Childcare Organizations: A Qualitative Study On Childcare Leaders’ Perceptions Of The Elements That Promote The Work They Do In The Childcare Industry, Paula S. Polito Mrs.

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Research has often highlighted the positive effects of high-quality early care and education on children's development and the economy. However, the challenge of ensuring access to quality care for all children and understanding the perspectives of leaders doing crucial work on the ground remains. Given the strong associations between high-quality early childhood education, brain development, and positive economic outcomes for those who access high-quality care, my paper introduces a theory of change. This theory outlines a pathway from understanding the determinants of quality in childcare centers, as seen through the eyes of industry leaders, to the implementation of policy changes. …

Assessing Math Motivation, Educational Expectancy, And Grades In Corequisite Coursework To Predict Outcomes In College Algebra, Kurt M. Ovella

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The lack of preparation and math motivation are obstacles for new students entering higher education. Students who are underprepared in math often lack the skills and motivation to succeed in College Algebra. The purpose of this research study is to assess student math self-efficacy, task value, intrinsic value, educational expectancy, and grades in corequisite coursework to predict outcomes in College Algebra. Using binary logistic regression, the researcher examined motivational factors and corequisite course grades to determine their impact on student success in College Algebra. The primary objective of the present study was to examine college students’ math achievement in College …

Experiencing Positional Turbulence: High School Social Studies Teachers' Perceptions Of Instructional Leadership Support While Teaching During National Crises, Lynn M. Walters-Rauenhorst

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This research examined instructional leadership support of eight Louisiana high school social studies teachers as they experienced positional turbulence as a result of teaching to politically and socially aware students in a polarized political and social climate during the 2020-2021 school year. In recent years the American education system has been challenged in unprecedented ways. A global pandemic, renewed calls for social justice, and a highly polarized political climate created an extremely turbulent environment for all educators. Social studies teachers faced a unique set of challenges of integrating controversial current events into a high-stakes standards-based curriculum. Utilizing a conceptual framework …

Singing Their Stories: A Musical Narrative Of Teaching And Testing, Desi Richter

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This musical, arts-based educational research describes the lived experiences of four K-12 New Orleans educators who believe that end-of-year standardized tests hinder their ability to teach in ways they believe are best. Using songwriting as a form of data elicitation and narrative restorying, this study documents the lived experiences of teachers who have experienced test-related cognitive dissonance. While curricular narrowing and other test-related practices have been studied in many contexts, the perspectives of New Orleans teachers are barely documented. Thus, this study fills a content gap in the testing literature. Musically restorying the data contributes to the accountability literature in …

Moving On: A Phenomenological Study On The Experiences Of Migrating Teachers In Disadvantaged School Districts, Gini E. Dufrene

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Teacher migration occurs frequently in public schools across the United States. As teachers transition and move to new schools, this can have implications for student achievement (Adnot, Dee, Katz, & Wyckoff, 2017; Ronfeldt, Loeb, & Wyckoff, 2013), school/family relationships (Simon & Johnson, 2015), and school administrators (Ingersoll, 2003b). The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study is to better understand the experiences that led teachers to voluntarily migrate to different schools within their district. Data for this study was collected through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Public district documents were evaluated to better understand specific policies and/or restrictions on migrating teachers. …

The Experiential Journey Of Teacher-Scholars: “If You’Re Not A Teacher, You Just Don’T Get It”, Ashleigh L. Pelafigue

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The Center of Graduate Schools (2015) published a report detailing applications, enrollment, and trends in graduate schools across the nation showing that approximately one third of all first-time graduate school applicants in master’s degree programs utilizing the GRE assessment identify their career path in either business or teacher education. The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experiences of classroom teachers who concurrently pursued graduate studies to earn a master’s degree in education and to understand how adult learning provided opportunities for personal growth and the attainment of professional goals. Individual interviews and two focus groups were conducted …

Found Missing: Fugitive Slaves, Jailer Ads, And Surveillance In Antebellum New Orleans, Tara L. Garbutt

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores fugitive slave advertisements from the pages of the New Orleans Argus in 1828. As the main repository for runaway slave advertisements in New Orleans at the time, the Argus played a critical role in policing and surveillance of the city’s enslaved population just as New Orleans was becoming the largest slave market in the South. Using the Argus as well as historians’ accounts of the city, this thesis argues that as the market in enslaved people grew, slave owners depended upon local jailers in tandem with papers like the Argus, to police the enslaved population. The large …

If Only They Tried; The Complicated Crusade For Salvation In The Post-Katrina Education Reform Movement, Brooke Wanamaker

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Education reform is shifting the landscape of New Orleans public schools, where alternative certification programs are thriving and changing the demographics of core teachers. This study follows a Teach for America (TFA) Corps Member from 2007 (just after the historic flooding from Hurricane Katrina) who brought a promise of innovation through idealism and green wisdom. The teacher’s preparation and motivations are shown to be problematic. Examining the assumptions and privileges that underlie the import of inexperienced talent to urban education systems, this study considers the ways that community voices have been lost or undervalued in New Orleans schools. The thesis …

Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis Of Student Perceptions Of Bullying Based On Family, School, And Media Influences, Decina H. Rodriguez

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Though many studies have been conducted on bullying and ways to prevent it, there is still little evidence that bullying has been reduced (Bauman, 2008). Since bullying behaviors have become prevalent, incidences of negative outcomes for students who are bullies and victims have increased, hence more discussion of the topic is taking place at school, home, and in the media (Bauman, 2008; Kaiser & Raminsky, 2001; Salmon, James, & Smith, 1998). This study proposes to learn how students make sense of these multiple messages. Through an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) (Smith & Osborn, 2003), 8-10 year old students were interviewed …

Rerouting The School To Prison Pipeline: A Phenomenological Study Of The Educational Experiences Of African American Males Who Have Been Expelled From Public Schools, Jennifer Grace

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The present study consisted of a phenomenological investigation of African American males who have been expelled from traditional educational settings in New Orleans, LA in order to provide educators with information geared towards increasing academic achievement in African American males. It has been noted that one of the reasons that Black males graduation rates are so low is because in addition to other factors that lead to non-completion, black males are more likely to be expelled from school. In this study, I used a Critical Race theoretical framework to explore gain experiential knowledge of these excluded young men, what they …

The First Year Transition And Resilience Of Precollege Outreach Program Alumni, Dale-Ellen M. O'Neill

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

While traditionally underrepresented groups are attaining degrees at a higher rate than ever before, these students still receive bachelor’s degrees at significantly lower rates than other groups of students (Avery & Kane, 2004; Wilds, 2000). As a result of the educational attainment gap in the United States, precollege outreach programs have been established to provide resources for underrepresented youth to aid them in completing a post-secondary degree. Current research focuses on these participants’ college enrollment and, as a result, minimal information is available to describe these programs and their outcomes concerning students’ first year experience and college success (Hooker & …

Blank Page: A Teacher Begins, John D. Wolfe

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Comprised of seven essays, this collection of literary nonfiction explores one man's journey into the teaching profession. The author recounts his experiences from just before he heard the call, to his first year teaching as an intern at Punahou School in Honolulu, through his first three years teaching full-time, and the challenges, mostly internal conflicts, he worked through as he taught freshmen and then two junior/senior electives before eventually going on sabbatical to Tanzania for his ninth year.

An Examination Of The Perceptions Of Educational Leaders On The Ensuring Literacy For All Initiative’S Impact On Student Reading Achievement In Louisiana, Khanh Kim Nguyen-Dufour

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to examine the experiences of Louisiana’s Ensuring Literacy For All (ELFA) initiative from the perspective of

educational administrators in order to identify: (a) the factors within ELFA that contributed to student reading performance; (b) the effects of the perceptions of ELFA administrators on student achievement; and (c) the components of effective leadership that attributed to the success of ELFA implementation. Bandura‘s (1993) socio-psychological theory of self efficacy was used to frame this study, which included six ELFA administrators from the state, district, and school level. The five findings of this study revealed …

Perceptions Of Loss And Grief Experiences Within Religious Burial And Funeral, Hyacinth C. Okafor

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore perceptions of loss and grief experiences within religious rites and rituals vis-à-vis the context of counseling. Literature indicated the need for a better understanding of grief and loss experiences from bereaved individuals’ perspectives and the context within which loss and grief experiences occur (Dillenburger & Keenan, 2005; Stroebe, Hansson, Schut, & Stroebe, 2008). Participants for this study included 10 purposefully selected Catholic members from two Catholic Church parishes in Nigeria, Africa. All participants had experienced loss and grief, had participated in Catholic burial and funeral rites and rituals, and were …

Perceptions Of College Readiness And Social Capital Of Ged Completers In Entry-Level College Courses, Donalyn L. Lott

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Examining the efficacy of literacy improvement, general education development (GED) completion, and GED completers’ perceptions of college readiness and social capital was the purpose of this study. The participant sample (n=321), derived from the target population (N=1050), consisted of former participants of Adult Literacy Education (ALE)/GED programs in the Greater New Orleans area (GNO), who have earned the GED credential, and, are currently enrolled in entry-level courses at two community colleges in Southeast Louisiana; specifically, in Orleans and St. Bernard parishes. The study was framed by the social capital theoretical perspective.

The study used quantitative methodology, with …

Developmental Education Repeaters: Stories About Repetition, Jade J. O'Dell

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Developmental education students make up almost half of the community college population in the United States (Bettinger & Long, 2005). Approximately 42% of first-time freshmen at community colleges must enroll in at least one developmental education course in English, reading and/or math (NCES, 2010). Many developmental education students are unsuccessful in passing a developmental education course in their first and second attempts and retake the course sometimes five times before passing. There is substantial research on persistence among college students, but the research fails to link persistence to developmental education repeaters. My study sought to explore community college developmental education …