Education Commons^™

Adaptive Instruction Through Reflection: How Preservice Teachers Create And Implement Individualized Literacy Lessons In A University Reading Center, Jennifer Marie Lennon

Dissertations

Modern classrooms are increasingly diverse. Students vary in their academic abilities, personal interests, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and previous experiences (Allen et al., 2013). To meet the varied needs of students, educators must adapt their instruction so all are able to find success. Modifying lesson plans and changing instruction based on student needs are forms of adaptive instruction (Hoffman & Duffy, 2016; Vaughn, 2019). This study explored the metacognitive processes of preservice teachers (PSTs) as they implemented adaptive instruction within their literacy lessons in a university reading center tutoring program. Adaptive instruction was examined through two lenses: first, as PSTs …

The Effects Of Adolescent Trauma, Mental Health Treatment, And Demographic Variables On Educational Outcome, Christopher Postema

Dissertations

Poor educational performance in adolescence can occur due to trauma, substance use, or other stressors. This study used conflict theory as a foundation, suggesting differences in educational outcomes can be attributed to systems perpetuating the current power structures that cause inequality in academic opportunities and performance. Trauma in adolescence can have adverse effects on educational outcomes and emotional stability. Research suggests that mental health therapy as well as a reduction in trauma symptoms can improve educational outcomes. Race, gender, substance use, socioeconomic status, and employment are important variables that could influence educational outcomes. Interaction terms were found in the literature …

Understanding The Aspirations And Challenges Of Michigan’S Black School Superintendents: A Toolkit For Building Equity In The Superintendency, Kevin Simmons

Dissertations

Black superintendents are significantly underrepresented in our nation’s schools. Despite a slight increase in representation of female Black superintendents, minorities of all races continue to be underrepresented (Tienken & Domenech, 2020). In this study, I examined the experiences of Black superintendents in Michigan who currently hold superintendent roles, along with the obstacles they faced and their personal characteristics and associated factors that attributed to their resilience and longevity in their role as superintendent. Using a phenomenological qualitative study approach of personal and confidential interviews and survey questions of 12 Black superintendents, data was collected to formulate a toolkit for aspiring …

The Manufacturing And Engineering Partnership Program: An Examination Of A Partnership Between Manufacturing And Cte, Laura Schoenborn-Preuss

Dissertations

Manufacturing is struggling to find people to fill open positions in the various career opportunities they represent. The skills gap or skills needed by manufacturers has caused challenges in filling those open positions. Adding to this dilemma is that student interest in these careers has reduced, with the focus being on obtaining college degrees right out of high school. Due to these changes, manufacturing and education are partnering in ways to increase student interest and fill open positions.

This study is looking to better understand one such partnership and how the activities students’ experience influence their career decision making. The …

Investigating The Connection Between Teacher Professional Development And The Lesson Planning Process, Kyle B. Corlett

Dissertations

School districts across the country are facing increasing pressure to raise student achievement, specifically on state standardized tests (Buzick & Jones, 2015; Marsh & Farrell, 2015). Many states, including Michigan, connect teacher and administrator evaluations to student achievement (Revised School Code Act 451, 2003). The primary strategy school districts use to improve student achievement is professional development for its staff (Guskey, 2009). Professional development can consist of a variety of strategies to support educators in increasing their knowledge and skills, resulting in improved instruction and ultimately improved student achievement. This instrumental case study sought to explore how teachers experience the …

Institutional Changes In Western Michigan University For Incorporation Of Education For Sustainability, Saman Khan

Dissertations

Higher Education institutions (HEIs) have the potential to be significant contributors in the pursuit of a sustainable world through the incorporation of Education for Sustainability (EFS). However, HEIs are entrenched with structures and values that are often resistant to change. The literature reveals that instructors’ beliefs and institutional contexts are the two main factors that impact the implementation of institutional change for sustainability education. Western Michigan University (WMU) has created new required curriculum “WMU Essential Studies” (WES) for undergraduate students and they have targeted sustainability as an essential learning outcome, by integrating and applying it in content courses. Using a …

Saudi Arabian Science Teachers And Formative Assessment In The Gender Segregated Male School System, Khalid Abdullah Kariri

Dissertations

Formative assessment is a key pedagogical tool that allows teachers to make instructional assessments in real time for the improvement of student learning. It gives students the opportunity to provide evidence of their learning thus giving teachers assurances that their hard work is not in vain. Formative assessment is commonly practiced in Western schools, while most Saudi science classroom teachers rely on end-of-unit summative assessment. A review of the literature reveals that very little research has been done related to Saudi teachers’ use of formative assessment in science classrooms. The goal of this dissertation was to address this absence of …

Understanding The School Experience Of Recent Lgbtq+ Graduates In The Dominican Republic’S Education System, Rossina Matos

Dissertations

Studies show that, in general, schools fall short when it comes to serving LGBTQ+ students, sometimes even ignoring the situations regarding bullying, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, and heterosexism that arise. The detrimental effects of repressive, homophobic, biphobic, transphobic, and other marginalizing school environments on LGBTQ+ students are well-documented in the research. However, the limited research available on the school experiences of LGBTQ+ students in Dominican K-12 schools suggests the country could benefit from examining the breadth and depth of the reality of LGBTQ+ students in its schools.

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to explore the lived experience of …

Ldentifying And Characterizing Cognitive Factors Significant To Practicing And Learning Meteorology, Peggy M. Mcneal

Dissertations

To see the world as a meteorologist, one must understand and interpret atmospheric processes through representations depicted on two-dimensional weather charts and maps that encode large amounts of spatial and numerical data. This is a cognitively demanding and spatially challenging task, especially for students with burgeoning levels of meteorology knowledge, who lack the expertise of practiced meteorologists that read such charts and maps with ease. With little prior work informing meteorology and meteorology education through a cognitive science lens, this study surveys the literature and follows models of discipline-based education and cognitive science research to identify the discrete intelligence factors …

High School Seniors' Educational Experience Lnfluencing The Decision To Pursue A Career In Nursing, Ryan L. Rowe

Dissertations

Many high school students interested in nursing as an occupation choose to engage in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) program and subsequently progress through the exploration stage of Super’s Career Development Theory in a succinct, deliberate, and intentional manner. While CTE continues to serve as an educational option for many high school students interested in nursing, its value as a means for students to crystallize, specify, and implement the choice to pursue the high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand career of nursing is not understood to the extent possible. CTE is regularly overlooked as a viable educational option by high school …

Employing Multivariate Logistic Regression Analysis To Better Understand The Relationship Between Individuals’ Anthropogenic Climate Change Acceptance And Belief In Anti-Climate Change Dissenter Messages, Andrew Phillip Keller Bentley

Dissertations

Organized climate change dissention groups spend a considerable amount of time and energy developing messages designed to convince the public that anthropogenic climate change is neither a reality nor a threat. These messages work against the efforts of climate educators and can be divided into two categories; messages that provide alternative explanations for warming, or messages that attack the work of scientists studying anthropogenic climate change. There has been a lack of research regarding any correlation between individuals’ agreement with these messages and their rejection of anthropogenic climate change. Establishing a correlation would be an indication that educators should take …

An Investigation Of Turkish Middle School Science Teachers’ Pedagogical Orientations Towards Direct And Inquiry Instructional Approaches, Selcuk Sahingoz

Dissertations

One of the most important goals of science education is preparing effective science teachers which includes the development of a science pedagogical orientation. Helping in-service science teachers improve their orientations toward science teaching begins with identifying their current orientations. While there are many aspects of an effective science teaching orientation, this study specifically focuses on effective pedagogy. The interest of this study is to clarify pedagogical orientations of middle school science teachers in Turkey toward the teaching of science conceptual knowledge. It focuses on what instructional preferences Turkish middle school science teachers have in theory and practice.

The purpose of …

Perceptions Of Teacher Evaluation Systems At Cte Centers In Michigan, Michael A. Martel

Dissertations

This study investigated Career and Technical Centers in Michigan and their teachers’ and principals’ perceptions of their teacher evaluation systems which include a student growth mandate. CTE center teachers and principals were asked to provide their perceptions on how well their teacher evaluation systems provide information to improve teaching and learning. Differences between teachers and principals were explored.

The study was quantitative in design using survey research to obtain perceptions of CTE center teachers and principals. The data collection tool utilized a Likert scale moving from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Open-ended questions provided system quality information from respondents. Demographic …

Teachers' Making Meaning Of Reduced Class Sizes: A Phenomenology, Brenda Ludy Snow

Dissertations

It is every teacher’s dream to have a classroom full of students who come to class each and every day highly motivated to learn. However, in all reality teachers know that this is not always the case. Researchers continue to search for reasonable alternatives to improve students’ learning. As children enter school a good start is imperative if they are to succeed in school, (Achilles & Finn, 2000). Class size reduction is a strong alternative and should be considered as part of a reasonable plan for student learning.

For this qualitative study, I examined and described the experiences of 12 …

Student Thoughts And Perceptions On Curriculum Reform, Douglas D. Vanderjagt

Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine how students experience and respond to Michigan’s increased graduation requirements. The study was conducted in a large, suburban high school that instituted a change to a trimester system in response to the state mandate. A criterion-based sample of 16 students, both college bound and non-college bound, participated in one-on-one interviews regarding their knowledge about, their understanding of, and their experience with the new Michigan Merit Curriculum, and how this increase impacted the student participants’ high school academic choices and/or postsecondary plans. Additionally, this study engaged focus groups of one or …

A Comparative Study Of Exact Versus Propensity Matching Techniques Using Monte Carlo Simulation, Mukaria J. J. Itang'ata

Dissertations

Often researchers face situations where comparative studies between two or more programs are necessary to make causal inferences for informed policy decision-making. Experimental designs employing randomization provide the strongest evidence for causal inferences. However, many pragmatic and ethical challenges may preclude the use of randomized designs. In such situations, subject matching provides an alternative design approach for conducting causal inference studies. This study examined various design conditions hypothesized to affect matching procedures’ bias recovery ability.

See attachment for full abstract.

Professional Development Experiences Of Indiana K-12 Public School Teachers: Evidence From The Sass 2007-2008, Patrick David Weil

Dissertations

This investigation examines the professional development perceptions and experiences of public school teachers in the state of Indiana. This study is unique in two regards as it: (1) uses restricted data; and (2) exclusively studies the professional development experiences of public school teachers in the State of Indiana. By analyzing a national data set, the 2007--2008 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), this study provides a snapshot of the recent state of professional learning among public school teachers in the State of Indiana. Results of this study may track trends in professional development since the 2003--2004 SASS administration. Researchers can compare …