Education Commons^™

Building A Strategic Framework With A Sustainability Lens At Wcu, Stefanie Schwalm

Sustainability Research & Practice Seminar Presentations

Dr. Stefanie Schwalm, WCU Associate Provost for Accreditation, SRPS Spring '24 4/17: "Building a Strategic Framework with a Sustainability Lens at WCU."

An Overview Of Udl Theory And Scholarship In Higher Education, Rachel Mcmullin, Danielle Skaggs

University Libraries Faculty Publications

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an educational framework for improving and optimizing teaching and learning. It’s focused on intentionally designing for the needs and abilities of all learners—putting accessibility into the planning stages instead of as an accommodation after the fact—and providing flexibility in the ways students access and engage with materials and learning objectives.

Understanding Students’ Cognitive Processes While Evaluating Online Sources: A Mixed Methods Study, Julia Lennox

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Given the substantial time young people spend online and their reliance on social media for information, research supports the importance of understanding how media literacy interventions may impact students’ abilities to process online information. This study employed a case study- explanatory sequential mixed methods research design to investigate the impact a media literacy course may have on students’ cognitive processes while evaluating online information. Twelve high school students (n=12) completed a questionnaire, the first quantitative phase, while nine (n=9) responded to performance tasks assessing their civic online reasoning skills. The sequential phase involved qualitatively analyzing assignments …

From Becoming To Being: How Stem Teachers Develop Leadership Identities, Kelsey Quaisley, Wendy M. Smith, Brett A. Criswell, Rachel Funk, Anna Hutchinson

Secondary Education Faculty Publications

The development of STEM teacher leadership identity empowers K-12 teachers to make changes to improve teaching and learning. Identity development might not be productively supported in all school settings, however. Hence, external professional development programs should offer opportunities to supplement this identity development. We construct and propose a Can't-to-Becoming-to-Being model to describe STEM teacher leadership identity development as a progression of stages from weak to strong identity. Using interview data over two points in time with 127 STEM teacher leaders, we illustrate four stages of development: Can't, Can, Should, and Being. We also elucidate the conditions that teachers identify as …

Sharing Resources With Rwanda: Multidisciplinary Engagement With The Forest Of Hope Association In Gishwati-Mukura National Park, Thierry Amiable, Rebecca Chancellor, Trachanda Garcia, Aaron S. Rundus, Jordan Schugar

Sustainability Research & Practice Seminar Presentations

Sharing Resources with Rwanda: Multidisciplinary Engagement with the Forest of Hope Association in Gishwati-Mukura National ParkThierry Amiable, Forest of Hope Association (Rwanda, Rutsiro District) Rebecca Chancellor, Associate Professor of Anthropology & Sociology and Psychology (WCU) Trachanda Garcia, Associate Director of Education Abroad Programs (WCU) Aaron Rundus, Professor of Psychology (WCU) Jordan Schugar, Professor of English (WCU)

Women In Higher Education: A Brief Report On Stress During Covid-19, Dimple S. Johnson, Aaron D. Johnson, Kristen B. Crossney, Emily Devereaux

Public Policy & Administration Faculty Publications

Higher education institutions have evolved into a more stressful environment. Women have been experiencing higher levels of stress than their male counterparts. With higher education adopting to the onset of the pandemic, this brief report studied women’s perceived stress in relation to perceived organizational and supervisory support, and age during times of crisis. In an era of social distancing, quarantines, and lockdowns, the findings suggest that women’s perceived stress is negatively related to age, perceived organizational support, and perceived supervisory support. Society as we once knew it pre-pandemic will never be the same. Higher education is inevitably going to have …

Diversity And Disconnection: Does An Online Setting Affect Student’S Understanding Of Privilege, Oppression, And White Guilt?, Shannon Mcqueen

Political Science Faculty Publications

Should educators teach diversity courses in online formats? Courses covering sexism, racism, ethnocentrism, or homophobia are increasingly part of the curriculum requirements for college students. This study compares student surveys from six sections of the author’s introductory Diversity in Politics course; three of these sections are taught asynchronously online, and three are taught in a face-to-face setting. Results reveal no difference between online and face-to-face students’ understandings of privilege and oppression, sense of belonging, or white guilt. However, although all Republican students increased their understanding of privilege and oppression from this course, Republican students uniquely entered the course with less …

Eighth Graders’ Approaches To Reading Analysis As Compared With The Pssa’S Application Of Common Core Standards, John Phillips

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

States administer standardized tests such as the PSSAs to students each year to assess student mastery of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Many argued the CCSS and close reading are reincarnations of new criticism (Tampio, 2018), but CCSS creators did not cite empirical research showing students approached literary analysis through close reading or new criticism (Dewitz & Graves, 2021; Hinchman & Moore, 2013). In opposition of new criticism, Rosenblatt (1978) argued for transactional reading with her reader response theory. In order to examine how students make meaning of texts, this study used a simultaneous mixed-methods QUAL-QUAL design (Morse, 2010) …

Examination Of Intramural Sport Officials’ Training, Development And Performance: A Mixed Methods Study, Daniel Comas

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Sports officials play a significant role in organized sports, yet academic research surrounding their training, development, and performance is minimal. Across the nation, athletes are attempting to safely resume play after the COVID-19 pandemic, and many sports officials have decided that they will not return to their respective fields or courts. More robust training and development within intramural sports programs on college campuses could be the solution to recruiting and retaining sports officials.

This mixed methods study examined intramural sports officials’ training, development, and performance within a collegiate intramural sports department. This study utilized a two-phase explanatory sequential mixed methods …

Tell Me Your Story: Utilizing Photovoice To Explore The Journeys Of First-Generation College Graduates, Christina Pantoja Williams

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

First-generation students make up on average 22% of college students on college campuses and this number continues to grow (Chen & Carroll, 2005). While the enrollment of first-generation college students in higher education institutions continues to increase, first-generation college students have a higher attrition rate, dropout rate, and lower graduation rates than other groups (Gibson & Slate, 2010; Pascarella et al., 2003). Additionally, the majority of the literature discussing first -generation college students, views them from a deficit lens and focuses on what first-generation students lack as they enter college. This study focused on the journeys of first-generation college students …

Progression And Protectiveness Of Social Bonds And Play In A Captive Group Of Western Lowland Gorillas, Madeline L. Vandevere

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

The current study aims to bring to light the critical role that play has on healthy development, not only for nonhuman primates, but also for humans. In addition to building the literature concerning social and play development among gorillas and humans, this study also hopes to promote the observation and welfare of captive gorillas. The present study conducted longitudinal observational research of a troop of captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) to gain insights into primate play development and how it relates to social bonding and zoological enrichment. The study followed the early infancy and juvenile years …

“Like A Whole Thing”: Dialogic Sensemaking In One Sixth Grade Classroom, Catherine Bienkowski

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study used a constructivist approach to better understand how students in one sixth grade classroom participate in dialogic discussions while making sense of texts. Participants in the study attended a suburban, public, high-performing middle school in Pennsylvania. Drawing on Sociocultural Learning Theory and Transactional Reading Theory, the researcher observed one English Language Arts class. Nine students participated in five reading events over a period of two months. Data collection, informed by linguistic ethnographic methods, included audio recordings, transcriptions of reading events, fieldnotes, and transcriptions of one on one and small group interviews. In Vivo coding of the interview …

Transformative Social Emotional Learning: A Call To Heal The Effects Of Racial Trauma On Identity And Self-Efficacy, Elizabeth Trostle

West Chester University Master’s Theses

Growing up I was never a child that loved school. I fell in love with learning in environments that did not look or feel like classrooms. And in 2005 I learned that I had a passion for learning about pedagogy. I entered the classroom again this time as a teacher, ready to engage students in learning. What I was offered was curriculum and learning standards that left little room for experiences. Despite my efforts, and after a decade of experience, I was still baffled by the resistance to learning.

I wanted to understand this because I saw that education—when you …

Linguistically Diverse Writers And The Shaping Of A Scholarly Ethos: Rhetorical Listening As A Strategy In Composition Pedagogy, Ashlynn T. Rader

West Chester University Master’s Theses

This thesis project advocates for a more inclusive approach to writing instruction, challenging traditional pedagogical practices that have historically excluded marginalized groups from fully participating in academic discourse. This project highlights the ways that Aristotelian interpretations of ethos continue to inform and shape contemporary writing pedagogy, despite their potential outdatedness in the context of the 21st-century composition classroom. By examining the Conference of College Composition and Communication's policy resolution entitled Students' Right to Their Own Language, this project recognizes the presence of linguistically diverse writers and their historical, ongoing struggle for academic legitimacy. Furthermore, this project proposes rhetorical listening …

Critical Latino Studies: Combatting The (Mis)Education Of Latino Students In U.S. Public Schools, Heidi Kern

West Chester University Master’s Theses

In this thesis, I will explore the historical undervaluing and miseducation of Latino youth in U.S. public schools using a lens of decolonial theory to combat the systems of oppression that continue to affect our Latino youth today. First, I explain what experiences brought me to this concern and provide a clear theoretical framework to explain my philosophy of education. I also articulate key concepts from decolonial scholars and educational activists that inform my own work on the educational experiences of Latino students. In Chapter Three, I provide a historical review of how a public school system rooted in colonialism …

Familiar Faces And Comfortable Spaces: The Role Of The College Union In Fostering Sense Of Belonging On A College Campus, Adriane Reilly

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

The physical environment of the college union building has the potential to influence a student’s sense of belonging. Using a conceptual framework that included campus ecology framework (Strange & Banning, 2001) and sense of belonging theory (Strayhorn, 2019), this study explored undergraduate student experiences of belongingness in the college union. Particularly, this study focused on a college union located on the campus of a public, regional university in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Further, this study aimed to explore the variety of ways that the union’s physical space does (or does not) influence sense of belonging for a …

Student Affairs Professionals’ Experiences Supporting Students Through A Grief Loss: A Qualitative Study, Lenora Mitchell

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study examined the experiences of student affairs administration-prepared (SAAP) professionals’ application of knowledge and skills to interact with grieving students and the ways in which their respective SAAP programs prepared them for this work. This study examined (a) the experiences of SAAP professionals supporting a student navigating grief loss at one case study institution and (b) reflections on the application of skills and knowledge gained from their education preparation programs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three full-time SAAP professionals at a single institution, and a comparative analysis of their educational preparation curriculum was conducted. Participants were asked to …

Liberatory Language Instruction: A Dusselian Self-Study, Renee Burgos

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This is a qualitative self-study conducted in the tradition of practitioner inquiry that examines the pedagogics of an English language development (ELD) classroom. Different from pedagogy, pedagogics is the face-to-face encounter of Sameness and Otherness in systems or institutions characterized by power imbalances, as theorized by Argentinian liberatory philosopher, Enrique Dussel. More specifically, liberatory pedagogics, as conceptualized by Dussel in the arena of education, is characterized by an analectic between teacher and student in which, from a position outside of the dominant paradigm, the dynamic of Sameness and Otherness is observed, evaluated, and reimagined so as not to reproduce sameness …

Equitable Funding For Trauma Informed Social Policy: A Critical Analysis Of The 2019-2020 Pennsylvania Department Of Education School Safety And Security Grant Program, Heather Bickley

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This study is a critical analysis of the funding distribution of the 2019-2020 Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) School Safety and Security Grant (SSSG) to identify if there is evidence of inequity in the grant's funding distribution. It used a theoretical framework that includes a transformative paradigm with trauma informed social policy as a theoretical lens, with the conceptual lenses education debt and distributive justice, applied to a concurrent mixed methods design. The research followed a QuantCrit methodology, and the features of a critical policy analysis were used to present the findings.

The quantitative tests found several significant …

Educating The Whole Child: Using A Holistic Education Approach And Mindfulness In The Classroom, Julie Strittmatter

West Chester University Master’s Theses

Throughout this thesis I will outline how the current school system creates considerable gaps in developing happy, healthy, and fulfilled individuals. Since I believe the purpose of a democratic education is to help all people reach some level of self-actualization, I will explore how schools can and should tend to the basic needs of children as a foundation for their learning experience. By investigating the purpose of schools and the purpose of educators, I will argue the importance of taking education beyond the world of academics to tend to the physical, emotional, and social bodies of all students and the …

Under The Radar: Legislative Intent To Silence Critical Race Theory, Meg Hazel

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public education is a hotly contested issue across the nation. Since 2020, multiple legislators in several states have introduced legislation that would ban the instruction of CRT in public universities. This qualitative study explored Discourse models supported and upheld by these bills along with Whitelash strategies used to promote them. I examined 53 bills proposed by lawmakers, most of which contained lists of phrases usually called “divisive concepts” or “discriminatory concepts” that professors were prohibited from discussing in their classrooms. In addition, I analyzed 26 statements made by supporters of the bills that provided justification …

Successful Admissions In A Time Of Great Uncertainty: A Case Study Of Employees' Perceptions Of Employee Well-Being And Emotional Intelligence, Sarah Freed

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative embedded single-case study explores admissions employees’ perceptions of departmental success and individual employee well-being, including the role emotional intelligence has on these outcomes, through the lens of Bolman and Deal’s Four Frame Model (1984). This study is necessary because of the turbulent higher education landscape and because social factors contributing to this turbulence are expected to stay the same. More specifically, this study is situated in a thriving Office of First-Year Admissions at an institution within a public university system in a rural setting experiencing an unstable organizational landscape. I interviewed sixteen employees in a successful mid-size public …

The Search For Something Better: Narrative Inquiry Into Why Women In Non-Faculty Roles Left Higher Education During Covid-19 Pandemic, Amanda Corsi

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Stressors brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic for women working in non-faculty roles in higher education still need to be understood. While there is extensive research on voluntary turnover, the influence of the pandemic on how and why women choose to leave the field is still lacking. Most research on higher education professionals fails to include the perspective of women in non-faculty positions. This study conducted a qualitative narrative inquiry to understand the experiences of women in non-faculty roles who worked in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic and how that influenced their reasons for turnover decision-making. The results found …

Student Loans, Persistence, And Well-Being: The Need To Support Single Mothers In College: A Qualitative Study, Kimberly Lemon

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study focuses on the experiences of adult learner single mothers in college. Specifically, this research sought to understand how student loan debt informs their ability to persist and their well-being. In addition, the study examined the supports single mothers in college receive and the support they need to persist to degree attainment. Using a narrative inquiry design, semi structured interviews were conducted with 2 participants from a mid-sized public university in the northeast of the United States. Participants recounted their experiences throughout their undergraduate and graduate education. Participants spoke of the difficulties faced while enrolled in classes and …

Service-Learning Curricula In Eastern Pennsylvania’S K-12 Schools: Educational Decision-Makers’ Experiences Through A Critical Lens, Megan Jerabek

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This research examines the experiences of K-12 curricular decision-makers in their consideration of service-learning curricula within their schools and districts. Recent evidence indicates service-learning offerings have decreased in K-12 schools in the last decade (The Education Commission on the States), and this research utilizes qualitative inquiry and a critical theory framework to understand this phenomenon via the lived experiences of educators with service-learning and the conditions at play that impact its inclusion and exclusion from schools. The findings consider the similarities and contradictions educators face, the policies and experiences that frame their perspectives of service-learning, and its accessibility within their …

Innovating Education Through Design Thinking: A Case Study Of Problem-Solving Educators, Matthew Pimental

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This study aimed to identify methodologies and practices that enable innovation to thrive in the public education system. Design thinking (DT) was selected for examination given its demonstrated ability to: (a) make people and teams more innovative , (b) change institutional cultures to be more creative and solution-oriented, and (c) create conditions necessary for innovation to thrive within established organizational structures. This intrinsic case study explored the experiences of a group of educators who used design thinking to innovate solutions to the intractable problems they faced. Participants in this study were teachers and administrators who received training in DT, and …

Everyone Is On Their Phones: Eighth Graders' Struggle With Social Media In School, George Weinhardt

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study examined social media in the school setting from the point of view of eighth-grade participants. This study implemented a focused ethnography, examining a group of individuals’ perspectives on a focused area of their shared culture. Using critical theory, this study examined qualitative data with the concepts of structures, subjectivity, and power at the confluence of social media and school for eighth-grade students. Qualitative data were collected using five semi-structured focus groups, artifact analysis, fieldnotes, and memos. The findings highlighted that eighth-grade students acknowledge that there is a struggle between social media and school. This struggle alters their …

Exploring Sub-Saharan African International Students’ Experiences Of Racism Within Higher Education Institutions In The United States: A Qualitative Study, Gloria N. Wafula

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study explored Sub-Saharan African international students’ experiences of racism within colleges and universities in the United States. Extant research on international students’ experiences tend to be homogenous, thus assuming that all international students from different countries have similar experiences. This study specifically highlighted the experiences of Sub-Saharan African international students around the issue of racial discrimination. Concepts discussed include Sub-Saharan students’ experiences of racism within colleges, perceptions of racial identity, and overall understanding of racism. To explain these concepts, the theories of neo-racism and intersectionality were employed. The study utilized interviews for data collection. In total, the research …

Animating Faith Development: The Experience Of Student Affairs Professionals At U.S. Catholic Colleges & Universities, Sarah Williamson

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Faith is a form of social identity encompassing an individual’s religious and spiritual beliefs that aid them in making meaning in their lives (Fowler, 1981; Patton et al., 2016). While many secular institutions have reduced or removed learning about faith, Catholic higher education is an environment that integrates faith development into its work with students (Clark, 2001; Astin & Oseguera, 2004; Estanek, 2008). However, limited research exists on faith development in practice by early to mid-career student affairs professionals within Catholic higher education (James & Estanek, 2012). This qualitative study explored student affairs professionals' personal faith development experiences and their …

Unveiling Sense Of Belonging Of Lower-Income, First-Generation College Students, Devan Zgleszewski

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study explored lower-income, first-generation college students’ sense of belonging to their university setting. This research defined first-generation as neither parent nor guardian graduating from college (Dominguez-Whitehead et al., 2021). Lower-income students were identified with family incomes less than $52,200 (Walrack & Segal, 2023). Eight students at various stages of their college careers with an array of student involvement and diverse backgrounds participated in individual interview sessions to engage in dialogue about their college experiences, family dynamics, and the impacts of their socioeconomic status when entering the university system.

When looking sense of belonging, this research explored students’ connectedness …