The purpose of this study was to seek answers to the following questions: (1) What is the difference between student academic achievement based on the Cognitive Ability Pre-Test as compared to their academic achievement based on the Cognitive Ability Post-test after thinking skills were regularly emphasized to the sample? (2) What are the rural teachers' attitudes toward the higher order level thinking lessons? (3) What are the rural students' attitudes toward the higher level thinking lessons? The population for this study included the Gifted and ESL (LEP-Limited English Proficient) students and their teachers in two rural Southwestern elementary schools. The study covered a three month time period. The students were exposed to higher order thinking skills three times per week with communication and cooperative learning encouraged. The teachers were given an attitude questionnaire constructed to indicate teacher attitude toward worth of the program and various aspects of its implementation. The teacher attitude questionnaires were analyzed in five parts and the results were represented on charts. The results were that the teachers had a more positive than negative attitude toward the worth and implementation of the program, and wanted it to continue. The students were given an attitude questionnaire constructed to indicate student attitude toward worth of the program and various aspects of its implementation. The student attitude questionnaires were analyzed in five parts and the results were represented on charts. The results for the students were that the students were supportive of the activities in the program and felt that the program helped to give them a better understanding of their thinking ability and skills. There appeared an improvement in the ESL student's self-esteem. Achievement for the pre and post-tested students was measured by the Cognitive Abilities Test in the areas of verbal, quantitative and non-verbal skills. T-tests were used to compare student results on the pre- and post-tests. All groups showed some average improvement or no change, and in each group more students improved than declined or remained the same. The improvement in non-verbal skills by the gifted student group can be conclusively attributed to the experimental program. The combined results of the Cognitive Abilities Pre and Post-test scores and the teacher and student attitude questions were used to make recommendations for program improvement.

This study looked at parent involvement from the teachers' point of view. A survey of 73 teachers in one geographical area of a small city was undertaken to find out if teachers attempt to recruit parents as volunteers, how they recruit them, and the tasks that parent volunteers do. A comparison was made between primary grade teachers and intermediate grade teachers as well as between bilingual and non-bilingual teachers. The results indicate that most of the teachers involved in the study do attempt to recruit parent volunteers, they tend to use similar techniques, and they involve parents in a variety of tasks. A few differences were found between bilingual and non-bilingual teachers but the greatest surprise was that there were so few differences found between primary and intermediate level teachers.

The teaching of the social studies in American schools changed significantly from 1900 to 1930. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the nature of those changes. A review was made of social studies education journals, publications of the National Education Association and the National Council for the Social Studies, and textbooks on social studies curriculum. The narrative content and pictures of selected elmentary social studies textbooks were analyzed to determine how the portrayal of the sexes, as well as racial and ethnic groups changed over time. / Early in the twentieth century committees of the national Education Association and the American Historical Association set standards which influenced social studies education. Earle Rugg was instrumental in founding the National Council for the Social Studies in 1921. Harold Rugg wrote and published the first elementary social studies textbook series in the 1930s. Rugg's books were innovative in that they described the way people lived and worked in the 1930s. / Citizenship education has been a recurring theme of the social studies, especially during and after wars in which the United States was involved. The civil rights and women's movements in the 1960s and 1970s produced social changes which were reflected in textbooks as more attention was given to minorities and women. In the 1960s and 1970s, social studies leaders began to urge the field to develop higher thinking processes in students because of the knowledge explosion. / The author concluded that the elementary social studies textbooks were not trend setters, but rather their content was the result of changes in society. She judged that elementary social studies textbooks reflect changes in society rather than bring them about. Events in society led to social change. Following social change, publishers became aware of marketable themes which were incorporated into textbook content. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-04, Section: A, page: 1033. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

The purpose of the study was to discover, define, and describe contextual dimensions which are associated with first grade students' engaged time-on-tasks. Another goal was to discover, define, and describe tasks which engaged the students in more on-task time. / Because of the lack of a theory of instruction, the research on time-on-task has been based upon models of time and learning which do not include contextual variables. This study was designed to fill this gap in order to build upon the large body of quantitative studies which have shown a consistent positive relationship between time-on-task and school achievement. Beause the goals for the study required a discovery mode, a micro-ethnograhic design was chosen. The researcher spent two months as a daily participant observer in a public school first grade classroom, adopting the role of first grade student in order to gather authentic data from the child's point of view. / The findings of the study revealed 34 contextual dimensions associated with time-on-task, 20 of which were discussed in detail. Dimensions which were highly prominent and have the most promise for intervention strategies were: the availability of help, mutual assistance, proximity to adults, sense of purpose, pride in personal products and accomplishments, stamina, fooling around, mimicry, conversations among peers, and personal possessions. Dimensions which were embedded within either the social structure of the classroom or the developmental characteristics of the young child were: concept of time, semantic differential, frame clashes, contextualizing conventions, and social stratification through ability grouping. Dimensions which were less prominent than expected were: noise, interruptions, rewards and punishments, and competition. A final dimension that was more prominent than expected was parallel processing. Although it was expected that particular tasks could be discovered which engaged children more, the nature of the task proved to be yet another of many contextual dimensions associated with time-on-task. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-09, Section: A, page: 2756. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

A review of the literature relating to waiting revealed that there was insufficient understanding of the social meaning of waiting in school. To expand this understanding a descriptive study of waiting was conducted in two elementary school classrooms using unstructured observation. The data from the observations comprises 31 single-spaced pages in Appendix B of this dissertation. / The data analysis revealed that waiting is largely a contextual variable. Several different kinds of time, social lessons, and identities are presented along with some appearances of waiting in these contexts. Some implications of waiting for socialization and cultural reproduction are discussed, and some suggestions for further research are presented. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 44-10, Section: A, page: 2977. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1983.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the outside factors of the gender of the principal, the choice of subject matter used for the demonstration of competence, or years of teacher experience have an effect on the mean scores of elementary teachers evaluated using the Leon County Teacher Assessment Process. / The evaluations of five hundred twenty-one elementary personnel teaching in the Leon County school system were additionally coded to reflect the three outside factors. Each outside factor was addressed using a different test. Student's t-test was used to test the effect of principals' gender on teachers' mean scores. Analysis of Variance was used to test the effect of subject selected to demonstrate competence on teachers' mean scores. A Pearson Product-Moment Correlational Coefficient was used to test the correlation between teachers' years of experience and teachers' mean scores. / Results from Student's t-tests for true mean differences between teachers' scores and principals' gender on each of the four Areas were significant: Area Two: Initiating Instruction, was significant (t = 8.62, p < .01); Area Three: Presenting Instruction, was significant (t = 12.80, p < .01); Area Four was significant (t = 7.49, p < .01); Area Five: Managing Student Conduct was significant (t = 9.25, p < .01). When mean differences between teachers' scores, based on the selection of subject matter, were tested using Analysis of Variance, the result from Area Five: Managing Student Conduct was significant (F = 2.203, p = .046). The result from Area Four: Communicating With Students, indicated a significant, albeit small positive correlation between teachers' years of experience and teachers' mean scores (r = .1236, p = .007) when tested using a Pearson Product-Moment Correlational Coefficient. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-08, Section: A, page: 2886. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.

Over the past 20 years, a movement to offer greater access and choice in public education has begun to challenge the traditional attendance boundary school system. Public school choice provides an opportunity for parents who do not have the resources to change attendance boundaries but who want additional public school options. Proponents argue that increased competition incentivizes all schools to improve performance. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were any potential relationships among school choice options and other inputs such as student characteristics when looking at student science achievement. Based on an education production function model, the study focused on the specific output of performance. A conceptual model looking at common inputs related to the outcome of student performance, identified five groups of inputs: school type, student characteristics, learning needs, school characteristics, and teacher quality. Rather than look across states, where policies affecting student performance differ, this study looked exclusively at one large state population. Subjects of the study were fifth grade students in the state of Florida. Utilizing three years of state science assessment data, the roles of school type, selected student demographics, and ELL status were examined using logistic regression and ordinary least squares analysis. Results indicated that, while some subpopulations of students performed better in different school types, school type alone was not a strong predictor of student science achievement. / A Dissertation submitted to the School of Teacher Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester 2017. / July 10, 2017. / Includes bibliographical references. / Diana Rice, Professor Directing Dissertation; Patrice Iatarola, University Representative; Angela Davis, Committee Member; Elizabeth Jakubowski, Committee Member.

Data Driven Decision Making (DDDM) is the process of using assessment data to determine instruction in class. Contemporary use of DDDM has grown from the No Child Left Behind’s emphasis on using standardized testing results to measure school effectiveness. Most research on the topic of DDDM focuses on brick and mortar schools, however, virtual instruction programs are becoming more prevalent. For example, the state of Florida requires school districts to offer up to three full time virtual instruction programs for students in kindergarten through 12th grades. Virtual instruction programs have a unique set of challenges when it comes to implementing DDDM due to the fact that administrators, teachers and students are separated by time and space. The purpose of this study was to understand how elementary online educators perceive the use of data to make instructional decisions and how they were doing so in their synchronous classes. Eight online elementary teachers from three different virtual instruction programs were interviewed to find out more about how DDDM is implemented in virtual instruction programs. Purposeful sampling was used to identify typical cases, and an interview guide with open-ended questions was used to gain further insight into the online teacher’s perspectives on how they specifically, or the school generally, implemented these principles. Interviews were analyzed using directive content analysis in order to identify patterns and themes with the responses of participants. All eight participants of the student said that they thought using assessment data to inform their instruction is a useful practice, however, they did identify some barriers to effectively doing so. While online teachers had many organizational tools for assessment data, they questioned the validity of the data due to a lack of teacher oversight. Additionally, the participants felt confident in their ability to analyze assessment data and make decisions about what should be taught in synchronous classes. A lack of research based instructional strategies made it challenging to implement instructional plans. Finally, the participants identified a lack of professional development on implementing DDDM, but had mixed thoughts on whether they would actually prefer more support from their administrators on the topic. In conclusion, the implications for practice gleaned from this study vary due to the structural differences of the virtual instruction programs. Still, one factor of importance is the ability to collect valid assessment data, since all other aspects of DDDM rely on assessment data being a genuine reflection of the students. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. / Spring Semester 2018. / March 6, 2018. / data driven instruction, online teachers, virtual instruction / Includes bibliographical references. / Carolyn Herrington, Professor Directing Dissertation; Ithel Jones, University Representative; Marytza Gawlik, Committee Member; Courtney Preston, Committee Member.

Third and fifth graders were studied to find out if there was a difference between popular and unpopular children with respect to specific personality traits. Personality traits measured were extraversion, locus of control, self-control, delay of gratification and impulsivity. Popularity was measured by various sociometric procedures. Extraversion was measured by the Junior Eysenck Personality Inventory, locus of control by the Nowicki-Strickland Children's Locus of Control Scale and self-control by the Kendall-Wilcox Self-Control Rating Scale. Scales were developed to measure children's self-perceptions of delay of gratification and impulsivity. Data were analyzed by means of analysis of variance and Person product-moment correlations. Findings indicated that internal locus of control was associated with high popularity and that popular children had more self-control than unpopular children. Differences between status groups on extraversion, delay of gratification and impulsivity were not demonstrated. The study points to locus of control and self-control as central aspects in the determination of social status. Improved understanding of the relationship between social status and personality must await advances in the measurement of personality traits in children. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-11, Section: A, page: 3278. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

The two major purposes of this study were - (1) to identify and describe various models of language arts instruction ranging from very content-centered, segmented to very student-centered, integrated; and (2) to describe the effects of those models, and certain variables operating within the models, on the writing of second and third graders. / Two observation instruments were designed and pilot tested. The instruments allowed trained observers to record the amount of student to student talk in the classrooms and to place each classroom on a numerical continuum representing the range of instructional models. / The subjects of the descriptive study were 10 teachers and 180 students in Leon County, Florida. Extended observations of these classes by a team of observers indicated the ten teachers employed different models of language arts instruction representing the full range of the continuum of instructional models. / During four instructional weeks in the spring of 1981, all the written work of the 180 students was collected and the number of words copied and composed by each student was counted. Two samples of writing were collected for analysis. The two samples were analyzed by a group of raters trained to use an analytic scale and by a computer text analysis program. Data was analyzed by correlating the various measures of writing quality with different variables related to students and to instructional models. / Two variables were identified that seemed to have positive effects on student writing. Positive correlations existed between the quality of writing, and (1) the number of words composed daily by students, and (2) the amount of direct teacher to student communication. In the classes with good writers, students were inspired to compose almost daily and teachers used approximately 40% of their language arts instructional time for teacher-student conferences. Although the data did not provide a clear endorsement of any particular model on instruction, four of the five "good writing classes" were rated as being student-centered, integrated. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-10, Section: A, page: 4290. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.