Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Elementary Pre-Service Teacher Preparedness In Literacy And Mathematics As It Relates To Anxiety And Self-Efficacy, Lamarcia J. Miller

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study attempted to determine if there is a significant relationship between pre-service teacher preparedness in literacy and mathematics and the levels of anxiety and self-efficacy felt by the pre-service teachers. The research questions are as follows: Is there a significant correlation between the number of college course hours a per-service teacher has taken in literacy and that teacher's teaching anxiety? Is there a significant correlation between the number of college course hours a pre-service teacher has taken in mathematics and that teacher's teaching anxiety? Is there a significant correlation between the anxiety level the pre-service teacher feels in literacy …

The Relationship Between Teacher Experience And Teacher Attitude Toward Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Adhd), Keisha M. Mchargue

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the strength and direction of the relationship between teachers’ years of experience and their attitudes toward attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A correlational design was used with the predictor variable being teachers’ years of experience teaching at a K-12 public school. The criterion variable was teachers’ attitudes toward ADHD. Previous research indicated that students with ADHD perform lower than their typically developing peers, in part, because the behaviors that students with ADHD exhibit are difficult for teachers to manage. The added challenge of teaching students with ADHD has the potential to create negative perceptions toward students with …

Effects Of Primary Grade Literacy Field Experiences On Preservice Teachers' Self-Efficacy: A Causal-Comparative Study, Lauren E. Kirk

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Learning to read is an essential skill, yet many new teachers enter the profession unprepared to be effective literacy teachers. Teacher preparation has been at the forefront of many reforms in education. However, discrepancies still exist in how teachers are prepared to enter the profession. This study investigated preservice teachers’ sense of efficacy for primary literacy instruction by the amount of field experience. The levels of field experience included no/ introductory field experience, reading practicum experience, and clinical teaching experience. Participants were preservice teachers who had been accepted into the educator preparation program at small, private universities in Texas and …

The Role Of Self-Efficacy And Use Of Teachers’ Feedback On Students’ Mathematics Performance In Tanzanian Secondary Schools, Florence Kyaruzi

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Self-efficacy has been found to have positive relationship with important educational variables such as choice of task, persistence, motivation, and academic performance. This study investigated the role of students’ mathematics self-efficacy and use of teachers’ feedback in improving mathematics performance among secondary schools in Tanzania. The study involved 2767 Form III students sampled from 48 secondary schools in Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro regions. A questionnaire was used to measure students’ mathematics self-efficacy and mathematics performance, while focus group discussions were used to explore students’ perceptions of the use teachers’ feedback. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling and content …

Growth Mindset In A Fourth-Grade Class, Sierra Bennett

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

In this study the researcher examined growth mindset teaching and its effect on student performance as well as students’ perceptions of their math self-efficacy. The author was a preservice teacher completing her clinical teaching internship in a fourth-grade math and science departmentalized setting. The goal of the study was to implement growth mindset instruction and study its effects on student performance and self efficacy in the subject of mathematics. For this study, the author collected data in the form of pre- and post-surveys, student interviews, and pre- and post-math tests. The students engaged in growth mindset mini lessons throughout the …

Impact Of A Coaching Cycle On Teacher Self-Efficacy, Amanda Becker

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

The purpose of this action research project was to determine the correlation between teacher self-efficacy and engaging in a student-centered coaching cycle with an instructional coach. Data was collected through qualitative responses via an electronic self-efficacy survey from a sample group of four middle school teachers. Analysis of the data collected suggested that engaging with an instructional coach in a coaching cycle increases a teacher’s overall self-efficacy.

Data Diving Into “Noticing Poetry”: An Analysis Of Student Engagement With The “I Notice” Method, Scot Slaby, Jordan Benedict

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

This paper explores students’ engagement in reading poems, examining data on their self perceptions of their confidence and competence in reading poems before, during, and after using the “I Notice” methodology as adapted from The Academy of American Poets’ unit plan, “Noticing Poetry” (Slaby, 2017). The data was collected over the course of a month from January 9 through January 30, 2018 and involved five classes of one hundred general English tenth grade students across three teachers’ classrooms at Shanghai American School’s Puxi High School Campus. Data indicates that the “I Notice” method and the “Noticing Poetry” unit and its …

Engaging Adolescent Boys In Classroom Learning: What Teachers Need To Know About Adolescents And The First Years Of Teaching An Elective In A Secondary School, Tiffany Patrice Cook

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

What are the predominant factors that contribute to adolescent boys’ lack of classroom engagement, and what can teachers do to engage them in the classroom content? This literature review examines motivating and engaging boys in a secondary content area classroom. Itc focus is on several ways in which teachers can make adjustments to increase engagement based on changes that take place in adolescent boys and how these changes affect their classroom engagement. These are broken into six categories: Classroom Management, Students Disposition Toward School, Academic Performance and Expectations, Engagement, Professional Studies, and Motivation.

Perceptions Of The Impact Of Quality Professional Development On The Sustainability Of A One-To-One Computing Initiative At The High School Level, Kerry Morrison

Education Dissertations and Projects

It has been said that education is the key to success, and today’s youth are tomorrow’s human resources. This is the 21st century; and students, who will be the human resources of tomorrow, are being prepared for jobs that may not even exist today. Legislators, policy makers, and researchers have encouraged methods to ensure teachers deliver high quality instruction, including requiring that teachers complete specific training, possess a minimum level of content knowledge, and use curriculum materials and professional development resources available from schools and districts (Hill, Blazar, & Lynch, 2015). As a result, teachers need to be exposing students …

“How Can He Be So Cruel?” Examining Issues Of Trust In School Improvement Efforts, Jacqueline R. Wettlaufer, Steve Sider

Education Faculty Publications

In this case, a high school vice-principal encounters tension and anger when she rewrites a staff member’s report card comments without his knowledge. The case narrative examines the conflict that arises when, under time constraints and pressures to produce student reports, the vice-principal acts on a decision she believes is ethically correct only to find that she incurs a significant setback with staffing relationships largely due to wavering of trust. The analysis examines how transformational leadership builds self-efficacy in all staff founded on trusting relationships. Professional reflection provides a conduit through which educational leaders can assess their own practice and …

Understanding Of Self-Confidence In High School Students, George Ballane

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students at a private high school in New Jersey exhibited low academic self-confidence as compared to other indicators on the ACT Engage exam. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to gain an understanding of academic self-confidence, academic performance, and learning within a sample of students. This research explored students' and teachers' perceptions of self-confidence and their impact on academic performance. The research was guided by Weiner's attribution and Bandura's self-efficacy theories. The research questions focused on 3 areas: students' and teachers' perceptions of academic self-confidence as factors impacting students' academic performance; and the perceived relationship between academic self-confidence, …

Course Taking And Teacher Data-Driven Decision Making Self-Efficacy And Anxiety: A Secondary Analysis, Valerie M. Hamilton

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

An expanding culture of accountability in education has led to an influx in the amount and types of data teachers are expected to collect and use to increase student achievement. Research has identified data-driven decision making (DDDM) as a way for teachers to use educational data to promote more effective instruction and ultimately, to better student outcomes. Despite available data and research that supports the use of DDDM, using it to make instructional decisions is still a struggle for teachers. Therefore, this study looks at the relationship between DDDM-related coursework and teacher self-efficacy and anxiety for DDDM. In theory, DDDM-related …

A Multilevel Analysis Of The Impact Of Teachers’ Beliefs And Mathematical Knowledge For Teaching On Students’ Mathematics Achievement, Adem Ekmekci, Danya M. Corkin, Weihua Fan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

: Teachers’ content knowledge and beliefs about teaching and learning are among the key factors for effective teaching and, in turn, for student achievement-related outcomes. This study explores the extent to which K-8 math teachers’—who teach in high-poverty urban schools—professional background, motivational beliefs, and mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) have an impact on students’ math achievement. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) results indicated that although students’ prior mathematics achievement was the most determining factor of their subsequent math achievement, teachers’ MKT and holding a bachelor’s degree in mathematics had significant positive effects on students’ math achievement. Results provide support for professional …

Increasing Self-Efficacy In Providing Inclusive Practices To Students With Diverse Learning Needs, Teresa K. Nagy

All Capstone Projects

The purpose of this qualitative study was designed to determine if teachers in an elementary school in South Suburban School District in Chicago, Illinois increased their self-efficacy as it relates to serving students with disabilities in their least restrictive environment after receiving professional development. The study began with a historical review of students with disabilities and the current requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Reauthorization Act of 2004. Educational systems within the United States are required to provide services to students with diverse learning needs in the least restrictive environment. These supports are most commonly referred to as inclusive practices. …

A Case Study On How Meeting The Academic Needs Of Students Substantially Below Grade Level In Mathematics Affects Their Self-Efficacy Beliefs And Engagement, Lauren K. M. Burton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This researcher examined an alternative classroom structure for ninth-grade students substantially below grade level (SBGL) in mathematics. This researcher considered whether targeting the academic and social needs of students SBGL in mathematics in a ninth-grade class would increase their self-efficacy and engagement with the mathematics by studying four teaching effects: teacher, teacher-curriculum, peer-curriculum, and peer.

The researcher used interviews, observations, and surveys to collect qualitative and quantitative data. The case study (n = 19) employed a QUAL + quan convergent parallel mixed methods case study. Meta-inferences from the analyses of qualitative and quantitative data indicate that the structure of …

Present But Not Accounted For: A Phenomenological Study Of Gifted African American Males., Ronda Elizabeth George

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to explore the lived experiences of gifted African American males in grades 6-8. Specifically, the study examined how gifted African American males perceived and understood their participation in a gifted program and how their sense of self-efficacy shaped their disposition and approach toward academic persistence. Much of the literature published on the social, emotional, and academic success of gifted African American males has focused on college-aged students, therefore the current study is crucial in contributing to the body of knowledge on African American males, in particular, those identified as gifted during early adolescence …

On-Site, Ongoing, And Individualized Professional Development: A Case Study At Rural Charter School, Ashley Funderburke

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

The current model of mass professional development for all teachers does not address the individual needs of each teacher (Berckenmeyer, 2014; Darling-Hammond et al., 2009; DeMonte, 2013). This case study research focused on reaching a deeper understanding of an on-site, ongoing, individualized professional development innovation implemented at Rural Charter School for eight primary teachers as they began to apply a new instructional model; the integration of English-Language Arts standards into the science, social studies, and mathematics. My role within the study fluctuated between that of the researcher, an informant, and a teacher leader in delivering the personalized professional development.

Two …

Using Focus Groups To Explore Sources Of Self-Efficacy In Puerto Rican Preservice Teachers, Yitza A. Arcelay-Rojas

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

This article used focus groups to explore Puerto Rican preservice teachers' perceptions of sources of self-efficacy. The present study allowed, through a qualitative design, examination of the experiences of preservice teachers at the end of their student teaching practicum. The qualitative design and the use of the focus group technique provided insight into the main sources of their perceived self-efficacy through the self-assessment of their field experience. The beginning of the student teaching practicum provoked an intense process of emotions in which the preservice teachers needed support and guidance, particularly in aspects of planning, differentiation, and classroom management. The participants …

Examining Ec-6 Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions Of Self-Efficacy In Teaching Mathematics, Tonya D. Jeffery, Lisa D. Hobson, Sarah J. Conoyer, Karen E. Miller, Lesley F. Leach

Faculty Publications

Mathematics teacher quality has become a major focus in national education reform efforts. In addition, there is an increasing interest in the effectiveness of teacher preparation programs and the undergraduate preparation of elementary mathematics teachers. Empirical evidence suggests that teacher attitudes, behaviors and values, or dispositions, towards teaching have a significant impact on student outcomes. The purpose of this study is to survey juniors and seniors in an undergraduate teacher preparation program to gauge their perceptions of self-efficacy and comfort with teaching mathematics. The results have implications for, and reaffirm concerns about the undergraduate preparation of elementary mathematics teachers.

Failure-To-Rescue Simulations As A Risk Management Strategy For Registered Nurses, Trena K. Seago

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

In the hospital setting, prevention of failure-to-rescue (FTR) events is an important aspect of patient safety. The use of patient simulation as a strategy to educate nurses on the prevention of these events offers two modes of learning: 1) experiential learning through simulation and 2) reflection through debriefing. The act of practicing to recognize a deteriorating patient through experiential learning and reflection may help increase nurses’ self-efficacy in recognizing a similar situation in their future practice. This quasi-experimental, one-group, pretest-posttest pilot study investigated the use of patient simulation among registered nurses (RNs) in the hospital setting as an anticipatory educational …

Help! I'Ve Been Asked To Mentor A Robotics Team, Mary L. Stephen, Sharon M. Locke

SIUE Faculty Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

Principal Professional Development And Principal Self-Efficacy In An Urban School District., Brian Thomas Garrett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Educator professional development (PD) is a heavily relied upon method for school improvement, and administrator professional development (APD) is a key element to nearly all school reform efforts. District-wide APD in large school districts can carry a heavy cost in financial and human resources. Moreover, PD is frequently too inadequately planned and/or implemented to bring about lasting positive change in educator practice, school reform, and student achievement. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between principal PD focused on culture/climate or instruction and principal self-efficacy in an urban school district. Through hierarchical linear multiple regression (HLMR), this …

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 …

Alternative Seating In Middle School Math: Effects On Student Motivation, Kirk Whitfield Renegar

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The use of alternative classroom seating has recently become a topic of interest in education. Many teachers have redesigned their classrooms to include many forms of classroom seating aside from traditional student desks. These forms of seating include but are not limited to: therapy balls, therapy cushions, and beanbag chairs. While this movement has certainly caused a buzz, little research has been completed that speaks to its educational impact on students when multiple forms of seating are available to students. Most critically, the potential impact of alternative classroom seating on students’ motivation and self-efficacy has also yet to be studied. …

The Impact Of Induction On First Year Lateral Entry Teacher Efficacy, Matthew Tipton

Education Dissertations and Projects

Many states throughout our country are faced with hiring teachers who are not certified and do not have any prior teaching experience. There are various factors contributing to states hiring alternatively licensed teachers: low teacher pay, demands of teaching, and a decline in individuals entering traditional teacher training programs at colleges and universities. From this, induction programs have become more comprehensive over the last decade to improve self-efficacy of new teachers in areas of classroom practices. Teachers who display confidence in classroom practices have a stronger impact on student achievement and eventually become leaders within their school. Improving teacher efficacy …

Exploring Student Retention In Postsecondary Agriculture, Food, And Natural Resources Education Programs, Aaron J. Mckim, Tyson J. Sorensen, R. Bud Mckendree, Catlin M. Pauley

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

The current analysis foregrounded postsecondary agriculture, food, and natural resources (AFNR) education programs through an analysis of learning community, social community, general self-efficacy, and major commitment. Analysis identified statistically significant differences in major commitment perceived by year in school, with students earlier in their program reporting statistically higher major commitment than those later in their program. In congruence with the theoretical framework of student learning and persistence, the outcome variable general self-efficacy was modeled with year in school, learning community, and social community as predictors. In total, the model predicted 16% of the variance in general self-efficacy with social community …

Early Interventionists' Perspectives Of Self-Efficacy With Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, Adrienne Anderson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An increasing number of infants are diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) as a result of prenatal opioid exposure. Early intervention services are recommended for this population of children and families to mitigate developmental delays associated with NAS. The effectiveness of early intervention is dependent on the ability of interventionists who deliver these services. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore early interventionists' perspectives of self-efficacy when working with infants diagnosed with NAS and their families. Bandura's self-efficacy theory and Rotter's concept of locus of control provided the conceptual framework for this study. The study's guiding research …

Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions Of Their Abilities For Technology Integration: A Mixed Methods Case Study, David James Mulder

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This case study was developed to understand pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their abilities to integrate technology into the classroom, and to understand their perceptions of how those abilities developed. The case that was investigated in this study is the teacher preparation program at a small comprehensive college located in the upper Great Plains region of the United States. Utilizing a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, both a survey as well as semi-structured interviews provided data to understand pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their preparation for technology integration. The TPACK framework for technology integration (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) and self-efficacy theory (Bandura, 1986, …

A Mixed-Methods Study: Self-Efficacy And Barriers To Participation In Workplace Wellness Programs, Massiel Perez-Calhoon

Dissertations

America needs a healthy workforce to sustain the country. The scourge of obesity continues to plague Americans despite government initiatives such as the Affordable Care Act and wellness programs in the workplace to combat this epidemic. However, despite initiatives to make America healthy, barriers continued to impede the nation’s health. Lack of awareness and sensitivity to what motivates individual participants versus group participants built formidable barriers to accessing all workplace employees equitably. The purpose of this study was twofold. First, the intent of this study was to explore the relationship between self-efficacy and the impact on participation and engagement when …

An Exploratory Case Study Of Hospitality Students’ Perceptions Of Experiential Learning, Joe Askren

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore how students described the curriculum in the Introduction to Food Production class and how they perceived the curriculum prepared them for their future in the hospitality industry. The exploratory questions that guided the study were how do students describe the experiential learning curriculum in the Introduction to Food Production course, what ways do students perceive the curriculum in the Introduction to Food Production course prepares them for their future in hospitality industry, and what changes in the curriculum do students think might improve the Introduction to Food Production course and why? The …