Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration Commons^™

Searching For Innovation, Creativity And 21st Century Skills: A Case Study Of A Suburban Elementary School District, Robert Alexander Serdar

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to seek out and identify the traits, attitudes and characteristics of innovative, creative and highly effective teachers within a suburban elementary school district. Participants included five elementary teachers who were identified by their colleagues as being exceptionally innovative, creative and fostering 21^st Century Skills. The research method for this qualitative case study consisted of teacher interviews, student interviews, and multiple classroom observations by the researcher. From this, seven themes, or practices, of highly innovative, creative teachers of 21^st Century Skills emerged: (1) See the Teacher as Lead Learner (2) Encourage Learner Reflection …

The Superintendent As Transformational Leader: A Case Study Analysis Of The Strategies, Initiatives And Processes Used By Superintendents Of Exemplar 21st Century School Districts To Implement District-Wide Change For The 21st Century, Rebecca A. Summers

Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify and describe the visions, frameworks, strategies, initiatives and change models used by eight superintendents of exemplar 21st century school districts as designated by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, in order to successfully implement a district-wide 21st century learning model. Semi-structured interviews were used to provide rich narratives of the superintendents’ experiences with the transformational change processes in their districts as they implemented 21st century models of education. The interviews were coded and analyzed for common themes and patterns. The findings revealed that although the superintendents were system thinkers about …

A Mixed Method Study Of The Effectiveness Of Gaining Early Awareness And Readiness For Undergraduate Programs (Gear Up) Federal Incentive Program In Southern Mississippi Public Secondary Schools, David Micah Maxwell

Dissertations

The Gaining Early Awareness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) incentive program has been in place since the late 1990s nationally. This grant, which covers a time span of six years and offers up to eighteen million dollars in federal funds, is designed to increase college readiness and decrease dropout rate among high school students. This study examines the effectiveness of this grant in southern Mississippi for the graduating class of 2014. Utilizing both quantitative and qualitative methods to determine the effectiveness of this grant, this study draws some conclusions and recommendations for this incentive program.

The Relationship Between Teacher Collaboration And Teachers' Level Of Knowledge, Implementation, And Confidence Related To Common Core State Standards For Literacy In History/Social Studies, Science And Technical Subject Areas, Talia Shaunte' Lock

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between elements of teacher collaboration and teachers’ level of knowledge, level of implementation, and level of confidence related to CCSS for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subject Areas in grades 6-12. The study included an extensive literature that included an introduction, pertinent literature and research regarding literacy in the 21^st century, CCSS, cross curriculum, teacher collaboration, the role of leadership, and the theoretical framework. The study also included the methodology, research results, the conclusions, recommendations for policymakers and practitioners, and recommendations for further research.

It was discovered …

What Superintendents Should Do To Position Their Districts To Be Prepared For The Changing Nature Of Technology In The Next Ten Years: A Delphi Study, Ean Ainsworth

Dissertations

Over the past twenty years, schools and districts have been faced with the challenge of integrating technology into their classroom instruction. The rapid rate of evolution that technology changes has placed new burdens on school and district leaders to plan meaningful professional development, create and develop effective policy, and focus on school and district culture. In the coming years, the changing nature of technology is not expected to slow down and most certainly will accelerate. The purpose of this Delphi study was to identify what K-12 superintendents should do to position their districts to be prepared for the changing nature …

Secondary Administrators' Perceptions Of The Blended Coaching Model On Their Development As Transformational Leaders, Janine Ezaki

Dissertations

School principals are expected to lead the major changes and intense curricular work of implementing Common Core State Standards at their school sites. In addition to existing administrative duties and instructional responsibilities, this calls for site administrators to possess transformational leadership skills and attributes in order to lead effectively and purposefully through change in the 21st century. Since education has begun to value leadership coaching for school administrators, this study examined the coaching model as a viable means of support for novice administrators in their development as transformational leaders. The purpose of this ethnographic research was to study the culture …

Impact Of Collaborative Specialization On 5th Grade Student Achievement In A Title I School: Program Evaluation Proposal, Nicole Villaverde

Dissertations

This paper details a complete program evaluation of an elementary school's transition from having mainstream classes to a collaborative specialization model of instruction. My study examines how this model of instruction impacts students' achievement levels and student behavior in a title 1 school. I created the model and in the process of doing my study was required to change it into a model I then defined as Collaborative Specialization. I concluded from my research that this model of instruction was indeed a success because it increased the number of students making learning gains and decreased disciplinary problems.

A Balanced Approach: Advocating For Middle School Improvement That Levels The Playing Field, Derrik Craun

Dissertations

With a large disparity in the rate of suspension incidents received between African American and White students, it is evident why there still exists a gap in academic achievement. Too often we rely heavily on out of school suspensions as a consequence for student misbehavior. This approach leads to students falling behind academically and feeling less connected to their learning environment. My study takes a close look into establishing district policy to help each middle school offer a balanced approach to addressing student discipline in order to improve behavior and increase the amount of instructional time that African American middle …

Closing The Achievement Gap In Elementary Schools: A Policy Advocacy Dissertation, Nicole Villaverde

Dissertations

My paper details a policy recommendation for elementary schools in a large school district in Florida. Its aim is to provide equal educational opportunities and equity for all students. I developed it in part based on an educational, economic, social, political, and moral-ethical analysis. My policy's purpose is to enhance the educational experience for all children, maximize time-on-task (TOT) on all subjects, and close the achievement gap. It discourages the use of the pull-out program for remediation in reading and/ or other areas. My new policy, combining the collaborative specialization model, which I developed, with a push-in program, will provide …

Effective Instructional Strategies Utilized In Successful And High Performing Secondary Schools In The Southern Region Of Mississippi, Jeanifer Lynn Pearson

Dissertations

The schools in the United States have implemented measures intended to close the achievement gap for over fifty years (Solomon, 2009). The mandates handed down by the federal government cannot be altered. Therefore, schools are required to determine specific measures that increase student academic success. Prior research has demonstrated that schools can be successful if effective leadership at the district, school, and classroom level was present (Gregory, 2003; Johnson, Livingston, & Schwartz, 2000). At the classroom level, it was the leadership of the individual teacher to determine the creation of innovative techniques aimed at academic success of all students (Farr …

A Proposed Change Leadership Plan For Bimmer Elementary School, Nicole Villaverde

Dissertations

My paper details a Change Leadership Plan (CLP) for a school with the fictious name of Bimmer Elementary School (BME). My study's purpose is to enhance student learning by collaborating with staff to explore ways to maximize time-on-task (TOT) for all subjects. Currently BME has a reading achievement problem and is using pull-out programs for 4th and 5th grade students that take needed instructional time from core academic programs. I used Wagner's As-Is and To-Be charts (see Appendix A) for BME to identify and present the current status and future desired state of the school's culture, context, conditions, and competencies. …

The Lived Experiences Of Veteran Elementary Urban School Teachers: Why And How They Stay, Cynthia A. Anthony

Dissertations

Longevity in teaching careers depends on many things, including job satisfaction, the work environment, career stages, and strategies to manage stress and avoid burnout. Teachers who have high levels of job satisfaction are more likely to stay in the profession. Job satisfaction is dependent on the motivators in a job: administrative support, collegiality, recognition, advancement, and growth. The work environment, job demands, career development, empowerment, and bureaucracy, plays an important role in retaining teachers.

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine factors that enabled and encouraged a sample of 12 veteran elementary school teachers in a small urban …

Click To Agree: Policies Impacting A One-To-One Mobile Learning Environment, Matthew J. Fuller

Dissertations

The focus of this study is to evaluate current and recommend new school board policies to implement and maintain a one-to-one mobile learning initiative using iPads in a K–8 school district. The district’s current acceptable use policy is analyzed and it was determined that no modifications are necessary to govern the new one-to-one initiative. A new administrative procedure is proposed to address issues related to iPad use in and out of the district. A Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy is proposed for students and staff to supplement the electronic devices provided by the school district. The current acceptable use …

Implementation Of A Modified Reading Program In An Urban High School Setting, Ann Vayre

Dissertations

READ 180 is a popular reading program among high schools seeking to improve their reading scores. To date, few studies have examined modified versions of the program, with none focusing on the fidelity of implementation. This study examines a modified READ 180 program where scheduling only allowed for a 50-minute per day block of time, in contrast to the 90-minutes utilized in the original design. Research questions focus on urban high school teachers’ usage of READ 180 components and strategies, consistency with the program’s original design, the level of importance teachers attached to each of the components and strategies, and …

Eliciting Elementary School Students’ Informal Inferential Reasoning Through Storytelling, Dustin Owen Smith

Dissertations

One growing area of research on statistical learning is Informal Inferential Reasoning (IIR). Makar and Rubin (2009) describe IIR as having three components: making and evaluating inferential claims, supporting claims explicitly with data, and attending to the inherent uncertainty present in statistical inference-making. This dissertation study was built around developing a method for providing opportunities for elementary school students (Grades K, 2, and 4) to engage with IIR within the context of stories and storytelling through a method called Storytelling-Questioning. After interacting with and discussing two separate stories, it was found that students of each grade level were able to …

Career And Technical Education And The Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award In Education, Patricia Crum-Allen

Dissertations

This study examined Career and Technical Education (CTE) Centers in the State of Michigan and their potential alignment with the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award in Education. CTE center leaders and their faculty were asked to provide their perceptions of how well their organizations meet Baldrige quality elements, using a version of the Baldrige Assessment Tool. The study further queried CTE center leaders and their faculty with regard to quality awards received and their desire to pursue an external quality award. Differences between CTE leaders and faculty responses were explored.

This study was quantitative in design using survey research to gather …

Principal Emotional Intelligence And Teacher Perceptions Of School Climate In Middle Schools, Ashley Dawn Meadows Allred

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the correlational relationship of principals’ emotional intelligence on the perceptions that teachers have of a school’s climate. The Organizational Health Inventory for Middle Schools (OHI-M) served as the assessment for teachers’ perceptions of the school climate or the overall health of the organization. Principals’ emotional intelligence competencies were assessed using the Mayer Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test version 2, hereinafter referred to as the MSCEIT V.2.0. Participants of the study included 22 principals of public middle schools in Mississippi. There was an average of 45 teachers employed at each middle school.

A Pearson …

Principal-Teacher’S Decision-Making Power Relationship: A National Study Based On Sass 2003-04 Data, Jiangang Xia

Dissertations

There is a theoretical controversy in the literature of educational leadership over whether principal-teacher’s power relationship is a zero-sum game or a win-win situation. The zero-sum game theory implies that when teachers gain more power, principals have less, and when teachers have less power, principals gain more. In contrast, the win-win theory suggests that to share power with teachers potentially increases principal’s power as well.

There are two issues involved with this controversy: first, researchers debate whether principal-teacher’s power relationship is a win-win situation or zero-sum game, however, the power concept and power relationship were not clearly conceptualized; and, second, …

Relationship Between Teacher Perception Of Positive Behavior Interventions Support And The Implementation Process, Janice Marie Hansen

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a relationship existed between teacher perception of a school’s behavior management program and the implementation process. This study explored perceptions of teachers from three aspects of the Positive Behavior Intervention Support model as they relate to the implementation processes for PBIS. This design is intended to provide strategies for behavior modification to improve and transform inappropriate behaviors through reinforcement of positive behaviors in lieu of punitive strategies to correct disruptive behaviors. The framework for a positive behavior reinforcement system is data driven, identifying specific behaviors that impede learning and formulating an …

Elementary Teachers' Perceptions Of Response To Intervention And Teacher Support Team Effectiveness Within A Mississippi Gulf Coast School District, Shanta Dannette Rhodes

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine elementary teachers’ perceptions of the effectiveness of Response to Intervention (RTI) and Teacher Support Team (TST) within a Mississippi Gulf Coast school district. RTI models have gained popularity within the national education system. Schools are encouraged to implement RTI in efforts to improve the learning and achievement of all students, while meeting the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEIA). With the change of educational policy, the role and function of teachers have changed. Understanding perceptions teachers might …

District Mandated Changes In Technology And Inquiry-Based Instruction, Mulonge Musa Kalumbula

Dissertations

Federal and state mandates aimed at improving the American K-12 school system abound (Spillane, 2004). Federal legislation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB, 2002), and state-mandated curriculum are aimed at improving teaching and learning thus ultimately improving student achievement. The purpose of this phenomenology study was to examine the experiences of 7 middle and high school social studies teachers through district-mandated changes in inquiry-based instruction and technology-integrated lessons. By capturing how individual teachers experience mandated changes, this research aimed to discover the existence of policy coherence within a district as it translated federal and state policy …

Focus And Priority Schools: How Principals Enact Leadership Responsibilities To Increase Student Achievement In Selected Mid-Western Counties, Jeffery P. Boggan

Dissertations

This study explored principal leadership in selected midwestern school districts as it relates to the use of Marzano et al.’s (2005) 21 responsibilities to improve student achievement. Using a phenomenological approach, this study sought to determine how principals: (a) enact leadership practices that correlate to Marzano et al.’s second-order change attributes; and (b) address barriers and prioritize the leadership responsibilities that support second-order change.

Ten principals participated in this study. Data were obtained through semistructured interviews, card sorting, and daily checklists. Findings revealed that the majority of participants held similar beliefs about enacting the leadership responsibilities identified by Marzano et …

Secondary School Athletic Administration Certification: State Oversights, Requirements, And Pressing Issues Athletic Directors Encounter, Christopher L. Gaddis

Dissertations

The role of a secondary school athletic director is similar across the United States, although the required credentials for such a position vary immensely from state to state. The athletic administrator position was originally created to improve the oversight of the increasing demands of operating an athletic program. In the past, the number of sports and participants were much smaller than today. Because of this there has not always been a call for highly trained, educated, and experienced interscholastic athletic administrators. In this study, state executive directors/liaisons for the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association provided information regarding their states demographic …

The Effects Of Standards-Based Grading On Student Performance In Algebra 2, Rachel Beth Rosales

Dissertations

The use of standards-based grading in American public schools is increasing, offering students, parents, and teachers a new way of measuring and communicating about student achievement and performance. Parents indicate an appreciation for this method of grading, and students at the elementary grades (K-6) have improved standardized test scores in reading and math as a result of its implementation. This study seeks to determine whether standards-based grading has the same effect on students at the high school level (grades 9-12) by comparing end-of-course test scores and posttest scores of Algebra 2 students enrolled in a standards-based graded classroom with to …

The Influence Of Classroom Management, Administrative Support, Parental Involvement, And Economic Factors On The Retention Of Novice Teachers, Katrina Moody Dwyer

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of selected factors upon the intent of novice teachers to remain in the classroom. Teachers are leaving the profession in numbers that have prompted significant concern among policymakers and administrators. Many qualified college students are not considering the field of education as a potential career (Petty, 2007). Given that attrition rates among teachers are higher in their earliest years within the profession, it is essential to identify factors that contribute to the satisfaction and retention of novice teachers (Stockard & Lehman, 2004).

The primary data for this study were obtained …

Principal Leadership Styles, Faculty Morale, And Faculty Job Satisfaction At Selected Elementary Schools, Dawn Vyola Ramsey Hearn

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if a significant relationship existed between principal leadership styles, faculty morale, and faculty job satisfaction at selected elementary schools. Specifically, the study examined if the perception teachers had of their principals‟ leadership styles had an impact on faculty morale and faculty job satisfaction of teachers in Kindergarten through sixth grade at selected elementary schools in one school district located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) provided data that identified the perceived leadership styles of the school principals. The Purdue Teacher Opinionnaire (PTO) provided data that identified faculty morale …

The Challenges Of Inclusion: Perceptions Of Superintendents, Principals, And Teachers In Mississippi Alternative Schools, Gary Lynn Tune

Dissertations

Alternative schools serve a population of students who have come in conflict with the codes of conduct of their home school district. Students with disabilities are subject to the same codes of conduct and occasionally are referred to alternative schools. These referrals constitute a change in placement mandating alternative schools to provide academic and educational services and supports commensurate to the home school. This includes educating students with disabilities in regular classes. This research sought to ascertain perceptions of superintendents, alternative school principals, and regular and special education teachers regarding how well alternative schools in Mississippi meet the challenges of …

National Board For Professional Teaching Standards Certification And Teacher Self-Efficacy, Lynn A. Hines

Dissertations

Due to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and state-level mandates, an economic and moral imperative requires educators today to not only accommodate differences in learning rates and allow extra time for students to experience success, teachers must foster in students the belief that success is within their reach if they keep trying. These new expectations for student learning are clashing with old conceptions of teaching and outmoded approaches and structures for teacher practices. Given the new mission of schools, finding strong models of professional development is imperative. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is a promising model. Self-efficacy, …

The Relationship Between Socio-Economic Status And The Frequency Of School Web Page Access To Both Mobile And Non-Mobile Sites, Richmond Hughes Parker

Dissertations

Research has shown that student performance increases when parents become more involved in their children’s education, and the positive influence of parental involvement has been shown to persist across racial, gender, and socio-economic barriers (Miller, Adsit, & Miller, 2005). As a result, an increasing number of schools have sought to use the Internet as a tool to engage parents (Swann & Fenner, 2005). The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using the mobile web as a tool to help facilitate increased parental communication and involvement at the secondary level. It examined the relationship between socio-economic status, …

The Message 2.0: Perceptions Of Success From Members Of The Founding Class Of Mc Squared Stem High School, Jeffrey D. Mcclellan

Dissertations

This dissertation examines the methods of learning from the student’s perspective in order to understand what made the first graduating class of MC Squared successful. The conceptual model of student success composed of non-academic factors of motivation, social connectedness, and self-management was used for the lens from which to understand the six students in depth. Through the research, it was uncovered that diversified learning environments, a mastery based assessment system, and an unwavering acceptance of students within a challenging and supportive environment are essential to the success achieved at MC Squared STEM High School. Lastly, the seminal contribution of this …