Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Implementation Of The Instructional Practices Inventory – Technology Process With Fidelity: The Impact On Technology Use And Student Cognitive Engagement, Mekca Rae Wallace-Spurgin

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to determine if students were using the recently purchased Chromebooks as well as if they were cognitively engaged when using the technology. Data collected using the IPI-T process suggested teachers were typically the users of the technology, students were often disengaged, and teachers were asking students to participate in lower-order surface activities. Missing from the process was the implementation of the faculty collaborative sessions.

The writer scheduled dates to collect data three times during the 2018-19 school year. In addition, faculty collaborative sessions were planned and facilitated within one week of collection data. Participating in …

An Adaptation And Psychometric Evaluation Of The Teacher Attribution Measure For Early Elementary (Tam-Ee), Shannon L. Nemer

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the reliability and validity of the Teacher Attribution Measure for Early Elementary (TAM-EE), a measure adapted from the Preschool Teaching Attributions (PTA) measure, to assess the challenging behavior attributions of early elementary teachers. Like the PTA, the TAM-EE uses a series of student-specific behavior scenarios as prompts for teachers who then rate statements aligned with dimensions of attribution theory on a 6-point scale. A sample of 41 teachers completed the TAM-EE on 79 students in grades K-3 screened for risk of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Teachers also completed reports of student behavior, self-efficacy, and perceptions of …

Cultural Connections In The Classroom And Pacific Islander Students<'> Value Of Reading, Lyndsai K. Sylva

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis focuses on how cultural connections in classroom influences students value of learning, specifically, their value of reading. Several researchers and theorists have emphasized the importance of balancing cognitive and conative aspects of childrens reading development. However, what is lacking in these studies is a focus on Pacific Islander (PI) children. The purpose of this study was to examine value of reading for diverse students who may be struggling in classrooms designed for White, middle-class students. Findings provide educators and those working with diverse students a chance to consider how connecting cultural backgrounds for all students can help in …

A Mixed Methods Study Of The Implementation Of Collaborative Technology Tools For Enhancing Collaboration And Student Engagement In Online Learning: Faculty Experiences And Student Perspectives, Ayshah Abdullah Alahmari

Theses and Dissertations

The appropriate implementation of collaborative technology tools in online courses leads to a culture of social learning where technology empowers students to take central roles in their learning. Yet, critical questions still exist about how faculty design, develop, implement collaborative eLearning activities using technology tools that support collaboration and student engagement in online courses, and what perspectives students have toward their experiences while participating in these activities. The purpose of the study is to explore the experiences of faculty members implementing collaborative technology tools in online courses to support collaboration and student engagement, in addition, to obtain the perspectives of …

Resilience And Academic Achievement In Minority Students, James A. Britton

Theses and Dissertations

Students can thrive within school programs and sustain their capacity for success despite seemingly overwhelming obstacles. A model of school-based resilience can insulate students from risk and help students acknowledge challenges, embrace them, and learn as students encounter challenge and surmount it.

This study of a high school program analyzed the relationship between educational resilience and academic achievement through a direct measure of resilience. The research investigated whether a program increased resilience for minority and low-income high school students and whether stronger resilience was associated with improved academic outcomes. Students in the program produced significantly better academic outcomes, as measured …

Analysis Of Grade Variances In Multisection Calculus Classes, S. Paul Shaffer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore grade variances associated with multisection calculus grades. The method for the project was quantitative examining grade distribution patterns that existed between calculus sections at a public university void of an over-arching grading policy during the case study. Results showed that different grade distribution patterns by different instructors were primarily due to student-centric characteristics. The significant findings suggest that student grades are firmly in control of students. Only when course grade averages were at the extreme did evidence suggest that instructor-centric characteristics played meaningful role in student grade determination.

Teaching To Assess: An Evaluation Of Assessment Education For Secondary Teacher Candidates, Daniel M. Frederking

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the assessment instruction of a four-year undergraduate secondary education program and its alignment to the teaching standards and the summative teacher licensure assessment. Document analyses were conducted on the program’s syllabi as well as the assessment portions of the InTASC standards and the handbook of the edTPA. Results highlighted several areas of misalignment in the areas of categorical concurrence, depth of knowledge, and range of knowledge. Also of note, preservice teachers in different secondary subject areas are receiving different amounts of assessment instruction. Additionally, local edTPA data was examined to highlight areas of strength and weakness. Students …

Perceptions Of School Uniforms In Relation To Socioeconomic Statuses, Aaron B. Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Schools that implement a school uniform policy are on the rise (Musu-Gillette, Zhang, Wang, Zhang & Oudekerk, 2017). About 74% of these schools have a high population of low socioeconomic status students (Musu-Gillette et al., 2017) with about 75% or more qualifying for free or reduced lunch. The purpose of this study was to examine any relationships between students' perceptions of the effects of school uniforms and student socioeconomic status. In a charter school, a survey was completed by students to gather perception information and a separate survey by parents to gather socioeconomic status information. Hypotheses were tested using descriptive …

Identifying Elements Of Voice And Fostering Voice Development In First-Grade Science Writing, Mckenna Lucille Maguet

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this multi case study was to better understand voice in first grade science writing. Voice is the ability for individuals to synchronize specific narrative elements to express themselves with greater confidence and individuality. Three first-grade participants were chosen and their use of voice in science writing was examined across 8 weeks. Specific elements of voice were identified within atypical informational texts for primary grade learners in science. The 7 elements include descriptive words, placement of text and picture, creative punctuation, conversational tone, comparisons, imagery, and repeated text. The 7 voice elements were taught to a class of …

Promoting Pleasure In Reading Through Sustained Silent Reading: A Self-Study Of Teacher Practices, Kimberly Turley Mckell

Theses and Dissertations

According to a survey, the majority of fourth grade students in 2005 did not choose reading as a preferred activity for entertainment (Guthrie, McRae, & Klauda, 2007). Adolescents are increasingly resistant to reading and seldom list it as a pleasurable activity. Interestingly, research shows that students who enjoy reading more do better academically (Gambrell, 2011). Accordingly, as a teacher I seek to increase students' reading for pleasure. To give space in my curriculum for students to do this and for me to support them, I used Sustained Silent Reading (SSR), a practice where students are given time to read a …

Black Male Teachers: Retention And Importance In New Jersey, Charles Anthony Ozuna

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences of Black male teachers in the K-8 teaching profession in Atlantic and Essex counties in New Jersey and their recommendations to increase hiring and retention in the teaching profession. This study implemented a qualitative approach by interviewing 12 participants from Essex and Atlantic Counties in New Jersey who identified as Black male teachers. Teacher success depends on a variety of factors that can have both a positive and negative influence on a teacher's ability to stay motivated and succeed in the profession. Knowing the motives and experiences that influenced Black …

The Effect Of Concept Mapping On Baccalaureate Nursing Students' Knowledge Acquisition, Pamela S. Laskowski

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a series of three papers on the effect of concept mapping on baccalaureate nursing students’ knowledge acquisition. The first paper is an integrative review of the literature on the use of concept mapping in nursing education. The review evidences that concept mapping has been effective in nursing education for increasing students’ critical thinking. However, it shows that no studies addressing the level of nursing knowledge gained using concept mapping were identified, indicating a need for research in the area of the use of concept mapping for nursing knowledge acquisition. The second paper is a feasibility study of …

The Tropes We Tutor By: Names And Labels As Tropes In Writing Center Work, Scott R. Sands

Theses and Dissertations

The following study explores the way names and labels function as tropes in writing center work. Building on Lakoff and Johnson’s work on metaphors, and using Kenneth Burke’s concept of the trope, this study analyzes the way names and labels for writing center spaces, people, activity, and preparation function metaphorically, synecdochically, metonymically, and ironically to shape the way people understand and value writing centers. This study demonstrates the ways in which names and labels used in writing center work both focus attention on particular aspects of that work and also minimize or hide other important aspects of that work. Ultimately, …

Lunchtime Experiences And Students' Sense Of Belonging In Middle School, Anna Elisabeth Hinton

Theses and Dissertations

We know that it is important that students feel a sense of belonging in school, but additional research is needed to better understand the influences on belonging, especially for junior high and middle school students. Junior high lunchtime is an ideal space to study as a potential influence on belonging because it is a central part of the secondary school experience and it is a social space for students. The purpose of this study is to connect lunchtime experiences to school belonging by showing that how students experience lunchtime and how this affects their overall sense of belonging in school.Descriptive …

Elementary School Teachers' Perceptions Of Book In A Bag As A Social Skills Instruction Program, Kathryn Ruth Smith

Theses and Dissertations

While schools are focused on academic success, many lack the resources and instruction needed to help students grow in their social emotional learning. However, research has shown that social emotional learning not only helps students build character but also helps them achieve academic goals. Furthermore, studies have shown that bibliotherapy helps children learn social skills and how to apply them into their own lives. The goal of this study was to determine if Book in a Bag, a social skills bibliotherapy program, implemented over the course of an entire school year was perceived by teachers as an acceptable method to …

Educating Invisibly: Immigrant Teachers Of Color And Their Sense Of Belonging In New Jersey Public Schools, Mirjam L. Biegen

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative, heuristic, phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of immigrant teachers of color and explore their sense of visibility and belongingness in the New Jersey public schools. The goal of this study was to understand their struggles and perseverance as they navigated America's education system. Additionally, this study aimed to understand the numerous obstacles immigrant teachers of color face due to cultural and language barriers. Eleven immigrant teachers of color employed as teachers in New Jersey public schools participated in this study. All eleven teachers have struggled with invisibility and lack of belongingness in their school contexts …

Building Procedural Fluency From Conceptual Understanding In Equivalence Of Fractions: A Content Analysis Of A Textbook Series, Mark S. Nance

Theses and Dissertations

During the last several decades, mathematics reform has emphasized the goal of ensuring that students develop both conceptual and procedural understanding in mathematics. The current mathematics reform, Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers [NGA Center & CCSSO], 2010), promotes this goal, with procedural knowledge building upon a strong conceptual base. This study uses content analysis to investigate the extent and ways in which Houghton Mifflin Harcourts Go Math! K-8 (HMH, 2016) supports teachers in building procedural fluency from conceptual understanding when teaching equivalence of fractions.Krippendorfs (1980) framework for content …

Supervising Teaching Candidates Using Face-To-Face And Virtual Observations: Perceptions And Preferences Of Special Educators, Barbara M. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Providing effective supervision of student teachers and interns is critical in preparing quality special education teachers. To decrease the time commitment of supervisors, researchers have suggested using virtual observations which are generally viewed as a valuable resource. This study examined the experience of teacher candidates supervised with a combination of face-to-face visits and video observations. Groups of university faculty (supervisors) and students (teacher candidates) from a western university participated with both methods of supervision over three years and provided feedback to researchers. Results highlighted participants satisfaction with the supervision process, including advantages and concerns with each type and ways the …

Instructional Effectiveness Of Non-Latino Professional Learning Communityteams Serving Latino Populations, Charlene E. Farnworth

Theses and Dissertations

As Latino English language learners (ELL) flood national classrooms their non-Latino, English-speaking teachers are faced with meeting the academic needs of limited English proficient students who hail from cultures unlike their own. This study investigated actions taken by teams of non-Latino, English-speaking educators of Latino (ELL) in order to be effective teachers of this minority population. Two premises prompted the search for what enabled non-Latino English speakers to be effective teachers of this minority population. The supposition was that the non-Latino teacher of ELLs must have: (a) familiarity with the language of the minority; and (b) a high affinity for …

The Operationalization Of The Theoretical Antecedents Of Collective Teacher Efficacy, Kathryn A. Larsen

Theses and Dissertations

Much research on collective teacher efficacy focuses on outcomes, mainly the benefits to students. However, there is no research that explores how teacher teams enact the theoretical antecedents to collective efficacy set out by Bandura (1977, 1993), namely vicarious learning, verbal persuasion, psychological arousal, and mastery experiences, to make such achievements possible. This qualitative study explores the experiences of two teams of secondary language arts teachers who were collectively efficacious and how they operationalized Bandura's theoretical antecedents of collective teacher efficacy in becoming so. After verification of levels of personal and collective efficacy, team interviews were held specifically addressing the …

Teacher Experiences In Highly Impacted Schools That Produce Happiness, Brittany Nicole Lund

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers represent a large percentage of the workforce in the United States, yet there is a high demand for teachers every year due to a large number of teachers exiting the profession (Ingersoll, 2001). Staying beyond the first five years is a feat nearly half of the teachers in the United States do not accomplish which leads to problems within the school community (Ingersoll, 2002; Ingersoll, 2004). Through an exploration of the positive stories of teachers' experiences this study identifies some of the common themes found within those stories that led teachers to greater happiness in their profession. While this …

Academic Persistence Among Native American High School Students, Tianna Jeanne Buckley

Theses and Dissertations

Qualitative interviews with 12 Native American high school junior and senior students who grew up on reservations identified the following themes related to their persistence in college: (a) faculty support, (b) structured social support, (c) family support or the lack thereof, (d) motivation to be better, and (e) encountering racism. The results indicated a need for clear academic expectations between the school district and the tribal liaisons, multicultural training to foster positive relationships from the primary to secondary level, and structured college preparatory instruction designed for Native American students. Results also indicated a need for further research into the educational …

Friendship And Language: How Kindergarteners Talk About Making Friends In A Two-Way Immersion School, Sionelle Nicole Beller

Theses and Dissertations

Research on adolescents sense of belonging in schools is plentiful; however, there is an obvious lack of research conducted in early childhood years. Friendship groups have been shown to be impactful in helping students feel like they belong in school. This study explores how kindergarteners talk about friendship in the context of belonging in a two-way immersion school. I pay particular attention to the role primary language plays in developing a sense of belonging and friendships at school. The 19 kindergarteners in this study were interviewed in small linguistically homogenous groups of 2 or 3 students. Each focus group was …

Designing, Developing, And Implementing Real-Time Learning Analytics Student Dashboards, Robert Gordon Bodily

Theses and Dissertations

This document is a multiple-article format dissertation that discusses the iterative design, development, and evaluation processes necessary to create high quality learning analytics dashboard systems. With the growth of online and blended learning environments, the amount of data that researchers and practitioners collect from learning experiences has also grown. The field of learning analytics is concerned with using this data to improve teaching and learning. Many learning analytics systems focus on instructors or administrators, but these tools fail to involve students in the data-driven decision-making process. Providing feedback to students and involving students in this decision-making process can increase intrinsic …

Using Narrative Distance To Create Transformative Learning Experiences, Stephan D. Taeger

Theses and Dissertations

This multi-article dissertation focuses on the role of narrative distance in instructional design. Narrative distance is defined œas the cognitive or emotional space afforded by indirect communication that invites listeners to make sense of content (Taeger, 2018, p. 6). Whereas fields associated with the arts have long used the indirect nature of story to create powerful experiences, instructional design has not examined how this aspect of narrative might be used in instruction. The first article in this dissertation explores the literature related to narrative distance and how designing for this phenomenon meets many of Wilson and Parrishs (2011) key indicators …

Examining Steam Implementation Through The Lens Of Organizational Learning, William Louis Grillo

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined STEAM implementation from the qualitative perspective of New Jersey K-12 school leaders and through the quantitative lens of organizational learning. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, sixteen school leaders were interviewed regarding their process of implementing the integrated learning framework known as STEAM. Simultaneously, an Organizational Learning Mechanism Questionnaire was distributed to the teaching faculty of participating districts. This study found that current K-12 school leaders were implementing STEAM with top down administrative support, emergent processes, standards focused curricula, and innovative means of marketing their programs. Significant differences were also found between K-8 and high school …

Exploring Teachers' Self-Efficacy About Technology Use In Learning Design And Student Performance In Mathematics: A Qualitative Study About Math Anxiety, Sandra B. Vorensky

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore teachers' perceived self-efficacy about mathematics and using educational technology and its influence on lessening students' math anxiety in the classroom. Building upon previous research by Sun and Pyzdrowski (2009), this study examined teachers' beliefs about mathematics and their own ability to use online educational mathematics resources to lessen students' math anxiety, increase self-efficacy and encourage academic achievement. A qualitative research design was used in this study. Data was collected sequentially from teacher observations during math instruction, surveys, and semi-structured interviews with third and fourth grade teachers. Results support previous self-efficacy research about …

Sixth-Grade Elementary And Seventh- And Eighth-Grade Middle School Teachers' Knowledge And Beliefs About Science Literacy, Melissa P. Mendenhall

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore Grades 6-8 teachers knowledge and beliefs about science literacy and instruction that develops science literacy, in both the fundamental and derived senses. All Grade 6 elementary teachers and Grades 7-8 middle school science teachers from five school districts in the Mountain West region of the U.S. were invited to participate by responding to an online survey consisting of open response questions and critical instances. Data were analyzed using an immersion style of coding. Findings suggest a majority of teachers view literacy as reading and writing and text as something that is …

Ethnic Identity And School Belonging Among Pacific Islander High School Students, Mari N. Oto

Theses and Dissertations

Pacific Islander high school students in the state of Utah specifically, but across the United States generally, face significant challenges such as high levels of high school dropout and low levels of academic attainment. The purpose of this study was to examine if components of an achieved ethnic identity (exploration and commitment) are positively related to high levels of school belonging among Pacific Islander high school students in Utah. I further investigated whether self-esteem was a mediating factor in any observed relationship between ethnic identity and school belonging. Participants in this study were Pacific Islander youth between the ages of …

Examining The Use Of Open Badges To Respond To Challenges Of An Undergraduate Technology Course For Secondary Education Majors, Daniel Lee Randall

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, the creation and iterative improvement of an open badge system for an undergraduate preservice educational technology course is examined through 3 journal-ready articles. In article 1, we detail the design, development and implementation of the badge system and demonstrate how an open badge system could help meet the challenges facing the course. Several future design implications are identified, including how to scale the badge system while maintaining quality control and how to achieve financial sustainability. Future research implications include determining if awarding badges provide students with additional motivation and what employers perceptions of badges might be. Article …