Education Commons^™

Developing Culturally Responsive Preservice Teacher Candidates: Implications For Teacher Education Programs, Rose Gilmore Skepple

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine how the teacher education program impacts preservice teacher candidates' knowledge of culturally responsive teaching and the implementation of these practices in their classroom. For the purposes of this study, a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach was utilized to collect and analyze data through semi-structured interviews, focus groups and surveys. The participants in this study were (n=82) elementary preservice teachers and (n=11) teacher educators who taught a professional education course or supervised field or clinical experiences. This mixed method study was fourfold. First, this study sought to examine preservice teacher candidates' perceptions of the teacher …

A Mixed Methods Examination Of The Impact Of National Board Certified Teachers In Central Kentucky, Susan Michelle Boulden

Online Theses and Dissertations

The NBPTS was created in response to a call from A Nation at Risk (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983) and A Nation Prepared (Carnegie Forum, 1986) to ensure improved student academic performance in the United States. The mission of NBPTS is to establish rigorous standards for what teachers should know and be able to do, develop a voluntary national system to assess and certify teachers who meet these standards, and improve student learning in schools across the United States of America (Rouse & Hollomon, 2005). The ultimate goal of this process is to place effective, highly qualified teachers …

An Investigation Of The Emotional Intelligence Competencies Of National Middle Schools To Watch Principals, Michele Reynolds

Online Theses and Dissertations

The link between emotional intelligence and successful leadership in all organizations, including schools, is becoming stronger as new research is continually added to the field. Although it has already been established that emotionally intelligent leaders have a positive impact on the performance of their organization, research on the emotional intelligence specific to leaders of high-achieving middle schools is still evolving. Since emotional intelligence is a learned trait, this is especially important at the middle school level, where our nations' middle school students are falling woefully behind the majority of their international counterparts.

The purpose of this study is to investigate …

Career And Technical Education Program Alignment With Local Workforce Needs, Karla Beth Hargis

Online Theses and Dissertations

This research attempted to answer whether or not career and technical education (CTE) in a section of Kentucky's Appalachian Region was meeting the employment needs of local business and industry through appropriate program alignment and provision of 21st century soft skills. This study utilized a quantitative approach devoid of researcher invention. Job quotients were used as a measure of program alignment. Job quotients were calculated using the number of jobs available in particular labor markets as the numerator and the aggregate enrollment of respective CTE programs as the denominator. A job quotient of one demonstrates alignment in that a position …

Factors That Contribute To Student Graduation And Dropout Rates: An In-Depth Study Of A Rural Appalachian School District, Ann Lyttle-Burns

Online Theses and Dissertations

There has been a wealth of research conducted on the national epidemic of high school dropouts spanning several decades. It is estimated that the class of 2009 cost the nation $335 billion in lost wages, taxes and productivity over their lifetimes (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2009). The citizenry of the country suffers not only because of the loss in revenue but also as a result of the education level of the population. Individuals who choose to drop out of high school are not prepared for the most basic minimum wage jobs available, much less well paying jobs that sustain livelihoods. …

Psychosocial Effects On Academic Performance, Aria Zhalet Higgins

Online Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown that academic performance can be affected by many variables, such as parental involvement, family rules, family resources and homework. The present study focuses on these variables and their association with academic performance using 3,932 participants from the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS). Results showed positive associations between Parental Involvement and Family Resources on Homework, which also had a positive association with Academic Performance; Family Rules had a negative association with Homework, which resulted in a negative association with Academic Performance.

The Effects Of Word Instruction During Classroom Read-Alouds On The Acquisition Of Vocabulary, Marla Renee Muncy

Online Theses and Dissertations

To focus on the need to improve literacy in rural Appalachia, this study investigates the use of Text Talk during read-aloud to increase the receptive vocabulary of participants. The investigator read six picturebooks to two groups of kindergarteners. Group A had 21 participants and Group B had 20 participants. Each group received instruction on two different sets of target vocabulary words, three in each book. The researcher administered a pre-test and post-test to each student patterned after the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test. T-tests revealed that students made significant progress learning words when the reader used Text Talk during the lessons. …