The purpose of this study was to determine whether a greater number of years of participation in the Professional Learning Communities Project positively impacts professional staff perceptions of job satisfaction, professional collaboration, and implementation of best practices as defined by the "Critical Issues for Team Consideration" (DuFour et…

According to Lundeberg, Fox, and Punccohar (1994), the reason that there are fewer women in certain professions is because of a lack of self-confidence. In a review of the literature, they found studies reporting a lack of self-confidence in sixth-grade girls, high school students, and women in undergraduate and graduate school. In her work on…

There are numerous strongly held views and myths about African American students in general and middle school students in particular. This study investigated widely held views about African American middle school students' attitudes toward reading and about how positive attitudes toward reading affect reading performances. In this study, four…

This study examined beginning teachers' perceptions of self-efficacy and professional development while engaged in communities of practice. Wenger's research on communities of practice serves as the conceptual framework for this mixed method phenomenological study. Six beginning and tenured teachers were surveyed using the Ohio State Teacher…

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between using computer-assisted instruction (CAI) size and success on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) mathematics exam with fifth-grade students in Texas compared to the effect of alternative improvement approaches used by a control group. Research explored the use of…

Exclusionary school discipline results in students being removed from classrooms as a consequence of their disruptive behavior and may lead to subsequent suspension and/or expulsion. Literature documents that nondominant students, particularly Black males, are disproportionately impacted by exclusionary discipline, to the point that researchers…

The purpose of this study was to investigate if there were relationships between college students' talent themes as defined by the Clifton StrengthsFinder(TM) Instrument and their learning style as defined by Kolb Learning Styles Inventory. Logistical regression methodology was utilized to assess the relationship between learning styles and talent…

The door to college is open for increasing numbers of students for whom adapting to college may be a great challenge (Kamphoff, Hutson, Amundsen, & Atwood, 2007). Hansen (1998) noted that the overall academic preparation level has declined for students entering college and that academic disengagement in college has increased among many students.…

Educational administrators face the unprecedented challenge of increasing student achievement for all students. One response to this challenge has been to increase and improve teacher collaboration. This study analyzed the relationship between elementary principals' leadership behaviors, teacher collaboration, and student achievement. The…

The goal of this study is to investigate the relationship between the preferred learning styles of professional pharmacy students and their performance/success in a hybrid PharmD pharmacy program making extensive use of online content. Consequently, the study will look for early detection factors which can impact the performance of the student…

This dissertation examines the relationship between perceived social support and egocentrism among older adolescents. Chapter I defines the research concern. If social support plays a significant role in the life of the adolescent, but egocentrism often alters the judgment and behavior of adolescents in a myriad of relationships, understanding why…

This study examined the relationship between high school student achievement, per pupil expenditure, school district enrollment, selected student demographics (economically disadvantaged, racial and ethnic groupings {African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, Native American/Alaskan, and White}, limited English proficiency, and students…

The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between teacher perceptions of the frequency and effectiveness of principal instructional leadership behaviors and student achievement in high-poverty elementary schools. In order to accomplish the purpose, survey methodology was employed. Teachers from six high-poverty elementary schools…

Background. There is a paucity of published literature regarding the correlation between faculty characteristics and outcomes on the National Physical Therapy Examination for Physical Therapist Assistants (NPTE-PTA). Purpose. To determine if there was a relationship between faculty characteristics in PTA educational programs and program outcomes…

Researchers have documented that schools can measure teacher effectiveness by student outcomes and that professional development is one pathway to ensure teacher success. However, there is still limited information identifying the learning opportunities for novice teachers that directly influence student performance. The purpose of this…