Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1999. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 250-263). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.)--Calvin Theological Seminary, 1995. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 71-72).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Lehigh University, 1996. / Includes vita. Bibliography: leaves 71-77.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 196-204). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2010. / Prepared for: Dept. of Educational Studies. Title from title-page of electronic thesis. Bibliography: leaves 132-141.

Thesis (Ed. D.) -- University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2006. / Title from title page screen (viewed on Sept. 20, 2006). Thesis advisor: Gerald C. Ubben. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

For over a decade national attention to bullying in American schools has increased, fueled by publicity about suicides of severely bullied youth. Schools have the charge of maintaining the safety of all students in order to ensure a positive learning environment, but there is little information about what they are doing to prevent bullying. The purpose of this study was to provide information on principals’ perceptions of bullying and what anti-bullying policies, procedures, and programs exist in Texas middle schools. Ninety-nine principals completed an online questionnaire that addressed: 1) their knowledge of district and campus policies concerning bullying; 2) their direct experience with bullying; and, 3) bullying-prevention strategies and training in place in their schools. Principals reported direct experience with all types of bullying included on the questionnaire in their schools, but had a surprisingly small mean of 14.8 verified bullying incidents during the 2010-2011 year. Over 60% felt the level of physical safety in their school was good or very good, but only 35% rated their school’s emotional safety as good or very good. Students, parents, and teachers reported bullying to the majority of principals; however, few schools conducted annual student surveys that could provide accurate information about bullying in their schools. Procedures required by state law were more likely to be in place than those not required, though not all schools complied with all requirements. Fewer than 10% of schools had implemented a formal anti-bullying program. The most commonly cited obstacles to effectively addressing bullying were lack of time to conduct investigations and getting parents to file written reports (40%); however, despite having anti-bullying training, 27% felt limited by the lack of strategies. This study fills a void in the literature by providing a statewide overview of middle school principals’ knowledge of district and campus policies and procedures on bullying. It also shows the extent to which legal requirements and best practices have been implemented.

The purpose of this study was to describe the current schedules employed, teaming practices, and curricula used by the middle-level schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and it was conducted through the use of descriptive statistics. A questionnaire was sent to experts in the area of middle school education for review and field-tested with practicing administrators in middle-level education. The questionnaire was revised and mailed to 237 principals of the public schools in Virginia which have at least three grade levels drawn from five, six, seven, or eight but not grade levels four or nine. Principals from 134 schools, 57 percent of middle schools in Virginia, returned the questionnaire. Data collected from these questionnaires were used to describe the types of schedules employed, teaming practices, and curricula utilized by the participating middle schools. The number of middle schools in Virginia has continued to grow since their reported existence in the 1970's and the Virginia Department of Education's emphasis on the use of middle school practices in 1986. In 1985, Jessie Charles Zedd reported that there were 110 middle schools in the state. By 1996, the Virginia Educational Directory listed 237 middle schools, a percentage gain of 46. An increased use of middle school flexible scheduling and interdisciplinary teaming has occurred since that study. Most of the middle-level schools that participated in this study were mid-sized schools with 501 to 1,000 students and housing grades six, seven, and eight. The majority of middle-level schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia was found to utilize interdisciplinary teaming and a core curriculum. Flexible scheduling is utilized in most middle schools at grades six and seven but traditional schedules are used more frequently at grade eight. The use of flexible scheduling and teaming decreases from the sixth grade to the eighth grade in middle schools in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Ability grouping was reportedly used in more than 75 percent of middle schools participating in the study. Students are required to take all core subjects in most middle-level schools in Virginia and are offered high school level classes even before the eighth grade. The emphasis on the importance of middle-level education continues to be stressed nationally as well as within the Commonwealth of Virginia. Middle-level practices such as flexible scheduling and interdisciplinary teaming have served as examples of effective practices being considered and utilized by high schools. Advocates, practitioners, administrators, and teachers of the middle-level schools need to continue their emphasis on effective middle-level programs and practices for the continued improvement and success of middle schools. Improvement in the use of flexible scheduling, interdisciplinary teaming, and fewer grouping practices should be a goal of many middle-level schools to become exemplary schools. Middle schools should have high expectations for all and make their programs accessible to all students. Recommendations and data reported from this study may be used as a resource by administrators and other interested practitioners to restructure their programs in order to better serve middle-level children. / Ed. D.

The problem studied in this dissertation involved the disciplinary practices of school administrators and how the practices influenced the trend of suspensions based on socioeconomic status. The dissertation involved an exploration of the disciplinary practices of administrators, more specifically suspensions, within 19 middle schools in the northwest region of the United States. The purpose of the study was to provide insight regarding how leadership and disciplinary procedures affected the educational process. The purposefully selected sample involved 19 middle school principals and vice-principals, as well as students at the middle schools who had suspensions. Quantitative data were collected for three research questions. These data were collected with a modified version of the Schools and Staffing Survey, and suspension data came from the district’s computer database. The research design was an ex post facto design. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences was used to compute descriptive statistics that included frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, effect sizes, and point-biserial correlations, as well as statistics from the t test for independent samples. Findings for Research Question 1 showed that administrators reported the principal was responsible for making the decision to suspend a student; teachers and principals impacted a student’s ability to display positive behaviors. Point-biserial correlation findings for Research Question 2 showed there was a large inverse relationship of -.532 between poverty and middle school suspensions. Results for Research Question 3 suggested that 13 of 19 (68.42%) of the schools had a greater number of students on free and reduced lunch suspended than students who did not receive free and reduced lunch. The mean difference between suspension scores for students on free and reduced lunch and students not on free and reduced lunch was 43.11, suggesting statistical significance, p = .001, with a large Cohen’s d effect-size indicator of 1.22. A primary implication was that future policy on research-based disciplinary polices to improve administrators’ attitudes and competence toward executing discipline policies should be implemented in all middle schools.

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