Turnaround schools represent a strategy for swiftly revitalizing underperforming educational institutions. This study examined how teachers perceived the role of teacher leadership within one urban turnaround high school. The study addressed the following research questions: 1. How do teachers within an urban turnaround high school conceptualize…

With the recent increase in the number of available options for families to consider when selecting a school, diverse publicly funded public schools are now competing for both students and funding. This study intended to contribute to the available research on the changes at inner-city schools during increased school choice options. The purpose of…

Schools in the United States need to be prepared for a possible school shooting. However, the types of planning and security measures differ across states and there is not a national policy center or central authority that standardize the quality and feasibility of the safety and security plans. Little research exists on teachers' perceptions of…

This study addressed teachers' perceptions of barriers faced by inner-city African American high school female students in STEM courses. This qualitative descriptive study examined STEM teachers' perceptions of barriers inner-city African American female students encounter when enrolled in STEM courses. The research questions addressed STEM…

This dissertation examines the connection between the English Language Arts Professional Learning Community, data analysis, and research-based instructional strategies to improve students reading levels, as measured by the Pennsylvania Literature Keystone Exam at an Urban High School. It is a mixed-method study. Data were collected from 9th -12th…

Survey data from students in Grades 9-12 at L High School (a pseudonym) in an urban district in the southeastern United States suggested that students lack social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies. Efforts to address SEL at the study site have been ineffective. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore secondary teachers'…

Agentic engagement refers to students' proactive and constructive contribution to the flow of instruction. The literature on student agentic engagement is missing the voices and perspectives of teachers. Given that the field knows little about what agentic engagement means to teachers, the goal of this study was to describe agentic engagement from…

Inquiry and disciplinary literacy are approaches in history and social science education that center students as active inquirers who investigate in multiple sources and come to their own conclusions regarding relevant questions and complex issues. These approaches have been gaining momentum in research and practice internationally, but have not…

This mixed-methods study was conducted at a single urban high school using the Funds of Knowledge Framework. The goal was to understand the feelings of teachers of elective courses regarding instructing multilingual learners in their classroom. The six departments included in this study were art, physical education, music, technology, business,…

This study explored the relationship between teachers' extrinsic and intrinsic factors that influence high school content teachers' motivation to address multilinguistic learners' (MLs) needs in a large urban school district. A sample size of 38 teachers completed a survey to correlate professional development (as examined through second language…

Technology integration has become increasingly important in high school education in recent years. As technology becomes more prevalent in society, it is essential that high school students can use technology in their everyday lives. Technology integration can help high school students become more independent learners and help them better…

The COVID-19 pandemic created a huge demand in using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in teaching and learning. Teachers are believed to be a main influencer in a student's learning, so it is important to have a deep insight of teachers' perceptions of ICT integration in teaching and the problems they have been facing in ICT…

A systematically disproportionate amount of Black and Brown students have struggled in their high school (HS) math courses, particularly with inclusion, identity, and academic success. This study came from a humbling journey of what it meant for a math educator to shift toward student-centered pedagogies within a deficit-oriented system of…

In an urban school district in a western state, the problem addressed through this study was that, despite available professional development (PD) training and resources, educators at a high school were not effectively implementing the strategies of the Campus 2 Community (C2C) initiative, which is designed to assist students with disabilities…

Inner city high school teachers in the Midwest United States lack expertise in integrating technology into their curriculum. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the experiences of inner city high school teachers in using technology-enhanced instruction to teach 21st-century skills in a public comprehensive high school in the…