<p> Many studies have investigated problems with the ability achievement discrepancy (AAD) method of diagnosing specific learning disabilities (SLDs). The definition of an SLD includes the presence of a deficit in one or more cognitive processing systems. Researchers in other studies found that the AAD method overdiagnoses English language learners and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, and underdiagnoses students with cognitive processing deficits. Although SLD diagnostic methods have been widely researched, much less information is available regarding SLD diagnostic methods that predict important student outcomes, such as high school completion. The General Abilities Index (GAI) is an SLD diagnostic method that can identify cognitive processing deficits. This study examined the relationships between cognitive processing deficits and the GAI method, high school completion status, performance on state standards assessments, and SLD eligibility. Using a multivariate, nonexperimental design, this study analyzed 149 datasets from records of students tested for an SLD between 1996 to 2013. A GLM analysis found that several types of cognitive processing deficits predicted math and writing performance on the state standards assessment and predicted not being diagnosed with an SLD, while the GAI method failed to predict any relationship with the dependent variables. Positive social changes from this study may include improved SLD diagnostic practices and improved educational interventions that target the cognitive processing deficits. Improved educational outcomes for SLD persons may reduce the high rates of unemployment, substance abuse, and incarceration experienced by the adult SLD population.</p>

<p> The extent to which students' and teachers' perceptions agree about excellent teachers has implications for educational philosophy, training, and leadership practices. Teacher excellence depends teachers are rarely sought. Experts write about what should be taught, how it should be taught, but those who are being taught have little voice. Learning what traits and practices exemplify excellent teachers would enable us to capitalize on those traits and train teachers to use those practices. </p><p> The intent of this study was to learn what teacher excellence was like for students and teachers. From those who have experienced teacher excellence from both sides of the desk, particular characteristics and practices were identified as important or essential. </p><p> This study employed interviews of high school seniors and teachers. Questions were related to a district's contract appendix, literature about best practices, career interest and personality inventories, and from discussions with students and teachers. Fourteen student interviews and fourteen teacher interviews were transcribed. Ten of each category were distributed to a team of coders, by the researcher. Using the Consensual Qualitative Research method, coders and researcher placed participants' responses in domains, categorized them, and with an auditor's guidance, searched for those that were typical and those that were variant. Discarded interviews were to be replaced by other interviews until stability occurred. The team sought patterns among the participants' responses. Finally, the researcher analyzed the data and drew and reported conclusions. </p><p> Students described excellent teachers who connected with their students on a social, emotional level. Examples of student's responses were instances of a teacher approaching a student to ask if the student needed assistance, opening classrooms at non-instructional times to provide a welcome setting in which to relax until the next class, visiting the student at his workplace, and attending students' performances. </p><p> Teachers described the excellent teacher's relationship with students as a teacher who might attend performance events, but might also insist the student come in for extra help or encourage the student to put forth greater effort. The emphasis the teachers placed on rapport building between teacher and student was based more on academic than on emotional support. The role that teachers were described by students as performing was that of nurturer or counselor, whereas the role the teachers' description described was that of facilitator and coach.</p>

<p> Possible long term effects of previous Montessori education on college age students are relatively unexamined. In this descriptive, exploratory, qualitative study, 13 students who had earlier attended Montessori schools for at least six years were asked to reflect on their just-completed freshman year. Thematic analysis of their in-depth, semi-structured interviews revealed similarities in how they experienced themselves as learners; understood the construction of knowledge, opinion, and truth; experienced themselves as growing and changing; and viewed the influence of their Montessori education. Though their level of epistemological maturity was not measured directly, their responses suggested a more advanced level than usually achieved by comparably aged college students. Their patterns of response also correspond to characteristics Montessori described as the fourth plane of development, which would be achieved by adolescents whose earlier educational experiences had successfully brought them through the first three planes. These findings suggest that further research is needed into the possible long term effects of a Montessori education on individuals as they reach adulthood. Although altering current educational models would be enormously challenging, further examination of this alternative is recommended.</p>

<p> This investigation aimed to answer two questions: first, is there construct equivalence of self-efficacy between the <i>Self-Efficacy for Learning Form [SELF]</i> (Zimmerman &amp; Kitsantas, 2005) and the new Spanish version Escala de Autoeficacia en la Regulaci&oacute;n del Aprendizaje (EARA)?; and second, are the EARA's scores valid measures of self-efficacy for learning among law students? Throughout the validation process, the guidelines of the <i> Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing</i> were followed. A team of three translators applied the <i>forward</i> method. Furthermore, two consultants evaluated every translated item from Bandura's theoretical perspective. In a preparation for EARA's administration, six law students in their second year took a preliminary version. Additionally, their comments provided a bridge between the scores of this version and the self-efficacy construct. The first question was answered affirmatively. </p><p> To answer the second question, the EARA was administered to a sample of 159 law students during the second semester of their first year. Using SPSS, various statistical procedures were applied to obtain evidence based on EARA's internal structure as well as evidence based on an external variable. The Cronbach's &alpha; for internal consistency was .957. The factor analysis revealed 14 factors. As part of the factor analysis, the themes of the items under each factor were examined. In a predictor-criterion relationship, a correlation (Pearson r) of .179 was calculated between the variable of self-efficacy for regulated learning and the academic grade point level at the end of the semester. It was concluded that the results did not yield sufficient evidence to support a valid interpretation of EARA's scores as measures of self-efficacy of regulated learning of the participants. </p><p> Finally, various recommendations were presented for EARA's usage in future investigations.</p>

<p> This study compared the effects of the Detect, Practice, and Repair (DPR) intervention package versus traditional Cover, Copy, and Compare (CCC) procedures in increasing multiplication math fact accuracy and fluency using an alternating treatments design with a modified control condition. Interventions were administered one-on-one across 4 fourth grade students. Three mutually exclusive multiplication sets were used with one set being assigned to each condition. Effectiveness was assessed through traditional curriculum-based measurement (CBM) procedures and through flashcard card procedures to measure accuracy. In addition, the efficiency of each intervention (i.e., amount of learning per instructional minute) was calculated. Maintenance data were collected to determine if newly learned math facts would be better maintained when taught with the DPR intervention or with the traditional CCC intervention procedures. Social validity data were collected with teachers and students to determine whether one intervention was preferred over another. Although DPR has been examined in five published research studies, it has never been examined through a one-on-one implementation or in a study directly comparing its effectiveness, efficiency, maintenance, and social validity against another intervention. In addition, this study serves as a component analysis since CCC is one component of the DPR package. </p>

<p> The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the effects of professional learning communities (PLCs) in Alabama Black Belt schools. Alabama's Black Belt has many challenges, such as poverty, high concentration of students from low-income households, struggling schools, and repercussions of the No Child Left Behind Act. The researcher identified school-related factors that were beneficial to student achievement. One such factor was PLCs. However, it was not known if PLCs were the reason sustained student achievement was achieved in the Park County School District. Fifteen educators participated in this study. Four research questions guided this study. Through this case study, data were collected, coded, thematically analyzed, and interpreted to identify factors that may have enabled the Park County School District to sustain student achievement. Despite the challenges that exist throughout the Black Belt region, the dedicated professionals who work in the Park County School District found ways to educate children from poverty households. One important factor to their success was PLCs. PLCs provided opportunities for educators to influence student achievement through collaboration on instructional practice, leadership, and shared decision-making. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> Achievement, black belt, poverty, professional learning communities, education, teachers, school administrators. </p>

<p> Previous research conducted with currently enrolled college students has suggested a relationship between secure attachment style, greater stress coping abilities, and academic success. However, there is an absence of research examining these variables as predictors of college graduation. Attachment theory was used as a theoretical framework to address this gap. The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship between adult attachment style, stress coping skills, and college graduation. This logistic regression study included 81 individuals who either withdrew or graduated from college within the last 4 years. Participants provided demographic information, completed the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised (ECR-R) to measure attachment anxiety and avoidance, and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to measure level of perceived stress. A significant Wald statistic between attachment anxiety and college graduation indicated that as attachment anxiety increased, participants were less likely to graduate. However, there was not a significant relationship between attachment avoidance and college graduation. A significant Wald statistic between stress coping skills and graduation indicated that as the level of perceived stress increased, participants were less likely to graduate. When the predictor variables of attachment anxiety and stress coping skills were paired together, neither variable added uniquely to the prediction of graduation. Social change implications could include the development of educational, counseling, and stress reduction programs for students who are at risk of withdrawing from college, which may help increase college retention.</p>

<p> Drawing on research in the fields of neuroscience, reading cognition, and the history of writing, the author explores the condition of reading today. Rather than accepting the apocalyptic pronouncements that the Internet is "dumbing down" current readers, the author argues for a more nuanced understanding of the effects of digital media. He argues that the literacies needed for the new digital realm are not new, but are literacies developed over thousands of years. The author argues for the need of more education and instruction in the use of digital media, and that the digital realm requires new proprioceptive (spatial awareness) abilities to navigate.</p>

<p> The current dissertation examined the validity of a context-specific assessment tool, called Self-regulated learning (SRL) microanalysis, for measuring self-regulated learning (SRL) during mathematical problem solving. SRL microanalysis is a structured interview that entails assessing respondents' regulatory processes as they engage with a task of interest. </p><p> Participants for this dissertation consisted of 83 eighth grade students attending a large urban school district in Midwestern USA. Students were administered the SRL microanalytic interview while completing a set of mathematical word problems to provide a measure of their real-time thoughts and regulatory behaviors. The SRL microanalytic interview targeted the SRL processes of goal-setting, strategic planning, strategy use, metacognitive monitoring, attributions, and adaptive inferences. In addition, students completed two questionnaires measuring SRL strategy use, and one questionnaire measuring self-esteem. The participant's mathematics teacher completed a teacher rating scale of SRL for each participant. Mathematical skill was measured with three measures including a three item measure of mathematical problem solving skill completed during the SRL microanalytic interview, a fifteen item posttest of mathematical problem solving skill completed two weeks after the SRL microanalytic interview, and a standardized test of mathematics skill. </p><p> The primary objectives of this dissertation were to compare the newly developed SRL microanalytic interview to more traditional measures of SRL including two self-report questionnaires measuring adaptive and maladaptive SRL and a teacher rating scale of SRL. In addition, the current dissertation examined whether SRL microanalysis would diverge from a theoretically unrelated construct such as self-esteem. Finally, the primary interest of the current dissertation was to examine the relative predictive validity of SRL microanalysis and SRL questionnaires. The predictive validity was compared across three related but distinct mathematics outcomes including a short set of mathematical problem solving items, a more comprehensive posttest of MPS problem solving skill, and performance on a standardized mathematics test. </p><p> The results of this study revealed that SRL microanalysis did not relate to self-report questionnaires measuring adaptive or maladaptive SRL or teacher ratings of SRL. The SRL microanalytic interview diverged from the theoretically unrelated measure of self-esteem. Finally, after controlling for prior achievement and SRL questionnaires, the SRL microanalytic interview explained a significant amount of unique variation for all three mathematics outcomes. Furthermore, the SRL microanalytic protocol emerged as a superior predictor of all three mathematics outcomes compared to SRL questionnaires. </p>

<p> The purpose of this quantitative study was to discover the relationship between a parent's mindset, his/her student's mindset, and the student's level of anxiety as high school seniors during the college application process. 4 private, independent, college preparatory high schools throughout southern California were included in the study. The parent survey measured the parent's mindset through the Intelligence Domain of the Implicit Theories Questionnaire (ITQ) and measured the parent's emotional stability through the Ten Item Personality Survey (TIPI). The student survey measured the student's mindset through the Intelligence Domain of the ITQ, the student's level of anxiety through the State-Trait Inventory for Cognitive and Somatic Anxiety (STICSA), and several items related to student demographics, such as: grade point average (GPA), highest American College Testing (ACT) and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) score, number of colleges to which the student applied, student race and gender. 26 parent-student pairs participated representing 4 different schools. Findings in this study showed that subjects predominently held a growth mindset which promotes learning goals, allows for healthier responses to challenges and failures, and promotes resilience, effort, and hard work. Given the small sample size, there was insufficient evidence to support that either a parent's mindset or a student's mindset is a determinant of student anxiety during the college application process. However, a significant, moderate correlation (<i>r = .50, p &lt; .05</i>) was found between a parent's mindset and their student's mindset. There was also a significant, moderate correlation (<i>r = .50; p &lt; .05</i>) between the number of college applications a student completed and their levels of overall anxiety. It is recommended that schools provide opportunities for parents and guardians to be educated about growth mindset. Additionally, strategies and resources should be given to parents to help aid in developing a growth mindset among their children. It is also recommended that further research be conducted with a larger sample size to better assess whether there is a relationship between mindset and anxiety.</p>