Digital Commons Network^™

So Much More Than Greenacre, Christine Rollins

The Journal of Law Teaching and Learning

No abstract provided.

Embedding Clinical Application Assignments In Dnp Education: A Model For Practice Hour Acquisition, Cynthia Plonien

Nursing Faculty Publications & Presentations

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs must ensure graduates complete a minimum of 1,000 post-baccalaureate clinical/practice hours aligned with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials. As programs transition to accelerated and online formats, achieving these hours has become increasingly challenging, particularly for students entering without prior supervised clinical experience. Traditional models relying on terminal practicum courses often create feasibility limitations and variability in the quality of practice experiences. This article describes an innovative curricular model that embeds Clinical Application Assignments (CAAs) across didactic coursework to support longitudinal acquisition of clinical hours. This approach provides a feasible and …

Beyond A Corrective Experience: Reimagining Liberation In Special Education, Erin Elise Macnabb

Doctoral Dissertations

This qualitative study establishes a critical bridge between special education and liberatory pedagogy, positioning these historically siloed fields as interdependent for systemic justice. While Special Education Teachers (SETs) daily work involves resisting systemic oppression, special education has been historically excluded from liberatory pedagogy and instead focused on medicalized models and deficit based assumptions. The separation of liberatory pedagogy and special education contributes to professional siloing and a culture of compliance that prioritizes bureaucratic processes over the meaningful and radical work of SETs.

The research utilizes a qualitative design rooted in Collaborative Critical Inquiry (CCI) where an intentional sample of veteran, …

The Effectiveness Of Mastery Learning On Student Achievement Across Stem Disciplines: A Meta-Analysis, Francis Siangco Estabillo

Doctoral Dissertations

Mastery learning has been one of the most extensively researched instructional strategies in education, studied continuously since the 1960s. Prior meta-analyses have consistently found positive effects of mastery learning on student learning outcomes, however, none have examined its effectiveness on student achievement explicitly within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.

This comprehensive meta-analysis investigated the effectiveness of the mastery-learning instructional strategy on student achievement across STEM disciplines in K-12 and higher-education contexts. A systematic literature search yielded 85 studies with combined sample sizes of 10,244 participants that met the inclusion criteria. Heterogeneity was assessed using Q,I^{2 …}

Fostering Collaboration For Mission And Social Justice: Qualitative Case Studies Of Models Of Jesuits And Non-Jesuit Administrators, Faculty And Staff Members’ Partnerships At Arrupe Jesuit University (Aju) In Zimbabwe And Centre De Recherche Et D’Action Pour La Paix/ Université Jésuite D’Abidjan (Cerap/Uja) In Côte D’Ivoire, Abdon Rwandekwe Edd

Doctoral Dissertations

Jesuit higher education has historically depended on collaboration between Jesuits and non-Jesuit administrators, faculty, and staff to sustain its mission of promoting faith, justice, and the holistic formation of students. In recent decades, demographic shifts within the Society of Jesus and increasing institutional complexity have led to a greater reliance on Lay collaborators in leadership and academic roles. Despite strong ecclesial and Jesuit directives encouraging shared mission and co-responsibility, many Jesuit institutions continue to struggle with translating these ideals into equitable governance and collaborative practices. This challenge is particularly significant in African contexts, where Jesuit universities operate within diverse cultural …

Identifying Social Disparities Inside The Colombian Jesuit Schools From The Students’ Perceptions, Fr. Edwin Mauricio Martínez Callejas Sj

Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis conducts a comprehensive investigation into social disparities within Colombian Jesuit schools through the voices and perceptions of their students. Employing a Critical Pedagogy framework inspired by Paulo Freire, the research centers on understanding how students from three Jesuit schools in major Colombian cities—Medellín (Colegio San Ignacio), Bucaramanga (Colegio San Pedro Claver), and Barranquilla (Colegio San José)—perceive and navigate issues of social inclusion, ethnic diversity, gender equality, socioeconomic status, political polarization, and religious plurality. The study utilizes qualitative methods, including focus groups and interviews with students, teachers, staff, and parents, to explore school convivencia (coexistence and social harmony) and …

A Quantitative Study On Broadband Access Rates In K-12 Schools And Student Academic Achievement, Tonya Michelle Todd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As technology evolves, so do K-12 educational platforms and policies. However, research into broadband access’s influence on student academic achievement is limited and some are outdated. Without adequate knowledge on the topic, educational and policy leaders are at risk of misallocating educational technology funds. Given the substantial monetary investment involved in the implementation of this public education policy and the limited research on the influence of broadband access rates on student academic achievement, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether the SC Educational Technology Plan’s broadband expansion influenced student academic performance.

This quantitative study sought to determine whether …

Second Annual Advances In Business Education Conference 2026 Proceedings, Kelsey Metz

Advances in Business Education (ABE) Conference Proceedings

Conference Overview: The Second Annual Advances in Business Education (ABE) Conference was held on May 21–22, 2026, at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee. Hosted by the LMU School of Business, the ABE Conference exists to promote teaching excellence, scholarly inquiry, and regional engagement through innovation and collaboration in business education.

With a focus on fostering meaningful dialogue among educators, researchers, students, and industry professionals, the conference welcomed more than 70 attendees representing 11 institutions from across the Appalachian region and beyond.

The event was structured around four key tracks:

Pedagogy and Teaching Excellence: Showcasing innovative teaching methods, instructional technologies, …

Social Determinants Of Low Educational Attainment, Isabelle Graham, Kevin Lieng, Aubriana Weisbach

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This paper examines how socioeconomic and demographic factors influence low educational attainment across U.S. cities. The analysis estimates both a linear regression model and a semi-log model to evaluate how poverty, unemployment, family structure, age composition, overcrowding, racial and ethnic minority share, broadband access, and housing cost burden affect the percentage of adults without a high school diploma. The results show that poverty, overcrowding, and minority share are the strongest predictors of low educational attainment, each exhibiting positive and highly significant effects. Overall, the findings highlight the role of social factors in shaping educational outcomes in high school.

Meeting Their Needs: Experiences Of Uc Berkeley International Graduate Students Navigating Financial Strain, Ryann M. Hirt

Master's Theses

Of prior research on student experiences with financial strain, little has specifically focused on international student experiences in higher education while studying in the U.S., in tandem with financial strain. This qualitative study, through utilization of narrative methodology, explores the ways in which international students–in particular, graduate students–experience and navigate financial strain during their studies at a large, R1: Doctoral university: the University of California, Berkeley. The research was guided by three questions: (a) What are UC Berkeley international students’ stories of navigating financial strain? (b) What are the experiences of UC Berkeley international students with external and internal (campus) …

Prekindergarten Teacher Experiences Implementing Research-Based Instructional Practices That Support Dual Language Learners, Elizabeth Bell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Predictors Of Leadership Self-Efficacy: Racial Identity-Related Ideological Values, Racism-Related Stress, And Resilience Among Asian American Educators In K-12 Schools, Chong Lor

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the underrepresentation of Asian American educators in K-12 leadership and the limited leadership pipeline available to them. Specifically, this study examined the extent of the relationships between Asian American racial identity-related ideological values (AARIIV), Asian American racism-related stress (AARRS), resilience, and leadership self-efficacy (LSE) among Asian American educators in K-12 schools.

This study was grounded in three theoretical perspectives—AsianCrit, the Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans, and Social Cognitive Theory—that provided the theoretical rationale for examining the racialization of Asian Americans in relation to leadership. This theoretical foundation guided the development of the …

Book Review - The Serendipity Of Hope, Ken Badley

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

A review of Lee, S., & Markham. I. S. (Eds.). (2023). The serendipity of hope. Pickwick. (ISBN: 978-1666737066. Softcover. 292 pages.)

Effects Of An International Teaching Experience On Pre-Service Teacher Self-Efficacy, Janet George, Jared Johnston

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

This study investigated the effect of faculty mentoring on the self-efficacy beliefs of pre-service teacher (PST) candidates. Between 2023 and 2024, eight PSTs took part in a two-week international teaching experience. The overall experience was built on Bandura’s sources of self-efficacy (1997). For the study, we used Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk-Hoy’s Teacher Sense of Self-Efficacy Scale (1998) to measure the PSTs’ sense of self-efficacy before and after the experience. We utilized a convergent mixed-methods research design to gain a comprehensive understanding of the effect of faculty mentoring upon the PSTs’ sense of self-efficacy. The results of our study showed that faculty …

Can We Digitize A Soul? A Study Of Ai And Ethics, Spirituality, And Humanity, Debra S. Espinor, W. Scot Headley, Linda Samek

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

The rapid advancement of computing technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally reshaping both society and the educational landscape. This study examines faculty experiences and attitudes toward the role of AI in teaching and research within the distinct context of Christian higher education. While recognizing the potential of AI to drive educational innovation, this research also addresses significant faculty concerns regarding the implications for academic integrity, critical thinking, and intellectual property. Specifically, the study investigates faculty perspectives on data security and privacy, the reproduction of creative expression in art and music, and the broader impact of AI on the liberal …

Teacher Identity Formation In A Christian University: Expectations And Experiences, Heather J. S. Birch

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

This qualitative phenomenological study examines the alignment between applicants’ expectations and graduating candidates’ lived experiences in a teacher education program at a Christian university. Drawing on data from 166 participants collected during application interviews and final capstone conversations, the research explores how candidates anticipated and later reflected on the program’s faith integration, community, and professional formation. Findings reveal that most candidates’ expectations were met or exceeded, highlighting three key shifts: faith experienced as lived values within an inclusive community; unexpected depth of relational support from faculty and peers; and meaningful professional and personal growth rooted in the faith-explicit context. The …

Using Storytelling Of Incarnational Encounters To Disrupt Narratives Of Otherness In Teacher Education, Tina Marie Keller

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

The incarnation is the ultimate illustration of crossing the chasm between two groups. God's choosing to become flesh tells us of his nature, love, and desire to redeem humanity. Jesus Christ alone is incarnate; however, in history, there have been individuals who have stepped outside the norm and have encountered those unlike themselves, humbly modeled after Christ’s incarnation. Incarnational encounters are the stories of people, whom society deems to be in opposition, finding the imagination to attempt to follow the incarnation of Jesus. For Christian preservice teachers, the model of incarnation is a biblical foundation that can guide the ways …

An Editorial: If I Should Fall, Patrick Otto, David Weir

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

Abstract

The future of Christian higher education will be determined by whether today’s leaders can identify and train successors who are called to the mission and vision of each institution. The task of transitioning to a new generation of leaders has become more complicated as research shows that the church in America is in decline. The increased use of adjuncts adds to the dilemma because it takes time and a single-minded focus to prepare high-level leaders.

We are at a critical time finding the right people to replace the Baby Boomer generation, which has led well past retirement age. As …

From The Editor, Sean Schat

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

Our editorial team is excited to share this issue with you. We have a good balance of theoretical essays, research articles, and book reviews.

Theoretical Essays

• In An Editorial: If I Should Fail, Patrick Otto and David Weir (Oral Roberts University) explore the emerging leadership crisis in Christian higher education, drawing on a compelling naval metaphor to navigate the complexities of leadership transitions and the need for new leaders.

• In Using Storytelling of Incarnational Encounters to Disrupt Narratives of Otherness in Teachers Education, Tina Marie Keller (Messiah University) introduces and explores the concept of incarnational encounters, moments “when individuals …

Community-Based Participatory Research In Developing Online Nutrition Tools: A Pathway To Relevance And Engagement, Laura Justice, Stacy Phillips

EFNEP

This article explains how Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) can strengthen the design of digital nutrition tools by ensuring they are culturally relevant, accessible, and grounded in community needs. By engaging participants as equal partners, CBPR enhances trust, usability, and long-term impact. The approach aligns with EFNEP’s mission to deliver inclusive, community-driven nutrition education and provides a framework for developing sustainable, adaptable tools that reflect the lived experiences of the families Extension serves.

Elementary Music Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Impact Of Class Size On Tonal And Phonemic Awareness In Second-Grade General Music Classes, Ariel A. Supinger

Masters Theses

The purpose of this non-experimental, quantitative study was to investigate elementary music teachers’ perceptions of the impact of class size on tonal and phonemic awareness in second-grade general music classes. The researcher-designed questionnaire was sent to elementary music teachers who teach second-grade general music in elementary schools within urban, suburban, and rural school districts.

The Impact Of Teacher Verbal And Nonverbal Communication On Student Motivation, Claire E. Haines

Masters Theses

The classroom environment is one of vast areas of scholarly literature yet may levels of understanding classroom communication remain unexplored. This study provides an in-depth analysis of the lived student experience with how teacher communication impacts student motivation in general as well as intrinsic forms of communication. Data for this research was taken directly from student accounts of verbal and nonverbal interactions with teachers that impacted their motivation. One of the key findings of this research was the observed process that participants described through interviews. This observed three step process displayed how verbal and nonverbal communication were expressed to have …

The Effects Of Phonetic Knowledge And Bilingualism On The Acquisition Of Non-Native Consonant Clusters, Kylie Wakley

Theses and Dissertations

Speech motor learning involves the production of new sounds or sound sequences. This study investigated how explicit phonetic knowledge and bilingualism affect how individuals acquire sound sequences that do not occur in English, or non-native consonant clusters. Sixty adults with typical speech, aged between 18 and 27 years, participated in the experiment. The researcher recruited participants into four groups based on their phonetic background (experienced or not) and language background (monolingual, bilingual). The participants produced stop-stop and fricative-nasal clusters in the initial position of nonsense words across six practice blocks. The duration of each cluster was measured, which in English …

Unlocking The Colleague Next Door, Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Learning, Teaching, & Researching Optimization

The structural barriers that isolate faculty from one another—individualistic reward systems, professional identity protection, disciplinary silos, fragmented time—have been documented in detail elsewhere. This paper begins where that analysis ends. Its sole focus is solutions: what actually works, what you can do without waiting for your institution to change, and most importantly, what you can do today. It is organized in three movements: evidence-based institutional strategies, community-level structures any group of faculty can build, and a granular map of the smallest possible individual first steps—the ones that cost almost nothing and have an outsized probability of changing how you experience …

The Silent Silos Of Academia, Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Learning, Teaching, & Researching Optimization

We work in an environment rich with latent brilliance. Walk down any corridor of a modern university building, and you pass office after office housing world-class expertise, profound pedagogical insights, and raw intellectual power. In terms of human capital, academic faculty represent arguably the most concentrated pool of cognitive resources on the planet. Yet, a strange paradox haunts higher education: despite living and working in such proximity, university faculty remain profoundly isolated. We operate as solitary islands, locked within our own intellectual silos, rarely leveraging the immense potential of our peers.

This isolation is not a personal choice, nor is …

Catalogue Of The Officers And Students Of Lagrange College, North Alabama Session 1843-1844, Messenger & Rollston, North Alabamian Office

Documents

Catalogue of the Officers and Students of LaGrange College, North Alabama (1844)

Printed in Tuscumbia.

An Analysis Of Professional Development Preferences, Needs, And Engagement Among Family And Consumer Sciences Teachers In Illinois, Sally E. Arnett

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

The purpose of this study was to identify the professional development preferences, needs, and engagement of family and consumer sciences (FCS) teachers in Illinois. Signature pedagogy and its three theoretical elements served as a foundational framework for structuring respondents' professional development considerations. Using a descriptive research design, data were collected through an online survey completed by 45 (42%) Illinois FCS teachers. Findings indicated that teachers preferred professional development that was offered in person, located within geographical proximity, and scheduled during contracted working hours. Respondents identified discipline-specific FCS content, effective lab management, and the integration of AI in an FCS classroom …

Interest Requires Knowledge: Initial Development Of A Measure Of Career Knowledge, Sarah Ferguson, Marjorie Blicharz, Kara Ieva, Christopher J. Winkler, Theresa Cann

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

This paper details a measurement development study conducted in multiple phases to establish the reliability and validity of scores from a measure of career knowledge that can be specified to career fields. The initial development study focused on surveying and mapping careers in the engineering technician cluster, in alignment with a larger intervention study on career exploration of STEM technician and technologist careers. A short seven-item measure of perceived career knowledge was developed and piloted to address the need for empirical data on students' career knowledge, an outcome of interest to practitioners and researchers in career development. Exploratory and confirmatory …

Making Data Usable For Schools And Colleges: The Regional Data Collaboratives Approach, Benjamin Boer

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This white paper outlines a strategic initiative by the Education Systems Center (EdSystems) to establish regional data collaboratives that improve how schools and colleges use information. Unlike traditional top-down accountability models, these collaboratives focus on longitudinal data sharing to help administrators understand student transitions from ninth grade through postsecondary completion and into the workforce. The framework relies on four core competencies: legal data agreements, secure management, linking analytics, and meaningful presentation of results. By examining factors like dual credit, pathway participation, and 9th-grade performance, these partnerships aim to identify and eliminate educational inequities. Ultimately, the initiative seeks to create a …

Quantitative Correlation Of Middle School Students’ Perspectives Of Teacher Caring And Student Effort, Susan Lackey

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, correlational research was to study the potential correlation between the middle school students' perspectives of teacher caring and student effort. The study was important because it investigated an understudied population in a new geographic location. The sample included 352 sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students within five middle schools in eastern North Carolina. Two instruments were used to collect survey data from the students. The first instrument administered included the MUSIC Model of Motivation Inventory, which was derived from the MUSIC Model of Academic Motivation®. The second instrument was the Course Effort Scale, derived from the …