Education Commons^™

The Effect Of Inquiry-Based, Hands-On Math Instruction Utilized In Combination With Web-Based, Computer-Assisted Math Instruction On 4th-Grade Students' Outcomes, Jason D. Plourde

Student Work

Results indicated that 4th-grade students ( n = 19) participating in the inquiry-based, hands-on math instruction used in combination with web-based, computer-assisted math instruction group and 4th-grade students ( n = 19) participating in the inquiry-based, hands-on math instruction alone group did not significantly improve their pretest-posttest Problem Solving/Data Analysis, Concepts/Estimation, Math Total, and Math Computation norm-referenced normal curve equivalent achievement test score results. However, 4th-grade students participating in the inquiry-based, hands-on math instruction alone group posttest-posttest scores were statistically significantly greater than students who participated in the combination instruction group across all four subtests. Moreover, all posttest norm-referenced, Normal …

Principals' Knowledge Of Idea And Their Implementation Of Special Education Services, Karen Smith Collins

Dissertations

This correlational study was designed to determine the relationship between the principals' knowledge of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and their implementation of special education services, as well as to determine if there was a relationship between principals' knowledge of IDEA and their beliefs and practices; experience, training, and demographic characteristics. The respondents, principals in New Orleans area schools, were divided into three groups: charter, city/district, and state operated. Their knowledge of IDEA was measured using a survey instrument developed by Wakeman (2005) and Copenhagen (2005). It also included a small section on specific characteristics of the principals assigned …

The Principal's Role In Teacher Retention, Sametra Danyal Chisolm

Dissertations

As efforts are made to identify factors contributing to teachers leaving or staying in the teaching profession, teacher retention continues to pose a challenge for school administrators. Factors such as principal behaviors, principal leadership, school climate/teacher morale, professional development opportunities, and teacher mentoring programs seem to positively impact teachers' decisions to remain in the profession.

The purpose of this study was to gather data to determine whether principal behaviors, principal leadership, school climate/teacher morale, professional development opportunities, and teacher mentoring programs affect teacher retention. A questionnaire, adapted from the Mecklenburg Citizens for Public Education (formally Charlotte Advocates for Education) research …

The Perceptions Of The Effectiveness Of The Phoenix Alternative Program, Jason Dethor Laffitte

Dissertations

Many school districts throughout the United States utilize alternative schools for students who have not been successful in a traditional school setting. The Phoenix Program is a second chance alternative school in Mobile, Alabama that provides educational opportunities to students who are at risk of dropping out or school or under a long-term suspension from a regular school program.

This study was conducted to determine the perceptions of the effectiveness of the Phoenix Program on students who have been suspended from their assigned school for a long term. Participants in this study included 36 principals and assistant principals, 30 students, …

Barriers In Educating Homeless Children And Youth, Gloria Elaine White Adams

Dissertations

Across America, homeless students face a myriad of barriers that impede education and school access and success of homeless children. The purpose of this study was to determine the barriers to enrollment and school success for homeless students. The ultimate goal was to provide information to parents, teachers, administrators, and school districts that could serve as a vital resource tool in educating homeless students while removing barriers.

The participants consisted of 215 certified teachers, school administrators, and homeless liaisons in 23 school districts representing the populations that provide afterschool instruction to homeless students. The study was conducted in the spring …

Effectiveness Of Before And After-School Tutoring Programs As Measured By The Mississippi Curriculum Test, Patricia Marie Goyette

Dissertations

In the era of high-stakes testing and increased accountability, the state of Mississippi has implemented the Mississippi Curriculum Test (MCT) in alignment with No Child Left Behind. Students scoring basic or minimal on the MCT are considered to be working below grade level. In response, many districts have begun tutoring students before or after school in an attempt to increase student learning. The purpose of this study was to determine if students who participated in out-of-school tutoring programs during one school year exhibited significantly more growth, as defined in the Mississippi Student Achievement Act and the No Child Left Behind …

Are The Math Scores Of Students Who Are Taught Mathematics Utilizing The Methods Endorsed By The Alabama Math, Science, And Technology Initiative Affected?, Brenda Elise Jolly

Dissertations

Eighth-grade mathematics scores from 21 schools were compared pre-inception and post-inception of the Alabama Mathematics, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI). Only the scores from schools which had 80% of their mathematics and science teachers trained at one Summer Institute were used, as these were considered to be true AMSTI schools. Results found the effects of AMSTI to be not statistically significant.

The second part of this research was conducted based upon 256 surveys from teachers attending their second Summer Institute of ASMTI training. Results found many school systems may hamper teachers' ability to plan and execute AMSTI lessons due to …

The Influence Of Career-Technical Student Organizations On Non-Traditional And Traditional Community College Students, Suzanne Lee Johnson

Dissertations

Student organizations have been contributing to adult education for years. The need to recruit non-traditional students and retain them is very important to the financial support of the career and technical program. If a career-technical student organization (CTSO) can encourage retention and completion of traditional and non-traditional students in a field of study, the state might realize the need to increase the funding provided to the advisers/instructors of the CTSO and the financial support of the CTSO. This study investigated what motivates a student to become an active member in a CTSO and to what extent the CTSO contributed to …

Factors That Contribute To A Successful Secondary Vocational Education Program In The State Of Mississippi, Erin Leigh Parker

Dissertations

This study was designed to assess and identify factors that make a vocational program successful. Using qualitative methods for collection and analysis of data, vocational instructors and students in programs identified to be successful were interviewed to better depict the classroom setting, teachers, methods, etc. of these successful programs. Participants included instructors of and students enrolled in secondary vocational programs in the state of Mississippi identified to be most successful according to C-PAS test scores in each of the following training areas: Building Trades (carpentry), Business and Computer Technology, Marketing Management Technology, and Allied Health. MS-CPAS test scores were analyzed …

The Relationship Between African American Students' Self-Beliefs And Beliefs About Teachers And Academic Outcomes And Disciplinary Referrals, James Matthew Thompson

Dissertations

This research study addressed a facet of the academic achievement gap regarding students' beliefs. The specific area that was examined is African American students' self-belief and beliefs about their teachers, while Caucasian students were used as a comparative group. The sample consisted of 34 African American and 65 Caucasian fifth-grade students from a southeastern public school district. The purpose of the study was to explore correlations between beliefs and African American students' academic outcomes. The theoretical foundations regarding beliefs, cultural context, and stereotype threat that were explored in this study addressed the variables located in Chapter III: Methodology. Additionally, these …

The Perceptions Of Superintendents Regarding The Need For Graduate Business Classes In Educational Leadership, Howard Leland Smith

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the comprehensiveness of educational leadership programs regarding the extent of appropriate business knowledge attained by public school administrators. Portions of the study included a discussion of current licensing practices, academic governance, basic business requirements for leadership and management, and basic financial literacy. A further purpose was to measure the perception of how the inclusion of specific business-oriented graduate education in the certification process might increase the initial success of administrators.

The literature review supported the concept that superintendents understand change management and fiscal responsibility. Survey respondents supported these concepts by indicating the …

The Relationship Between Principals' Leadership Self-Efficacy, Student Achievement And School Performance, Robert Louis Williams

Dissertations

The two major components of school accountability, under the Mississippi Schools Accountability System, are growth expectation and school achievement. Mississippi schools are assigned a school performance classification based upon student achievement and whether schools did not meet, met, or exceeded their growth expectation. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if there is a statistically significant relationship between principals' ratings of self-efficacy, school performance, and school growth status. In addition, this study sought to determine if there is a statistically significant relationship between principals' ratings of delegatee performance, school performance and school growth status.

The participants for this …

Presidential Fundraising In South Carolina's Two-Year Technical Colleges, John Boyd

All Dissertations

ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to explore fundraising at South Carolina's Technical Colleges. The major focus of the study was on presidential characteristics and practices along with various institutional characteristics and fundraising success. The research design was descriptive and employed various methods in the collection of data. Data were obtained from administrative sources, public documents, surveys, and interviews. The study includes general information on South Carolina's Technical Colleges, information from IRS Form 990s on 15 of the colleges, results of survey data from 12 colleges, and follow-up interview responses from 5 of the presidents who completed the survey. …

Institutional Culture, Performance, And Learning In A Two-Year Technical/Community College, Vicky Maloney

All Dissertations

The environments of higher education institutions have undergone significant changes in the past twenty years as a result of concerns expressed in prominent reports. These external concerns and initiatives reflect contemporary criticisms by the public about the efficiency and effectiveness of the performance of institutions. The response from research, legislatures, and the institutions has been to implement practices aimed at improvement and borrowed from business and industry. Research indicates that this performance orientation to change in higher education has largely failed, due in part to the lack of attention given to the culture of the institution.
Emerging research indicates a …

The Experiences Of Chief Student Affairs Officers In Addressing Incidents Of Racial Insensitivity On College And University Campuses, Idella Glenn

All Dissertations

ABSTRACT
This study examined the Chief Student Affairs Officer's (CSAO) role in addressing incidents of racial insensitivity on college and university campuses. The research methodology used for the study was a qualitative research design. Utilizing the collective case study method, within-case and cross-case analyses were completed for the study. Data were collected from eleven CSAOs at public institutions through their participation in telephone interviews.
Five major themes emerged from the study. First, the CSAO
must be multiculturally competent in order to address a variety of incidents of racial insensitivity. Second, the CSAO must understand the law and legal precedents regarding …

An Assessment Of The Perceived Value Of Teacher Portfolios In The Early Years Enhancement (Eye) Program By Primary And Secondary Teachers In Utah's Schools, Teresa J. Denison

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of the teacher portfolio as an evaluation of professional development in Utah's new teacher licensing--the Early Year's Enhancement (EYE) program. This study explored teacher perceptions of the value of the portfolio. Results of the study identified the perceived value of teacher portfolios related to: (a) accuracy as an evaluation tool, (b) usefulness with respect to teacher professional growth, (c) feasibility with regard to teacher time, and (d) appropriateness related to the effect of portfolios on teaching practices. It also identified the relationship of the teacher's perceived value and the required …

Effective Practices Of Project Lead The Way Partnership Teams, Cody J. Reutzel

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to gather information from Project Lead The Way (PLTW) partnership team experts. This project follows the methodology of a modified Delphi study. A review of literature in the areas of curriculum development, pre-college engineering, and the Delphi research technique provided the background for the structure utilized. Top programs from across the country were questioned to identify and come to a consensus on top components essential to developing and utilizing a successful PLTW partnership team. The components were categorized into two lists: effective practices utilized to make a program successful and effective practices employed by …

A Qualitative Study Of Seminary Principals For The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, Eric W. Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This qualitative study investigates how leadership is embodied within the role of seminary principals in released-time seminaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This study utilized a grounded theory approach and constant comparative analysis while triangulating the data obtained from personal interviews, participant observations, and analysis of documents. The primary sources of data came from the personal experiences and perspectives of four principals, eight teachers, and one area administrator that are analyzed through biographical interviews.

Analyses of the data were completed to determine common themes of leadership that were embodied by principals in released-time seminaries for The …

Utah Middle-Level School Community Councils: An Evaluation Of Compliance, Processes, And Perceived Impact, Richard Jackson Nygaard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The historical perspective of schools in our democratic society provides a framework of tension between local parent and community control versus professional and state control of public school decisions. Today, federal and state requirements demand increased student achievement. The state of Utah requires each public school to have a school community council (SCC) that is responsible for the development of plans for school improvement. Limited funds are provided to each school community council through the School LAND Trust Program to assist in the implementation of the developed plans for the purpose of increased student achievement. Three Utah middlelevel school community …

The Effect Of A Rural High School Combination Supplemental Literacy Program On Emerging Readers’ Achievement, Engagement, And Behavior Outcomes, Mark L. Adler

Student Work

No abstract provided.

Reading Outcomes Of Pre-Literate 3rd-Grade Students After Two Years Of Combined Reading Classroom Instruction And Individualized Intervention Or Classroom Instruction, Jon T. Lopez

Student Work

This study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of a combination regular classroom reading and reading reteaching approach to teaching reading to pre-literate 3rd-grade students who were determined to be below proficient readers (n = 14) compared to the effectiveness of regular classroom reading instruction alone provided to 3rd-grade readers ( n = 14) determined to have barely proficient pre-literate skills. Barely proficient and below proficient reading level designations were determined by psychometrically derived cutscores developed in order to minimize classification error. This study found that although students on both sides of the cutscore made achievement gains in reading, gains …

Student Perspectives Of Political Bias In The College Classroom, Darren Linvill

All Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore how students experience political bias in the college classroom and the extent to which this bias is perceived by students in one midsized, public, land-grant university in the Southeastern United States. The current study addressed the issue of politically biased college professors in U.S. college classrooms, a matter that has gained attention in academia and the general public in recent years. A review of literature explored both partisan research and the limited available peer-reviewed research addressing political bias in the classroom. The research model, the sequential, exploratory mixed methods model, was described …

The Impact Of An International Baccalaureate Primary Years Curriculum On Intermediate Grade Girls’ And Boys’ Perceptions Of Their Learned Global Citizenship Attributes, Suzanne R. Melliger

Student Work

In this study girls (n = 30) reported a statistically significantly greater capacity for caring compared to boys ( n = 30) on the caring domain of the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program Student Self Assessment Learner Profile. However, the null hypothesis was not rejected for boys' and girls' reported levels of risk-taking behavior running counter to literature suggesting that boys are ipso facto bigger risk-takers than girls. However, in this study a greater advantaged classroom performance was not consistent with the research literature positing a stronger classroom performance in language arts (reading and writing) for girls compared to boys …

Characteristics Of High-Performing, High-Poverty Elementary Schools In East Tennessee, John Edward Dalton

Doctoral Dissertations

High academic achievement by students in high-poverty schools is unusual throughout the United States. East Tennessee is no exception. However, there are some schools with high percentages of low socioeconomic student populations, which do excel in helping students reach high academic performance. This study looks at four high-performing, high-poverty elementary schools in East Tennessee to determine how they have overcome the tendency to accept low student achievement as inevitable.

By studying the high-achieving, high-poverty schools that exist in East Tennessee to find not only the characteristics that are associated with these effective schools, but also, more importantly, the practices used …

Searching For A Caregiver: The Middle School Principal, William L. Stein

Doctoral Dissertations

The time is well past for the American people—especially those that deal with our school aged children on a day-to-day basis—to see what is happening to our children and by extension to our society. If public education is to become truly effective in this time of alienation—both of race and class—then a more caring, nurturing, and trusting approach to the profession of educational administration must be encouraged and engendered. The purpose of this study is to examine the middle school administrator as a caregiver by examining the perceptions of the role by teachers and the principal.

This study focused on …

Gifted Education Exposure In Introductory Special Education Texts: Quantitative Text Content Analysis, Sandra Kay Hansen Wentworth

Dissertations

This present study was designed to examine and compare 10 introductory special education textbooks used in mandatory introductory special education courses. The percentage of text devoted to gifted education chapters in comparison to specific learning disabilities, behavior disorders, mental retardation, autism spectrum disorders, and speech/language/communication disorders was explored for statistically significant differences. Paired samples t tests were conducted to analyze the data. A statistically significant difference was found between the coverage of gifted education and autism spectrum disorders among the 10 examined texts. No other significant statistical findings were found between various exceptionalities among the 10 examined texts. The prevalence …

Perceptions And Knowledge Of Special Education Law Among Building Administrators In A Selected Georgia School District, Patricia Claire Grasso

Dissertations

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has impacted every school district in the United States and significantly altered the role of administrators. Requirements for the administration and supervision of special education have developed exponentially since the enactment of Public Law 94- 142 and its reauthorization as the IDEA.

The purpose of this study was to compare the perceptions and knowledge of building administrators regarding special education law. The following research questions were developed to facilitate this study: (a) is there a difference in the level of knowledge about special education law among building administrators regarding the seven provisions of …

The Role Of Teachers In School Safety, Leslie Lee Brown

Dissertations

This study examined teachers' perceptions of their abilities to effectively respond to crises on their school campuses. Teachers were surveyed in numerous southeastern states in contrasting demographic areas. Much of the literature addressed acts of violence, natural disasters, and threats of terrorism in schools. Past literature designates urban areas as places where violence has been a more prevalent element of everyday life. Current evidence shows that school shootings and natural disasters can occur anywhere. This shows that planning, practicing, and preparing for crises events are imperative no matter the demographic area in which a school is located. However, there is …

The Emotional Intelligence And Resilience Of School Leaders: An Investigation Into Leadership Behaviors, Aileen Thompson Bumphus

Dissertations

Recent research suggests that leadership in schools and emotional intelligence are related. Furthermore, resiliency has been researched and found to be linked to successful leadership. As a result of these findings and the researcher's own professional experiences, it is speculated that emotional intelligence, resilience, and school leadership may be highly related factors in how one leads a school. The study of this three-factor relationship has been virtually overlooked in the research on school leadership and might prove useful in the recruitment, identification, development, and retention of effective school leaders.

A study of the emotional intelligence, resilience, and leadership of public …

A Metamorphosis Of Thought: Parent Education Based On Transformative Learning Theory In A Title I-Funded Middle School, Ayanna Lichelle Shivers

Dissertations

Section 1118(e)(2) of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 encouraged public schools to conduct and evaluate parent education programs to assist with closing the achievement gap. In an effort to combat the existing problem, the researcher engaged in a mixed-methods study to address four research questions.

A comparative-quantitative study, using the Middle School Parent Perception Survey, was conducted to determine if there were statistically significant differences in perceptions of parents whose children attended Title I funded and non-Title l-funded schools in the following areas—barriers to parent involvement, their ability to assist their children with schoolwork, and the support …