This qualitative research study investigates teachers' perceptions of school safety and their adherence to specific safety procedures in a small, pre-K-eighth-grade school district in a small, suburban school district in Illinois. Data were collected through anonymous open-ended surveys distributed to teachers with varying experience levels. The…

This study explored teachers' understanding of utilizing mindfulness practices with students at New Jersey Township School District. Students today are faced with a significant amount of stress and anxiety within their lives, which can have a significant impact on their learning, memory, behavior, and both physical and mental health. The New…

The problem addressed in this qualitative descriptive study was that despite the evidence illustrating the significance of STEAM curriculum in students' academic and career success, there was still a considerable degree of uncertainty regarding what challenges were faced by P-8 schoolteachers and what support may be required to facilitate the…

With large-scale wicked problems threatening our world, the integration of sustainability into teacher professional learning is systemically lacking in the United States. The purpose of this case study was to understand the impact of a multi-session, sustainability-related professional learning program on twelve PreKindergarten-8th grade educators…

This dissertation examines the factors influencing the self-efficacy of PreK-8th grade educators in supporting students diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in southeastern Louisiana. This qualitative phenomenological study analyzes the lived experiences of educators to identify critical influences, such as classroom experience,…

This dissertation explored teachers' perceptions of achieving grade-level foundational reading literacy skills. Despite the recognized significance of reading literacy, many students struggled to attain proficiency, prompting an investigation into teachers' perspectives. The study adopted a mixed-methods research design, with PreK-Middle School…

Action research was undertaken to better understand teachers' perceptions of grading at a single P-12 school district in a midwestern state. The motivation for measuring teachers' perceptions of grading came from the school district's local data, which suggested a possible disconnect between students' grades and what students know, understand, and…

Black students with disabilities receiving special education services provide unique challenges to the current education system that was designed for white, able-bodied, and minded individuals. Teachers, more specifically, special education teachers, who are often white, play a vital role in serving as a first level of support and having a…

Pedagogy and content that disrupt existing heteronormative structures and curriculum with positive representations of LGBTQ people, history, and events are connected to more welcoming school experiences for all students. To understand elementary teachers' choices with regards to content and pedagogy that disrupt gender and sexuality norms, this…

The K-12 education system in the United States is rife with debate about what content should be taught and about how students' achievement with that content should be measured. While much of the public discourse focuses on traditional academic areas such as literacy and math, increasingly, educators are understanding that social and emotional…

This critical ethnography examines how the language ideologies of non-teaching staff (NTS) shape language practices in a bilingual PreK-8 school. Recent research on two-way bilingual education reveals the ways that the language ideologies of teachers, administrators, and parents can support the privileging of English in bilingual programs by…

The requirements that students must meet to be considered well-prepared for success in a rapidly changing world are increasing and evolving. Students learning English must not only meet academic standards and acquire 21st century skills including technology proficiency, they must also develop their language abilities. Students' success depends…

Democracy does not automatically maintain itself by prescribed constitutions and procedural codes (Dewey, 1939), but rather its citizens must have certain dispositions to protect and strengthen it (Biesta, 2006). According to John Stuart Mill (1859/1991), people can tyrannize one another within the structures of a democracy, a concept he phrased…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how general education teachers of grades K-6 describe their experiences modeling social acceptance of students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms. The overarching research question was as follows: How do general education teachers of grades K-6 describe their experiences…

Background: English language learners (ELLs) are dramatically increasing in U.S. schools: by 2025, 25% of public school students will be ELLs (NEA, 2018). In one teacher education program in the Southeastern U.S., all students earning teacher certification must complete a course in second language methodology. This study seeks to understand…