Purpose: To determine whether a TGfU intervention improved participants' decision-making, skill execution, game performance, game involvement, game knowledge, enjoyment, perceived competence, and intention to continue practicing sailing. Method: Participants were 19 sailors (age: M = 8.44, SD = 1.24 years old). This study followed a mixed-methods…

Families play a critical role in the lives of students who use a speech generating device (SGD). This study address (a) mothers' experiences of having a child who uses a SGD, (b) their perception of the effectiveness of a SGD(s), (c) their perceived impacts of SGDs on their family dynamics, and (d) their perception of decision making process. Data…

National calls in science, technology, engineering, and technology education reform efforts have advanced the wide-scale engagement of students in undergraduate research for the preparation of a workforce and citizenry able to attend to the challenges of the 21st century. Awareness of the potential benefits and costs of these experiences has led…

This dissertation investigated the effects of the intervention of the Just One Mentoring Program on student persistence in completing their career programs. The population for this study consisted of a heterogeneous group of students enrolled in the Just One Mentoring Program during summer 2003 through fall 2006 at a community college located in…

The Ashford Teaching Alliance (ATA) Research Champion project ("the programme") was a pilot intervention aimed at developing teaching expertise and practice by promoting the use of educational research in decision-making and teacher practice. The programme ran for one academic year (2014/2015) in five schools within the ATA. Delivery was…

The purpose of this study was to understand the decisions elementary principals have made during the Common Core State Standards reform. Specifically, (a) what decisions principals have made to support Common Core implementation, (b) what strategies elementary principals have employed to communicate with stakeholders about Common Core State…

This evaluation reviews efforts made by Illinois Action for Children (IAFC), with guidance from the Illinois Governor's Office for Early Childhood Development, to spur experimentation with new systemic change strategies to increase the number of children from priority populations--those considered to be the most vulnerable, with multiple risk…

This report is an evaluation of efforts made by Illinois Action for Children (IAFC), with oversight from the Illinois Governor's Office for Early Childhood Development (OECD), to test, support, and facilitate innovations in the early childhood system in 11 communities across the state. The Early Childhood Innovation Zones (IZ) initiative, funded…

The Early Childhood Innovation Zones initiative was established by Illinois Action for Children (IAFC), with guidance from the Illinois Governor's Office for Early Childhood Development. Funded by a Race to the Top--Early Learning Challenge grant, this initiative supported capacity building efforts for organizations working with young children in…

From the early twentieth century to the present, citizen participation in U.S. public institutions--particularly schools--has continually decreased. The trend has been linked to the bureaucratization of public schools and their increasing reliance on expert knowledge for solutions to school- and education-related problems. The purpose of this…

Principals are charged with the responsibility of conducting teacher evaluations that lead to improved instructional practices, as well as using information gathered during the process to make informed data-driven decisions about teacher performance. This study analyzes the impact digital teacher evaluations have played on this process. Four…

The purposes of this study were to (a) identify how leadership in a successful rural school districts has helped raise student achievement levels beyond those of comparable school districts as measured by state and federal mandated test scores, (b) investigate the district leadership that aligns with identified effective practices, and (c)…