Education Commons^™

Does Race Still Matter? An Exploration Of Race And Mentoring Relationships From The Perspective Of Early Career Teachers Of Color And Mentors, Franchesca R. Ho Sang

Theses and Dissertations

Mentoring has been attributed to lowering attrition rates of teachers. At present, the majority of teachers in the United States are White and female. The national teacher workforce does not represent the student body. Although there have been recent initiatives to improve the diversity within the teacher workforce, by explicitly recruiting teachers of color (TOC), the attrition rates of these teachers are negating the effects of recruitment efforts. Previous research has pointed to the need to consider race in novice TOC mentee and mentor matches, as cultural capital theory suggests common knowledge and experience may lead to stronger mentor relationships …

Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion: Three Essays In The Educational Context, James D. Paul

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many universities and K-12 public school systems express a significant, formal commitment to the ideals of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Relative to the emphasis on DEI in America’s educational institutions, however, there has been little research describing DEI trends and evaluating the efficacy of DEI bureaucracies. This three-chapter dissertation examines DEI trends that have been the subject of much discussion—but rarely studied empirically.

For example, chapter one analyzes how universities promote DEI when hiring new faculty. I audit a subset of academic job postings and present the first evidence on how many require DEI statements, as well as the …

Building A Culture Of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion And Social Justice At A Community College, Teresa M. Kisilevich

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

Over the past number of years, it has become apparent that Canada is facing a significant skilled labour shortage. As the world emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic, the pressure to train and hire skilled trades workers has only increased; in order to fill the growing labour gap, intentional measures are needed to attract and retain a more diverse group of students. This organizational improvement plan aims to capitalize on a recent strategic plan and its central commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion and social justice. Through a case study focused on balanced enrolment by gender in trades training, this document considers …

Institutional Effectiveness On Student Retention And Diversification For African American Female Engineering Students At Higher Educational Institutions, Robbin Parker

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative research study examined higher educational institutions, specifically, Land Grant, Carnegie classification of ‘Very high research activity’, and Predominantly White Institutions in the United States. Furthermore, the evaluation analyzed HEI effectiveness in engineering programs to retain and graduate African American female students. Mainly, the research looked at retention, attainment, diversity, academic support systems, assessment, and initiatives as units of measurements to analyze the various types of support mechanisms at these institutions. The goal was to determine if these units of measurement are the necessary resources that HEI require to successfully assist, engage, and strengthen the educational attainment of African …

The Impact Of Teacher Diversity On Student Outcomes, Kristie White Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Closing the teacher diversity gap was fundamental to closing the achievement gap between White and Black students. The gap in teacher diversity has continued to widen over the last decade. As the number of Black students in public education increases, the number of Black teachers continued to decline. The teaching profession remained a predominately white female workforce. A lack of teacher diversity had a negative effect on all student achievement. Black teachers served as role models to Black students. Those Black students taught by Black teachers had better academic achievement, behavior, motivation, and aspirations to attend college. In order to …

Culturally Relevant Practices And Community: Increasing Minority Leadership In School Administration To Improve School Climate, Cassandra Suggs, Joy N. Rogers

Dissertations

This dissertation and research looks into the area of Culturally Relevant Practices and Leadership in K-12 schools and the potential effect on all students in having minority leadership present. The research dives into interviews of teachers, hiring leaders, district leaders and building leaders. It also uses survey results from over 700 students, with the central theme of the questions around school safety, climate, culture, support, academics and a sense of belonging. The research purpose was to look into the potential positive effect on students and staff, if Culturally Relevant Practices and hiring of minority leadership was in place within school …

Writing Through Whiteness: Utilizing Personal Narratives To Strengthen The Racial Competency Of White Teachers, Paul F. Walsh

Education Doctorate Dissertations

While the student population in the United States is becoming increasingly diverse, the teaching force is still White-dominant by a large margin. In the 2017-2018 school year, 79% of public-school teachers in the United States were White and non-Hispanic (National Center for Education Statistics). This White-dominant population of teachers is tasked with educating increasing numbers of students of color from diverse backgrounds. With this charge should come the necessity for White teachers to critically consider the complex ways that whiteness characterizes the American education system and their ways of teaching. White teachers cannot navigate issues of race in their schools …

Disappearing Acts: The Declining Numbers Of African American Teachers In Public School Settings, Catherine F. Lewis-Brownfield

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

African American teachers are slowly leaving the classroom, causing an imbalance in the student/teacher ratio (NCES, 2019). According to the National Center for Education Statistics, African American teachers make up 3% in California and 7% nationally. This study sought to understand the reasons for the decline in the number of African American teachers in public school settings. Due to the decline in their numbers, African American students have suffered high dropout rates, low standardized test scores, and low college attendance (Gershenson, Hart, Hyman, Lindsey, & Papageorge, 2017). This qualitative study examined the obstacles current African American teachers face and the …