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Full-Text Articles in Secondary Education and Teaching

Teacher Perspectives Of Professional Learning Community Teams With Respect To Their Collective Inquiries: A Case Study, Allen Pratt Jul 2014

Teacher Perspectives Of Professional Learning Community Teams With Respect To Their Collective Inquiries: A Case Study, Allen Pratt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the perspectives of secondary level teachers in East Tennessee who are involved in Professional Learning Community (PLC) teams regarding both the environment and sharing of best teaching practices. The study examined PLC teams to better understand how the team design, interaction, and the process of collaboration enabled teachers to coexist as adult learners. The basic research question lies in what are teacher perspectives of PLCs relating to the environment of the collective inquiry and the transfer of knowledge at the secondary school level. The study examined PLC teams to better …


Educators' Perceptions Regarding Common Core State Standards And Professional Development, Christine Hipsher Mar 2014

Educators' Perceptions Regarding Common Core State Standards And Professional Development, Christine Hipsher

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the impact of the implementation of the Common Core State Standards in Georgia K-12 on the professional development needs of educators. Across the United States the enactment of a Common Core State Standards went into effect. The primary goal of the Common Core State Standards movement was to clarify standards. Accordingly, this study reviewed Social Learning Theory and Constructivism. The research questions in this study examined the types of support educators requested. The research conducted in this multiple case study analyzed teachers' perceptions about the implementation of the CCSS and …


Solution-Oriented Teacher Understanding Of School Accountability And How It Influences Perceived Self-Efficacy: A Case Study, Yolonda Bankston Jan 2014

Solution-Oriented Teacher Understanding Of School Accountability And How It Influences Perceived Self-Efficacy: A Case Study, Yolonda Bankston

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how accountability requirements influenced teacher understanding self-efficacy at one high school located in Southern Mississippi. Research questions focused on teacher understanding of how accountability requirements influenced their self-efficacy, the strategies that teachers reported they used to develop solutions to improve self-efficacy, and how teachers reported that administrative support, student discipline, and workload influence their self-efficacy as well. The researcher used field notes, interviews, and an online focus group to collect data from a purposive sample of 10 teachers. Survey results indicated teachers possessed high levels of self-efficacy. Six themes emerged …


The Difference In Act College Readiness Benchmarks Between Avid And Non-Avid Students, Stephany Eley Jan 2014

The Difference In Act College Readiness Benchmarks Between Avid And Non-Avid Students, Stephany Eley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study examined the difference in college readiness (as measured by the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks) between high school students who were enrolled in AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) for three or more years and students who were never enrolled in AVID. A causal comparative research design was employed to compare high school students from a Central Florida school district containing both AVID high schools and non-AVID high schools. AVID students were demographically matched to non-AVID students for race, gender, socio-economic status (as measured by free and reduced lunch status), Title 1 status, and grade level. Independent t tests …


Novice, Rural New York State Teacher Perceptions Of Their Classroom Management And How These Perceptions Affect Their Job Satisfaction And Retention, Shawn Bielicki Jan 2014

Novice, Rural New York State Teacher Perceptions Of Their Classroom Management And How These Perceptions Affect Their Job Satisfaction And Retention, Shawn Bielicki

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative phenomenological inquiry listened to the voices of five novice teachers from a rural area in New York about their encounters with classroom management and their perceptions of job satisfaction and retention. Data were triangulated through the use of four audio recordings, an online focus group featuring two online discussion board topics and two online discussion board replies, and two individual phone interviews per participant. Data analysis resulted in nine emerged themes. Findings indicated that participants felt (a) experience was necessary to succeed; (b) issues with classroom management are part of the job; (c) approaches to classroom management were …


An Investigation Of The Factors That Motivate K-12 Christian School Teachers To Participate In Professional Development And The Relationship To Job Satisfaction And Retention, Bonita Bailey Dec 2013

An Investigation Of The Factors That Motivate K-12 Christian School Teachers To Participate In Professional Development And The Relationship To Job Satisfaction And Retention, Bonita Bailey

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study was conducted to advance knowledge by examining the reasons that motivate teachers to participate in professional development and the relationship to teacher job satisfaction and retention in Christian-based K-12 Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) member schools. The study contributes to the literature in the field because of very limited research on Christian-based schools, especially with regards to professional development, job satisfaction and retention. The study was a quantitative, non-experimental, correlational research design using two instruments, i.e., the Participation Reasons Scale (PRS) and the Job Satisfaction/Retention/Demographic Survey. The PRS scores indicated that the motivating factors for teachers to …


A Phenomenological Investigation Into The Self-Efficacy Beliefs Of Teachers Who Have Persisted In The Teaching Profession, Shana Market Norton Aug 2013

A Phenomenological Investigation Into The Self-Efficacy Beliefs Of Teachers Who Have Persisted In The Teaching Profession, Shana Market Norton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study investigated the lived experiences of 12 secondary school teachers from public secondary schools in northern Georgia regarding their feelings about self-efficacy and why they have persisted in the teaching profession. The research questions centered around their perceptions on how self-efficacy influences the academic achievement of their students, on what personality characteristics they feel teachers add to their positive or negative self-esteem in teaching, and on what factors they identify as influencing their professional self-efficacy in teaching. Teacher self-efficacy, the belief in oneself to succeed at completing a task, is a key factor in retaining teachers. Four data …


Mentoring: A Grounded Theory Study Examining How The Relationship Between The Mentor And Mentee Becomes Mutually Beneficial, David Martin Jul 2013

Mentoring: A Grounded Theory Study Examining How The Relationship Between The Mentor And Mentee Becomes Mutually Beneficial, David Martin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This grounded theory qualitative study examined the mentee/mentor relationship between five first year teachers and their five assigned mentors in a school district in Central Florida. To generate a model that seeks to explain how and why a mentee/mentor relationship changes and evolves from that of a single directional stream of information to that of a bidirectional stream which benefits the professional development of both parties, the grounded theory approach was utilized. Three forms of data were collected: interviews, focus groups, and participant journaling. This data along with artifacts and documents describing the school setting and the use of mentors …