Positive student behavior is necessary, not only for a positive school culture, but for learning to take place, as students cannot learn in an environment where they do not feel safe, physically and/or emotionally, just as teachers cannot teach to the best of their ability. This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of…

In 2020, the world was forced to adjust to a new normal with the global pandemic. Every nation had to make difficult decisions to protect citizens and save their economy. Leaders of all institutions had to strategize quickly for an unknown future. Many institutions suffered, including education. Social-emotional learning addresses students'…

The COVID-19 pandemic, a significant disruptor of traditional educational environments, has led to a notable shift in parental involvement in children's education, particularly in middle schools. This study, therefore, delves into the dynamics of parental engagement during remote learning, focusing on the challenges parents faced and the…

This study aimed to explore if there was a significant difference in student performance in ELA and Math in middle school grades six through eight, pre- and post-COVID-19. This study aimed to identify student performance deficiencies in grades six through eight relating to gender, socioeconomic status, and race. The significance of this study is…

This study examined differences in middle school English Language Arts (ELA) proficiency between pre-pandemic (2019) and post-pandemic (2022) assessments to understand the COVID-19 impact on learning, particularly among vulnerable groups. Grounded in adaptive leadership theory, the research focused on free and reduced-price lunch (FRL) and English…

Reader identity has long been associated with reading success and is based on social interactions happening in conjunction with reading tasks. Social feedback, observational comparison, and progress are three of the sources of self-perceptions that inform reader identity. During the COVID pandemic, schools employed various safety protocols,…

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-2021 was a life altering phenomenon for educators across the United States. Schools and teachers had to transform their teaching practices practically overnight. Education in most schools across the country conducted distance learning in some capacity. A demographic group that was affected was economically…

The COVID-19 pandemic affected schools worldwide. When schools shut down, teachers and students had no choice but to go to remote learning. A school in a rural setting participated in blended learning where students did a combination of asynchronous and synchronous learning. The subject of this study was two sixth grade groups of students with the…

The study examined how school closures and the rapid transition to online learning may have impacted student performance. In March 2020, a global pandemic was declared in response to the quick spread of the COVID-19 virus. The impact of this global pandemic was felt across all areas of daily routines. Businesses closed, and many workers found…

This study addressed teacher perspectives of behavior management in the post-virtual learning classroom. The problem that was addressed was the decline of middle school student classroom behavior compared to the pre-pandemic classroom, which is crucial for educators due to its influence on the quality of teaching and learning. The purpose of this…

During the 2020 pandemic, global governments imposed COVID-19 restrictions. Among the restrictions were K-12 school closures, which caused an abrupt change from in-person to virtual learning. These circumstances damaged students' mental health even after constraints were lifted. The problem was the socio-emotional learning (SEL) deficiency…

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe effective constructivism teaching strategies and approaches for reducing the achievement gap between minority and non-minority students in a middle school gifted program at Stoneybrook Middle School in the Downey-Raine School System through an examination of the lived…

The COVID-19 shutdown in the spring of 2020 was a historic and unprecedented event creating a ripple effect that will affect our world for years to come. Scholars and researchers have already studied the effects of the shutdown on economics, health care, education, and more. We now have information about how student learning and progress were…

The number of students struggling with chronic absenteeism, while on the rise prior to COVID-19, appears to have increased dramatically since the onset of the pandemic. This dissertation explores the challenges faced in a suburban middle school in Western New York throughout and following the COVID-19 shutdown. Data from the district's student…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceptions of high school teachers and Parents of high school and middle school perceptions of homework during emergency remote learning. The major findings suggest several things. Parents viewed themselves as teachers during ERL. Parents also struggled to assist their children with homework…