This study was prompted by a desire to understand the relationship between reflective practice using classroom instructional video observations and teacher perception of effectiveness. This was a mixed methods study in which quantitative data were collected from a pre- and post-survey using a Likert scale and qualitative data from weekly pre- and…

Facilitators of teacher professional development (PD) play an integral role in teacher learning. Facilitators often both plan and implement PD and it is important that they can make these experiences meaningful learning opportunities for teachers. Researchers have only recently delved more deeply into understanding the knowledge and skills…

This study applied the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) to explore the sources of self-efficacy and professional development activities that are most predictive of PreK-6 music teachers' efficacious beliefs. This study also compared teacher efficacy levels across different groups. The target population for this study was PreK-6 music teachers in the…

Teacher's noticing of students' mathematical thinking has been an important focus of research in the past two decades (e.g., Jacobs et al., 2010; Sherin et al., 2011). Noticing matters, but it is not an end in itself (Schoenfeld, 2011). It is operationalized within the context of teachers' dispositions and knowledge which shape decisions teachers…

During the clinical semester, the post-observation conference is a pivotal interaction that occurs between the pre-service teacher and the cooperating teacher. However, there is often limited participation by the pre-service teacher as the mentor dominates the conversation and is primarily engaged in the analysis of the observed lesson based on…

This dissertation study aims to understand the instructional interactions that foster students' generalizing. By analyzing video recorded lessons from 13 different Grade 3 classrooms in which an early algebra intervention is being implemented, activities related to generalizing and students' generalizing activities were identified, and the nature…

The Learning Assistant (LA) model is a successful peer support model for increasing student learning gains, LA's content understanding, and recruitment of well-prepared K-12 science teachers. LAs are undergraduates who facilitate active learning in a classroom while simultaneously taking a course in pedagogy and working with the faculty instructor…

The proficiency level of performing health assessments within nursing units in the United States is inadequate. Educators have not known if students perceive flipped classrooms as effective environments for learning the course material. The purpose of this qualitative, exploratory, multiple-case study was to explore the perceptions of nursing…

This research investigated young children's experiences of a natural wetland environment as they constructed meanings of nature in a group. This work was framed theoretically on the premise of social constructivism and ethical listening in efforts to phenomenologically understand how children came to know nature through pre-reflective and…

In Experiment I, I tested whether training teacher trainers to conduct TPRA observations to a calibrated standard by teaching them to 1) measure the accuracy of other individuals presenting learn unit instruction, then 2) measure their own accuracy in presenting learn unit instruction, would influence the accuracy of the teacher trainer's…

Teacher recognition of student argumentation has been addressed by many researchers (e.g., Schwarz, 2009; Krummheuer, 1995; Bieda & Lepak, 2014; Whitenack & Yackel, 2002). Further, standards for mathematics learning emphasize the importance of including argumentation in the K-12 classroom (NCTM, 2000; CCSS, 2010). The study reported here…

This dissertation describes a mixed method design study on the social validity of a multi-media job search tool, the YES tool, at a four-year Comprehensive Transition Program at an East Coast University. The participants included twelve students, randomly selected from those who, with their parents' assent, agreed to volunteer for this study…

The essential focus of this dissertation is the exploration of emotions in response to stressors that may emerge as preservice teachers interact in teaching and learning spaces. My experiences as a teacher and teacher-educator/researcher have influenced an interest in presenting autoethnographical studies. In each autoethnography I explicate my…

Teaching students to construct scientific understanding is complex. Teachers who develop noticing skills can attend and respond to students' science ideas to move understanding forward. Traditional professional development (PD) approaches limit teachers' opportunities to develop noticing skills. This study examined what aspects of a collaborative…

Both history and education courses comprise a significant portion of certification requirements for prospective history teachers. Teaching ambitiously requires mastery of many practices and bodies of knowledge, including disciplinary, pedagogical, and pedagogical content knowledge, learned in that history and education coursework. However,…