Polarization in the United States and controversy over the teaching of content some deem "divisive" has resulted in the enactment of restrictive legislation in many states. Such constraints contribute to a fraught environment in schools today and significantly impact the work of teaching. Utilizing frameworks of "ambitious…

The study explores the integration of technology in teaching mathematics, providing current secondary mathematics teachers with effective practices and guiding future mathematics teachers toward a technology-pedagogical approach. In this study, I focused on effective teaching practices with technology in teaching mathematics to current secondary…

Recent studies on student engagement suggest that students become decreasingly engaged as they proceed through their secondary-level school experience (Gallup Inc, 2015; Hodges, 2018; Washor & Mojkowski, 2014; Yazzie-Mintz, 2007). The consequences of low student engagement or disengagement in schools can be significant, leading to poor…

Since the 1960s, there has been an effort among the mathematical education community to shift instructional practices from a focus on arithmetic, memorizing rules, and completing practice worksheets to instructional practices that allow students to see mathematics as content that requires thinking and pattern explorations. Many mathematics…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the impact that teacher teams, specifically building-level leadership teams and professional learning communities, can have on a school's safe and collaborative culture and effective teaching practices. Waves of school reform have made their way through legislation and schools and, as a result,…

The present study used an explanatory-sequential mixed-methods research design to investigate the culturally responsive teaching self-efficacy of secondary teachers during the emergency online learning of 2020. Participants were all teachers in a small urban mid-Atlantic school district. Phase 1 involved the collection of primarily quantitative…

There had been prolonged poor performance of Grade 11 students in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate mathematics examinations. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore secondary mathematics teachers' perceptions of the implementation of e-learning to teach mathematics and the support they receive to implement…

Educational effectiveness research examines factors relating to student background, school-level decisions, and teacher-level methods. Researchers have created extensive lists of educational effectiveness factors across student, school, and teacher domains. While student achievement is the primary measurable factor of educational effectiveness, it…

Students with learning disabilities at the secondary level struggle with failure and a diminished emotional capacity to learn. Research suggests that the cumulative effects from the discrepancy model of identification, Learned Helplessness, and learning anxiety may explain the long-standing gap between students with disabilities and their…

Systemic changes to curriculum are an inevitable part of education; however, understanding how teachers and administrators perceive their responsibilities in implementing district-mandated changes to curriculum is unclear. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to determine teachers' and administrators' perceptions related to their…

Online professional learning in education is revered by some and strongly avoided by others. Despite these polarized feelings, virtual trainings are quickly becoming the norm at least as an option for educators. Developers and facilitators of professional learning can increase the chances of teacher learning by designing online learning…

This dissertation is presented in a journal-ready format and aims to inform professional development designed to support blended teaching. The first is a qualitative study of the practices of secondary educators currently using blended teaching strategies. Thematic analysis of the interviews identified activities teachers use in the online space…

This modified e-Delphi study sought to gain consensus from a group of K-12 educational professionals on the intersection between essential components of connectivism, the next-generation digital learning environment, and the substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition model. Twelve participants, each having a minimum of five years…

This dissertation examines compassion fatigue (CF), secondary traumatic stress (STS), and burnout (BO) among Pennsylvania public school teachers and their intentions to leave the profession. It also explores the potential roles of compassion satisfaction (CS) and resilience while considering demographic and school characteristics. Survey data from…

Distance learning has been steadily growing in popularity over the past 20 years. The majority of distance learning has taken primarily taken place at the collegiate level. Although distance learning has been used minimally at the K-12 level, the pandemic in the spring of 2020 put it at the forefront of all levels of education. Now that education…