descriptive accounts of the thoughts, beliefs, actions, and assessments of charter school leaders regarding their efforts towards students’ resilience-building. Survey results from 46 participants identified eight Massachusetts charter school leaders who prioritized resilience-building within their schools. Semi-structured interviews with eight participants inquired about their reasons and methods for resilience-building in their schools and the factors and conditions that inhibit and foster their efforts. The qualitative data analysis yielded five findings. Participants operated from two orientations: resilience empowers learners and cultivates self-directed learning; and resilience is needed to manage traumatic …

Avoiding Educator Burnout: Using Mindfulness To Embody Teacher Values, Ami Amero, Ami Amero

Mindfulness Studies Theses

The purpose of this creative thesis is to explore applying mindfulness into an educator’s lesson planning process through identifying a teacher’s core values. It is important not only because of the scarcity of current research on said topic, but findings show there is a strong case that can be made regarding alleviating educator burnout. The suggestion(s) provided in the creative thesis are geared towards teachers already well-versed in a mindfulness practice and looking to take their experience further in a professional setting. Additionally, the sessions cater to educators who may not have much (if any) autonomy in their classroom and …

A Qualitative Study On Nurse Facilitators Of Mind-Body Skills Groups, Paula D. Blake-Beckford

Mindfulness Studies Theses

The Center for Mind-Body Medicine (CMBM), founded by Dr. James Gordon, provides communities with evidence-based Mind-Body Skills Groups (MBSGs) that foster self-care, self-awareness, and self-expression. MBSGs range from 8 to 12-week series on various mind-body practices wherein group members meet, practice, and reflect on the impact of mind-body skills in their lives. Research has demonstrated that participants in MBSGs have positive outcomes. Healthcare professionals (HCPs), especially nurses, gain resiliency from MBSGs. As facilitators of MBSGs, nurses develop essential skills transferable to clinical and educational settings. MBSGs are therapeutic for adult participants with chronic stress. Prior to this thesis, only one …

Teacher Perceptions Of Self-Efficacy Before And After Engaging In Hevruta Or Psychodrama-Based Online Workshops, Merav Berger

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

Teacher self-efficacy is a construct that continues to be extensively researched. With the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic, the learning environment has shifted dramatically and has had an impact on Jewish educators’ sense of efficacy. This study examined the pre- and post-test scores for self-efficacy of Jewish educators who engaged in either an online psychodrama-based professional development workshop, a hevruta-based workshop, or an integrated session using both psychodrama and hevruta study. The participants were 28 Jewish educators from around the United States who were split into one of six groups. Two psychodrama-based groups and two integrated groups met online for …

Drama Therapy Interventions That Support Students With Asd During Covid-19, Olivia Reyes

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that began in December 2019, many people experienced traumatic losses, environmental stressors, and overall daily challenges. One of the populations most at risk during this time were those with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Those with mental health illness and developmental differences are experiencing the pandemic in different ways. Individuals with ASD tend to have both developmental differences and mental health challenges that motivate individuals to seek medicinal and therapeutic help, along with other services to support their daily needs. This literature review addresses the negative and positive impacts COVID-19 has had on the …

The Teaching Artist Experience: An Art-Based Study Exploring Teaching Artists' Perspectives On The Efficacy Of Employment-Based Training And Support, Tessa Bry Taylor

Educational Studies Dissertations

This art-based research study seeks to examine teaching artists’ current perspectives on the models of training and support provided to them by their employers. The study was conducted with a group of teaching artists exploring two key research questions: What models of training and support do teaching artists receive? What are teaching artists perspectives on the efficacy of those models? Responses were explored collaboratively through a cyclical process of artmaking, reflection, and discussion designed and facilitated by the artist-researcher. The study yielded the following outcomes: teaching artists believe training and support received from employers is inefficient and inconsistent; teaching artists …

A Review Of Integrated Embodied Therapies And Racial Healing In Public Schools, Grace Fosler

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Anti-Black racism lies in the social, political, and economic foundations of the United States of America. Race and racism are manifestations of unhealed generational trauma that negatively impact the minds and bodies of all Americans. Black children are exposed to institutional and interpersonal racism upon entering the public school system, leading many Black students to experience discrimination and segregation, exclusionary discipline, and juvenile entry into the Prison-Industrial Complex. Educators have a unique opportunity to engage in individual and collective racial healing while fostering social change and collective healing in students. An integrated approach of individualized coaching and group embodiment, dance/movement …

Art Therapy In Public Education, Sophie Edelman

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This literature review explores the history of art therapy in education. By understanding the history it is clear that art therapy has always been a positive force for students. By learning from the successes and challenges in our history we are better able to plan for future programing and expansion of art therapy programs. Because art therapy was developed in part by educators, the history of art therapy itself is linked with the history of art therapy in schools. In today’s application of art therapy in education there are three models most typically used. The research discusses the strengths and …

Student Wellbeing And Open Studio Process In The School Curriculum, Maria Kim

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This study aimed to explore whether Open Studio Process (OSP) increased wellbeing of middle and high school students when facilitated by teachers as a part of the regular art curriculum. It was hypothesized that OSP might increase the sense of wellbeing among middle and high school students as well as facilitating teachers. The research was conducted as a mixed methods study in South Korea where students need preventative interventions for their wellbeing. The researcher trained eight teachers to facilitate OSP and five of them implemented it with their classes for seven sessions. Quantitative data (K-YSR; pre- and posttest) were collected …

Book Groups And The Relational Engagement Of Sixth-Grade Readers, Kathryn Contini

Educational Studies Dissertations

The purpose of this mini-ethnographic case study is to determine the factors that impact the relational engagement of middle-school readers in a student-facilitated book group. This is achieved by considering how students relationally engaged with texts, peers, and a teacher while participating in a student-facilitated book group for three months. As the understanding of academic engagement has broadened to include relational engagement, it is necessary to examine how this theoretical construct impacts reading instruction. While educators have long known learning is social, classroom success is most often measured by independent achievement rather than by social engagement. For these reasons, it …

The Principal’S Role In Expanding Multicultural Understandings In Predominantly White, Rural, Middle School Grades, Jacquelynne Chase

Educational Studies Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the principal’s role in expanding multicultural understandings in predominantly White, rural, middle school grades. A review of the literature provided information on three areas: (a) benefits of expanding multicultural understandings, (b) implementing multicultural understandings, and (c) school leaders’ role. The literature did not include information to address a prevalent problem in Massachusetts: Principals of rural, predominantly White schools with middle grades typically do not consider expanding multicultural understandings a priority. This explanatory sequential mixed methods study used a closed-response survey and in-depth interviews with principals across Massachusetts. The survey was sent to …

What Can A Studio Approach To Teaching Tell Us About The Academic And Social Learning Of Middle School Students? An Exploration Of Student Understanding Of How Making Art Supports Their Academic And Social Learning., Maureen Creegan- Quinquis, Maureen A. Creegan-Quinquis

Educational Studies Dissertations

This study explores the types of social and academic learning typically overlooked in public school education. Art-based approaches to academic learning have been labeled as“fluff.” Education policymakers hold a biased view of the arts. When asked to consider art as a viable epistemology, cognition theorists have dismissed art as irrational. These biased views have contributed to the marginalization of the field of art education. The purpose of this study was to question this bias through an art-based studio approach to research. The goal was to explore how middle school students understand the role of visual arts in their own academic …

Dmt And “The Man Box:” Provoking Change And Encouraging Authentic Living, An Arts-Based Project, Steven Reynolds

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This thesis explores the mind-body experience through an arts-based research approach to examine, and redefine the emotional capacity and usefulness of males through societal determinants that limits and hinders men from living their authentic selves. Through the lens of a metaphoric “Man Box” 112 men participated in a workshop recreating their personal narratives of socialization through, style of dress, coping mechanisms, belief systems and who they should be as men through society's standards. In the “Man Box,” male bonding, and emotional feelings are discouraged, while the objectification of women, material property and physical/emotional strength are encouraged. This research investigates the …

Unlocking The Potential For Every Teacher To Lead: A Phenomenological Study Of Informal Teacher Leadership, Jennifer M. Martin

Educational Studies Dissertations

This qualitative study of informal teacher leaders used a phenomenological method of research to investigate the lived experiences of teachers who have led in schools without a formal title or position of leadership. The study used a mixed methods approach to gathering data including a survey of 111 secondary educators in Eastern Massachusetts and 10 interviews with informal teacher leaders at the high school and middle school levels. The study inquired about how informal teacher leaders understand the concept of teacher leadership, what motivates and prepares them for leadership, the factors and conditions that encourage or discourage engagement in informal …

The Leadership Of Principals And Their Influence On Student Learning In Public And Private Schools In Tripura, India, Pinto Paul

Educational Studies Dissertations

Previous studies of leadership have shown that principal leadership is the single most influential factor in student learning, next to classroom teaching. They provided information that can be used for creating, supporting, and sustaining principal leadership practices to increase student learning. This study identified the factors and conditions that influence the leadership practices of principals, the various ways principals say that they influence student learning, and the challenges they face in helping others to improve student learning in Tripura. Northeast India. These data were drawn from open-ended questions used in in-depth face-to-face interviews with six public school principals and a …

Sidewalk Math: An Innovative Approach For Engaging All Children In Mathematical Learning, Martha Barry Mckenna, Siobhan Dennis, Maureen Loony, Merideth Ekwall

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

In kindergarten classrooms in six schools across Massachusetts young children are developing numbersense by walking, hopping, jumping, and skipping through colorful mathematical designs on carpets and sidewalks. The patterns and accompanying counting activities provide teachers with tools to engage young children in learning mathematics through movement and observation activities on colorful floor designs.

Lesley University’s Creativity Commons partnered with 20 kindergarten teachers and their 6 principals to form the Early Childhood Math Collaborative Inquiry Project in Fall 2017 to study the impact of the use of Sidewalk Math carpet patterns on children’s development of numbersense. Teachers from 3 urban schools …

Passing The Baton To Future Leaders: Faculty To Teacher Leaders To Students, Valerie Harlow Shinas, Judith Zorfass

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

In this session, the authors will share a shift in an understanding of their role. This has led to an emerging model of cascading leadership, in which the leadership process can be developed and passed on from course instructor to graduate students—and ultimately, to the students they teach. Like the passing of the baton from one runner to the next, faculty who are aware of their own expanded leadership roles become better able to empower tomorrow’s teacher and student leaders.

Their work is based on the required, 3-credit course redesigned and taught by the authors, Perspectives of Literacy, Teaching, and …

Visual Influence And Youth Empowerment, Rebecca A. Cote

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

During adolescence, youth start to look outside of their spheres of family to explore the greater world and they are often left with visual media as the go-to source of information. Media images are contrived to provoke meaning through the use of signs and how they are presented and they manipulate images to impart messages. Youth need to be literate in visual language in order to discern the implied influence.

How Can Technology Inform, Promote Understanding, And Spark Discussion About Social Change?, Maureen B. Yoder

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

Technology can be a powerful tool, but finding high quality, educationally sound applications can be challenging. Fortunately, there are responsible developers and publishers who are creating informative, thought provoking materials to inspire students and encourage culturally responsible attitudes and behaviors as well as stimulate dialog about social justice. This session will include examples of the following:

Virtual Reality: National Geographic, the New York Times, and other publishers, are using award winning reporters and videographers to create realistic virtual reality apps to provide immersive experiences and provocative documentaries. Filmed in locations around the world, they show diverse cultural, economic, and geographic …

Collaborative Action Research To Implement Social-Emotional Learning In A Rural Elementary School: Helping Students Become "Little Kids With Big Words", Donna M. San Antonio Dr.

Faculty Scholarship

Research has shown that social and emotional learning (SEL) can benefit students in affective, interpersonal, communicative, and academic realms. However, teachers integrating SEL face a variety of logistical, pedagogical, and skill development challenges, including how to effectively facilitate classroom conversations on social justice and personal loss. This article draws from classroom observations, teacher conversations, interactive journals, and field notes to describe a seven-month-long university-school partnership to carry out an action research project in a high-poverty rural elementary school in the US. Teachers grappled with how to address race, immigration, and gender discrimination in a predominantly White community. Classroom vignettes, and …

An Examination Of The Instruction Of Religion Clause Issues In Massachusetts Teacher Education Programs, Matthew E. Henry

Educational Studies Dissertations

The prevailing research, as well as reported complaints of academic, civic, personal, and social harm, indicates that public school teachers do not exhibit the professional knowledge, skills, and attitudes grounded in the religion clauses of the U.S. Constitution. This study investigated how TEPs in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts document their instruction of preservice teachers on religion clause issues as they apply to grade 6-12 content area pedagogy, curriculum, and professional ethos. The institutional documents presented to preservice teachers were collected from four teacher education programs in the Commonwealth. An evaluation tool— synthesized from the leading scholarship and research on the …