The problem that was addressed in this study is the high rate of teacher attrition at a K--8 Title I school in Arizona. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of the teachers who have chosen to remain at this school rather than leave. The theoretical framework of the study was based on Herzog's motivational…

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine if, or to what extent, a correlation existed between teachers' collaboration and the intrinsic, extrinsic, and general job satisfaction of K-12 teachers in the Southwestern United States. The sample of this studied consisted of 113 K-12 public school teachers, in Arizona, that…

The United States currently faces a teacher shortage in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). This research study focused on Arizona's STEM teacher shortage, aiming to gain a better understanding of the issue from the perspective of STEM teachers. The study explored job satisfaction and retention intention and identified strategies to…

The purpose of this case study was to determine if there is an increase in third through eighth grade teacher job satisfaction and self-efficacy following participation in the informal science education STEM Science Teacher Residency (STaR) program held at a science center. Through this study, cohorts of third-eighth grade educators in Arizona's…

This study explored what K-12 teachers believe are the most important skills and attitudes of an effective principal and how these attributes contribute to their job satisfaction. It then examined whether these valued attributes evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic. A case study methodology was utilized to investigate the perceptions of 12…

In this three-article dissertation, I explore three aspects of the Next Education Workforce initiative (NEW), an education reform effort hailing from Arizona State University's Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. Through the initiative, NEW seeks to change schools and schooling, breaking down the physical and metaphorical walls of the predominant…

Schools across America are losing teachers at an alarming rate. Changing workforce demographics forecasted some level of loss decades ago. More recently, however, it has been noted declines are now reaching a crisis level across parts of the United States for a variety of reasons. Today the prevailing professional literature addressing public…

Quality teaching is essential to providing children with the knowledge and skills necessary for a high quality of life. It's essential to the economy, as well. Business thrives when it has ready access to an educated workforce, allowing Arizona to compete for the best industries and companies. Quality teaching helps build the society in which we…

In public schools, the principal's role is of paramount importance in influencing teachers to excel and to keep their job satisfaction high. The self-efficacy of leaders is an important characteristic of leadership, but this issue has not been extensively explored in school principals. Using internet-based questionnaires, this study obtained…

This dissertation presents the findings of an on-line survey completed by 222 FYC (First Year Composition) instructors at universities and community colleges across the United States along with supplemental information derived from multiple open-ended interviews with seven FYC instructors in Arizona. Both survey and interview questions were…

This correlational designed study allowed the researcher to examine the relationship between Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) and communication satisfaction on elementary school campuses in one suburban school district in Arizona. Furthermore, this study examined whether differences exists between the level of OCB and communication…

This article focuses on the influence that Arizona's mandated Structured English Immersion endorsement policy has on preservice teachers' beliefs and attitudes toward English language learners. By utilizing both quantitative and qualitative methods of inquiry, our preliminary analysis showed "the campfire effect," which is to say that…

Foreign language (FL) teachers and students may have very similar or disparate notions of effective teaching, and the intersection of the two sets of beliefs has ramifications for language learning and the effectiveness of instruction. Horwitz (1990), Kern (1995), and Schulz (1996) have argued that mismatches between FL students' and teachers'…

The 4X4 block schedule was implemented in a rural high school in southern Arizona in 1997. Teacher and student surveys show that after the change, teachers were more satisfied with the teaching and learning environment, their relationship with students, and systemic supports, and students were more satisfied with school. Benefits, problems, and…

A study used two different rankings (a national study of occupational prestige and a study by the Arizona Department of Education [ADE]) of occupations to identify the extent that occupational prejudice affects the opinions that individuals have about job opportunity. Two lists of 20 occupations were prepared and given to 54 persons, 22 of them…