This case study involves one public school in a suburb of a major metropolitan area, focusing on one classroom of first grade students selected from a pool of volunteer classrooms. The first grade class of students, during their regular mathematics instruction, were given three tasks by their teachers designed to elicit a productive struggle…

This exploratory research study examined how three South Korean families in the U.S. conceptualize museum-based science learning by exploring varied contexts in which they are embedded. In applying a sociocultural perspective, I investigated the families' backgrounds, views of school and museum learning, in conjunction with their virtual museum…

Spatial skills, which represent the ability to mentally manipulate objects (Schneider & McGrew, 2012; Atit et al., 2020) have been shown to be correlated with entrance, persistence and success in STEM (Shea et al., 2001; Wai et al., 2009). Specifically, these skills have been shown to be necessary to geologists and geoscientists (Hegarty,…

Although community colleges strongly espouse student-centered approaches, the actual experience of student populations remains a source of information and insight that needs to be tapped. English Language Learners (ELLs) in particular, with diverse backgrounds, needs, and experiences, need to have those experiences heard and accounted for. Much…

Purpose and Method of Study: The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to determine to what extent educational leaders in Houston, Texas; Miami, Florida; and the Island of Puerto Rico implemented the school emergency operations plan and recovery planning guides from the USDE before and during 2017 Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria.…

Within the past two decades, federal and state governments have increased the frequency, number, and importance of standardized tests in elementary and secondary American schools. These tests are characterized by recognition-based frameworks that privilege "best" or "correct" answers, processes, and understandings which remain…

The concept of "global learning" has become a pervasive buzzword in higher education in the United States. While the term is well-known, its meanings are multiple. In some instances, global learning refers to a modernization of liberal education initiatives, while in others it refers to the implementation of global experiences abroad. In…

This dissertation documents a new way of conceptualizing vectors in college mathematics, especially in geometry. First, I will introduce three problems to show the complexity and subtlety of the construct of vectors with the classical vector representations. These highlight the need for a new framework that: (1) differentiates abstraction from a…

This quantitative study determined teachers' perceptions on the four domains of Danielson's framework for teaching. The study surveyed teachers from five school districts regarding the components set forth in Danielson's model for evaluating teachers. The survey was created by Sweeley (2004) and her dissertation chair, Dr. Brogan. The survey…

The dissertation outlines a framework for understanding variation in ultimate attainment and syntactic structure in second language acquisition by positing a distinction between competence-based and generalized learning processes. Within this framework, competence-based learning is theorized to employ inductive learning processes to acquire a…

The intent of this study was to explore the variance of epistemological development in pre-ministry undergraduates across different institutional contexts, using the Perry Scheme as a theoretical lens. Semi-structured interviews were employed in order to elicit information from participants that revealed their personal perspectives regarding their…

Few studies on English language learners (ELLs) focus on teachers' perceptions of bilingualism and bidialectalism and describe the impact of those perceptions on language arts pedagogy. While numerous studies have explored the teaching of diverse students and the negative effects of standardized tests on the quality instruction these students…

Mindfulness is ongoing scrutiny of existing expectations, continuous refinement of those expectations based on new experiences, appreciation of the subtleties of context, and identification of novel aspects of context that can improve foresight and functioning. This concept of mindfulness has been studied in the domain of business and in relation…

Computer-based instruction (CBI) was considered the technological phenomenon to revolutionize education and training. Today, the Internet and computer technology are reported to have significantly altered the education landscape (Johnson & Aragon, 2002). The rapid advances in technology, the need for lifelong learning, and the growth of…