Education Commons^™

Progress For Low Income Students, Johann Ducharme

The William & Mary Educational Review

This essay argues in favor of Mike Rose's assertion that funding cuts to education have a detrimental effect on numerous factors, including stunted job growth in America, not remaining innovative and competitive in global markets, as well as attaining the college graduation goals set by Department of Education. In agreeing with Rose, the author provides comprehensive reasoning and data from numerous national centers: Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, American Council on Education (ACE), The College Board, and American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The author also examines the weaknesses of Rose’s arguments as he neglects to define …

Hark Upon The Gayle: A Depiction Of The Experiences Of The First Women Students At William & Mary, Yi Hao, Lisa Milne

The William & Mary Educational Review

As William & Mary celebrates the 100th anniversary of admitting women students as the first public college in Virginia to institute a co-educational system, this paper explores the life and times of the women who have shaped the College’s legacy for future women students. In researching the first women at William & Mary, we have found historical documentation, such as personal papers (letters and surveys) from both women students of the class of 1918 and a prior researcher; the Flat Hat, a student-run newspaper at the College; meeting minutes from the College Board of Visitors; William & Mary President Lyon …

Start With Self-Determination: Advancing Postsecondary Outcomes Of Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Tara E. Regan

The William & Mary Educational Review

Youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have the poorest post-high school, or postsecondary, outcomes in comparison to their peers with and without disabilities. They experience low levels of engagement or even lack of engagement in employment, education, independent living, and community activities. As a result, these outcomes place a heavier load on families, professionals, and communities that support the ASD population throughout their lifespan. Therefore, the cost of taking care of this population is rising, with a current estimate of over $40 billion per year. In disability literature, self-determination (i.e., autonomy and empowerment) has been identified as a predictor of …

Toward More Student-Centered Instruction: The Advent Of Teacher Noticing And Responsiveness In Mathematics And Science Education Research, Benjamin K. Campbell

The William & Mary Educational Review

The topic of teacher noticing has been refined in the mathematics education literature over the last 15 years. Researchers who study noticing have established a complex definition of this process, which encompasses how a teach- er identifies, evaluates, and considers responding to a student’s classroom contribution. They have also developed a variety of techniques to measure a teacher’s capacity to engage in noticing and have documented how this capacity can change over time with certain interventions or experiences. Science education researchers have more recently begun studying noticing. Among other results, their efforts have yielded the concept of responsiveness to further …

College Didn’T Prepare Me For This: The Realities Of The Student Debt Crisis And The Effect It Is Having On College Graduates, April Perry, Cassandra Spencer

The William & Mary Educational Review

Student loans are like a dark cloud looming above 41 million Americans (Perna, Kvall, & Ruiz, 2017). Through young adults’ personal accounts and relevant literature, we aimed to explore how student debt has altered the lives of college graduates and what can be done to educate students before they graduate with tens of thousands of dollars in debt. To provide context, we first discuss a brief history of student loans and address what we know from the literature about the burden of student debt. Next, we address the factors that contribute to the student debt crisis and the effects of …

Integration Of Learning In Counselor Education, Sean Newhart

The William & Mary Educational Review

Integration of learning (IOL) has been defined as an essential learning out- come in higher education. The IOL model describes the process of learning through three types of integration: connection, application, and synthesis. This manuscript applies the IOL model to counselor education in order to examine how counselor education programs implement the model. Andragogic approaches in counselor education programs are highlighted utilizing the three types of integration, illustrating how these programs exemplify integration. Implications for future research are also discussed.

Public/Private Partnership Schools In New Zealand: Justifications And Context, Mark Olofson

The William & Mary Educational Review

Recent policy changes in the New Zealand educational context have introduced privatization into the system through partnership schools. Parties on all sides of the issue use a framework of economic values consisting of efficiency, equity, and liberty to frame themselves and their opposition. This holistic case study uses interviews, observations, and field evidence to explore how partnership and public schools align themselves with these values, and how public discourse frames both types of schools. Cross analysis of the different voices revealed differences in constructions concerning innovation, how best to serve struggling learners, school funding, and school evaluation. These differences fuel …

Teaching Kids To Care: A Needs-Based Intervention To Increase Ethical Sensitivity In Schools, Rebecca Friedman

The William & Mary Educational Review

Character education programming is gaining popularity in America’s schools as a way to raise an intelligent and caring generation of students. However, many schools fail to allocate time, money, and resources to such initiatives. The present study examined the impact of an ethical sensitivity intervention in a religiously affiliated independent school. A self-report Likert scale and analytic rubric were used to measure development of different sub-skills of ethical sensitivity in fourth and fifth grade students (N = 25) before and after the intervention over a two-month period. Results suggest that the degree of ethical sensitivity increased over the course of …

Raising The Charter School Cap In Massachusetts: The Consequence Of An Uncapped Neoliberal Rationality, Nicole L. Semas-Schneeweis

The William & Mary Educational Review

In September 2015, Governor Charlie Baker announced his support for raising the charter school cap in Massachusetts. This announcement has sparked a heated debate about funding for public education that problematically ignores neoliberal ideology. The Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993 began a reign of neoliberalism impacting education policies. An Act Relative to the Achievement Gap in 2010 saw an intensification of this privatization and free market ideology with its explicit support of charter alternatives. Achievement has become based on standardized assessments that presume a static, ethnocentric view of knowledge. Neoliberal ideology reinforces white Eurocentrism and a meritocratic rationale, disregarding …

Critical Education & New Teachers’ Beliefs: A New Niche For Educational Research, Kate Rollert French

The William & Mary Educational Review

Beliefs about teaching influence practice and can play a powerful role in the day-to-day decision-making of teachers. Pre-service teachers commonly accrue their original set of beliefs about teaching from teacher preparation programs or personal experiences, but unlike teachers with more experience, new teachers are most susceptible to changing their beliefs about teaching once they become official teachers of record. If these beliefs change in a negative way, such as by adopting a set of beliefs that views students and communities through a deficit lens, or only capable of achieving less than their privileged counterparts, then schools will continue to foster …

Conceptual Model Of Educational Planning And Program Evaluation: Addressing Deficit Thinking At The Top, Melanie Lichtenstein

The William & Mary Educational Review

Deficit thinking has been attributed to on-going academic and social inequities in school districts. Scholars have discussed addressing deficit thinking before educators enter the classroom through pre-service teacher programs. However, there is a gap in the literature regarding educational leaders’ perceptions and belief systems of culturally, linguistically, and economically diverse students. The impact of deficit thinking at the leadership level can influence program, policy, and planning decisions that can negatively impact any educational change efforts. This conceptual model of educational planning and evaluation will suggest an approach to change the deficit thinking of school district leaders such as superintendents, school …

The Influence Of Teacher Unionization On Educational Outcomes: A Summarization Of The Research, Popular Methodologies And Gaps In The Literature, Sarah Guthery

The William & Mary Educational Review

This paper summarizes the research on the relationship between teacher unionization and educational outcomes at the state, district, school, and individual (student) levels. Although teachers are the largest organized professionals in the United States, much of educational policy literature has ignored unionization as a subject of study. An emerging consensus from the literature believes that collective bargaining raises teacher pay, increases district expenditure and reduces class size; however, union influence on student outcomes has not yet been established. The literature is unclear as to whether or not teacher unionization is associated with student graduation rates or standardized test scores.

The Impact Of Positive Psychology On Higher Education, Noël Williams, Leah Horrell, Dawn Edmiston, Mackenzie Brady

The William & Mary Educational Review

Research identifies the contributions of positive psychology to higher education success through an emphasis on strengths-based education. This paper examines the dynamics of higher education, defines positive psychology, discusses various approaches to student success, and evaluates the benefits of positive psychology on student engagement and institutional effectiveness. By applying strengths-based education within colleges and universities, educators can exercise positive psychology to enhance students’ growth by helping these students to thrive and flourish in their personal and professional lives.

Engagement At A Distance: Reflections On Student Learning And Parent Engagement In A Physics Classroom, Anuraag Sensharma

The William & Mary Educational Review

New technology, including online gradebooks and learning management systems, allow schools to remotely involve families in their children's educations. This "engagement at a distance", as well as its impact on student learning, is examined through the lens of the author's experiences as a student-teacher. It is argued that while a holistic and meaningful form of family engagement is ideal, engagement at a distance is more detrimental to student learning than no engagement at all.

Lessons On Collaboration, Jake Todd

The William & Mary Educational Review

Reflections from a pre-service teacher on the initial experiences of working with students whose home environment affected their ability to fully participate in the classroom. The focus of this reflection is understanding ways to figure out who was the most appropriate person to impact a student's life.

Reflection On A Narrative By Faculty Of Color, Marian Stordahl, Keonghee T. Han

The William & Mary Educational Review

The experience of a woman faculty of color (WFOC) teaching in a traditionally homogenous, rural American community college reveals the presence of racialized attitudes among students, educators, and administrators. Individuals’ orientation to White Identity is revealed in the encounters of a culturally diverse professor and American colleagues working in her institution. In the absence of meaningful reflection, Caucasian American students and faculty – themselves participants in the lives of local communities – reproduce institutional discrimination.

Keywords: academic freedom, discrimination, prejudice, social dominance theory, White Identity development

Rootedness Research: Local Possibility Amid A Cosmopolitan Network, Christopher R. Ongaro, Kelly C. Johnston

The William & Mary Educational Review

For this paper the authors combined Howley, Howley, and Pendarvis’s (2003) concerns about cosmopolitanism with Deleuze and Guattari’s (1987) rhizomatic theory to conduct a threefold historical analysis and, ultimately, describe a tentative research framework, namely rootedness research. Concerns about cosmopolitanism were contextualized through exemplar worldviews. The worldviews served as a backdrop for an analysis of U.S. federal education policy, research on teaching and teacher preparation, and education’s presence in court cases. The analysis supported concerns about cosmopolitanism’s consequences and demonstrated how a network of factors contributed to a centralizing trend in education. The authors’ theory of rootedness research emerged as …

Letter From The Editor, Davis Clement

The William & Mary Educational Review

Letter from the Editor