A watershed of knowledge about how very young children learn and develop has been revealed through the science of child development. The science of child development has demonstrated that immediately from birth, babies need supportive relationships and responsive environments in order to build strong brain circuits and lay the foundations for both…

Recent changes in teacher education program accreditation and in the accountability requirements for both the school district and the higher education partners precipitated the need for this study. Partners must understand the priorities, needs, and challenges facing collaborative partnerships called for in new accreditation standards. This study…

The purpose of this mixed-method study was to explore preservice teachers' beliefs and preconceptions about teaching for social justice in two pathways to teacher licensure: a traditional, university-based teacher preparation program and an urban teacher residency (UTR) program. Participants were enrolled in a post-baccalaureate education program…

The dissertation investigates how early-stage teachers choose to engage with Facebook Band Directors Group (FBDG) and their perceptions of FBDG as a form of teacher induction. This study will contribute to understanding of FBDG participation's consequences for instrumental teacher development and success. To realize this purpose, this study…

The purpose of this study was to identify the beliefs of preservice mathematics teachers with regards to the nature of mathematics, the learning of mathematics, and student achievement in mathematics. Past research indicates that teacher beliefs affect the way they teach as well as influence the students they instruct (Schoenfeld 1992; Thompson…

Teacher preparation programs have been under scrutiny for years. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) (2010) identified a gap between the preparation of teachers and the needs of schools and consequently formed a Blue Ribbon Panel to closely examine and generate recommendations on ways institutions could improve…

With the increased number of Hispanic English language learners (ELLs) enrolled in U.S schools, there has been a need to prepare elementary bilingual education teachers with knowledge of content and language objectives to better serve the language proficiency needs of Hispanic ELLs. The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives and…

There is a low enrollment of African American high school students in advanced mathematics. High school advanced mathematics are prerequisites to college calculus, one of the basic courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. African Americans earned only 7.6% of all bachelor's degrees in science, technology,…

This qualitative collective case study investigates how mainstream preservice secondary teachers in a university-based program learn to teach emergent bilinguals in their student teaching. Despite the facts that emergent bilinguals are the fastest growing but lowest performing student population in the U.S. and secondary emergent bilinguals are…

The demographics of school-aged students in the U.S continue to shift, with increasing numbers of students coming from historically underrepresented minority populations. Yet the percentage of white, female teachers remains disproportionately high. Using a framework revised from Garmon's (2004) study in which he found experiential factors;…

Over the last few decades, the United States of America (USA) has experienced an increase in the number of K-12 students due to increasing waves of immigrants and the high birth rate of immigrant families. Most of today's K-12 classes reflect a diversity of non-English speaking (NES) students whose English proficiency challenges their academic…

This research focused on the inquiry skill of questioning used as a teaching tool and how undergraduate preservice teacher-preparatory program. The instructional strategy of questioning took place in a classroom that used a mixed-reality simulation system. The research design was a mixed-methods procedure. The quantitative aspect included a…

Research suggests that the most efficient way of improving students' performance, in mathematics and science, is by recruiting and retaining highly qualified mathematics and science teachers. This study augments the body of research aimed at the recruitment of STEM majors to the field of education. The purpose of this study was to determine how a…

There is very little research on educator preparation programs' impact on teacher effectiveness and student learning (Darling-Hammond et al., 2005; Hagans & Powers, 2015; Korthagen, 2010; Okhremtchouk et al., 2009). This mixed methods study used a sequential explanatory approach (Creswell, 2009) to explore three research questions regarding…

Despite much progress, the gender gap in science still persists, and it is imperative that researchers continue addressing the problem at all levels, in the hope that the combined efforts of all investigations and initiatives will eventually work to close the gap. This qualitative exploratory case study, rooted in a social constructivist and…