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Full-Text Articles in Education

The Impact Of Grade-Level Switching In The Elementary School Setting, Christine Priester Jun 2024

The Impact Of Grade-Level Switching In The Elementary School Setting, Christine Priester

Dissertations

Teaching a new grade level in elementary school requires developing extensive grade- level-specific knowledge. In many school districts, the support for teachers who move grade levels within a district is glaringly absent. In this study, the frequency and impact of teacher grade switching in a school district were examined through a mixed-methods study that included surveys with teachers, interviews with teachers, and student data. The research question was: What is the impact of grade-level teacher movement on instruction? The findings of this study show how students are affected by teachers switching grade levels in elementary school. Results shed light on …


A Study On The Smarts Executive Functioning Curriculum: Explicitly Teaching Executive Functioning Skills In A Fourth-Grade Classroom, Rebekah Curry May 2024

A Study On The Smarts Executive Functioning Curriculum: Explicitly Teaching Executive Functioning Skills In A Fourth-Grade Classroom, Rebekah Curry

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

The SMARTS executive functioning curriculum explicitly teaches executive functioning skills to students within a classroom setting. The purpose of this study was to explore what happened when the SMARTS executive functioning curriculum was implemented into a single fourth-grade classroom. This study specifically investigated perceptions of the SMARTS executive functioning curriculum. The participants of this study included 20 fourth-grade students, the classroom teacher, and the elementary school principal. The researcher used a survey, observations, and interviews to compile data. The qualitative data was analyzed using the constant comparative method, and the quantitative data from the student survey was analyzed using descriptive …


Evaluating The Need For Professional Learning That Highlights Proficient Teaching Strategies For Students With Autism In The Elementary Environment, Allison Norman May 2024

Evaluating The Need For Professional Learning That Highlights Proficient Teaching Strategies For Students With Autism In The Elementary Environment, Allison Norman

Dissertations

There is an increase in the identification of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) throughout the country. There is also an emphasis on inclusion within the classrooms in the country. This qualitative study addresses the need for teachers to grasp more knowledge about Autism so that they can help children with autism have better access to the general education curriculum and increase support for success in the classroom. Through an action research project, this study aimed to gauge elementary school teachers' existing knowledge about Autism and identify areas where they desired further education. The study involved surveying teachers to understand …


Implementing Music To Increase Elementary Student Focus, Kathryn Garceau May 2024

Implementing Music To Increase Elementary Student Focus, Kathryn Garceau

Master's Theses

This action research project used a mixed methods design to address the effect of different types of music on student focus while performing an independent task. Despite its success with memorization, does music work equally as well on student focus? Data was collected over a period of three weeks for 30 minutes each morning for 5 days each week. The music played while students completed the task changed each week. This included lyrical songs during week one, classical music during week two, and instrumental versions of songs students knew the lyrics to during week three. Four behavior markers were observed …


The Principal’S Dilemma: A Qualitative Study Of Sensemaking Through Ethical Decision Making In Response To Tennessee’S Third Grade Retention Law For El Students, Virginia R. Boles May 2024

The Principal’S Dilemma: A Qualitative Study Of Sensemaking Through Ethical Decision Making In Response To Tennessee’S Third Grade Retention Law For El Students, Virginia R. Boles

Doctoral Dissertations

This qualitative study explored how elementary principals used sensemaking to implement intersecting laws when making decisions on how to provide the best educational experiences for EL students while being faced with high-stakes assessment policies—in particular, third grade retention policy in Tennessee. Participants were nine elementary school principals with five or more years of experience, in Title I schools, with 5% or more EL students. Interviews were then both inductively and deductively analyzed through Weick and Caughron’s sensemaking framework. Results suggested that long-standing Federal laws, create a set of values and ethics in principals. Principals find ways to stay true to …


Perceptions Of Tennessee Principals Of Their Supervisors’ Role In Developing Their Instructional Leadership Capacity, Brandie P. Arnold May 2024

Perceptions Of Tennessee Principals Of Their Supervisors’ Role In Developing Their Instructional Leadership Capacity, Brandie P. Arnold

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of Tennessee principals of their supervisor’s role in developing their instructional leadership capacity. This basic qualitative study gathered the perspectives of elementary principals. The participants included ten Tennessee elementary principals. Principals in the five participating school districts participated in semi-structured interviews for the qualitative study. Data from the interviews was collected, transcribed, coded, and analyzed. The qualitative results found the following four themes from the principal interviews: current direct support, professional development, ensuring strong relationships, and intentional communication. Principals receive support; however, the support is unstructured and primarily …


Reimagining Schoolwide Social And Emotional Learning Implementation In The Urban Setting: A Case Study Of A Massachusetts Elementary School, Molly Helene Duffy May 2024

Reimagining Schoolwide Social And Emotional Learning Implementation In The Urban Setting: A Case Study Of A Massachusetts Elementary School, Molly Helene Duffy

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

For social and emotional learning (SEL) initiatives to have the greatest positive impact on students, they must be implemented schoolwide. There is an urgent need for schools to shift away from traditional SEL frameworks toward transformative SEL (TSEL). TSEL program implementation cannot be done in isolation; rather, it must be fueled by a shared vision and dedication to team learning. To conduct this study, the researcher employed the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) Guide to Schoolwide SEL and Senge’s learning organization as a theory of change. The study sought to uncover gaps in schoolwide SEL implementation in …


Exploring The Teacher Perceptions Of The Overrepresentation Disciplinary Actions Against African American Male Elementary School Students, Amber Hill Feb 2024

Exploring The Teacher Perceptions Of The Overrepresentation Disciplinary Actions Against African American Male Elementary School Students, Amber Hill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leadership, teachers, and parents have observed significantly disproportionate discipline of African American students at urban elementary schools located in Ohio, despite the implementation of positive behavior intervention supports (PBIS). This basic qualitative study explored teacher perceptions of the overrepresentation of disciplinary actions amongst African American male elementary students in a regional school system in Ohio. The conceptual framework for this study was derived from Ladson-Billings’ theory of culturally relevant pedagogy and Skinner’s operant conditioning, which supports the PBIS framework. The research questions focused on the teachers’ perceptions and recommendations about training, resources, and support they need to address the overrepresentation …


A Case Study To Determine The Literacy Needs Within Remediation Practices For Students In Grades 1-3, Miranda M. Gillis Jan 2024

A Case Study To Determine The Literacy Needs Within Remediation Practices For Students In Grades 1-3, Miranda M. Gillis

Doctor of Education Dissertations

In order to effectively teach reading, it is not enough for a teacher to possess knowledge and skills alone. It is equally important to use evidence-based instructional approaches and interventions, especially when working with at-risk or struggling students. Without appropriate instructional materials and contexts, even the most competent teacher may fail to teach essential literacy skills, such as phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, spelling, and writing processes. As the importance of teacher quality gains attention at the state and federal levels, lesson structure and allocation of lesson time for literacy-related activities have become a focus. The emergence of structured literacy underscores …


Imagine If All Schools Had This! Fostering Inclusive Family Engagement Through Human-Centered Design Thinking, Tamara R. York Jan 2024

Imagine If All Schools Had This! Fostering Inclusive Family Engagement Through Human-Centered Design Thinking, Tamara R. York

Education Dissertations

This ethnographic study explores the crucial role of family engagement in educational systems and the impact a human-centered design team has on students' success at an elementary school. The research addresses the historical impact of racism and colonization on student outcomes alongside the ongoing challenge of narrowing the opportunity gap. Current interventions and support services, though significant, often adopt a remedial stance and are grounded in deficit thinking rather than embracing an asset-based approach. The research proposes a shift from traditional school-initiated family engagement to a human-centered design (HCD) approach to address these challenges. The purpose of the study is …