With university mission statements focused on preparing emerging adult students for globally inclusive professional careers, moral and leadership development has become a central focus of many colleges and universities (Bass, 1991; Binghamton University, 2016; Zimmerman-Oster & Burkhardt, 1999). Colleges and universities utilize interactions…

The purpose of this action research was to address the issue of first-grade students being unengaged and unmotivated to read independently for the recommended 20-minute block of time in class. Students were also not electing to read independently during any free time they had in class. This research was designed to investigate how implementing a…

Given recent calls for advancing valid instrumentation in the field of cyberaggression, the present study evaluated construct validity and measurement invariance for the Cyberbullying Experiences Survey (CES) in a high school and college student sample. A series of confirmatory factor analyses (CFA), reliability analyses, and a nomological net…

Studies between parental divorce and children's educational attainment have been extensively observed in family research. However, few studies have attempted to examine the negative relationship of those associations with graduate level attainment. This study suggests that parental divorce is associated with diminished overall mental health (i.e.,…

Teacher evaluation systems are essential in tracking the quality and effectiveness of teachers and education systems. This dissertation examines the teacher evaluation system in Saudi Arabia through multiple perspectives, including research-based frameworks for teacher evaluation, norms and best practices from OECD countries, and established Saudi…

The purpose of this study was to review policies that affect English Learners in Texas public schools. Specifically, the relationship between ESL certification and teacher preparedness to teach English Learners was addressed. In this journal-ready dissertation, the first article contains a review of national and state policies that were designed…

This research inquiry is a narrative case study centered on uncovering or exploring the educational experiences of a local African immigrant high school student. This study's epistemological framework is centered on critical race theory, third space theory and the theory of hybrid or multiple identities. In addition to discussing relevant extant…

This study explores teacher perceptions of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) programs in the classroom, with a focus on teacher use, student equity of access, and student ability to use their devices as learning tools. While one-to-one laptop programs (students assigned identical school-owned laptop or tablet) has an extensive body of literature behind…

The purpose of this study is to examine the knowledge of special education law held by public and private school principals as the law pertains to providing the appropriate services to students with disabilities. Numerous studies have investigated public school principals' level of preparation, training, and role within in special education law.…

This study, conducted at California State University (CSU) in Southern California, focused on student engagement factors and academic performance of supplemental instruction (SI) students concurrently enrolled in a gateway mathematics course. The purpose of this quantitative correlational survey study was to investigate engagement factors employed…

The purpose of this study was to apply a social justice lens to arts attendance. I utilized the data from the 2012 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, a subsection of the Current Population Survey, to explore which variables influenced benchmark arts attendance. The research questions focused on three variable groups: demographics of…

In education, relative age effects (RAE) are present if a student's age when compared to that of his/her classmates has implications for scores on measures of achievement and performance. Researchers studying relative age have established significant, but inconsistent effects of being relatively older or younger in a grade level on measures of…

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions of elementary teachers who teach science as opposed to science teacher specialists regarding their efforts to help students use student-to-student discourse for improving science learning. A growing body of research confirms the importance of a) student-to-student discourse…

New technological advances are changing the landscape for both teaching and learning at a rapid pace. With an increase in the focus and allocation of funding on technology, schools need leaders who can facilitate the change process and support a digital learning culture for technology integration. As with any focus and initiative in education, the…

This dissertation was a quantitative, correlational study that examined the impact of the mentor component of a mentor-based induction program on three factors of new teacher development and support. The focus of this study was on beginning teachers participating in a district-supported mentoring program designed to support and acclimate teachers…