Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Education Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 6 of 6

Full-Text Articles in Education

Debating For Success: Academic Achievement, Self-Efficacy, Civic Empowerment And The Milwaukee Debate League, Thomas Noonan Oct 2011

Debating For Success: Academic Achievement, Self-Efficacy, Civic Empowerment And The Milwaukee Debate League, Thomas Noonan

Dissertations (1934 -)

Over the course of the past three decades Urban Debate Leagues have been established on the premise that they improve schooling for underserved students. Founded in predominantly urban areas, these leagues have been positioned as a recent educational reform effort intended to empower students and foster educational and personal growth. This dissertation focuses specifically on the ways in which students involved in a Milwaukee Urban Debate League participating school have been affected by the experience with respect to academic achievement, self-efficacy, and civic empowerment. Through focusing on student voice, this research project examines the ways in which students manifest change …


Personalismo, Small Schools, And Latino Students' Academic Success, Isabel Mesa Collins Jun 2011

Personalismo, Small Schools, And Latino Students' Academic Success, Isabel Mesa Collins

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of research indicates that Latino students continue to struggle academically presenting educators and school leaders with serious concerns about a cultural achievement gap. Guided by the work of Lee & Loeb, (2000); Lee & Freidkin, (2007) and Stevens, (2008) who have examined small personalized learning communities, this paper examines the concept of personalismo as a conduit for establishing a platform that may help narrow the achievement gap within the Latino population in the public school system. Through a series of T-Tests, conducted in two small public schools with varying levels of personalismo, within a Chicago Public School …


The Social Context Of Urban School Reform: Collective Efficacy And Student Achievement, Carla E. Ellis Jun 2011

The Social Context Of Urban School Reform: Collective Efficacy And Student Achievement, Carla E. Ellis

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this correlational study was to determine if between-school variance in school-level student achievement is related to collective teacher efficacy in 10 urban elementary schools in Chicago. It also examined the effects of teacher leaders’ implementation of a School-University partnership and the leadership characteristics of principals on school collective efficacy. Collective teacher efficacy was measured using Goddard’s (1998) 6-point 21-item Likert Collective Teacher Efficacy scale. There were 280 teachers and 53 teacher leaders who completed the scale. The Collective Teacher Efficacy scale results were analyzed and examined in relationship to school-level Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) test …


The Effect Of Teachers' Cultural Proficiency Training On Sixth Grade Students' Reading Achievement, Diane Wells-Rivers Apr 2011

The Effect Of Teachers' Cultural Proficiency Training On Sixth Grade Students' Reading Achievement, Diane Wells-Rivers

Student Work

This study evaluated the overall reading achievement of African American (n = 42) and White (n = 21) sixth grade students in an urban Midwestern school, after their teachers‘ engaged in culturally proficiency training provided by The Minnesota Humanities Center. Data for students in the study was collected for comprehension levels or acuity (CTB/McGraw-Hill, 2010), text gradient levels (Fountas & Pinnell, 2008), and oral fluency levels (Berglund & Johns, 2006; Fountas & Pinnell, 2008) during year two of their teachers‘ participation in the training.


Early Career Physical Educators' Perspectives On Learning To Teach In Urban Schools, Sara Barnard Flory Jan 2011

Early Career Physical Educators' Perspectives On Learning To Teach In Urban Schools, Sara Barnard Flory

Wayne State University Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine early career physical educators' perspectives on learning to teach in urban schools. Using occupational socialization theory (Lawson, 1983a, 1983b; Lortie, 1975) and cultural relevance theory (Flory & McCaughtry, 2011), I studied three early-career physical education teachers who taught in urban schools but did not grow up in urban communities. Data collection occurred for approximately six weeks with each teacher via lesson observation and in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed using constant comparison. The findings of this study outlined the particular elements from each teachers' experience during their pre-professional socialization, professional socialization, and induction …


The Hurricane Katrina Volunteer Experience;Inclusion Into The Life Narratives Of Young Adults, Jessie Guidry Baginski Jan 2011

The Hurricane Katrina Volunteer Experience;Inclusion Into The Life Narratives Of Young Adults, Jessie Guidry Baginski

ETD Archive

Hurricane Katrina left in her wake one of America's oldest and greatest cities in shambles. In 2011, five years after the storm, New Orleans remains in a state of recovery. Statistics reveal many disaster-related facts attributable to the storm. Life stories, however, can open the windows to the soul, inviting us to better understand the human element of this tragedy. Employing a narrative case study methodology, this study delved into the life stories of three young adults who attended to residents only three weeks after they returned to their homes. Through a series of three interviews with each participant, it …