School-based day treatment is an intensive mental health service for children with social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties. Research on day treatment is scarce and descriptions of program models are lacking. We used stimulated recall interviews to explore the moment-to-moment processes and strategies of classroom staff in a day treatment…

Many teachers, pastoral care staff, counsellors, psychologists and others from related disciplines who support children and young people's (CYP's) personal, social and emotional development are concerned by declining well-being and the increased demand for pastoral care and counselling for students with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH)…

Implicit theories of intelligence play a role in teacher's actions. Adaptive instruction in and out of the classroom is important to optimize learning processes, especially in the case of at-risk students. This study explored to what extent implicit theories of intelligence play a role in the actions of educational professionals around at-risk…

Negative outcomes for students of color and those who are economically disadvantaged are troubling patterns in schools nationwide. Systemic racial disparities are part of the problem. Children who live with poverty, however, also have heightened exposure to adverse experiences. Implementing a culturally responsive trauma-informed whole-school…

Over the past several years, there has been a resurgence of interest in--and reconceptualizing of-- character education in primary and secondary schools across the United States. An important question, then, is how this new emphasis on character development at the K-12 level impacts the work of university faculty and student affairs professionals.…

This dissertation was designed to answer the following question. What are elementary and middle school principals' theories of action in two rural school districts? Sub-questions included the superintendent-principal relationship and its influence on the principal's theories of action and the extent to which rural context impacts…