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Full-Text Articles in Education
Her Voice Matters: Life Histories Of Black Women Teachers’ Working Conditions, G. Funmilayo Tyson-Devoe
Her Voice Matters: Life Histories Of Black Women Teachers’ Working Conditions, G. Funmilayo Tyson-Devoe
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This study explored Black women’s lived experiences as teachers in urban schools during the era of 21st-century education reform. It centers around the relationships between Black women teachers (micro), their working conditions in low-performing urban schools (mesa), and neoliberal education policies (macro) that affect their work. The theoretical frames were Black feminist thought and critical race theory. The research questions were as follows: first, what are the working experiences of Black women teachers of tested subjects in low-performing urban public schools and, second, how do socio-political factors affect their working conditions? The research design was qualitative and included narrative inquiry …
Teaching Without Walls: A Portraiture Study Of Nature-Based Educators In Duluth, Minnesota, Christina Wild
Teaching Without Walls: A Portraiture Study Of Nature-Based Educators In Duluth, Minnesota, Christina Wild
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This dissertation explores the lived experience of nature-based educators in Duluth, Minnesota. Portraiture served as the methodological framework for learning about how teachers in Duluth got into teaching and why they remain on the job. Teacher turnover and attrition is a national problem exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, teachers who perceive better working conditions are less likely to leave the profession. In addition, nature-based education has positive influences on students. Past research in nature-based education has looked at students rather than teachers. This study’s findings offer key lessons in the stories of educators who stay in teaching and experience …
Narrative-Driven Educational Practice: Guiding Principles For Academic Success Of Black And Latinx Male Collegians, Christopher T. James
Narrative-Driven Educational Practice: Guiding Principles For Academic Success Of Black And Latinx Male Collegians, Christopher T. James
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
On the heels of America grappling with various racial and ethnic inequities, this dissertation explored the experiences of Black and Latinx males who graduated with bachelor’s degrees from 4-year institutions. Participants navigated through different environments, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities [HBCUs], Hispanic Serving Institutions [HSI], and Predominately White Institutions [PWIs]. The study inquired about topics concerning their unique experiences and how they informed their collegiate academic success. Narrative Inquiry was the basis for 20 qualitative interviews (10 Black and 10 Latinx; interviewed for 60–90 minutes). Participants identified as U.S. citizens and graduated with a cumulative grade point average [GPA] …
Navigating Conflict During Periods Of Change In Higher Education: Deconstructing Academic Leaders’ Construction Of Meaning, Tyler Guy Olson
Navigating Conflict During Periods Of Change In Higher Education: Deconstructing Academic Leaders’ Construction Of Meaning, Tyler Guy Olson
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
Navigating departmental and organizational conflict is an essential function and responsibility of an academic unit leader (dean, associate dean, director, or chair) in higher education institutions (HEIs). During periods of organizational change, conflict tends to increase in complexity and difficulty—in part due to resistance to change—making it more difficult to manage in a constructive manner (Marcus, 2014). Much of the literature that looks at the academic unit leader and conflict focuses on personal conflict styles (or modes), types of conflicts encountered, and training on techniques and skills for conflict resolution and management. Missing from the literature is research that examines …
Towards An Ecosystem Of Youth Leadership Development, Trisha Swed
Towards An Ecosystem Of Youth Leadership Development, Trisha Swed
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This study is aimed at understanding how youth leadership development programs can be more inclusive and promote a broader range of leadership values, qualities, and behaviors by focusing on young people who have been disaffected by leadership development programs. The study design was intended to provide a creative space for youth to engage in meaningful conversations about their evolving concepts and expectations of leadership. Using critical youth participatory action research to engage a group of youth, cohort members co-created a new youth leadership development program while addressing their identified challenges and needs. Findings from this study highlight the importance of …
From A Boy To A Leader, Alejandro Zayas
From A Boy To A Leader, Alejandro Zayas
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
The following autoethnographic dissertation examines my personal experiences of trauma, abuse, and violence. Drawing on journals, memories, and artifacts from my life, I use self-reflection to illustrate the impacts of trauma on my childhood and adulthood. My traumatic experiences of sexual abuse, childhood violence, and emotional abuse are situated within broader sociocultural contexts of masculinity, Hispanic culture, and social norms. This study illuminates possibilities for healing and transformation for myself and others with shared traumatic backgrounds. It calls for trauma-informed education, masculinity, and resiliency. Evocatively sharing my traumatic life events provides an accessible window into often silenced experiences, bearing witness …
Women Seeking The Public School Superintendency: Navigating The Gendered And Racialized-Gendered Job Search, Rachel M. Roberts
Women Seeking The Public School Superintendency: Navigating The Gendered And Racialized-Gendered Job Search, Rachel M. Roberts
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
I have been an educator for my entire career. First, as a teacher and over the last decade as a school administrator. During my tenure, I have continually noticed the underrepresentation of women in the highest office: the school superintendent. This has vexed me over the years, and as a scholar practitioner in leadership and change, I have devoted my research to unearthing the inequalities and disproportional realities that exist within high-profile leadership, particularly the public school superintendency. Utilizing a grounded theory approach, this dissertation sought to better understand what happens at the micro-level, especially during and after the superintendent …
Black Parent Advocacy And Educational Success: Lessons Learned On The Use Of Voice And Engagement, Mark Mcmillian
Black Parent Advocacy And Educational Success: Lessons Learned On The Use Of Voice And Engagement, Mark Mcmillian
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
“The opportunity is there, this is what I think of when I think of role models, I think of my experience” (Anthony—a participant in this study—commenting on the effectiveness of advocating for his child). Black children encounter racism in American schools and parents need to advocate for them. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how Black parents developed and used their voice to advocate for their children in a predominantly White educational system with a history of racially disparate outcomes. Particularly, this study drew on the experiences of 15 participants, two men—one was a grandfather—and 13 women, …
Love And Learn: Creating Space For Authentic Caring In Family Child Care, Katherine Kelly Hart Meehan
Love And Learn: Creating Space For Authentic Caring In Family Child Care, Katherine Kelly Hart Meehan
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
Children benefit from engagement in early education and care (ECE) programs that support their learning and development while also providing a point of connection to critical resources for their families. For children from economically disadvantaged families, the lack of access to high-quality ECE results in a persistent achievement and opportunity gap (García & Weiss, 2015). A significant portion of ECE occurs in home-based early learning environments, also known as family child care (FCC) programs, which play a critical role in supporting children from low-income and immigrant families (Layzer et al., 2007; Porter et al., 2010). Unfortunately, this sector of ECE …
Novice Teachers' Sensemaking In An Era Of Accountability: Implications For School Leaders, Hays K. Moulton
Novice Teachers' Sensemaking In An Era Of Accountability: Implications For School Leaders, Hays K. Moulton
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
The purpose of this research study was to examine how novice teachers make sense of the realities of their chosen profession, given their initial motivations for entering the profession. My research into teacher motivation and retention provided evidence that teachers did enter the field for altruistic reasons and that as many as 50% of all new teachers in urban schools did not last beyond five years. When they begin teaching, they find a field that is heavily impacted by strict accountability standards and required mandated testing. I used Sensemaking Theory and Self-Determination Theory to examine how beginning teachers make sense …
Virtual Empowerment: The Exploration Of Leadership Aspirations Of Young Nepali Girls Using Virtual Participatory Action Research, Sara Safari
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
Adolescent girls in developing countries, especially those from impoverished backgrounds, face many challenges, such as cultural preference for sons, child marriage, and gender-based violence and harassment, which limit their access, opportunities, and leadership skills. The purpose of this study was to create a virtual empowerment and leadership program for young women based on extant literature, as well as best practices empowerment programs from South East Asia and empirical data. The main goal of the study using Virtual Participatory Action Research (V-PAR) was to organically create a leadership development program where the participants are the developers of the program. The goal …
When Knowing Is Not Enough: A Narrative Exploration Of How K-12 Teachers Make Decisions About The Transfer Of Critical Competencies From Professional Learning To Daily Practice, Nell E. Ballard-Jones
When Knowing Is Not Enough: A Narrative Exploration Of How K-12 Teachers Make Decisions About The Transfer Of Critical Competencies From Professional Learning To Daily Practice, Nell E. Ballard-Jones
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
School districts spend millions of dollars each year to provide training and learning to staff working in direct and indirect service to students (National Council on Teacher Quality, 2021). This financial commitment says nothing about what is even more important: the need for school employees and the systems in which we work to serve students more effectively. Despite vast allocations of time and money and presumably best intentions for better social and academic outcomes for students, very little data exist that reflect regular transfer and application of training/learning into professional practice (Nittler et al., 2015). By and large, schools and …
A Case Study: The Role Of Compassionate Cities, Healthy Cities, And Un Sustainable Development Goals In City Leadership And Planning, Lisa A. Berkley
A Case Study: The Role Of Compassionate Cities, Healthy Cities, And Un Sustainable Development Goals In City Leadership And Planning, Lisa A. Berkley
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This research is a case study examining the relevance of three holistic city frameworks—Compassionate Cities, Healthy Cities, and UN Sustainable Development Goals—to the intentional or tacit thinking of city leaders, community leaders, and activists of Marina, California. Beginning with a discussion of the origin and development of the three frameworks, the study occurred in three phases: Phase I involved interviewing the five elected leaders, city manager, community development leaders, and two planners; Phase II consisted of a survey of appointed city leaders and community organizers and activists; and Phase III was an analysis of relevant public discourse, drawing from local …
Is It Who Am I Or Who Do You Think I Am? Identity Development Of Adolescents With Substance Use Disorders, Danielle N. Treiber
Is It Who Am I Or Who Do You Think I Am? Identity Development Of Adolescents With Substance Use Disorders, Danielle N. Treiber
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
The purpose of this study was to unearth how adolescents with substance use disorders achieve the task of identity formation and the construction of self-concept in the midst of the drug culture and society that exists. It sought to uncover the social constructs designed to ignore and/or remove human complexities and allow an intersectional approach to be brought to a study on this population. Historically, there has been a failure to investigate the underlying social attitudes and behaviors that impact the very delicate and vulnerable process of finding self. Psychosocial and relational adjustment are strongly influenced by the extent to …
Back To Africa In The 21st Century: The Cultural Reconnection Experiences Of African American Women, Marcia Tate Arunga
Back To Africa In The 21st Century: The Cultural Reconnection Experiences Of African American Women, Marcia Tate Arunga
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
The purpose of this study is to examine the lived experiences of 18 African American women who went to Kenya, East Africa as part of a Cultural Reconnection delegation. A qualitative narrative inquiry method was used for data collection. This was an optimal approach to honoring the authentic voices of African American women. Eighteen African American women shared their stories, revelations, feelings and thoughts on reconnecting in their ancestral homeland of Africa. The literature discussed includes diasporic returns as a subject of study, barriers to the return including the causes of historic trauma, and how Black women as culture bearers …
Presidential Arcs: What Institutional Histories Can Tell Us About The Office, Jennifer A. Carlo
Presidential Arcs: What Institutional Histories Can Tell Us About The Office, Jennifer A. Carlo
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This comparative case study defined and examined the presidential arc at three small, private colleges in the Northeast. The study of an institution's presidential arc is proposed as a more effective means of assessing the success or failure of higher education presidencies than examination of a single presidency in isolation. The presidential arc, a concept introduced in this study, is defined as a comprehensive and integrative examination of: each individual presidency, or, at institutions with a history of short-term presidents who left little impact on, groups of presidencies; the level of success of each presidency, as determined by a definition …
Special Education Teacher Tenacity: The Leadership And Commitment Of Those Who Stay In The Field, Marilyn Shea
Special Education Teacher Tenacity: The Leadership And Commitment Of Those Who Stay In The Field, Marilyn Shea
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
Those who choose to teach special education have accepted some of the most challenging jobs teaching has to offer. Unfortunately for their students, almost half of special education teachers leave the profession within their first five years (Singer, 1992). Finding and keeping qualified special education teachers in positions working with more challenging students has become a national problem. Through qualitative interviews, this study examines the stories of 14 Colorado special educators. These teachers have demonstrated their commitment to the field by teaching for four or more years. Their stories give valuable insight into the issue of teacher commitment in difficult …
Portrait Of An Urban Elementary School: Place-Based Education, School Culture, And Leadership, Michael Thomas Duffin
Portrait Of An Urban Elementary School: Place-Based Education, School Culture, And Leadership, Michael Thomas Duffin
Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses
This study explored the interaction between place-based education, school culture, and leadership at one elementary school in an inner city section of Boston, MA. The centerpiece is a stand alone research portrait that tells a story about how an external program, a willing and ready school community, and a skillful school leader reinforced each other to achieve a shared vision under challenging conditions. From an under-subscribed school in chaos and lacking focus, the subject school transformed into a vibrant, highly sought school with a pervasive, environmentally-oriented culture and curriculum. Portraiture methods were adapted to a utilization-focused evaluation purpose, drawing on …