Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

Schools For Profit Or Schools For Education? A Christian School Principal’S Perspectives, Michael A. Crosby

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation is a series of speculative essays (Schubert, 1991) that address the forces of neoliberalism on schools today– both public and private. While there have been studies on the detrimental effects of high-stakes testing on public schools (e.g., Au, 2015; Giroux, 2014; Wacquant, 2000) as well as the associated harmful effects of school to prison pipeline (e.g., Saltman, 2016; Taubman, 2009), there remains little research associated with the damaging impacts of neoliberalism on Christian schools. Building upon the theoretical framework of critical pedagogy (e.g., Friere, 1970; Kincheloe, 2008; McLaren, 2015), I undertake a critical examination of neoliberalism’s calculated efforts …

The Impact Of An Intensive Blended Learning Reading Intervention On Standardized Assessment Scores, Ashley M. Snyder

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The current study documents the effects of the Language! Live intensive, blended learning reading intervention on the Georgia Milestones Assessment Lexile Scores. The purpose of the study was to determine the impact of an intensive blended learning reading intervention on the standardized assessment scores of middle school students who were at least two grade levels behind in reading at a Title I school in Georgia and aimed to establish if students who were significantly below grade level could make growth with the assistance of an intensive blended learning reading intervention. The study included the data of 133 students in two …

Student's Perceptions Of Smartphone Use At Home And At A High School Regarding A New Smartphone Policy: A Case Study, Ana Zurita

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The new generation raised in the digital era continues to present unresolved challenges for both parents and teachers. The purpose of this case study is to analyze students' usage of their smartphones in their lives, and understand the success of a new school policy on smartphone use at an arts school in the U.S. For this qualitative research, I interviewed ten participants from the high school. The literary review informs us that smartphones are potentially addictive, with negative effects for healthy mental, emotional and social child development, as well as a source of misleading information. As a consequence, smartphones in …

Doctoral Candidacy Examination Scores And Time To Degree Completion, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Steven Tolman, Katherine E. Fallon

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

Aim/Purpose

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship between doctoral students’ candidacy examination scores and estimated time to degree completion, measured by dissertation progression.

Background

Time to degree completion in doctoral programs continues to be an issue and reasons for high attrition rates for doctoral students are broad and include varied core components of the academic pathway such as challenges with critical thinking during coursework, stress about passing comprehensive examinations, poor academic writing, and lack of knowledge around scholarly practitioner research.

Methodology

An ex post facto, correlational research design utilized quantitative data to determine …

Aware I Am Alone: Intersections Of Solitude And Mindfulness, Richard Cleveland

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

This paper explores the relationship between solitude and mindfulness. Parallels between the two constructs exist, allowing them to complement each other in furthering the well-being of individuals and communities. Three perspectives through which mindfulness may assist in forming foundational understandings of solitude are presented; these comprise Theoretical, Practice, and Research. The Theoretical lens provides introductory understandings of both solitude and mindfulness. On this basis, integral parallels between the two constructs are outlined. Next, Practice reviews solitude that is fostered through mindfulness practices. Further, additional models for recognizing solitude as a part of mindfulness are proposed. Finally, Research …

Instructional Leadership Practices And School Leaders' Self-Efficacy, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Carter Akins, Antonio P. Gutierrez De Blume, Richard E. Cleveland, Summer Pannell

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate instructional leadership practices and the degree to which these practices predict the leadership self-efficacy of school leaders while controlling for years of experience as a school leader. With educational reform focused on school accountability, principals must attend to tasks that lead to school improvement. Identifying such tasks as instructional leadership practices and gaining a more comprehensive understanding of instructional leadership practices through leadership self-efficacy may contribute to school improvement. The methodology utilized a survey and the participants were 100 principals and assistant principals of public schools in the southeastern United States, …

Conference Program 2020, Sotl Commons Conference

SoTL Commons Conference

Conference Program

Strengthening Middle School Students’ Commitment To Social Justice Issues: Building Connections With Teacher Education Candidates, Anne Katz

Curriculum, Foundations & Reading: Faculty Publications

This article was published in Dragon Lode.

Dare We Speak Of It: The Teaching Of Evolution In Private Schools Of An Urban Middle Georgia Setting, Eric J. Thompson

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions, experience, and thinking of teachers at three private schools in Middle Georgia to determine how different private schools approach the teaching of evolution. For this project three private schools were included representing a secular, non-religiously affiliated private school, a Catholic affiliated private school, and an independent, Christian private school. The research was designed to answer one research question and three sub-questions. The primary research question was: How do private schools of the Middle Georgia area teach the theory of evolution? The three sub-questions were (2) Does the type of …

Helping Middle School Students Acknowledge And Navigate Anxiety: An Action Research, Teresa Jones, Amanda Riggs, Nai-Cheng Kuo

Current Issues in Middle Level Education

Teachers and school counselors have the responsibility not only to build a positive school climate in which students want to perform and stretch themselves academically and socially, but also to create an environment in which students know that their teachers and school counselors are aware of their needs, anxiety, and other factors preventing them from reaching their potential. In the present study, we used an action research design to help students acknowledge their anxiety and know how to navigate it. The results indicate that most students exhibited lower anxiety before and during the test, while their anxiety level was the …

Physical Therapists' Perspectives Of School Functioning For Children With Cerebral Palsy (Cp), Vevian Grace A. Lee

Honors College Theses

The purpose of this study was to use a qualitative participatory action research method – Photovoice – to identify perceived barriers and facilitators to school functioning among school-based physical therapists of children with cerebral palsy (CP). Seven physical therapists made up the participants in this study. The researchers followed the nine-step methodology recommended for Photovoice. During the training session, participants were educated on the background of Photovoice and the purpose of the study. They were given 14 days to take photographs after which researchers used a focus group interview structured by the SHOWeD method. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability …

Book Review Of Debunking The Myth Of Job Fit In Higher Education And Student Affairs , Jamie Workman, Daniel W. Calhoun, Steve Tolman

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

Book review of Debunking the Myth of Job Fit in Higher Education and Student Affairs by Jamie L. Workman, Daniel W. Calhoun, and Steven Tolman.

Pedagogical Approach To Developing The Hiring Practices Of Higher Education Administrators, Steve Tolman, Daniel Calhoun

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

Most student affairs professionals will serve in a managerial and/or supervisory role at some point in their careers, but only a limited number of higher education graduate preparatory programs have required coursework focusing on this competency area. This situation is disconcerting, as there seems to be an assumption within the student affairs field that new professionals have the formal training and experiences needed to immediately be placed into these managerial and/or supervisory roles. In an effort to address this discrepancy, and in particular staffing practices, one higher education graduate preparatory program developed a course on staffing practices, using an innovative …

Pass/Fail Grading In Medical School And Impact On Residency Placement, Brittany Ange, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Daniel W. Calhoun, Antonio P. Gutierrez De Blume, Paul Wallach, Elena Wood

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

Objective: There is a trend toward using pass/fail (P/F) grading in the first 2 years of medical school as it has been noted to improve student well-being and academic performance is not negatively impacted. It is important that medical students are afforded the best medical education possible to prepare them for residency placement. Thus, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of P/F grading in medical school on residency placement. Methods: This study compared archival residency match data from two medical school classes. The Class of 2016 had tiered grading and the Class of 2017 had P/F …

Reliability Analysis Of Complementary Assessment Tools For Measuring Teacher Candidate Dispositions, Winifred C. Nweke, Tasha P. Perkins, Comfort Y. Afolabi

Georgia Educational Researcher

Assessing the dispositions of teacher candidates remains a challenge for many Educator Preparation Providers (EPPs). This article details the process and results of establishing the reliability of two complementary instruments, the Candidate Beliefs Self-Assessment Survey (SAS) and the Candidate Dispositions Performance Assessment Rubric (CDPA). The instruments are linked through the same dispositional themes that undergird the indicators in the CDPA and belief statements in the SAS. Internal consistency reliability coefficients were determined using Cronbach’s alpha for SAS (0.81) and the CDPA (0.96). In addition, inter-rater reliability coefficient of 0.80 was determined for CDPA using Intraclass correlation (ICC) method based on …

Innovation In Preservice Teacher Preparation: Undergraduate Research In Special Education, Kymberly Harris, Meca Williams-Johnson, Dana Sparkman

Curriculum, Foundations & Reading: Faculty Publications

Teacher preparation programs emphasize the connection between student outcomes in achievement and behavior, but the framework of teachers as researchers is rarely presented as a foundational basis of good instruction. Teachers are aware of the need to consider scores and trends and alter their instruction based on the response of the students to their teaching, but the techniques involved are not explicitly taught as research methods in most preparation programs.

The initial purpose of including a research course in the undergraduate program of study was to provide preservice teachers with research skills to enhance their instruction. The long term goal …

Growing The Youth Of Tomorrow: Applying Leadership Skills In A Hands-On Effort For Food Security, Chasity D. Tompkins

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

The objective of the poster presentation is to highlight the development of student leadership and goal setting skills through 4-H. The collaborative effort with local school systems and the County Extension Offices provides a strong foundation to pursue student growth outside of the classroom. This presentation benefits school officials and community partners.

Stop, Look, And Listen To What Your Data Is Telling You!, Simone Danielson, Jeffrey Harris, Jeff Barnett

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Join us for a ride on the Data Train where you will STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN to what your data is telling you and use the information to develop a process of continuous improvement in your after-school program to be an effective co-collaborator of closing the achievement gap. This workshop will provide information and strategies to be used in K – 12.

1. Participants will learn the importance of data analysis in afterschool.
2. Participants will learn how to work with regular day school professionals in determining what data sources to use.
3. Participants will be able to analyze sample data and develop …

"It's My Closest Friend And My Most Hated Enemy": Students Share Perspectives On Procrastination In Writing Classes, Jennifer Gray

Journal of Student Success in Writing (Archived)

This article presents the results from an IRB-approved study that researched student perspectives on procrastination. Qualitative and quantitative data from over 200 surveys administered to first-year writers illustrated multiple reasons why students procrastinated, and these reasons are much deeper than a strong desire to do something else. Results indicated that when students perceived a lack of engagement with their topic (whether the engagement was actually there or not), they were more likely to procrastinate. In addition, students who had fewer choices in their writing assignments, such as topic choices or format choices, were more likely to procrastinate and avoid the …

Hopscotch 2.0: An Enhanced Version Of The Model For The Generation Of Research Designs In Social Sciences And Education, Ivan M. Jorrín Abellán

Georgia Educational Researcher

The development of educational research designs might be daunting for novice researchers that have to make choices among the plethora of philosophical frameworks, research traditions, and different methods existing in the field. In this article we describe the process followed to formally evaluate Hopscotch, a model and a web-tool created by the author in 2015 to help novice researchers in the generation of solid and well-informed qualitative research designs. To do so, a responsive evaluation based on case study methods was conducted. The obtained results led us build a new 2.0 version of the Hopscotch's web-tool overcoming the limitations identified …

Educational Leadership Doctoral Faculty Academic Qualifications And Practitioner Experiences In Georgia, Steven Tolman, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Deborah Evans

Leadership, Technology & Human Development: Faculty Publications

Aim/Purpose

This study examined doctoral faculty of educational leadership within the state of Georgia in the United States. The aim was to illustrate the academic qualifications and practitioner experiences of the faculty that develop students in educational leadership programs to be scholarly practitioners and future educational leaders.

Background

Faculty of educational leadership programs prepare their students to hold imminent senior leadership roles in P-12 school administration and higher education administration. In this apprenticeship model, doctoral faculty utilize their academic qualifications and/or practitioner experiences to develop students into scholarly practitioners.

Methodology

A descriptive quantitative study utilizing content analysis was conducted to …

An Examination Of K-12 Teachers’ Assessment Beliefs And Practices In Relation To Years Of Teaching Experience., Aslihan Unal, Zafer Unal

Georgia Educational Researcher

This study compared K-12 teachers’ assessment beliefs and practices in relation to their years of teaching experience. The data for this study was collected from 87 public school teachers. The findings suggest that as the teachers’ years of experience increases, the value they place in assessment increases as well.

Examining The Effects Of Energy Drinks On Academic Performance, Alyssa P. Roberson

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Reports of energy drink (ED) consumption have grown among the United States population. Research suggests reasons for consumption vary across populations, including increased attention and enhanced endurance performance. However, ED consumers could suffer from negative effects of ED, including health problems, caffeine overdose, and death. Energy drink consumption is also linked to substance use. Despite risks of consuming ED, heavy use of EDs remains among college students, often to help with academic performance; however, research has not examined effects of ED consumption on perceived and actual academic performance. This study evaluated relationships among ED consumption, self-efficacy, and academic performance in …

Predictors Of Community College Students’ Academic Success In The Corequisite Model, Damon Andrews

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine predictors of community college student academic success in the corequisite model. Academic success was defined dichotomously on a pass or fail basis. The population in this study included 1,933 students that enrolled in at least one corequisite English and/or mathematics course at the college between the fall semester of 2015 and summer semester of 2018. The predictors examined were a student’s sex, race, age at time of enrollment, Pell grant recipient status, first-generation college student status, high school GPA, placement test scores, academic major, time spent receiving academic tutoring in college’s …

Library Instruction, Learning Outcomes And Assessment: A Compliance Strategy For Sacs Assessments., Kory A. Paulus

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

Ethel K. Smith Library’s Reference and Instruction Librarians, Kory Paulus and Isaac Meadows began a venture to improve the library instruction assessment tools in Fall of 2017 under the guidance of their Library Director and Director of Institutional Effectiveness and SACS Liaison.

Using the book entitled “Classroom Assessment Techniques for Librarians” published by ACRL as a proven example set of learning outcomes, the librarians customized these outcomes to meet the institutional needs.

An essential motive for this initiative was to obtain quantitative data to pair with learning outcomes to ensure bibliographics instruction’s alignment with both SACSCOC and Wingate University’s core …

Literacy-Based Action Research: Strategies For Improving Student Achievement, Anne Katz Ph.D., Deborah Jaudon, Danielle Russell, Jennifer Formby

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

The presentation will highlight literacy-based action research projects by three Reading Specialist M.Ed. graduate students. The topics of enhancing struggling readers’ vocabulary development using technology; effects of technology during summer school on student promotion; as well as infusion of dialogue and metacognitive strategies to promote self-efficacy and early reading success were explored. Tools for attendees to implement the process of action research in their own classroom will be outlined.

Building A Better Risk Prevention Model, Steven Hornyak

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation chronicles the work of Houston County Schools in developing a risk prevention model built on more than ten years of longitudinal student data. In its second year of implementation, Houston At-Risk Profiles (HARP), has proven effective in identifying those students most in need of support and linking them to interventions and supports that lead to improved outcomes and significantly reduces the risk of failure.

Changing The Music: Understanding Educational Obstacles For Youth In Foster Care, Amie J. Stearns, Iyc

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Due to increased tendency of children in foster care placements to perform poorly in school and to become involved with the juvenile justice system, there is a dire need for school districts to improve support systems for this vulnerable student group. This presentation may be of most interest to conference attendees as it explores the specific barriers which may hinder educational success for youth in foster care.

1. Why Use Norm Referenced Standardized Tests To Answer: Did I Teach? Did They Learn?, John Hobe

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

1. : If it is state law that students must attend school or be home schooled until they are a certain age, then must the state protect them while at public schools? The answer seems self-evident. Indeed, the United States Constitution’s 14^th Amendment guarantees equal protection under the laws to its citizens. But do school practices unintentionally violate this protection?

Motivate My Mindset: Teachers, Parents And Students Setting Their Minds On Achievement, Growth And Excellence!, Stephanie Leggett

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

We have heard that the 'mind is a terrible thing to waste'. This session supports where the ‘Mind is set Matters Most!’ Activities and strategies that K-12 teachers and parents can implement will aid a diverse student population to have growth mindsets that are set for A.G.E. – Achievement, Growth, and Excellence despite the subject or task!