Education Commons^™

Impacts Of Cellphone Usage On Adolescent Social And Emotional Development, Chelsea N. Hammer

Culminating Experience Projects

Adolescent cellphone use has a negative impact on the school environment. This project explores how cellphones effect youth social and emotional development. The literature is reviewed as it relates to cellphone usage and emotional well-being, mental health, intrapersonal skill development and interpersonal growth. Cellphone addiction amongst teenagers is discussed as well protective factors to mitigate the damage cellphone use inflicts on student social and emotional development. This project advocates for making school stakeholders aware of these harmful effects so as to consider a re-examination of school cellphone policy. Incorporating periods of unplugging during the school day as well as using …

High School Sport Participation: Effects On Students' Grit And Resilience, Rory Kekoa-Israel Waldman

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescence is a time of transition, growth, and identity exploration. Often this great time for growth is accompanied with an increase in stressors that can be detrimental to success and health, without the necessary coping mechanisms. It is a period of life where resilience and grit are extremely important. A post-traumatic growth definition for resilience allows for the possibility of a steeling effect, in which the resilience of an adolescent can grow and develop. Sport provides an ideal environment for the development of both grit and resilience by providing a safe environment for adversity to occur without detrimental consequences. In …

Using Improvement Science And A Co-Teaching Model To Increase The Effects Of Evidence-Based Reading Intervention For High School Students Reading Below Grade Level Proficiency, Ashley Vaughn

All Dissertations

I conducted a single instrumental case study to address the problem of practice in which approximately one-third of students entering the ninth grade for the 2019-2020 school year in the study school district were reading below grade level proficiency. I chose an instrumental case study method because it allows for an in-depth examination of a situation within its real-life context. I opted for this approach because I sought to understand the problem of practice deeply and generate recommendations for practical application. By focusing on a single case, I could thoroughly explore the intricacies of the subject matter, providing valuable insights …

African American Adolescent Suicidality And Prevention From An Urban School Counselor Perspective, Shannon Franklin

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

African American adolescent suicidality has become more prevalent, and urban school counselors are positioned uniquely to intervene. This research studied the overarching societal factors in the sociocultural, economic, and political spheres that influence increased suicidality behaviors in African American adolescents from the perspective of urban school counselors. The focus of this research was to hear the lived experiences of urban school counselors regarding the impact of racial discrimination on African American adolescent suicidality. The two theoretical frameworks that were used to support this study are the world-systems analysis theory and critical race theory. This study took a qualitative phenomenological approach …

Academic Performance And Educator Efficacy In Supporting Military-Connected Adolescents Among High Schools In A Georgia School District, Megan Louise Jones

Theses and Dissertations

The effects of a parent’s military service on their children are well-researched in the post-9/11 era, particularly for elementary-aged students. However, research involving adolescents is much narrower, despite 25% of all military dependents ranging between 9th and 12th grade. These students are already enduring major changes as adolescents, but military-connected adolescents are also navigating the many stressors of their family’s military affiliation. These students are oftentimes burdened by frequent moves, parental deployment, and acclimation to their circumstances. While the military family is acutely aware of the heightened stressors that potentially create chaos among the family unit, teachers’ awareness of these …

Enhancing College And Career Readiness Of Hmong Adolescents Through Group Work In High School, Xeev Vang

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Hmong adolescents face many challenges during high school, particularly college and career readiness. School counselors are trained professionals who can help. This transcendental phenomenology study explored the lived experiences of six Hmong adolescents and how they make sense of college and career lessons in a group work format over six weeks. Data was collected through participant journals and interviews. Each participant interview was recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using Moustakas (1994) phenomenology method of data analysis. Five domains, sixteen themes, and three subthemes emerged. Family members are crucial influencers in college and career decision-making. Barriers include language, financial, family, culture, and …

Adolescents & Social Media Use, Wendy Shoot

M.Ed. Literature Reviews

This research explores the effects of social media use by adolescents. Five themes were identified: [1] social media and adolescent mental and physical well-being, [2] social media and adolescent problematic usage, [3] social media and adolescent academics, [4] social media and adolescent family connections, and [5] social media benefits for adolescents. The paper goes on to analyze how practices at the Middle School where I teach could be aligned with research and then questions implications for future research and transformed practice.

Educational Environments And Children's Physical Activity And Sedentary Behaviors, Nathan R. Tokarek

Theses and Dissertations

Children and adolescents spend the majority of their day engaged in sedentary behaviors (SB), while also not meeting physical activity (PA) recommendations. The failure to develop and maintain health enhancing behaviors from a young age may impact an individual throughout their life. With children and adolescents spending a large proportion of their waking hours in a school setting, the educational environment presents an opportunity in which children and adolescents’ PA and SB can be positively influenced. Therefore, the purpose of this dissertation was to explore how children and adolescent’s school time PA and SB are associated with the educational setting, …

Raising The Roar: A Case Study Of Early Adolescent Student Voice On Service-Learning And Catholic Identity, April Beuder

LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study examined early adolescent students’ perceptions of their service-learning program experiences at one Catholic elementary school in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles (ADLA). The purpose of the study was: (a) to understand how the powerful tradition of the Church related to doing works of social justice and outreach was experienced by students in one ADLA Catholic elementary school in the form of experiential service learning, and (b) to explore whether associations exist between the students’ perceptions of their Catholic identities and their service-learning experiences. This study gathered research from student voice and work samples and utilized Carver’s …

The Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences, Hope, And Well-Being Among Rural Latine Adolescents, Danielle Moss Gettings

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Considerable research has demonstrated that minority at-risk youth in rural environments experience more adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and are more likely to suffer from poor academic performance and severe mental health issues. Results of recent studies of resilience and social support as potential mitigators of ACEs suggest that hope could also mediate these adverse effects. Hope is a component of motivation critical to goal attainment and coping with loss. This study was conducted to examine the role of hope as a mediator of the relationship between ACEs and well-being among rural Latine adolescents. Using Washington State Department of Health Healthy …

A Qualitative Study Examining The Literacy Experiences Of Male Middle School Students Inside And Outside Of School, Ari Raymond Colondres

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

A literacy gap is a difference between a person’s ability to read for understanding and meaning-making and their anticipated ability to read for their grade level. A larger proportion of males are at least one or more years below grade level in reading ability compared to their female peers. This reading difference is called the gender literacy gap. Students over one year below grade level are at an increased risk of dropping out of high school and face the possibility of diminished lifetime earnings. Gender, low levels of motivation, low socio-economic status, low engagement, and school perceptions of literacy are …

Pipeline To Power: A Creative Exploration Of My Journey To Black Youth Empowerment, Junichi Uehara Lockett

Educational Leadership & Policy Studies Dissertations

Through an arts-based autoethnography, I explored the influences and experiences that informed my approach to leading Black youth empowerment programming. Although there is a significant amount of scholarship on Black youth empowerment programming and its importance to Black children, there is limited literature on how one becomes a Black youth empowerment facilitator in the community. I sought to answer the following questions: (1) How did external forces and people inform my approach to leading Black youth empowerment programming? (2) How did my inner drive and consciousness inform my approach to leading Black youth empowerment programming? (3) How does a critique …

The Impact Of Prosodic Reading Instruction On Adolescents’ Silent Reading Comprehension, Judy Lynn Fields

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research has established a strong relationship between silent reading comprehension and prosodic reading fluency among young readers, but much remains unknown about this relationship among older readers (Breen, Kaswer, Van Dyke, Krivokapic, & Landi, 2016; Cypert & Petro, 2019). The goal of this study was to determine the impact of prosodic reading instruction on adolescents’ silent reading comprehension. Conducted in a classroom setting in two different school districts, this study included three certified English teachers and a total of 52 students in grades 8, 9, and 10 for a period of nine to twelve weeks with a total of 810 …

Quickwrites And The Quest To Reverse Writing Reluctance, Jenna Dunn

Honors Projects

Current research suggests that students’ enjoyment of writing will positively impact their writing achievement (Graham, 2007; Bulut, 2017). Given this trend, the following study explores the extent to which quickwriting, a teaching strategy developed extensively by Linda Rief (2003, 2018) as well as Donald Graves & Penny Kittle (2005), impacts the attitudes of reluctant writers. A total of nineteen eleventh-grade students were interviewed in three focus groups. All of the students within the study experienced three weeks of regular classroom quickwriting along with one week of a quickwriting extension workshop prior to participation in the focus groups. Students were asked …

Engaging Disinterested Adolescent Readers In The Middle School Classroom, Elizabeth M. Lezman

Culminating Experience Projects

Reading is a necessary skill and habit that adolescents need to carry into adulthood to set them on a more advantageous life trajectory. As students reach adolescence and their interest and engagement in reading tends to decrease, it is vital for educators to implement strategies and structures to promote engagement, passion and interesting in reading. Three key factors of increasing engagement are to build a community of readers, implement choice reading, and provide texts representing a variety of identities, cultures, traditions and voices. Research has proven that students are more engaged in reading when they feel part of a community, …

What Factors Impact Black Adolescents’ Attitudes Towards Literacy In The Classroom?, Sheila R. Harris

Theses and Dissertations

In the Black community, there is a paradox about how education is a key to success and a way out of a person’s unfortunate socioeconomic situation (Mickelson, 1990). Over time, Black adolescents have continuously performed low academically (NAEP, 2019). According to the Nation’s Report Card (2019), when viewed by racial/ethnic groups, the percentages of students performing at or above Proficient ranged from 18% for Black students to 46% for white students (NAEP, 2019). While holding such a vital belief in the “power of an education” (focusing mainly on literacy as reading), the current study seeks to understand what factors play …

Learning By Playing: A Curriculum Utilizing Improvisational Theater To Develop Prosocial Behavior Skills And Self-Efficacy In Young Adolescents, Lynn Lovett Barr

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Prosocial behavior requires competency in social-emotional skills including interpersonal skills, conflict resolution, and emotional regulation. During the developmental stage of early adolescence, youth are learning these skills and are more likely to engage in prosocial behavior if they feel efficacious in them. However, most social-emotional learning programs focus on conceptual knowledge in these areas without providing sufficient opportunities for practice, which does not allow students to develop sufficient procedural knowledge and self-efficacy. Improvisational theater offers a solution to this problem; used in concert with social-emotional lessons, it provides practice scenarios and procedural learning opportunities. This project consists of a curriculum …

Increasing High School Students’ Awareness Of The Effects Of Gender Stereotypes, Kelly Y. Shepherd

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Gender stereotypes can prevent many adolescents from exploring aspects of their identity. One reason being, gender stereotypes are reinforced in media and society on a daily basis, constantly reaffirming the beliefs of what a male and female should act and look like. These beliefs may cause an adolescent to make choices about their identity without thinking or questioning, which is known as identity foreclosure. As a result, adolescents may limit themselves academically or socially which might restrict future career paths and job opportunities. My capstone project focused on teaching adolescent Girl Scouts of California Central Coast how to identify, question, …

Implementation Of Teen Dating Violence Education Programs In South Carolina High Schools, Leila Nguyen

Senior Theses

Teen dating violence is a national issue that effects approximately 25 percent of American teens annually¹. The need for teen dating violence education programs within South Carolina high schools was examined on this premise as well as the importance of mitigating the statistics of those adults affected by interpersonal relationship violence and psychological aftermath on survivors. A presentation for students that taught awareness of dating violence, aspects of healthy and unhealthy relationship aspects, and gave resources to aid those in abusive relationships was presented at Dutch Fork High School in Irmo, SC. A survey after the presentation indicated …

The Association Between Participation In Extracurricular Activities And Adolescent Mental Health, Michael Gottfried

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

A growing number of adolescents are affected by depression, anxiety, and suicide each year, with females experiencing higher rates than males. Meanwhile, the demand for students’ time is increasing, and many participate in more extracurricular activities. This study will help answer the questions, “to what extent does participation in school-sponsored extracurricular activities impact an adolescent’s mental health?”, “to what extent does this impact vary by the type of activity?”, and “to what extent do these outcomes vary by gender?” While other studies have considered each of these variables, none look closely at all three (participation, gender, and type of activity) …

Teacher Perceptions Of Junior High Student Reading Motivation When Using Authentic Audiences, Cynthia Wise Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Reading achievement at the junior high level continues to be a concern in the United States and research has indicated that decreased reading motivation is one possible reason. Researchers have established that the use of authentic audiences leads to increased motivation and achievement at the elementary, high school, and college levels but have yet to demonstrate the same findings at the junior high level. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore teacher perceptions of how the use of authentic audiences influences the reading motivation, autonomy, and feelings of relatedness of junior high students. The conceptual framework for …

A Comparative Analysis Of Chinese And American Cinematic Depictions Of The Female Adolescent Life Transition, Lily Li

Honors Theses

The thesis examines the representation through film of the ways social systems in Western and Eastern societies impact female adolescents’ growth. My study focuses on the transition from childhood to adolescence, from a relatively "naive" state to a reflective state of mind, filled with uncertainty about oneself and the future. In this process, there are emotions of confusion, insecurity, struggle, anxiety, and intergenerational conflicts. Some crucial factors such as friendships, family relationships, and societal pressures are influential in adolescents' formation of their personalities. This transformational process is universal across all cultures, as every adolescent experiences the transition from youth to …

Statistical Modeling Of Positive Peer Support On Longitudinal Adolescent Substance Use, Kady Rost

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To evaluate this study’s research question of ”Does the latent construct of Positive Peer Support (PPS) relate to the construct of Adolescent Substance Use (ASU) over time, controlling for neighborhood safety, race, and sex?”, Structural Equation (SEM) and Latent Growth Curve Modeling (LGCM) were used to investigate trajectories. Secondary longitudinal data from Zimmerman (2014) of 604 students enrolled for four consecutive years in public schools located in Flint, Michigan. In the secondary data resource, students who participated were declared “at risk” by GPA. Significant relationships were found in SEM: Positive Peer Support to Adolescent Substance Use, All Control Variables to …

The Lived Experiences Of Adolescent Ell Students In East Tennessee, Sarah Mould

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adolescent immigrant students face many challenges upon entering public schools for the first time, especially in rural areas where schools may not have the resources and cultural competence to meet their needs. Background factors like culture, previous schooling, and socioeconomic status combine with contextual factors in the learning environment, which further affect their academic outcome. The qualitative tradition of phenomenology was used to explore and describe the experiences and challenges of thirteen Spanish-speaking immigrant or newcomer youth who entered East Tennessee public middle or high schools within the last fifteen school years.

The findings indicated that parents’ perspectives and understanding …

The Effects Of Self-Regulated Strategy Development Instruction On Argument Writing Skills Of Adolescents With Mild Disabilities., Stacy Crawford Bewley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics (2012) indicates that a large majority of students with disabilities continue to perform at basic proficiency or below in the area of writing, which has serious implications for post-secondary academic endeavors and successful transition into the workforce (US Department of Labor, 2014; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2017). Therefore, it is imperative to identify and implement effective writing interventions for this population of students. Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) has been widely researched in elementary and middle school settings, but much less research has been conducted with high school students. The purpose of …

No Turning Back: Exploring Sex Education In The United States, Xiyuan Chen

Major Papers

Sex education provides valuable information for young people to know and practice safe and appropriate sexual activities. Sex education also educates students on what healthy relationships look like, developing their emotional and psychological well-being. The United States has increasingly adopted sex education for adolescents, who are highly vulnerable age group. However, the programs often only focus on abstinence and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, and to some extent, offer a simplistic discussion around consent. Most however, do not adequately address complicated issues like personal responsibility, open communication, a deeper understanding of gender and gender relations and the incorporation of LGBTQQ …

Proactive Classroom Management Strategies In U.S. Middle And Secondary Education, Brittany R. Graves

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Knowledge of classroom management strategies has great importance for middle and secondary teachers. The present research aims to consolidate findings on evidence-based, proactive classroom management strategies for adolescents that can be effectively used by middle and high school teachers of all experience levels. Results suggest that relationship building, antecedent attention, positive verbal feedback, opportunities to respond, proactive discipline, and parental involvement increase engagement and decrease disruptive behavior in middle and secondary classrooms. Veteran, new, and preservice teachers should evaluate and update their classroom management strategies to reflect current, evidence-based practices.

Experiences Of Adolescents In The General Education Setting Interacting With Peers With Intellectual Disability, Katie Goldey

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Social interaction is critical to health, quality of life, and linguistic and cognitive development. However, young people with intellectual disabilities are unlikely to have equitable opportunities for social interaction. This may be particularly true of adolescents. This study used qualitative phenomenological methods to examine the lived experiences of students in the general education setting interacting with their peers with intellectual disability. Twenty participants engaged in one on one interviews with the author. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed for overarching themes. Four main themes emerged from the data including: (1) Teens just don’t have many opportunities to interact with …

Visualizing Girlhood: Visibility And The Power Of The Black Girl Gaze To Understand Adolescent Girls’ Identity, Darielle Blevins

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Black feminist scholars have highlighted the various ways Black women and girls are rendered invisible throughout many U.S. institutions. In the past few years, advocates have called attention to the ways gendered-racialized biases contribute to the punitive and dehumanizing treatment of Black girls in school. This study will demonstrate how Black adolescent girls negotiate their identity at school through the creation of self-portraits. By using dual self-portraits, in which girls are able to express their own perspective and imagine the perspective of their teacher, Black adolescent girls are allowed the space to explore the relationship between power, culture and their …

Exploring Self-Determination And Recreational Sports Participation For Adolescents With Disabilities, Samantha K. Papp

Honors Theses

Self-determination is a vital skill for individuals with disabilities and provides significant benefits, such as more positive adult outcomes and greater quality of life. Recreational sports participation is another fundamental aspect of life for individuals with disabilities, as it leads to increased physical activity, enhanced self-esteem, and improved peer acceptance. Despite the well-researched benefits of both self-determination skills and recreational sports participation, a literature review revealed few studies that examined the relationship between self-determination and recreational sports participation for individuals, particularly adolescents, with disabilities. This mixed methods study was designed to fill this void, using questionnaires, interviews, and observations to …