Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

An Exploration Of The Mentoring Experiences Of Ethnically Diverse Women Faculty At An Hbcu: A Qualitative Case Study, Tonya M. Brown, Ruth Boyd

Journal of Research Initiatives

This qualitative case study explored the professional and personal growth benefits for women faculty who engage in mentoring relationships at a historically black college or university (HBCU). Data were collected using one-on-one interviews with full- and part-time women faculty members who served as research participants. The participants provided data about their experiences with mentoring, including details such as the frequency of their meetings with mentoring partners, the preferred method of communication, and the areas of support resulting from the mentoring relationship. Findings indicated that mentoring relationships positively enhanced the experience for women faculty teaching in full-time or adjunct positions in …

Associations Between Multicultural Distress, Academic Achievement, And General Stress Among Racial/Ethnic Minority College Students At A Minority-Serving Institution, Alexandra O. Gil, Franklin Dickerson Turner, Aaron A. Gubi

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study explored the relationship between multicultural distress and general stress symptoms and the academic achievement of college students attending a Minority-Serving Institution (MSI). Research suggests that students who identify as being from a racial or ethnic minority background are likely to experience multicultural distress. Such students are believed to be at greater risk of experiencing mental health and academic challenges. Many contend that being in a diverse learning setting serves as a protective factor, shielding racial/ethnic minority students from some degree of distress and thereby promoting mental health and academic well-being. In contrast, other research findings suggest that multicultural …

Healing Racial Trauma From Public School Systems, Lisa Y. Collins

Journal of Research Initiatives

Oregon needs Black educators in the K-12 public school system. In 35 school districts throughout the state, the number of students of color has risen by over 40% in recent years (Oregon Chief Education Office, 2019). The number of educators of color in the state is under 10%. The number of Black educators is even lower. Research has shown that Black educators improve all students' academic, cultural, and social aspects, especially Black students. Nationally, Black educators were impacted by the Brown v. Board of Education ruling. At that time in history, Black communities fought for civil rights as they experienced …

Small Historically Black Colleges And Universities Bridging Social Capital: The Use Of Language, Tone And Content To Share Information On Instagram, Pamela Peters

Journal of Research Initiatives

The COVID-19 pandemic has strained higher education institutions, especially small Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). As campuses closed and reopened, Black communities' digital divide grew, adding to the need to stay connected. This study uses social capital to examine how institutions use language, tone, content, and information to bridge social capital. An analysis of 35 small liberal arts HBCUs’ Instagram posts was undertaken to compare post frequency, types of information, engagement, tone, language, and content in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic and during the pandemic, 2020 and 2021. This study indicates that post-oversaturation in 2020 and 2021 and information …

The Use Of Film To Motivate Interest In Students With Learning Differences Through Imagination And Diverse Thinking In Higher Education, Edward Cromarty, Mary Alice Young, Simone Elias

Journal of Research Initiatives

This article examined the use of film in higher education to inspire imagination and motivate learning in students with learning differences. It highlighted the benefits of film in enhancing education and fostering imagination and diverse, critical thinking. The findings demonstrated that film is a pedagogical instrument that may assist students with learning differences to access the curriculum better, provide alternative forms of creative and meaningful expression, and develop self-awareness, empathy, and social justice.

A Conceptual Exploration Of Anti-Fragility In The Context Of Confucian Heritage Culture Education, Alwyn Lau

Journal of Research Initiatives

It is a common but not unrealistic stereotype of Asian students that educational success is a matter of personal identity and status. As such, achieving distinctions in as many subjects as possible (the popular target of becoming a ‘straight A’ student) is usually a non-negotiable objective nurtured by both parents and educators. Such an obsessive pursuit of academic excellence produces both laudable outcomes (e.g. the tendency of Asian students to outperform their counterparts) as well as dangerous ones (e.g. worrying rates of mental health problems). This theoretical paper hopes to apply the concept of anti-fragility developed by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, …

How Do They See Me? Examining The Experiences Of Faculty In The Context Of Classroom Whiteness Factors, Papia Bawa, Diantha Watts Dr.

Journal of Research Initiatives

Today polarized attitudes and aptitudes have created a subtle but steady paradigm shift in the way equity, diversity, and inclusivity (EDI) issues are seen by stakeholders. As a result, focusing on critical aspects of equity relationships and the fallout from discriminatory attitudes towards marginalized groups has become ever more needed. While diversity issues exist in all societal, professional, and personal realms, its impact within educational institutions is perhaps the most deeply profound. This Hermeneutic Phenomenology study examines the experiences of six higher education faculty who teach predominantly white student classrooms to identify issues and recommendations with respect to their relationship …

A Qualitative Investigation: Black & Brown Men Retention And Recruitment In The Grow Your Own Program And Partners Colleges Of Education And Universities, Sunni Ali, Alberto Lopez

Journal of Research Initiatives

Three decades ago, the U.S. Department of Education identified increasing the number of teachers of color as a priority. Three decades later, the nation is still confronting a gap between the number of students of color and teachers of color serving in our classrooms. Black and brown men make up less than three percent of the teaching workforce (Bryk, A., Gomez, L., Grunow, A. 2011). Regardless of race, all students benefit from having black and brown male teachers working in urban settings because it counters the deficit model while affirming minority male students' cultural efficacy. Through focus groups, we interviewed …

Trauma-Informed Practices For Test-Taking Anxiety At The Elementary Grade Level, Kate Campbell, Shalini Mathew

Journal of Research Initiatives

Test -Taking Anxiety (TTA) is a challenging experience for children of all ages. Childhood exposure to trauma and adverse experience has been increasing. Fortunately, trauma-informed practices, such as mindfulness activities have become more widespread in schools throughout the last few years. Existing school counseling literature offers limited perspectives on how school counselors can support elementary students for TTA. This conceptual article explores the effects of trauma-informed practices on elementary-age students' test anxiety and overall academic success in schools and offers implications for practice.

Faculty Perspectives On Online Teaching In Higher Education: A Qualitative Approach To Understand Faculty Members’ Challenges And Experiences, Felix O. Quayson

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study explored faculty members' perspectives on online teaching in higher education and described, analyzed, and interpreted faculty members challenges and experiences of teaching online courses. Participants were twelve (12) faculty members who have taught online courses or currently teach online courses. Data was collected from 60-minutes semi-structured interview sessions, 78 open-ended questions, three research driving questions, background questionnaire, and personal artifacts from faculty members. Five major themes with subthemes, 15 code categories, and code co-occurrences emerged from the data collection, field notes, memos, and data analysis. However, not all of the code categories were replicated by all of the …

Finding Correlations Among Academic Performance, Demographic Influences And Clinical Competency Utilizing Predictive Variables In An Associate Degree Nursing Program, Rebecca Montz, Brett Welch, Neil Faulk, Clementine Msengi

Journal of Research Initiatives

A nonexperimental, quantitative, correlation study was utilized as the research design to explore the relationship between multiple academic and demographic variables on the final clinical assessment score and Health Education Systems, Inc., (HESI) Exit Exam (E²) score from a South Texas ADN program. The research was conducted to address the nursing workforce shortage and effective ways to predict academic and clinical achievements for associate degree nursing (ADN) programs. The academic variables for the research consisted of preadmission grade point average (GPA) and Anatomy and Physiology (A&P) I prerequisite GPA. Age and gender were used as the demographic variables …

English Teachers' Opinions On Challenges Face In Teaching English As Foreign Language: The Case Of Jalalabad Selected Secondary Schools, Fahim Rahimi, Hangama Samadi

Journal of Research Initiatives

One important goal of teaching is to achieve learning outcomes. It has been observed in universities that many students have different levels of English language proficiency. However, they study in the same English courses at the school level. The main objective of this study is to learn the challenges that exist in teaching the English language as a foreign language in secondary schools that affect the English proficiency of students. In addition, ways in which these challenges will be overcome is reviewed. The data collection tools were questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to collect data from English language teachers in selected …

Cross-Cultural Considerations: Raising Language Teachers Awareness About The Importance Of Multiculturalism, Abir El Shaban

Journal of Research Initiatives

Abstract

With the worldwide use of English as a second language (ESL) and globalization, teachers are expected to understand, acknowledge and interact with culturally and linguistically diverse students and integrate their linguistic and multicultural backgrounds in classroom settings. Teachers need to be multicultural to be able to successfully impact their students to be multicultural. This paper provides English language teachers with valuable recommendations based on cross-cultural studies and my experience, as an ESL teacher, on how to be responsive to students from different cultures to empower and enhance their language proficiency skills.

Self-Regulation, Co-Regulation, And Feedback In The Context Of Cross-Cultural Language Acquisition In Higher Education: A Conceptual Approach, Papia Bawa

Journal of Research Initiatives

Given the exponential growth in international student populations in the United States, supporting cross cultural language learners (CCLL) in developing their self and co-regulated learning is highly important. This paper presents a conceptual framework on the value of feedback within self-regulated versus co-regulated environments, in the context of cross- cultural language learning. We use the term cross cultural language learners (CCLL) to refer to international learners, in particular from Asia. When exploring the issues of cross cultural language acquisition relating to logographic (Chinese) and alphabetic (English) languages, we examine the literature that support self and co-regulated learning within the frame …

An In-Depth Case Study Of A Prospective Black Male Teacher Candidate With An Undisclosed Disability At A Historically Black College And University, Julius Davis, Lynne Long, Sarah Green, Yvonne M. Crawford, Jeannette Blackwood

Journal of Research Initiatives

As scholarship of Black male collegians is growing, there is limited research attentive to Black males with disabilities and in teacher education programs. The research focused on pre-service Black male teachers with disabilities attending HBCUs and the federal laws impacting their education and supports is absent. This research study fills the void by examining the individual experiences of a Black male pre-service teacher with a disability attending an HBCU. The research team used Black males with disability theory and single-subject case study methodology to describe Christopher “CJ” Jackson’s journey navigating his program of study as an English education major. Four …

Increasing The Success Of African American Males With Learning Disabilities Attending California Community Colleges, Amar I. Abbott, Windy F. Martinez

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of this article is to identify strategies to increase the access, progress, and success for African-American males with Learning Disabilities (LD) attending the California Community College. California has the fifth largest population of African American people in the US, including over 1 million African American males. There is a growing body of literature discussing the barriers faced by African American males attending college, particularly in the areas of retention, persistence, and degree attainment. This journal article discusses how to ameliorate the issues regarding African-American males being successful in the community college environment. With special programs such as Umoja, …

A Qualitative Study: How Northeastern Illinois University’S College Of Education Program Successfully Prepares Black Males With A Previous Individualized Learning Plan To Become Teachers, Sunni Ali

Journal of Research Initiatives

As Teacher College Programs throughout the country attempt to increase their numbers of quality educators entering a classroom, one abiding concern remains: how do universities attract and successfully transition black male educators to become K-12 teachers? Such a lasting question has caused several national programs to arise, specifically an initiative consortium (N.I.C) that involved several colleges of education programs to develop and sustain strategies to increase black male teachers in the profession.

This qualitative-interview based study reviews how a teacher college program located in Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU), applies N.I.C. external and internal mechanisms to engage black male students' …

“This Is Not What I Expected”: Knowledge Reconfiguration In Preservice Teachers, Franco Zengaro, Sally A. Zengaro

Journal of Research Initiatives

The aim of this qualitative case study was to investigate how two preservice teachers reconfigured their role as teachers during their practicum. We collected data through interviews, field observations, and documentary notes gathered at an urban school across four months. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method. The results revealed three themes: (1) Blaming vs. Connecting, (2) Idealism vs. Realism, and (3) Retreating vs. Reconfiguring. The findings of this study indicated that placement was influential for the two preservice teachers. This case study shares valuable information regarding the importance of connecting preservice teachers with quality teaching practicum experiences aimed …

Elucidation Of Effective Professional Development Experiences: Addressing Inclusion For Students With Autism, Jennifer Lee Suppo

Journal of Research Initiatives

Open interviews were conducted with a special education teacher and a general education teacher. The overall guiding question was to provide elucidation of what is needed in a professional development program to meet the needs of both the general and special education teachers who teach children with a diagnosis of autism in an inclusive setting. Overall, the themes of diversity, knowledge and collaboration emerged as important variables for professional development experiences. Furthermore, in-depth knowledge and flexibility arose as important qualities of the facilitator of a professional development experience. Implications are a set forth for the expansion of the study and …

Parents' And Teachers' Collaborative Perspective: An Input For A Model On Materials Development In A Multilingual Setting, Jane Kibla Lartec

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study explored the collaborative perspective of teachers and parents on the materials development in a multilingual setting. Respondents were six parents and six teachers from two pilot schools in a melting pot city of different languages and cultures. The research design employed was qualitative to gain insights, explore the depth, richness and complexity inherent in the social or cultural phenomenon. Data were gathered from interviews with the aid of audio recorder and interview guide based on Malone (2007). The responses were transcribed and then categorized into themes according to similarities pertaining to the development of materials. It was found …

The 'Rules Of Engagement': The Ethical Dimension Of Doctoral Research, Christopher Berg

Journal of Research Initiatives

The pursuit of a doctorate is a rite of passage that requires a student to successfully navigate the transition from “student” to “scholar.” One area of practice, however, that is often marginalized is the role of ethics. Though there is no formal coursework in ethics, its importance cannot be understated. This essay examines the conceptual role of ethics in doctoral research as both an individual reflective essay as well as a broader discussion of ethics in general. The ethical dimension considered is broken down into eight principles or ethical research and practice in doctoral research. The “Eight Ethical Principles” will …

Realizing The Dream: African American Males’ Narratives That Encouraged The Pursuit Of Doctoral Education, Ted N. Ingram

Journal of Research Initiatives

This article used personal narratives to discover factors affecting the decision of African American males to consider doctoral education. This study was based on qualitative interviews with 18 African American male doctoral students enrolled at predominantly white institutions as they reflected on their reasons for pursuing an advanced degree. The following were found to influence their decision: (a) need for faculty encouragement, (b) motivation to pursue a doctorate, and (c) their personal motivations. Recommendations are offered for increasing the numbers of African American male doctoral students.

Delayed Gratification Behavior Among Elementary School Children: An Intervention Model, Nadine A. Joseph

Journal of Research Initiatives

In the 1960s, Walter Mischel conducted the first study on delayed gratification behavior (Goleman, 1995; Mischel, Shoda & Rodriquez, 1989). Since then, many other follow-up studies have been done to prove what sociologists call ‘the delayed gratification pattern’ (see Funder, Block & Block; Logue & Chavarro 1992). These studies propose that participants who are able to delay gratification around of the age of four were better adjusted and more dependable during their adult lives. Studies conducted to assist participants who were unable to delay gratification could not be uncovered. In this study, researchers invited parents and teachers to use intervention …

Each One, Teach One: A Blackprint For Mentoring Postsecondary “Twice Exceptional” Student Scholars In “Search Of Education, Elevation And Knowledge”, Selena T. Rodgers, Tiffany Cudjoe

Journal of Research Initiatives

Through the prism of a faculty-student mentoring relationship, this article highlights best practices to gain insight into resources for “twice exceptional” student scholars. Practical application stands at a position of intersecting domains—changing the tapestry of scholarly service and undergraduate research mentoring, and as an Each One, Teach One black-print model for mentoring. The article concludes with recommendations for best practices for post secondary mentors, educators, and counselors invested in developing student scholars in Search of Education, Elevation, and Knowledge.