Educational Sociology Commons^™

Casar Student Discussion Series #7: Censored Classrooms - Should Parents And Community Members Have A Say In Restricting Certain Books In Schools, Based On Factors Such As Religion, Age Appropriateness, And More?, The Prince Alwaleed Center For American Studies And Research Casar

Performances, Events, and Presentations

Every semester, CASAR AUC holds miscellaneous student debates discussing the hot controversial topics in the US, Egypt and from around the world in hopes of raising awareness about these topics & broadening the perspectives of our students as they learn to engage in fruitful discussions as they share different opinion on the topic being deliberated.

On April 10th 2025, at this CASAR Student Discussion event #7 in light of the current book bans in the US happening from Trump's administration, we debated this question: 'Censored classrooms: Should parents and community members have a say in restricting certain books in schools …

Ivy Leaves, Volume 100, Anderson University - South Carolina

Ivy Leaves

The 2025 edition of the Anderson University journal of art and literature, Ivy Leaves.

The names of the known editors for this issue of Ivy Leaves were Jaylee Koon, Jenna Martin, Rachel Riddle, Milena Ulrich, Emma Brightman, Corinne Lowe, Torie Johnson, Anna Leigh Avant, Darcy Hseih, Kaylie Sheriff, Claudia Sarmiento, LIly Gregory, Ethan Wright, Elise Frauenholtz, KJ Lian, Ellie Gramm, Iley Gramm, Kenzi Miller, Ellie Ruperto, Miriam Cabrera-Santana, Ashlee Keller, Mateo De Los Cobos, Jacob Enzor, Claire Nunes, Abby McDonald, Heidi Dillow, Derek Updegraff and Tim Speaker.

How Do School-Level Dynamics Impact Mainstreaming Practices In American Schools?, Natalie M. Watson

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

How do school-level dynamics impact the everyday experiences of students with disabilities, compared to their abled peers? Extant research has mostly focused on the experiences of individual students with disabilities, and their teachers. We know far less about how school-level dynamics shape students’ experiences. Historically, American schools formally separated students with and without disabilities, though the specific mode varied over time -- ranging from explicit institutionalization to segregation in special education programs. At least since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, efforts to educate students with disabilities alongside their abled peers in mainstreamed settings have increased …

Intimate Partner Violence Among College Students: The Influence Of Gender, Sexual Orientation, Race/Ethnicity On Bystander Intention, Brooke M. Puharic

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Intimate partner violence (IPV) among college students is an issue across gender, sexual orientation, and race/ethnicity. The present study highlights the sociodemographic characteristics that influence physical IPV involvement among college students by reporting past year prevalence and frequency rates of physical IPV involvement by gender, sexual orientation, and race/ethnicity. Additionally, the current study builds on research about bystander intention to intervene by exploring the influence of these sociodemographic characteristics on participants intentions to intervene, as well as their preferred type of intervention.

Participants were 525 university students recruited from the psychology research pool. They were presented with eight hypothetical vignettes …

Giving Voice To Student Grief: Using Community-Based Participatory Research To Develop And Pilot A Translational Storytelling Intervention For Bereaved College Students, Cassidy Rae Taladay-Carter

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The purpose of this dissertation was to employ community-based participatory research (CBPR, Wallerstein et al., 2018) methods to attend to a pressing issue in the community. In partnership with one local grief center, we identified the need for enhanced grief support for current emerging adult undergraduate students in our area. Nearly 50% of U.S. emerging adults enrolled in four-year residential universities experience the death of an important figure (Cox et al., 2015; Cupit et al., 2021), at a time when they are developing important facets of their narrative identity. Without the coherence and meaning structures provided by narrative identity, students …

Dei From The Perspective Of Racially And Sexually Minority Social Work Students, Ilse Ivonne Trejo, Miguel Gabino Lopez, Annette Clarke Jones, Octavio Ramirez

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

This explanatory sequential mixed-method research study examined the experiences and perspectives of racially and sexually minority social work students enrolled at Fort Hays State University. By integrating both quantitative and qualitative approaches, the study aimed to uncover the unique challenges these students face, such as feelings of belonging, microaggressions, and a lack of culturally competent mentorship. It also highlighted resilience strategies and institutional supports that contribute to their academic and personal success. The findings offer valuable insights for social work educators and administrators seeking to foster more inclusive and supportive environments for minority and sexual students in rural PWIs.

Digital Access, Digital Skills, And Academic Success: Rethinking Digital Capital In Higher Education, Nicholas Boon

Honors Thesis

Recent scholarship has suggested that “digital capital” (DC), encompassing digital access and competency, may play a critical role in processes of social reproduction. However, there has been limited scholarship exploring this concept’s empirical utility. Especially within higher education, where increasing digitalization may exacerbate inequality by disadvantaging students with low DC. Using a survey of 239 students at two institutions of higher education in the Midwest, this study examines the usefulness of the DC concept for understanding unequal educational outcomes in the contemporary university context. This study is among the first to empirically investigate the relationship between sociodemographic factors, DC accumulation, …

The Impact Of Artificial Intelligence On Quality Of Higher Education, Pragati K. Rouniyar

Honors Thesis

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is redefining higher education, captivating scholars with its promise to personalize learning and streamline institutions. However, underneath this assurance exists a network of ethical challenges, disparities in equity, and inquiries regarding academic integrity that require our focus. In pursuit of this goal, this research employs a mixed-methods strategy—through the implementation of surveys and semi-structured interviews—to investigate the transformative effects of AI on higher education, concentrating on its repercussions for teaching techniques, learning results, and institutional processes. This study’s findings indicate that AI can personalize educational experiences to meet individual needs, ease course administrative workload, and assist with …

Classroom Teachers' Approaches To Values Education: Exploring Explicit And Implicit Strategies For Teaching And Modeling Values, Maria Ukamaka Clare Okeke

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Abstract This study explores the approaches Nigerian secondary school teachers in Anambra State use to teach values through explicit and implicit methods. Recognizing the need to understand how values are effectively communicated in the classroom, this research delves into the dual strategies employed by educators and their impacts on student moral development. The research used a qualitative interview study approach, which included semi-structured interviews with ten experienced secondary school teachers and a document analysis of teaching resources. This method allows one to investigate the explicit instruction and implicit modeling strategies applied in values education in depth. Findings reveal that teachers …

Digital Inequalities And U.S. Undergraduate Outcomes Over The First Two Years Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Vikki Katz, Amy B. Jordan, Katherine Ognyanova

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated major and rapid changes to undergraduate student learning conditions, but the longer-term consequences of those changes have yet to be fully understood. We assess how digital inequality—defined as challenges in accessing or maintaining a broadband internet connection and functional digital devices—affected undergraduates’ advancement toward on-time graduation over the first two years of the pandemic (2020-2022). We utilize survey data from a representative sample of 1,106 undergraduates at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, a public, 4-year university located in New Jersey, USA. Respondents were undergraduates who had been enrolled in full-time student status throughout the first two years …

Beyond The Psyche And Into The Social: How Educational Leaders Embrace Sociological Resilience To Disrupt Systems And Advance Equity, Jason Le-Reselosa, Anindya Kundu

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

Oftentimes, educational leaders and stakeholders are encouraged to be “resilient” in an unfair and inequitable education system that is entrenched within our social contexts and spaces. This meaning of resilience is manifested by “pushing” oneself through adversity and the status quo by employing adaptive coping strategies and measures to sustain mental health capacities, even if one could be on the brink of losing control of their sense of self. In this article, we reimagine resilience on how educational leaders from different socioeconomic backgrounds adopt a revolutionary approach to resilience that works in tandem with disrupting systemic issues, rather than remaining …

Digital Inclusion And Systemic Barriers: The Role Of Technology In Shaping The Participation Of Women Of Color In Hybrid Workspaces, Sanket Patole, Rob E. Carpenter, Rochell Mcwhorter

Human Resource Development Faculty Publications and Presentations

The rise of hybrid and remote work models, facilitated by digital technologies, has been widely regarded as a means of enhancing workforce diversity and inclusion. However, this study critically examines how these digital workplaces simultaneously reinforce systemic inequalities, particularly for women of color. Drawing on digital divide theory and intersectionality theory, this research explores the ways in which women of color navigate technological barriers, algorithmic bias, and workplace surveillance while developing adaptive strategies to assert their authority in digital spaces. Through a qualitative, interpretivist approach, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 13 women of color working in hybrid and remote …

Queering ‘Common Sense’: Using Critical Discourse Analysis Of Lgbtq+ Book Bans In Florida Public Schools To Unmask Heteronormativity, Talia Zito, Nicole E. Morse

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

Historically, censorship of LGBTQ+ content in education has been rooted in socio-political efforts to marginalize non-heteronormative identities. However, even those who oppose censorship tend to frame their arguments around concepts like “age-appropriateness” and “protecting children.” Our Critical Discourse Analysis examines formal challenges to And Tango Makes Three in one Florida school district in 2022 to show how these concepts are deployed on both sides of the debate. The book, depicting a same-sex penguin couple raising a chick, faced objections under Florida’s HB 1557, a law designed to restrict discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. Ultimately, the picture …

Restoring School Librarians: Challenges And Strategies, Debrah E. Kachel

Learning Hub

The article examines efforts to restore school librarian positions across eleven urban U.S. school districts, despite significant financial and administrative obstacles. It documents strategies used by district library leaders to advocate for staffing, funding, and policy changes, emphasizing equity in access to certified school librarians. Through structured interviews and analysis, the report highlights key barriers, advocacy methods, and funding mechanisms that have influenced school library staffing. The study's findings contribute to the ongoing discourse on educational equity and policy reform in K-12 library services.

When College Is Not Working Out: Obstacles To Community College Completion, Elisabeth Lackner

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

My dissertation investigates what contributes to low community college completion rates, what college interventions may be working to support students, what are the experiences of the students, and how did the COVID-19 pandemic impact these dynamics. I am guided by the assumption that multi-dimensional inequalities including low level of social capital constitute a cumulative disadvantage for many students to be able to persist and to graduate. The dissertation includes quantitative and qualitative data types measuring inequalities outside and inside of college with two large student record data sets from one minority-serving open-access public community college and data from a student …

Teaching Since 2020: Inhabiting Professionalization, Autonomy, And Classroom Teaching, Melissa Fisher

Dissertations

This study explores teacher professionalization Since 2020 by examining control over teachers’ work as constructed by classroom teachers. Using a conceptual framework combining the teacher disempowerment perspective, inhabited institutionalism, and professionalization, I focus on the question: Given the recent years of upheaval the profession of education has sustained, how are teachers inhabiting the role of "professional teacher," particularly regarding control over their own work? This qualitative study utilizes semi-structured interviews with fourteen teacher participants in an Indiana public school district. This study finds that participants are constructing a new Since 2020 teaching reality. Participants converged on professional challenges including disruptive …

Rural, Gifted Student Experience In Appalachian Kentucky, Olivia G. Jarrell

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

Current literature shows that gifted students' experiences often differ from nongifted peers. Similarly, research shows that rural students’ experiences are unique compared to nonrural peers. This study hopes to address the gap in literature on experiences of students at the intersection of giftedness and rurality with the question: How do rural, gifted students in Appalachian Kentucky experience and perceive K-12 schooling? Rural, gifted students exist in the overlap between two unique groups. Using a multi-case study, participants came from three separate school districts in a region of Appalachian Kentucky, with each district being a separate case. Data collection included observations …

Surveillance Digitisation, Performativity, And Teacher-Student Relationships In A Blended Learning Setting, Sarah Julia Calderwood

All Works

This study investigates how digitized surveillance technologies impact teacher-student relationships in a blended learning environment at a UAE university. Using semi-structured faculty interviews, it examines the effects of tools such as plagiarism detection, class recordings, and learning analytics on trust and engagement. The findings reveal tensions between institutional goals of academic integrity and active participation and the unintended consequences of fostering performative behaviours and eroding relational trust. Teachers report that surveillance mechanisms promote compliance over genuine learning, reshaping their roles and interactions with students. Despite these challenges, educators employ strategies of resistance, prioritising human connection and relational pedagogy to counteract …

Examining The Creative Process Of Visual Artists: A Phenomenological Study, Filiberto Vargas

Dissertations

Creativity fuels problem solving and innovation, driving both economic growth and individual success. Yet, many schools and organizations fail to nurture it. Today, there is a decline in creativity scores among U.S. students. This is concerning since many of these students will be the future leaders of organizations and communities. For this reason, this dissertation explores the creative process of visual artists to better understand how creativity can be cultivated. Visual artists' perspectives and sense-and-meaning-making processes offer a unique view of innovation and creativity. However, there is limited research on the creative processes of contemporary visual artists from culturally diverse …

Navigating The Academic Terrain: Examining The Challenges And Success Factors Of Student Veterans In Higher Education Institutions, Katherine Reyes, Corey Idleburg

Education Division Scholarship

This study investigates the academic experiences of student veterans, addressing specific challenges they face in higher education. Using Schlossberg’s adult transition theory, it explores the effects of invisible barriers, enrollment trends, and institutional factors on veteran student success, leveraging the VA’s GI Bill Comparison tool to examine public versus private school support. Findings underscore the need for targeted resources, faculty training, and institutional awareness to foster a supportive and inclusive environment that enhances veteran students' academic success and sense of belonging.