In many states, local school systems are under pressure to implement educational programs to help students pass the statewide Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (ASK) in science, mathematics, and language arts literacy. The school district in which this study was conducted implemented a high quality teaching professional development (HQTPD) program for grade four teachers in 2008. The research problem was that, at the data site, fourth grade students were not making academic progress, and elementary schools were failing to make adequate yearly progress (AYP). The HQTPD program intervention was grounded in social learning theory. The main research question that guided this quantitative study was whether or not HQTPD affected fourth grade students' science, mathematics, and language arts literacy ASK scores. ASK test scores in science, mathematics, and language arts literacy were collected for 1,185 grade four students. The data were analyzed using a nonequivalent quasi-experimental pretest and posttest control group design, which involved two cohorts of fourth grade students before and after the implementation of the HQTPD program. Empirical evidence revealed that the HQTPD program had a positive impact on fourth grade students' science, mathematics, and language arts literacy ASK scores. The local school district and the surrounding institutes of higher education and professional development providers in this state may benefit from having an awareness of the effectiveness of HQTPD on student achievement. Implications for social change include including more programs like HQTPD that have the potential to increase student academic achievement.

This study explored the problem of student attrition in beginning courses of an Intensive English Program (IEP) that may affect the sustainability of the IEP. The purpose of the study was to understand the perceptions of continuing students and the factors that influenced their motivation and engagement to persist studying in the IEP. Constructivism and behavioral social learning theory guided this study. The research problem addressed the need for students to remain in IEPs and achieve second language acquisition. The research questions were designed to learn what instructional approaches motivated and engaged participants to persist in successive introductory courses. A qualitative case study design, guided by interpretive epistemology, was used to collect students' opinions, perceptions, and suggestions on their experiences in their first course. The target population was beginners in a second IEP course at a community college. A purposive sample of 16 participants took part in 2 focus groups, individual interviews, and open-ended surveys for data triangulation. Constant comparative analysis using open and axial coding was used to aggregate data themes for inquiry. The findings revealed that poor student engagement, lack of mentorship qualities in instructors, and little inclusion of technology have been persistent reasons for their dissatisfaction. The project, a collaborative professional development effort, was designed for IEP instructors to gain awareness on past and current research about the andragogical framework of student-centeredness which culminated with the cooperative elaboration of a set of best practices. The social impact of the study comes from benefits that sustainable IEP programs could offer to communities with large populations of immigrants and to international visitors to empower them to achieve immersion into English-speaking societies.

Current trends and research in education indicated that teacher learning is a crucial link to student achievement. There is a void in the research regarding teacher preferences for delivery models in professional development Determining teacher preferences is an important component in professional development planning and the driving inquiry for this research. The purpose of this exploratory case study was to determine teacher preferences in delivery models for professional development and whether delivery models influenced teacher behaviors in the classroom. The primary theory for this study was based on andragogy, and the research was conducted under the conceptual framework of constructivist principles. Data collection included interviews with 10 classroom teachers using open ended questions. Data analysis included the extraction of themes and subthemes emerging from the interviews. Findings indicated teachers' preference for hands on professional learning opportunities and technology use in delivery models. Teachers also expressed an interest in being given a choice in the delivery model of their professional learning opportunities. Implications for positive social change focus on professional development planners and facilitators, who are encouraged to seek preferences from teachers to best meet the needs and interests of educators in order to advance changes in teacher behavior and subsequent improvement to student achievement.

Even though guidelines at a suburban elementary school in Georgia were in place for teachers regarding frequency and methods of parent communication, it was unclear if these methods were being used consistently and effectively. Research has shown that effective communication increases student achievement, but there is a lack of research examining communication preferences of teachers and parents. Therefore, this study evaluated current practices by comparing parents' and teachers' perceptions of what constitutes effective school-to-home communications. The researcher administered questionnaires to a random sample of teachers and parents of 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students to compare their perceptions of the communication methods currently used between school and home, and to expose any need for modification to current practices. Data analysis using a t-test for independent measures was used to compare the teachers' and parents' mean scores computed from the Likert-scaled survey. Based on the results of the independent samples t-test, there was a significant difference between teachers and parents in communication scores for all parts of the survey instruments. Specifically, teachers rated themselves higher than the parents rated the teachers' practices. The results of this current study will be shared with the school's leadership team to determine the need for modifications to the current practices in order to communicate more effectively. A future qualitative study could examine the particular preferences of parents regarding communication. This study highlights the need to educate teachers about adapting their communication practices to meet parents' needs. The overall implications for social change include using this information to strengthen the partnership between school and home to increase overall student academic performance.

Studies suggest that a potential misalignment between assessment and grading practices in reporting secondary student academic achievement has negatively impacted students since grades may not truly reflect actual achievement. Accordingly, the purpose of the current study was to compare secondary teachers' use of academic and nonacademic factors when reporting student achievement before and after professional development on assessment and grading practices. Following change theory, the study investigated the efficacy of employing professional development as a means of influencing more standard and appropriate practices among secondary teachers with regard to using academic and nonacademic factors when employing standards-based reporting to determine grades. The single-group repeated measures design used a random sample of 39 secondary teachers (6th-12th grade) in a nonpublic school in the Midwest who completed online adaptations of the Teacher Survey on Grading Practices (TSGP) and McREL surveys. Chi-square analyses of the TSGP indicated that there was a significant difference in the way teachers used academic and nonacademic factors in determining grades after professional development. Specifically, improvement and mastery, two academic criteria, increased after the intervention, whereas all nonacademic factors on the survey decreased in the amount of weight teachers gave them in determining a summative grade for students. The results of this study led to the conclusion that professional development was an effective means to influence change in grading practices. The study contributes to social change by informing professional development models that promote meaningful conversations about the nature of student achievement, systematic assessment practices, and how to most accurately and equitably assign grades.

There is a lack of understanding regarding how sensemaking could be incorporated into a professional development program to improve teacher quality and student achievement. The lived experiences of high school English language development teachers as they interpret English language development and one state's high school exit exam instructional policies were explored in this phenomenological study. The conceptual framework that supported this study is based on the theory of sensemaking, the processes by which educators interpret and implement policies. The participants were English language development teachers of English learners who have not yet passed the exit exam. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and artifact collection. An analysis of participants' responses was conducted which lead to the disclosure of themes related to sensemaking. The findings of the study indicated teachers' interpretations and implementations of instructional policies are not in line with the intentions of the policies. Contributing to positive social change, this study provided a better understanding of teacher sensemaking and its potential to transform professional development, improve teacher quality, and increase student achievement. The study includes recommendations for professional development programs including developing standards-based outcomes, supervising policy implementation, defining roles and responsibilities, and building teacher capacity.

Research indicates that many students have difficulty with mathematics, which can be attributed to many factors including math anxiety. Students who experience math anxiety have poor attitudes towards mathematics and perform below grade level based on class and statewide assessments. The purpose of this quasi-experimental quantitative study was to investigate the effectiveness of cooperative groups on the math anxiety levels of Grade 5 male and female students. The theoretical foundation of the study included Vygotsky's social learning and Piaget's concept of knowledge. Thirty-two students from 2 Grade 5 classrooms were administered the pre and post MASC inventory. A repeated-measure ANOVA was used to compare the overall mean difference for each group. Key results revealed that students in the treatment group (cooperative grouping) had less math anxiety after 9 weeks than students involved in the control group (noncooperative grouping). Females in the treatment group had lower math anxiety scores than the females in the control group, while males in the treatment group showed no change in math anxiety levels when compared to males in the control group. A conclusion from this study suggests that cooperative grouping, especially for females, may have a positive impact on students' attitudes and overall mathematics performance. It is recommended that administrators schedule professional development on cooperative grouping to implement successful cooperative learning in the classroom. Positive social change could be realized by teachers incorporating strategies in lessons that promote a positive learning environment as well as support learning and academic achievement.

Early childhood (EC) administrators could be the most important contributors to quality experiences in EC settings; they are also responsible for the caliber of experiences for children and staff. A quality EC program is licensed and accredited with administrators who have professional preparation and work experience and can lead and manage EC programs. There are the few direct educational paths to become an EC administrator. This lack of standardization influences the quality of leadership and organizational climate in EC settings. The purpose of this qualitative study as reflected in the research questions was to explore the experiences of EC administrators regarding their educational paths, their views of themselves as transformational leaders, and the influence of their leadership on their organizational climate. Prior research on the subject of leadership practices in EC suggests that Burns' transformational leadership is most beneficial, but this leadership style has not been explored in detail in EC settings. This phenomenological study included interviews of six EC administrators about their educational paths, their views as transformational leaders, and how their leadership influenced the organizational climate in their setting. Data were analyzed for themes that emerged. Findings suggested the need for streamlined undergraduate and graduate coursework. Implications for positive social change are the potential for improved quality of programs and for the support needed for early childhood leadership.

According to IDEA and NCLB requirements, students with disabilities are held to the same standards established for nondisabled students. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the impact of a special education inclusion program for middle school students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. Student outcomes were measured based on the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) test scores for reading/language and mathematics. The theoretical foundation for this study was Vygotsky's social development theory applied to special education inclusion programs to support learning within the general curriculum for students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. An independent samples t test was used to measure the difference in the means of the TCAP scores for 2 cohorts of Grade 6, 7, and 8 students with disabilities (one group taught before the implementation of an inclusion program and one group taught after the implementation of an inclusion program). The findings indicated that inclusion had a significant positive impact on TCAP scores in both reading/language and mathematics. The implications for positive social change generated by this research include a better understanding of the impact of an inclusion program on the TCAP scores of students with mild to moderate learning disabilities at one middle school in Tennessee. Effective IEP decisions have implications for social change because positive educational experiences for middle school students with mild to moderate disabilities increase the likelihood such students will graduate from high school to enter higher education or the work force.

In response to its failure to meet state mandated proficiency standards in reading and mathematics over the past three years, a rural, Title I high school (LS) in South Carolina purchased and implemented the commercially available literacy program READ 180 (R180) for the 2008-2009 academic year. While previous research reported by Scholastic, Incorporated (R180) had provided support for the use of R180 in improving literacy, these studies have been criticized recently for their lack of comparable control groups, experimenter bias and lack of data from other content areas such as mathematics. The purpose of this study was to determine the relative effectiveness of R180 in improving reading and math performance when compared with traditional high school English course instruction in a group of ninth grade students at LS. The theoretical framework for this study was based on Vygotsky's cognitive developmental theory which emphasizes the role of language in learning in all content areas. A group of below average reading ability students was assigned by LS to the R180 instructional class while a second group of average ability students was assigned to the traditional English course (TRAD). Both groups were pre and post tested in reading and math using the state-sponsored Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) standardized achievement test. Dependent samples t-tests and Analysis of Covariance were used to analyze the data. The results indicated statistically significant improvements in both math and reading scores for the TRAD group but not for the R180 group. This study has implications for positive social change in the form of independent, empirically-based data to both inform the administration of LS in future decision making regarding funding for the very costly R180 program as well as contributing to the overall database on R180's effectiveness.