The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of teachers at a school in Central Florida that serves students exposed to multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Qualitative data were gathered from semi-structured interviews. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further…

Novice reading teachers often struggle to provide high-quality reading instruction. The reasons for their difficulties include "transition shock," challenging school contexts, lack of proper preparation, and poor support. One way to improve the quality of novice teachers' reading instruction is through improving their access to high…

Followership has become more relevant to scholars over the last few decades, and these scholars' work has led to a deeper understanding of followership in many contexts; however, there is a paucity of literature on followership concerning education. Therefore, this study aimed to add to existing knowledge in this field. This study examined how…

This research study examined the experiences of Black and Latino/a pre-service teachers who are enrolled in the BS/MS Teacher Preparation Programs within Florida State University's School of Teacher Education. Students within this study described their experiences in courses, how they navigated their clinical field experiences, and how their CTs…

This qualitative study examined how Black women graduate students engaged in radical healing through the Homeplace Research Collective at the University of Florida. The purpose of this study is to investigate the lived experiences of Black women graduate students by focusing on the challenges they encounter within the academy and how their…

The purpose of the Dissertation in Practice was to explore the experiences and perceptions of a group of middle school teachers and administrators that were implementing a Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) program. The setting for this case study was an urban, Title I middle school located in Florida. Interviews were conducted…

Globally, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been the headline over the last years. COVID-19 has forced institutions and individuals to work remotely and increase practices such as social distancing to curtail the further spread of the disease (Al Hajri et al., 2020; Chodorow-Reich & Coglianese, 2020; Garg et al., 2020;…

This study was conducted with 11th- and 12th-grade high school students in western Florida. These students were not meeting the required achievement level in English language arts needed for graduation. This qualitative study investigated the barriers that hinder high school students' achievement in English language arts as a graduation…

Children in foster care face a myriad of challenges in educational development. Conducting a phenomenological study, the researcher interviewed eight foster parents licensed in the state of Florida regarding the educational experiences of children in foster care. From the holistic perspective the data set provided, the researcher described the…

This qualitative study will explore how MSW faculty describe a community in online courses and what strategies they use in fostering a sense of community within courses from an online Master of Social Work program at the University of South Florida. There is an imperative need to ensure online courses provide a sense of community to support…

Many factors impact teachers' decisions about when and how to implement technology during instruction. However, a gap exists in understanding teachers' motivations for technology integration and face-to-face instruction. Therefore, this qualitative case study explored how teachers' perceptions of student achievement, motivation, classroom…

There exists a gap in the literature that discusses the issue of those who teach STEM degree courses who have not been given appropriate training to effectively integrate and implement analytical problem-solving skills (APSS) within their curriculum. At the center of this research is the need for effective training of implementing analytical…

Despite the use of literacy coaching to help improve the instructional practices of teachers and increase reading achievement, data of the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) indicate that Florida's students are averaging about 60% below NAEP proficient level. This dissertation reported the results of a nonexperimental study that…

Within the last five years, more than two-thirds of the United States have passed state laws specific to dyslexia, yet there is very limited empirical research that investigates the voices of parents and/or caregivers (Woodcock, 2020). While the science of reading is at the forefront of conversation in education and legislation in Florida and…

Open Educational Resources are free or low-cost, openly licensed course materials used in place of more expensive, commercial ones. Data collected from an open-access institution in Florida was analyzed using multiple regression to determine the relationship of Open Educational Resources with short-term student outcomes. Short-term outcomes of…