This study examined teachers' perceptions regarding a pay-for-performance model in one large urban Texas school district, implementing pay-for-performance. The district model investigated has been implemented for nine years, replacing the traditional salary schedule with an entirely performance-based system. For the quantitative portion of this…

National teacher shortages have received attention in the last few years, and researchers have projected turnover rates will grow in the upcoming years. As a result, districts and administrators were challenged to hire highly qualified teachers. There needed to be more educational research regarding why teachers remained in urban Title I schools.…

This study explored strategies and practices that seek to increase the retention of provisional special education teachers (PSETs). Urban school divisions have challenges with hiring and/or retaining high-quality special education teachers (SETs). The cyclical practice of hiring and losing PSETs creates an equity imbalance as marginalized school…

Due to the low academic performance of Liberian students, in 2013, the president of Liberia declared that the education sector needed to be overhauled. Consequently, the education minister launched a nationwide professional development (PD) program. Despite the PD initiatives, academic performance in an urban school district (USD, a pseudonym) has…

This dissertation investigates the effectiveness of induction programs from the perspectives of new teachers in urban and suburban school districts. The research uses a phenomenological qualitative research design. The theoretical frameworks for this research are the Motivation Theory and Self-Efficacy Theory. There are eight participants, four…

Students are entering the classroom with more technological knowledge than ever before, and to provide enriching learning opportunities, teachers need to be ready to use that background. Elementary mathematics teachers are often provided with technology to use with their mathematics curriculum. However, they do not always receive any guidance or…

Turnaround schools represent a strategy for swiftly revitalizing underperforming educational institutions. This study examined how teachers perceived the role of teacher leadership within one urban turnaround high school. The study addressed the following research questions: 1. How do teachers within an urban turnaround high school conceptualize…

Teachers are responsible for providing opportunities to use learning strategies in the classroom. The students' engagement shows an observable reflection of the educator's teaching practice. This qualitative case study highlights teachers' perceptions of student engagement in the urban elementary classroom. The research questions asked about…

The purpose of this quantitative, predictive correlational study was to determine if and to what extent teacher perception of principal charismatic leadership characteristics, both collectively and individually, predicted teacher job satisfaction in a large urban school district in the Southwestern United States. Based on Herzberg's Two-Factor…

The purpose of this study is to assess the mental health consequences of teaching trauma-exposed students in alternative settings. As school district administrators may provide general or common mental health services for teachers, special attention needs to be given and additional programs and supports provided for teachers who teach…

The problem addressed in this study was the need for more professional and competent teachers to effectively implement a schoolwide SEL curriculum. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to examine teachers' perceptions, understandings, and experiences concerning their level of professional competence in implementing a…

The purpose of the study was to investigate the opportunities for student voice of students with disabilities in "Leader in Me" and Non-"Leader in Me" schools. Utilizing a qualitative interpretive approach, I interviewed twelve participants in an urban school district in Tennessee regarding the use of student voice in the…

High teacher turnover and a pervasive teacher shortage has the education industry investigating new ways to attract and retain talent. Texas, specifically, has invested in compensating teachers for performance in hopes of retaining top teachers in the classroom through the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA), which was established and authorized by…

With the recent increase in the number of available options for families to consider when selecting a school, diverse publicly funded public schools are now competing for both students and funding. This study intended to contribute to the available research on the changes at inner-city schools during increased school choice options. The purpose of…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the lived experiences of practicing teachers, including their origins of mindset related to urban education, and to explore how their preparation for teaching in urban schools enabled them to implement culturally responsive pedagogy in their classrooms. There is ample…