Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Undoing The Traditions Of Grading And Reporting, Thomas R. Guskey

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

One silver lining from the ongoing public health crisis might be the lasting impact of two modified approaches to grading and reporting of the past year.

Creative Confidence, Marjolein Hutting

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project is about increasing creative confidence. Creative confidence is the natural human ability to come up with breakthrough ideas and the courage to act on them. In this project the focus is on using your body as an instrument in order to develop a larger confidence. The foundation of this idea comes from improv theater. Improv theater is the process and product of creativity occurring simultaneously. I order to do so you have to have a large creative confidence. There is a proved correlation between creative thinking skills and improv theater. This project provides information on this topic, provides …

“So, How Real Can I Get?": Opportunities And Obstacles For Teacher Learners Enacting Culturally Responsive Pedagogy., Jonathan P Baize

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examines the experiences of three alternative certification teachers (teachers who begin teaching as they worked to complete teacher education courses for initial certification) whom I call “teacher learners” (Jacobs & Low, 2017) as they try to enact culturally responsive practices while navigating their first-year of teaching. The teacher learners worked to develop their understanding and capacities to enact a culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) even as they were faced with the obstacles inherent to shifting teaching practices in K-12 schools. Through these challenges, they still furthered their conceptualization of CRP, as evidenced by, and in some ways guided …

Affinity-Seeking: Student Desirability And Motivation In The Classroom, Taylor D. Corlee

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Affinity-seeking research once provided teachers with effective strategies to create an overall better classroom environment. Over the last twenty years there has been no continuation of this research and the effectiveness of these strategies seemed to be agreed upon. The purpose of this study is to bring affinity-seeking research back into the modern era and see how motivation is affected for both in-person and online classes. This study is a contribution that adds to these strategies for effectiveness in both in-person and online classrooms.

A Case Study In The Use Of Mentorships In Academic Instructional Coach Development., Matt Anderson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Academic instructional coaches have long been used to support teacher development and student learning. As a recent position in the education field, there is little information regarding the development of staff in this role. This study sought to better understand how academic instructional coaches are mentored and developed within challenging school contexts. The theoretical framework for this research is guided by the social constructivism epistemology. In alignment with this framework, a collective case study was utilized to better understand the relationship between the principal and the academic instructional coach. Exploring this relationship emphasized how principals support academic instructional coach growth. …

Chronic Codeswitching: A Phenomenological Study Examining Multiracial Student Sense Of Belonging In A Predominantly White Institution., Nicholas Lamar Wright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Constantly feeling a lack of acceptance and getting the comment “You are too Black” or “You are too White” is a challenging, common occurrence for multiracial students, but especially those in predominantly White institutions. This is just one of the barriers that stand between multiracial students and forming a sense of belonging at a predominantly White institution. The majority of research examining sense of belonging focuses on either Black or White students, but neglect multiracial students and their experiences. This dissertation examines sense of belonging for multiracial (Black/White) students in a predominantly White institution, by interviewing 11 multiracial students at …

Black Men Wanted: An Instrumental Case Study Exploring The Situational Factors Related To The Retention Of African American Male High School Teachers., Christopher Kevin Flores

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As the nation’s high school student population becomes increasingly diverse, the declining number of minority teachers, particularly African American male teachers is becoming an area of concern. This instrumental case study of African American male high school teachers in the Fayette County Public School system in Lexington, Kentucky sought to identify the motivations for teaching, the barriers prior to and during teaching, as well as the roles these individuals are asked to fulfill in their schools. Using purposeful sampling, 10 individuals participated in semi-structured interviews aimed at providing insight to the three research questions related to motivations, barriers, and roles. …

What Factors Impact First-Generation Latinx Students' Bachelor's Degree Attainment?, Heriberto Jose Garcia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Latinxs are one of the fastest-growing minority populations in the United States. The population faces serious challenges in education. There is a considerable shortfall in their educational attainment. As the American economy continues to become more knowledge-based, a college degree becomes more essential in order to be competitive in the workforce. By 2050, Latinxs will account for almost one-third of the U.S. workforce. The Latinx low educational attainment highlights the importance of supporting students while pursuing a bachelor's degrees. By supporting Latinxs in higher education, one supports the development of the countryâ??s workforce.

Knowing that Latinxs are not completing bachelor's …

Finding Ways To Increase Physical Activity In Students With Disabilities In A Social Distanced World, Paula Kerchenski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Obesity in the United States is becoming a problem that negatively affects the life expectancy of young children, which for the first time in history is moving in the wrong direction (Ogden et al., 2014). According to obesity trend data, obesity has tripled in children from 5% in 1978 to 18.5% in 2016 (Anderson et al., 2019). For our students with disabilities, obesity rates are two times higher than students without disabilities (Neter et al., 2011). Although physical activity is considered an essential component of a young child’s health and development, the lack of physical activity attributes to the obesity …

Integrating Interprofessional Education Into Teacher Preparation Curriculum: Reimagining Partnerships From The Inside Out, Jennifer Lauren Rogers Edd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This mixed-methods program evaluation sought to identify elements of collaboration within interprofessional education experiences and provide suggestions regarding the future implementation of interprofessional education experiences into the identified teacher preparation program. Program suggestions were informed by the perspectives of current teacher preparation faculty, recent teacher preparation graduates, and other professional stakeholders. Other professional stakeholders are those who have a vested interest in a program. Quantitative data, in the form of descriptive statistics, was collected through a needs assessment tool completed by teacher preparation faculty participants and the Texas Education Agency Principal Survey completed by administrators overseeing first-year teachers who were …

A Mixed Methods Study Of Impostor Phenomenon In A Hispanic Serving Institution, Olympia Caudillo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Impostor phenomenon is a psychological experience where a highly talented individual doubts innate skills and accomplishments. Instead, success is attributed to factors other than intellectual ability, so the individual fears exposure as a fraud. Experiences of impostor phenomenon among students enrolled in Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) remains under-researched. This mixed-methods study aims to explore impostor phenomenon between doctoral students enrolled in a Hispanic Serving Institution based on existing research on impostor phenomenon, conducted in predominantly White institutions. The first phase of the study focuses on exploring impostor phenomenon in relation to doctoral studentsâ?? gender, type of program and generational status; …

Adaptive Video Gaming In The Classroom, Lauren Ferrell, Daniela Mari Recinto, Desarae Finck-Fugazi, Christine Angela Manalang, Noémie Von Kaenel

Occupational Therapy | MSOT Capstone Projects

Background: Limited resources exist to support adaptive gaming in school programming using Microsoft® Xbox Adaptive Controller for children. On the other hand, there is abundant evidence supporting motor, cognitive, and social benefits to gaming in rehabilitation.

Objectives: The goal of this program development project was to create a virtual gaming toolkit to support the interdisciplinary team’s use of adaptive gaming during school programming.

Methods: Through our needs assessment and collaboration with our community partner, we discussed the parent and caregiver need for guidance in order to use the Microsoft® Xbox Adaptive Controller and facilitate gameplay with peers. Through an extensive …

Teacher-Teacher? Or Native Speaker?, Sixta Payan

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Despite of the ELT varied research on the native speakerism ideology with the aim to resolve/dissolve its ideological issues and the NESTs/NNESTs dichotomy created within, that favors one group above the other, the effects of the ideology continue to persist (Holliday, 2014; Selvi, 2016; Lowe and Kiczkowiak, 2016; Mahboob and Golden, 2013;.) Much of the awareness of native speakerism ideology the has been at the research level and not at the local level of our education systems (teacher to teacher). Therefore, this research seeks to expose how the native speakerism ideology is permeated and enacted in a local NNEST ELT …

Into The College Classroom, Another Tour Of Duty: A Guide For Instructors Of Veteran Students In Higher Education, Steven Dewalden

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Concepts found in organizational socialization and culturally responsive pedagogy, were used in this project. The focus was on the veteran population who are leaving the unique organizations of the military to transition into higher education. Differences in socialization techniques used by the military and higher education are vastly different and contribute to unique outcomes for the new members. In this project, veterans were represented as a unique culture to consider in the classrooms of higher education as instructors prepare to use a culturally responsive approach to teaching. This project was created using an autoethnographic process using self-reflection through a narrative …

Remote Learning And Third-Grade Reading Performance In A 1:1 District, Amanda Milhorn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore a possible relationship between remote learning with 1:1 devices and reading performance for third graders in a school district in Tennessee by comparing differences between universal screener reading data from fall 2020 and universal screener reading data from both fall 2018 and fall 2019. Star Reading universal screener Normal Curve Equivalent (NCE) data from fall 2018, fall 2019, and fall 2020 from three elementary schools were used for the study.

Results indicated that the third-grade students’ fall 2020 Star Reading universal screener NCEs were significantly lower than their fall 2018 first …

If You Can Dream It, You Can Do It: Walt Disney’S Hero’S Journey To Professional Identity, Charles Mccoin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this multi-method single-case study was to examine the application of Joseph Campbell's Heroic Journey model as a means of professional identity creation in the life of Walt Disney.

Walt Disney was an entrepreneur, cartoonist, filmmaker, inventor, studio head, and family man whose career stretched through the first half of the 20th century. Walt used his imagination and creativity to establish industry norms in the animation, film, television, and amusement park industries. Walt Disney's legacy and vision continue to be a viable influence within the Walt Disney Company today.

Campbell's Heroic Journey model was used as the theoretical …

Quality Of Academic Improvement In Indonesia : A Bibliometric Analysis (2015-2020), Merlin Apriliyanti

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This research collects and processes related journals with the title of improving academic quality by using publish or perish and vosviewer as a medium of analysis. By using these 2 applications, the author can analyze and conclude the data obtained. The method used in this research is the bibliometric technique, which analyzes the data using keywords as the start of the search and then concludes it into an output that can be used to determine the journal related to the title. The results of this discussion are, during 2015 to 2020 there were many countries, types of scientific works, and …

Understanding Visual Language And Visual Literacy: A Case Study Of Young Children’S Meaning Making Of Complex Wordless Picturebooks, Yunying Xu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The world is quickly evolving and young children interact with technology more often and may have more interactions with technology than print materials. Incorporating wordless picturebooks into literacy instruction, specifically complex books that include multiple storylines, unconventional structures, figurative visual language, etc., provides a perfect medium for teachers to address the demands of this increasingly multimodal world and also the Common Core State Standards. This dissertation is a qualitative case study (Yin, 2017) that aimed to investigate how young children aged 3 to 6 made meaning of complex wordless picturebooks. This dissertation attempted to answer the following four research questions: …

Reframing The Pedagogical Underpinnings Of To Kill A Mockingbird: Queering A High School Text, Hovsep Hovannesian

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Given the current climate for social and political change in relation to identity and being, traditional high school texts like To Kill A Mockingbird are being rejected as degrading, out of touch, and even regressive and are being taken off the pedagogical shelf. This article pushes back on this outlook by suggesting that a more critical approach to such texts can make them not only useful but enlightening for the high school population asked to read them. Specifically, by proposing that high school pedagogy apply the foundations and frameworks of critical, identity-focused theories, like queer theory, to traditional high school …

Implementing Instructional Scaffolding To Support Secondary Students' Abilities To Write Mathematical Explanations, Camry J. Cowan

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This study examined the implementation of an instructional scaffolding teaching strategy in the secondary mathematics classroom. An iterative process was used to implement an initial design of instructional scaffolding, reflect on its efficacy, and adjust the design as needed. The goal was to assist students in learning to write responses of high epistemic complexity, which is an indicator of the degree of conceptual understanding. A total of 94 responses written by 35 students in two high school Algebra 2 courses were analyzed for epistemic complexity. Across three iterations of the implementation of instructional scaffolding, students wrote at the highest levels …

Effects Of An Online Learning Module For Pediatricians Regarding Early Intervention Services, Nicole L. Atwell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Pediatricians serve a vital role in identifying young children with developmental delays and disabilities and referring families for services to support their children’s development and learning. However, past researchers indicated there is minimal research on training pediatricians on the Part C early intervention (EI) process that supports young children with developmental delays and disabilities. This study examined the effectiveness of a web-based training on pediatricians' knowledge of EI services and referral processes. The training components included interactive, online modules and paper resources directed towards an understanding of EI services. A convergent parallel mixed-methods study design was used to determine the …

Institutional Changes In Western Michigan University For Incorporation Of Education For Sustainability, Saman Khan

Dissertations

Higher Education institutions (HEIs) have the potential to be significant contributors in the pursuit of a sustainable world through the incorporation of Education for Sustainability (EFS). However, HEIs are entrenched with structures and values that are often resistant to change. The literature reveals that instructors’ beliefs and institutional contexts are the two main factors that impact the implementation of institutional change for sustainability education. Western Michigan University (WMU) has created new required curriculum “WMU Essential Studies” (WES) for undergraduate students and they have targeted sustainability as an essential learning outcome, by integrating and applying it in content courses. Using a …

Book Review: Autism Spectrum Disorder In The Canadian Context: An Introduction, Edith Van Der Boom

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Funds Of Knowledge Instruction In Career And Technical Education Among Junior High Students: A Mixed Methods Study, Sheri D. Deaton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to investigate students’ perceptions of their own Funds of Knowledge (FOK) and the impact that these funds have as students prepare for careers. This purpose was achieved through an embedded mixed methods design with qualitative data collection and analysis embedded within the quantitative research design. Analysis of data collected in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) classroom from the pre and post assessment instrument reveal that while direct instruction regarding FOK did not result in a statistically significant difference between the control and treatment groups, post assessment scores for participants in the …

An Adventure Therapy Mountain Bike Program For Middle School Students: A Pilot Study, Cian L. Brown

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Adolescence is a time of significant physical, mental, emotional, and social development marked by numerous transitions and challenges. Middle school is one of the earliest and perhaps first times of significant social and physical transition that impacts early adolescent development. As a result, schools are becoming a primary care setting for children and families to identify and address mental health needs. However, only 2% of school mental health services are provided by licensed professionals. Therefore, schools and service providers continue to seek out comprehensive modalities that can efficiently provide preventative and responsive interventions to students beyond individual and school counseling …

Exploring Student Engagement With A Nanotechnology Module For Middle School Developed Using The Model Of Educational Reconstruction, Martyna Laszcz

Graduate Masters Theses

Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (NST) is a booming multi-disciplinary field, with significant implications towards scientific and technological innovation. The growing reach of NST has created a demand for a skilled and scientifically literate workforce. However, NST is typically inaccessible outside of specialized contexts. Therefore, there is a need for bringing NST into the K-12 classroom.

In this study, we explored the use of technology-based NST modules to introduce middle and high school students to the field, wherein students unpacked an NST tool, the atomic force microscope (AFM), to learn about basic NST-related science concepts. The module created for this study was …

Technology Leadership Qualities In Secondary School Principals In Nebraska Who Support Student-Led Social Media Teams, Jill M. Johnson

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study addresses secondary school principals in Nebraska who are dealing with the negative ramifications of their students’ social media interactions. To combat the problem, this study sought to identify the technology leadership qualities possessed by secondary school principals in Nebraska who support student-led social media teams. A purposeful sampling of six secondary school principals in Nebraska, who have all been practicing principals for at least three years, engaged in individual semi-structured interviews via Zoom in January 2021. The primary research question was: What technology leadership qualities are possessed by secondary school principals in Nebraska who support student-led social media …

Predicting Teacher Job Satisfaction And Propensity To Leave In The Bering Strait School District In Rural Alaska Through The Application Of Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory, Matthew Palmer

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study examines the relationship between teacher job satisfaction and teacher indicated propensity to leave their positions in one very unique geographical and cultural educational context - the Bering Strait School District in rural Western Alaska. Data was collected for this quantitative study via a questionnaire survey instrument utilizing Likert scales that was distributed to teachers via email and completed online. The questionnaire items focused on determinants of teacher job satisfaction and teacher indicated propensity to leave as found in a body of research which demonstrates that job satisfaction influences employee propensity to leave, and that employee propensity to leave …

Digital Scripture: An Investigation Of The Design And Use Of A Mobile Application For Reading Sacred Text, Neil Carpenter

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Digital sacred text reading is rapidly growing as digital devices such as mobile smartphones are becoming more common across the globe. Although sacred text can have strong influence on identify and behavior, the effects of a digital revolution on scripture reading practices are not well understood. In particular, current research literature indicates that more information is needed about the design and use of digital sacred text applications (apps) such as mobile Bibles across different religious groups or cultures. Therefore, this study builds upon and extends previous work to analyze a religious text app, Gospel Library, which is designed and largely …

"I Had To Call Them Out On A Very Tight Rope:" Exercising Voice With K-12 Education Colleagues To Confront Racial Injustice, Erin Sugrue, Ashley Daftary

Faculty Authored Articles

This paper uses Hirschman’s (1970) concept of exercising voice to examine how educators in the U.S. public education system speak to their colleagues about racially oppressive beliefs and practices. Limited research exists that examines the experiences of educators who exercise voice to challenge and engage coworkers and supervisors around issues of racism in their schools. Using data from semi-structured interviews with 25 educators and a flexible coding approach (Deterding & Waters, 2018), the authors found that participants described using cautious, covert, and indirect approaches with their White colleagues to increase the likelihood that their messages would be received and to …