Secondary Education and Teaching Commons^™

Fragile Strength: Math Self-Efficacy Of High Achieving Girls, Tristan Tang

Education | Master's Theses

Math gender gap research shows girls’ math self-efficacy to be correlated with their interest in pursuing higher levels of math education and STEM career opportunities. Most math gender gap studies have used only quantitative approaches, thereby missing the opportunity to gain deeper perspectives directly from girls who are steadfastly facing the math gender gap. This study centered around two small focus groups of girls attending a unique secondary school where every afternoon is fully dedicated to deep engagement with higher-level mathematics. Additionally, parents of girls at the school were surveyed to provide further insight into possible sources of their daughter’s …

Posing Purposeful Questions In A Mathematics Tutoring Setting, Sara Elaine Jones

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

One of the eight Effective Mathematics Teaching Practices published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) is the posing of purposeful questions. Many studies have been conducted that support the need, importance, and effectiveness of purposeful questioning in conceptual mathematics teaching. The purpose of this action research study was to gain insight into the successes and challenges of a tutor when implementing purposeful questions in a mathematics tutoring setting. The experiences of the tutor were analyzed through the collection of qualitative data using video and audio recordings, journal entries of the tutor, and an observational protocol. Data analysis …

Restoring The Political: Exploring The Complexities Of Agonistic Deliberation In Classrooms, John Ambrosio

Democracy & Education

This article is a response to a theoretical and philosophical examination of agonistic deliberation in classrooms, which requires accepting the legitimacy of perspectives that are outside of prevailing societal norms and the expression of political emotion. The author argues that students must develop certain dispositions to achieve productive ends in negotiations and that the role of teachers in the deliberative process must be clarified. He concludes that modifying instructional practices to include agonistic deliberation can potentially open up public spaces in classrooms for more inclusive and equitable deliberative practices.

Democratic Spaces: How Teachers Establish And Sustain Democracy And Education In Their Classrooms, Julia Collins, Michael E. Hess, Charles L. Lowery

Democracy & Education

Democratic education focuses on developing students using democratic principles and processes in the classroom. In this study, we aim to understand how self-identified democratic educators practice democratic education in public-school classrooms. Nine participants, teachers in K12 schools, were interviewed for this qualitative study. In investigating how public-school teachers implemented and sustained democratic education in their classrooms, six themes emerged—fostering relationships, empowering students, and teaching and using democratic skills, democratic educative structure, democratic teacher praxis, and obstacles.

Teacher Perceptions Of Environmental Science In Rural Northwestern New Mexico Public Schools, Marie Quiahuitl Julienne

Organization, Information and Learning Sciences ETDs

In this study, I explored what teachers perceive as the factors that impact their teaching of environmental science in rural secondary level schools in northwestern New Mexico. I adapted Bronfenbrenner’s (1994) ecological systems model, based on four environmental subsystem levels (microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem), as the conceptual framework to address the major research question of this study, and developed 18 interview questions to explore teachers’ perceptions of factors that influence their teaching of environmental science. I investigated the perspectives science teachers have about environmental science topics and the influences they perceive that affect how they teach environmental science, and …

Do Graduate Level Content Degrees Matter? An Analysis Of The Effect Of Content Area Master's Degrees On Student Achievement, Christopher Lee Nail

Theses and Dissertations from 2019

This study addresses teacher education level and the impact it has on student achievement. The purpose of this study was to examine whether there are any differences in student achievement between students taught by teachers with advanced degrees in a specific content area and those students taught by teachers with only a bachelor’s degree or those with a master’s degree outside the subject area. The study examined ninth and tenth grade ACT Aspire student achievement data collected from teachers who hold a master’s degree in a subject-related content area and teachers who do not hold a master’s degree in a …

How Successful High School Boys Soccer Coaches Perceive And Develop Cultural Competency: A Grounded Theory Approach, Lauren Jefferson

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The purpose of this study was to examine how high school athletics coaches conceptualize the knowledge, values, and skills of cultural competence, with specific attention to learning processes and influences. In order to serve the increasingly diverse U.S. student population equitably and to the full holistic potential of extracurricular programming, high school coaches must develop a greater comfort with and capacity for exercising cultural competency. A qualitative approach using a grounded theory was applied. Seven coaches and one athletic director were recruited by purposive sampling. The research suggests a process-oriented, chronological model of how experienced coaches begin to work with …

Public School Teacher's Experience Of Technostress In A Mandatory Technology Adoption Policy Environment, Brandon Liu

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

With new technology restructuring instructional practices, many school systems are working towards adoption and integration to meet learning standards and demands (Çoklar, Efilti, Şahin, & Akçay, 2016; Al-Fudail & Mellar, 2008; Hixon & Buckenmeyer, 2009; McCannon & Crews, 2000; Nepo 2017; Straub, 2009; Sang, Valcke, van Braak & Tondeur, 2010; Wood, Mirza, & Shaw, 2018). However, few studies have been conducted within educational environments on technology-related stress and well-being when technology adoption is mandatory. Building off of Jena’s (2015) prior technostress study, this study aims to contribute to and better understand technostress within a Mandatory Adoption Policy Environment (MAPE). This …

Problems Faced By Secondary Technology Education Novice And Veteran Teachers, Sally E. Arnett-Hartwick, John Cannon

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

The purpose of this study was to examine the challenges faced by secondary technology education (TE) teachers in Illinois. Specifically, the study sought to identify and categorize a list of challenges encountered during their first years in the TE profession as well as challenges that veteran TE teachers are facing in their current teaching assignment. Seventy-three TE teachers completed an online questionnaire. Twenty-six challenges were identified and of the top five challenges, only three, equipment, funding, and understanding what TE is were identified as a continuous challenge at each career stage. Knowing the challenges identified by TE teachers at different …

Everyday Enactments Of Resistance : Portraits Of Secondary Public School Teachers Navigating New Professionalism, Susan D’Elia

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

New professionalism has changed the roles and responsibilities of teachers. It has created a professional culture that prioritizes managerialism, bureaucracy, standardization and assessment, and performance review. This shift has created tension and anxiety amongst teachers, but a population of teachers continue to openly question, resist, or protest directives that do not align with their goals and values. The goal of this study was to gain understanding of the lived experiences of veteran, secondary, public school teachers who have attempted to find ways to navigate and resist new professionalism. Using Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot’s portraiture method, participants’ narratives bring life to the ways …

Teaching And Learning In The Spanish As A Foreign Language Classroom, Chemaris Gutiérrez Ethington

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This portfolio is a compilation of the author’s beliefs about teaching and learning in the Spanish language classroom. It centers around the teaching philosophy statement emphasizing the author’s beliefs regarding the role of the teacher, the role of the students, and expectations in the second language classroom.

Three research papers are included to support the teaching philosophy statement. The first paper highlight the importance of teaching communicatively in the foreign language classroom with a co-teacher. The second paper explains dual language immersion and its importance in Utah education. The last paper focuses on the teaching of pragmatics in the foreign …

The Effects Of A Metacognitive Strategy On The Reading Comprehension Of High School History Students, Carollynn Anders

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of the current study is to add to existing research on the effectiveness of the SRSD RAP strategy on reading comprehension. This study describes a single-subject research design involving professional development in the RAP metacognitive strategy and a teacher’s implementation in her high-school history courses. The study aims to assess the strategy’s effectiveness in the high school general education setting with inclusive instruction and without pull out sessions to learn that strategy. The current study explores RAP strategy research and uses a week-long unit of instruction for teaching the RAP strategy. The results of the RAP strategy on …

The Correlation Between The Act, Inc. Explore Test And Student Success In High School Advanced And Advanced Placement Mathematics Courses, Virginia Story

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the relationship between the mathematics portion of the EXPLORE test with students successes in advanced and Advanced Placement(AP) mathematics courses in high school. The data was collected from a rural Tennessee school system consisting of five years of data among graduated seniors. Analysis was completed to determine the difference between the two county high schools in advanced coursework. The findings of this study concluded a positive correlation between EXPLORE scores and the frequency of students who took advanced mathematics courses. Positive correlation between EXPLORE scores and student successes in advanced courses was …

Curriculum Change: A Study On Teacher Perceptions Of Curriculum Change On Content Standards, Tiffany Kessler-Hopek

Theses and Dissertations

In the United States, curriculum has encountered frequent changes throughout years. The main initiative of educational change has three main components, and they are to increase the quality and rigor of the curriculum, have a common curriculum, and prepare students for secondary education. The standards in the state of Georgia have changed from Georgia Performance Standards and Common Core State Standards to the more recent Georgia Standards of Excellence. By the school year 2018-2019, the Georgia Standards of Excellence should be fully adopted. An explanatory sequential mixed methods study was conducted to examine the perceptions of teachers on curriculum change …

The Change Process And The Implementation Of High School Jostens Renaissance Programs: A Multiple Case Study, Gregory G. English

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Motivated by the growing body of research relating to the impact school climate has on student achievement, attendance, behavior, and mental well-being, many educators have implemented initiatives and programs aimed at school climate improvement. Jostens Renaissance is one such program and was the program of focus for this study. Though Jostens has numerous publications and media sources to facilitate the sharing of ideas, there is very little information available regarding the implementation of Renaissance.

The primary purpose of this study was to identify factors that facilitated change in the process of implementing high school Jostens Renaissance programs in order to …

Increasing Awareness Of Romantic Behaviors In Former Foster Youth, Kimberly Beardshear

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Because of their inexperience, emerging adults often have a difficult time navigating healthy romantic relationships. For many, the skills necessary for quality relationships are usually learned through parents, friends, or mentors. Foster youth, in particular, may struggle more in developing and sustaining romantic relationships due to the lack of or inconsistent parental guidance or mentoring. To address this, I have created a two-hour lesson for emerging adult foster youth attending Hartnell College in Salinas, California. The content will be comprised of the characteristics of a healthy relationship, role-play scenarios, identifying unhealthy relationship behaviors, and how to use healthy relationship behaviors.

A Space To Learn, Amy R. Goods

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation, I explore what it means to different people, in different places throughout life’s spectrum to create a space to learn. This dissertation is a collection of work that I have written throughout my time at the CUNY Graduate Center. The chapters herein represent an arch of my learning over the past five years. The title, A Space to Learn, has multiple meanings. For one, writing this dissertation has provided me a space to explore and reflect on a variety of topics, ranging from memory loss, to teacher preparation programs, to eugenics and special education, to tracking and …

Positioning Of English Language Learners And Its Power On Classroom Learning Opportunities And Interactions, Hawraa Nafea Hameed Alzouwain

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this qualitative study, the researcher investigated four aspects of positioning used by teacher and ESL students in a mid-south state of the United States. This study was based on the Positioning Theory of Davies and Harré (1990). The study aimed to explore various types of positioning used by the participants and how they impacted social interactions among the students and between them and their teacher. The researcher used four questions to outline the scope of the research, focused on: 1) how ELLs’ different positioning in the ESL classroom promoted or limited their learning opportunities; 2) how the ELL teacher …

Media Literacy And American Education: An Exploration With Détournement, Seth D. French, Jacob Campbell

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Many competing voices are speaking about the state of American education and how it should be reformed in the best interest of students. Topics such as teachers unions, charter schools, and standardized tests are at the center of many of these discussions. How do we decipher what to believe amid such conflicting perspectives concerning these topics and others like them? To progress American education in a direction that benefits students and democratic society, today’s educational stakeholders must adopt a critical stance in their evaluation of issues at the center of American education; lessons that encourage the development of critical media …

Teachers’ Perception Of An Integrated Approach To Biology And Emotional Learning, Laura Ferreira González, Thomas Hennemann, Kirsten Schlüter

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Inclusive education requires that teachers not only teach academic knowledge and skills, but also consider the individual needs of all pupils, especially with respect to their social-emotional status. All teachers (including science and biology teachers) have to promote the well-being of their pupils by helping them develop social-emotional skills. The positive impact of these skills has been widely researched and documented. There is no doubt that academic achievements and social-emotional skills go hand in hand. However, only very little research data are available on how biology lessons and biology teachers can facilitate inclusive education in everyday school. The purpose of …