The purpose of this study was to examine character racial, ethnic, and gender representation of main and secondary of apps designed for preschoolers using a quantitative content analysis. Because of the design of characters for apps differs from other forms of media, this study examined traits associated with racial, ethnic, and gender groups…

Tikal, notably conservative in culture among its peer polities, maintains that tendency in the case of monumental texts. In this dissertation I draw on a corpus of Late Classic monuments (ca. AD 600-900) to argue, through analysis of morphological forms, that scribal tradition at Tikal was not only conservative but intentionally so. Literacy…

Latinas often experience a double bind as they navigate STEM trajectories, a result of multiple layers of marginalization associated with their intersecting identities. Although developing robust science identities is key to the persistence, success, and sense of belonging of minoritized students in STEM (Carlone & Johnson, 2007; McGee, 2020),…

Measurement errors attributable to cultural issues are complex and challenging for educational assessments. We need assessment tests sensitive to the cultural heterogeneity of populations, and psychometric methods appropriate to address fairness and equity concerns. Built on the research of culturally responsive assessment, this dissertation…

In American schools, African American students are underrepresented in gifted education programs while White students are overrepresented. School-based gifted identification referrals are primarily initiated by teacher nomination. However, many characteristics or attributes perceived as gifted by the African American cultural group are often not…

A growing body of research has indicated the challenges and difficulties international students face including but not limited to language barriers, academic struggles, social isolation, discrimination, and psychological distress. Among international students, East Asian international students represent a large subgroup and report higher…

The purpose of the qualitative social constructionist study was to explore the factors that enhance or impede parental involvement of Spanish-speaking Latino parents on both English Language Learners (ELL) and Former English Language Learners (f-ELL) in a Small City School District. According to Krogstad et. al. (2023), the United States Latino…

This dissertation examines the experiences of three Latino emergent bilingual children and their Reading Recovery teacher as they engaged in Reading Recovery lessons offered in English with the support of Spanish. The negative impact of cultural bias and expectations of assimilation into English has implications for needed innovations in classroom…