The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine if and to what extent a relationship existed between student agentic engagement and perceived instructor social engagement with students and student self-reported percentage grades. This research examines three theoretical foundations: self-determination theory, social…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of phenomena-based inquiry on students' engagement levels in my science classroom. This action research study took place in the fall of 2021 with six student participants. Participants were enrolled in an 8th grade honors science course in a middle school in South Carolina. The research was…

Numerous students across the United States are observed as being disengaged and bored in several of their learning experiences. Similarly, innumerable students also self-report being bored and disengaged. Over 40% of South Carolina (SC) students in Grades 3-8 report being compliant, disengaged, or mixed in all three domains (behaviorally,…

This case study examined four impoverished middle schools in South Carolina to identify the factors prevalent in successfully performing impoverished middle schools which set them apart from underperforming impoverished middle schools. The study's objective was to provide principals working in similar (impoverished) settings an understanding of…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of audio books on students' reading experiences in a public elementary school in rural upstate South Carolina. This study was conducted to address the problem of practice reported by teachers as low motivation and engagement during independent reading in classrooms that contributed to…

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a self-assessment rubric on a students' ability to self-monitor and self-regulate engaged reading behaviors. The research attempts to answer the following question: What impact does self-assessment have on the engagement of second-grade students during Independent Reading? Using an action…

At Southern College (pseudonym), a liberal arts college in South Carolina, students were enrolled in an introductory civic engagement course. The purpose of this action research study was to examine how an introductory civic engagement course influenced students' perspectives on civic engagement. Additionally, the research focused on how a civic…

This research presents a new, socially adaptive robot tutor, Ms. An ("M"eeting "S"tudents' "A"cademic "N"eeds). The goal of this research was to use a decision tree model to develop a socially adaptive robot tutor that predicted and responded to student emotion and performance to actively engage students in…

With the student dropout rate being on the rise, it is imperative that corrective measures be taken to encourage graduation among high school seniors This is a major concern in education today, because truancy and dropping out of school by students when they turn the legal drop out age of seventeen have caused the decline in graduations across the…

The students at 2 middle schools in County SD, NHMS and WMS are not scoring on or above grade level on the information text portion of the English Language Arts (ELA) standardized SC Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (SCPASS) test given annually in South Carolina. The teachers developed and implemented art-based anchor charts to help close…

This research study analyzed the impact of teacher self-efficacy and student engagement on eleventh-grade South Carolina U.S. History and Constitution end-of-course state exam scores. Research questions centered on analyzing the relationships between the variables of teacher efficacy, student engagement, and student achievement as measured by the…

This action research study examines what happened when exemplary practices found in low-income rural schools in South Carolina, and critical and culturally responsive theories became the lens that pre-service teachers studied literacy practices in Reading Pedagogy and Children's Literature classes. To see how pre-service teachers acted on these…

This qualitative case study examined causes of low graduation rates for young adults. The purpose of this study was to evaluate students participating in an after-school program and reflect on their perceptions of that program a year after they graduated. The theoretical framework for this study reflected upon an open social system. The research…

The purpose of this study was to explore the role of Student Support Services (SSS) in encouraging student involvement and its impact on student perceptions and academic experiences in three technical colleges in upstate South Carolina. By examining Alexander Astin's theory of student involvement in the services provided by the program, a better…

The present study contributes to the limited body of research pertaining to secondary teacher efficacy and its relationship to career persistence, gender, ethnicity, contract status, and years of teaching. In addition, this study examines the concepts of student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom management as subscales used to…