The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the decision-making process of a group of core elementary teachers in Illinois Metro East districts around attending professional development. 10 teachers from two Metro East districts were interviewed about their motivations, choices, and factors when considering what professional development to…

The climate is in crisis. Many conservation organizations identify in their mission statements the priority of motivating constituents to engage with conservation action. This priority is typically implemented by educators who design and deliver educational activities and materials. This study, designed to develop a professional pathway for…

Concern over falling retention rates at community colleges is not new; however, declines in success rates for mature English language learners (ELLs) in credit English as a second language (CESL) programs has become even more pronounced. The purpose of this mixed-method action research was to investigate the impact of a classroom intervention and…

Access to and engagement with high quality and relevant professional development is essential for educators to keep up with the latest evidence-based practices in teaching and learning. However, teacher dissatisfaction with professional development offerings is an all-too common occurrence in the field of education which often limits the transfer…

Obesity is an issue that negatively effects the health and wellbeing of children across the U.S. The problem addressed by this study was the increasing percentage of obesity among elementary students in a southeastern school district. Guided by Bandura's social learning theory, the purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the…

The purpose of conducting this basic qualitative study was to more fully understand marginalized Black males' transformational learning experiences when engaged in mentor-mentee relationship programs. A review of the existing literature revealed that marginalized adult learners' engagement in collaborative education programs enhanced learners'…

The purpose of this case study was to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that support combat student veterans in a private institution of higher education. The theory guiding this study was Astin's developmental theory of student involvement for higher education. The conceptual framework guiding the study was Vacchi's model of student…

This dissertation reports on how one school community engaged in a professional development grant initiative that incorporated teacher leadership. Teacher leaders may have numerous roles and responsibilities that support the professional learning and instructional practices of school communities. This study examined the experiences of three…

College and career readiness is the standard for those who receive a high school diploma regardless of the method through which the credential is obtained. Approximately 60% of college freshman require remediation in either mathematics, reading or English. Mathematics remediation is needed for two-thirds of this population. Learners who enter…

This qualitative research reports on the narratives of six community educators and utilizes anatomy of story as a framework. The research question directing this study was: What can we learn from the journeys and trajectories of community educators? Supporting sub-questions included: (1) what are their efforts fostering adult education? and (2)…

Language instructors play a decisive role in adult language learners' learning and retention of vocabulary through planning, selection, and teaching of vocabulary and strategies. However, some professional language schools lack extensive teacher-training programs that prepare instructors with the skills required to select and teach vocabulary,…

As public education seeks to address the needs of a globalized, 21st Century workplace, curriculum and instructional methodologies increasingly require classroom technology integration, infusion of critical thinking skills and information and media skills over rote memorization of facts. In order to retrain teachers in the new instructional…

Technology has become an integral part of the educational experience for many students and teachers, and institutions of higher education have invested heavily in its acquisition. Instructors tend to adopt new technologies when they perceive the benefits and usefulness of this implementation for their teaching. To facilitate the adoption process…

Distance learning programs in higher education are evolving into the preferred model for how we educate learners in the 21st century. The traditional role of an instructor was focused on creating an effective learning environment based in a physical classroom setting. In this decade, institutions are educating and training online instructors to a…

The purpose of this phenomenological inquiry was to investigate the lived experiences of high school veteran teachers who transformed their teaching methods from traditional 20th century instructional practices to facilitating their students in developing 21st century skills. Interviews with the seven participants were analyzed in order to…