According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, an estimated 75% of students who are poor readers in 3rd grade continue to be poor readers in 9th grade. Although much research has been conducted on this topic, engaging and successful reading programs that put theory into practice are scarce. Reader's theater is a strategy students use to collaborate, rehearse, and critique one another while the teacher offers support and modeling. The research questions addressed the effectiveness of using Reader's Theater to improve scores in reading fluency and comprehension. LaBerge and Samuels' automaticity theory was used as the theoretical foundation for the study. A quasi-experimental control group design was used with a convenience sample of 50 students from 2 fifth-grade classrooms. Preexisting pre- and posttest scores of fluency and comprehension were analyzed using a t test. The results showed no significant differences among groups in their gain scores; however, in regards to comprehension, there was 0.40 point gain among students with disabilities. Findings were presented to stakeholders through a program evaluation report, which recommended the continuation of Reader's Theater during the 2015-2016 school year. While findings were not significant, they do support social change by giving teachers a valid reason to engage readers in meaningful, repeated readings that can increase reading comprehension and enable both struggling and thriving students to better comprehend text and become higher achieving readers.

Students in Pennsylvania are falling behind in reading proficiency. Early literacy skills are the foundation for future reading success and students who have not learned to read proficiently by the end of 3rd grade have an increased chance of failing to achieve academic success. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to investigate the relationship between preschool teachers' perceived self-efficacy for literacy instruction and preschool literacy assessment scores of students at local private preschool classrooms. The research question focused on the relationship between preschool teacher self-efficacy for literacy instruction and student literacy achievement. Bandura's self-efficacy theory served as the theoretical foundation of the study. Preschool teachers' (n = 31) perceived levels of self-efficacy for early literacy instruction was measured using the Komlodi Assessment for Self-efficacy (KASE) survey. A Pearson correlation analysis of the KASE survey data along with preschool student literacy assessment scores from the Teaching Strategies GOLD preschool assessment was completed to determine whether a relationship exists. The results, however, revealed no significant correlation between teacher self-efficacy and student literacy achievement. The findings suggested that the preschool teachers perceived themselves as effective in both literacy instruction and knowledge of literacy concepts, but less efficacious in their ability to diagnose and provide successful interventions to students struggling with literacy. Recommendations include offering professional development opportunities to strengthen the skills where preschool teachers feel less effective. A focus on professional development and support for teachers may promote social change as students achieve higher early literacy proficiency and become successful members of society.

The problem that precipitated this study was the marked differences among early childhood education leaders in the quality of leadership for private early childhood entities as indicated by a voluntary quality rating improvement system in a Midwestern state. The scholarly literature lacks studies on characteristics of high-€quality leadership in early childhood education. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to explore characteristics of quality early childhood leadership based on examination of successful early childhood programs using leadership trait theory as a conceptual framework. Research questions were designed to examine characteristics of successful early childhood leaders based on the components of trait theory as reported by leaders themselves and as perceived by teachers working with them and parents whose children attend their programs. Data were collected from interviews and questionnaires. The sample included 12 high-€quality leaders who participated in the state quality rating system and had at least 5 years of leadership experience. From each school represented by the leaders, 5 teachers with 2 years of teaching experience and 3 parents with a child enrolled in the early childhood program for a minimum of 6 months participated in the study. Data were thematically coded, looking for themes, differences, and similarities. Common traits across all groups and data collection method were trustworthiness, self-€confidence, and dependability. Positive social change could come about through the encouragement of early childhood leaders who may be confident in awareness of the needs of children and families and dependable and trustworthy in providing an early learning program that may positively develop the emotional, physical, social, and academic needs of children.

Fifty percent of childcare employees leave their jobs by the close of their 5th year of experience. The purpose of this exploratory single case study was to explore what retention strategies some childcare center directors use to retain their employees in the Columbus, Ohio metropolitan area. The research population consisted of 5 childcare center directors who successfully implemented retention strategies in 5 different childcare centers. The conceptual framework for this study was the Herzberg, Mausner, and Snyderman motivation-hygiene theory. Data were collected via semistructured interviews with the directors and from centers-handbooks and strategic plans. Coding, word frequency, and thematic analysis were conducted, and member checking was employed to bolster the trustworthiness of interpretations. Three main themes emerged: the importance of employee compensation, communication and culture, and education and training to retain childcare center employees. Understanding the strategies to retain employees may help childcare center directors reduce the turnover and ensure stability for employees in that industry. The implications for positive social change include lower unemployment rates and a more stable childcare labor market.

There is a surprising dearth of research related to the phenomenon of self-injurious behavior/nonsuicidal self-injury (SIB/NSSI), such as cutting. Research conducted on SIB has revealed that this maladaptive behavior is more common among adolescents than other populations. The act of posting SIB on social media deserves research attention, as it seems to contradict what had previously been considered a very private behavior. The goal of this qualitative case study was to better understand why adolescents engage in SIB as well as investigate why they post these behaviors on social media. Merton's theory of social strain and anomie, which focuses on impulse control and management being dependent on having social order; Erikson's developmental stages, specifically Identity Versus Role Confusion; and Siegel's research with the adolescent brain were used for the study's theoretical framework. A qualitative observational case study of 30 YouTube videos was conducted to examine what individuals posted about their SIB, why individuals engaged in SIB, and why individuals posted their SIB on social media. Explanations for posting SIB on YouTube ranged from describing the actual objects used for self-harm to expressing shame for engaging in the behavior. The responses for engaging in SIB revealed that the need for self-expression was significant and that the behavior was a means for coping with mental illness or trauma, familial conflict, or some shame related to a failure to conform to social norms. The implications for positive social change include an increased awareness of this behavior for parents, teachers, medical personnel, and mental health providers to better inform treatment and interventions.

Historically, students with intellectual disabilities (ID) have low reading comprehension skills that can impede their overall academic success. There is a gap in practice regarding the identification and effective use of evidence-based reading comprehension instructional strategies for students with ID. Guided by Piaget's and Vygotsky's constructivist theories, the purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of a metacognitive reading strategy on the emerging reading comprehension (ERC) skills of kindergarten students with ID. A single-participant, multiple baseline design with graphical visual analysis was used across 4 kindergarten students with ID to illustrate the influence of the reading intervention. All 4 kindergarten students showed increases in their ERC skills after the completion of the intervention. An effect-size statistic was calculated to measure the improvement in percentage rate of correct responses between each participant's baseline and intervention phase. The effect-size results indicated a 60% to 80% improvement rate difference. Therefore, for these kindergartners, the metacognitive reading strategy significantly increased the ERC skills of the participants. The implications for social change include providing teachers with effective metacognitive instructional strategies for ERC skills and for improving ERC skills among students with ID, thus, allowing ID students greater opportunity to benefit from curriculum and instruction over time.

This study focused upon the established importance of the reading-writing relationship and its posited effect on literacy development. A repeated-measures experimental design investigated the effects of interactive writing instruction on 151 kindergarten students’ acquisition of early reading skills. Multilevel modeling was used to evaluate the impact of the reading-writing relationship as operationalized with interactive writing and writing workshop on the acquisition of early reading skills as repeated outcome measures at four points in time (Level 1) were clustered within students (Level 2). Results of this study indicated that instruction grounded in the reading-writing relationship, namely, interactive writing and writers’ workshop combined with existing reading instruction, led to equal growth in kindergarteners’ acquisition of early reading skills for each of the outcome measures at each of the four time points assessed. The growth effects obtained from the use of the reading-writing instructional treatments used in this study compared with the national normative samples from the outcome measures indicated that the reading-writing instruction significantly increased the rate of growth for the early reading skills of phonemic awareness, alphabet knowledge, and word reading.

The aim of this thesis is to create project documentation for a low-energy kindergarten in Polerady. The building has one floor with a flat green roof. The layout of the kindergarten is divided into two units, which contain two classes with facilities. The thesis consists of three parts. Part A consists of documentation for the building permission. The kindergarten is designed for 30 children and is divided into two units. Part B consists of the design of building services. The building uses LED lighting, mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, two heat pumps are designed for heating, which are connected to floor heating and hot water tank, on the roof of the building there are 30 photovoltaic panels. The energy produced from the panels is consumed by all appliances in the building. Part C, after creating another building energy performance certificate, compares two types of heat source. The floor heating scheme is created by calculating the heat losses of the rooms, using the DekSoft program.

The topic of my thesis is the design of a kindergarten in Rajhrad. The building is one storey with a flat roof. In the middle of the building there are technical facilities, a kitchen, a director's office and facilities for staff. On the sides there are classrooms with bathrooms and cloakrooms. The load-bearing masonry is designed of Heluz ceramic blocks. The perimeter masonry is insulated with the ETICS contact insulation system. The roof structure is made of prefabricated floor slabs SPIROLL. The building is covered by a green flat roof. The building will be heated by a gas condensing boiler. It will have an air handling unit located on the roof along with photovoltaic panels. Intelligent LED lighting will be deployed throughout the building. The third part deals with the comparison between masonry construction and the more environmentally friendly clay construction. Specifically, it compares the CO2 production of masonry and clay construction of the same building using the SBToolCZ methodology. The results obtained showed that the clay building produces approximately 30% less CO2 than the masonry building. I created my thesis using ArchiCAD and DEKsoft software.

The aim of the diploma thesis is processing of the design documentation for realization of the construction of a kindergarten in Pohořelice. It is a detached two-storey building with a partial basement. The building is divided into two functional objects. There are two classes for the kindergarten, kitchen, and offices on the first floor. On the second floor there is two classes of kindergarten too, and three classes for school children. Vertical supporting structures are made of ceramic blocks, in the basement there are reinforced concrete structures. Horizontal load-bearing structures ale mad of prestresses hollow core slabs Spiroll. The object is based on concrete strip foundations. The building is roofed with green flat roof.