In this mixed-methods explanatory sequential design study, we examined the self-efficacy of elementary-grade reading literacy teachers in two urban public-school districts in Alabama. In Phase I, 312 elementary classroom teachers (20.0% response rate) completed the "Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale" (Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy,…

Recently, the Interactive-Constructive-Active-Passive (ICAP) framework has been gaining increasing prominence in cognitive and learning sciences. The ICAP theory asserts that students learn more deeply when they are cognitively engaged in generative and collaborative learning. Indeed, prior studies have established the value of the ICAP framework…

Greek life is an activity that is part of student involvement on a college or university campus. Student involvement allows students to increase their knowledge outside of the classroom through interaction with their peers and faculty, which will hopefully lead to graduation. The creation of Greek life engaged students in activities outside of the…

Virtual instruction at the K-12 level is on the rise, yet we know very little about the ways students engage in different types of virtual instruction. The goals of this study were to: (1) describe high school students' engagement in virtual science courses in terms of behavioral, affective, cognitive-value, and cognitive-self regulatory…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological research study was to investigate the factors that influence mathematical instruction of upper elementary teachers in school districts within Southern California. More specifically, this research study examined teaching strategies of upper elementary teachers' experiences and perceptions regarding…

This author conducted a comprehensive literature review that examined the associations of mindfulness, resilience, academic indicators, and test anxiety in school-aged pupils from the perspective of a beginning school psychologist. This comprehensive literature review aimed to investigate how mindfulness, resilience, academic indicators and…

Science museums conduct presentations for their audiences to attract and educate visitors, yet research on presentations has primarily concentrated on whether individual presentations were effective. This mixed-methods, quasi-experimental study looks at how the presenter's mental and physical engagements within a presentation affects audience…

Online education is fast growing due to its accessibility and scalability, but engineering has fallen behind other fields in adopting and researching the online educational format. Student course-level attrition is a significant issue in online courses. The goal of this dissertation is to better understand the factors that impact course level…

The purpose of this case study was to examine how the K-5 elementary alternative program All Students Can Thrive (ASCT) used student-centered learning practices to influence the whole child. There is a lack of research on K-5 elementary alternative programs, such as ASCT, and specifically those that integrate student-centered learning practices to…

Most school districts across the country continue to research how to help their students become better prepared to enter the workforce and higher education. As a result, the extent to which dynamic teaching techniques affect the success of classroom-taught material currently is not known. Much of the current literature reveals studies on teaching…

This research study sought to better understand what motivates and influences young alumni to engage with their alma mater. For many development and alumni relations departments, alumni have become a source of private funding to assist in the decreased burden of tuition and the cost of attending college. Frequently, alumni who are reached out to…

There is immense pressure on school leaders as they grapple with their responsibilities to show constant evidence of school improvement. School improvement describes a process that identifies school changes needed to improve student outcomes and shows how and when the level of student outcomes will be made. There are essential considerations when…

The United States lags behind other countries in science education outcomes, even though STEM fields contribute to our economic growth and output. The challenge of improving science education and reducing achievement disparities has been especially pervasive in diverse urban centers such as New York City. In that vein, New York City has embarked…

Tier 2 behavioral interventions support the development and reinforcement of prosocial behaviors for at-risk students. While popular Tier 2 programs, like check-in check-out (CICO), increase positive adult attention and behavioral feedback, very few include components explicitly aimed at addressing escape-maintained problem behavior. Breaks are…

Games and learning have many overlapping characteristics, which has led to the popular trend of using games as educational tools. However, game-based learning (GBL) has not been sufficiently evaluated through the lens of individual learner differences. The theoretical frameworks of goal achievement orientation and self-determination theory (SDT)…