Educational Leadership Commons^™

Novice Teachers: Using Professional Development To Discover Whether They Continue To Use The Behavior Management Strategies Taught In The Undergraduate Program, Katherine O. Barnetson

Theses and Dissertations

The need for supporting novice teachers is not a theoretical concept, it is a real concept. Teacher education programs are preparing and graduating new teachers at a fast rate, however; these new teachers are also leaving the profession at staggering rates (Clark, 2012). According to Ingersoll (2012), between 40% and 50% of all new teachers in the United States leave the profession in the first five years. This research was designed to study teacher professional development with novice special education teachers as they move from a teacher preparation program to a full-time teaching position. The participants for this study included …

Of Lizards And Language, Bernadette Gongora

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Dissertation Experiences Of Faculty Members: Individual, Relational And Structural Factors Of Success, Tanika R. Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological research study explored the dissertation experiences of individuals working as faculty members across disciplines at regionally accredited four year universities. Research questions utilized the constructs of social development theory to explore dissertation experiences from an individual, relational and structural perspective. Prior scholars have used social development theory as a framework to explore the individualities of the student, the relationship with faculty advisors and mentors, and the resources provided by the department and institution when evaluating the dissertation process (Liechty, Liao, & Schull, 2009).

A purposeful, criterion sampling strategy and maximum variation sampling were employed to select a wide …

Effects Of Developing Edtpa As A Teaching Portfolio On Pre-Service Teachers' Self-Efficacy In A Teacher Preparation Program, Pam Wetherington

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of developing edTPA as a teaching portfolio on pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy, specifically their perceptions of confidence related to the edTPA’s constructs of planning, instruction, and assessment within a tied-to-licensure state. The researcher employed a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach to study the effects and experiences for developing edTPA as a teaching portfolio. Three repeated measures ANCOVAs were conducted to determine the change in pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy after developing the edTPA teaching portfolio while controlling for the cooperating teachers’ support of pre-service teachers’ planning, instruction, and assessment decisions and practices. The …

Professional Growth: Informal Peer Observation, Carolyn A. Clark

All Theses And Dissertations

The practice of peer observation has recently gained attention as educational and political leaders examine teacher effectiveness. Prior research studies about peer observation were mostly conducted in secondary universities or in schools where this practice was voluntary. Since this practice has recently become mandated, this qualitative case study examined how teachers perceived the experience of informal peer observation in relation to their professional growth. The study was conducted in a Pre-K-8 public school for three months while teachers participated in informal peer observation rounds. When teachers completed their informal peer observation, they filled out the peer observation documentation forms and …

The Leadership Behaviors Of College Freshmen, Kevin Wallace

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, causal-comparative study was to determine if a difference exists between leadership behaviors of male and female college freshmen and the amount of extra or co-curricular activities they participated in during high school. Leadership was measured using the Student Leadership Practices Inventory (S-LPI) (Kouzes & Posner, 2013) and was guided by the theoretical framework of leader identity development (LID) as promulgated by Komives, Owen, Longerbeam, Mainella, and Osteen (2005) and revised by Komives, Longerbeam, Osteen, Owen, and Wagner (2009). Participants consisted of 98 male and 84 female incoming college freshmen attending a mid-size Catholic university located …

A Case Study Describing Practices And Beliefs Of Teachers Who Are Effective In Their Classroom Behavior Management In A Diverse Rural School System In Georgia, Busani Siphambili

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this nested case study was to describe the practices and beliefs of teachers who are effective in their behavior management with minority students (African American) in three rural schools. This study was shaped by Vygotsky’s (1978) sociocultural behavior theory that states that learning is a social process and the origination of human intelligence in society or culture. It also emphasizes that the development of thinking is a shared process, not an individual one, and that children learn by participating and sharing other people’s frame of reference. Social interactions play an important role in the development of cognition. …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Experiences Of Transitioning From A Professional Career In Health Information Management To Teaching In Higher Education, Mildred Norris

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of faculty in Health Information Technology (HIT) programs as they transitioned from working in their field of expertise to become a teacher in the accredited HIT associate degree programs. The intended sample size, pending saturation, was comprised of 10 HIT faculty members at five colleges in the southeastern United States. Schlossberg’s (1981) transition theory is used to guide this study; it is a thematic approach, which can be used to identify the factors which affect people as they make transitions. The expectancy-value theory, conceptualized by Atkinson (1957), utilized …

A Causal Comparative Study On The Effect Of Proficiency-Based Education On School Climate, Kay York

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

his quantitative, causal comparative study sought to determine if proficiency-based education has an effect on school climate. With sweeping school reform across the United States, educators are seeking ways to improve student achievement and maintain a positive school climate. This study consisted of 87 teachers in proficiency-based high schools and 125 teachers in non-proficiency-based high schools in New England who were emailed the Secondary School Climate Assessment Instrument (SCAI-S-G). Data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics computed for each teacher group through SPSS. SPSS was also used to conduct separate t tests for each of the eight domains of the SCAI-S-G …

Classroom Teachers And Their Experiences With A Diagnosed Mental Disorder In The Atlanta Area: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology, Becki Kelly

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study is to describe the experiences of nine classroom teachers with clinically diagnosed mental disorders in the southern part of the metro Atlanta area. An ontological philosophical assumption is utilized through a social constructivist view while framed through the modified labeling theory (Link, Cullen, Struening, Shrout, & Dohrenwend, 1989) and the social identity theory (Tajfel, Billig, Bundy, & Flament, 1971). The central research question is: How do classroom teachers diagnosed with a mental disorder describe their experiences in the school environment? Research questions cover (a) their emotions and the prevalence of them, (b) their …

Characteristics And Behaviors Of School Board Members In "Grade A" Arkansas Public School Districts, Bridget Lynn Polk

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this grounded theory study was to describe characteristics and behaviors of school board members in Arkansas school districts where 50% or more of their campuses earned a letter grade of “A” on the 2014 Arkansas School Performance Report (Arkansas Department of Education [ADE], 2015). This purpose was achieved through analysis of artifacts from selected school districts including: achievement patterns; board minutes; and board member professional development records. A web-based survey of school board members was also utilized to gather demographic and background information. Finally, personal interviews were completed with a small group of board members to collect …

Factors Contributing To The Problem Of Student Absenteeism In A Rural School, Angela Denean Durborow

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Student attendance would seem to be a vital link in measuring student success in school. If students are not in school, they miss instruction from the teacher. Without instruction it seems incredibly difficult to complete the work needed to pass classes and be successful in school. The research explored the problem of practice of student absenteeism in a rural school. The study was conducted using mixed methods research methodology, specifically a sequential mixed methods research design. The research questions were as follows: (1) What explicit or implicit messages are parents and the school sending about school attendance? (2) What is …

Understanding A Vicious Cycle: Do Out-Of-School Suspensions Impact Student Test Scores?, Kaitlin P. Anderson, Gary W. Ritter, Gema Zamarro

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

A vast body of research has proven the correlation between exclusionary discipline (out-of-school suspensions and expulsions) and student outcomes such as lower test scores, dropout, grade retention, and involvement in the juvenile justice system, but there is no consensus on the causal impacts of exclusionary discipline. This study uses six years of de-identified demographic, achievement, and disciplinary data from all K-12 public schools in Arkansas to estimate the causal relationship. We conduct dynamic panel data models incorporating student fixed effects using Anderson-Hsiao (1981) estimation. We find, counter-intuitively, a null to positive impact of out-of-school suspensions on test scores. Therefore, while …

Experiences Of North American Teachers Working Overseas Who Broke Their Contracts Within One Year, Stephanie L. Kattera

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain insight into the experiences of North American teachers working in international schools and why they chose to leave within the first year. The findings offer insights into the following questions; (1) How do these teachers experience relationships with leadership and students? (2) What role, if any, did their recruitment and induction have on these teachers’ decision to leave? (3) What role, if any, did the culture of the host country play in these teachers’ decision to leave? The struggles experienced from these conditions led teachers to abruptly leave their contracted international …

Knowledge To Action: A Communication And Framing Issue, Norman Eng

Publications and Research

Translating knowledge into action requires that education scholars step beyond their traditional role as researchers and engage the public more deliberately. At the same time, their impartiality must be rigorously maintained. One solution is to focus their engagement on educating, discussing, and sharing—rather than persuading or advocating. Communication studies suggests that framing research in ways that resonate with people’s core values may help the public see complex issues more constructively. It may even stimulate political will. In this paper, I explore four ways to frame education issues, based on widely held American values like achievement, progress, and pragmatism. I also …

Dynamic School Psychology: Perceptions Between School Psychologists, Teachers, And Administrators On School Psychology And Paradigm Shift Theory, Homero Flores

Education Dissertations

The purpose of this research paper is to gain current perceptions of school psychology services and paradigm shift theory in school psychology by school psychologists, teachers and administrators within public school systems. The paper will focus on the history of school psychology, federal legislation, and IDEA. Surveys were collected from school psychologists, teachers and administrators regarding perceptions of school psychology and paradigm shift theory in school psychology services. Although the results were non-significant, results of the surveys indicate similar results to previous perceptual surveys. While teachers and administrators would like more services in general from school psychologists, school psychologists remained …

Necessary But Not Sufficient: The Continuing Inequality Between Men And Women In Educational Leadership, Findings From The Aasa Mid-Decade Survey, Kerry Robinson, Charol Shakeshaft, Margaret Grogan, Whitney Sherman Newcomb

Education Faculty Articles and Research

The gender of school leaders makes a difference in career paths, personal life, and characteristics of workplace. There is additional evidence that men and women are appointed or elected to lead different kinds of educational jurisdictions. Even if those differences did not exist, equitable access to leadership positions for people of different backgrounds would make this an important issue. This article reports gender-related findings from the American Association of School Administrators 2015 Mid-Decade Survey. Findings confirm many of the trends in research on the superintendency over the past 15 years. The profiles of women superintendents are becoming more like their …

The Missouri Student Transfer Program, Howard E. Fields Iii

Dissertations

In 1993, the state of Missouri passed the Outstanding Schools Act. This law was created as a means to ensure that “all children will have quality educational opportunities, regardless of where in Missouri they live.” Section 167.131 of this law states that an unaccredited district must pay the tuition and transportation cost for students who attend an accredited school in the same or adjoining district. This portion of the law became known as the Student Transfer Program.

The Riverview Gardens School District (RGSD) was one of three unaccredited school districts in the state of Missouri in 2013. With close to …

The Impact Of Project-Based Learning On Collegiate Preparedness, Tanya T. Macmartin

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and describe collegiate PBL high school student graduates’ perceptions of their preparedness for their first year of college and the impact of how the BIE’s eight essential components of PBL (Larmer & Mergendoller, 2015b) contributed to their first year of college preparedness. A secondary purpose was to explore and describe the alignment of the students’ perceptions of the impact of how the BIE’s eight project-based components (Larmer & Mergendoller, 2015b) contributed to their first year of college preparedness as defined by Conley’s (2012) college readiness indicators.

Methodology: …

Examining The Impacts Of Middle School Disciplinary Policies On 9th Grade Retention, Elise Swanson, Heidi Holmes Erickson, Gary W. Ritter

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

In this paper we estimate the impact of exclusionary discipline given in 8th grade on the probability of 9th grade retention. We use a rich seven year, student level, panel dataset from Arkansas. We use a novel approach by limiting our sample to students who switch schools between 8th and 9th grade. This movement gives each student a fresh start, and removes the potential confound of a student’s reputation as a “problem student” that could influence teachers to be harsher on students who already have a disciplinary record. We find that students who receive exclusionary discipline in 8th grade are …

Evaluating School Vouchers: Evidence From A Within-Study Comparison, Kaitlin P. Anderson, Patrick J. Wolf

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) are the “gold-standard” for estimating causal impacts of educational programs. Students subject to lotteries, however, often are not representative of the broader population of students experiencing the educational treatment. With few exceptions, researchers are not able to determine how much selection bias exists when various quasi-experimental approaches are used in place of experimental ones within a school choice context. We are left wondering about the magnitude of the internal-for-external validity tradeoff that education researchers often face. This study assesses the extent to which methods such as propensity score matching or observational models with control variables can …

Graduation Policies In A Public High School (A Case Study), Erika K. Stump, Erin Connor, Catherine Fallona, Bernadette Doykos

State of Education

This report shares research conducted in a case study of one higher performing high school to examine the practices, challenges and facilitators of implementing a standards-based curriculum and proficiency-based diploma systems.

The Goal-Driven, Resilient, And Influential Teens Program In Kentucky High Schools: The Impact On Social And Emotional Learning And Influencing Factors, Brant Von Goble

Dissertations

In order to assess the effects of the Goal-driven, Resilient, and Influential Teens (GRIT) program on social and emotional learning and academic performance in high schools throughout Kentucky, data from several sources were compiled and analyzed. These sources included results from the Student Engagement and Performance (STEP) survey, an instrument developed by the Rock Solid Evaluation Team at Western Kentucky University and administered yearly to high school students and teachers, and school-level academic and socioeconomic data from the Kentucky Department of Education. Additional data on fidelity of GRIT program implementation were obtained from FranklinCovey, the GRIT program’s developer and publisher. …

The Impact Of A Value-Added Model On Educational Leadership Practices In Northwest Louisiana, Candice D. Webert

Doctoral Dissertations

This study addressed the impact of VAM, concerns with VAM data, uses and interventions educational leaders provided teachers, and components perceived as necessary for VAM effectiveness as an evaluation tool. The demographics used for this study were position, school size, and experience. Due to the documented need for educational accountability from the 1960s to present, the knowledge gained in this study was valuable. While the initiative was implemented as a response to increased accountability, the perceptions and understanding of such new initiatives can impact their effectiveness; in turn, impacting educational leadership. This study focused on the effectiveness of VAM.

In …

Are The Leadership Behaviors Of K–12 Leaders In Mid-Western Urban School Districts Influenced By Their Beliefs And Attitudes Regarding Spirituality?, Ericka M. Taylor

Dissertations

Working in a stressful and chaotic environment can be difficult for building principals in urban school districts (DeNisco, 2013; Stokley, 2002; Thompson, 2004). Presumably, the job is only expected to get more arduous with the increasing demands to improve student achievement (Allison, 2012; Kimball & Sirotnik, 2000; Queen & Schumacher, 2006). What is quite apparent today is that the role and responsibilities of the principal have changed dramatically over the past twenty years (Carlson, 2012; Hill-Yeverton, 2003) shifting from a factory model of management of learning to one in which teachers and principals have to create more student-centered and project-based …

The Predictive Relationship Of Teacher Leadership Dimensions On Elementary School Climate, Ashley Watson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Leaders exist at many levels. Within the educational arena, studies have shown the correlation of leadership styles among principals and the school culture (Pepper & Thomas, 2002; Perspective, 2012; Williams, 2009). This study attempted to extend Bass’s Transformational Leadership Theory (1985) and Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership Theory (1976) through examining leadership dimensions among teacher team leaders - and their influence on school climate. Using a predictive correlational research design, the current study sought to investigate relationships between leadership dimensions of teacher leaders and elementary school climates. Two different groups of teachers from a school district in the northern metro …

Grouping Structures Of Gifted And High Achieving Middle School Students: Teacher Perceptions And Data Analysis Of The Impact Of Grouping, April Leigh Smith

Theses and Dissertations

In this mixed methods study on teacher perceptions and data related to the impact of grouping structures on middle school gifted and high achieving students, the researcher addresses the gap in literature relating to recent gifted grouping research in rural areas. The study took place in two middle schools of a rural school district in Georgia. A sequential explanatory design was applied to survey responses and focus group data regarding teacher perception of grouping; a comparative ex post facto design was applied to state-issued end of year assessment results and analyzed for trends regarding grouping for gifted and high achieving …

Multiple Mini-Interview Performance And First Semester Achievement In A Baccalaureate Respiratory Care Program, Megan S. Koster

All Theses And Dissertations

Success in an undergraduate respiratory care program requires that students demonstrate skills that, although not traditionally assessed in the admissions process, are indicative of success in the clinical environment. Attributes like critical and interpersonal skills, empathy, and self-appraisal are competencies developed by different yet integrated intellectual processes and contribute significantly to the overall perception of intelligence. However, despite limited efficacy in predicting rate of attrition in an undergraduate clinical program such respiratory care, traditional admissions criteria continue to focus solely on objective indicators of academic ability. The purpose of this quantitative case study was to investigate the utility of the …

Competency Development In Community-Based Occupational Therapy, Sunny R. Winstead

All Theses And Dissertations

The aims of this study were: a) to discover which strategies community-based occupational therapists (OTs) find most effective for developing the competencies that have been identified as unique to community-based occupational therapy (OT) practice, b) to examine respondents’ perceptions of the effectiveness of their academic training and of current professional development resources, and c) to explore respondents’ suggestions for improving academic training and continuing education for OTs in community-based practice. Data collection was completed using an electronic survey that targeted members of the American Occupational Therapy Association who have experience in community-based OT. The survey was completed by 81 OTs …

The Forgotten Population: Honors Math Students At A Vocational High School, Jarrod Richards

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods individual case study was to investigate why honors math students at a regional vocational high school felt that their mathematical ability decreased over their enrollment at the site under study from the levels they experienced in middle school. This study specifically focused on long term retention of material and motivational forces that can influence the perceptions of honors students’ ability in mathematics. The participants for this study were 23 students who had been in honors math for all four years at this school. A records review was conducted for the 23 participants, which yielded …