Rural students deserve a high-quality literacy education comparable to their non-rural counterparts. As rural teachers and leaders face multiple roles and responsibilities, professional learning focused on instructional improvement can lack priority. This study aimed to examine how leaders within a rural, public elementary school setting supported…

This qualitative case study explores the story of celebration for kindergarten teachers at a suburban elementary school in northern New England. This study explored the reality of self-celebration in kindergarten teachers' current practices during staff meetings, planning meetings, response to intervention (RTI) meetings, with their colleagues,…

The purpose of this research was to find out if parental involvement in the study school helped to increase student academic achievement. Previous studies have shown that when parents are involved in the educational process of children, parents can expect a gain in academic achievement. This mixed method study examined the relationship between…

Time has come for parents to be more involved than ever with children's educational lives. Teachers need the support at home and school to produce citizens that can work, play, and survive in the environment. When parents are involved in children's education, there is accountability that lies with each student. Grades and attendance are usually…

School counselors actively pursue postgraduate professional development to stay current with the best social-emotional learning (SEL) implementation practices. Professional development can vary depending on the school district. Despite these discrepancies, school counselors recognize how intentional professional development can further strengthen…

The purpose of this study was to identify characteristics of effective professional learning communities while learning their impacts on staff members. The study also discovered the role of educational leaders during an effective implementation of professional learning communities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with staff members of an…

Sixty-eight percent of fourth-grade public school students in the United States performed below the National Assessment of Educational Progress proficient level on the 2022 reading assessment, yet Massachusetts fourth-grade students demonstrated better reading outcomes. The problem addressed through this study was a lack of knowledge regarding the…

The expectation for classroom educators to engage in evidence-based decision-making is standard protocol in most K-12 classrooms, yet translating educational research into effective practice is mired with implementation challenges. The research-practice partnership (RPP) model has emerged as a promising framework to support stakeholders as they…

This dissertation showcases collective sensemaking in action. The study was situated in a larger North Carolina project, in which educators took a systems approach to update the state's instructional guidance infrastructure during content standards reform. Specifically, I investigated how K-5 educators from multiple stakeholder groups--teachers,…

Teacher-student relationships have long been identified as an important factor in the success of a student, and in the investment of the teacher. Extensive research has been conducted on the perception and outcomes of teacher student relationships from the perspective of the teacher and that of the students. However, research on the outcomes,…

Legislation such as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) have emphasized student achievement and test scores. As a result, the landscape of the kindergarten classroom has changed from a more play-based environment to a more academic-based classroom. This shift has caused pre-kindergarten to shift their practices as…

Because parental engagement has been shown to have a positive relationship with K-12 student academic achievement, the problem for this study was that though information and communication technology applications (ICT apps) are available to engage parents with teachers and schools, it was unclear whether parents are aware of and use them. The…

This study examined parents' and teachers' social constructions of disability, school readiness, and the transition to kindergarten process for children with disabilities who participated in a self-contained preschool special education (SPED) class, called a special day class (SDC). The 12 participants included parents of children with…

Teachers are increasingly sought after to support students that are experiencing mental health concerns. Some of the most common mental health concerns include, but are not limited to, depression, anxiety, and behavioral problems (Centers for Disease and Control Prevention [CDC], 2020a). In the United States, these mental health diagnoses have…

The purpose of this quantitative predictive correlational study was to determine the extent communication style elements (expressiveness, preciseness, verbal aggressiveness, questioningness, emotionality, and impression manipulativeness) collectively and individually predict the technology integration of K-12 teachers in the Northwest Louisiana…