Flow theory explains the conditions for optimal engagement (enjoyment, interest, and concentration). There are three types of engagement: cognitive, emotional, and behavioral. When these are combined and present at their peak, flow takes place. In the era of information, media, and technology, current concerns in education include an increasing student disengagement and disaffection. Recently, educational organizations have focused on 21st century skills and the importance of developing these in order to better engage with society. This mixed study explores the relationship between the inclusion of 21st century skills in an L2 task and the level of engagement of students, and whether it reaches flow. Participants came from two sections of intermediate-low Spanish FL classrooms. Findings show there is a positive relationship between 21st century skills and all three types of engagement. 21st century skills are also related to authentic work. Sense of control, clear goals, high challenges matched with high skills in a contextualized setting lead to increased engagement. Flow did not take place, but different levels and intensity of engagement in all areas did.

In an ever increasingly competitive global marketplace, a concern exists that American students are not being adequately prepared with the skills needed for the 21st century. As a remedy, improving quality of teacher instruction is a current national focus. Stakeholders are questioning current infrequent and inefficient methods of evaluating teacher performance. Many states are looking at using a 360 model of evaluating through multiple perspectives including the students themselves as key stakeholders. One method of accessing student voice and adding another perspective to teacher evaluations would be to include student evaluations in the rating of teacher performance, Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET). While using student evaluations of teacher performance is wide spread in higher education, the practice has been limited in public school settings until brought to light by the publication of the recent Gates Foundation MET (Measures of Effective Teaching) Project (2010). Currently, states across the nation are considering adding a student input component to teacher evaluations. With the validity and reliability of student evaluations in the university settings still under debate by professors, public school teachers also fear punitive measures and public judgment based on the verdicts of adolescents. This research examined the archival data from a program study of one high school's student evaluation implementation process, accessing teacher feedback from the initial evaluation process and then an adjusted implementation of student evaluations according to teacher feedback the following year. Based on mixed method design using both qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze teacher questionnaires, focus group open-ended responses and statistical analysis of close-ended agree/disagree statements from teacher questionnaires, this study used triangulation to explore teacher reflections on their anxiety levels created by the student evaluation implementation process, the value they found in student evaluations, and the degree to which student evaluations facilitated change in their teaching instruction. Exploring possibilities through the eyes of teachers to reduce their anxiety and increase their value of student input, this study suggests ways to tap into the potential but underutilized resource in schools that could come from developing a mutually beneficial partnership between students and teachers to improve teacher instruction and increase student learning.

The evolving nature of education emphasizes the importance of fostering 21st-century skills. To align with the requirements of the contemporary era, Uzbekistan introduced its new competency based National Curriculum, highlighting the development of 21st century skills. Despite the National Curriculum's emphasis on contemporary skills, a gap persists due to the exam-focused education system in Uzbekistan, with university entrance exams largely dictating classroom practices. This qualitative study, through students’ lenses and experiences, aims to explore how preparation for these exams, particularly in English, aligns with the goals of National Curriculum. Washback, defined as the influence of tests on teaching and learning, has been utilized as the study’s conceptual framework. Reflexive thematic analysis has been employed as the method for data analysis. The participants include first-year public university students in Uzbekistan. The findings revealed a multifaceted, complex and context-specific nature of washback. Key observations include a negative washback effect of high stakes public university entrance exams, leading to the prioritization of exam subjects at the expense of holistic education, a misalignment between English instruction and the curriculum, high-stakes entrance exam induced stress, and broader educational context factors, such as lack of teacher qualification and competence, low teacher salary, contributing to poor quality education. The study also highlights the crucial role of private tutoring in preparing for higher education and the emergence of unethical practices in schools. While the exams fostered certain 21st-century skills in students, an overemphasis on rote memorization limits deeper cognitive competencies. Positive washback is observed in lyceum education and among students preparing for the IELTS exam - an alternative pathway to fulfill the English language requirement for public HE, advocating for measurement-driven instruction and comprehensive language skill development. The study concludes that positive changes in Uzbekistan’s public university admission system could be achieved through a more holistic assessment of students’ skills and competencies and measurement-driven approach to education. The study recommends incorporating students' school performance as an admission criterion, offering a more comprehensive assessment of their abilities and knowledge.

Curriculum integration is a unique approach to teaching. Twenty-first century skill approaches to curriculum integration train teachers in the process of curriculum integration, such that they are able to integrate various subject combinations in their teaching that produce new skills and dispositions in their students. Yet no scale to measure teachers' beliefs about the value of and efficacy beliefs towards implementing curriculum integration exists that is universal in the sense that it can be used any time any subject combination is integrated. Using a sample of 196 teachers at a professional development meeting in a mid-sized suburban school district in the Mountain West, this dissertation tests a scale that measures teachers' beliefs about the value of and efficacy beliefs towards curriculum integration and assesses its psychometric properties. The UCI21-T scale loaded as a bifactor model with one general factor and two specific factors. Conceptually and practically, however, the scale is best scored and reported as a two-correlated factor model. The scale demonstrated evidence of validity and reliability and shows promise for use by administrators and professional developers when assessing teachers' beliefs about the value of and efficacy beliefs towards 21st century curriculum integration.

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One-to-one computing initiatives are becoming a part of many school divisions across the United States as district leadership analyzes ways to improve student learning and create 21st century learning spaces. Studying how school divisions planned, prepared, implemented and sustained a one-to-one computing initiative is an important step that school leaders must do in order to help foster learning environments that promote critical thinking, collaboration, communication and creativity. The research presented in this paper came from a case study conducted on City School District (CSD), a kindergarten through twelfth (K-12) grade school system that implemented a one-one computing initiative for all students. A detailed analysis of archived meeting minutes, surveys, questionnaires, classroom observations, student assessments and interviews helped answer research questions that focused on the planning, implementation, and plans for sustaining the one-to-one computing initiative. The one-to-one computing initiative for CSD started with a vision created by the superintendent of schools that focused on developing an individualized education plan for all students. The vision eventually became the vision for the entire school division during the digital conversion. School leaders can use the studies' findings and recommendations to help guide them through the implementation of a one-to-one computing initiative. / Doctor of Education / Providing an electronic mobile device such as a laptop or tablet computer to all students in kindergarten through 12th grade school system is an undertaking that requires a coordinated effort from the school division’s leadership as well as the teachers, students and other community stakeholders. Beginning in 2013, City School District (CSD) began the planning process for providing every student in their school system with electronic mobile devices. After five years of planning, implementing, conducting pilot programs and expansion, CSD has been able to provide all students in grades 3-12 with an electronic mobile device. This case study focuses on three research questions. 1. How did the school division implement a one-to-one computing initiative? 2. How has the staff adapted to the innovative change of a one-to-one computing initiative? 3. How does the school division plan to continue and sustain the one-to-one computing initiative? The case study found key elements for implementing a one-to-one computing initiative by collecting data from archived meeting minutes, surveys, questionnaires and interviews. School leadership teams attempting a one-to-one computing initiative can use the findings and recommendations from this study to implement a one-to-one computing initiative.

Role clarity for any individual leads to more successful implementation of his or her job expectations. In a school, there are many individuals with various roles to fill. The Instructional Technology Resource Teacher (ITRT) has multiple roles within a school including: training teachers, designing integrated curriculum, managing learning resources, modeling instructional strategies, acting as a technology resource, assisting content specialists, and preview and recommending software. This study found that stakeholders in schools consistently recognize the ITRT as both a trainer and designer of integrated lessons. Other instructional support roles are recognized only by some stakeholders in schools. When a greater emphasis is placed on 21st Century skills throughout the school, there is greater consistency in the perceptions of the roles of the ITRT by stakeholders.

This study examines some aspects of student performance in the 21st century skills of Information and Communication (ICT) Literacy and collaboration. In this project, extant data from the Assessment and Teaching for 21st Century Skills project (ATC21S) will be examined. ATC21S is a collaborative effort among educational agencies in six countries, universities, educational research groups, high tech innovators and the multinational corporations Cisco, Intel and Microsoft. ATC21S demonstration tasks explore the use of digital literacy and collaborative problem solving constructs in educational assessment. My research investigates evidence from cognitive laboratories and pilots administered in one of the ATC21S demonstration scenarios, a collaborative mathematics/science task called "Global Collaboration Contest: Arctic Trek." Using both quantitative and qualitative methods, I analyze student work samples. Specifically, I (i) develop a rubric as a measurement tool to evaluate the student assessment artifact "Arctic Trek Notebook" for (a) generalized patterns and (b) trends that may indicate skill development in collaborative learning in a digital environment and (ii) conduct descriptive studies among the variables of student age and student notebook characteristics. Results are intended to inform instructional leaders on estimates of student ability in virtual collaboration and to make suggestions for instructional design and professional development for online collaborative learning assessment tasks in K-12 education.

The Kansas City School District was unable to attain accreditation from 1955 until 2016, enduring high dropout rates, exceptionally low college entrance rates, and poor performances on standardized tests. At the district’s fine arts school, students also experienced these low educational outcomes. But despite these educational setbacks, the fine arts training they received appears to have contributed to their successful long-term outcomes in adulthood. The purpose of this case study is to explore the factors that contributed to talent development and overall thriving among adult artists who attended the fine arts school in this low performing school district. The research questions include 1) How do the artists describe the experience of developing their talent while attending an unaccredited high school? 2) What factors do the artists identify that aided in the emergence and continual development of their artistic practice? I interviewed 8 adult artists (aged 34-37) who discussed experiences that catalyzed and contributed to the development of their artistic talent. I identify themes and interpret data using grounded theory. Based on existing research about talent development, this study might show that these students thrived because the fine arts school they attended prioritized talent development over core content standards. The focus on talent development appears to have cultivated certain intrapersonal traits—such as awareness, motivation, and perseverance—which may account for their success as adults. Such identifiable traits are relevant to the “21st century skills” that are emerging in the education community. By understanding these artists’ experiences through a case study, educators and policymakers may have a clearer picture of how talent development helps to cultivate 21st century skills in students.