Education Commons^™

Deficit Thinking In Teacher Course Level Recommendations, Andrew Hogan

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze teacher perceptions of the impact of deficit thinking in student course level placement to derive greater insight into the causes of the over-representation of students of color in lower-tracked classes. This study was conducted as a virtual focus group using Google Meet that took place across 3 meetings in which 6 teachers participated in activities designed to promote dialogue around the impact of deficit thinking in the placement of students into course levels.

This study found that teachers perceived deficit thinking in institutional deficiencies in meeting the needs of students and the …

An Examination Of Attachment And Aspirations In Diverse Rural Youth: The Role Of Peers And Teachers, Gresi Bonomo Irdam

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three studies that examined diverse rural youths’ educational and rural aspirations. These studies have the potential to inform rural communities, educators, and parents by providing novel understandings of how peers and teachers in mathematics and science classrooms influence diverse rural youths’ rural attachment, and aspirations (i.e., educational, rural residential, community, and proximity). Thus, the purpose of this dissertation was to investigate rural teachers and their diverse students from White, African American, Hispanic, and Native American backgrounds. In particular, the studies within this dissertation examine how teachers’ social connectedness to their rural communities relates to their teacher …

A Descriptive Analysis Of An Instructional Coaching Process And Its Impact On Student Reading Learning Outcomes, Frederico Leon Rowe

Theses and Dissertations

Instructional coaching has become a widely used method that focuses on improving teacher effectiveness and enhancing professional growth that might help teachers focus on individual needs, growth in teaching and learning, and sharing best practices with others. Instructional coaches have the potential to bridge that gap. The mixed methods study was conducted to describe the instructional coaching process among grades 2 through 5 teachers. The qualitative differences were similarities between the literacy coach’s and the mathematics coach’s procedures and processes in goal setting, observations, meetings, conferences, and feedback. For grades 2 and 3, the non-coaching group had lower pre-reading scores …

Peer Observation And Feedback As A Professional Development Structure, Malisa Dawn Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

In American schools, teachers seldomly have time to see each other teach resulting in missed opportunities to learn and grow from one another. Participants engaged in peer observation and feedback in order to determine the effectiveness of this professional development structure on practitioner growth, teacher efficacy, and overall teacher satisfaction. Data was collected from multiple sources that indicated several themes of growth resulting from the peer observation and feedback cycles including an increase in flexibility and willingness to have others in classrooms, new practitioner thinking and application to classroom practice, and the expansion of influence on highly effective teachers on …

A Descriptive Mixed-Methods Study Examining Teachers’ Needs And Preferences For Technology Integration Professional Development, Amber Birden

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ needs and preferences for technology integration professional development (PD). To guide the study, three research questions were developed: (1) What are teachers’ needs and preferences for technology integration professional development in K-12 schools?, (2) How are teachers currently integrating technology for teaching and learning in their classroom?, and (3) How do teachers perceive technology benefits and usefulness of technology integration for teaching and learning?

This was a descriptive mixed methods study. The research study included 33 educators from six different U.S. states. Quantitative data was collected from the technology needs assessment …

Pursuing Perceptions: Exploring Ease Of Use, Usefulness, Relevance, Self-Efficacy, And Past Experiences To Describe Influences On Elementary Teachers’ Acceptance Of Digital Game-Based Materials, Andrew L. Simpson

Theses and Dissertations

There are many acceptance factors that might influence teachers’ intent to create instruction supplemented or enhanced with digital game-based materials (DGBM). A mixed-methods exploration of five research questions was used to describe how teachers’ perceived ease of use, self-efficacy beliefs, opinions about usefulness, perceptions of relevance, and past experiences informed their acceptance of digital game-based materials. This research study took place at Hill Street Elementary School, which is a suburban K-5 school within the Kaia County School District. Data collection was conducted using a survey, one-on-one interviews, and fieldnotes. A purposeful sample of nine interview participants from grades K-4, and …

#Blackfemaleteachersmatter: The Experiences Of Three African American Female Teachers Who Left The Classroom During Their Induction Years, Ashlye Victoria Wilkerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study captured the lived experiences of three African American, female classroom teachers who left the profession within three years of beginning their careers. The main goal that led this research was to center the perspectives of African American women in the conversation about teacher retention, turnover, and attrition percentages that plague the field of education. The primary questions that guided this study were: (1) “What can be learned from the life stories of former African American female teachers who left the teaching profession from South Carolina public classrooms during their induction years?”, (2) “What do their life stories reveal …

Destabilizing The Ivory Tower: An Autoethnography, Chelsea Mcfadden

Theses and Dissertations

The education system of the western world is a tool of hegemony used to command replication of an ontology rooted in oppression. Teachers interested in combating oppression must work toward decolonizing their praxis, a nuanced task accomplished with the help of critical inquiry done through autoethnography. I seek to synthesize literature that validates and confirms autoethnography as a mechanism of critical inquiry. I will explore the following research questions: How does autoethnography function as a tool of decolonization? Are there ways in which it reifies colonizing practices? How might autoethnography be used in the classroom to encourage nontraditional discourse? Themes …

African American Teachers’ Perspectives On Principals’ Leadership Styles And The Influence On Teacher Morale, Ernestine Young

Theses and Dissertations

Morale is a concept that denotes how workers feel about their work and the environment in which they work (Robbins, 2003). Low teacher morale is not a new problem; however, with increasing frequency of low morale, teachers are affected all over the nation because of the financial and academic toll it has on education. Low morale typically impedes the achievement of the organization’s desired outcome and corresponds with unresolved grievances, attrition, and high absenteeism. Low morale is associated with billions of dollars spent per year. Low morale is due to effects such as stress, teacher burnout, absenteeism, attrition, and small …

African American Teachers’ Perspectives On Principals’ Leadership Styles And The Influence On Teacher Morale, Ernestine Young

Theses and Dissertations

Morale is a concept that denotes how workers feel about their work and the environment in which they work (Robbins, 2003). Low teacher morale is not a new problem; however, with increasing frequency of low morale, teachers are affected all over the nation because of the financial and academic toll it has on education. Low morale typically impedes the achievement of the organization’s desired outcome and corresponds with unresolved grievances, attrition, and high absenteeism. Low morale is associated with billions of dollars spent per year. Low morale is due to effects such as stress, teacher burnout, absenteeism, attrition, and small …

The Struggle Is Real: Exploring Epistemological Change Through The Use Of The Next Generation Science Standards In A High School Chemistry Classroom, Nancy Nasr

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative action research study examines my resistance to implementing the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in my high school chemistry classroom, which is not uncommon among teachers. This resistance highlighted my conflicting epistemological beliefs, which, as a product of my own experiences as a student, among other factors, are deep-rooted and difficult to change. The dilemma for many science teachers, like me, is that the NGSS approaches the teaching of science in a constructivist manner, which attempts to move science instruction away from traditional pedagogies. Science teachers whose epistemological beliefs are rooted in traditional pedagogies may understand the inherent …

Dialogue Sessions On Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Topics: A Phenomenological Action Research Study In An Independent School Setting, Erica Forniss Wiltshire

Theses and Dissertations

Administrators and teachers play an integral role in creating educational spaces where all students can feel safe, welcome, and appreciated. Inspired by the unique responsibility of educators and guided by the work of noted proponents of cultural competence, this exploration is approached through a triplicate lens including phenomenological philosophy, critical race theory, and social reconstructionism. This critical social reconstructionist-hermeneutic phenomenological action research study seeks to gain a deeper understanding of early elementary, independent school teachers’ views on cultural competence before and after three targeted dialogue sessions.

Middle School Teachers’ Perceptions Of Project Based Learning As It Impacts First Year Implementation, Stacey Cunningham Whitaker

Theses and Dissertations

Current education expectations require teachers to meet federal and state standards as well as develop 21st century skills like collaboration, critical thinking and problem solving. Preparing students for state testing while also preparing them to be successful in a global society can present an instructional dilemma. Project-based learning has been identified as a possible solution to this problem. Although researchers agree that integrating 21st century skills in daily instruction is necessary, many teachers and administrators have shied away from implementing a project-based learning curriculum (Hmelo-Silver, Duncan, & Chinn, 2007). The identified problem of practice for this present action research study …

Coaching By Scaffolding: Increasing Teacher Questioning Through Structured Modeling And Feedback, Sarah J. Little

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the effects of the Gradual Increase of Responsibility Model (Collet, 2008) when used by coaches to mentor teachers in best questioning practices in kindergarten through second grade classrooms. The researcher focused on questioning practices after observing missed opportunities to extend student thinking in primary school classrooms during teacher-student conferences in both reading and writing. Vicki Collet’s Gradual Increase of Responsibility Model (2008) was chosen as a coaching model based on the wide range of teacher experiences in the researcher’s educational setting. This coaching model allowed the researcher to scaffold teachers based on …

A Case Study Of School Leaders’ Understanding And Practice In Providing Feedback During The Teacher Observation Process, Karen Allen Benton

Theses and Dissertations

New teacher evaluation reforms in the state of New Jersey and across the country have put an increased emphasis on the role of classroom observations as a method to improve teacher practice. School leaders are expected to facilitate the observation process and provide meaningful feedback that leads to teacher engagement in professional learning that results in instructional improvement and increased student achievement. To meet state mandates for increased number of classroom observations for all teachers and adoption of state-approved evaluation tools, such as the Danielson Framework, districts have increased the work demands of administrators. Yet there has been little guidance …

The Effect Of Professional Development On Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Role Of School Librarians: An Action Research Study, Jennifer C. Mandrell

Theses and Dissertations

The role of the school librarian has greatly evolved from its origination as a person who solely checks out books or reads to students. School librarians are a vital part of schools and, when utilized appropriately, can be an integral part of the learning process with students. When collaboration occurs regularly, collaborative relationships between school librarians and teachers have been found to improve students’ academic performance. This paper describes a proposed action research study, which stems from the lack of a collaborative relationship between the school librarian and teachers at a middle school in South Carolina. The study focuses on …

Collaborating With Teachers To Create Peer Observations As A Means Of Effective Professional Development, Angela K. Vincent

Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological, action research study engaged a sample of teachers from a large middle school in northern South Carolina in developing a protocol and recommendations for the use of peer observations that would provide meaningful professional development for teachers at this school. Data collection methods consisted of interviews, focus groups and trial observations. The study addressed two key research questions, what factors do the teachers see as important when completing a peer observation, and do they perceive the peer observation method as meaningful professional development that promotes teacher growth. The findings confirmed that, among this sample of teachers, peer observation …

The Effects Of Implementing An Online Professional Learning Community For Teachers Of Gifted And Talented Courses: An Action Research Study, Chelsey A. Mintz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to examine the effects of implementing an online professional learning community (PLC) designed explicitly for teachers of gifted and talented (GT) English language arts (ELA) courses. The present action research (AR) is a limited mixed design study, including quantitative and qualitative elements, to discover the effects on collaboration and professional growth focused on best practices for GT instruction. The quantitative data were collected through surveys, which included Likert scales and nominal items and were analyzed through descriptive statistics. The qualitative data were collected through guided and semi-structured interview questions and transcribed before …

Service-Learning: An Interpretive Case Study Of Teachers’ Perspectives And Planning Strategies, Cory Susanne Miller

Theses and Dissertations

This interpretive case study focused on elementary teachers who were implementing a service-learning project in their classroom. Research suggests that service-learning is beneficial for students and is becoming more prevalent in high schools and universities. Current literature, however, provides little evidence for the use of service-learning at the elementary level. The purpose of this study was to explore and gain insight in to how elementary school teachers use service learning and to examine underlying factors that shape and influence how teachers plan for and implement service learning projects. This study aims to provide a planning model to support elementary teachers …

Special Education Teachers’ Working Knowledge Of The Idea, Laura B. Holland

Theses and Dissertations

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the law that governs special education policies, procedures and practices for school districts. Special education teachers are viewed as the experts in leading the Individual Education Program (IEP) team in IEP development and implementation. Researchers have shown that special education teachers perceive themselves as having a high level of knowledge and understanding of the IDEA. However, special education teachers’ actual working and practical knowledge of the IDEA has not previously been assessed. This study, using hypothetical scenarios, examined whether special education teachers were able to determine if an action taken by the …

Relationships Between Prior Experiences, Current Teaching Contexts, And Novice Teachers' Use Of Concrete Representation For Mathematics Instruction, Elizabeth Lee Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

This case study documents the perceived influences on three novice elementary teachers’ use of concrete representations for teaching mathematics. In order to develop mathematical proficiency, students need access to a variety of representations (i.e. pictures, words, symbols, concrete materials, and real world contexts) to make sense of mathematical ideas. Three sources of data were collected: video-recorded lessons, interviews, and a focus group. Analyses indicated that although concrete representations were accessible to all three teachers, they were least used among the available representations. Verbal expression was most prominent, followed closely by abstract written symbols. Technology, which was not one of the …