Education Commons^™

Perceptions Of Preservice Teachers Of Students With Intellectual Disabilities About Their Preparation For Inclusive Education, Abdullah Aljudaya

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inclusive education improves social skills, cognitive abilities, and quality of life for students with special needs and has significant implications for governments, economies, and the workforce. Implementing inclusive education is a challenging process, however, that requires support from all sectors to provide the necessary skills and training to pre-service teachers. Empirical evaluations of teachers’ first-hand perceptions of the content and quality of these training programs are necessary to advance inclusive education practices and pre-service training to ensure special education teachers are prepared for their roles. To address this issue, this dissertation presents an in-depth review of the literature, followed by …

Investigation Of The Effectiveness Of Global Competency-Based Program Modules In Higher Education, Parandoosh Sadeghinia

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Global competency-based modules are relatively new in higher education. As a way to measure global competency the USF Global Competency Test (GCT) modules objectively measure global competencies for individuals. The purpose of this study was to investigate the value of three global competency-based program modules and undergraduate student perceptions of the Unite Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the basis for the modules.

This study addressed the questions:

1. What are the change scores based on the Global Competency Test module pre/postassessment scores for students who participated in Operation: Global Action/Academic and Cultural Engagement program during Summer 2021?
2. Are there differences in the …

The Relationship Between Motivation And Professional Learning For Teachers In Makkah, Saudi Arabia, Yassir Alzahrani

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Even though, there are many studies on teacher professional learning and many studies on teacher motivation, there is a lack of research to examine the relationship between teacher professional learning and motivation. This study examined the relationship between teacher motivation and professional learning in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

This study was conducted using two instruments. The first instrument was the Education Participation Scale (EPS) originally developed by Boshier (1991). However, the researcher used the most recent version of EPS by Richter et al. (2019). The EPS determines what factors most motivate teachers to participate in professional development. These factors are personal …

Learning, Planning For, And Reflecting On Teaching Mathematics For Social Justice: A Case Study Investigation Of A High School Mathematics Methods Course, Queshonda J. Kudaisi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While much is known about learning to teach for social justice in other content areas, less is known about how mathematics education students learn to teach mathematics for social justice, specifically at the high school level. Hence, this mixed-methods convergent case study addresses this gap in the research literature by examining and describing the experiences of mathematics education students learning to teach mathematics for social justice within the context of a high school mathematics methods course at a large research university in the southeastern United States. The data sources accessed for this study include a survey measuring beliefs about teaching …

Teachers' Perspectives Of Implementing Restorative Justice, Antonio G. Smith

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of restorative justice in the school system is an emerging philosophy for handling student discipline that seeks alternative methods for solving problematic behavior than traditional or retributive approaches that are detrimental to the education and well-being of students. Student discipline is a controversial topic in education circles, resulting in many school districts looking to implement restorative practice program initiatives. Responses that are restorative, largely decrease the chances of recidivism. Zero-tolerance policies that were originally enforced to keep schools safe, have proven to not have the desired effect as intended, most arguably making schools less safe. There is a …

Predictors Of Goal Attainment Among High School Students In Accelerated Academic Curricula Receiving School-Based Motivational Interviewing Intervention, Camille E. Hanks

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Students enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) courses and International Baccalaureate (IB) programs represent a unique group of adolescents given the high demands of their rigorous coursework and the elevated stress they experience compared to peers in the general education (Suldo & Shaunessy-Dedrick, 2013). These students are often missed in traditional screening procedures that tend to identify students struggling academically or exhibiting disruptive behaviors. Fortunately, Shaunessy-Dedrick and colleagues (2021) developed a comprehensive school-based intervention program, including universal (Tier 1) and selective (Tier 2) components, which aims to support the well-being of AP/IB students. The Tier 2 component of this program (i.e., …

Awareness, Advocacy, And Activism: A Self-Study Of Social Justice Supervision Of Secondary Science Teacher Candidates, Stephanie A. Arthur

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As the demographics of public K-12 schools continue to shift towards a wider representation including students of color and students from low-income households, it is critical for new secondary science teachers entering the field to be prepared to teach science that is culturally responsive to their students’ needs and communities. As teacher candidates continue their pedagogical growth while in their final clinical internships in high-needs schools, there is great potential for the university supervisor to support their development within a social justice framework. By encouraging and supporting teacher candidates to include culturally responsive approaches in the biology, chemistry, physics, and …

Native And Non-Native English-Speaking Doctoral Students' Strategies To Understand Idiomatics In Comics And Comic Strips, Himelhoch Luz-Aydé

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Everyday language consists of many idiomatic and figurative expressions. For non-native English speakers to achieve native fluency, control of idiomatics—native speech that includes the use of both idiomatic and figurative language—is paramount. In this study, I aimed to explore the use of comics and comic strips in the learning and comprehension of L2 (second language) idiomatics. Seldom has the topic of comics and comic strips been addressed as it applies to idiomatics learning in second language acquisition (SLA). I employed a descriptive and exploratory approach in this study to address this gap in SLA pedagogy. A total of 21 doctoral …

Saudi High School Science Teachers' Perceptions Towards The Integration Of Digital Game-Based Learning Into Their Teaching Practice, Jawaher A. Alsultan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The switch to distant learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic demanded an immediate adaptation of technology platforms to improve students' online learning. Science teachers were suddenly required to teach their classes virtually with little time and preparation. This breakneck shift to remote learning raised the question of how teachers can provide instruction to their students in the practices of science using virtual technologies. This embedded case study investigates an intervention to support Saudi science teachers facing the unprecedented challenge posed by COVID-19 in teaching the practices of science in the virtual school platform, Madrasati, through the engagement in digital game-based …

“Be Valiente”: Investigating Ethnic Identity Through Digital Storytelling With Latinx Fourth-Grade Students, Jennifer Michelle Barreto

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Multilingual and multicultural students face the challenge of understanding where their ethnic identity lies in learning. The education system in the United States lacks inclusivity in classrooms, continuing monocultural views and monolinguist ideals as the norm and encouraged in curriculum and standards (Flores, 2020). This dissertation study seeks to break cultural and linguistic ideologies to better understand the development of ethnic identity in three Latinx fourth-grade students by creating a digital story. Through a sociocultural lens that includes a bioecological model (Bronfenbrenner, 1977; Vélez-Agosto et al., 2017) and multimodality (NGL, 1996) framework the study emphasizes all funds of knowledge (Moll …

An Evaluative Pilot Study Of An Online Facilitator Professional Development Program, Alana Elkins

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With a rapid increase in higher education online course offerings, many institutions are hiring part-time faculty to meet the demand of online learning. However, a lack of professional development in online course facilitation has proven to limit the effectiveness of facilitation and hinder the foundational quality standards the courses were built upon. An evaluative pilot study was conducted on a professional development framework provided to a group of online course facilitators that were hired to teach the course but did not participate in the online course developments. Since many course facilitators are not online faculty developers, they have limited knowledge …

Saudi Teachers’ Perspectives On Implementing Evidence-Based Practices Specifically Designed For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Ahmad Saad Alghamdi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The concept of evidence-based practices (EBP) for students with autism refers to a set of practices that were established based on research evidence that proved their effectiveness in helping improve functional and academic skills for children who have autism (Wong et al., 2015). Vision 2030 is an ambitious plan by the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The ministry has published a new executive framework for the reform of teacher preparation programs (Planning and Development Agency, 2018). This reform is aimed at improving the quality of special educators, through the modernization of teacher preparation programs by …

Enacting An Equity Framework With A Teacher And Students In An Urban Elementary Classroom: A Qualitative Study, Samantha J. Haraf

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This purpose of this study was to engage a fifth grade teacher and students in the exploration and application of the EFE (Education for Equity) conceptual framework, and to develop understandings of how EFE functioned in this context. This framework, developed around a decade of equity-focused research in elementary contexts, outlines research-based categories of practices for equity work in elementary schools, and it draws attention to areas lacking attention in the literature. Using and extending from case study methods and participatory methods, I worked with a teacher and her students in this urban classroom for approximately six months in both …

Mealtimes In Early Childhood Education Centers During Covid-19: A Mixed-Methods Assessment Of Responsibilities, Interactions, And Best Practices, Joanna Mackie

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: Childhood obesity is a public health problem associated with many co-morbidities. The majority of young children in the United States (U.S.) attend formal early childhood education (ECE) programs, often consuming the majority of daily calories and engaging with teachers during mealtimes. Mealtime best practices support children’s development of healthy eating habits. This dissertation aimed to understand how COVID-19 has influenced mealtimes in ECE centers, including (1) the division of responsibility between adults and children during mealtimes, (2) the child feeding dynamic, and (3) how mealtime best practices have been included during COVID-19.

Methods: This dissertation used a concurrent mixed-methods …

Do I Belong? What Students Teach Us About Belonging To A New University, Jennifer Ann Scaia

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Foundational to this evaluation study, the participating institution aspired to improve its retention rate. Students’ perceived sense of belonging has been identified as an important variable related to student retention and persistence (Bean & Eaton, 2000; Strayhorn 2012; Strayhorn 2019; Tinto, 2017). For students to succeed beyond their first year in college, it is fundamentally important that they view themselves as valued members of the university community (Bean & Eaton, 2000; Bollen & Hoyle, 1990; Murphy, 2016).

The purpose of this study was to evaluate how undergraduate students, predicted as less likely to retain into their second year, described their …

Elementary Teachers' Beliefs And Practices For Building Teacher-Student Relationships In Title I Schools, Raven S. Robinson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As elementary teachers may serve as the initial advocates for students’ safety, basic needs, and emotional well-being, research has pointed to teacher-student relationships as a means of increasing successful experiences within the school setting (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Cook et al., 2018; Pianta, 1999; Schafer & Barker, 2018). However, urban schools continue to be disproportionately identified as contexts that serve as a nexus toward lack of opportunity for student success, but a focus on teachers’ beliefs and practices for building teacher-student relationships urban, Title I schools can dispel misconceptions (Delale-O’Connor et al., 2017; Hornstra et al., 2015; Milner, 2018; Nieto, …

Directing Attention In Second Language Phonological Contrast Learning, Laura Conover

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Why are some people better at learning new languages than others? There is a rich body of research examining this issue from multiple perspectives and at all levels of language. This study attempts to add to that knowledge at the most fundamental level of language by examining potential influences on the learning of novel phoneme contrasts. The purpose of this study was to explore whether individual differences in attentional capabilities would help adults learn a non-native phonological contrast, and whether providing explicit directions that would guide the learners’ attention could help boost their performance. VCV recordings of the Thai /p/ …

The Characteristics Of Deaf Adult Learners Related To Predictors Of Online Learning Success, Caitlin Mckeown

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Online learning has grown substantially in recent years, and there has been an emphasis among administrators, instructors, and researchers alike to better understand what drives student success in their online courses. Success in online learning is also a concern for deaf students, who face unique challenges in online courses. This survey-based correlational study used the Test of Online Leaning Success (TOOLS) to examine the characteristics of deaf adult students shown to impact success in online courses. There were 22 full responses (for a response rate of 20.95%), and an additional 7 partial responses which were included in analysis where possible. …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Of Supervision In Teacher Preparation In Saudi Arabia, Shahad Babaeer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Teaching is a challenging and complex profession. Teacher preparation programs are facing wide criticism. Several organizations have called for the reform of teacher preparation programs to meet the requirements of the 21st-century world (AACTE, 2018; NCATE, 2010). The purpose of this phenomenological study (Husserl, 1970; Moustakas, 1996) is to gain an in-depth understanding of the lived experiences of Saudi Arabian university supervisors regarding supervision in teacher preparation and how these experiences have shaped their conceptualization of supervision. The study utilized purposeful and homogenous sampling strategies. Data collection included three semi-structured individual interviews per participant. The study relied on traditional phenomenological …

Transforming The Ethics Education Curriculum In Dental Hygiene, Musarrat Anjum Shah

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was two-fold: to assess the current status of ethics education and to create a model ethics education curriculum for dental hygiene programs to address issues with current thinking in ethics education. To this end, the structure and sequence of randomly selected dental hygiene programs' ethics education curricula were examined to garner insights that could inform designing a model curriculum. Second, a model four-semester instructional program in ethics education using curriculum design theories was constructed. Forty programs were randomly selected from the American Dental Hygienists' Association Entry-Level Dental Hygiene Programs' list, with the goal of receiving …

Barriers To Reducing The Assistive Technology Use For Students With Autism As Perceived By Special Education Teachers In Saudi Arabia, Othman Ahmed Alasmari

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prior research has indicated that assistive technology (AT) devices and services can improve the functional capability of students with autism, which includes multiple areas of student needs, such as communication, accessibility, organization, sound, sight, academic skills, mobility, and memory. Nevertheless, concerns persist as to how AT devices are being implemented in the classroom; this is because teachers are experiencing a variety of barriers to using AT (Hew & Brush, 2007). The purpose of this study is to explore the barriers affecting Saudi teachers’ use of AT for teaching children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study’s sample consists of 85 …

Exploring How A University’S Veteran Services Office Supports Their Students’ Civilian Career Readiness And Transition, Sasha M. Vanterpool

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this explanatory case study was to learn how a designated veteran services office on a university campus supports student veterans preparing to transition into the civilian workforce after their college graduation. This study provided an in-depth understanding of the operations of a nationally recognized veteran services office by sharing the perspectives of the office staff as well as the experiences of the veteran students who have used the office. Qualitative research methods for data collection and analysis were incorporated through semi-structured interviews, observations, and thematic coding analysis guided by a constructivist paradigm and Schlossberg’s Transition Theory as …

Behavior Analytic Interventions For Promoting Skill Acquisition In Individuals With Asd: Two Case Studies, Taylor Marie Comber

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This report describes two case studies that used behavior analytic interventions to promote skill acquisition during structured instructional activities for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The first study examined the effects of presession pairing (PSP) implemented by a teacher in the natural classroom setting for a 6-year-old with ASD whose problem behavior was associated with gaining access to attention and escaping from task demands. Results showed PSP augmented with a visual cue resulted in increased on-task behavior and decreased disruptive behavior. The second study examined the use of discrete trial training (DTT) for a 16-year-old female adolescent with ASD …

Evaluating The Use Of Behavioral Skills Training To Teach Substitute Caregivers To Identify Hazards, Carlos Abarca

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The leading cause of death for children across the world is unintentional injuries (UNICEF 2001). Hazards such as accessible pools, poisons, and small ingestible items are the leading causes of unintentional injuries. Behavioral interventions such as Project 12-Ways/Safe Care have been used to teach parents how to be proactive in structuring a home free of accessible hazards by teaching the parents to identify and remove hazards in their home. Though the Project 12-Ways/Safe Care model has over 30 years of literature supporting its efficacy, the model has not been tested with substitute caregivers who often play a critical role in …

The Relationship Between New Graduate Registered Nurse Knowledge, Experiences, Attitudes, And Age Bias Toward The Older Adult, Michelle Fox

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There had been a lack of research on the relationship between a new graduate Registered Nurses’ knowledge, experiences, attitudes, and age bias toward older adults. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there was a relationship between new graduate Registered Nurses’ knowledge, experiences, attitudes, and age bias toward older adults.

The researcher used correlational, non-experimental, quantitative design for this study. The instruments used in this study were the Facts on Aging Quiz, the Kogan Attitude Toward Old People scale, and a demographic questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the demographic data and correlation coefficients were used to …

Saudi Teachers’ Perceptions Of Rough-And-Tumble Play In Early Learning, Rana Alghamdi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study explored teachers’ perceptions of rough-and- tumble (R&T) play in early childhood education in Saudi Arabia. The literature on rough-and-tumble play in Saudi Arabia is limited in scope, and more research is needed to explore teachers’ perceptions on this type of play for early learners. The pertinent literature reveals that R&T play, which includes running, jumping, fighting, wrestling, chasing, pulling, pushing, and climbing, among other rough playful activities, can positively impact learning and development across psychosocial, emotional, and cognitive domains. Teachers’ understanding of R & T play is key, and the attitudes of Saudi early childhood teachers who are …

Persistence Like A Mother: Nursing The Narrative Toward Doctoral Completion In English Education—A Poetic Autoethnography, Krista S. Mallo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this poetic autoethnography, exploration of the feeling and the experience of developing persistence as an English Education doctoral student mother is expressed through analysis of artifacts gathered over a 20-year period inclusive of the years of graduate study, becoming and remaining an English teacher and professor, while paralleling the mothering years. A metaphorical parallel is established between breastfeeding and completing the doctoral degree, thus the phrase "nursing the narrative." Expression is storied through poetry in the voices of the persona of the English teacher, the mother, the doctoral student, and the intersectionality of the roles of each as the …

Saudi Early Childhood Educators' Perceptions Of Gender Roles In Children's Dramatic Play, Dalal Alanazi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted in a unique time of cultural and social change in Saudi Arabia. The new Saudi Vision 2030 promotes gender equality, and it is within this context that I investigated four Saudi preschool teachers’ perceptions of children’s gender roles in dramatic play. I focused on how the teachers have responded to the current move to think differently about gender roles in the Saudi context and the relevant policy changes. Rogoff’s sociocultural theory, which highlights the significance of cultural contexts on peoples’ perceptions, framed the study. I conducted semi-structured interviews with the four Saudi teachers. As a result …

Analysis Of The Self-Directed Learning Readiness Of New Graduate Registered Nurses, Denise Hain

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Self-directed learning readiness is the level of ability and willingness to manage one’s own learning. Research has been conducted on the self-directed learning readiness of both student nurses and professional nurses. However, research has not expanded to focus on the self-directed learning readiness of new graduate Registered Nurses entering the workforce. The purpose of this study was to identify the self-directed learning readiness of new graduate Registered Nurses entering the workforce in a hospital setting. The study examined their self-directed learning readiness profile; the differences in scores based on nursing degree, nursing program, and age; and the differences in scores …