Educational Sociology Commons^™

The Rural Post-Graduation Plan Development Model: Advancing Student College Choice By Centering Rural Communities, Steve Jenks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

College choice models have been used since the 1980s to try and explain the processes and influences high school students use to decide if and which college to attend after graduation. These models focused solely on college attendance and lacked attention to the nuanced needs and resources found in rural communities. In this three-paper dissertation, a new, rural-centric model is proposed, tested, critiqued, and revised. The first paper proposes a new conceptual model of Rural Post-Graduation Plan Development using a critique and synthesis of prior college choice models, Critical Rural Theory, Funds of Knowledge, and socio-ecological models. The second paper …

An Analysis Of The Relationship Between K-12 Public Education Spending And Student Academic Achievement In Iowa, Lydia Berns-Schweingruber

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

Student academic achievement in Iowa is on the decline (US Department of Education 2022). Some politicians propose increasing public education spending in order to address worrisome trends in academic achievement (Richardson 2022). Prior studies disagree about whether there is a relationship between school spending and student outcomes. The purpose of this study is to determine if there is a relationship between K-12 public education spending and student academic achievement in Iowa. This project analyzes data from the past nineteen years to examine the relationship between Iowa’s per- pupil expenditure and student outcomes — specifically, graduation rate, average daily attendance, math …

Children In Economically Disadvantaged Households Have Lower Early Literacy Skills Than Their Higher-Income Peers, Michah W. Rothbart, Colleen Heflin, Gabriella Alphonso

Center for Policy Research

Literacy is critical for numerous developmental outcomes and wellbeing among children. Low literacy skills in childhood can also negatively affect individuals in adulthood. Using data from nearly 300,000 kindergarten students in Virginia (2014-2017), this study finds that children in households that participate in more than one social assistance program (such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and Free or Reduced-Price Lunch) have lower literacy skills when they enter kindergarten than children whose households participate in fewer or no social programs.

Children In Economically Disadvantaged Households Have Lower Early Literacy Skills Than Their Higher-Income Peers, Michah W. Rothbart, Colleen Heflin, Gabriella Alphonso

Population Health Research Brief Series

Literacy is critical for numerous developmental outcomes and wellbeing among children. Low literacy skills in childhood can also negatively affect individuals in adulthood. Using data from nearly 300,000 kindergarten students in Virginia (2014-2017), this study finds that children in households that participate in more than one social assistance program (such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs, and Free or Reduced-Price Lunch) have lower literacy skills when they enter kindergarten than children whose households participate in fewer or no social programs.

The Age-Less Citizen: Cultivating A Civically Engaged K-12 Community Through The Use Of Service Learning, Chelsia I. Douglas Mpa

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

The Age-less Citizen will analyze evidence-based civic education studies and explore proactive student engagement strategies to build an individualized nonpartisan action plan for each school represented. From sending election reminders home by a kindergartener, to including local school board meetings on school newsletter and calendars, attendees will take away practical tips and tools to restore faith in the younger generation's ability to improve our democracy.

Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report 2023, Alexandra Daro, Greg W. Welch, Venessa Bryant

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 was reauthorized with renewed emphasis on the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program, which seeks to provide equal access to quality child care for families. The CCDF program is necessary to ensure children from families with lower income have the opportunity to experience stable, high-quality early experiences while their parents experience a pathway to economic stability. A primary goal of the CCDF program is to ensure that families with lower income receive CCDF funds to help them access quality child care in the same manner as families that …

Profiles Of Well-Being Among Early Childhood Educators, Amy M. Roberts, Alexandra Daro, Kathleen C. Gallagher

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Research Findings: This study used a person-centered data analytic approach to identify distinct subgroups of early childhood educators (n= 133) based on their responses to multiple indicators of well-being (psychological, financial, and health indicators). Various fit indices established a two-class solution. Specifically, one group was characterized by more positive well-being and the other by less positive well-being. Subgroup differences were the greatest for indicators of psychological well-being, including self-care and self-compassion. In addition, educators with less than a bachelor’s degree, working as assistant teachers, receiving less pay, with more adverse childhood experiences, were overrepresented in the less positive …

"Think Of The Children!": Understanding Parental And Community Opposition To Critical Race Theory, Daniela S. Tierra

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools has become a controversial topic nationwide, leading to widespread and alarming bans on the teaching of CRT. CRT has been accused of shaming white children, creating racial division, and creating a “victim mentality” amongst people of color. The CRT utilized in critical legal studies, ethnic studies, and sociology looks drastically different from what opponents claimed. So, what exactly is CRT - more importantly, what do opponents of CRT believe it to be, and why are they opposed to it? This thesis builds on the sociological field of critical whiteness to examine the academic origin …

Uruguayan Parents' Perceptions About Educational Segregation In Uruguayan Public Elementary Schools: A Case Study, Natalia Fernández

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Educational segregation has been increasing across public elementary schools in Uruguay producing negative effects on students’ outcomes, performance, and opportunities. It also affects social cohesion. Previous studies detect the presence of educational segregation in Uruguay, identify the predominance of socioeconomic segregation in education in the country, and study the relationships between public and private institutions. A review of the extant literature demonstrates there is a gap in the exploration of the possible factors that contribute to the phenomenon. Moreover, there is a need to know the perceptions and experiences of Uruguayan families about the influence of these factors in their …

Opening The Halls Of Power: Implementing A Community Organizing Approach To Parent Engagement In New York City’S Community Schools, Andrew R. King

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Under former Mayor Bill de Blasio, New York City launched a Community Schools Initiative (NYC-CS) in 2014 that now includes more than 300 schools, making it the largest school improvement plan of its kind in the country. Bloomberg, the previous mayor, had championed market-based reform strategies by closing struggling public schools and replacing them with privately run charter schools. In contrast, the community schools model supports struggling schools by providing them with wraparound services to address not only the academic—but also the health, social, and emotional—needs of the “whole child.” Research has shown the NYC initiative has had positive impacts …

A Bathroom Break For Teachers: An Institutional Ethnotheatrical Inquiry, Jonathan M. Coker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the teacher bathroom dilemma, a term I coined to describe teachers not having adequate access to the bathroom during their workdays. While this issue is widely known by those in the profession, only a handful of articles have been written on this topic. The teacher bathroom dilemma is part of a litany of working conditions that have intensified due to the neoliberal turn in education, forcing teachers to perform precarious actions that endanger their physical and psychological health. This dissertation explored how the teacher bathroom dilemma impacted teachers’ work and personal lives. …

The Nebraska Covid-19 Early Care And Education Provider Survey Iii: “Holding It Together—And Hanging By A Thread” May 2022, Alexandra Daro, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Kristen M. Cunningham

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

In February 2022, the Buffett Early Childhood Institute conducted the Nebraska COVID-19 Early Care and Education Survey III, in collaboration with state agencies, University of Nebraska faculty, and organization partners. This third survey examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nebraska’s child care professionals and its implications for practice and policy. Results from the previous surveys, released in April and August 2020, indicated that early care and education professionals in Nebraska, who were already vulnerable prior to the pandemic, have been negatively impacted from the start of the pandemic. The first survey elevated providers’ immediate needs, including funding relief, …

Moving From Harm Mitigation To Affirmative Discrimination Mitigation: The Untapped Potential Of Artificial Intelligence To Fight School Segregation And Other Forms Of Racial Discrimination, Andrew Gall

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Faculty Perceptions Of Safety And The Impact Of Online Classroom Modalities During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Mary E. Ogidigben, Ernesto R. Rivera, Robert S. Keyser

The Kennesaw Journal of Undergraduate Research

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has affected a number of institutions – one of which is Kennesaw State University (KSU). In the fall 2020 semester, KSU implemented safety protocols following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as the University System of Georgia (USG) guidelines. A cross-sectional survey was sent out for faculty to complete at their own will regarding their thoughts on how the new guidelines are affecting their work as well as their safety while on campus. The survey consisted of 18 Likert-scale questions and eight free response questions. The survey results showed that 60.42% of …

Facultas Marginem: Assessing Disability Data And Public Aau Universities’ Affirmative Action Plans For Systemic Barriers Facing Faculty With Disabilities, Joseph Carlton Barry

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

This dissertation contributes to education equity scholarship produced by academics seeking to develop understandings of disability, Persons with Disabilities (PWD), and how both are situated amongst faculty in institutions of higher education. As such, this dissertation centers on a study of public US universities belonging to the Association of American Universities (AAU). This study looks for institutional level associations between respective rates by which college and university faculty with disabilities (FWD) are employed, certain aspects of disability policy drawn from each institution’s 2020 Affirmative Action Plans (AAP), and various other instances of empirical disability data (EDD).

While this study contributes …

The Program To Reduce Implicit Bias In Carroll Hospital Center Using The Implicit Association Test, Katherine E. Traynor

Capstone Showcase

Natural brain processes make all individuals susceptible to unconscious bias; however, stressful, fearful, or anger-evoking situations as well as the negative influence of media and social surroundings increase the risk of holding obstructive bias, and there is a greater risk of being negatively impacted by this phenomenon when belonging to a minority population (Rose & Flores, 2020). As a result, high rates of infant mortality (10.2 deaths per 1,000 live births for the Non-Hispanic Black population compared to 4.1 in the White population) and cardiovascular related diseases (190.0 cases per 1,000 in the Non-Hispanic Black population compared to 161.3 in …

Do They Make A Difference? Twin Cities Magnet Schools In The Heart Of Metropolitan Inequity And Segregation, Scott A. Thomas

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Magnet schools have served as one of the most important and widely-used desegregation tools throughout the United States. Each district, region, and state have varying degrees of implementation, policies, and goals for such schools; however, robust evidence of their effectiveness is needed. This study examines a single school district in Minnesota that uses magnet schools to meet a state desegregation order where five elementary magnet schools and five control schools were identified to understand the impact the magnet “treatment” has on achievement for students of color, English learners, and students receiving special education services. This multivariate comparative study uses the …

The Impact Of Corporal Punishment For Timorese High School Graduates, Veronica Godinho Pereira

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research examines the impacts of corporal punishment for Timorese high school graduates. Physical punishment is a pervasive method of disciplining students and children used in Timor-Leste because it has been such a tradition (UNICEF 2017). Few researchers have attempted to analyze the negative impacts of corporal punishment and possible gender differences; there is no known research on the impacts of corporal punishment in Timor-Leste. This study uses an in-depth interview method, where data were collected from 26 Timorese high school graduates composed of both men and women from both private and public schools in Timor-Leste. The ages of the …

Opportunities For Positive Youth Development: The Organized Activity Participation And Educational Outcomes Of Adolescents In Adopted, Foster, And Kinship Care, Ryan D. Heath, Keunhye Park, Sarah Faith Millward

Falk College Research Center

Purpose: Children who grow up outside the care of their biological parents – e.g., those in adoptive, foster, or kinship (AFK) care – experience poorer educational outcomes than their peers. However, the protective factors that could mitigate any risks of AFK care have received less attention. One understudied area is the participation of AFK youth in organized activities (e.g., extracurricular or afterschool programs).

Method: Drawing on nationally representative data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (n=16,197), this study used multilevel modeling to (1) examine the association of AFK care status with organized activity participation and …

Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report 2021, Greg W. Welch, Elizabeth Svoboda, Alexandra Daro, Venessa Bryant, Caitlyn Glissmeyer

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Consistent with the 2019 MRS, the Institute conducted a survey of all licensed child care providers across the state to obtain private pay child care rates for children with or without medical and behavioral needs. Categories of focus for data collection and reporting included: 1. Geographic location: rural or urban 2. Type of care: Family Child Care Home I, Family Child Care Home II, Child Care Center, and School Age License 3. Age group of children: infant, toddler, pre-school, and school-age 4. Status of medical and behavioral needs 5. Accreditation 6. Extent to which child care providers participate in Child …

Is It Better To Be Tough, Or Is Consistency Key? A Multilevel Analysis Examining The Effects Of School Disciplinary Procedures On Perceptions Of Climate And Safety Among Students And Teachers, Erica Nicole Bower

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Though delinquency and violence have been steadily decreasing in American schools, research suggests that discipline use has not followed that same downward trend. This raises questions to why schools are reliant on certain disciplinary practices if rates of student misbehavior are not increasing. Due to zero tolerance mandates, schools often take a harsh approach to punishment, yet are also inconsistent in the punishment of similar misbehavior among students, which often leaves students feeling frustrated and sometimes, unsafe. How do school disciplinary decisions affect the ways in which school actors, such as students and teachers, perceive their schools’ environments? This broad …

Divining Structural Factors Related To Intervention Success Or Failure: Cultural Sexism Versus Other Macro-Level Factors, Blair T. Johnson, Christine M. Curley

CHIP Documents

This article provides commentary on a spatial meta-analysis published by Price and colleagues (2021); it provides valuable preliminary evidence that a dimension of cultural sexism can countervail efforts for psychotherapy to succeed in samples that focus on girls aged four to 18. Our own study reveals cultural sexism to be markedly associated with at least three macro-level factors: cultural tightness, historical slaveholding (and by implication racism), and sex education inclusiveness. The fact that cultural sexism can be so well predicted by these factors is additional evidence that cultural sexism is real, yet it also suggests caution in interpreting these effects …

Chronic Absenteeism At One Arkansas High School, Michelle Miller

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Chronic absenteeism is a fairly new concept in education. Many schools have only started tracking chronic absenteeism with the start of Every Student Succeeds Act. The following research studied chronic absenteeism at an Arkansas High School, which answered the two research questions in this study. The first research question studied the demographics of the chronically absent student which included grade level, race/ethnicity, Special Education and English Language Learner status, and free or reduced lunch status. The second research question studied the class period of the chronic absence which included the time of day and type of class. High School X …

Elevating Nebraska’S Early Childhood Workforce: Report And Recommendations Of The Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission. April 2021 One-Year Update, Buffet Early Childhood Institute

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

On Jan. 30, 2020, the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission released its report and recommendations, Elevating Nebraska’s Early Childhood Workforce. With a strong commitment to collaborative action, commission members vowed that the report would not just sit on the shelf—and they have been true to their word. Even the COVID-19 pandemic could not prevent commission members and the organizations they represent from engaging with partners in diverse communities across the state to pursue the report’s vision, goals, and recommendations.

In fact, the pandemic’s dramatic impact on the early childhood workforce and the children and families they serve has only served …

Balancing The Pedagogical And Practical Concerns In Remote Higher Education: A Cyberethnography, Jose Eos R. Trinidad, Samantha Joan Ackary, Lyka Janelle P. Pacleb, Sophia Sue Tabanao, Jan Llenzl Dagohoy

Interdisciplinary Studies Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about physical school closures and quick transitions online, with universities making decisions for this new mode of instruction. Such decisions, however, were open to discussion and debates, particularly as students and instructors held varying concerns, experiences, and expectations for remote learning. We investigate what these debates are using a cyberethnography of a Facebook group for students and faculty, and an anonymous Freedom Wall page for students in the same university. The concerns centered on workload that balanced academic rigor and practical exigencies; learning modalities that balanced accountability and flexibility; and assessments that balanced academic integrity and …

Supporting Highly Mobile Literacy Learners : Examining How An Elementary School Provided Support To Mobile Students In An Urban School District, Rebecca L. Benjamin

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation explores the academic and social-emotional supports and constraints that impact the literacy learning of highly mobile students in an urban elementary school, utilizing interview, questionnaire, and achievement data from transient students and educational professionals who work with them. It examines a school year of highly mobile student experiences in literacy-learning across a wide range of factors and environments, considering student and educator observations, reflections, and participation, through different schools and across various settings in their current/newest school (in classrooms, at lunch, recess, rehearsals, and specials, working with social or academic service providers, etc.). This study’s theoretical framework was …

Parents’ Awareness And Perspective Of School Choice Scales: Development, Revision, And Validation Using The Rasch Model, Katherine Leung Robershaw

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

Parents want the best for their children. But for those who also believe in equal educational opportunity, they struggle with the moral dilemmas raised by school choice. To investigate where parents stand in this dilemma, this study is devoted to the creation of the Parents’ Awareness and Perspective of School Choice (PAPSC) scales, a survey instrument capturing a continuum of conversations surrounding parental school choice, from parents’ awareness of school choice policies or programs to debates surrounding parental freedom of school choice. This study also emphasized the use of well-developed, validated survey tools in educational policy and school choice …

Teacher Demoralization: Neoliberal Influence On The Complex Education System And Teacher Morale, Dionne Elvira

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Since the 1980s, neoliberal influence has slowly taken over our education system’s vision and purpose. Presently, marketization in schooling has drawn the attention and influence of those of monetary and political power (Bartlett et al., 2002). Accountability measures set in place by the strings attached to school funding and sanctions encompass blanket demands on classroom instruction not equitably designed to support our diverse student populations (Ravitch, 2013; Reigeluth, 2014; Tsang, 2019). The school system, as it presently stands, is managed and maintained under systematic models that do not align to the complex needs of each unique school within its unique …

You’Re Happy And You Know It: Social-Cognitive And Environmental Factors’ Impact On Iraqi Student Satisfaction, Rachel Laribee Gresk

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

Understanding and identifying factors that contribute to student satisfaction is becoming more important in Iraq as competition for student enrollment among universities increases. It also can be extremely useful for educational institutions since it will help them pinpoint their strengths, assess areas for improvement, and ensure they maintain and attract students to their campus. Thus, to understand how to achieve positive student satisfaction, this study sought to identify the social-cognitive factors and institutional environmental influences that relate to student satisfaction in a private institution in Iraq, using social cognitive career theory (SCCT) as a framework.

The study found that the …

Cracks In The Bathroom Stall: A Discourse Analysis On Transgender Bathroom Usage At Garden Spot High School, Kirsten D. Corneilson

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In recent years, high schools across the country have seen the concern around transgender students using gendered facilities, such as bathrooms and locker rooms, come to the forefront. Often, dissenters raise worries of privacy and of “catering to a minority,” no matter what decision is reached. At Garden Spot High School in New Holland, Pennsylvania, the site of this research, one such concern has led to a district-wide decision to eliminate gendered facilities and move to single-use facilities, in the name of preserving student privacy. Through the examination of historical precedent and discourse analysis, this paper examines how transgender surveillance …