Educational Leadership Commons^™

Exploring Early Childhood Teachers’ Experiences In Teaching Multilingual Children In Public Mainstream Schools In Tennessee, Maria Dias

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study, grounded in a phenomenological perspective, delves into the lived experiences of early childhood teachers who teach multilingual children in mainstream classrooms in Tennessee. Amidst the rising number of multilingual learners in mainstream educational settings and the dearth of adequate teacher training to address their needs, this research illuminates the experiences of these teachers. Furthermore, it seeks to advocate for the integration of translanguaging pedagogy into teacher training programs and state policies. This study employed a qualitative study using the three-in-depth-interview series from a phenomenological perspective (Seidman, 2019). The first interview focused on participants’ overall teaching experiences and …

Principals As Instructional Leaders: Supporting New Middle School Principals To Implement Systems Allowing For Instructional Leadership, Jason Kaiz

Dissertations

This study is a collection, interpretation, and, eventually, recommendations based on data collected through interviews with current middle school principals. The research questions examine how middle school principals can increase their effectiveness as an instructional leader within the building. The research begins by examining the factors contributing to the principal being an instructional leader and what systems can be implemented to support this goal. These systems should include the ability for principals to facilitate learning for staff, just as staff facilitate learning within their classroom. Policy implications and recommendations highlight the need to look at resources available for principals as …

What Exactly Does Identity Have To Do With Teaching? Exploring The Connection Between A Teacher's Racialized Identity And Their Teacher Identity, Lizette Aguilar

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study explores the relationship between race and teacher identity, specifically understanding how the two concepts intersect and (re)present themselves within the classroom environment. This study analyzes six teachers’ narratives of identity, race, and teaching to explore themes of race and identity as they traverse from their earliest experiences with race into their experiences as teachers. Findings conclude that, first, teachers’ narrative identities are a composite of key narratives—important moments of deep impact in the process of identity building—that accumulate over time to form what Dan McAdams (1993) calls personal myths. Since key narratives are continually shaping one’s personal myth, …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On The Academic Achievement And Mental Health Of Elementary Students: Covid-19 Effect On Students In Pre-K Through 4th Grade, Ashlee Stanley

Dissertations

School closures and student isolation due to COVID-19 affected all students, particularly those in poverty. In addition to the damage to student learning, a mental health crisis emerged as many students lost access to school services. This mixed methods study aimed to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 on United States elementary students’ academic achievement and mental health. I found in my study teachers and school counselors struggled but were able to provide support to students in a variety of ways. I recommended a policy where all schools have a mental health therapist on site to assist students and teachers.

Cooperative Pathways: Insights From Teacher Experiences On Improving Union And District Cooperation, Whitney Fink

Dissertations

This study involved an evaluation of teacher experiences within their districts, schools, and unions across the United States. The primary research question was: How are teachers currently experiencing the relationship between their unions, districts, and administrators and what opportunities exist to improve cooperation and shared ownership between those groups? The study used a mixed methods approach by gathering quantitative data in the form of a survey and qualitative data through open-ended responses on the survey as well as interviews with seven teachers. The results formed a general understanding of the current state of teacher experiences that was then applied to …

Climbing The Doctoral Mountain To Success, Ronald Black

The Journal of Advancing Education Practice

All educational journeys lead to successful personal and professional conclusions. Online doctoral students face numerous challenges from cultural, academic, and technological challenges throughout their doctoral journey. The doctoral journey requires the completion of a dissertation, a sign of scholarly achievement and success. With technology, online doctoral students enter a doctoral program looking for motivation to be successful and enhance their online doctoral journey. Mentoring plays a significant role in an online doctoral student’s journey through the doctoral study and research process. The doctoral mentor’s role is to advise and motivate online doctoral students through the dissertation process. Doctoral mentors guide …

Building Community For Completion: Doctoral Students’ Perceptions Of Technology Integration Within Dissertation Committee Collaboration, Scott A. Fillman, Barbara Holmes, Dejuanna Parker, Kent Willis

The Journal of Advancing Education Practice

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the prevalence of technology-mediated collaboration and mentorship between dissertation committee members and doctoral student scholars. Qualitative research methods were used to explore the role of technology for collaboration and building community within dissertation committees, focusing on dissertation scholars’ perspectives. The study was based on one overarching research question: How do doctoral students describe the integration of technology for collaborating with dissertation committees? Doctoral scholar participants described the importance of technological literacy within dissertation committees, most indicating that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the importance of fluency with technology. Other participants portrayed the importance of technological literacy within …

An Empirical Study Of Student Satisfaction At Selected Private Universities In Bangladesh, Mubina Khondkar, Abureza M. Muzareba

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Satisfying students in higher education has proven to be a difficult task, although universities are striving to meet student needs and expectations. Private universities are trying to become more student-oriented and are seeking to understand students’ perceptions of higher education facilities. This research was designed to measure the gap between students’ expectations and perceptions of various aspects of private universities in Bangladesh. It uses a SERVQUAL framework and the Gaps Model of Service Quality. The population of students at private universities in Bangladesh is represented by a sample of 412 respondents from five top-tier private universities. Findings indicate that the …

A Phenomenological Study: Experiences Of The Church Of God In Christ Women And The Power Of Resilience, Debra Wylene Martin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study explored the perceived experiences of Black women in the Church of God In Christ (COGIC), who hold senior leadership missionary roles, and the power of resilience they appear to possess. Previous studies (Starr-Parker, 2012) regarding women in the COGIC discuss barriers for women in leadership; however, there is a gap in the literature that explores the perceived tenacity of women who hold senior leadership missionary roles. The researcher did not aim to criticize the Church of God In Christ doctrine but to examine the perceived experiences of Black women in that church who hold senior leadership missionary …

A Correlational Study Of Culturally Responsive Christian School Leadership And Its Impact On Culturally Marginalized Students, Denecia B. Anderson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2022), the Private School Universe Survey (PSS) was given and disclosed that 4.7 million students were served in private elementary and secondary schools in the fall of 2019. Approximately twenty-five percent of private schools in the United States of America are considered conservative Christian schools (National Center for Education Statistics, 2022). Within the conservative Christian schools, 0.7% of the students were American Indian, 5.3% were Asian, 68.6% were white, 11.2% were Black, 9.2% were Hispanic, 0.8% were Pacific Islander, and 4.3% were two or more races. Diversity in conservative Christian schools is …

Weathering The Storm: A Phenomonological Study Of K-12 Special Educator Resilience And Retention, Kimberly M. Wisinski

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to interpret the lived experiences of K-12 special education teachers (N = 16) from large, suburban districts in Illinois who have persisted in their positions beyond four years. Understanding factors that contribute to the longevity of special education teachers is not only vital for enhancing the educational landscape for students with disabilities but also for informing district-level strategies aimed at fostering teacher retention. This study was guided by Bronfenbrenner's Process-Person-Context-Time (PPCT) bioecological systems theory, which provided a framework for exploring the various systems that influence special education teacher retention. To achieve triangulation …

Christian Graduates' Lived Experiences With Professional Moral Courage: A Transcendental Phenomenology, Jeffrey W. Moreira

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of demonstrating moral courage in the workplace when confronted with an ethical dilemma for post-graduate students of Christian-based educational institutions on the East Coast. The moral foundations theory by Haidt and Craig guided this study to find the innate responses that frame these graduates' lived experiences to understand better external influences, intrapersonal conflict, and rationale for the willingness to demonstrate moral courage when confronted with a moral dilemma. A sample of 10 graduates from Christian-based institutions completed the Moral Foundations Questionnaire, participated in one-to-one interviews, and attended …

The Relationship Between Administrators' Use Of Shared Leadership Practices And Teacher Efficacy During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Cheryl Turner Cavanaugh

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Shared leadership is a valuable phenomenon in education that has been studied for the past 100 years. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between Christian school administrators’ shared leadership practices and teacher efficacy during the COVID-19 pandemic. The researcher had a unique opportunity to study shared leadership in Christian schools during a world-wide crisis. The participants were chosen from a convenience sample of high school teachers and administrators employed at Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) member schools in the southeast region of the United States (Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia) …

Pressured To Conform: The Qualitative Paradigm In Counselor Education And Supervision, Bridger Dale Falkenstien

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Using Charmaz’s (2014) grounded theory (GT) and Clarke’s (2003; 2005; Clarke et al., 2018) situational analysis (SA), this study explores the experience of counselor educators and their pressure to conform throughout their professional identity development process. As counselor educators, these individuals are thought and practice leaders in the field of professional counseling, training up future counselors and advancing the field in scholarship and advocacy as a social science (Aubrey, 1980; Hansen et al., 2014). As a social science, the integrity and investigative power of counseling are tethered to empirical discovery through quantitative and qualitative methods and philosophy – while inherently …

Leadership And Teacher Agency For Inclusive Classrooms: Insights About Integrating Students With Disabilities Into Inclusive Classrooms From Teachers And School Leaders In Three International Schools, Chad Wood

Dissertations

As international schools continue to flourish, they must consider how to be inclusive and meet the needs not only of multicultural populations of students, but also the needs of students with diagnosed learning difficulties (i.e., students with special needs). Promoting teacher agency is a potentially important component in successfully implementing inclusive practices given that teachers are key actors in the implementation process. Currently, however, there is limited empirical evidence regarding the interconnectedness of teacher agency and inclusion of special needs populations in international schools.

This qualitative research explores the role of school leaders in promoting teacher agency to support the …

The Cultural Dimension Of Structural School Reforms: The Case Of Schedule Changes, Maylen Sullivan

Dissertations

The four-by-four (4x4) schedule—a type of high school block schedule—presents promising prospects for improving teaching and learning. Using a qualitative, single case study methodology, I investigated a school transitioning from a traditional six-period schedule to a 4x4 schedule during its 2nd and 3rd year of implementation. The study aimed to understand the factors that influenced the transition, the stakeholders’ responses to the decision, and the factors that influenced their responses. Some of the main considerations that motivated the decision included the desire to provide more opportunities within the school day for students to meet A/G college eligibility requirements, allow students …

Black School Leader Truth: How Black School Leader Epistemology Influences Liberatory Mindset Development In Their Staff, Orpheus Williams

Dissertations

Black students in the United States have consistently been denied access to empowering, culturally affirming, and responsive learning experiences in the traditional public system. The epistemological and pedagogical beliefs embedded in a liberatory mindset can subvert this pattern of disempowerment (Shujaa, 1998). Black school leaders (BSLs) who understand the systemic and institutional pressures Black children may face and have to overcome, having undergone similarly racialized experiences in school, are uniquely placed to create liberatory spaces for Black students by recruiting and developing these liberatory mindsets in their staff. This instrumental case study used qualitative research methods of front-porch pedagogy (McTighe …

Borderland Voices: Exploring The Educational Journey Of Transfronterizx Students, Families, And Educators For Enhanced Engagement And Empowerment, Sobeida Velazquez

Dissertations

Transfronterizx students and their families cross the U.S.–Mexico border for academic, economic, social, cultural, and linguistic reasons. Socioeconomic disparities, deportation, and work have propelled some families to live in Mexico and enroll their U.S.-born children in U.S. schools to provide more socioeconomic opportunities in the United States. Educators of transfronterizx students are uniquely tasked to work with these nontraditional students. Moreover, transfronterizx students and their families have distinct needs in U.S. schools; as such, there is a need for further research on the transfronterizx experience in the U.S. K–12 system. This qualitative narrative inquiry study aimed to understand the experiences …

Black Genius: An Achievement Distortion, Brenda Burgo

Dissertations

Is the achievement gap real? Using a mixed-methods approach, this study reframed standardized testing through a Quantitative Critical and Black Critical lens. It interrogated the deficit framing of Black student achievement by asking the following questions: (1) To what extent do the aggregated standardized test scores for Black students in California correlate with other measures of achievement? Included in this analysis are: (a) To what degree does the ratio of Black students relate to the achievement variables? and (b) To what extent did COVID impact this correlation? (2) What beliefs do Black educators have regarding the standardized test scores of …

Ripple Of Hope: Understanding The Lived Experience And Academic Achievement Of Latinx Students At Arrupe College And Dougherty Family College: A Case Study, Richard P. Virgin

Dissertations

One of the most common and important entry points into higher education for Latinx and other underrepresented students is through community college. However, national completion rates for Latinx community college students have been trailing their white peers. This gap in academic achievement has prevailed since the 1990s. The trailing rates of degree completion for Latinx students can lead to lower lifetime salary earnings, lack of career advancement, greater risk of losing employment, and an increased chance of living in poverty. However, a successful community college model may be seen as a disruptor in the educational sector due to its much …