Overlapping and entangled crises that comprise and propel society require near constant (re)orientation in order to understand, explain, and address the workings of a multiplicitous world. For those invested in education, this means confronting complexity through the prism of teaching and learning. Educational scholars across fields and…

This study aimed to investigate middle school social studies teachers' perceptions of professional development and its relation to the teacher's knowledge of the subject, teaching methods, and improving student outcomes. The primary questions addressed in this study focused on middle school social studies teachers perceptions of current…

This dissertation is about social studies teachers' perceptions of professional and personal preparedness to facilitate social justice discussions. Due to a focus on high-stakes standardized testing in Math and English Language Arts (ELA), there has been a lack of emphasis on the content of social studies. This phenomenological study explores the…

The study explores how middle schools in Bergen County, New Jersey adapted their social studies curricula to include representation of LGBTQ persons, outlined by Chapter 35 of Title 18A:"35-4.35," in their curriculum, and investigated examples of lessons said to include examples of the mandate. This study sought to understand the impact…

This phenomenological dissertation explores the lived experiences of secondary social studies educators situated in the Appalachian region. Hermeneutic phenomenology was used as a philosophical and methodological approach to gather insights into this phenomenon. Interviews were conducted with three educators to capture their experiences from their…

In the United States, elementary social studies instruction has significantly declined in recent decades, yet it holds valuable potential in allowing for spaces where the cultures and identities of our students can be centered and celebrated. Our educational systems are too often grounded in hegemonic ways of doing that are based around a dominant…

The purpose of the present study was to examine the impact of the Self-Regulatory Instructional Planning Approach (SR-IPA) on the lesson planning and self-regulatory development of a group of six preservice secondary social studies teachers (PSSST). Even though the benefits of self-regulated learning and inquiry-based instruction are well…

Social studies classrooms are often lauded as ideal spaces where productive conversations centered around race/ism can, and should occur. Unfortunately, social studies classrooms have yet to live up to this reality as traditional social studies instruction--a type of standards-based instruction characterized by lectures, rote memorization, and…

Education reform has been at the forefront of educational research for decades, depicted by government initiatives and policy, research, and pedagogical changes and recommendations. When considering elements of educational change, policy, best practices, and individual merit and retention have also been heavily in the spotlight, such as "A…

More than 50% of fourth graders in the United States are reading below a proficient level, with more than 75% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch scoring lower than the U.S. average reading score. A framework of background knowledge is essential for vocabulary acquisition so the reader can comprehend the meaning of a text.…

This dissertation makes a significant contribution to the literature for several reasons. In paper one, I argue that learning a set of useful concrete practices, in addition to CRP mindsets, can help White scholars and educators prepare to lead diverse classrooms, build culturally relevant curricula, and form strong relationships with students…

Harmful oversights remain in elementary social studies curricula which overlook or misrepresent minoritized communities. This dissertation explores designs for teacher education which address these oversights through community collaborations. This multi-manuscript dissertation is an empirical-conceptual inquiry design (Cochran-Smith & Lytle,…

This research study focuses on providing professional development for teachers using virtual reality in secondary social studies classrooms. Literature surrounding virtual reality for education focuses on the effects of virtual reality on student motivation and engagement. However, there are no current studies available to help instructional…

This dissertation explores the use of Podcasts and Podcasting in secondary social studies classrooms through via narrative inquiry. This study aims to understand how educators use these technologies in their classrooms to facilitate student learning by focusing two specific domains of the TPACK model by Kohler and Mishra (2009): Technological…

Intrinsic motivation can be more influential for student's long-term learning because it can give students the internal drive to learn and complete a task without an outside influence. This study used a qualitative exploratory case study method and design. The problem addressed by this research study was that 9th and 10th grade social studies…