Pre-Elementary, Early Childhood, Kindergarten Teacher Education Commons^™

Early Childhood Educators' Perception Of Burnout: Impact On Educator Self-Efficacy, Teacher-Child Relationships, And Children's Emotional Regulation, Isaac M.D. Bowman

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

Early childhood educators (ECE) play a critical role in the academic advancement and nurturing care provided to children in their care, a distinct difference in role and responsibilities compared to traditional K-12 schooling. Published by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, a report pertaining to ECE turnover revealed a nearly 40% annual turnover rate. Factors ECEs previously attributed to their exit of the early childhood education field involve low wage, low self-efficacy, and dealing with challenging behaviors. While not an exhaustive list, in a field relying predominantly on routine and consistency, ECE turnover rate highlights a necessity in exploring potential indirect …

Educator Perceptions Of Mindfulness Education In Rural Elementary Schools In Tennessee, Mary C. Shepherd-Mcgown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine educator perceptions of mindfulness instruction and the alignment of school policies in rural elementary schools in Tennessee. Despite growing interest in mindfulness in education, few studies have investigated how these practices are experienced and implemented within under-resourced, rural contexts.

Guided by Bandura’s Social Learning Theory (SLT) and framed conceptually by the Whole-School Mindfulness (WSM) model, the study explored how social, organizational, and policy factors influence the adoption of mindfulness practices. SLT provided a theoretical lens for understanding how educator behaviors are shaped through observation, modeling, and reinforcement, while the WSM framework …

Behavioral Manifestations Of Childhood Abandonment: African-American Men's Reflections And Strategies To Support Teenage Boys In K-12 Education, Jarmel Bell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the behavioral manifestations of childhood abandonment as reflected in the lived experiences of African-American men and to identify strategies that may support African-American boys in K–12 educational settings. Although there has been limited documentation regarding the direct connection between childhood abandonment and behavioral challenges in school environments, this study seeks to address that gap by capturing the reflections of African-American men who experienced abandonment during their formative years. These reflections provide insight into how abandonment may shape behavior in educational spaces and what types of interventions or supports might have made a …

Saudi Early Childhood Teacher Educators’ And Preservice Teachers’ Perspectives Of Early Field Experiences, Amani M. Alodwani

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative descriptive study explores how teacher educators perceive the integration of field experiences within the curriculum and their perspectives on the preservice early childhood education (ECE) teachers they supervise. It also examines preservice teachers’ views regarding their field experiences and how these experiences contribute to their professional preparation. The Ministry of Education (MOE) emphasizes that teacher preparation programs should provide extended field experiences that connect theoretical coursework with practical application. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three Saudi teacher educators and four preservice teachers from Kingdom University. Thematic analysis using inductive coding was employed to identify recurring themes and differences …

Exploring Teachers’ Perspectives On Digital Storytelling As A Tool In Saudi Kindergarten Classrooms: A Qualitative Multicase Study, Ouhuud Alahmdi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 emphasizes the importance of integrating digital technologies into early childhood education, with the goal of developing children’s skills for the 21st century from an early age and preparing them for the future. Digital storytelling is an effective and interactive multimodal strategy to enhance young children’s skills in the classroom. However, there is limited research examining how kindergarten teachers design and utilize digital storytelling in their classrooms. This qualitative multicase study aimed to explore how Saudi kindergarten teachers perceived and implemented digital storytelling as a tool to promote engagement and comprehension among young children. The study focused …

Developing A Classroom To Support Culturally Responsive Teaching: A Culturally Responsive Aspiring Teacher Assignment, Steven K. Sharp, David L. Conrad

Journal of Applied Disciplines

Following the development of the [State] Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards (CRTL), one University teacher preparation program created an assignment to challenge aspiring educators to think critically about culturally responsive teaching. With structural challenges such as tracking and culturally biased standardized testing, the program needed to evaluate how aspiring teachers would address those challenges while delivering a diverse curriculum, connecting with home and families, and valuing different linguistic backgrounds. Within a course on cross-cultural education, we developed a four-part assignment aligned with the course textbook by Nieto and Bode (2018). First, candidates created a reasonably diverse classroom to simulate …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Exploring The Experiences Of Three Saudi Mothers Returning To Saudi With Their Bilingual Children, Fatimah H. Almuthibi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative interview study explored the experiences of three Saudi mothers who returned to Saudi Arabia with their bilingual children after living with their children in English-speaking countries for educational and academic purposes. Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Theory is the theory that served as the guiding framework for the study, shaping the direction of the study and informing both the analysis and discussion of the data. The purpose of the study was to gain a deeper understanding of this unique phenomenon and to address a gap in the existing literature since there are very few studies that focus on the post-return experience …

English, Lamia Saad Alnomei

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

It is crucial to integrate technologies into childhood education and teaching digital citizenship, but there are certain barriers to this integration in Saudi Arabia. Elicitation interviews were conducted in the context of this study with six participants, including kindergarten teachers and school leaders. They showed different levels of understanding the concept of digital literacy and citizenship and various levels of valuing technologies as tools for education. For instance, some expressed the need for more awareness and training, and other exhibited a deep understanding of digital citizenship. The study used Rogoff’s sociocultural theory, explored the influence of culture and parents on …

Rethinking Civic Education. A Review Of Education For Liberal Democracy: Using Classroom Discussion To Build Knowledge And Voice, Jordan Garner, Colton Morton, Palak Shah

Democracy & Education

In his book Education for Liberal Democracy: Using Classroom Discussion to Build Knowledge and Voice, Walter Parker (2023) takes a centrist approach to redesigning civic education. Throughout the book, Parker provides valuable strategies teachers can implement into the K–12 social studies classroom to teach for democracy. While we believe Parker's instructional strategies lay the groundwork for reshaping civic education, we contend that the book does not adequately address issues of inequality and inequity. We would also challenge Parker to think about how teachers can educate for democracy outside of the social studies curriculum in the United States and globally. …

Developing Civic Competence With Educative Curriculum Materials Featuring A Historical Photograph Of Antarctica, Cory Callahan

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Here the author advocates for an innovative teaching approach synthesizing three research-based, instructional strategies: promoting civic competence within international and global contexts, planning with educative curriculum materials, and exploring historical photographs for higher-order thinking. He traces the crafting of an exemplary lesson through this approach and discusses its underpinning rationale. The lesson helps students and teachers think deeply about land claims and resource disputes in Antarctica while addressing a persistent value conflict throughout history: balancing national sovereignty and international law. A teacher-friendly narrative constitutes the lesson plan; however, it is not teacher-proof, as teachers are encouraged to make instructional decisions …

Whose Histories Will A Genai Tool Generate? Prompting Chatgpt-4 For Diverse History Lesson Plans For The Cold War Space Race, Robert W. Maloy, Sai Gattupalli, Torrey Trust

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

This paper explores strategies for teachers to use in prompting ChatGPT-4 to develop diverse history lesson plans for the Cold War Space Race. Prior research showed that when given a single, broadly phrased “design a lesson plan” prompt, chatbots are less likely to generate material about experiences of African Americans, women, and other historically marginalized groups. We tried two alternative prompting strategies: a) Change the wording of the prompt to incorporate James Banks’ Levels of Multicultural Content Model, and b) Change the source of the content for the prompt by using teacher-curated materials from an open online wikispace, resourcesforhistoryteachers that …

Red: A Crayon’S Story Bibliotherapy, David Wolff

OER Materials

The goal of this assignment was for preservice teachers to practice writing a chain of questions that focused on the social and/or emotional needs of young learners. Bibliotherapy is therapeutic in nature to help individuals understand themselves and the world around them through guided reading experiences (American Library Association, 2025; Delisle & Galbraith, 2002). Further, bibliotherapy allow individuals to identify a personal problem mirrored by a character in a book. As the reader connects with the character, the reader experiences the emotions expressed by the character. Finally, the reader applies the character’s experience to their own personal problem (American Library …

Reimagining Civic Education In The United States: Integrating Research, Policy, And Practice For Democratic Renewal, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

Civic education in the United States faces persistent challenges, including inequitable access, curricular fragmentation, and reluctance to address controversial social and political issues. This paper presents a comprehensive synthesis of research, policy analysis, and practice-based case studies to reimagine civic education for the 21st century. Drawing on core scholarship supplemented with additional peer-reviewed studies on school segregation, charter school demographics, and race-conscious student assignment policies, the study examines the historical evolution of civic education, structural inequities, political avoidance, and promising innovations. Using a qualitative synthesis approach, the findings highlight five thematic areas: structural inequities, curricular misalignment, sanitized narratives, limits of …

Increasing Play Opportunities To Improve Development And Health For Children, Kallie S. Ellis, Wendy Tremaine, Emily Bush

Fall 2025 OTD Capstone Symposium

Children with disabilities often experience reduced opportunities for meaningful peer play, which can negatively influence their physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development. Early childhood environments play a critical role in supporting inclusive participation, yet many barriers—physical, social, and environmental—limit access to developmentally rich play throughout the school day. The purpose of this capstone project was to develop, implement, and evaluate a Tier-1, school-based program designed to increase meaningful play opportunities for preschool children ages 3–6, with and without disabilities.

A needs assessment was conducted with teachers and parents to identify developmental concerns and participation barriers related to fine motor, gross motor, …

Do Our “Window And Mirror” Books Leave Shards Of Broken Glass?, Brianne R. Pitts, Jill Hermann-Wilmarth

Michigan Reading Journal

In this article the authors apply Bishop’s (1990) windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors as an analytical framework that, along with critical literacy practices, can be used to enhance the social studies and literacy instruction. The stories we share in elementary classrooms teach students about their future possibilities. As teacher educators, we wondered about our students and our complacency with powerful ideas from foundational scholars in literacy and education. Using Bishop’s (1990) metaphor as an analytic tool, students’ critical disciplinary literacy projects are assessed for future instructional goals, leaving readers with eight practical tools for classroom instruction and critical assessment …

Copyright Information

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Publication rights to works is granted to Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities, however, full copyright for works published in this journal is retained by the author(s). The author(s) may post their works online in an institutional repository, on their University departmental website, or on their own personal websites.

Teacher Perceptions Of Instructional Coaching Impacts On Instructional Practice And Student Learning, Alpaslan Ozdogan

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This exploratory study investigates the role of instructional coaching in elementary education through the lens of teacher perceptions, with a focus on its influence on professional development, instructional methodology, educator well-being, and student academic achievement. The research pivots around four key questions examining the perceived impact of instructional coaches on:

1. Teachers' professional growth within elementary educational settings.
2. The evolution of instructional strategies and classroom practices.
3. The emotional and mental well-being of educators.
4. The academic performance and learning outcomes of students.

A narrative research approach was adopted, collecting and analyzing data through elementary teacher surveys, in-depth interviews with both teachers and …

Navigating Early Intervention: The Experiences And Impact Of A Parent Coaching Model On Immigrant And Refugee Families In Rural Massachusetts, Emily Pleasant

Capstone Collection

Early Intervention (EI) programs play a critical role in supporting the developmental needs of children from birth to age three. This study explores the experiences of immigrant and refugee families engaging with EI services in rural Massachusetts, focusing particularly on the implementation and effectiveness of parent coaching models. Utilizing a mixed methods design that incorporates both narrative and phenomenological approaches, the research examines how families from culturally diverse backgrounds perceive and engage with EI services. This study discusses what barriers or facilitators they encounter throughout their journeys with Early Intervention. Preliminary findings suggest challenges related to language, cultural differences in …

Empowering General Educators: Supporting Students With Learning Disabilities Through Inclusive Tier Two Practices, Megan Sparling

Masters Projects

Many general education teachers enter the profession with minimal training in how to effectively support students with learning disabilities, particularly those who require Tier Two interventions but do not qualify for special education services. This lack of preparation contributes to reduced instructional confidence, inconsistent intervention practices, and missed opportunities to support struggling learners. Grounded in Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy, this capstone project addresses the urgent need for ongoing, practical professional development tailored to the realities of inclusive classrooms. The literature highlights the importance of sustained, collaborative, and contextually embedded …