The purpose of this multiple case study was to investigate teachers' and school leaders' perceptions of how school climate affects student achievement in math and reading at rural schools. The conceptual framework guiding this study was Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory intertwined with the U.S. Department of Education's School…

This quantitative study was conducted to investigate possible relationships between psychological safety, collaborative capacity, and school climate in middle level schools in order to identify specific leadership behaviors to increase collective efficacy. School leaders' knowledge of the positive effect collective efficacy has on student learning…

In the United States, our traditional educational model is outdated, with subpar academic achievement and a high dropout rate. Alternative education provides non-traditional settings designed to help prevent students from falling through the cracks, but the atypical format and at-risk population can make it difficult to assess how effective…

The recent increase in enrollment of Latinx students and the increasing number of HSIs do not equate to success in the goal of serving Latinx students. To advance the support of Latinx student success, the entire climate and university system need to be examined, which are way beyond enrollment ratios. Developing extensive and in-depth support…

Boys and girls sit together in most classrooms, but do they interact? Based on forty-year-old evidence, coeducational classes may not be coeducational but instead be segregated by gender, which may undermine student success. Our goal is to answer this question in today's classrooms. We used longitudinal data to assess gender segregation in 26…

This is a study of teachers transition after a professional development (PD). The purpose was to document and characterize the teachers' experiences as they transitioned toward use of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and more learner-centered teacher practices. The teachers participated in a PD workshop that provided information on the…

Youth of color are severely underrepresented in STEM which is can be attributed to low socioeconomic status, lack of representation, varying levels of racism faced within different institutions and systems. Without proper support and representation, youth of color can begin to feel that STEM is not a field they identify with or feel they belong.…

Using a sequential explanatory mixed methods design, this study was designed to acquire quantitative and qualitative data that expose community college student perceptions on multimodal compositions compared to traditional writing practices. As traditional writing continues to be privileged in college writing classrooms, a critical pedagogy…

Strong leaders require emotional intelligence (EI). Research on EI of educational leaders is minimal. Due to the lack of research and literature in education on the emotional intelligence of school leaders, one may only assume that principals have the same leadership characteristics that are noted in current leadership books and publications.…

The primary aim of the first study in this dissertation was to adapt two existing measures, Identity Management Strategy Scale and Outness Inventory, assessing multidimensional disclosure and concealment construct to be developmentally appropriate for sexual diverse youth in the school context. Both adapted measures were sent to experts in the…

Teachers have lasting influence on their students, and they are invaluable assets to their schools. However, they are leaving their schools and the profession too frequently. The problem addressed by this study was the shortage of teachers in Arizona charter elementary schools, resulting from low and declining retention rates of early career…

Teacher self-efficacy is used to describe how a teacher feels about their ability to perform the tasks related to teaching. This qualitative study focused on how teachers' perceptions of their school climate affect teacher self-efficacy in eight middle school teachers in Arkansas. Participants were Arkansas middle school teachers with three or…

Classroom evaluations are implemented with the best of intentions -- to measure student satisfaction in the classroom. However, survey questions do not always apply to the learning environment, especially in nontraditional classrooms. We want to improve our craft as teachers and as facilitators, but we lose the chance to critically reflect on our…

An increasing number of adolescents are struggling with mental health related disorders including anxiety, depression, substance abuse, or suicide. While positive psychologists and researchers continue to search for possible solutions, an increasing number of studies point to the impact that exploring and eventually finding purpose has on an…

During the coronavirus pandemic, nearly all forms of education underwent an online pivot, to some form of internet-based instruction. The UK Open University (UKOU), like many other distance education and online universities, found its expertise in designing and delivering effective online teaching in demand. This paper reports how the UKOU…