Positive motivation to perform work tasks has been associated with better performance and outcomes in both the organizational and informal education literature. In environmental education (EE), this means that more motivated instructors are likely to provide better programs for their participants. In this exploratory study across 15 states in the…

This qualitative case study explored the teachers' and administrators' perceptions of a newly implemented teacher evaluation policy in a high-stakes testing state, and how this policy impacted their motivation. Five science teachers and their immediate supervisors were interviewed, and their perceptions were analyzed through motivational theories…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact that school culture, comprised of the variables cultivating a culture of collaboration, employing a data-informed focus on improvement through professional communication, and organizational commitment had on teachers' self-efficacy (teacher autonomy, interpersonal efficacy, and professional…

The position of assistant principal is underrepresented in the extant body of education literature. Yet, at the same time, the position is viewed as the profession's pathway to the principalship. In the midst of the dilemma, this qualitative study endeavored to explore the backgrounds, roles, accomplishments, and future career aspirations of high…

Positive youth development and youth organizing are strengths-based approaches to the lives, needs, and contributions of young people (Damon & Gregory, 2003). These approaches privilege the voices of youth as they engage with issues in their communities and challenge institutions to respond. Few studies, however, have explored the role of…

In the United States a high school diploma offers a pathway to the growing professional occupations creating the American middle class. The continuous influx of minority families into suburban school districts eventually urbanized districts. As a result, multiple districts struggle in the process of educating a shifted population. Studies have…

Understanding job satisfaction, stress, and burnout within agricultural education has the potential to impact the profession's future. Studying these factors through the theoretical lens of social comparison takes a cultural approach by investigating how agriculture teachers interact with and compare themselves to others. The purpose of this study…

Today's public school principals lead under conditions of significant pressures for change. At the local level, principals are the primary receivers and interpreters of the discourses and demands for change coming from central administration. Principals must make sense of these discourses and demands for change at the local school level, and they…

Over the past decade, national initiatives have shifted States' attention to the challenge of turning around low-performing schools. The lack of consistent, dramatic improvements in the lowest-performing schools reflects the severity of the school turnaround challenge, but also suggests the need to continuously evaluate and refine turnaround…

The Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) is a rapidly expanding network of public charter schools whose mission is to improve the education of low-income children. As of the 2012-2013 school year, 125 KIPP schools are in operation in 20 different states and the District of Columbia (DC). Ultimately, KIPP's goal is to prepare students to enroll and…