Teaching, though viewed as one of the most honorable professions, also has the regrettable reputation of having one of the highest attrition rates of any occupation. The most often quoted statistics claim that 30% of new teachers will leave the profession within the first 3 years and 50% will be gone by the end of their fifth year in the classroom. This mass exodus comes at a great expense to the new teacher in the way of high university fees, lost time in training, and disillusionment. For school districts, the cost of turnover in teachers stretches the capacity of an already inadequate budget and diverts limited financial, personnel, and time resources. Students also lose out on the advantages of being taught by a practiced and experienced teacher. Many studies have been conducted to determine the disconnect between the expectations and the realities of teaching in the classroom. The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to add to the body of knowledge that asks, "Why are teachers leaving, and how do we get them to stay?" In this investigation, 20 beginning teachers who attended 1 of 6 local southern California universities were surveyed and interviewed in an attempt to discover how well (according to their own perceptions) their university preparation program actually set them up for success in the classroom. The findings suggest that while the university preparation programs are producing confident teachers in the areas of Curriculum, Communication, and Technology, the beginning teachers report ongoing challenges in the areas of Classroom Management and Discipline, Assessments, and working with Diverse Populations. Three key recommendations for the preparation programs would be to increase the length of the student-teaching assignment to a full year in order to provide maximum real world experience; secondly, develop better articulation between the university preparation programs and the Induction Programs so as to avoid repetition of services; and lastly, promote a philosophy in the local school districts that discourages the placement of beginning teachers in the toughest assignments.

<p> The attrition rate of teachers in an urban/suburban school district in a northeastern state caused schools to fail to attain annual yearly progress. To reverse this problem, administrators must understand the importance of their leadership and teacher efficacy and the need to nurture teachers to increase student performance. The purpose of this sequential mixed-methods study was to determine whether a relationship existed between leadership and efficacy. Total-population sampling was used to obtain 19 elementary and middle teachers who completed two surveys to examine the relationship between principals' behaviors (human relations, trust/decision making, instructional leadership, control, and conflict) and teacher efficacy (student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom management). Survey data were analyzed using Pearson's product-moment correlations. In addition, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 3 teachers who had 5 or fewer years of teaching experience. These data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Quantitative findings indicated significant relationships between instructional leadership with teacher engagement and conflict with teacher engagement. Themes, based on the integrated model of teacher efficacy, revealed connections with the principal and support, guidance, and structure provided by the principal. Principals must focus on leadership behaviors that may increase teacher efficacy. These endeavors may contribute to positive social change when school leaders support teachers, who, in turn support students in their educational challenges to increase academic performance.</p>

<p> This study examined the construct of teacher buy-in (TBI) during a grading policy reform effort in a high school. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe teachers' perceived value to the grading reform. Additionally, the researcher studied teacher behavior by identifying the teachers' actual practice of the policy. The study finally compared the identified reported values of the participants with their actual grading practices to determine the convergence of values and practice. </p><p> The research provided empirical evidence for a new way to study TBI and its relationship to a reform implementation. This study addressed a school-site policy reform effort and described TBI contributing to, and perhaps challenging, current practices in school reform and teacher grading policies. This study described the extent to which teacher bought into the grading policies and provided a framework for studying TBI and grading policies in the context of Standards-Based Reform in the future. The findings and discussion highlight how grading policies are a critical element of the student evaluation process in the increasing movement towards national learning standards and testing. </p>

<p> The notion of building sustainable schoolhouses is catching hold amongst school professionals and designers. But gaps exist in the understanding of what that means. </p><p> This dissertation emerges from a problem of practice identified from an educator's practitioner perspective, involving lack of clarity around the notion of sustainability as central to a school design and construction initiative. The study revolves around the central design question, "What is a pattern language appropriate for the development of a sustainable schoolhouse?" It goes further, to analyze the gaps and overlaps in three professional groups of experts and their understanding of design patterns for inclusion in the pattern language. The conceptual framework uses a broad-based definition of sustainability. The review of literature relies on a framework utilizing a twin focus&mdash;on design and on sustainability&mdash;to finally examine sustainable design. The study uses a multi-pronged, three round Delphi Method process to elicit design patterns from experts in three professional groups associated with building sustainable K-12 school facilities: educators, designers, and ecologists. It employs a <i>W</i> coefficient of concordance to seek objective accord amongst members of the three professional groups in terms of their respective selection of design patterns for inclusion, and subsequent ordinal rankings of the design patterns. The products of the study are: a Master Pattern Language consisting of 44 design patterns, three professional-group sub-lists that illustrate key similarities and differences between and amongst the professional groups, and a statistical analysis of the relative concordance within each professional group. The dissertation then provides analysis of the findings in light of the potential utility of the results, especially as potential tools for future school design efforts. </p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of community college general education faculty members regarding their perceptions of the importance of internationalizing the general education curriculum and to what extent those perceptions are related to their attitudes toward globalization. The study further examined the degree to which faculty members perceive that they are incorporating the teaching of global competencies into their courses. Finally, the study looked at faculty members' perceptions of administrative support&mdash;both from the perspective of what they felt their college should be doing to support internationalization and what their college was actually doing to support internationalization efforts. No studies were found that examined the importance of internationalizing the general education curriculum in Florida community colleges. Quantitative data were collected using an online survey instrument sent to full-time and part-time general education faculty members teaching at community colleges in the State of Florida. The data were analyzed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and regression tables and descriptive statistics were also reported. Results showed that respondents generally believed that globalization and internationalization are important; however, respondents were not incorporating international instructional strategies at a level that correlated with their attitudes toward globalization and internationalization. Among those faculty members who were incorporating international instructional strategies, results indicated that the more years' experience in higher education a respondent had, the more likely they were to be incorporating these strategies in the classroom. Respondents also indicated that they would like more support from administration to internationalize the curriculum than they believe they are receiving. Release time, and professional development and training experiences are strategies colleges could use to help improve instruction in international education. Providing opportunities for faculty members to travel to conferences and meetings with a global/international scope would also help faculty to have a better understanding of international issues.</p>

<p> This causal comparative study used a set of predictable variables, including school configurations, to predict student proficiency on the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS) test in reading and math. The school configurations were K-8 and middle school. </p><p> The researcher analyzed the 2011-2012 AIMS reading and math achievement scores of 2100 students who were enrolled in 7th and 8th grades across four different schools in two unified school districts in the American Southwest. Two schools were K-8 schools and two were middle schools. The 7th and 8th grade students from each school were included in the study. Logistic Regression was used to predict student proficiency on the AIMS test from a set of predictable variables. </p><p> Results revealed that the model was able to predict group membership for students that were proficient in reading and math. The independent variables of free and reduced lunch status, English language learner status, and special education status contributed significantly to the predictive ability of the model for reading. All variables contributed significantly for math. One school structure did not achieve better than the other, but the variables of full academic year, school type, English language learner status and special education status all contributed to predicting proficiency on the AIMS reading or math tests.</p>

<p>Lao American college students' holistic identity development was examined in this study. The research utilized modified grounded theory methods to generate a model of holistic identity development for Lao American students whose families immigrated to the United States after 1978 as a part of the third wave of Laotian immigrants. Chickering and Reisser's (1993) psychosocial identity development theory and Kodama, McEwen, Liang, and Lee's (2002) negotiating identity and development task model for Asian Americans were utilized as an <i> a priori</i> theoretical foundation. Interviews explored participant perceptions and lived experiences as related to the elements of these two theories. Grounded theory development techniques were utilized in the analysis to explore the nature and interactions of various elements of the <i> a priori</i> theories. Data were collected using one exploratory focus group followed by in-depth interviews. Each participant was a child of parents who were refugees; all but one was born in the U.S. Findings center around three themes related to Lao American college students' holistic identity development: (a) the enmeshment of purpose and identity, (b) the influence and integration of family and culture influences, and (c) the fluidity of community influence. The dissertation concludes with a discussion of implications for theory, policy, and practice. </p>

<p>The purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore and identify informal faculty leadership (IFL) practices in progressive, post-secondary settings known as Learning Colleges. Subordinate to this was the identification of administrative practices and structures enabling or obstructing IFL. The unit of analysis was three Learning Colleges, identified as exemplars of Learning College best practices. Three types of data were gathered for triangulation purposes. The mission, vision, and values statements of each college were examined for consistencies with the Learning College Movement and IFL. From the three identified colleges, two presidents and one senior vice-president were interviewed, and 52 faculty members were surveyed to identify current informal faculty leadership practices, potential new applications, and administrative behaviors advancing or inhibiting this practice. While the documents of all three colleges delineated the importance of faculty in achieving their respective goals, the role of IFL was not specifically addressed. In interviews, the three administrators acknowledged the critical role of faculty in their college's reform efforts and reinforced the importance of ongoing collaboration between administration and faculty in achieving the college's purposes. Specific examples included faculty roles in professional development, innovative practices, and as leading purveyors for a variety of change initiatives. Faculty reported a broad spectrum of peer leadership behaviors that influenced their actions including collaboration, communication, innovation, and risk-taking. From points of convergence, current examples of informal faculty leadership revealed that administrators and faculty members recognized the value of IFL to their college's mission &ndash; learning. Both groups viewed this as a prime vehicle for improvement, and characterized informal faculty leaders as crucial change agents. Recommendations for administrators and faculty include embracing collaboration and innovation as primary change modalities. Professional development needs to be faculty driven and strongly resourced by administration. Specific programs advocated by both groups include Service Learning and the use of emerging technologies. Practices recommended include moving innovation to institutionalization seamlessly and including faculty members in every step. Future research should include further exploration into IFL, additional programs such as the mentoring of students, and the role of middle-level management as critical facilitators of informal faculty leadership. </p>

<p> This quantitative study took place at a private international school in East Asia. The purpose of the study was to investigate United States college admission trends comparing International Baccalaureate Diploma Program candidates and International Baccalaureate non-Diploma Program candidates from the same school. Descriptive data was collected for the Classes of 2007-2012 and the two groups were compared based on the number of college acceptances for each group by year and as a whole, and the eventual collegiate success of the two groups once they matriculated to college, as measured by college persistence and graduation rates. The results of this study show there was a statistically significant difference between the mean number of college applications and the mean number of college acceptances per group, but there was not a statistically significant difference between the college acceptance rates for the two groups of students. There was a statistically significant difference between the matriculation rate of diploma and certificate students, but there was not a statistically significant difference between the graduation rates for the two groups of students. The information analyzed provides school stakeholders valuable data to explore the final educational outcomes for its graduates and determine if there is a significant difference in the college success of the two groups.</p>

<p>Past research has shown that learner-centered environments can improve students' self-esteem and increase their academic skills. The purpose of this study was to determine whether teaching the core curriculum within a caring classroom environment increases students ability to communicate effectively and perform at higher achievement levels in writing. The study addressed the experiences of teachers in implementing a new writing program with a strong emphasis on social skill development as a precursor to good writing. Guided by the social learning theories of Dewey, Rogers, and Vygotsky, who contended that social interaction is vital to the development of cognition, a qualitative case study was undertaken consisting of individual interviews with 15 teachers at 6 elementary schools in southwestern Connecticut. Data were collected to address the extent to which a caring community of students can foster positive academic outcomes. Data were analyzed and coded to discover common themes. Results showed that teachers perceived that the social skills taught through the program did increase students writing skills. In addition, students had better listening skills and were more comfortable taking academic risks. This finding supports past social learning theories. Based on these findings, 3 days of professional learning workshops were created with the goals of building student-teacher relationships, creating learner-centered environments, and curtailing bullying. Equipping teachers with this resource will help to create social change by helping students become better communicators in a diverse society, increasing their graduation rates, and preparing them to enter the global workforce of the 21st century. </p>