A sense of belonging was linked to academic performance for all students, but it was especially crucial for socially disadvantaged groups like African Americans, who have endured educational discrimination (Boston & Warren, 2017). High school social environments may develop race and culture silos, affecting students' sense of belonging. This…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between teacher absenteeism and student achievement on the TNReady achievement test in the Southeast region. The three instruments used in this study were the TNReady achievement test results from 2018-2019, teacher absentee data provided by the local school district, and survey answers…

Education is an indispensable tool for total economic emancipation in Africa and elsewhere. Thus, it is a great cause for concern that teachers, who are the main drivers of education, are so strongly affected by HIV/AIDS. A large part of the profound impact of HIV/AIDS is felt in education and threatens the quality of education. The study reported…

Health and wellness are critical elements of teacher performance, attendance, retention, and ultimately, student achievement. While teacher wellness and stress is a nation-wide concern, data suggest that Oakland Unified School District has particularly high levels of teacher stress and a gap in wellness. While there is a growing understanding in…

In this paper, we offer a framework for "teacher monitoring routines"--a consequential yet understudied aspect of instruction when teachers oversee students' working together. Using a comparative case study design, we examine eight lessons of experienced secondary mathematics teachers, identifying common interactional routines that they…

Feedback is essential to enhance students' performance in an online learning environment, although this is influenced by how feedback is delivered. Feedback is an assessment of learning and promotes motivation to the learner. With the COVID-19 pandemic, teaching and learning rapidly shifted to online learning, and the importance of instructor…

This dissertation consists of three papers on education policy. In each paper, I use applied econometric methods and descriptive quantitative analysis to examine topics related to teacher labor markets and postsecondary attainment. The first paper leverages a rich student-teacher-day data set to study the relationship between daily teacher…

This paper examined ESL classroom climate during the first year of senior high school implementation of the K to 12 education policy in the country. Participants in the study were composed of 331 Grade 11 learners from the three tracks namely: 89 STEM (College of Sciences), 128 STEM (College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology), and 114…

This mixed model study analyzed the relationship between school culture and teachers' intentions to remain in their current position, teacher job satisfaction, and teacher absenteeism. Among PreK-12th educators, significant negative relationships existed between four subcomponents of school culture that are collaborative leadership, teacher…

Since the passing of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2001, schools receiving federal funding must administer a state standardized assessment annually and meet performance standards in selected grade levels and content areas. Although it seems reasonable to assume frequency of teacher absenteeism affects student achievement, research has not…

Casual relief teachers (CRTs) are a significant part of the Australian education system. This paper reports how executive staff, such as principals, deputy principals, and head teachers, support CRTs, and the perceptions that executive staff have about CRTs who work at their schools. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with a…

When Congress reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Schools Act in 2015, it intended to send a strong signal: any further encroachment of federal authority on the nation's K-12 schools needed to end. Compared to its more prescriptive predecessor in 2000, known as No Child Left Behind, the new law, dubbed "ESSA" for the Every Student…

This study explored relationships between special education personnel absences and demographic, policy, and practice variables to identify potential actions that could increase access to qualified personnel and continuity of instruction. Findings from 51 inclusion-oriented schools indicated that special educators and special education…

Education is critical to a democratic nation and in creating a strong economy (Verstegen, 2008). The importance of education is clear across society as an important tool in creating equal opportunities for all children regardless of race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. As school accountability increases, it is critical to determine what…

Technology is transforming higher education by removing geographic constraints for both students and instructors and increasing learning and cooperation with internet-based applications. Bloom's taxonomy continues to play a significant role in instructional design for both the classroom and online, but other theories that address the challenges of…