Educational Leadership Commons^™

Developing Lockdown Policies, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Hardly a week passes without reading or hearing about a school being locked down because of concerns for the safety of students, teachers, and staff. The increasing number of events that prompt lockdowns presents a sad commentary about today’s world. Aware of the very real possibility of threats of violence on campus, district leaders must ensure that they have current policies that cover the safety and risk management issues associated with imposed lockdowns.

Preferred Mentoring Characteristics And Doctoral Students’ Research Self-Efficacy, Ashley Johnston

Dissertations

Mentoring relationships, even though essential to all aspects of one’s life, are an important part of the educational experience. Levinson (1978) found that it was the most important relationship one could have and vital to those in the early adulthood stage of development. Furthermore, graduate students seek to become better researchers; therefore, research skill development is essential to the graduate school experience. The ability to develop these skills can aid in the ability to identify oneself as a researcher. Using Levinson’s adult development theory and Markus and Nurius’ possible selves theory as the theoretical framework, the goal of this study …

Raising Student Achievement Through Programmatic Initiatives And Instructional Improvement, Philip S. Georgia

Dissertations

This dissertation consists of a program evaluation, a change leadership plan, and a policy advocacy proposal.

The program evaluation studies the impact of initiatives implemented at an elementary school near a large city in Illinois using a case study methodology. The school was required to restructure during the 2013-2014 school year as a result of the performance mandates outlined in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. To compare the post-restructuring status of the school with the pre-restructuring status, student growth data for multiple grade levels and for each federal subgroup was collected. In addition, the staff’s perceptions about …

Equity And Excellence: The Story Of Lake Shore Community High School's Quest For Racial Justice In Education, Marcus Campbell

Dissertations

Institutional racism is integral to U.S. social structure, including the public schools. Instituting a limited high school detracking program as a strategy to deal with racial achievement disparities faced strong community resistance. Leadership and a perfect storm of social and political factors made successful implementation of a detracking initiative possible. School community leaders and staff were interviewed about their experiences of systemic change to further access for students of color to honors classes. Results suggest some leadership qualities and characteristics that facilitated the change; the external factors that contributed to the successful change for racial equity are also detailed.

Trust Within Higher Education Consortia: A Phenomenological Study Of The Experiences Of Directors And Leaders, James A. Yankech

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Trust is a foundational element for success within a higher education consortium. Defined as a group of colleges and universities united through collective effort, a consortium allows member institutions to achieve more cooperatively than alone. However these same institutions still compete in many ways – for students, government appropriations, and research dollars as examples. Therefore a balance must be struck between institutional and consortium interests. As a result trust between and among member institutions of a consortium becomes an important phenomenon to be understood. This study examined the phenomenon of trust from the perspective of consortia directors and leaders. Two …

Exploring Teachers’ Perspectives Of Cooperative Learning To Create Music In Orff Schulwerk Classrooms, Nicole A. Chapman

Glenn Korff School of Music: Dissertations, Theses, Student Creative Work, and Performances

The Framework for 21st Century Learning identifies four learning and innovation skills to prepare students for a changing world. The 4Cs identified are critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity (Framework for 21st Century Learning, 2015). With the adoption of this new teaching framework, it is important that music educators evaluate their own teaching methods to meet the needs of their students in a changing society. The purpose of this study was to examine how cooperative group learning is currently integrated in the Orff-Schulwerk certified teachers’ elementary music classroom as part of the creative music process. In this qualitative study, I …

Evidence-~Based Practices: An Exploratory Study Concerning School District Professional Development Considerations, Pamela Marie Juniel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The identification and implementation of evidence-based practices by special education and general education teachers continues to be an issue in the field of education (Cook & Cook, 2011; Cook, Tankersley, Cook, & Landrum, 2008). Since the mandates of providing students with disabilities access to the general education curricula (IDEA, 2004) with services based on empirical research (NCLB, 2001) are required, teachers are implored to improve their teaching skills (Cook et al., 2008). Recently, the field of education has made efforts to support teachers in the identification and use of evidence-based practices by establishing a system and process for identifying evidence-based …

Examining Inequities In Teacher Pension Benefits, James V. Shuls

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

From funding to teacher quality, inequities exist between school districts. This paper adds to the literature on inequities by examining the impact of pension plan formulas on pension benefits. Using data from the salary schedules of 464 Missouri school districts, this paper analyzes how various final average salary calculations would impact the benefits of teachers in different districts. All of the schools in this analysis belong to Missouri’s Public Employee Retirement System, which is a defined-benefit pension plan. A teacher’s benefit in this plan is based on her years of experience and her final average salary. The system uses a …

Instrumental Music Participation And The Differences In Academic Performances For Students In Poverty, Shawn A. Oban

Theses and Dissertations

Because of the emphasis on No Child Left Behind and high stakes testing, school districts and administrators have been limiting or eliminating fine arts courses from an already shrinking curriculum, focusing on the subjects being tested. Students living in poverty are often entering formal schooling behind academically.

The researcher examined longitudinal test data from 2010-2015 from middle school aged students in a large Midwest school district. The researcher focused on test scores from the sixth grade when instrumental music was offered, examined test data from tenth grade, and studied academic growth. All student scores were included, but the independent variables …

Teacher Reaction To Change In The Lutheran Elementary School: A Grounded Theory Approach, Kim D. Marxhausen

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Schools, and the teachers and administrators who work in them, need the flexibility to adapt to current student needs. Past research has focused on organizations and plans for change; little research has been done on individual teacher reaction to change situations leaving a gap in the literature. The goal of this constructivist grounded theory study was to explore how individual teachers, in LCMS Lutheran elementary schools, react when presented with change. Data were collected through interviews involving an event history calendar to facilitate memory. A theoretical sampling process was used to collect and analyze data utilizing a constant comparative method. …

Middle-Income Latinos In Middle-Class Communities: A Study On Parental Involvement Dynamics, Rafael Inoa

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The academic underperformance of students of Latino backgrounds is a serious cause for concern in the United States, especially considering the significant portion of the total U.S. population that Latinos constitute. Since parental involvement is known as a powerful resource in helping all students succeed academically, it can be used as a way to counter the achievement gap that Latinos are currently facing. However, middle-class Latinos, who are also plagued by this gap in academic achievement, are continuously overlooked throughout the educational literature. The current study lays focus on this group by centering on the perspectives of middle-income Latino parents …

The Effects Of Bullying On The Lives Of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, And Transgendered Students Who Attended High School In Shelby County, Tennessee., Sherry Waterman Chatman

Student Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of bullying on the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students age 18 to 25 who attended high schools in Shelby County, Tennessee. A qualitative research method was utilized to examine and determine the perception of fifty-three lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered youth homophobic experiences while attending high school. The study obtained the perceptions of LGBT youth based on the following questions: (1) What do LGBT youth believe are the reasons for homophobic bullying?, (2) How do acts of homophobic bullying affect, mentally and emotionally, the lives of those involved?, (3) And what …

African American Women In Higher Education: Issues And Support Strategies, Cynthia C. Bartman

College Student Affairs Leadership

In recent years, the college graduation rates of African American women, a historically marginalized group, have increased. However, their graduation rates continue to lag behind those of White women, among other racial/ethnic groups. This paper reviews the related literature and identifies four major issues impacting the college graduation rates of African American women. Additionally, intervention strategies are suggested.

Insights Into Academic Librarian Leadership Using The Bolman And Deal Leadership Orientation Framework, Colleen T. Boff

University Libraries Faculty Publications

Are librarians prepared to lead academic libraries into the increasingly complex future of higher education? Results will be shared from a survey using the Bolman and Deal leadership orientation framework (1990, 1991, 1992, 2003) to explore how academic library leaders and managers in Ohio and Michigan prefer to interpret and solve problems. Consisting of four frames, librarians can view situations through a structural lens (involving policies, rules and organizational charts), a human resources lens (tending to the needs of employees), the political lens (competing for power and scarce resources) or the symbolic lens (storytelling, traditions and symbols). Research conducted in …

Intended Learning Outcomes And The Community College Curricula, Marla Slayden Bennett

Student Theses and Dissertations

For this qualitative study, community college faculty who have completed training with Stiehl and Lewchuk (2005; 2008a; 2008b) or have been influenced by their works or methods, and who are currently using or have recently used Intended Learning Outcomes as part of their course curricula were interviewed. The purpose of this study was to provide a forum whereby community college faculty may voice their perceptions regarding the successes and challenges of using Intended Learning Outcomes as part of their curricula. A survey of related literature provided historical relevance to student-centered curriculum development, specifically the need for students to learn “real-life” …

2015-11-19 Faculty Senate Newsletter, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

Faculty Senate Newsletter for November 19, 2015.

2015-11-19 Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes for November 19, 2015.

2015-11-19 General Education Council Meeting Minutes, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate., General Education Council.

Faculty Senate Records

General Education Council meeting minutes from November 19, 2015.

How The Hispanic Perception Of Brigham Young University Affects Its Multicultural Student Body, Jorge Encinas, Clifford Mayes

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to investigate potential for the small amount of Hispanic students that attend BYU. I noticed this when I noticed that the percentage of the student body that is of Hispanic has been lower lately. Meanwhile similar educational institutions in Utah have had an increasing percent of their student body be from Hispanic consent. Dr. Mayes and I believed that the perception that Hispanic students have of BYU might be a primary reason for why Hispanic students are not attend BYU.

Deaf Children’S Science Content Learning In Direct Instruction Versus Interpreted Instruction, Kim B. Kurz, Brenda Schick, Peter C. Hauser

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

This research study compared learning of 6-9th grade deaf students under two modes of educational delivery – interpreted vs. direct instruction using science lessons. Nineteen deaf students participated in the study in which they were taught six science lessons in American Sign Language. In one condition, the lessons were taught by a hearing teacher in English and were translated in ASL via a professional and certified interpreter. In the second condition, the lessons were taught to the students in ASL by a deaf teacher. All students saw three lessons delivered via an interpreter and three different lessons in direct ASL; …