Other Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Investigating The Role Of School Leaders’ Feedback In Texas Noncertified Teachers’ Professional Growth And Self-Efficacy, Sonja R. Long

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem addressed in this study was that the role of school leaders’ feedback in noncertified teachers’ professional growth and self-efficacy is unknown. The purpose of this case study was to investigate the perspectives of noncertified teachers’ understanding of their school leaders’ feedback and how those practices contributed to their professional growth and self-efficacy. A qualitative case study approach was used, with data collected from 12 participants across six Texas school districts through semistructured interviews, questionnaires, and classroom observation documents. Data were transcribed, coded, and analyzed thematically, with triangulation and member-checking ensuring credibility. Two key findings emerged. First, supporting professional …

How Novice Arkansas Teacher Corps Teachers In The Arkansas Delta Stabilize In Their Profession: A Dissertation, Nicholas G. Patterson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Foundational research exists on the teacher life cycle, novice teacher struggles, and the role of burnout on public sector employees, including teachers (Huberman, 1989; Veenman, 1984; Maslach & Jackson, 1981). However, less research explores teachers' perceptions about what allows them to move through the profession’s life cycle and past initial struggles and avoid burnout. There is a significant gap in the literature about why some teachers persist while others leave the profession at alarming rates (U.S. Department of Education, 2007; Alliance for Excellent Education, 2005). Seven phases exist in a teacher’s life cycle: survival/discovery, stabilization, experimentation/activism, reassessment/self-doubts, serenity, conservatism, and …

Exploring Education Policy And Resources In Virginia Secondary Education, Gabrielle Lyon

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

The study examines the intersection of federal special education policy within Virginia's secondary schools, specifically focusing on teachers’ compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The study explores educators' awareness and usage of the Virginia Department of Education's hearing decisions index, which documents IDEA violations and due process decisions. Through analyzing federal education legislation, state implementation practices, and teacher perspectives, this study reveals critical gaps in educator preparation and resource awareness regarding special education policy compliance. The findings suggest that while the IDEA violations are being tracked and documented, there remains a significant disconnect between available resources and …

What Factors Impact Teachers’ Beliefs About The Likelihood To Which Their Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities Can Live On Campus, Jonathan Lidgus

Dissertations

After the Higher Education Opportunity Act was passed in 2008, inclusive postsecondary programs for students with intellectual disability (ID) have grown on campuses across the United States. These programs were designed to eliminate barriers that prevent students with intellectual disability from attending college in order to achieve positive employment outcomes and skills to increase independent living. While programs may be designed for those with intellectual disability, individuals may have multiple diagnoses, including intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The relationship between a student and their secondary teachers can positively impact their future or present a barrier. Using the data from the …

Empowering Mississippi Schools: Training Staff And Students For Effective Integration Of Service Animals In K-6 Education., Micah C. Brouillette

Honors Theses

The purpose of this capstone is to explore the role of service animals in schools and to develop foundational training modules for educators and school staff. The presence of service animals in educational settings is a growing reality, yet many schools lack clear policies and staff training on how to effectively integrate them. This capstone reviews the legal protections surrounding service animals, including federal laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as well as Mississippi-specific regulations. It examines the benefits of service animals for students with disabilities, including their impact …

Building Anti-Racist Teacher Education, Kel Nemetz

Masters Projects

Preschool through twelfth grade education in the United States is ever evolving and has always been influenced by socio-political context. Throughout history, the goals, methods, and values of public education have shifted depending on political ideologies and influence. This thesis acknowledges the major significance and impact decisions like these can make on our students in PK-12 schools and on the educators who teach them, while centering the importance of anti-racism as a foundational goal. Despite the anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion political campaign lead by Trump’s second administration to try to dismantle all DEI efforts in PK-12 schools and beyond, this …

Supporting Elementary Educators Through A Nervous System Regulation And Social-Emotional Learning Skills Workshop Intervention: An Musc Capstone Project, Lily Morgan

Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctorate - Doctoral Capstone Symposium

Teachers have a great influence on developing children’s emotional intelligence, regulatory capacity, and occupational engagement. These professionals also happen to report some of the highest rates of stress, mental health challenges (Agyapong, B. et al, 2022), and burnout (Xie, M., et al, 2022). Providing teachers with education and support on nervous system regulation, social-emotional learning skills, and related topics can improve their ability to manage job stress, enhance modeling and interactions with students, and improve their quality of life. This project aimed to enhance knowledge, provide access to resources, and serve to support elementary educators at an inner-city school in …

Relational Spiritual Knowing As An Educator Of Color: Navigating Predominantly White Educational Settings, Alicia L. Moore

The Journal of Faith, Education, and Community

Abstract: This article explores the critical role of Relational Spiritual Knowing (RSK) as both a source of strength and a form of activism for African American educators navigating Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs). Through personal reflections and scholarly correlations, it examines how RSK empowers educators to assert their voices and identities in environments that have historically marginalized them. The integration of RSK into educational practices is presented as essential for creating more inclusive, equitable, and spiritually enriched academic spaces. The article also highlights the systemic challenges faced by African American educators, such as power dynamics, microaggressions, and tokenism, and how RSK …

“When Black Women Whisper”: An Exploration Of Why Black Women Stay In K-12 Education, Chelsea Lynne Murry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract

From low retention rates to race and gender biases to being overworked and undervalued in the classroom, Black women leave education at higher rates than any other demographic. This study highlighted the experiences of Black women in K-12 education settings, the role of support systems in their retention and advancement, and why they stay in K-12 education. The study used Counter-storytelling in Critical Race Theory, Black Feminist Thought, and Womanism to examine the race and gender inequities that Black women face and to highlight their lived experiences. Through the use of Sista Circles/focus groups and one-on-one interviews, the research …

Institutionalizing Normality: Disability, Productivity, And Higher Education, Ashley Dirzis

Student Theses

This thesis examines how capitalism and neuronormative domination shape the structures and values of academic institutions, affecting faculty, students, and research subjects alike. By privileging productivity, conformity, and efficiency in the pursuit of income, universities often marginalize those who diverge from normative standards of thinking, behavior, and embodiment, particularly disabled individuals. Drawing on Marta Russell’s Disability and Capitalism and the shaping of disability by capitalist systems, Robert Chapman’s notion of the "Empire of Normality" and Jay Dolmage’s concept of the retrofit from Academic Ableism, this paper analyzes how academia reinforces ableist norms. It explores the realities and barriers that …

The Effect Of An Immersive Inclusive Experience On Preservice Music Educators’ Perspectives About Inclusive Education, Emily M. Chapman

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

This mixed methods study explored the effects of an immersive and inclusive choir experience on music education students' attitudes and self-efficacy regarding inclusive education practices. The participants, 35 junior- and senior-level music education majors from a large Midwestern public university, were divided into two groups: 18 seniors enrolled in a required “Music and Special Education” course and 17 juniors who were enrolled in the semester immediately preceding this required course. Participants’ beliefs, feelings, and teaching intentions were collected using a modified version of the Multidimensional Attitudes toward Inclusive Education Scale (MATIES) Mahat (2008). Following the immersive experience, preservice educators reflected …

Constructivism Made Easy Using The Consider, Construct, Confirm Learning Cycle, Timothy E. Goodwin Ed.D

Essays in Education

Shifting from didactic, teacher-led instruction to a student-centered, constructivist classroom is often a daunting task for teachers. The Consider, Construct, Confirm Learning cycle is a framework for teachers to organize their planning—be it individual lessons, units of study, or whole courses. The CCC Learning Cycle framework shifts the format of a typical lesson from didactic instruction leading to short-term renting of knowledge through memorization, to student-centered, lived experiences resulting in students owning their new knowledge.

The Impact Of Educators’ Perceptions Of Neurodivegence On Their Self-Efficacy In Teaching Middle And High School Students With Adhd And Autism In Rural Minnesota, Nicolle D. Bettcher Erickson

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to explore how we can best support our teachers in matching our ever-changing educational landscape, specifically our neurodivergent learners. When educating neurodivergent students (students with autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), we must understand how to teach these creative, sometimes misunderstood individuals and unleash their full potential. To do so, we need educational practitioners who have healthy perceptions of what it means to be neurodivergent and educators who understand both the talents and hurdles that being neurodivergent may entail. This study examined how non-special education teachers' perceptions of neurodivergence correlated with …

Discipline Analysis Of Pattimura University Graduates In Education Units In The Maluku Islands, Samuel Ritiauw, Lisye Salamor

Jurnal Civics: Media Kajian Kewarganegaraan

The condition of Maluku with geographical aspects also determines the existence of teacher resources. This research aims to determine the character of teacher discipline in education units in the archipelago. Using mixed research methods, a quantitative approach with a Likert scale and qualitative research with a phenomenological approach, the research location is in Central Maluku, West Seram and Southwest Maluku districts. The population and research sample were teachers who graduated from Pattimura University. The research sample consisted of principals in the islands, resource persons who were principals, vice principals of elementary, junior high, high school, and vocational schools, and community …

Cultivating Place-Based Few-Nexus Awareness And Environmental Justice Through Community Science Data Talks, Imogen R. Herrick, Micheal Lawson, Todd Campbell, Shondricka Burrell

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

Global challenges around food security, energy sustainability, and water scarcity demand interdisciplinary educational approaches. This project formed a network of universities collaborating with K–12 teachers to develop place-based Community Science Data Talks (CSDTs). These short, data-driven classroom activities highlight local FEW issues, emphasize environmental justice, and draw on students’ funds of knowledge and funds of feeling. Preliminary findings indicate enhanced student engagement, recognition of socioecological complexity, and constructive hope regarding community challenges. Ongoing work involves refining these modules, expanding geographical reach, and creating open-access resources for teachers. Ultimately, CSDTs foster data literacy and civic inquiry, both central to FEW-Nexus problem-solving.

Teaching Disciplinary Ways Of Knowing Using Stem In Afnr, Elizabeth E. Ogar, Neil A. Knobloch, Hui-Hui Wang

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

This study explores the integration of STEM in Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources (AFNR) education through a course designed to teach disciplinary ways of knowing such as scientific inquiry, engineering design, mathematical modeling, and agroecosystem thinking. The course prepares upper-level undergraduate and graduate students to design and implement STEM-integrated mini-units in both formal and nonformal settings. Emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches and real-world applications, the course encourages critical thinking and problem-solving in addressing global challenges like food security and sustainability. The outcomes include enhanced pedagogical skills, real-world STEM application, and increased student engagement, preparing learners for careers in STEM-related fields.

Storytelling As Research Methodology And Pedagogy: Connecting The Researcher And Practitioner Through Narrative Inquiry, David Wolff

The Interactive Journal of Global Leadership and Learning

The most effective teachers are reflective teachers. Reflective teachers are curious about their pedagogy and their impact on student learning and often seek out opportunities to formalize their reflective process and share their stories about their teaching practices. Teachers’ knowledge is founded in their stories of experience (Ciuffetelli et al., 2011). The author positions themselves as the researcher in this autoethnographic narrative inquiry, or self-study. As the researcher, they use the narrative inquiry methodology to study themselves and explore the learning process of using storytelling in their Social Studies methods course in a Teacher Education program while exploring the research …

Mitigating The Negative Effects Of Over And Early Exposure To Media With Joint Media Engagement: A Literature Review, Mary K. Littlepage

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

This paper examines the negative impact of over and early exposure to media on children’s developmental domains. Among other deleterious effects, early and over exposure to media has been associated with attention deficits, language delays, and interrupted social interactions. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) addresses these concerns with recommendations, discouraging the use of screens for children birth to eighteen months and recommends that children over two years old limit their viewing to one to two hours or less per day (AAP Council on Communications and Media, 2016). For children within the recommended viewing and age parameters, many studies have …

Teacher Decision Making In Guided-Reading, Brittany Worthen

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Guided reading provides teachers the opportunity to support students in literacy learning. When planning for and implementing this instructional approach, teachers are required to make various in-advance and in-the-moment decisions that involve responding to students’ instructional needs through adaptive teaching. Grounded in sociocultural and social constructivist theories, this study was designed to understand teacher decision-making within the context of guided reading instruction.

This research was a collective case study aimed at providing a better understanding of the various decisions teachers make when teaching in a guided reading context. Findings pertaining to in-advanced decisions that emerged from the data can be …

Power Of Partnerships, Joni Meade

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

No abstract provided.