Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration Commons^™

Supporting A Statewide Policy Consideration: Virtual Advancing Educational Leadership Training, Hamada Elfarargy, Beverly J. Irby, Nahed Abdelrahman, Gwendolyn Carol Webb, Angela Abney, Susan Holley, Elsa Villarreal, Carl Fahrenwald

Faculty Publications

COVID-19 pandemic was and continues to be a shock and a challenge to the entire world. This health and safety challenge found its way into the world of higher education, even in programs that were already delivered in online environments. In this study, we examined the perceptions of 79 developing principals enrolled in a Master of Education Degree program in Educational Administration at Texas A&M University in the United States as they processed the efficacy of a virtual professional development (VPD) leadership for a state certificate in Advancing Educational Leadership (AEL). The state agency has required AEL as a 3-day …

Implementing Tactile Learning To Aid Students Understanding Of The Bohr Model, Christin B. Monroe, Andrew B. Stein, Cindy Tolman

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

It is essential for introductory level chemistry students to understand atomic models and how atoms interact to form chemical bonds. The tactile model in this article utilizes marbles to represent subatomic particles, a cup to represent the nucleus and wooden rings to simulate the electron orbitals. These inexpensive items can be combined to construct models in which students can build foundational knowledge of atomic structure and how subatomic particles interact. Students were asked to provide feedback comparing the use of this tactile model to atomic computer simulations, videos and their textbook regarding the method they felt was most useful to …

Educator Perceptions Of The Working Environment In Tennessee Elementary Schools That Actively Employ Positive Behavior Supports And Restorative Practices, Scott Thomas Lamie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological study captured the experiences of elementary educators with the purpose of gathering their perceptions of the use of restorative practices and positive behavior supports in their schools with a particular focus on how these programs influenced school climate, their professional efficacy, and their job satisfaction. Results of interviews lead to the emergence of seven major themes, which were the importance of understanding the underlying causes of student behavior, change, common practices of positive behavior supports and restorative practices, benefits for students, benefits for educators, struggles with implementation, and suggestions for implementation. These findings led to the identification of …

Student Achievement And Teacher Perceptions Of School Climate In Title 1 And Non-Title 1 Schools, Jennifer E. Pangle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there is a significant relationship between student achievement and teacher perceptions of school climate. An additional purpose of this study was to determine if there is a significant difference in teacher perceptions between Title 1 and non-Title 1 schools. The final purpose of this study was to determine if there is a significant difference in teacher perceptions of school climate among the schools according to overall student achievement. A series of Spearman’s Correlation analyses were used to analyze data to determine if there was a significant relationship between TVAAS composite …

Chicana/Latina Secondary Administrators: Triumphs, Obstacles, And Discernment ¡Si Se Pudo!, Erika Tejeda

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The educational pipeline has historically been dismal in regards to Chicana/Latina high school completion and beyond. Navigating between two cultures, social and familial demands, and lack of social and political knowledge has been a challenge. According to the United States Census Bureau (2020) “The Hispanic or Latino population, which includes people of any race, was 62.1 million in 2020. The Hispanic or Latino population grew 23%, while the population that was not of Hispanic or Latino origin grew 4.3% since 2010.” With this being said, there has been an increase in the number of Latina/o’s graduating from high school and …

Why Do Effective Science Teachers Persist?: A Mixed Methods Approach Exploring Post-Induction Effective Science Teachers' Experiences, Molly Ella Ramker, William Raymond Lange, Jesse Wilcox Ph.D., Dori Clausen

Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) Symposium

Secondary science teachers have been leaving the field at an increasing rate in recent years. While much is known about science teacher attrition, less is known about science teacher persistence. The purpose of this study was to identify effective post-induction science teachers and analyze why they persist. This study was conducted using a mixed-methods approach including the Local Systemic Change Classroom Observation Protocol (LSC-COP) to generate a quantitative measure of science teaching effectiveness, along with using a phenomenological approach to investigate the experiences of effective science teachers who have stayed in the field.The median and mode of the LSC-COP capsule …

A Program Evaluation Of The Multi-Tiered System Of Supports (Mtss) And Its Role In Supporting Students’ Reading And Math Performance During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Sonia Nistler

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to employ a quantitative research study to measure the degree of impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on students’ academic performance and determine the extent to which the MTSS program served to counter the impact of the pandemic on students’ reading and math performance. This study analyzed pre-existing STAR Reading and STAR Math data collected from 7^th-grade students at one Midwest public middle utilizing the September (Fall) and December (Winter) scores. The data sets were compared to determine the students’ reading and math performance trends in the three years preceding the COVID-19 …

The Censorship Of Literature In American Secondary Level Public Schools And Its Effect On Education, Rose M. Pax

University Honors Program

The implementation of censorship within the secondary level of education and its effects on students has not been fully examined. Thus, this thesis will first define what constitutes as censorship along with a focus on the First Amendment Rights of students, intellectual freedom, a book challenge versus a banning, and selection versus censorship. A brief history of censorship in relation to the secondary level of education will then be disclosed. This section will examine the censorship concerns from 1950-2020, the patterns established between the decades, and any substantial legal action. Next, the question as to why literature tends to be …

Overview Of The Proceedings Of The 2021 Inclusion In Science, Learning A New Direction, Conference On Disability (Island), Cary Supalo, Jasodhara Bhattacharya, Daniel Steinberg

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Remote Learning - The Future Of Education: Effective Instructional Strategies Used By Parent Educators And Recommendations For Building Capacity, Raelene Ferguson Haugen

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods Delphi study was to identify the remote learning instructional strategies used by expert Southern California parent educators for implementing the anticipatory set, modeling, checking for understanding, and guided practice elements of Madeline Cheek Hunter’s Instructional Theory Into Practice (ITIP) framework. The study sought to identify how expert Southern California parent educators rated the effectiveness of the remote learning instructional strategies in the aforementioned elements of Hunter’s ITIP framework. Additionally, the purpose was to generate recommendations from expert Southern California parent educators to build capacity in the identified effective instructional strategies.

Methodology: The classical …

Schooling Black Males: Hegemonic Discourses, Structural Barriers, And Strategic Resistance, Cleo Wadley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Black males have scored at the lowest levels of academic achievement compared to other racial groups in many Texas school districts. The achievement gap for this population of students has been explained by both material constraints and oppressive hegemonic discourses. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to understand how such barriers and discourses affected these students and how the students negotiated their experiences in school. This study was designed to describe the problem, its background and to discuss a relevant theoretical framework. This study examined the academic achievement data for Black males and the current literature on adverse …

School Related Criminal Acts, Interpersonal Problems, And Classroom Behaviors As A Function Of The Proportion Of Black Students And Black Teachers, Leanne Zaire

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

This study’s purpose was to investigate school-level behavioral outcomes in relation to the proportion of Black teachers and students in U.S. schools. Negative school outcome and academic achievement gaps are well-documented. However, many of these studies utilized small, localized populations; my research used national data and focused on the problem behaviors in school. Drawing from Critical Race Theory, I hypothesized that a greater proportion of Black teachers would reduce school student problems and negative behaviors (e.g., student verbal abuse of teachers, widespread disorder in classrooms). After receiving a restricted-use license, I utilized data from 25,818 schools from the National Teacher …

Faculty Perspectives On Online Teaching In Higher Education: A Qualitative Approach To Understand Faculty Members’ Challenges And Experiences, Felix O. Quayson

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study explored faculty members' perspectives on online teaching in higher education and described, analyzed, and interpreted faculty members challenges and experiences of teaching online courses. Participants were twelve (12) faculty members who have taught online courses or currently teach online courses. Data was collected from 60-minutes semi-structured interview sessions, 78 open-ended questions, three research driving questions, background questionnaire, and personal artifacts from faculty members. Five major themes with subthemes, 15 code categories, and code co-occurrences emerged from the data collection, field notes, memos, and data analysis. However, not all of the code categories were replicated by all of the …

The Parental Involvement In A Multicultural Educational Context, Xanthippi Foulidi, Evangelos C. Papakitsos

Journal of Research Initiatives

This work focuses on parental involvement, which is considered a crucial element of school performance, especially in the case of students belonging to cultural minorities. It presents findings of modern notable research studies that examined the cultural dimensions of parental involvement in middle childhood. It also focuses on the issue that the mutual acceptance of the dominant and minority culture is a prerequisite for cooperation between family and school, to achieve the improvement of school performance. The work is structured in three sections, in the first, the term "parental involvement" is clarified and mainly cultural differences in parental involvement are …

English Teachers' Opinions On Challenges Face In Teaching English As Foreign Language: The Case Of Jalalabad Selected Secondary Schools, Fahim Rahimi, Hangama Samadi

Journal of Research Initiatives

One important goal of teaching is to achieve learning outcomes. It has been observed in universities that many students have different levels of English language proficiency. However, they study in the same English courses at the school level. The main objective of this study is to learn the challenges that exist in teaching the English language as a foreign language in secondary schools that affect the English proficiency of students. In addition, ways in which these challenges will be overcome is reviewed. The data collection tools were questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to collect data from English language teachers in selected …

Does The Mathematics Self-Concept Explain The Gender-Gap In Advanced Mathematics Achievement Among Us Secondary School Students?, Asitha Kodippili, Deepthika C. Senaratne

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study examines the role of self-concept regarding mathematical ability in explaining the gender gap in advanced mathematics performance of US high school students. The study is based on data generated from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 1995 – 2015), a large-scale project which investigated the relationship between self-concept in mathematics and mathematical achievement. In the US, secondary school males in advanced mathematics classes consistently show a statistically significant higher mathematics self-concept than females. Male students also consistently have significantly higher mathematical achievement scores than females. However, by controlling for the mathematics self-concept, we found that this …

Building A World-Class Learning System, Geoff N. Masters

School and system improvement

This study sought to understand how five jurisdictions – British Columbia, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong and South Korea, which have all performed unusually well in international achievement surveys over the past two decades – are approaching school education and its transformation. Geoff Masters describes key aspects of the learning systems these jurisdictions have established, comments on how they are now redesigning their learning systems for the future, and discusses insights into what may be required for any jurisdiction to perform well on measures of the kind currently used in international surveys.

A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of Public School Teachers’ Experiences While Teaching During A Pandemic, Andrew M. Bard

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of K-12 public school teachers related to stress and burnout while teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three research questions guided this study: (1) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their lived experiences while teaching during a pandemic?, (2) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their perceptions of stressors related to teaching during a pandemic?, and (3) How do K-12 public school teachers describe their experience as learners while adapting to teaching during a pandemic? Constructivism and social constructivism were applied as the conceptual and theoretical …

Organizational Culture In Schools: The Impact Of Positive Culture On Staff Retention At Vista Charter Academy, Karrie Elizabeth Munster

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Phenomenology Of The Job-Related Experiences Of Early Career Catholic Elementary School Principals, Sarah K. Kerins, Lucinda Spaulding

Journal of Catholic Education

This qualitative phenomenology investigated the job-related experiences of early career Catholic elementary school principals (N = 13) in the Mideastern region of the United States. Data were collected from an introductory survey, semi-structured interviews, two focus groups, and a participant designed plan for professional development. The findings indicated that Catholic elementary principals in their early career are motivated by a calling to a vocation in Catholic school leadership as well as the ability to develop and implement a vision for their school. Principals reported being challenged by limited resources, balancing the demands of the position, and navigating relationships. Finally, principals …

Creating Safe Schools: An Exploratory Study Of Educator Perspective On Student Behavior And Restorative Practices In Schools Implementation, Rachel Danielle Vargas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Restorative practices in schools (RPS) is an Integrated Student Support process that many U.S. K-12 schools utilize to combat student behavior and racial disparities against students. Initial research suggests that RPS is a successful tool to drop suspension rates, create safe school environments, and help students stay engaged in school. However, there is not sufficient empirical evidence to support a successful implementation model, leading to mixed results and opinions about the effectiveness of RPS. The purpose of this study was to explore the program processes of RPS and determine effective implementation strategies that lead to successful student outcomes. Data were …

School Leadership Support: Understanding The Experiences Of Elementary-Level Teachers During A Global Health Pandemic, Kathleen M. Crawford, Pamela Wells, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Kristen N. Dickens, Katherine Fallon

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this study was to better understand how the current COVID-19 global health pandemic has professionally and emotionally impacted elementary-level teachers. Teachers experienced diverse challenges during this unprecedented time with a rapid shift from in-person to online learning. Two overarching themes emerged based on participant experiences: abandoning best practices and increased stress and emotional pain. Implications for practice included the need for school leaders to evaluate the current level of support being provided to teachers and assess areas of need to support professional and emotional growth with the backdrop of the pandemic. We encourage future research with all …

Must Be Present To Win: Principals' Perspectives On Exclusionary Discipline, William Jeremy Cohen

Dissertations and Theses

One of the persistent challenges in United States elementary schools is the ongoing use of exclusionary discipline practices. In Oregon, despite the application of a number of legal and policy shifts intended to reduce the use of suspension and expulsion in K-5 and K-8 schools, particularly for students of color, there continues to be an increase year-to-year of the number of students being excluded, the percentage of students excluded, and an increasingly disproportionate use of exclusion for students of color. Although the research shows that removing students from the learning environment does not improve student behavior nor improve overall school …

Learning To Fly: The Impact Of Project-Based Learning On Development Of The 4cs In The Elementary Grades, Deborah Francois

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the impact of project-based learning on K-5 students’ development of the 4Cs (Critical Thinking, Communication, Creativity, Collaboration) as perceived by elementary charter school teachers.

Methodology: A phenomenological design was selected to address the research questions for this study. Through purposeful sampling, 12 charter elementary teachers who met a pre-determined set of criteria (including the routine integration of project-based learning within their instructional programs) were selected to participate in virtual, semi-structured interviews. All teachers were employed by charter schools located in six counties within California. The interviews were conducted using …

Exemplary Latino School District Superintendents’ Use Of Emotional Intelligence As They Lead Their Organizations, Ivan Chaidez

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to describe the emotional intelligence strategies that exemplary Latino school district superintendents use as they respond to leadership challenges in their school organizations based on Goleman’s (1995) four domains of emotional intelligence (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management). A secondary purpose of the study was for exemplary Latino superintendents to explain how their use of emotional intelligence strategies supported their success and tenure as they responded to leadership challenges in their school organizations.

Methodology: This multicase study was conducted through interviews of five exemplary Latino public school district superintendents in …

Culturally Relevant Practices And Community: Increasing Minority Leadership In School Administration To Improve School Climate, Cassandra Suggs, Joy N. Rogers

Dissertations

This dissertation and research looks into the area of Culturally Relevant Practices and Leadership in K-12 schools and the potential effect on all students in having minority leadership present. The research dives into interviews of teachers, hiring leaders, district leaders and building leaders. It also uses survey results from over 700 students, with the central theme of the questions around school safety, climate, culture, support, academics and a sense of belonging. The research purpose was to look into the potential positive effect on students and staff, if Culturally Relevant Practices and hiring of minority leadership was in place within school …

Leading With Heart: How Exemplary K-5 Principals Demonstrate Transformational Leadership Through Heart-Based Practices, Teresa Hubbard

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe how exemplary K-5 principals in Southern California lead from the heart using Mark Crowley’s (2011) 4 principles (building a highly engaged team, connecting on a personal level, maximizing employee potential and valuing and honoring achievements) to accomplish extraordinary results in their schools.

Methodology: This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological methodology to study the behaviors of elementary principals. This study, due to current Covid restrictions, included virtual one-on-one interviews that were held via the Zoom online platform. The data collected included audio and video recordings, written transcripts, and artifacts from school …

The Relationship Between Length Of Principal Tenure And Student Achievement In Central Arkansas Elementary Schools, Valencia Essel

ATU Theses and Dissertations 2021 - Present

The purpose of this study was to identify and explain any relationship between student achievement and principal longevity in elementary schools in Central Arkansas. The research questions were aimed at specifically finding any relationship that describes how a principal being in the same building or being moved to other schools impacts the students growth and achievement in that school. This research was important in being able to support or argue against the implications on students when district leaders decide to move principals from their schools. The research was conducted using archived student and personnel data from the Pulaski County Special …

Strength, Beauty, And Resilience: The Impact Of Self Reflection & Exploration Of Memory On Postmodern Feminist Educators, Inside And Outside The Classroom, Maryjo M. Rosania-Harvie

Education Doctorate Dissertations

This study utilizes an autoethnographic methodology, informed by narrative inquiry, to explore the impact of memories on feminist educators. The participants in the study included two of the researcher’s former colleagues and one former student. The study's goal was to examine how the relationships between researcher and participant and the memories they shared impacted them as educators; in the process, the concept of authenticity in educators was examined in relation to the research and the participants’ feminist and postmodern approach. The researcher collected qualitative data through interviews, personal journals, timelining, and an epistolary writing exercise to define authenticity and explore …

An Analysis Of The Relationship Between Covid Policies And Student Growth In The Nine Largest Arkansas Public School Districts During The 2020-2021 Academic Year, Jack Switzer

Political Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

My honors thesis is a comprehensive overview of the relationship between the COVID19 response of Arkansas’ nine largest school districts on high school students’ Value-Added Growth Scores (VAS). I wrote my thesis on the intersection between districts’ COVID-19 response and the academic success of their students because the COVID-19 pandemic caused a historically significant change in education. The effects of switching from in-person, mask-free learning to virtual, semi-virtual and socially distanced learning certainly affected students’ ability to learn from the educational environment pre-COVID. I chose to utilize the VAS as the metric for student success because it measures how students …