School violence is a complex cultural problem that affects most schools. This study used a participatory action research model involving mapmaking, photography and intercultural grouping to understand how one school's physical environment and social geography contributed to interethnic tensions on campus. The study found that mapmaking allowed…

Students who are traditionally overlooked in academic settings (e.g. poor, Black, Hispanic American, Latino/Latina) are not likely to have educational experiences that reflect equity in access to excellence in education. These students regularly encounter challenges that reflect a poor educational fit and their key needs are often overlooked in…

The purpose of this eleventh grade Advanced Placement (AP) program study was to determine factors associated with AP placement and subsequent student performance. This research was considered to be a mixed methods case study with elements of arrested action research. One hundred and twenty-four students, four guidance counselors, three AP…

In this action research study, eight teachers at an elementary school were trained in the use of Twitter to support the development of a personal learning network as a strategy to address non-differentiated professional development at the school. The main research question for this study was: In what ways, if any, can the use of a…

Drug use and abuse presents a significant problem to individuals, families, and law enforcement in communities across the United States. Methamphetamine is a particular concern in one rural eastern Missouri county. Much work being done in this county by multiple agencies to decrease methamphetamine production and use. Little attention, however,…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of TSI in teaching reading comprehension to a diverse group of second graders. The diversity included various levels of readiness in reading, language status such as English learners and native speakers of English, and various levels of participation by children in a whole-class setting.…

The purpose of this action research project was to investigate the effects of family involvement training on the success of ELL students, as demonstrated by their reading scores, attendance, and behavior. Additionally, the effects of family involvement training on parents' feelings of self-efficacy were measured. Volunteering families of…

The author served as facilitator of a group of graphic design college students at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). These students embarked on a collaborative, 24-hour+, work-around-the-clock, creative blitz and used design thinking to serve the needs of Dalewood Middle School in Chattanooga. Students collaborated with industry…

The purpose of this qualitative action research study was to explore how critical pedagogy can foster writing competency and critical consciousness among adult basic writing students in a community college writing classroom. To this end, critical pedagogy and related critical discourses were used to theoretically frame this study. These theories…

This dissertation was designed to examine the effects of a site-based teacher mentoring program on teacher confidence and effectiveness in an elementary school in Florida. Based on preliminary data, there was a need for system organizational change to improve teacher confidence and performance with the district's Document Based Question (DBQ)…

The problem addressed in this study was that leaders at an urban elementary school had not examined the implementation of culturally proficient practices, nor the challenges, barriers, or support needed for implementation. The purpose of the study was to inform instructional and leadership practices involving culturally proficient instruction.…

The purpose of this study was to investigate participating teachers' (PTs) perceptions on the effectiveness of collaborating with a peer for purposes of professional development. As the primary researcher, I wanted to investigate how my colleagues (PTs) perceived peer-to-peer collaboration as a method of professional development. As well, I wanted…

This dissertation is an action research study examining the use of technology to encourage critical thinking and digital literacy in a community college history class. The students are responsible for researching course material and teaching the class. They then use a wiki to contribute to and edit an interactive, online textbook that has been…

During the 2010-11 school-year at Scootney Springs Elementary, an action research project with 8 teachers was initiated to create a culture of distributed leadership in the school building. Throughout phase 1 of the study, we collected data from interviews, surveys, checklists, meeting minutes, observations, and documented discussions with the…

The purpose of this participatory action research study was to answer the following research question: How does online instructional design impact students' virtual teamwork performance? Through the lens of social constructivism, a qualitative, in-depth multi-case study design was utilized to conduct document analyses, observations, and student…