<p> This qualitative study explored the implementation of Washington State&rsquo;s Teacher Principal Evaluation Program in one school district. Previously determined locally, the new evaluation system was a state mandated reform implemented during the 2013&ndash;2014 school year. This research was guided by four research questions based on the theoretical framework communities of practice. The research questions examined participants&rsquo; description of the practice of the new evaluation, opportunities for mutual engagement, boundary objects, and brokers. </p><p> Using case study methodology, the four cases were consisted of two middle school and two high school teachers in The Westish School District*. Using Wenger&rsquo;s Communities of Practice as the theoretical framework, the study focused on how teachers described opportunities for mutual engagement, brokers, and boundary objects. The study included qualitative data from in-depth interviews, surveys, and documents. </p><p> Data analysis supported five themes: 1) Occupational intensification; 2) Validity and authenticity concerns; 3) Protection of self; 4) Inadequate boundary objects; and 5) Insufficient feedback from brokers. The findings from the research show participants entered into the new evaluation system with a positive outlook, yet describe negative experiences completing the evaluation. The study illustrates the importance of teacher and administrator collaboration and sheds light on how teachers mediate their effectiveness through administrator feedback. Findings and implications provide insight into how using best practices in teaching as a guide can be used to effectively implement education reforms that necessitate teacher action to be effective. </p><p> *all identifiers have been replaced with pseudonyms</p>

<p> Policymakers lack hard evidence that points toward specific educational best practices for charter schools at the school and authorizer level. This study uses proficiency rates and scale scores on the MEAP standardized exam to identify differences in the effectiveness of authorizers, school-level practices, and curricula among charter schools in Michigan. Following the work of Carlson, Lavery, and Witte (2012), I compare university-authorized charter schools to district-authorized charter schools but find little difference in proficiency rates or scale scores in individual grades or for white, black, and FRL-eligible subgroups. However, I am able to specifically identify several authorizers in Michigan as having below-average performance. I also find significant achievement gains associated with schools that use Core Knowledge and Montessori curricula, no positive achievement effects associated with arts-based curricula, and negative effects from attending a virtual charter school. Finally, I conduct a secondary analysis of charter school expulsions and conclude that it is unlikely that the achievement effects I observe are related to differences in the expulsion policies of charter schools.</p>

<p> Research indicates that in the No Child Left Behind era of public education, local districts with elected school boards may be perceived as relinquishing control over policies that affect their school system. With the locus of control coming into question, school boards may struggle with how to involve parents in local decision making. Therefore, it is essential that boards of education openly engage parents by exploring and reflecting on how parent voices can influence the policies that govern public schools. This qualitative study examines how, during the course of approximately 10 months, a seven-member school board involves parents at its public meetings during policy-making processes. Specifically, one way for a school board to engage parents in a policy-making process is to employ deliberative democracy. Thus, this is a qualitative inquiry that, through two case studies, examines a school board's deliberative democratic processes and the parents' participatory stances during public meetings as policies are established or modified. The purpose of this research is to inform school boards, policymakers, parents, and other educational leaders on how elected school boards can preserve a locus of control in decision-making processes at the local level by engaging parents in policymaking. The primary data collection methods included public meeting observations, a school board survey, and interviews. Findings presented through narratives and thematic analyses reveal scenarios where deliberative democratic tenets were exercised. These tenets included purpose, intent, procedures, practices, and reciprocity. In both case studies, parents adopted various stances such as advocate, proxy agent, and expert. However, throughout the processes, study participants noted tension between formal meeting procedures and their desire for informal dialogue. Limitations included selective homogeneity of participants in deliberative processes, root cause analysis for parent participation, and the challenges of local space. Implications for school boards, parents, and deliberative democracy are discussed. Further areas for research could consider the use of electronic media in deliberative democracy, the presence of affective domains in procedurally-steeped processes, the possibility of micro-deliberative practices, and the leveraging of deliberative democratic processes that reclaim local space.</p>

<p> This study investigates the impact of students&rsquo; participation in the certificate program offered by the Asian Studies Center (ASC) at the University of Pittsburgh on their perception of global competency and skills development for international careers. Undergraduate and graduate students who were enrolled in the ASC&rsquo;s certificate program as of March 16, 2012 (n=125) participated in an on-line student survey. Data are used to provide a descriptive analysis, significance tests, and a multiple regression analysis that examine six research questions.</p><p> The descriptive analysis explores students&rsquo; characteristics, satisfaction with the certificate program, international experience, foreign language capability, and the extent to which the certificate program increases their global competency and skills for international careers. Tests were conducted to examine whether the differences in pre-post increases in students&rsquo; perception of their global competency and skills development for international careers were statistically significant for all respondents as well as between disaggregated groups. The multiple regression analysis tests the correlation between three independent variables (courses taken in the certificate program, center activity participation, and students&rsquo; international experience) and each of the two dependent variables (students&rsquo; perception of increased global competency and students&rsquo; perception of improved skills for international careers).</p><p> Findings show that significantly different changes in students&rsquo; perception of their global competency and skills development for international careers exist before their participation in the certificate program and after their participation in the certificate program. Students who stayed 1-6 months in an Asian country have the most significant increases in their perception of their global competency after their participation in the certificate program. Senior students have the most significant increases in their perception of their global competency and skills for international careers after their participation in the certificate program.</p><p> Students&rsquo; international experience and courses taken in the certificate program are important variables related to their perception of increased global competency and improved skill for international careers. The effect of students&rsquo; international experience is greater than courses taken in the certificate program on their perception of their increased global competency and improved skills for international careers.</p>

<p> The ISLLC standard 6 of 2008 and ELCC standard 6 of 2011 both indicate that a district-level leader should be influential in state-level education legislation and policy-making. There was little scientific research that showed evidence as to how superintendents were adapting to this requirement, although anecdotal and journalistic writings were available. This study sought to fill that gap. </p><p> This study was of all public school superintendents in the state of Illinois. The study used mixed-methods, and utilized a sequential explanatory design. The quantitative portion of the study was completed via an online survey, and the qualitative portion of the study was complete with face-to-face interviews of randomly selected superintendents. 201 Illinois public school superintendents completed the online survey, and 6 superintendents were randomly selected for interviews. </p><p> The study identified 7 key findings regarding Illinois public school superintendents and their efforts to be influential in state-level education legislation and policy-making: they utilized professional organizations most extensively in their efforts to contact and influence legislators; their perceptions of effectiveness were significantly increase when there was a close personal or proximal association with a legislator; their perceptions of effectiveness were significantly increased in accordance with the number of prior administrative positions held; their perceptions of effectiveness were significantly increased with relation to a particular school district configuration; their perceptions of effectiveness were significantly increased with relation to their affiliations with particular educational organizations; they identified only one coherent impediment to being influential, that of graduate coursework preparation; and they had a reasonable knowledge of the legislative process, although that did not affect their perceptions of success in being influential. By applying these key findings, Illinois public school superintendents can make themselves more influential in state-level education legislation and policy-making.</p>

<p> Most research concludes that corporal punishment in schools does not lead to better student behavior, more respect for teachers, or higher scores on the Achievement Composite Test (ACT). In addition, some research points to the conclusion that corporal punishment of children is associated with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which can include such symptoms as depression, and anxiety. One researcher has even identified a medical condition entitled Educationally Induced Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which, I concluded, was brought about by excessive corporal punishment. </p><p> This research study is a comprehensive analysis of corporal punishment practices in the state of Georgia. The research approach adopted in this comprehensive analysis of corporal punishment in Georgia includes the use of online literature, print literature, legal databases, and research database sites. </p><p> The findings from this research provide evidence that Georgia currently has many districts reporting high incidences of corporal punishment while other districts have either abolished corporal punishment by local policy or simply do not practice it. The main conclusions drawn from this study are that corporal punishment in Georgia schools is largely a nonurban phenomenon and that its use is not evenly distributed among districts but rather concentrated in smaller districts. Although overall incidents of corporal punishment have gone down in Georgia over the last several years, its use has actually increased in some districts.</p>

<p> Louisiana is currently one of the 19 states in the United States that still allow the use of corporal punishment in public schools. The research questions that drove this study explored Louisiana-published court cases involving corporal punishment in public schools, district policies regarding the use of corporal punishment, reported instances of corporal punishment in public schools, and potential relationships between whether or not a district allows corporal punishment and its enrollment size. </p><p> As a result of this study, it was discovered that Louisiana has an unusually large body of published court cases involving corporal punishment in public schools. Of those cases, three categories were defined including: cases filed by an employee, cases filed by a parent on behalf of a student, and criminal cases regarding excessive amounts of corporal punishment. It was concluded that the courts will generally uphold a School Board's decision in regards to disciplining teachers for excessive corporal punishment. Furthermore, School Boards and teachers also won a majority of the cases that were filed by a parent on behalf of a student. </p><p> After examining Louisiana district's policy regarding the use of corporal punishment in public schools, it was concluded that the majority of Louisiana's public school students attend schools that allow the use of corporal punishment. From the number of instances recorded it was discovered that the majority of Louisiana districts that still use corporal punishment are experiencing a decline in the number of instances recorded. Finally, corporal punishment is still being practiced is some of the largest districts according to student enrollment. A chi-square test was performed and a statistical significance between a district's policy regarding corporal punishment and its size was not found. </p><p> In conclusion, this study revealed that Louisiana is still one of the 19 predominately Southern states that still allow corporal punishment in public schools. In order for Louisiana to join the other states in abolishing corporal punishment, it is important that Louisiana School Board members and others who are involved in deciding whether or not corporal punishment is allowed know where Louisiana currently stands on this issue.</p>

<p> This study examined the success of five elementary schools in their implementation of the 2011 New Jersey Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying law (NJ HIB law). It also explored stakeholders' perceptions of school climate since the law went into effect. Fourth and fifth grade parents, students, teachers, and counselors in the district's five elementary schools were invited to participate in surveys, focus groups, and interviews. The study revealed that these stakeholders supported the spirit of the law but felt that there were unexpected obstacles in the law that impeded its effectiveness to support a positive school climate and eliminate bullying. The results of the study will aid the district's elementary schools to improve implementation of the HIB law and guide stakeholders as they move to create a positive school climate and eliminate bullying.</p>

<p> This study examined how stakeholders in one school district located in a remote town perceived the instructional improvement efforts of the district, as well as the constraints and enablers of implementing instructional reforms. A qualitative approach, consisting mainly of interviews with teachers, principals, district administrators, and other school-level staff, was used to examine the perceived effects of the district's instructional reforms in five areas: (1) adopting a set of goals to guide the district's actions; (2) implementing instructional reform; (3) improving professional development; (4) supporting district and school administrators to become instructional leaders; and (5) encouraging the use of data to diagnose student learning needs and guide instruction. School-level interviews were conducted within four of the district's elementary schools selected to represent the district on a number of demographic and academic variables. The overall findings for these five areas were as follows. Respondents spoke primarily about changes to reading instruction as the district's top priority. The district's efforts to reform classroom instruction resulted in all elementary schools implementing, in varying degrees, the structures the district established for teaching reading. These levels of implementation were achieved through a gradual process and were met with initial resistance from principals and teachers. The district's shift to providing job-embedded professional development proved to be a major support in establishing a consistent teaching approach. Literacy coaches represented the main source of job-embedded professional development and played an important role in providing teacher professional development. Principals strove to achieve the district's expectation for them to become instructional leaders in their buildings, although some struggled with the content expertise required to be an instructional leader, while others expressed difficulty in managing their time between being a building manager and an instructional leader. Finally, the district's instructional improvement efforts were informed by student achievement data and teacher observation data, as teachers used formative and summative assessments to monitor students' progress and to provide appropriate levels of intervention to students.</p>

<p> Prior research has been conducted examining the effects of multiple attributes' affect on persistence and graduation rates at higher education institutions (HEIs). This research has examined individual, family, peer, neighborhood, and institutional characteristics and their relationship with college graduation rates. There has been very little research conducted on the relationship of regional quality of life (QoL) on educational attainment. This study examined nine separate aspects (Income and Wealth, Housing, Educational Attainment, Work/Life Balance, Health Status, Personal Security, Environmental Quality, Social Capital, and Jobs and Earnings) of QoL to determine their relationship with the graduation rates at both two- and four-year HEIs. It was found that relationships exist between most of the social indicators of QoL and graduation rates. These findings lead to areas of interest that the stakeholders in higher education can consider when making policy changes that effect human capital development.</p>