Education Commons^™

Federation Divided, Max M. Balton

Capstones

At the start of the 2020 school year, a lack of covid safety plans led teachers like Rosy Clark to protest, urging her union the United Federation of Teachers to act. She and other progressives in the dissident caucus, Movement of Rank and File Educators, were willing to strike to ensure their safety. Union leadership hesitated largely because public union strikes are illegal under the state’s Taylor Law.

This four-part audio documentary looks at the history of the UFT and this contentious state law. The union began striking under more onerous strike prohibition legislation. Its roots are steeped in radical …

Mental Health And Discipline In California Community Schools, Damien Phillips

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed method study was to determine if there is a difference in achievement, absenteeism, graduation rates and suspension for students enrolled in community schools that do and don’t have access to school-based mental health services. In addition, it was the purpose to identify and describe the practices most effective in improving attendance, reduction of suspension, achievement and graduation as perceived by community school employees.

Methodology: This mixed-method dissertation attempted to determine the difference between California county community schools for expelled students who have had access to school-based mental health and those who do not as …

Our Stories, Our Voices: The Lived Experiences Of Black Families With Young Children During Covid-19, Devalin Jackson

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of Black families raising young children during shelter in place orders and distance learning due to Covid-19. The study was conducted virtually through Zoom and Google form due to county shelter in place orders. Participants were recruited from the school in which the researcher worked. Through the use of virtual interviews, the five participants highlighted themes of reconnections, isolations, empowerment, family values and conversations. The families shared experiences of resilience and hope and brought thoughts of how these experiences could be highlighted in instructional and curriculum designs; especially during …

How Does How We Learn Influence What We Learn And From Whom We Learn: The Case Of Igen, Twitter, Bts Army, And Learning With Technology, Yuliya Dmitriyevna Goss

Dissertations and Theses

Digital information is omnipresent, and access is almost unavoidable. Technology advances and comes at us in waves that take over and then tend to linger. iGen is the first generation to be born into this advanced technology and the state of constant “plugged-inness” to the Internet. iGen has not experienced a different, predominantly analog, world, but baby boomers, generation X, and millennials – many of whom now use Internet-connected technology heavily – can attest to how they have changed as it integrated into their lives. Along with many other areas of life, learning has also changed with technological progress. From …

Diversity And Inclusion: Examining The Lived Experiences Of Lgbtq Students At Historically Black Colleges And Universities (Hbcus) In The Bible Belt, Steven Jones

Dissertations

Throughout the twentieth century, the Gay Rights Movement has gained momentum as LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) individuals have fought for civil equality and social acceptance. However, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have been slow to adapt, implement, and effect change that improves the quality of education for LGBTQ students. Strong religious beliefs derived from the church; especially in the South, may be the connection to understanding why homosexuality isn’t vastly accepted or celebrated in the Black Community and at HBCUs; particularly, in the Bible Belt.

Thus, this phenomenological qualitative study, guided by the theory of care framework, …

Teacher Perceptions Regarding The Purpose Of K-12 Education, Peter M. Grostic

Dissertations

This study explored the perceptions of teachers regarding the purposes of K-12 education and the influence of belief sources on their perceptions. Purposes of K-12 education and the ways in which they have changed over time are topics for which researchers are concerned (Carpenter, 2005; Labaree, 2013). Addressing this concern, there is existing literature focused on understanding purposes through K-12 school mission statements (Schafft & Biddle, 2014; Stemler & Bebell, 2012), and a multitude of reflections regarding what K-12 education purposes should be (Biesta, 2015; Macallister, 2016; Robinson & Aronica, 2014). Less is known regarding what frontline K-12 education practitioners …

Teacher Demoralization: Neoliberal Influence On The Complex Education System And Teacher Morale, Dionne Elvira

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Since the 1980s, neoliberal influence has slowly taken over our education system’s vision and purpose. Presently, marketization in schooling has drawn the attention and influence of those of monetary and political power (Bartlett et al., 2002). Accountability measures set in place by the strings attached to school funding and sanctions encompass blanket demands on classroom instruction not equitably designed to support our diverse student populations (Ravitch, 2013; Reigeluth, 2014; Tsang, 2019). The school system, as it presently stands, is managed and maintained under systematic models that do not align to the complex needs of each unique school within its unique …

Ambiguous Loss, Boundary Ambiguity, And English Learning: How Immigrants' Functionality Is Impacted By Language Proficiency, Shakir Ali

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

Due to conflicts in different parts of the world or the prospect of a better life, there are tremendous numbers of immigrants around the world. This study investigates the effect of language learning by immigrants on the level of boundary ambiguity they experience as a result of being separated from extended family. Through the lens of acculturation theory (Schumann, 1976), the study examines if learning a new language helps the immigrant to function within the culture of the host country. In addition, the study relies on the Contextual Model of Family Stress to ascertain if individual, family, or community resources …

Mapping Narrative Transactions: A Method/Framework For Exploring Multimodal Documents As Social Semiotic Sites For Ethnographic Study, Anne W. Anderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This work grew from my attempts to find a method for studying a body of editorial cartoons—multi-modal documents producing cross-modal responses—that were created and published in an earlier time period, in order to answer questions about the culture in which the cartoons were produced and read. Initially my questions included wondering about the topics cartoonists addressed, the narratives cartoonists created to address the topics, how the narratives were framed, and in what ways the narratives might have been seen as attempts to shape the larger cultural discourse around the topics. However, given the number of possible combinations of information streams …

Novice Teachers’ Perceptions Of Their Preparedness To Teach Students Experiencing Trauma: A Mixed Methods Study, Lisa A. Ciganek

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to explore how graduates of traditional teacher preparation programs perceived their preparedness to teach students experiencing trauma stemming from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). The study focused on the perceptions of novice teachers working in Title 1 schools across two school districts in Central Florida. The quantitative research portion of the study involved an online survey addressing the impact of teacher preparation program coursework and clinical experiences on the teachers’ perceptions of preparedness. Qualitative data was gathered from semi-structured interviews after the survey to give voice to the novice teachers’ perceptions of preparedness. Study …

Formative Space: Literacy Practices In 21st Century Curriculum Making, Mary C. Ott

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Partnerships for 21st Century learning support curricular reforms for global, cross-disciplinary competencies that will leverage and benefit education technologies. However, this research partnership with a literacy program developer occasioned an opportunity to study curriculum making in the 21st century that did not make assumptions about technologies and competencies. The integrated thesis based on this project pushes boundaries on how assessment and curriculum making are conceptualized by exploring broader questions of inquiry and participation through literacy and assessment practices in six junior elementary classrooms in Ontario, Canada, over a two-year period. Chapter 1 provides the background and purpose of the study …

Deverne Calloway: “I Am A Teacher---I Will Teach”, Holly Hick

Dissertations

In 1962, DeVerne Calloway was the first Black woman elected to the Missouri General Assembly and the first Black woman elected to any public office in the state of Missouri. A political activist and educator by nature, a legislator by trade, DeVerne has decades of historically documented critical work within the intersections of race, gender, and class. Her work, though well documented, remains undertheorized. This study seeks to explore DeVerne’s life and work through Black feminist theory and Critical Race Theory’s tenets of intersectionality and interest convergence, ultimately tracing her actions as a public intellectual. Written as an educational biography, …

Counselor Education Doctoral Students’ Experiences As Developing Gatekeepers, Diana Charnley

Dissertations

This phenomenological study sought to understand and describe the gatekeeping experiences of counselor education doctoral students and enumerate key influences in their learning and development. A national sample of 75 doctoral students responded to the descriptive pre-screening survey, and a sub-sample of 15 completed semi-structured interviews. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, two overarching or meta-themes and five main themes were identified pertaining to how doctoral students view their role as gatekeeper and how they learn and experience gatekeeping. Meta-themes included doctoral students feeling “in the middle”, especially between faculty and master’s students, and how they are working to address these uncertainties, …

"Because It's Free": Interviews Of Successful Tennessee Promise Students On How They Value Their Community College Experience, Susanna C. Miller

Doctoral Dissertations

Tennessee Promise is a tuition-free community college scholarship program for high school graduates that was initiated in Tennessee in 2015. This program is part of the State of Tennessee’s Drive to 55 initiative, the goal of which is to have 55% of the state’s workforce with a post-high school credential by 2025. This qualitative study was designed to learn how students who used TN Promise and graduated between 2015 and 2019 value their community college education experience. The research questions are: 1) What value do TN Promise students place on their education given that it is tuition-free? 2) What are …

Exploring Youth Leadership And Civic Engagement In Wahana Visi Forum Anak Da’Bajay (Wahana Visi’S Da’Bajay Children Forum) In Surabaya, Indonesia, Dian Mitrayani

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation research interprets the result of a qualitative, single case study of youth participation and leadership of disadvantaged youth leaders inside Wahana Visi Forum Anak da’Bajay (Wahana Visi’s da’Bajay Children Forum), a youth organization with children’s rights orientation located in Surabaya, Indonesia. The purpose of this study is to learn how urban youth in FAB, a youth organization with a children’s rights orientation, engage in civil society and exercise leadership at local and citywide levels. Drawing on youth participation, leadership theories, and the Indonesian context, the findings revealed that the youth leaders defined and practiced their own version of …

On Love And Treason: Critical White Feminist Thought For Social Justice Praxis, Amanda Joyce Parker

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

This dissertation is a theoretical piece that examines the positionality of white women in upholding white supremacy and a framework for critical white feminist thought that will move white women toward a self-reflexive and self-implicating praxis. A white matriarchy (Parker, 2018) is fully conceptualized as part of a powerful subsystem that operates under white supremacy. Concepts, such as a race-gender bribe and white women’s negative solidarity (Combahee River Collective, 1977), are exposed and discussed as part of the workings of white matriarchy. White emotionality (Matias, 2015), intergenerational whiteness, and antiracist parenting are also analyzed. I also suggest possibilities for resistance …

African, Know Thyself: Hip-Hop Pedagogy, Epistemic Disobedience, And Youth Engagement In West Africa, Noella Binda Niati

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation was a 23-month comparative case study of Y’en a Marre, a civic organizing movement based in Dakar, Senegal and FESCI, a student organization in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. This study investigates the ways in which these organizations view Hip-Hop and its pedagogical utility as a means to encourage socialization, promote authenticity, and foster leadership. Through Hip-Hop, young people are drawn to a cultural expression that reflects the social, economic, and political realities of their lives speaking to them in a language and manner they understand. This is critical given sub- Saharan Africa’s tremendous youth population and their potential impact …

Student Perceptions Of School And Teachers In The Classroom, Sonji Jones-Manson

Dissertations

Much of the existing education research on student outcomes has focused on gaining a better understanding of student cognition and behavior, considering affect primarily as the role of a mediator or moderator to cognitive or behavioral outcomes. Student satisfaction with school is an affective outcome that is shaped by their relationships with their teachers. Though research on affect as an outcome has increased, it has not been well-understood and often ignored in models of understanding student outcomes. This qualitative study adds to the body of research on student affect as an outcome by collecting data from current high school students …

Flourishing Through Communicative Language Learning: An Exploration Of University Learners’ Basic Needs, Well-Doing, And Well-Being, William S. Davis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the last 25 years, world language education (i.e., “foreign” or “second” language education) in the United States has seen a meaningful turn toward pedagogical approaches emphasizing communication, contextualization, and culture. This has coincided with the blossoming of recent theoretical perspectives and empirical research centered on language learners’ emotions, beliefs, and well-being. Two frameworks, self-determination theory (SDT) and positive psychology, are leading this exploration. Although these two perspectives have enhanced the discussion around language learning, each has its gaps; positive psychology research and its recommendations for practice do not often agree on what constitutes well-being and flourishing, while SDT, which …

The Impacts Of Incarceration On The Wellbeing Of Family Members Of African American Males Who Experience The U.S Prison System: A Phenomenological Study, Tremaine N. Leslie

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

African Americans encounter a high rate of imprisonment, and the social, economic, mental and other effects of imprisonment are extended to their families and communities (Roberts, 2004). In addition to separating individuals from their families and communities, incarceration maximizes the probability for fractured relationships, fragmented communities, and encumbers the public service systems (DeHart, Shapiro & Clone, 2018).Therefore, the purpose of this phenomenological inquiry was to explore the mental health effects of incarceration on the family members of African American males who experience the U.S prison system.

The theoretical framework utilized for this study was the critical race theory (CRT) immersed …

Does Expectation Influence Relationship? A Mixed Methods Investigation Of Parental Expectation And Parent-Child Relationship Among Chinese Family Groups 期望是否會影響關係？華裔家庭中父母的期望對親子關係的影響之研究, Sharon Chiang, Sharon Chiang, Sharon Chiang

Education Dissertations

Abstract

Parental expectation, particularly among Chinese family groups, is understood to be formative upon their children’s identity, behavior in family relationships, educational success and decisions in career choices. China's long history of traditionalism in its social values, heavily based on Confucian philosophy of the family, bears this out. Significant social changes have happened in recent years due to political shifts, modernization, capitalization, immigration, and government population control policies. However, expectation is an element on which both academic study and educational research are rather limited. Current study has touched on the topic of parental expectation and raised some awareness, but the …

Spatial Production And Nomadic Subjectivities In A Buddhist Learning Space, Chau Bao Le

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Space and place are an integral part in the geographies of education, therefore, knowledge about culturally complex and ethnically diverse transnational communities could inform curricular innovations that meet the needs of individual students. This year-long ethnographic study challenged the prevailing realities that U.S. schools continue to devalue the experiences and cultural backgrounds of immigrant youth, which caused students from ethnic, cultural, racial, linguistic, and religious minority groups to feel structurally excluded and marginalized. Through examining the spatial production and nomadic subjectivities enacted over time in a transnational, diasporic space of a Buddhist temple in a U.S. southern state, the study …

Am I A Systemic Iniquity Interrupter? Understanding The Influence Of Critical Race Educating Through The Narratives Of Alternative Ed. Black Educators, Ayanna Gore

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

This research aims to illuminate the Critical Influence Black educators from an alternative education certifying program (which will be labeled with the fictional name Lead On throughout this research) through their personal narratives on the successes, struggles, and benefits of teaching Black students. Using CRT methodology (tenant 1 & 2: counter-storytelling and the permanence of racism) to hear and analyze the narratives of Black educators experience around working to have a Critical Influence on their students. Taking an Emic approach, three in-depth story-telling sessions were conducted for each participant. All participants are alum of the alternative certifying education program and …

The Purpose Of Education: A Case Study On Accountability And Latina Teachers In A Midwest Charter Network, Alexandra Irma Cruz

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

The struggle to provide all children with an equitable education remains one of the most concerning and significant social, political, and moral problems in our nation. Although neoliberal accountability reform efforts have been set in place to alleviate such gaps, inequalities persist and disproportionately affect historically marginalized groups. This dissertation in curriculum studies aims to understand the perspectives of Latina teachers, an underrepresented group both in teaching and in educational research, on the effects of neoliberal accountability measures. This qualitative, multisite instrumental case study was guided by the following research questions: 1) When thinking about education under the effects of …

An Analysis Of The Impact Of A Social Emotional Learning Program On Transient Students’ Competencies And Perceptions Of School Climate, Kevin W. Nanney

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

With the passing of the Every Student Succeeds Act (2016), schools are now expected to assess more than just the academic achievement of their student body. While states can choose how they meet this expectation, many choose to focus on school climate. This change is important because, while crime in schools has gone down, feelings of being unsafe or bullied have gone up. To support schools in both assessing and improving their student’s perception of safety, schools have the opportunity to use social and emotional learning to improve measures of school climate, which provides indicators of student perceptions of the …

Mindfulness And Retention: A Potential Solution To The Lack Of Persistence Of Community College Students, Sandra Parsons

Mindfulness Studies Theses

Retention of community college students has many obstacles and unknowns. Students leave school and abandon their dreams of a college education for various reasons, such as lack of financial support, family support, and campus support. Efforts to research and develop retention practices and theories have been pursued for more than fifty years. Researchers and higher education institutions believe that incorporating such practices as first-year programs, learning communities, and tutoring will help in their retention efforts. While some of these practices have improved college student persistence, their efficacy has not been demonstrated for all students, specifically for those who attend community …

A Leadership Change. A Culture Shift...And A Police Riot: The Story Of How The Highest College Going High School In San Francisco Became The Lowest Graduating School In The District, Emmanuel Padilla

Master's Theses

Thurgood Marshall Academic High School, located in San Francisco’s Bayview, Hunters Point, scored the third lowest in the most recent Academic Performance Index (API) Report. Based on the median household income, the Bayview is a low-income community and according to San Francisco data, is a high crime neighborhood. The odds are against Marshall to provide exceptional service to their students, but it once did. In 2001, Marshall had the highest college-going rate in the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD). Today, only 20% of its student body would be considered college ready. This study will look into what happened to …

Proactive Prosocial Strategies Employed By First-Grade Teachers, Lisa M. Skiadas

Education Doctorate Dissertations

Primary students begin their school careers with widely varied skill sets in the areas of social and emotional competence, executive function, and self-regulation. However, many schools, like the one in this study, do not include social and emotional learning (SEL) in their curricula or tiered intervention frameworks. Students who struggle with basic classroom functions and behaviors do not receive the maximum benefit from academic instruction. Conversely, high levels of social and emotional competence have been linked to future academic success, financial and job security and better physical and mental health.

This investigation sought to identify proactive strategies used by three …

Lgbtq+ Survey For School Psychologists And School Counselors, Stacey Davidson

Educational Specialist, 2020-current

School counselors and school psychologists were surveyed regarding their perceptions and experiences working with school aged students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ+) their sexual orientation or gender. Findings indicated that many of those surveyed believe that professional development and experience with the LGBTQ+ population will benefit them the most in ensuring that they can provide for the student’s needs. Perceptions of school support for the LGBTQ+ community were reported as relatively positive. A list of resources are included in the recommendations section.

My Family, Their History: Using Exploratory Inquiry & Pragmatic Methods To Learn History, Lowellen Sucgang

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

History education is at a crossroads. The availability of information at our fingertips has the potential to change how the non-historian sees history and the other social sciences. This capstone researched ways the non-historian can utilize the changing face of history education by implementing the pragmatic methods of John Dewey’s education philosophy called instrumentalism. Principal issues discussed include the pros and cons of out-of-classroom history education, utilization of exploratory inquiry for research and the usefulness of primary sources for a historiography. To apply instrumentalism ideals and methods, I created a historiography about my ancestors and how their lives intertwined with …