The purpose of the study was to discover and give voice to the perceptions of Black and Latino adolescent males regarding their school attitudes (attitudes toward school, attitudes towards teachers, motivation/self-regulation, goal valuation, and academic self-perception) and their level of hope (agency and pathways) for the future. This mixed…

As the education system turns its attention to climate, bullying, and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) issues in the classroom, there is a focus on developing our student population abilities to be more accepting and tolerant of diversity. This study explored how ten students, aged 16-17, interacted with virtual literacy events on…

Students' motivational and affective responses to mathematics are related to their academic performance. This mixed methods study involved survey results from 394 middle and high school high ability students. Data revealed that students believed success was possible, and that the usefulness and enjoyment of mathematics precipitated high…

This qualitative case study examined participants' perceptions of research-based goal setting in the writing process. Specifically, the five participants learned how to generate and then used implementation intentions to set goals and state how they would reach those goals in a simulated classroom setting. In addition, this study examined how…

This study responds to a need for research in a fast-growing and significant area of study, that of exploring, understanding, and documenting the numerous ways that multiply marginalized LGBTQ youth between the ages of 14 and 17 use social media. The primary research question examined whether social media provide safe spaces for multiply…

This qualitative study focused on the use of multiliteracies (reading, writing, viewing, visually representing, talking, and listening) by four low-income African American LBT (lesbian, bisexual, transgender) adolescents in an out-of-school setting. Data collection methods over a three-month period included transcribed field notes, interviews,…

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the impact of an equine-facilitated authentic leadership development program on at-risk youth. Participants were asked to participate in two focus groups and a 3-day equine-facilitated authentic leadership development program based on Bill George's Model of Authentic Leadership. Participants were…

This dissertation explores the website usage of adolescent sexual minorities, examining notions of information seeking and sexual identity development. Sexual information seeking is an important element within human information behavior and is uniquely problematic for young sexual minorities. Utilizing a contemporary gay teen website, this…

Motivation is a fundamental educational challenge for adolescents in the United States, and particularly for immigrant youth. The motivation to achieve, especially in mathematics, declines during adolescence. Most of what is known about motivation is based on studies of predominately middle-class White students; yet the influx of immigrants over…

Educational aspiration is one of the most important factors influencing an individual's educational attainment. Although students' aspirations are changeable and the stability of their aspirations is important for their goal reaching, previous studies are rather limited in their ability to capture aspiration changes due to their incomplete…