Education Commons^™

Program Improvement Through Graduate Student Leadership Development Plans, Lakresha P. Clark

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to inform program improvement for one Metropolitan University graduate educational leadership program by reviewing adult educational personal leadership development plans completed during semesters Fall 2019 through Spring 2021.

At the beginning of their educational leadership program, graduate students complete a personal leadership development plan, also known as the L3 Learning, Leading, and Legacy Plan. In-depth review of these plans resulted in understanding the professional context and individual professional aspirations of future educational leaders. The variety of aspirations and current professional context is a reminder for all programs of the complexity of adult …

Hope In The Time Of Crisis: Interpretation Of School Psychologists During Remote Learning And Reliability Of A New Measure, Alysha Collins

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Hope is an important thing to study. Hope has been shown to have favorable outcomes for students. It has partially mediated the positive relationship between socioeconomic status and academic achievement (i.e., GPA) in young students (Dixson et al., 2018) and it has been proven to increase college students’ GPA and their likelihood to graduate college (Snyder et al., 2002). Hope has also been linked to lower mental health concerns and increase work productivity (Lopez, 2013). However, measures of hope for adults in the school setting (teachers, school psychologist, paraprofessionals, etc.) are rare. Therefore, the development of a reliable hope measure …

Discovering Necessary Administrative Supports For Co-Teaching In Secondary Schools From Core & Special Education Teacher Perspectives, Jeff Govier

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Numerous amounts of research have been invested into secondary co-teaching. However, results show that secondary co-teaching is not effectively occurring despite volumes of research information. Increased assessments, scheduling difficulties, and a vast curriculum are factors making co-teaching difficult. Another phenomenon found in secondary teachers is called the knowing/doing gap. Secondary co-teachers are knowledgeable of what is needed to effectively co-teach but do not apply their knowledge into effective actions within the classroom. The purpose of this research was to identify what school leaders can do to overcome secondary co-teaching obstacles and close the knowing doing gap. The objective of this …

A Study On The Relationship Between Elementary Teacher Engagement And Collective Teacher Efficacy, Amy L. Falcone

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

School leaders are continually looking for ways to improve instruction and increase student achievement. Collective teacher efficacy has shown to have a high effect size on student learning. However, as educators focus on building collective teacher efficacy and helping students, these same teachers may not be completely engaged in their work. With the complexity of building collective efficacy and potentially a disengaged staff, this poses a challenge to principals who have limited time and resources to make the biggest difference they can. If a positive relationship exists between the two, then principals could focus on increasing teacher engagement which would …

Family Engagement By Learning Together: A Program Evaluation Of Webinar Series Targeted To Serve Title I Families, Jaclyn Couch Gibbons

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

School districts across the nation seek parental involvement to increase student engagement and academic success. Families from Title I Schools, in comparison to dominant culture, may have a minimal opportunity of involvement with their child’s education in respect to partnering with schools in comparison to the dominant culture.

The Department of Equity and Diversity and the Title I Department of the Research School District collaboratively created a four-part webinar series titled Community to Classroom Connections (#C3 Webinar Series) open to staff and community-at-large. The topics addressed through #C3 include Access and Opportunity, Pursuing Diversity, Building Efficacy, and Social Responsibility. Each …

An Exploratory Study Of The Trends Emerging From A Forced Shift To A Digital Interface On University Faculty's Instructional Design, Ann E. Feldmann

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The COVID-19 crisis upended the typical college experience as educational institutions had to close campuses and send students home mid-semester in the spring of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic left educators around the world with limited choices on how to move forward with high quality education for all. This abrupt closing of higher education facilities forced an immediate pivot to online synchronous or asynchronous digital classrooms for faculty and students and ushered in emergency remote teaching. While higher education has gradually expanded online offerings every year over the past twenty years, for many college students, classes were still in person until …

Stakeholder Perceptions Of Success Within A Stem Ecosystem, Heather L. Daubert

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The Omaha STEM Ecosystem (OSE) is a multi-stakeholder collaborative network (MSCN) with active members from six key stakeholder groups (Business, Education, Family, Government, Non-Profit, and Science Centers and Museums). OSE serves as a connecting agency which leverages the social capital of these member stakeholders to address the STEM workforce gap by strengthening the availability of STEM pipeline learning opportunities. The purpose of this qualitative study was to synthesize the shared and nuanced definition of success for all key stakeholder groups in OSE with the STEM lexicon. This dissertation presents the findings of semi-structured interviews with a theory of success built …

Identity And Image: The Process Of Cultivating Perceptions Of Secondary Schools, Kathryn Mcwilliams

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Group associations are a fundamental aspect of the human condition, facilitating the most basic as well as more complex needs for survival. Tajfel’s research outlines the impact that such associations have on how humans create identities for themselves. Providing pride or shame, organizations have a profound opportunity to shape its members’ senses of self-efficacy. Organizations, therefore, need to be mindful of their group identity and image to positively influence the self-esteem of those members. Nowhere is this as important as secondary schools where students are not only at a formative age, but also are often assigned to their school based …

Mental Health Support: Through The Early Development Networks Team's Perspective, Heather Post

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The purpose of this phenomenological case study was to explore the implementation of Nebraska Rule 52 Primary Service Provider model from the perspectives of the Primary Service Providers as well as the Services Coordinator. This study explored how the Primary Service Provider model is effectively meeting the needs of the child and family in the areas of mental health and social emotional support.

This research added to the knowledge and information of our key stakeholders to determine a more intensive training for our Early Development Network team and how to best support these professionals as they are working with the …

An Exploration Of The Relationship Between Graduate Admission Criteria And Academic/Clinical Student Outcomes For Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students, Jill Kumke

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The charge for speech-language pathology graduate admission committees is to identify candidates who will be successful academically and clinically in graduate school, all the while ensuring career readiness. This retrospective study focused on graduate admission criteria and students ‘academic and clinical outcomes, for eighty students that completed the program between 2016-2020. Statistical analysis was used to determine if relationships existed between traditional admission criteria and students’ academic and clinical outcomes. In addition, further analysis was completed to determine if these findings varied by student characteristics including, gender, race/ethnicity, tradition/nontraditional students, undergraduate degree, and undergraduate institution. This study found the objective …

Determining Stakeholder Perspectives Within A Local Multi-Stakeholder Collaborative Network, Garret Higginbotham

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The need for a STEM literate workforce has presented a complex issue on both the national and local level. The Omaha STEM Ecosystem was established in 2016 as a connecting agency to leverage the social capital of member stakeholders in addressing STEM workforce gaps by strengthening the availability of STEM pipeline learning opportunities in the Omaha Metro Area. This study presents a qualitative analysis of organizational documents and semi-structured interviews. Stakeholder groups were divided into Producer (Business, Government, and Non-Profit) and Consumer stakeholders (Education, Families, and Science Centers and Museums). Interviews for this publication present the Consumer stakeholder group, while …

Pedagogy Or Andragogy?: Which Teaching Method Produces Successful Esl Tutoring That Involves Musical Activities?, Julia Cormack

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Considering the connections between music and language, as well as Chi et al.’s (2001) theory, this thesis introduces an original case study investigation: which teaching method, pedagogy or andragogy, will be most effective in one-on-one ESL tutoring sessions that use music as source material? The term pedagogy often describes the art and science of teaching. However, its Greek roots refer to the method of the teacher leading the classroom. Meanwhile, andragogy describes a teaching method where the teacher engages with the students in the learning and leading; Greek for “leader of man,” andragogy most often refers to teaching adults. To …

The Effect Of Mentoring For Undergraduate Mentors: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Andrew Leavitt

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Multiple meta-analyses and systematic reviews have been conducted to evaluate methodological rigor in research on the effect that mentoring has on the mentee. However, a dearth of information exists regarding the effect of mentoring on the mentor. As such, I conducted a systematic review of the literature focused on such an effect (if any) within the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), aiming to bolster the literature surrounding this affect. In the case of this work, my focus is on undergraduate or post-secondary students as mentors for near-peers and/or youth. This review functions to identify commonalities of affective …

The Impact Of Service-Learning On General Chemistry Ii Students At The University Of Nebraska At Omaha, Kayla Rud

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Service-learning has been shown to enhance academic and leadership skills while promoting community engagement and exposing students to different career opportunities (Esson et al., 2005). While the benefits of service-learning courses are clear, few STEM courses include service-learning components (Esson et al., 2005). Here, students in a totally online 2nd semester UNO chemistry course completed a service-learning project where they remotely led a live, inquiry-based STEM activity for Girl Scouts. To quantify the impact of service-learning on professional development, future career plans, and future volunteerism, a series of pre and post surveys were administered. Paired-sample t-tests revealed a statistically significant …

Middle School Parent Opinions Of Social Emotional Learning Competencies, Jason T. Sutton

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The purpose of this study was to explore parent opinions of the teaching of social- emotional learning (SEL) competencies in middle school. Three over-arching questions were examined. First, do parents believe that it is important for SEL competencies to be taught? Next, do sixth grade parents have a different opinion of the teaching of SEL than eight grade parents? And finally, do parents believe that the specific SEL program being utilized at the school is helpful for their children?

Quantitative data from the survey indicated that parents were supportive of the teaching of SEL in middle school. Sixth grade parents …

The Self-Efficacy Of First-Year Elementary Principals: A Case Study, Meredith Mohanty

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The principal holds a pivotal role within a school community. Approximately 15–22% of principals in their first 5 years resign from their positions (Fuller et al., 2018; Goldrink & Taie, 2018). High principal attrition rates decrease student achievement, the quality of learning, and staff morale and retention (Fuller, 2012; Louis et al., 2010; Wallace Foundation, 2013). This qualitative case study evaluated the relationship between the experiences and self-efficacy of first-year elementary principals serving in Midwestern schools. Within semi-structured interviews, seven research participants described experiences that shaped their self-efficacy during their first year of their principalships. The relationship between the research …

The Perceptions Of Benefits And Drawbacks Of Private, Corporate, And Local Funds On American High School Athletic And Activity Programs, James Abueg

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

To fight tightened funding, high schools across the United States are turning to banks and other big businesses for financial support. Not the type of support a loan would offer but that of a sports sponsorship (Garofalo, 2016). This has differed from the traditional models of raising money such as collecting athletic fees and pay to play. As high school budgets are trimmed, sports and activities programs continue to feel the squeeze, creating a greater emphasis on fund-raising efforts (Troha, 2014). Corporate sponsorships were once unheard of for high schools but fundraising ideas that were once relegated to professional and …

Principals' Empowering Leadership Behaviors And Collective Teacher Efficacy, What's The Relationship, Jennifer Langfeldt

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Collective teacher efficacy (CTE) has an enormous effect size (d = 1.57) on student achievement. Building principals are a key player in generating, fostering, and growing CTE in their team of teachers. However, principals do not know what leadership behaviors have the most impact on CTE. Therefore, the purpose of this quantitative study was to determine what relationship exists between principals’ empowering leadership behaviors and collective teacher efficacy.

This study sought to answer three questions: To what extent do first-year teachers perceive that their building principals exhibit empowering leadership behaviors? To what extent do first-year teachers perceive that they and …

Preparing Teacher Candidates To Support English Learners In The Grade Level Classroom: A Perspective Of The Opportunity To Learn And Demonstrate El Instructional Strategies, Andrea Karpf

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Teacher education programs seeking the Commission for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) accreditation or recertification must demonstrate proficiency in Specialized Professional Associations (SPA). For this specific study, the SPA emphasized is TESOL International Association, formerly Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) which has recently updated their learning standards of English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers in accordance with CAEP. These TESOL standards are meant to prepare Teacher Candidates to work with English Learner (EL) students as well as to provide EL Strategies awareness. The purpose of this program descriptive study was to recognize one component of …

A Comparison Of Student Hope And Social-Emotional Competence Between General Education And Special Education Settings, Whitley R. Hettenbaugh

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Hope, the ability to establish goals, plan for the future, persist in the face of challenges, and motivate oneself throughout the goal cycle, is a social endeavor requiring the collective support and resources of families, school staff, and peers. Schools that teach and reinforce life skills (i.e., hope and social-emotional competence) are able to positively impact student outcomes by teaching the skills necessary to build social support systems, improve the safety of the school by facilitating social-emotional expression, foster collaboration and collective success, and give students meaningful voice and choice. In doing so, schools increase the resources available to students …

The Impact Of Financial Literacy Education In A Secondary Education Setting By Assessing College Students' Knowledge And Understanding Of Financial Literacy Concepts, Delayne Havlovic

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

A problem has been identified within the area of secondary education in determining what the role of school systems is in providing a guaranteed and viable level of financial literacy education to students before they graduate, preparing them for college, career, and civic readiness. Financial Literacy Education is a set of requisite skills that a person should have upon completion of a comprehensive course and program of study. Because the conditions of financial illiteracy or instability exist, researching the impact of secondary financial literacy courses and how they are perceived at the postsecondary level is worth investigating to contribute to …

Influences On The Implementation Of Guidedplay Practices In Kindergarten: A Grounded Theory Study, Amy Schmidtke

Student Work

The professional capacity of a kindergarten teacher is central to the implementation of developmentally appropriate practices that support children’s learning and development. Evidence indicates that a teacher’s professional capacity is influenced through experiences with leadership, professional learning, and collaboration. Although research clearly supports the positive impact of play experiences for young children, the current educational climate does not provide teachers with the confidence or the structural supports needed to actualize play in kindergarten classrooms. The findings demonstrate what influences kindergarten teachers to implement guided play practices in their classrooms. The implications provide insight as to which elements of leadership, professional …

Predictors Of Loneliness Among College Students: Evidence For The Necessity Of Early Childhood Interventions, Yazmin Ramos

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Chronic loneliness is associated with negative health consequences. Those that suffer from chronic loneliness typically exhibit bad health behaviors, such as excessive alcohol and drug consumption, which can lead to physical ailments, such as heart disease or even death (Steptoe et. al., 2013; Shoevestul et. al., 2020). Additionally, chronic loneliness is associated with mental health; higher reported feelings of loneliness has been associated with higher rates of depression (Shovestul et. al., 2020). As loneliness varies by socio-demographics, such as sex, women report higher rates of loneliness than men (Maes et. al., 2019). To better understand the factors associated with loneliness, …

A Library Without Books: The Importance Of Language Representation In Public Libraries, Caelyn Armshaw

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The focus of this project is to assess the degree of access to Spanish-language books in the Omaha Public Library system. After constructing a map of all Omaha Public Libraries using Global Information System (GIS) and analyzing the population around those areas, I cross-referenced individual library catalogs to compare raw numbers of English-language books to non-English and specifically Spanish-language books. The ultimate finding of this project is that even though approximately 10% of Omaha citizens included in the census speak Spanish as their primary language, Spanish-language books make up only 2% of the total books across all Omaha Public Libraries. …

A Case Study Comparing Fingerspelling Production Between Two Interpreters With Eipa Scores Of 3.0 And 4.0., Morgan Miller

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Approximately 14% of Deaf and hard-of-hearing (D/HH) students in K-12 educational settings use a sign language interpreter for access to the general education curriculum and the classroom environment . The Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) is commonly used to evaluate the skills of an interpreter as a prerequisite of being hired. This case study analyzes and evaluates the fingerspelling (FS) production of two American Sign Language interpreters while interpreting a lesson. The two interpreters had different EIPA scores: one had recently attained a 3.0 and the other held a 4.0 rating. The data shows marked differences in fingerspelling production in …

Primary Teachers’ Decisions For Selecting Multicultural Classroom Read Alouds, Jennifer Lemke

Student Work

As the diversity amongst the student population in schools increase, it is important that teachers include literature that contain a variety of settings and themes that allow students to explore the diverse perspectives and cultures that surround them. Research has shown that including literature that reflects the diverse experiences of students not only increases individual student’s self-esteem and confidence, but the respect and empathy for other cultures. Therefore, supporting the need for teachers to be critical and intentional in the titles they select to read aloud is important. This phenomenographic research study identifies factors that influence how primary teachers in …

Educators’ Experiences Implementing Social-Emotional Learning Curriculum In A Suburban Elementary School, Danielle N. Elsasser

Student Work

This qualitative case study explores educators’ experiences in a suburban elementary school during the implementation stages of a new social-emotional learning curriculum. This research combines educators’ first-person accounts of the social-emotional learning curriculum implementation before and during the process as well as analyzes the results of their experiences as a whole. Altogether, this paper investigates the central phenomenon: What are the experiences of elementary educators in a suburban elementary school implementing social-emotional learning curriculum? Participants were invited individually to take part in the interview process. Data collected were analyzed through a series of codes and aggregated into themes. Participants reflected …

Educational Professionals’ Perceptions Of Their Role In Moving Toward Trauma-Sensitive Practices In Schools, Lisa M. Epp

Student Work

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the different ways classroom teachers, school counselors, school psychologists, and administrators; experience, perceive, understand and conceptualize their specific role in moving toward trauma-sensitive practices in schools. Grounded in the social-ecological theory related to trauma, the study was conducted in a suburban school district in Omaha, Nebraska utilizing focus groups from four participating middle schools. Fifteen education professionals were asked questions regarding their perceptions of trauma and their role in creating and sustaining trauma-sensitive practices in each of their contexts. A researcher-created interview protocol was utilized to collect perceptual data throughout the focus …

Supporting Innovation, Honoring Stability, And Achieving Coherence While Implementing Multi-Tiered Systems Of Support For Behavior At The Middle Level, Chelsea S. Krebs

Student Work

Negative-feeling variables not only distract schools from reform initiatives but make system change matters almost impossible. Paired with increased student behavior and managing school discipline needs, educators can feel frustrated and alone. This study looked at one middle’s school initial implementation of a Multi-Tiered Systems of Support for Behavior program through the lens of Fullan and Quinn’s Coherence Framework. The constructs of stability and innovation were also explored. The research design for this study was a mixed-data program implementation case study. Survey results from staff regarding program implementation practices were used, as well as field notes and document analysis. A …

What Makes You So Good? Highly Effective General Education Teachers Serving Students With Special Education Needs, Paige Gill

Student Work

Teachers are the single most important factor in student learning, including the learning of students who receive special education services. Most students with disabilities are included in the general education classroom but general education teachers often express feeling underprepared to meet their diverse needs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the experiences of general education teachers in a traditional high school environment who are highly effective in serving students with special education needs in hopes of finding commonalities that could be replicated for other teachers. In this study, six positive deviant general education teachers participated in …