Despite the widely recognized effectiveness of place-based education (PBE) by researchers in the science education community, there is a lack of resources and curriculum appropriate for the environment of urban schools. Unequal access to quality science curriculum materials is an ongoing issue facing urban schools in the United States. This basic…

This qualitative study focused on the insights of the participants in order to provide a more significant understanding of how they view their skills and abilities when providing mental health supports as a novice school counselor. A generic qualitative approach was used to answer the following research question, "What are the self-efficacy…

The purpose of this study was to gather feedback from Black female students who are navigating their way through the secondary STEM pathway. The study, modeled on the "Social Cognitive Career Theory" (Lent and Brown, 2006, 2008; Lent et al. 1994, 2000) was used to explore factors that influenced the interest and persistence of Black…

The causes of teacher attrition are varied and complex. In urban environments, these challenges are more pronounced. In particular, special education teachers in urban environments seem to leave the field disproportionately compared to their general education counterparts. Some estimates state that as many as 40% of new special education teachers…

The retention of Black teachers in the teaching profession remains challenging due to historical events and policies, low salaries, lack of support from administrators, and other school factors. This action research study aimed to investigate, develop, and implement a retention support program for Black teachers employed in their first-fifth year…

This study is focused on exploring decision-making and leadership in two urban principalships. The study is focused on reflections from a former principalship in Baltimore City and the influences from the former experience that influence leadership and decision-making in the present context within a District of Columbia Public School. In his work…

The value of both Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and efforts to embrace the idea that teachers should be held accountable for students' test scores have been debated among practitioners, policy makers, and the public for many years, but increasingly since 2010. The Common Core State Standards was implemented in 2009 to provide a basis for new…

This multi-case study seeks to understand the experiences of New York City and Washington, DC public charter school principals who have experienced leadership coaching, a component of leadership development, beyond their novice years. The research questions framing this study address how experienced public charter school principals describe the…

Place-based environmental education provides myriad physical, cognitive, social, and emotional benefits. In this study, 13 environmental educators illuminated how policy, partnerships and place shaped environmental education in pre-K-12 schools in Washington, DC. I recruited participants from the local government, nongovernmental organizations,…

Leadership is a key component of all school environments, as it is vital to continuous learning, organizational growth, and individual development. School leaders are the cornerstones of good schools and aim to establish a setting that works toward improving the self-efficacy of all teachers. In the past decade, one of the most persistent problems…

Urban schools are struggling to hire and retain effective literacy teachers. Alternative certification programs throughout the country seek to bridge the achievement gap and to bring qualified teachers to underserved classrooms. This dissertation explores the transformative inquiry of developing "resident" teachers in their journey as…

The purpose of the present study was to develop and validate the College-Going Self Efficacy Scale for High School Students (CSHS). The CSHS is a measure of self-efficacy in completing college-going tasks (i.e. acquiring knowledge of oneself, acquiring knowledge about colleges, exploring colleges, completing college application tasks, acquiring…

The purpose of the qualitative collective case study is to identify the weaknesses in the methods used to recruit highly qualified African American preservice teachers in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. The data collection process consisted of one-on-one, open-ended interview questions with 10 highly qualified African American public school…