Education Commons^™

The Cost Of Color In Public Education – An Examination Of Disproportionate Suspensions, Jack F. Cagle

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study investigates the disproportionate number of Black students who are suspended at a higher rate than their white counterparts in a rural county in North Carolina. This research is framed with factors such as lack of cultural understanding, an absence of parental involvement, community influence, and classroom policies. This study gathers an understanding from key experts on why Black students are suspended at a higher rate in public schools than White students. The overarching research question for this study was why are Black students are suspended or expelled for minor offenses at a greater rate than White students for …

Building Administrator’S Facilitation Of Teacher Leadership: Moderators Associated With Teachers’ Reported Levels Of Empowerment, Kelly Moran Edd, Karen H. Larwin Phd

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

The current, mixed-methods investigation examines the role of building administrators in the perceived level of empowerment of classroom teachers. As such, this study was designed to contribute to the paucity of current research on teacher empowerment, thus informing school leaders on the importance of practice of empowering teachers and what variables can moderate attempts to empower educators. Level of perceived empowerment was measured using the School Participant Empowerment Scale (SPES), which evaluates six dimensions of teacher empowerment: decision-making, professional growth, status, self-efficacy, autonomy, and impact. Variables, such as gender and tenure of the building administrators and teacher, the presence of …

Letter From The Editor, Steven Bingham

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

In this, the first volume of the third issue, or year of publication, we aspire to provide more signal than noise as we feature the work of six educational researchers across three articles and two continents. Surveying Korean and American educators in a study on the impact of Confucian values on leadership preference, Schenck and Waddey remind us that leadership is cultural. In a study in a rural North Carolina school district, Cagle poses a simple but persistent question: Why are Black students suspended or expelled for minor offenses at a greater rate than White students for the same infractions? …

Teachers’ Expectations Of Educational Leaders’ Leadership Approach And Perspectives On The Principalship: Identifying Critical Leadership Paradigms For The 21st Century, Canute Sylvester Thompson Dr.

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

Using an exploratory design, with a sample of 97 teachers, this research sought to ascertain teachers’ perspectives on the behaviours and approaches that educational leaders, particularly their principals, should display. This exploration was done against the backdrop of the attitudes to, and expectations of, leaders that are deemed to be characteristics 21^st century perspectives on leadership.

The research uncovered four main behaviours that teachers expected their principals and other educational leaders to employ in their leadership approaches. These behaviours are: recognition of staff’s commitment, facilitation of participation in decision-making, embrace of teachers’ diverse strengths, and openness to criticism.

The …

A Correlational Study Of Teacher Efficacy And Culturally Responsive Teaching Techniques In A Southeastern Urban School District, Roberta F. Callaway

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study investigated the level of personal and general teacher efficacy of teachers from three high schools within a southeastern urban school district. Additional research questions focused on correlational relationships between teacher efficacy and culturally responsive teaching, instructional strategies, student engagement, and classroom management as measured by the Teacher Efficacy Scale (TES), Culturally Responsive Teaching Techniques (CRTT) Scale, and Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES). The CRTT Scale and TSES were combined to create a 29-item instrument to examine culturally responsive teaching, instructional strategies, student engagement, and classroom management. Significant relationships were found between teacher efficacy and culturally responsive teaching, …

Trust Formation When Youth And Adults Partner To Lead School Reform: A Case Study Of Supportive Structures And Challenges, Catharine Biddle

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study examines the beliefs and practices that support and undermine trust formation in school leadership efforts that invite students into discussions of continuous improvement. Through a case study of a youth-adult partnership initiative, the study finds that trust between youth and adults was supported by having a shared, accessible language for discussing teaching and learning, opportunities for strengths-based dialogue around school practices, and regular opportunities to meet. However, there was also a perception gap between youth and adults around how well group members fulfilled their roles in the actual data collection process, causing conflict and undermining the long-term stability …

Letter From The Editor, Steven Bingham

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

At the end of our second year of publication of Journal of Organizational and Educational Leadership, we find ourselves, as stewards of scholarship, in uncharted waters. The very notion of what is factual, not just ideas behind facts, but empirical reality itself, has become malleable. As if what is real may be actualized upon popular demand, acceptable based solely upon the belief system of one’s tribe, the term “alternative facts” has entered the lexicon.

For scholarly communities and truth-seekers everywhere, the time has never been more important than now to distinguish between fact and opinion, truth and supposition, science …

Counselors And Principals: Collaborating To Improve Instructional Equity, Carl A. Lashley, Jaimie Stickl

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

School districts are held accountable for the performance of all students. This increased responsibility has caused principals and their faculties to become increasingly concerned about using performance data to improve achievement, attendance, promotion and graduation rates, dropout rates and at-risk student performance, and other indicators of school quality. An often overlooked resource in the school’s efforts is the school counselor.

School counselors are well-prepared to assist principals with data utilization and making recommendations for individual student, classroom, and school-wide improvement. Collaborative relationships between principals and school counselors can contribute significantly to school improvement efforts and to professional learning and capacity …

Locally Developed Performance Assessments: One State’S Decision To Supplant Standardized Tests With Alternative Measures, Amy Lynn Abbott

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

In 2014, the Virginia legislature removed select standardized tests from elementary and middle school grades in social studies, science, and writing. In this case study, the author investigates the experiences of key stakeholders in one large school district as they adopt alternative assessment in lieu of multiple-choice, standardized assessments. The specific aim of the study was to develop a descriptive account of one large Virginia school district’s plan for implementation of locally developed, performance-based assessments. Findings on this contemporary topic document the collaboration among district stakeholders to enact alternative assessments that assess students’ content knowledge and higher-order thinking skills. Outcomes …

Crossing The Suspension Bridge: Navigating The Road From School Suspension To College Success – How Some Students Have Overcome The Negative Implications Of School Suspension To Bridge The Road To College, Chris J. Kirkman, Heather Mcnees, Jaimie Stickl, Justin H. Banner, Kimberly K. Hewitt

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

Out-of-school suspensions for middle and high school students can have negative, long-lasting consequences. Researchers have documented that suspensions have a negative impact on academic development, increase likelihood of dropping out of school, and are associated with a stronger likelihood that students will be involved in the legal system. However, there are students who overcome these negative statistics and matriculate to post-secondary education successfully. This study examines the lived experiences and personal attributes in students’ lives that enabled them to overcome a history of suspension to enter and succeed in higher education. Using Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model, the study’s researchers interviewed individuals …

The Influence Of Balance Within The Competing Values Framework And School Academic Success On Teacher Retention, Charisse Gulosino, Louis Franceschini Iii, Portia Hardman

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

The primary aim of this study is to use the survey items from the TELL Tennessee Survey (2013) using the Competing Values Framework (CVF) to determine whether teachers' observations about a set of topically organized school climate dimensions and school performance levels are associated with their immediate professional plans. Using a three-by-two-level Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), we find that the effect of CVF “balance” and school performance level explain much of the variation in the percent of teachers who intend to stay at their current school, independent of the school’s student demographic characteristics. Specifically, the effect of having a balanced …

Beginning Teachers’ Experiences Working With A District-Employed Mentor In A North Carolina School District, Kari S. Hobbs Dr., Jennifer Putnam Dr.

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study is concerned with the experiences of beginning teachers working with a district-employed mentor. Based on Illeris’s (2002) Three Dimensions of Learning, the study sought to understand the cognitive, emotional, and social processes involved in working with a mentor through the use of one-on one, in-depth interviews.

Nine beginning teachers participated in the study. Their assignments included elementary (n=4), middle grades (n=2), and high school (n=3). Data collection took place at the end of the school year and included Year 1 and Year 2 teachers. The study uncovered four findings related to these beginning teachers: mentors …

Letter From The Editor, Steven Bingham

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

Greetings from Gardner-Webb University to wherever in the world you may be reading this letter. The growth of readership over the last year has been nothing short of astounding. More than anything else, we think the outpour of attention speaks to the dearth of opportunity to learn from practitioners who, applying the principles of disciplined inquiry, are solving one local problem at a time.

Looking to the future, we hope soon to receive contributions from emerging practitioner scholars in Organizational Leadership, those in our program here at Gardner-Webb University and those in similar programs worldwide. Another goal is to issue …

Online Supervision Case Analysis: The Case Of Kelly, Thommi Odom Lawson

Journal of Counseling and Psychology

Providing supervision to graduate counseling students using secured online technology is becoming a trend given the advancements in technology, students’ attending extended campuses rather than traditional universities, and convenience. Building a strong working alliance between the supervisee and supervisor is critical, particularly when the parties involved are establishing the relationship remotely. This article analyzes a case involving online supervision through the application of the Supervisory Working Alliance Model and the Individual Psychology Supervision Model. The supervisory relationship is discussed, and issues such as developing a working alliance virtually, the supervisory relationship, multicultural competency, and supervisor/supervisee evaluation are addressed.

Book Review—Leading Ethically In Schools And Other Organizations, Mary Gardiner

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

No abstract provided.

Comparing The Effect Of Two Internship Structures On Supervision Experience And Learning, Robin D. Winslow, Meghan Eliason, Keith W. Thiede

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study examined whether two different internship structures affected educational leadership students’ supervision experience, beliefs about supervision, and learning of a clinical supervision model. Some students supervised pre-service teachers placed at their schools, while others supervised in-service teachers employed at their schools (a more traditional internship). Students who supervised pre-service teachers reported using the various supervision components to a greater extent than did students who supervised in-service teachers. Although beliefs about the importance of different supervision components did not differ across groups, learning of the clinical supervision model was greater for students who supervised pre-service teachers than for those who …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Traditional And Alternative Principal Preparation Programs, Summer Pannell Ph.D., Bernnell M. Peltier-Glaze Ed.D., Ingrid Haynes Ph.D., Delilah Davis Ph.D., Carrie Skelton Ph.D.

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study sought to determine the effectiveness on increasing student achievement of principals trained in a traditional principal preparation program and those trained in an alternate route principal preparation program within the same Mississippi university. Sixty-six Mississippi principals and assistant principals participated in the study. Of the 66 participants, 41 competed a traditional principal preparation program, and 25 completed an alternate route principal preparation program at the same university. The data included the type of principal preparation the participant received, the number of consecutive years served as a principal or assistant principal, and student achievement data for their assigned schools. …

Balanced Reading Basals And The Impact On Third-Grade Reading Achievement, Windy Dorsey

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This convergent parallel mixed method sought to determine if the reading program increased third-grade student achievement. The research questions of the study examined the reading achievement scores of third-grade students and the effectiveness of McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders™. Significant differences were observed when a paired sample t test measured progress on the Reading 3D composite, Text Reading Comprehension, and North Carolina Beginning of Grade/North Carolina End of Grade from the beginning of the year to the end of year. Responses from a teacher survey and interviews provided data that revealed teacher perceptions of McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders™ basal program and the impact …

Letter From The Editor, Steven Bingham

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

Greetings from Boiling Springs, North Carolina, home of Gardner-Webb University and the Journal of Organizational and Educational Leadership. Geographically, we are nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains about one hour west of Charlotte. Virtually, we are another story.

Like Scarlett Johansson’s cosmically ascendant character, “Lucy,” said at the end of the film by the same name, JOEL is “everywhere.” Well, almost everywhere. The fact is that in the last 30 days alone, 13 institutions in 19 countries representing every continent except Antarctica has downloaded at least one article from our premier edition.

Teacher Morale, Student Engagement, And Student Achievement Growth In Reading: A Correlational Study, Jenny T. Sabin

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This research study explored the current state of teacher morale in fourth and fifth grade classrooms in three low socio-economic schools in North Carolina. Additional research questions address correlational relationships among the variables of teacher morale, student engagement, and student achievement growth as measured by the NC Teacher Working Conditions Survey, Van Amburg Active Learning Inventory Tool, and the NC End of Grade reading tests, respectively. This study found no significant relationships among the primary variables of teacher morale, student engagement, and student achievement growth. However, significant relationships were found between increasing student engagement and an increase in the number …

Program Evaluation Of Alternative Schools In North Carolina: A Companion Dissertation, Michael O. Jones

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

The purpose of the program evaluation was to evaluate two alternative programs in a North Carolina (NC) and South Carolina (SC) public school district to determine if they are effective in delivering constructive interventions that modify student behavior once students have left the programs and have returned to their regular learning environments. This mixed-method evaluation consisted of an experimental-comparison design approach that included interviews with program participants, focus groups, and comparison of the number of out-of-school suspensions that participants received after completing the alternative school programs in both school districts.

Does Mclass Reading 3d Predict Student Reading Proficiency On High-Stakes Assessments?, Amy S. Bowles

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This quantitative, correlational study investigated the relationship between the North Carolina End of Grade Assessment of Reading Comprehension (NCEOG) and mClass Reading 3D assessment in a North Carolina elementary school. It especially examined the degree to which mClass Reading 3D measures predict scores on the reading comprehension portion of the NCEOG. The study was conducted in two parts. Part one utilized quantitative methods to describe the relationship between mClass Reading 3D and NCEOG based on demographic data. Part two utilized quantitative methods to determine the predictability of mClass Reading 3D measures Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) and Text Reading and Comprehension …

Keys To Reducing Summer Regression: The Reader, Routine, And Relationship, Morgan V. Blanton

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study utilized a mixed-methods, quasi-experimental design to investigate the impact of parent development and home-based summer reading on summer reading regression (as measured by oral reading fluency) at three Title I elementary schools in North Carolina. Title I parents and students participated in a parent development and communicated throughout the summer. Quantitative and qualitative methods (QUAN-qual) were used to collect and analyze data in order to answer four research questions related to the parent development seminar and reading routines. Quantitative data were collected using a pretest/posttest, reading logs, contact logs, and questionnaires. Qualitative data were collected from the questionnaire …

Letter From The Editor, Steven Bingham

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

Over one year in planning, the inaugural issue of the Journal of Organizational and Educational Leadership (JOEL) is now live. Reflecting on Machiavelli’s prescient words, we launch with equal measure confidence and humility. Any one who has ever led the development of a new product or program knows full well the pitfalls of disrupting the status quo even when people have demanded change. And frankly, it is not as though the world has been clamoring for yet another professional journal. Fear of failure, then, promises to keep us humble.