Education Commons^™

Innovative Educational Design: The Development Of Autonomous Schools, Jennifer E. Arzberger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Innovative Educational Design: The Development of Autonomous Schools captures an educator’s journey in developing an economically integrated, urban Expeditionary Learning charter school, an autoethnography of an educator embracing an entrepreneurial spirit and traversing the years prior to opening a school and obtaining unanimous approval from the authorizing board of education. Autoethnography provides the researcher with an opportunity to turn scholarly interests inward, bringing personal experiences to center stage revealing the culture of founding school leaders. Similar to an ethnographer describing the culture of a group of people and learning what it is like to be a part of the group …

Development Of The Dori-Tbi: An Investigation To Develop A New Screening Measure To Determine Consultation With A School-Based Brain Injury Resource Team, Doriann Marie Adragna

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Brain injury is the leading cause of disability and death in children in the United States. Student re-entry into the school setting following a traumatic brain injury is crucial to student success. Multidisciplinary teams within the school district comprised of individuals with expertise in brain injury are ideal in implementing student specific treatment plans given their specialized training and wide range of expertise addressing student needs. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to develop and initially validate a quantitative instrument that school personnel can use to determine if a student, identified as having a traumatic brain injury, will benefit …

Don’T Let Me Down: An Autoethnography Of An Urban Teacher, Jacqueline R. Arriaga

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Students in urban schools who are negatively impacted need stability and continuity the most. However, at least half of new teachers leave their profession within five years. In order for this situation to change, support is needed for new teachers and encouragement is needed for experienced teachers.

The purpose of the study is to offer a first-hand description of factors that affect the profession of teaching and especially teachers who may be wondering how to stay in teaching for more than five years. Veteran teachers gain the opportunity to reflect, validate, and (probably) celebrate their own journey through this profession. …

Early Career Teachers' Efficacy In Working With Families, Kirsten Denisemarie Hermanutz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Partnering effectively with families is an important skill for teachers to have to support student achievement, and one that is especially important for early career teachers in order to protect them from burnout and attrition. However, research has demonstrated that teachers do not feel prepared to work with families, and further research is needed to see what difficulties are specific to early career teachers. The following research questions were addressed in the study: 1) What current situation and prior training factors affect early career teachers’ perceptions of efficacy in working with families? 2) Which family-school partnering topics do teachers report …

Psychometric Investigation Of The Check-In, Check-Out Fidelity Of Implementation Measure, Erin Ann Sullivan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Suspension and expulsion are utilized frequently and disproportionality in schools in the United States. Many schools utilize Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), a tiered framework to prevent problem behavior and reduce the use of discipline practices (Sugai et al., 2000). Check-In, Check-Out (CICO) is a targeted group behavioral intervention that is utilized within this framework in schools to prevent severe problem behavior in students that are beginning to exhibit externalizing and/or internalizing behavioral needs; thus, preventing the use of exclusionary discipline practices (Crone et al., 2010; Hawken & Horner, 2003). As the use of CICO in schools continues to …

Visual Arts Assessment In The Age Of Educational Accountability, Donna Jackson Goodwin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Art teachers have, in some manner, always assessed student learning and progress. However, many art teachers do not have the training in assessment to be able to describe and defend their process, nor has there been research to support the effectiveness of how art teachers assess student learning. This study examines the ways six visual art teachers from five districts teaching in traditional public schools at the elementary, middle, and high school levels assess visual art. It demonstrates how they are using information gathered from assessments and whether their philosophies of art education influence their actions. Parents and administrators were …

Navigating The Gap Between The Ideal And The Real: A Heuristic Inquiry With Teacher Educators Influenced By The Work Of Parker Palmer, Eron L. Reed

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

New teacher attrition shows no signs of abating as about half of new teachers in urban high-poverty schools quit in their first three years of the work. Some of the push factors that contribute to attrition in these settings are the increasing pressure of standards and accountability measures. Some research has turned to teacher education programs to look at the preparation of pre-service teachers.

The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the beliefs and intentions of four teacher educators who are also facilitators of Parker Palmer's Courage to Teach workshops and retreats, and the ways in which their …

The Relationship Between Social Support And Self-Advocacy In College Students With Disabilities, Julia I. Marcus Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the connection between social support and self-advocacy in college students with disabilities. The College Students with Disabilities Campus Climate Survey (Lombardi, Gerdes, & Murray, 2011) was used to gather data from undergraduate students at a midsize western private university. Social support was found to be a significant predictor of self-advocacy in college students with disabilities. Peer support, family support, and faculty teaching practices made up the construct of social support. Peer support and faculty teaching practices were found to be significant predictors of student self-advocacy. Family support was not found to be significant. The data was examined …

An Examination Of Disproportionality In One School District Using A Response To Intervention Model, Brittney M. Bixby

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Disproportionality in special education has been an ongoing discussion and cause for concern at the district, state, and federal levels for the past 45 years. Due to legislative changes and a shifting attitude in public education away from a "wait to fail" service delivery model, may states now require the use of Response to Intervention (RTI), or a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) for students who do not meet grade level academic standards or behavioral expectations. This study examined the presence of disproportionality among race/ethnicity, gender, and ELL status for students who received targeted and intensive interventions across two consecutive …

The Nature Of Imagination In Pedagogy: A Qualitative Study Of An Elementary School Setting, Perry S. Shank

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The task of this dissertation is to assess the popular thought of teachers on the topic of imagination and uncover how they incorporate imaginative methods into their current teaching practices. I attempt to ascertain the origination of these current perspectives through an analysis of the imagination from a historical perspective. Through portraiture, a qualitative research tool, I examine how the imagination is currently engaged in an elementary classroom setting. The research questions that guided this inquiry were as follows: 1) What is the intention of teachers who utilize imaginative teaching methods/strategies, 2) what types of instructional practices, activities, and learning …