This dissertation project began with the development of a Design-Focused Approach (DFA) to First-Year Composition (FYC) curriculum largely informed by multimodal pedagogical theory. In the DFA to FYC curriculum, I highlighted the importance of multiliteracy and the demand for multiple modalities for students to effectively communicate in various…

Critical thinking is one of the most desired skills in the workplace, as it assists an individual in solving complex problems and making informed decisions, resulting in their workplace success. Argumentation is one instructional approach that provides students an opportunity to engage in higher-order thinking and improve their communication…

Many things can influence a student's success in a course. Previous research has shown that students are more successful when they complete the course reading, but students may not always comply with reading requirements for multiple reasons, such as other time pressures or financial costs. Issues with reading requirements may be compounded if an…

Using self-efficacy (SE), andragogical, and pedagogical frameworks, the goal for this study was to explore instructional designer (IDer) narratives in response to questions focused on their perceptions of instructional design (ID) practices for creation of workplace education and training assets, specifically intentionality in the use of transfer…

Modern-day educators often share a sense they lack voice and agency with school administration. A classic example is curriculum development, where third-party designers develop uncontextualized curricula, and teachers then must implement the design even if inefficient and ineffective. What happens if this identical situation occurs at the program…

The purpose of this research was to investigate social responsibility in the apparel and textiles field through the lens of the faculty, including how they define social responsibility and incorporate it into the curriculum. This research explored how faculty who identify as teaching from a social responsibility perspective interpret the term,…

This study sought to address the gap in knowledge about the effect of UDL features on asynchronous online postsecondary learners' achievement, engagement, and self-efficacy. The study also described a process for redesigning an online course to incorporate UDL components and provided specific examples of the implemented UDL guidelines. The study…

Recent studies suggest that preservice music teacher educators (MTEs) had more experience in assessment preparation at the graduate level than during their undergraduate experience. Although music standards and assessments emphasize providing information about student learning, research investigating what assessment strategies music faculty are…

The purpose of this case study was to explore elementary school teachers' perspectives and experiences on the implementation of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) in their classrooms. The study utilized a qualitative research approach, focusing on an elementary charter school located in the State of New York. This study addressed the following…

This capstone is an exploration of an online learning environment for teachers to receive professional learning at any time, anywhere. The focus of this capstone was to design a series of self-paced, asynchronous learning courses to help teachers implement one-to-one Chromebooks in the Fayette County Public School District. Additionally, the…

We live in an attention economy where many of our interactions are mediated by technologies incentivized to exploit our attention. The consequences of this exploitation, so far as they are known, affect how we spend our time, and also our capacity for reflection and self-awareness, which can have lasting effects across our life and relationships.…

Generation Z members are our future leaders. They are eventually going to run the world and are starting to make their unique characteristics known. Due to the current generational transitions, they will assume leadership roles earlier than previous generations, mainly owing to the increased migration of Baby Boomers out of the workforce.…

Despite the widely recognized effectiveness of place-based education (PBE) by researchers in the science education community, there is a lack of resources and curriculum appropriate for the environment of urban schools. Unequal access to quality science curriculum materials is an ongoing issue facing urban schools in the United States. This basic…

Rapidly increasing demand for online graduate education in our globalized, post-pandemic, "flat" (Freidman 2007), digital age has coalesced globally dispersed and culturally diverse learners into virtual classrooms, amplifying a multiplicity of voices. Social learning theory (Bandura 1977) emphasizes that knowledge is constructed between…

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are a valuable open educational resource for people around the world. Although they have been published for over a decade, there has not been a consistent means by which to evaluate their quality or establish whether they are meeting the needs of learners. This action research study sought to understand…