The purpose of the current qualitative study was to determine the professional needs of new teachers as identified by stakeholders using educational design research (EDR) methods and determine the content and structure needed to further develop the current mentoring program into a high-quality teacher induction program (TIP) with a mentoring…

The purpose of the current qualitative study was to determine the professional needs of new teachers as identified by stakeholders using educational design research (EDR) methods and determine the content and structure needed to further develop the current mentoring program into a high-quality teacher induction program (TIP) with a mentoring…

Students and workers require self-regulated learning (SRL) skills to meet the demands of the 21st century. These learners need to be actively engaged in learning by creating successful strategies for themselves directed toward specific goals. Many students, however, are not currently actively engaged in their learning and are thus ill-prepared for…

The purpose of this study is to investigate different aspects of teachers' orientations toward students' writing in high school mathematics. I used an embedded case study design (Yin, 2018) across the cases of three teachers whose instruction had previously been found to be dialogically focused -- i.e., made use of high-level tasks, presented…

There is not a strong academic foundation in the literature on relationships between knowledge-seeking behavior, and grit, and ambition, in high school seniors and college students. This quantitative correlational study utilized ex post facto data to explore the relationship between two independent variables, grit and ambition, and a dependent…

Higher education institutions have been grappling with significant enrollment declines and have urgently implemented retention strategies to sustain their student populations amid shifting demographics and economic challenges (American Association of Community Colleges, 2023; Hanover Research, 2021). However, these programs often neglect the…

Self-determination, as a vital topic for individuals with disabilities, has received a narrow investigation in Saudi Arabia and the Middle Eastern communities. Therefore, it is imperative to examine evidence-based practices to furnish insight into the efficacy of self-determination models not only through theoretical research methods but also via…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how high school marching band instructors described extra-musical life skills teaching strategies in Northern California within the Western Band Association (WBA) organizational circuit. Theoretical foundations of this study were social emotional learning (SEL) based on the seminal…

Since the early 1970s, exponential and unprecedented growth of incarceration rates of Black youths became a critical issue. One in twenty persons, or 5% of the total United States population serve at least six months in federal state prisons by age 40. Recidivism rates in excess of 50% compounded the problem. The purpose of this qualitative…

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand the lived experiences of Mid-Atlantic region public high school teachers participating in onboarding practices, which provides insight into best practices to increase teacher self-efficacy and decrease attrition rates. The theory guiding this study is Albert Bandura's…

This action research study investigated the cognitive factors that impacted students' choice to continue within a high school engineering pathway, and the effect of multiple engineering courses on students' engineering self-efficacy. Participants (N = 87) were students who completed three quantitative surveys throughout the engineering course(s)…

Induction is a process in which teachers that are newly hired to a school district are provided an opportunity to learn about the needs, expectations, and obligations of their school, community, and students. A formal induction program is implemented through such experiences as assigning mentors for a newly hired teacher and requiring…

This qualitative phenomenological study investigated teachers as leaders in their classrooms. The study focused on the various ways high school teachers facilitate deep work in their students to lead them to learning goals, by examining how teachers define goals, clarify paths, remove obstacles, and provide support to learning. The study…

This qualitative study examines the Black college tours implemented at Inkster High School which exposed high school students to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) throughout the Midwest, South, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. While there is substantial grey literature that describes the Black college tour…

Within the five chapters of this dissertation, the overall theme was to examine student goal setting when engaged in the Self-Determined Learning Model of Instruction (SDLMI) in inclusive, secondary, academic content, general education classrooms over multiple years. Chapter 1 provides an overview of self-determination, goal setting, and the…