In recent years, Third Language Acquisition (TLA) in Cross-Linguistic Influence (CLI) research has been debated regarding background languages' impact on learning a target language. While Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research often emphasizes the primary influence of the first language (L1) on the target language, it does not discount the…

This dissertation aims to: 1) characterize the range of beliefs museum practitioners have about racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity; 2) their understanding of the role of race, culture, and ethnicity in minoritized learners' sensemaking; and 3) the areas of tension and symmetry between practitioners' values and their perception of their…

Central Venous Catheterization (CVC) is a commonly performed medical procedure used for medication delivery to the heart. While CVC is conducted over 5 million times annually it is plagued with high complication rates, resulting in adverse effects on patients, and in the worst cases, death. These complications are directly related to the…

The purpose of the current research is to determine the effect of changing the English Language Art curriculum on the reading growth of fourth-grade students who attended a public school district located in a suburban community in the Northeastern part of the United States. This ex-post facto study is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the…

Some still view arts education as a non-essential extracurricular activity despite its benefits. Even though the Every Student Succeeds Act acknowledges arts education is a healthy and well-rounded subject, local, district, and state administrators still control budget allocation and cuts, which generally affect arts education. There has also been…

We will not end gender-based violence by responding to it. Experts and national organizations agree that effective primary prevention programs are essential to stopping harmful behaviors before they start (DeGue et al, 2014; American College Health Association, 2016; American College Health Association, 2018; Townsend, 2017; Schneider &…

Outdoor and environmental educators are increasingly concerned about the presence and resistance of whiteness, racism, and settler colonialism in outdoor pedagogy. In this dissertation, I present three distinct inquiries examining the entanglement of educator identity, curriculum, anti-colonialism, and anti-racism in outdoor and environmental…

In 2015, then-Higher Education Minister Rodolfo Alarcon said in response to many Cubans' inability to communicate in the international language, English fluency would be required by students as a university exit requirement ("Mastering English," 2015).The purpose of this interpretive qualitative study was to understand the experiences of…

As science has become an integral component of today's technologically driven world, k-12 success in this subject is critical if continued American competitiveness in the global economy and workforce is to continue. An appreciable achievement gap exists in science performance, affecting racial minorities disproportionately. This reality forecasts…

This dissertation examined possible factors that preservice teachers encounter during initial teacher preparation programs that may impact their attitudes towards the inclusion of students with disabilities in the general education classroom, their efficacy regarding teaching students with disabilities and their epistemological development. This…

Even with the rapid changes that individuals are currently experiencing in the U.S. as a result of its fluctuating economy, increased immigration, and evolutionary technological advances, there is not a curriculum or course requirement that exists for Michigan students in secondary level education programs which specifically addresses the issue of…

Small City School Districts across New York State are becoming increasingly fearful of losing newly hired, highly talented teachers. In the United States, 8% of teachers leave the profession annually and greater than 50% quit teaching before reaching retirement age (Sutcher, 2016). A study done on teacher retention decisions in New York City…

In Social Foundations classrooms, social justice approaches to questions of difference are certainly part of the curriculum. After teaching numerous Social Foundations courses, I encountered several issues related to the way rigid identity categories were complemented by neoliberal narratives that seemed to limit class conversation in troubling…

The purpose of this mixed methods, instrumental case study was to investigate the impact of the case--a theoretically informed, curriculum and instruction approach--on the development of cultural competence in teacher-candidates. Denboba (1993) noted that the acquisition of cultural competence is an ongoing, developmental process that requires a…

This dissertation explores the contemporary educational construct known as Social and Emotional Learning, or SEL. It investigates how the child, the teacher and the relationship between children and teachers are figured in the SEL-managed classroom. The dissertation also examines the extent to which SEL is produced by, and productive of, culture,…