Research has shown that modern courses and programs designed to foster critical thinking vary in both content and delivery, in turn leading to differences in their effectiveness. Few studies have investigated critical thinking among nontraditional students at community colleges taking STEM courses, especially within the geosciences. Furthermore,…

Experiencing instructional supportive structures that help teachers to overcome barriers to meeting the diverse needs of their students is vital to the success of novice teachers (Kraft et al., 2018). The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions novice teachers developed while experiencing instructional…

Science instruction in elementary schools can be poorly defined, of low status, and taught by teachers with inadequate subject knowledge (Shulman, 2015). This confusion can lead to low teacher confidence, morale, and professional dissatisfaction which may contribute to high attrition rates and diminished value of science teaching and learning…

This qualitative descriptive study investigated the self-efficacy of nurse practitioner (NP) instructors after completion of an online course on simulation pedagogy. Due to minimum standards for NP instructors to have a degree as either a NP or be considered an expert in their content field, most of them do not have formalized education in the…

We perform a large-scale randomized controlled trial to evaluate the potential of machine learning-based instruction sequencing to improve memorization while allowing the learners the freedom to choose their review times. After controlling for the length and frequency of study, we find that learners for whom a machine learning algorithm determines…

Teachers have a tremendous responsibility of educating students on academic skills as well as supporting their social development. Some students do not have the ability to manage their disruptive behavior, ultimately causing more discipline referrals and stress on the classroom teacher. To aid in the implementation of evidence-based practices…

Transformative learning pedagogy in higher education leads to increased student engagement. The problem with transformative learning in higher education is deficiencies in research on increased student engagement obtained with transformative learning pedagogy. This research study addressed unanswered questions in the literature by exploring…

The purpose of this study was to determine the existence of a relationship between online professional development and English language arts (ELA) teachers' instructional practices. Professional development is commonly utilized to develop teachers' pedagogy, but in-person sessions do not meet all teachers' needs. "Mixed methods" research…

This dissertation explored questions related to teaching graphing skills to graduate students in behavior analysis. In Study 1, a survey of BCBAs asked which graphing conventions behavior analysts are most likely to revise. Only five conventions received high overall agreement and differences in revision ratings were associated with demographic…

A general conception of discussion and its relation to the development of reflective thinking is applied to philosophical inquiry in the classroom. Consideration of what makes a discussion philosophical is used to reveal the kind of thinking involved and then set within a model of discussion for the classroom designed to engage students in it. It…

This article describes two activities that were developed to support experienced faculty members in the transition to online teaching in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. These activities were designed to help faculty work through the first two steps of an informal instructional design process: 1) reflecting on existing course objectives and…

Engagement in learning is crucial for students, having long term effects that extend beyond a student's schooling years. However, many students, particularly at the secondary level, are not actively engaged in their schooling. Deficit mindsets, low self-efficacy, and a system that places excessive demands on teachers all lead to low expectations…

This qualitative study identified and explored the experiences of counselor educators living their Preferred Teaching Narratives (PTN). The methodology used was Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA; Smith et al., 2013) because of the focus on interpreting personal lived experiences (Landscape of Action; Bruner, 1986) and interpreting the…

The nation is embroiled within intense debate regarding the existence of monuments, markers, and online museums as vestiges of racism and White privilege. Many argue those symbols should be removed from the public square. The essential question of this research is what are social studies methods teachers' perspectives about using monuments,…

Writing in second Chinese writing is viewed as one of the least used skills in classroom practice for educators (Kubler, 1997). While writing research has emphasized the importance of regarding writing as a social activity, mainstream writing instruction and task design remain to decontextualized and monologic (Liu, 2015). This dissertation…