Adolescent literacy, or adolescents' ability to read, write, and communicate about the variety of texts they encounter in and out of school, has remained inordinately, and consistently, low for the past 20 years (NCES, 2010). Self-efficacy is a widely-used construct for measuring and predicting student achievement (Pajares, Johnson, & Usher, 2007; Phan, 2011; Schunk& Zimmerman, 2007). A differential level of literacy achievement is noted between certain student subgroups including students with and without disabilities (NCES, 2010).Students with disabilities are also included within other student subgroups that persistently underperform on literacy assessments (NCES, 2010) compounding school districts efforts to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress benchmarks set by the federal government (NCLB, 2001). Presently, a large portion of high school graduates do not meet entry-level literacy requirements for post-graduate employment nor are they prepared for the literacy demands of college (Mikulecky, Smith-Burke, Beatty, 2009; NGA, 2010). Participants in this study include a diverse group of adolescents in seventh, eighth, and ninth grade attending one middle school and one high school in an urban, public school in one mid-Atlantic state. Results of this study support the emergent research area of developmental processes and instructional methods; in particular, this research supports educators' explicit instruction of strategic learning, self-regulation, and application of metacognitive strategies. Implications for practitioners, instructional leaders, and future research are suggested.

This is a qualitative study of the perceptions of a purposeful sample of 27 individuals who were students, teachers, or administrators in North Carolina Negro high schools in the period from 1934 to 1966. I interviewed all of them personally or by telephone. All interviews were tape recorded, and the tapes were later transcribed by an individual who was familiar with the speech patterns of the interviewees. A commercial software program was used to help me identify any themes that emerged from the interviews. One main theme was that the conditions of buildings and equipment varied with the particular high school and the time period. Participants’ comments indicated that facilities were substandard because they were old, had not been maintained adequately, or lacked indoor plumbing. A second theme was that students said they had taken a wide range of courses in their senior years, including English, history, mathematics (algebra and trigonometry), science (biology, chemistry and physics), foreign languages (French and Spanish), home economics, and several secretarial or business courses. Responses were mixed about how well the students were prepared for employment, but several students said they were well prepared for college. A third theme was that former students indicated that their parents, teachers, and administrators had worked together effectively to offer supportive environments for students. The fourth theme was that, although the quality of education for black students in general had improved after desegregation began, in some cases desegregation had caused problems for academically talented black students who aspired to go to college. Some expressed the opinion that their teachers had cared more about them than is now the case. A fifth theme was that, although several of the former students said they favored maintaining desegregated public schools, some of them also expressed the hope that more schools attended by blacks would become neighborhood schools. It was the consensus that the federal government was the cause of desegregating Negro high schools altogether. There was a lack of consensus about whether the overall situation of black students had improved or worsened as a result of desegregation.

The purpose of this study was to survey special education supervisors in public school systems throughout Tennessee and Georgia to determine the types of Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) procedures used and training provided to assessment personnel in their school systems. The primary focus of the study was on who conducts assessments, differences between the amount of training and support provided by school districts, and the use of best practices in conducting these assessments. Surveys were mailed to 317 supervisors, 108 in Tennessee, and 123 in Georgia. These supervisors were asked to respond to questions concerning assessments in their respective school systems. One hundred eight (78.8%) supervisors from Tennessee and 123 (68.3%) from Georgia responded. This resulted in a return rate of 72.8%. The size of the school systems represented in the study ranged from 200 students to 114,000 students. Frequency tables were used to present demographic data about the school systems. Six research questions formed the basis of the analysis. The first four questions were addressed using crosstabulation procedures, while t-tests for independent means were used to address research questions five and six. The results of the study indicate that 72.4% of the school systems involved in the study had procedures in place to conduct FBAs. Most training for assessment personnel is conducted at the school system level and special education teachers are the most targeted group for this training. The research found that there was no statistically significant difference in the length of training provided assessment personnel and the use of best practices in conducting FBAs. However, there were differences between the two states in the use of best practices in conducting FBA based training and support.

Computer technology has become an integral part of instruction at the elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels. Some instructors have enthusiastically adopted technological innovations in their classrooms, often expending their own funds for hardware and software, while others have resisted the trend, citing a myriad of reasons for not including computer technology. Significant research on the adoption of innovations has been undertaken by Everett M. Rogers, who identified individuals on a continuum from Innovator to Laggard. Rogers’ research was used as a basis to classify full-time faculty teaching in degree programs in the North Carolina Community College System and to compare these faculty members on five demographic variables. While faculty did not differ on age, gender or race/ethnicity, they did differ regarding their years of teaching experience and highest degree attained. Faculty in the North Carolina Community College were further identified as either users or non-users of computer technology in instruction and were analyzed on the same five demographic characteristics as were evaluated with the Rogers continuum. No differences were found in any of the five categories. Faculty members who reported employing technology for instruction often utilized multiple techniques, such as e-mail contact with students, posting assignments and other information on course websites, and using course management software for recordkeeping functions. Non-users identified a number of reasons for not incorporating technology into instruction, as well as which strategies might be employed to encourage them to adopt computer technology into instruction. Faculty classified as users or non-users of computer technology in instruction identified the presence of technology change agents in their organizations, and stated that other faculty members, or the president or other members of senior administration filled these roles.

Since the 1983 report by the National Council on Excellence declared the U.S. a nation at risk, the public has focused on the effectiveness of student achievement. Research over the past twenty years has yielded valuable information about how to improve student achievement for all students. The demand by the public for accountability in public education has resulted in state initiatives. In Tennessee, the Tennessee School Improvement Planning Process (TSIPP) is the state mandated vehicle for accountability. During the Fall of 2000, the Tennessee Department of Education’s Accountability Office placed four schools in one area of Tennessee on the “heads-up” list indicating a pattern of low student performance. In September, 2001, the four schools were placed in Good Standing based on state accountability measures. Was the TSIPP instrumental in the improvement of student achievement and removal of the schools from the state’s “heads-up” list? The purpose of this study was to discover how four schools placed on the state’s “heads-up” list for low performance in 2000, improved their student achievement to be placed in good standing in September, 2001. An evaluation of teacher morale during this time was also sought. Data were collected through a series of interviews with participants at the four school sites. An analysis of the data was conducted to identify emergent themes. Additional information was collected from archival Report Cards and School Improvement Plans for each site from the 2000 and 2001 school years. Findings were presented thematically. Leadership, high expectations for students, time to collaborate and use data were found to be important factors in improving student achievement. Teacher morale was negatively impacted through the process of accountability. Teachers indicated loss of creativity in teaching necessitated by the focus on test objectives. They also indicated that accountability should be shared with parents and students. Recommendations include restructuring the school day to include collaboration time for teachers, staff development to help teachers understand the values and mores of poverty level parents and students, a reduction in the amount of paperwork associated with the Tennessee School Improvement Plan, and research into the narrowing effects of the total curriculum due to accountability.

This study investigated the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA) English Language Arts (ELA) scores of proficient third-grade students and explored trends in achievement or decline on the FSA in fourth grade. Further, this study explored the relationship of school environment to academic outcomes of Black and Hispanic fourth-grade public school students in terms of FSA ELA scores from third to fourth grade. This study used multiple statistical analyses on pre-existing de-identified data to explore learning gains by race/ethnicity. By focusing on and studying only one school district, this study provides conclusive results connecting learning gains and ethnicity in specific instances, but not in others. Recommendations were made for modification of the study design, future applications of these findings, and continued research in the various stages of academic achievement of the target student populations, in addition to identifying discrete factors or combinations of factors that best support all students' learning gains.

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological Dissertation in Practice was to understand teachers' experience with the creation and use of visuals and leveled texts, written at various English proficiency levels, with English learners (ELs) in English II classrooms at a large high school in Central Florida. The need to examine teachers' experience with these scaffolds arose from the disparity between academic achievement rates of ELs and non-ELs as measured by the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA). This complex problem can be addressed from a multitude of perspectives, and this Dissertation in Practice sought to examine specific practical scaffolds that mainstream English Language Arts (ELA) teachers can and do implement in order to begin to address this gap. The main research question investigated what current ELA teachers are using and creating in regard to visuals and leveled texts for ELs at various World-class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) proficiencies, in their secondary classrooms. This Dissertation in Practice intended to provide practical insight for secondary educators who teach ELs alongside non-ELs in their ELA classrooms. This study included six English II teachers and through interviews, observations, lesson plans, and student work samples, five themes emerged. The themes that emerged were 1) Teachers utilize a variety of visuals and leveled texts in the classroom. 2)Teachers' introduction to scaffolds come primarily from other educators and the teacher's own means. 3)Teachers implement a variety of techniques in the classroom to accompany the use of visuals and leveled texts in the classroom. 4)The environment in which the teacher works impacts teacher use and creation of scaffolds. 5)The composition of students in the classroom impacts teacher use and creation of scaffolds. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

The researcher in this study investigated the verbal discourse moves of co-teachers in middle school mathematics classrooms to solicit students' mathematical thinking with a specific focus on students with disabilities. In this examination of two classrooms, students received high-level mathematics instruction from expertly trained co-teachers. A quantitative analysis of the video transcripts using a validated tool for coding teacher behaviors was used to examine the content and context of mathematical discourse in each of the classrooms. The researcher examined qualitative data using a critical discourse framework. Three themes emerged from the discourse analysis: (a) empowerment of co-teachers, (b) strategic use of scaffolding, and (c) cultivation of inclusive discourse with students with disabilities. The discourse analysis highlighted how each teacher's personal identities impacted a learning environment conducive to student participation and meaningful discourse. Collectively, the results provide a view of how co-teachers use scaffolding within discourse to facilitate mathematical instruction. In addition, the outcomes provide a glimpse into the challenges of discourse and equity embedded within the complexities of institutional, epistemological, and social access to inclusive mathematics. The co-teachers in this study complemented one another as they worked across disciplines to educate all students equitably. Instead of operating from a deficit orientation, they worked collaboratively to remove the curriculum, environmental, and social barriers. Teaching with what appeared to be a mindset of assuming success rather than anticipating failure, the teams sought opportunities to provide access to what some deem is one of the most challenging concepts, mathematics.

The purpose of this study was to examine the directional relationship between college students' level of grit, personal growth initiative, cognitive reappraisal emotion regulation strategy, and their level of harmful alcohol consumption and related problems. This study tested the theoretical structure model that college students' (N = 356) level of grit (as measured by the Grit Short Scale [Grit-S; Duckworth & Quinn, 2009]), personal growth initiative (PGI; as measured by the Personal Growth Initiative Scale-II [PGIS-II; Robitschek et al., 2012]), and cognitive reappraisal emotion regulation strategy (as measured by the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire [ERQ; Gross & John, 2003]) contribute to decreased hazardous alcohol consumption and related consequences (as measured by the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test [AUDIT]; Saunders et al., 1993). Specifically, the researcher tested the theorized directional relationship that college students with (a) high level of grit, (b) high levels of personal growth initiative, and (c) high level of cognitive reappraisal ER strategy would have low levels of alcohol consumption and related problems. The results of the structural equation model (SEM) analyses identified that college students' high grit scores had a strong negative relationship with their alcohol consumption and related problems scores. While college students' PGI and alcohol consumption and related problem had a positive relationship with a large effect size. Implications from the findings of this investigation include (a) increased understanding of the contribution of college students' grit, personal growth initiative, and cognitive reappraisal scores to their levels of harmful alcohol use and related problems; (b) greater knowledge relating to the constructs of interesting to inform counselors, counselor educators and researchers; and (c) more evidence of validity and reliability for the AUDIT, Grit-S, PGIS-II, and ERQ scores with college students.

This post hoc quantitative research used a causal-comparative design to explore the relationship between tiered interventions as part of an MTSS intervention and student achievement. Data from the Florida Standards Assessment for English Language Arts (FSA ELA) and mathematics (FSA Mathematics) from 2018 and 2019 formed the basis of the study; student demographic data also identified each student's highest level of reading, mathematics, and behavior interventions during the 2018-2019 school year. Students who received interventions were coded into a separate higher tier. Percentile change was calculated and analyzed using an ANOVA to determine how percentile change differed by intervention tier. In addition, a factorial ANOVA was used to determine whether student demographic characteristics moderated any intervention effects. Results were reported for FSA ELA percentile change for reading, mathematics, and behavior interventions and FSA Mathematics percentile change for each intervention category. Results of the analysis were mixed. Students in Tier I for reading and mathematics showed positive changes in percentile; there was no evidence that Tier II and Tier II students for reading and mathematics interventions improved faster than students in Tier I. The results for Tier IV, those students receiving ESE services, revealed positive changes greater in reading that were greater than Tier II and Tier III. In addition, mathematics change in percentile for students receiving Tier IV ESE services was significantly positive and showed promise for reducing the achievement gap. Race and economically disadvantaged status did not moderate intervention effects. However, English language learner status and gender did moderate intervention effects. This research extended other large-scale MTSS research by including data on students' reported intervention level. However, data regarding intervention program, duration, and fidelity were not collected. Lack of specific data about intervention implementation limited conclusions that could be drawn; future researchers should consider collecting intervention data to understand better when, where, and for whom interventions are most impactful. Further suggestions for research, implications for policy and practice are discussed.