Education Commons^™

Autonomy And Self-Motivation Among K-12 Learners: An Examination Of Best Practice Research, Current Classroom Practices, And Teacher & Administrator Perspectives, Meghan Scales

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Are our schools doing enough to create environments where learners are motivated to learn, and can problem solve and be autonomous in their learning? The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine a sample of schools in Indiana and determine to what extent they are utilizing research-based methods to ensure an environment where learners are motivated and autonomous. Additionally, in school where these methods were identified as lacking, I investigated some of the reasons teachers struggle to implement these practices. Data was collected using classroom observations and teacher focus groups from four participating schools. The results were then …

Centropoly: The Structure Of Educational Failures In The U.S., Martha Bradley-Dorsey

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

How did a country birthed in individual liberty and voluntary associations create just the opposite in its inflexible, layered, government-controlled public education system? Here, using public choice theory, I explain how near-sighted and unrelated reforms, often based in private motives, gave us what I call the public education centropoly – a hybrid government organization consisting of a set of monopolies layered beneath two additional government levels that especially fails disadvantaged students.

After defending the use of public choice theory (Chapter 1) and summarizing the U.S. public education system formation (Chapter 2), in Chapter 3 I examine the Elementary and Secondary …

Faith-Based Education And Civic Value Formation, Matthew H. Lee

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since the founding of the United States, scholars and policymakers have argued that education should not merely train the minds of students, but also prepare them for active participation in a democratic republic. This dissertation, divided into three chapters, studies the leaders, schools, and content that shape students’ character.

While educational leadership in U.S. public schools is widely studied, there is much less scholarly attention to educational leadership in Protestant and other private schools. The first chapter investigates principal leadership and tests for systematic differences in educational priorities and preparation for their responsibilities by educational sector. Using a nationally-representative sample …

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 …

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 …

Evidence-Based Social-Emotional Learning And Its Influence On Teachers’ Perception Of Student Behavior: An Analysis Of Ruler And The Anchors Of Emotional Intelligence, Brent B. Harrington

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to assess the extent by which an evidence-based Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) program influenced teachers’ perception of students’ behavior in a small and diverse PK – 8 school district in Westchester County, NY. Specifically, the researcher evaluated the Anchors of Emotional Intelligence and the RULER framework to determine its impact on school climate as viewed from the perspective of staff in the district. Prior to commencing the study, the researcher recognized the negative staff narrative around student behavior in the district as a significant problem of practice that was observable, actionable and high leverage.

This mixed-methods study …

How Does Disproportionality In Discipline Manifest In Rural Schools In Southeast Arkansas?, Julie Workman

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

African American students are disciplined in schools at disproportionately higher rates than White students. This trend was first reported in 1975 in a report by the Children’s Defense Fund and since that time, has been highly studied. However, most research has been conducted in urban or suburban schools, with less known about disproportionate discipline in rural schools. This study utilized an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach to explore disproportionate discipline between African American and White students in five rural schools located in Southeast Arkansas. The research questions were as follows: (1) How is discipline disproportionality perceived in specific rural schools …

Master’S-Level Counseling Students’ Experience Of Expressive Arts Techniques In A Cacrep Multicultural Counseling Course, Cameron Houin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Counseling governing bodies have defined what should be prioritized in multicultural counseling courses, including students’ multicultural knowledge and awareness; however, best practice regarding how to teach these multicultural concepts has largely been left up to the counselor educator. Counselor educators have begun implementing expressive arts techniques in the classroom, but very little literature exists related to using such techniques in a multicultural course in a manner that positively influence counseling students’ multicultural competency.

The purpose of this study was to explore master’s-level counseling students’ experience of expressive arts techniques utilized during their multicultural counseling course. Ten student participants took part …

Verbing History: A Textualist Approach To Gendered Politics In U.S. History Curriculum, Ginney Patricia Norton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Using three curricular interventions from World War II, I employ an alternative rhetorical history to understand how Social studies curriculum has become a space for the simultaneous deliberation of both national identity and gender politics. In working through the propaganda of Rosie the Riveter, the stories of the women of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and the experiences of gay men and women in the military during the war, I suggest that Social studies curriculum normalizes and reifies gendered, racial, and queer citizenship in relationship to white, masculine, and heteronormative citizenship. It also utilizes epideictic rhetoric to rhetorically and historically construct problematic …

Theory And Practice: A Historical Examination Of The Assumptions And Philosophy Of Human Resource Development, Matthew Wayne Gosney

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The history of Human Resource Development (HRD) is the history of human organizational growth and development. A review of the history of western civilization, with particular focus on the Industrial Revolution to the modern era, demonstrates a distinct interaction between the predominant philosophy of the time, theory, and practice. A better understanding of seminal events in HRD's history thus provides insight into informing philosophies of HRD and the assumptions upon which current HRD theory and practice rest. Research was conducted to explore this interplay between philosophy, theory, and practice. The research was thematic and historical in nature, including the evaluation …

Perceived Impact Of Character Education Program At A Midwest Rural Middle School: A Case Study, Sandra Jean Goss

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Today there exist a concern for the safety and success of students in the public education system. Families, educators, and community members are concerned with the physical, emotional, and mental well-being of students in an environment where incidents of violence are growing. Events like the school shootings at Jonesboro, Arkansas, and at Columbine High School left our nation concerned with the problems within the school system. Many believe that character education can be an effective solution. The purposes of this study are to describe key elements of one school's character education program, and to determine the impact that this program …

Math, Science, And Social Studies Teachers' Attitudes Toward Diversity And Accommodation Of Diversity With Reference To Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Seventh, Eighth, And Ninth Grade Students In A Mid-South State, Nadia Khrais

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was exploring seventh, eighth, and ninth grade teachers' attitudes and beliefs in response to classroom diversity and how that is reflected on their instruction, learning styles, communication patterns, instrumental materials, and assessment patterns in math, science, and Social studies subject areas. In this mixed-method research, the designed survey consisted of 59 questions based on Likert scale and obtained information of ten demographic factors. The survey was delivered in two formats (online link and hard copy) to the participating schools in three urban school districts in a Mid-South State. The survey data were analyzed by using …

Male Saudi Arabian Freshman Science Majors At Jazan University: Their Perceptions Of Parental Educational Practices On Their Science Achievements, Essa Alrehaly

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Examination of Saudi Arabian educational practices is scarce, but increasingly important, especially in light of the country's pace in worldwide mathematics and science rankings. The purpose of the study is to understand and evaluate parental influence on male children's science education achievements in Saudi Arabia. Parental level of education and participant's choice of science major were used to identify groups for the purpose of data analysis. Data were gathered using five independent variables concerning parental educational practices (attitude, involvement, autonomy support, structure and control) and the dependent variable of science scores in high school. The sample consisted of 338 participants …