abstract: Unschooling is a child-centered educational philosophy that eschews teachers, schools, curricula, grades and tests. Unschool practitioners have complete freedom to choose what they want to learn, when, to what level, and for how long. Unschooling families use the World Wide Web to provide a bespoke academic experience at home. This study compares qualitative data collected from questionnaires and semi-structured interviews conducted with 10 unschooling families with quantitative data collected from 5 children within these families using a tracking and monitoring software. The software captured the duration of use, keystrokes, mouseclicks, and screenshots for all programs and websites for 14 days. Children stated they used technology less than 6 hours a day, and parents stated children used them less than 8 hours a day. Quantitative data shows the children use technology at least 10 hours a day, suggesting usage self-reports may not be reliable. The study revealed hardware form factor was the number one determinate of application use. Almost exclusively social media was used on smartphones, internet browsing on tablets, and creative endeavors such as modding, hacking, fan fiction writing, and video game level building all took place exclusively on laptops and desktops. Concurrent use of differing hardware form factors was the norm observed. Participants stated YouTube, Wikipedia and Khan Academy were the websites most used for knowledge gathering. The tracking software verified YouTube and Wikipedia were the most used websites, however when accessed on the PC, those sites were used almost exclusively for video game related purposes. Over 90% of the total PC use was spent on video games. More traditional educational activities were done primarily on tablets and on parent smartphones with parental engagement. Khan Academy was not used by the participants in the 14 day monitoring period. 90 day web browser logs indicated Khan Academy was used by individuals no more than 3 times in a 90 day period, demonstrating the inherent risks in relying upon internet usage self-reports without quantitative software for verification. Unschooling children spent between 30 and 60 hours a week using technology. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Technology 2014

abstract: Parent involvement is a concept that is used to describe the ways schools attempt to connect with parents for the educational benefit and support of students. Schools engage in strategies and invest in programs to increase parents’ involvement at and with the school, employ personnel to support parents, and develop workshops aimed at supporting parents’ understanding of academic content as well as to develop partnerships between parents and teachers. The purpose of this study was to investigate how parents viewed themselves as partners with their children’s teachers and what they believed their roles were in their children’s education. This qualitative study was conducted through interviews with parents who were recommended by school staff as having above-average or below-average involvement. Ten parents in a low-income public school in the southwestern United States were selected for an initial interview, and four of those ten were chosen as focal parents for additional rounds of interviews. All three rounds of interviews took place over a four month period in the spring. The interviews were used to document and analyze how parents viewed themselves and the roles they have in their children’s schooling. The findings from this study illustrate the similarities in behavior, attitude, and self-view between parents recommended by school staff as having above-average and below-average involvement. Additionally, this analysis describes how effective partnerships between home and school (including current teachers, former teachers, and school support staff) can help support parents as lifelong advocates for their children. When parents are intentionally made to feel vital as partners in their children’s schooling, their confidence in their ability to support their children’s education is strengthened. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Educational Administration and Supervision 2017

This study examined the perspectives that mothers of children with Down syndrome (Ds) hold regarding the most appropriate educational environments for their children. Environments for students with Ds may be classified as inclusive (fully included within a general education classroom with complete access to the general curriculum and typical peers), integrated (self-contained within a general education school, with some interaction with typical peers), or segregated (separate school for students with intellectual disabilities, or InD). A qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews and a follow-up focus group was used to gather thick, rich descriptions of mothers’ perspectives of these different types of settings, including academic (e.g., reading, math) and non-academic (e.g., self-esteem, peer relationships) outcomes for their children. Mothers of children of different ages (N=6) were recruited to allow for examination of how of mothers’ perspectives may change over time or vary with the child’s age. Findings yielded information that can be used to help parents and educators understand mothers’ perspectives on the risks and benefits of different types of educational environments for youth with Ds.

The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of parents’ and teachers’ perceptions of parent-teacher communication, its purpose and how it is implemented in resource-constrained school settings. I employed a collective case study design involving four cases, namely parents of Grade 3 learners, parents of Grade 6 learners, Grade 3 teachers and Grade 6 teachers. I followed a qualitative research approach in order to gain rich, contextual information that portrays the perceptions of the participants. I identified three primary schools to participate by combining purposeful and convenience sampling strategies, and purposefully selected 11 teachers and eight parents as participants. Eight semi-structured interviews and two focus group discussions were conducted to collect data. In addition, I relied on observation, field notes and a research diary. Following inductive thematic data analysis, I identified the following themes: general modes of parent-teacher communication, purposes of parent-teacher communication, role-players and their expectations, factors negatively impacting parent-teacher communication, and strategies to move towards effective parent-teacher communication. Findings of the study indicate that the participating schools utilised written communication, telephone contact and meetings in person to exchange information with parents, in support of learners’ performance. Children, School Management Teams and the Department of Basic Education were identified as additional important role-players in communication. However, the attitudes, behaviours and preferences of teachers and parents as well as resource-constrained contexts can negativity influence parent-teacher communication. On the other hand, more effective use of technology, the creation of more opportunities for open dialogue and the commitment of all role-players can potentially enhance regular two-way communication between parents and teachers. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

Bakgrunden till denna studie springer ur ett intresse för den ofta debatterade maktrelationen mellan hem och skola. I de fall där barnet antingen visar beteendesvårigheter eller visar sämre skolprestationer uppfattas denna relation ofta som komplicerad (Gwernan-Jones m.fl, 2015). Fokus i forskningen har främst legat på hur lärare och föräldrar uppfattat detta partnerskap, medan få studier lyfter fram elevers röster (Markström, 2015). Syftet med studien är att belysa hur elever diagnostiserade med ADHD uppfattar maktbalansen mellan hem och skola i samband med stödinsatser. Genom studiens frågeställningar undersöks hur elever erfar maktbalansen, effekterna av maktbalansen och hur maktbalansen enligt elevernas uppfattningar borde se ut. Michel Foucaults (1926-1984) teorier om makt används som teoretisk utgångspunkt, vilket innebär en syn på makten som relationell, dynamisk och produktiv (Axelsson & Qvarsebo, 2017). För att fånga in elevers uppfattningar har en fenomenografisk metodansats med semistrukturerade intervjuer använts. Sex informanter i gymnasieåldern intervjuades om sin tid i grundskolan. Resultatet visar att eleverna inte placerar sig själva utanför relationen mellan hem och skola, utan i centrum av den. Enligt elevernas uppfattningar bör fokus inte ligga på vem som har makten utan på maktens effekter. Att informanterna i likhet med Foucault uppfattar makten som relationell blir tydligt och att det finns en koppling mellan kunskap och makt. Utifrån ett specialpedagogiskt perspektiv kan denna studie bidra till kunskap om hur dagens elever förstår sin omvärld samt ge kunskap om vinsten i att sätta fokus på maktens effekter. På så sätt öppnas möjligheter för att skapa en mötesplats för såväl föräldrars, elevers som pedagogers målsättningar, där utkomsten av skolans insatser står i centrum. / The subject of this study is the much debated relation of power between school and parents. In the cases where a child shows either behavioural problems or poor school achievements, this relation is often described as problematic (Gwernan-Jones m.fl 2015). Research has historically focused mainly on how teachers and parents perceive this relationship, while few studies have examined the students’ views (Markström 2015).This study aims to illuminate how students diagnosed with ADHD perceive the power balance between home and school in connection to special needs. The study investigates how the students experience the power balance, the effects of the power balance and how that power balance should work according to the students. Michel Foucault’s (1926-1984) theories of power are used as a theoretical platform, which says that power is relational, dynamic and productive (Axelsson & Qvarsebo 2017). To obtain the students’ views a phenomenographic approach with semi-structured interviews has been used. Six upper secondary participants were interviewed about their time in high school. The results show that the students do not place themselves outside the relationship between home and school but in the centre of it. The results also show that according to the students’ the focus should not be on who has the power but on the effects of the power. The fact that the participants, like Foucault, perceive power to be relational is clear and that power and knowledge are closely linked. From a special education perspective, this study can contribute with an insight into how students perceive their situation and the benefits of focusing on the effects of power, as a result creating a possible venue for school, parents and teachers where the outcome of the school efforts is in focus.

Book Summary: The International Guide to Student Achievement brings together and critically examines the major influences shaping student achievement today. There are many, often competing, claims about how to enhance student achievement, raising the questions of "What works?" and "What works best?" World-renowned bestselling authors, John Hattie and Eric M. Anderman have invited an international group of scholars to write brief, empirically-supported articles that examine predictors of academic achievement across a variety of topics and domains. Rather than telling people what to do in their schools and classrooms, this guide simply provides the first-ever compendium of research that summarizes what is known about the major influences shaping students’ academic achievement around the world. Readers can apply this knowledge base to their own school and classroom settings. The 150+ entries serve as intellectual building blocks to creatively mix into new or existing educational arrangements and aim for quick, easy reference. Chapter authors follow a common format that allows readers to more seamlessly compare and contrast information across entries, guiding readers to apply this knowledge to their own classrooms, their curriculums and teaching strategies, and their teacher training programs.

Healthy eating in childhood and adolescence is important for proper growth and development and to help prevent chronic diseases. Many factors contribute to healthy eating patterns, and one of the most influential factors is the home and school environment. Both settings have role models who may affect a child’s eating behaviors. This study consisted of 54 home school and 21 public school participants who lived in northeast Mississippi and were between 6-12 years old. Public school children consumed significantly more total calories, net carbohydrates, vitamin C, and calcium compared to the home school children. Also, the public school children consumed more calories in the form of carbohydrates after 3pm compared to home school children. Nevertheless, there was no difference in BMI percentiles in public school and home school children 8-12 years of age. For 6 and 7-year-old children, the home school children had significantly lower BMI percentiles compared to the public school children.

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This study provides data from an existing review of secondary data and a survey of dual enrollment managers on the topic of Mississippi Community and junior college’s dual enrollment collaborations with secondary schools and parents of home-schooled students. Dual enrollment, also known as dual credit, concurrent enrollment, and credit based transition, refers to the participation in college-level courses and the earning of college credits by high school students. Dual enrollment has been described as providing benefits such as increasing access to postsecondary education, increasing the rigor of the high school curriculum, savings in time and expenses toward earning a college degree, promoting more efficient use of states’ educational resources, and enhancing students’ admission to college, and subsequent retention and success in college. The Mississippi Education Reform Act (2006) offered secondary schools and CJCs more autonomy to establish exemplary dual enrollment programs through forged local collaborative that serve to increase high school retention and completion and postsecondary enrollment, retention, and completion. The primary intention of this mixed methods research is descriptive. Through the extant review of the literature the researcher examined the availability and the content of state dual enrollment policies and what experts in the field consider to be necessary inclusions. Then the researcher divided the study into two parts. Part I of the research involved a secondary analysis of existing State Board for Community and Junior College (SBCJC) Primary Enrollment data for Academic Years 2006, 2007, and 2008, to describe the extent of Dual Enrollment participation in Mississippi’s 15 CJCs. Part II involved survey research that ascertained the extent of Mississippi community and junior colleges’ dual enrollment (DE) collaboration practices with high schools and parents of home-schooled students that bridged the gap between secondary and postsecondary education, and DEM’s perceptions regarding Mississippi CJC’s dual enrollment collaboration targets, goals, and benefits. There was no need for a random sample because the entire population was the focus of the survey. The population was the dual enrollment managers (DEM’s) of Mississippi’s 15 CJCs identified as such by each college’s Chief Academic Officer.