Education Commons^™

Online Instructional Clarity: A Phenomenological Study Of Students’ Experiences, Erin Cathleen Bryan Sutliff

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study was a phenomenological exploration of five undergraduate students’ experiences with clear and unclear instructors in online courses at a large southeastern research university. The specific aim was to privilege the voices of undergraduate students about their experiences communicating with their online instructors, particularly with regard to their instructors’ clarity (or lack thereof), and analyze the essence of their experiences using an interpretivist, and specifically, phenomenological perspective. The research was envisioned to address gaps in the instructional clarity literature as well as to respond to calls within both the online learning and the instructional communication literature to explore instructor …

Understanding Graduation Rates By Sex By Evaluating The Quality Of Student Interactions With Faculty And Academic Advisors, Michael John Bolen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to assess whether student satisfaction with faculty and academic advisors varied based on the sex of the student and the students’ academic college at a large public university in the Southeast. With the university aiming to improve its graduation rates, particularly male graduation rates, the Theory of Student Departure was used as a guide in identifying student interactions with faculty and academic advisors as potential factors impacting student persistence to graduation. Previous research suggests that the quality of the interactions that students have with faculty and academic advisors can vary based on the sex …

Saudi Mothers’ Perspectives And Experiences About Family-School Partnership In Early Childhood: A Qualitative Study, Mona Mohsen Alzahrani

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, I explored Saudi mothers’ perspectives on family-school partnerships, besides understanding the challenges they had faced. I used the ecological theoretical framework, to understand the complexity of the relationships between family and school and the impact of the environment on children's development. The ecological theory allowed me to simplify these relationships and recognize the effect on the children's development by examining Saudi mothers' perspectives. I selected qualitative research to gain a better thoughtful of the complex phenomena. I conducted semi-structured interviews to gain a deeper understanding of mothers’ perspectives. I applied a thematic analysis by Clark and Braun …

Why Teachers Stay: An Exploration Of Why Mid-Career Teachers Remain In Teaching, Jennifer K. Mccorvey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Much of the current literature on teacher retention centers around early-career teachers, with far less addressing mid-career teacher attrition. This research study explores the positive and negative experiences of five mid-career teachers, Toni, Sean, Susan, Debbie, and Jacqueline, explicitly focusing on the experiences that influenced their decisions to remain teaching. The participants were Teacher Leadership Academy alumni, a professional learning community in two separate Professional Development School programs. I used a qualitative case-study approach to examine the teachers’ experiences and Identity Theory as a lens through which to view the findings. Semi-structured interviews and participant-constructed timelines were the primary sources …

Borderlands: (Un)Covering The Narratives Of Teacher Candidates Of Color In A Pds Context, Jennifer I. Perez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research aims to uncover the narratives of teacher candidates of color and their experiences with race and racism while learning to teach in a PDS context, develop an understanding of how state and local policies manifest within these experiences, and explore the roles of pláticas as a context for critical conversations. This research study captured the stories of three teacher candidates of color, Ms. L, Susan, and Amerie, learning to teach in a PDS context. I used the transformative framework of Critical Race Methodologies in conjunction with case study methods to uncover the experiences of the study contributors and …

Investigating Self-Regulation For Motivation And Creativity In Entrepreneurship: A Qualitative Study, Maham Khan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative research study investigated the perceptions of instructors in higher education institutions and trainers/mentors in business incubators to support the self-regulatory processes of motivation and creativity among emergent and novice entrepreneurs to initiate and sustain entrepreneurial activities. Seven participants were interviewed (i.e., four higher education instructors, three business incubator trainers/mentors). The data were analyzed using hybrid thematic analysis. The role of instructors and trainers/mentors as mentors may have served as a foundation to support entrepreneurs' self-regulation of motivation and creativity. The findings revealed two themes. The first theme is that entrepreneurship education instructors in higher education and trainers/mentors in …

Lgbtq+ Inclusivity In The Implicit And Explicit Social Studies Curriculum: A Descriptive Exploratory Study In Teacher Self-Efficacy, K. B.F. Francis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This descriptive exploratory study describes teacher self-efficacy in providing LGBTQ+ support in the implicit and explicit social studies curriculum in the wake of numerous anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in education in Florida. Four high school social studies teachers from three different Florida public school districts were interviewed to answer three main questions. All participating teachers expressed broad knowledge of their subject matter but could not identify LGBTQ+ inclusivity in their state and district-mandated curriculum. All participants had a great sense of self-efficacy in supporting their LGBTQ+ students but low self-efficacy in educating their colleagues about these issues. All participating teachers expressed a …

The Contextualization Of Socioscientific Issues In An Age Of Accountability, Karrie A. Wikman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The overarching aim of this research was to ultimately support global resiliency through science education, preparing citizens to laudably negotiate the contentious socio-cultural science- and technology-based issues of modern times. Correspondingly, this mixed methods study aimed to move a large, diverse school district toward school environments conducive to contextualized socioscientific issues (SSI)-based learning. Of interest to teachers, administrators, and policymakers, the research investigated the effects of subsuming standards-based objectives within the SSI instructional framework on science achievement. Analysis of variance of multilevel assessment and classroom observation protocol data revealed that students experiencing the SSI intervention showed statistically significant gains in …

Nigerian Students’ Experiences With Class Rank And Its Implications For Academic And Personal Adjustments: A Narrative Inquiry, Tobiloba Ojomu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Class ranking remains a prevalent practice in Nigerian primary and secondary schools, yet research has not explored how Nigerian students perceive and experience this practice. This study sought to address this gap in the literature by delving into four Nigerian primary and secondary school alumni’s experiences and perceptions of the class ranking practice. Through their unique stories, this narrative inquiry study sheds light on the extent to which class ranking has impacted them. The findings of this study revealed that class ranking had a profound influence on the participants, both within and beyond the classroom setting. It shaped their self-perception, …

Restorative Practices Interrupted, Celeste Kellar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The initial critical event precipitating the problem of practice at my school was the repercussions of the mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018. This shooting and the resulting legislative mandates of Florida Senate Bill 7026, led to my administrative decision to adopt Restorative Practices at my school, a school for students with disabilities. Restorative Practices purport to encourage the development of positive relationships, repair and restore existing relationships thereby decreasing the chance of a repeated offense and improving school climate (Zehr, 2015). Additional rationale for the adoption was to address the disproportionality …

Fostering A Sense Of Online Community: Faculty Reflections Through Narratives, Brittany D. Anthony

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study will explore how MSW faculty describe a community in online courses and what strategies they use in fostering a sense of community within courses from an online Master of Social Work program at the University of South Florida. There is an imperative need to ensure online courses provide a sense of community to support students for success. During the timespan of an online course, strategic pedagogical approaches to fostering a community are essential to enriching the overall learning experience for students. Many studies tend to focus on the challenges faced when building an online community. Still, the …

The Application Of Memes On English Learners' Idiomatics And Motivation, Fatima Azzahraa Raafat

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Students nowadays live in a visually rich world where they continually generate meaning and knowledge through images (Romero & Bobkina, 2017). To satisfy two technology-savvy generations, the Millennial and Generation Z, field practitioners had to generate multimodal environments that include written text, visual images, and design elements from various viewpoints. An effective pedagogy of idiomatics can support second language acquisition (SLA) and idiomatic competence development, that is, idiomatic language and figurative language study (Liontas, 2021, p. 3, 32). Idiomatics should be incorporated into educational programs for SL learners as early in their education as possible (Liontas, 2008). For my study, …

Crossing Schools, Language, And Migration Borders: The Experiences Of Latinx And Caribbean Emergent Multilingual Mothers In K-12 Public Schools, Michelle Angelo-Rocha

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anti-immigrant sentiment and "English-only" ideologies have a significant impact on educational policies, practices, and processes. This includes parental engagement, the quality of education and life opportunities offered to immigrant children, and families’ well-being. The purpose of this study was to examine how Latinx and Caribbean mothers in Florida with various immigration statuses (i.e., undocumented, asylum seekers, refugees, international students, and mixed-status) and often with limited financial resources attempt to steward their children through the U.S. educational system. The research question was: How did emergent multilingual immigrant mothers experience the K-12 education system in Florida? The sub-question was: How did schools …

Challenging Vocabulary Words In Graphic Novels: A Multimodal Content Analysis, Karyn Z. Mendez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recreational reading is in a decline for upper elementary aged readers, and along with this decline comes consequent declines in students’ ability to make meaning from what they read and their acquisition of different language forms, including the acquisition of new vocabulary words. However, one reading format is increasing in popularity: graphic novels. As graphic novels, along with other texts with both textual and visual elements, become an increasingly prevalent way of reading in the 21st century, it is important to look at the possibilities multimodal texts have for foundational literacy skills, such as vocabulary acquisition. To date, however, the …

The Negotiation Of Emotions: Teachers’ Emotional Expression Management In The Ela Classroom, Erika Watts

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study builds on the concept of teacher emotion management in the classroom, with a specific focus on the English Language Arts (ELA) classroom where emotions play a heavy role in texts and the content taught. I analyzed the perspectives of five current English Language Arts (ELA) teachers using an interview study to ask how they describe their emotions during an emotionally challenging moment in the ELA classroom. Through the narratives they shared, I also explored their perceptions of professionally unacceptable emotions and how they make sense of their experiences navigating those emotions. I used a thematic analysis to conclude …

A Queered Exhibition: Lgbtqia+ Artists Expressing Identity And Visibility Through Art-Based Research, Christy D. Paris

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Too often museums, galleries, and art curriculum ignore or erase the lives and art of LGBTQIA+ individuals. This exhibition aimed to make the diverse lives and art from the queer community visible. Integrating queer perspectives and visibility is empowering and creates a sense of belonging. Queering the art world can present alternative perspectives, promote diversity, and provide exposure to a more inclusive experience for all. The aim of this inquiry is to inform institutional practices within museums on queer inclusivity and further scholarship on this topic by engaging with the queer art community and public during an exhibition held in …

Storying The Experiences Of A First-Year Teacher’S Mathematics-Related Teacher Identity With A Communities Of Practice Lens, Kelly Jean Navas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This longitudinal narrative inquiry explores the influences on a first-year elementary teacher’s mathematics-related teacher identity, employing a community of practice lens. Identity is a complex concept. In this study, identity is viewed as socially constructed through new experiences. These social interactions can be seen as an individual participates in their communities of practice. A mathematics-related teacher identity intertwines a teacher’s mathematical identity with their teacher identity. This can influence their classroom decisions, as well as their planning and implementation of mathematics lessons. To gain insights into the evolution of this mathematics-related teacher identity, I listened to the stories of Suzie, …

Void Formation In Model Liquids, Polymer Glasses, And Granular Materials, Kai Nan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soft matter, as a subfield of condensed matter physics, has gained lots of interest from the academic and industrial communities due to its complexity and intellectual challenges. Soft materials, such as liquids, polymers, and granular materials, are widely used in real-world applications like foams, paints, and lubricants. Furthermore, their cost-effective and unique features like extreme ductility also make soft materials suitable for many advanced applications such as bioimplantable devices.

In Chapter 2, we examine thermodynamic cavitation, a transition from liquid to gas that occurs when the ambient pressure drops below the liquid’s vapor pressure. Varying the …

Selective Framing And Narrative As Anthropocentric Agents In Yellowstone: America’S Eden, Breanna Lee Hansen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Yellowstone: America’s Eden is but one example of nature documentaries tackling the complexities of nature-culture relationships during the age of the Anthropocene. Yellowstone National Park, the first to be named, is a primary example of how our relationship to the natural world developed through conservation and commodification. Yellowstone: America’s Eden demonstrates how film techniques conceal nature as a human construct through selective framing and narrative. By analyzing editing techniques made in the representation of Yellowstone National Park, this thesis bridges anthropocentrism to nature documentaries. Drawing on interdisciplinary research from media studies, environmental humanities, and anthropology, this thesis analyzes the ways …

Case Study And Fidelity Assessment Development For The Family Intervention Specialist (Fis) Program, Areana Cruz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation involved an in-depth analysis of the Family Intervention Specialist (FIS) program and the development of an FIS fidelity assessment. Three studies were conducted for this analysis. Study one analyzed FIS administrative data from one Managing Entity to determine the extent that the quality assurance measures align with the core program policies and procedures established by the Department of Children and Families. Study two included a content analysis of FIS policies and procedures manuals for alignment regarding implementation practices and qualitative interviews with FIS stakeholders regarding FIS implementation, strengths, challenges, and adherence to established policies and procedures. Study three …

Evaluating The Accuracy Of Inertial Measurment Units In Detecting Gait Parameters For Lower Limb Prosthesis And Orthosis Users, Bryce Fuller

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A Gait Extraction System (GES) was developed to investigate the accuracy of wearable sensors by producing gait parameters, to be compared against a gold standard motion capture system. Two inertial measurement units (IMUs) were placed in the lower limb region, specifically in the shank region of each leg. The GES uses algorithms to extract the gait cycle from raw acceleration data to produce gait parameters such as stride length, stride time, step length, step time, stance time, swing time and cadence. There were three main trials that consisted solely of a flat road, a road with small hills and a …

A Novel Jazz Music Curriculum For Young Children: Results Of A Pilot Study, Jazmin D. Ghent

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Jazz improvisation is known as the highest-known art form concerning improvisation due to its frequency and development of creative ideas (Feldman 1964). Research shows that the art of spontaneous creation can contribute to children’s ability to problem-solve, social and emotional well-being, and academic success into adulthood (Biasutti, 2017; Heble & Laver, 2016; Kiehn, 2003; Kuzmich, 1980; Solis, 2009). Improvisation is crucial for developmentally comprehensive music programs; however, improvisation is scarce in elementary music classrooms and curricula. For this pilot study, a group of 31 children aged 5-8 and considered at-risk participated in a study where they were randomly assigned to …

The Relationship Between First-Year Expectations And Persistence For Students Who Self-Identify As Having Not Declared A Major, Shane Combs

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research aligned with protocols established by the Florida Board of Governors in 2016 to form a new funding model tied to the institution's performance. The literature review highlighted a disparity between students' expectations and the reality of college which could negatively impact persistence, and therefore funding to the institution. This quantitative study utilized the Beginning of College Survey of Student Engagement (BCSSE) to explore the correlation between incoming, undeclared FTIC students' expectations of co-curricular involvement, faculty interaction, and learning support services utilization and their persistence to the end of the second fall semester. The sample consisted of 1,042 respondents …

Evolution Of Novice Teachers’ Instructional Visions To Teach Elementary Mathematics: A Longitudinal Collective Case Study, Amber Nicole Brown

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This longitudinal collective case study is about the transformational experiences of three novice elementary teachers, Tammy, Katie, and Michelle, as they moved from an elementary teacher preparation program, at a large research university in the southeast United States, through their first two years of teaching in different elementary school contexts. Situated within literature pertaining to instructional vision and visions of high-quality mathematics instruction (VHQMI), these cases were used to explore the teachers’ perceptions of their visions of high-quality mathematics instruction and how these perceptions evolve over time. The study design prioritizes novice teacher voices as predominant data sources to elevate …

One Year Impact Of The Advancing Coping And Engagement (Ace) Program On Advanced Placement And International Baccalaureate Student Success, Amanda C. Moseley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Student success hinges on educational settings that feature a well-developed, comprehensive mental health support system (Hoover et al., 2019). Salient pieces of well-functioning mental health supports adhere to Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) principles, including evidence-based practices with incremental intensity (Stoiber & Gettinger, 2015). Adolescents pursuing accelerated curricula in high school, specifically Advanced Placement courses (AP) and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP), display a need for psychosocial support related to the stressors inherent to a rigorous curriculum (Suldo & Shaunessy-Dedrick, 2013b). Suldo and colleagues’ (2018) research on AP and pre-IBDP youth identified malleable predictors of success that became intervention …

Transformation Zone Schools And School Change Processes: Experiences Of Families, Jesse Strong

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

AbstractFor many years schools located within concentrated areas of poverty in an urban school county in south Florida have experienced alarmingly high teacher turnover rates and alarmingly low academic performance scores. In 2015, in a lauded exposé printed by the Tampa Bay Times, five schools, all of which would go on to become part of the Transformation Zone initiative, were featured in a series of articles, entitled The Failure Factories (Fitzpatrick et al., 2015). The purpose of this study was to explore how school policy and process changes enacted from these articles may have affected those students and families. Historically, …

A Culturally Responsive And Sustaining Pre-School: Collaborative Approaches To Curriculum In An Underserved Florida Community, Dana R. Roberts

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The early childhood education and childcare (ECE&C) sector in America “is a textbook example of a broken market” (Yellen, 2021) that operates as a “non-system” (Berlin, 2021). This manifests itself through the low-quality of its teaching cadre (Cassidy et al., 2019). This failure hits disadvantage families hardest (Chafouleas et al., 2016) - a reality that is particularly apparent in St. Petersburg, Florida’s Midtown neighborhoods where one out of every two children attending ECE programs are not meeting State school readiness standards (Florida OEL, 2020). In this study, I propose a culturally-responsive (Gay, 2018), culturally sustaining (Ladson-Billings, 2021c), and equity-based continuous …

“So, I Am Back”: Adjudicated Youths’ School Reentry Experiences, Inita S. Knox

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Adjudicated youth face a multitude of barriers when reentering school following incarceration. School administrators and educational personnel know very little about how these students perceive their reentry experiences and what the students identify as needed supports, resources, and barriers throughout the process. This qualitative study used in-depth, semi-structured interviews with photo-elicitation to explore and describe how formerly incarcerated youth perceive their high school reentry experiences. Participants were male adolescents ages 16 to 18 years old. who provided rich and in-depth descriptions of their reentry experiences. Recommendations for policy, practice and future research are provided.

Development And Initial Evaluation Of A Mental Health Training For Pre-Service Teachers, Alexis M. Sánchez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to examine the initial pre-service teacher outcomes for a newly developed mental health training (i.e., Training In Mental health for Educators - Pre-service Teachers [TIME-PT]). For the development of the TIME-PT, an expert panel and a focus group with pre-service teachers were conducted to inform of any changes and improvements needed in the content of the training. In the initial evaluation of the TIME-PT, the training’s factors of professional development were considered, including the training’s understanding and feasibility, participants’ willingness to change, their use of school-family collaboration, and their use of external supports. Initial evaluations of participants’ …

A Qualitative Study Of Facilitators And Barriers Perceived By Black Students And Their Effect On Advanced Placement Course Enrollment In High School, Austin R. Cole

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Advanced Placement (AP) classes can provide many benefits to students. The rigorous curriculum gives students an academic challenge to expand their educational abilities (The College Board, 2014). However, students of color are often underrepresented in AP participation (The College Board, 2014). Research has investigated factors among students of color that predict participation and success in AP courses, suggesting that family SES and prior academic achievement (Dixson et al., 2017; Ndura et al., 2003), and racial barriers impact students’ ability to choose to take AP courses (Jeffries & Silvernail, 2017; Walker & Pearsall, 2012). This study addressed a gap in the …