Public school choice education policy attempts to create an education marketplace. Although school choice research has focused on the parent role in the school choice process, little is known about parents served by low-performing schools. Following market theory, students attending low-performing schools should be the primary students attempting to use school choice policy to access high performing schools rather than moving to a better school. However, students remain in these low-performing schools. This study took place in Miami-Dade County, which offers a wide variety of school choice options through charter schools, magnet schools, and open-choice schools. This dissertation utilized a mixed-methods design to examine the decision-making process and school choice options utilized by the parents of students served by low-performing elementary schools in Miami-Dade County. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with the parents of students served by low-performing schools. Binary logistic regression models were fitted to the data to compare the demographic characteristics, academic achievement and distance from alternative schooling options between transfers and non-transfers. Multinomial logistic regression models were fitted to the data to evaluate how demographic characteristics, distance to transfer school, and transfer school grade influenced the type of school a transfer student chose. A geographic analysis was conducted to determine how many miles students lived from alternative schooling options and the miles transfer students lived away from their transfer school. The findings of the interview data illustrated that parents’ perceived needs are not being adequately addressed by state policy and county programs. The statistical analysis found that students from higher socioeconomic social groups were not more likely to transfer than students from lower socioeconomic social groups. Additionally, students who did transfer were not likely to end up at a high achieving school. The findings of the binary logistic regression demonstrated that transfer students were significantly more likely to live near alternative school options.

Increasingly standardized and assessment-driven educational systems are failing to meet the needs of many students, replacing their love of learning with a fear of failure. Importantly, the fear of failure is a common mindset of not only students but also teachers, administrators, and policymakers. This qualitative, action research study is situated in a design thinking/growth mindset conceptual theory that posits that the design thinking process can serve as a meaningful growth mindset opportunity for teachers and students. The prototyping mindset inherent in design thinking may mitigate the fear of failure by focusing on rapid iteration rather than striving for perfection. The purpose of this action research study was to use the design thinking process to collaborate with a team of eight educators to build a virtual community of practice that supports innovation and inquiry. The research questions that guided the study focused on (1) obstacles to innovation in education, (2) strategies to overcome the obstacles, and (3) any perceived shift in mindset that occurred in participants throughout the study. Conducted over four months in the winter/spring of 2021, the study used a design thinking/action research methodology that moved through four phases of Question, Imagine, Make, and Share. The findings revealed the primary obstacle to innovation to be an oppressive system characterized by its tradition of white supremacy and its resistance to change. Further obstacles included inadequate teacher training, outdated instructional models, overly standardized instruction and assessment, and a lack of resources. Strategies to overcome the obstacles focused on the protective nature of a community of practice, especially when sharing the goal of empowerment by design and supporting the development of the mindsets of action, growth, and inquiry. Participants perceived mindset shifts in either themselves or their students in the areas of growth, awareness, and empathy. The study contributes to the literature by exploring the practical applications of growth mindset and design thinking within the context of a supportive community of practice. As action research, it gave participants the tools and courage to become empowered research practitioners.

Summer bridge programs (SBPs) have been used as a means of increasing students' college readiness and academic skills. University Southeast implemented a SBP in 2013 for students placing into developmental courses on the Texas Success Initiative Assessment (TSIA). However, researchers have found mixed results when evaluating the effectiveness of SBPs, and at University Southeast, it has not been investigated. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the difference in TSIA score gains between first-time-in-college students with developmental-level test scores who attended a three-week SBP and those who did not. Tinto's longitudinal model of student departure guided the study examining how university-provided support may increase a student's skills and abilities before the start of college. The research questions focused on the gain scores on TSIA math, reading, and writing pre- and posttests for first-time-in-college students completing the SBP and a control group not participating in the SBP and taking the TSIA a second time. A total of 769 archived test scores from 2014 and 2015 were analyzed using an independent-samples t test. Data analysis found significant gains only in the area of TSIA math, which suggests that college administrators reevaluate the use of SBPs. This study contributes to positive social change because it provides research-based data to administrators of the local SBP and demonstrates the need to explore options that will increase college readiness while ensuring that institutional funds are being used effectively.

This phenomenological study investigated the nature and extent of the support parents received during IEP development. The study was informed by Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory. Participants, located in a Northeastern state, were 10 hearing parents of children who had been diagnosed with hearing loss at birth and were between ages 5 and 12. Data were in-depth interviews that were analyzed, coded, and organized into themes using an inductive approach to analysis informed by Hatch. Results indicated that parents believed they needed more guidance on what to expect during the first IEP meeting, that advocating for appropriate accommodations for their child was important, and that education professionals communicate in a more compassionate and less business-like manner when speaking with parents. Parents also indicated increased anxiety due to their perceptions that education professionals have inadequate knowledge about issues relating to hearing loss and hearing amplification technology. Based on these results, special education professionals and policy makers can focus on increased understanding of hearing loss and amplification use in order to help children with hearing loss achieve more positive educational outcomes effecting positive social change.

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