Education Commons^™

Developing And Implementing A Middle School Program To Improve Student Well-Being And Bolster Enrollment, Tyler Sherwood

The Dissertation-in-Practice at Western University

During the adolescent years, which coincide with the years of middle school, a student’s inward sense of self-awareness shifts to an acute awareness of others’ perception of them. More so than any other period in a student’s development, it is the middle years where their physical, emotional, and cognitive changes are on full display to everyone around them. This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP), based on a research-driven understanding that the middle years of school present unique challenges in all aspects of student life, looks to develop and implement a middle school program that addresses the unique needs of adolescent students …

Actividades Para Fomentar La Empatía En Clases Sabatinas De Francés Con Adolescentes En El Colegio Latino-Francés De Bogotá, Juan Pablo Rico Sarmiento

Licenciatura en Español y Lenguas Extranjeras

La presente investigación tuvo como tema el desarrollo de la empatía en adolescentes. El objetivo principal fue evaluar la efectividad de actividades que permitieran fomentar la empatía en adolescentes dentro de las clases sabatinas de francés en el colegio Latino-francés de Bogotá. Tras una revisión teórica, se seleccionaron y se implementaron actividades que permitirían fomentar la empatía, y se realizó un estudio de caso para evaluar su efectividad. Se observó de forma participativa cada clase de francés, a la vez que se implementaban las actividades y se establecían patrones, haciendo uso de la codificación abierta y del mapeo conceptual, en …

Students’ Perspectives Regarding Their Emotional Engagement In Middle School Learning Environments, Brendan Joseph Mccormick

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines emotional engagement as a vital component of creating optimal learning environments for mid-adolescent students. Through a qualitative research design, seventh and eighth grade student volunteers from Cornfield Middle School shared perspectives on their emotional engagement experiences in middle school learning environments. Thirty-four students participated in three rounds of data collection—an open-ended survey about flow experiences, a homogeneous focus group discussion, and a follow-up survey. The results from each data collection procedure were coded and arranged into themes of positive and negative emotions experienced in certain academic contexts.

The results show that the CFMS students experienced a range …

Letter To The President: Longitudinal Critical Discourse Analysis Of Academic And Hip Hop Genres In A Rap Narrative Program, Debangshu Roygardner

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The objective of this study was to examine an in-school rap narrative workshop through critical discourse theory (Bamberg, 2012; Daiute, 2014). Twelve youth from a public school serving youth in urban Houston, TX were recruited from an in-school and after-school Hip hop/Rap narrative program to participate in a two-year cohort research study. The primary research question guiding the study was “How do young people participating in a school-based Hip hop/Rap program use a wide range of narrative genres for literacy and psycho-social development over two years in the program?”

The data-intensive study involved assessments of literacy and psycho-social development via …

A World Both Big And Small: Understanding Urban Middle School Teachers’ Sense Of Self-Efficacy In An Era Of Accountability, Richard Gallucci

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

This explanatory case study seeks to understand the nature of middle school educators’ self-efficacy in an urban public school district during an era of accountability. The study was conducted in a progressive school district, known as OakRidge Pubic Schools. A sequential mixed methods design with a participant-selection model variation was employed. The study identified teachers’ level of self-efficacy via the Teacher’s Sense of Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2001), a quantitative survey used to determine high and low self-efficacy focus groups. During these subsequent focus group interviews, the competing objectives of fulfilling responsibilities levied from accountability mandates and initiatives, …

The Voices Of Rural High School Youth: Qualitative Secondary Analysis And Youth Leadership Modeling, Victoria Sherif

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

Preparation of youth who are ready to lead in learning, citizenship, and future careers requires development of various qualities, skills, and leadership. Leadership development during adolescence predetermines youth readiness to pursue leadership opportunities and engage in personal, professional, and community-oriented activities. Although research has offered an array of models and educational practices to foster youth leadership, there is a need for incorporating youth voice into leadership conceptualization and education.

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of characteristics of leadership and practices of its development from a rural high school youth perspective. Secondary analysis using longitudinal qualitative …

Paradigm Transformation: Preparing Students For The Transition To Middle School, Lasabra Warner Patterson

Dissertations

This Change Leadership Plan is the second part of a three-part dissertation on effectively transitioning students from elementary school to middle school. Currently, there is no local program to aid students in transitioning from elementary to middle school. The rationale is that by addressing the need for increased focus on improving current practices, students’ needs will be met. This is important to the school, the district, and the educational community at large in preparation for implementation of the Common Core State Standards where all learning will spiral from grade level to grade level, continually allowing students and teachers to make …

Masculinities, Gendered Expression, And The Social, Emotional, And Academic Well-Being Of High School Boys, Cynthia Bazinet

Educational Studies Dissertations

There has been longstanding concern over the seemingly intractable problem of boys’ academic achievement. Despite extensive research, there is little consensus among researchers and educators regarding best practices and approaches in mitigating and remediating the problem. This mixed-methods study sought to illuminate the issue further by focusing on the meaningful lived experiences of six young men aged 18 to 24 who attended and graduated from a central Massachusetts public high school. The study asked participants to reflect through prompted writing upon the stresses and pressures as well as the factors and conditions that affected their abilities to manage their performativities …

Outdoor Education Integrated Curriculum Program Impact On Adolescent Self-Authorship, Amanda Lee Mcgowan

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

One of the challenges currently faced by secondary schools is to teach 21st century skills, such as self-authorship. Self-authorship is the command of one’s life, or the capacity to invent one’s beliefs, identity, and relationships with others. This study investigated the impact a one-semester outdoor education program has on adolescents’ perceived self-authorship development, as measured by the 27-item self-report Self-Authorship Questionnaire (SAQ). The sample population (n=26) for this study was made up of 10th and 12th grade students from two classes of one-semester outdoor education programs at a public secondary school in Ontario, Canada. Analysis of paired t-tests of the …

Creating A Learning Environment To Increase Early Adolescent Motivation: A Dissertation, Mark Logan

Educational Studies Dissertations

This study focuses on early adolescent motivation in school. It is an inquiry that seeks to understand the factors that contribute to students’ engagement in their learning through student and teacher perceptions. I examined significant research often cited as impacting motivation, including early adolescent development, middle school structures, transitions, student/teacher relationships, and parental involvement. I surveyed 345 sixth grade students on their perceptions of their own learning, thoughts, and behaviors. Participating students attended schools with various middle school age configurations, including K-8, K-12, 5-8, and 6-8. Schools represented public and charter public schools and were located in urban, suburban, and …