The focus of this study was a comparison between the perceptions of school-based licensed educators in Title I and non-Title I schools in Northeast Tennessee as measured by the TELL Tennessee Survey and each school’s overall composite TVAAS score. The factor variables were professional development, instructional practices and support, teacher leadership, and school leadership. This dissertation was a quantitative study of teachers’ perceptions of data-driven professional learning and TVAAS composite scores. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to evaluate the difference between teachers’ perceptions of data-driven professional development and student TVAAS data. An independent samples t-test was used to evaluate the difference between teachers’ perceptions and poverty levels, as determined by Title I status. The dependent variable was the response to the TELL Tennessee survey questions by Northeast Tennessee school-based licensed educators. Research indicated no significant difference in Northeast Tennessee teachers’ perceptions of professional learning as measured by the TELL Tennessee survey in the dimensions of professional development, instructional practices and support, and teacher leadership as related to TVAAS composite scores. The research found a significant difference in teachers’ perceptions in the dimension of school leadership as related to TVAAS composite scores. There were no significant differences in teachers’ perceptions as measured by the TELL Tennessee survey in the dimensions of professional development, instructional practices and support, teacher leadership, and school leadership between Title I and non-Title I schools.

Poor achievement on standardized math tests negatively impacts high school graduation rates. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate if math instruction in business classes could improve student achievement in math. As supported by constructivist theory, the students in this study were encouraged to use prior knowledge and experiences to make new connections between math concepts and business applications. The key research question examined if there was a significant increase in the standardized mathematics test scores of students enrolled in business classes with extended mathematics instruction compared to the standardized test scores of students not enrolled in business classes with extended mathematics instruction. The 2-sample t-test was used to compare the scores of 42 students in the treatment group to the scores of 47 students in the control group. Based on the findings, there was not a significant difference in the scores of the treatment and control groups. Recommendations for future research included redesigning the treatment to involve additional areas of mathematics instruction as well as extending the number of weeks for the treatment. This study may effect social change by informing teachers and administrators at the local site of the need to examine the effects of incorporating math into other content areas and recommending continued research in this area. The additional exposure, practice, and learning opportunities in math may help high school students achieve in mathematics and ultimately improve graduation rates.

Research has shown that effective school leadership has a positive influence on school effectiveness and student achievement. Current reform efforts include teachers, both formally and informally, as leaders of schools. However, there are currently no widely-accepted measurements or models to assess both formal and informal teacher leadership in schools. The purpose of this study was to compare model fit for the four-factor model of teacher leadership to model fit for three alternative models. The four-factor model was developed during the second administration of the Teacher Leadership Inventory (TLI), and the three alternative models were developed from the results and recommendations from the confirmatory factor analysis of that administration. Teacher responses to the second administration of the TLI constituted the data set for this study. Participants included 421 teachers from 23 schools in three East Tennessee school districts. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted for each of the measurement models under investigation, and model fit indices and parameter estimates of all four models were used for comparison. Model fit indices indicate better model fit for the four-factor model over both the two-factor and five-factor models but not over the three-factor model. However, further evaluation of both parameter estimates and prior research provide support for the acceptability of the four-factor model over the three-factor model.

This study explored forms of distributed leadership in schools and the relationship between these forms and various personal and organizational factors. Though all empirical constructs used in this study were carefully grounded in the existing literature on the topic, the organization and empirical investigation of these constructs in a systemic manner is a distinct contribution of the study. The research was conducted in one large Ontario district that had been promoting distribute leadership for years. The evidence consisted of the surveys of 92 principals, 52 vice-principals, and 2190 teachers from the district’s elementary schools. Various statistical analyses, including descriptive, correlation, regression, and multi-level modeling analyses, were used to analyze the gathered data. In the study schools, administrators and teachers perceived leadership for high-priority school initiatives being mostly distributed in an egalitarian and coordinated manner. They also associated this coordinated way of distribution with wider distribution of leadership. At the same time, teachers often experienced leadership being distributed by principals in an authoritative manner as well. This finding indicates that principal delegation remains a dominant form of leadership and should be studied alongside more egalitarian distributed forms. This research brings to light the differences in principals’, vice-principals’, teacher-leaders’, and classroom teachers’ experiences with distributed leadership. It is recommended for researchers to take into account these differences in their studies of school leadership. District and school leaders should also consider staff’s varied leadership experiences while developing distributed leadership forms in schools. The study also suggests that school conditions have more effect on the way leadership gets distributed in schools than personal beliefs and experiences of principals, vice-principals, and teachers do. This implies that in order to develop extensive and coordinated distributed leadership forms, which are believed to be more productive, school administrators should devote considerable effort to encourage teachers’ engagement in leadership activities, build cultures of trust and collaboration, develop structures supporting shared decision making, ensure staff’s commitment to shared goals and provide incentives and relevant resources.

This study explored forms of distributed leadership in schools and the relationship between these forms and various personal and organizational factors. Though all empirical constructs used in this study were carefully grounded in the existing literature on the topic, the organization and empirical investigation of these constructs in a systemic manner is a distinct contribution of the study. The research was conducted in one large Ontario district that had been promoting distribute leadership for years. The evidence consisted of the surveys of 92 principals, 52 vice-principals, and 2190 teachers from the district’s elementary schools. Various statistical analyses, including descriptive, correlation, regression, and multi-level modeling analyses, were used to analyze the gathered data. In the study schools, administrators and teachers perceived leadership for high-priority school initiatives being mostly distributed in an egalitarian and coordinated manner. They also associated this coordinated way of distribution with wider distribution of leadership. At the same time, teachers often experienced leadership being distributed by principals in an authoritative manner as well. This finding indicates that principal delegation remains a dominant form of leadership and should be studied alongside more egalitarian distributed forms. This research brings to light the differences in principals’, vice-principals’, teacher-leaders’, and classroom teachers’ experiences with distributed leadership. It is recommended for researchers to take into account these differences in their studies of school leadership. District and school leaders should also consider staff’s varied leadership experiences while developing distributed leadership forms in schools. The study also suggests that school conditions have more effect on the way leadership gets distributed in schools than personal beliefs and experiences of principals, vice-principals, and teachers do. This implies that in order to develop extensive and coordinated distributed leadership forms, which are believed to be more productive, school administrators should devote considerable effort to encourage teachers’ engagement in leadership activities, build cultures of trust and collaboration, develop structures supporting shared decision making, ensure staff’s commitment to shared goals and provide incentives and relevant resources.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Miami University, Dept. of Educational Leadership, 2005. / Title from second page of PDF document. Document formatted into pages; contains [2], iii, 189 p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 181-189).

Teacher attrition is an ongoing problem in education, and the lack of leadership opportunities contribute to that problem. Teachers who serve in leadership roles are more likely to remain in the profession and positively impact students and the profession as a whole. However, there is little qualitative research to address how teachers develop the needed leadership skills to take on additional leadership roles. The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the experiences of participants in a District Teacher Forum. The District Teacher Forum is a cohort of teachers identified as Campus Teachers of the Year led by the District Teacher of the Year with the intended purpose of helping the members to develop leadership skills. The conceptual framework that guided this study was a congruence of the social cognitive theory, constructivist theory, and perceived organizational support. The study aimed to examine the experience of teachers participating in a teacher leadership development program. Interviews of 6 Forum members selected through maximum variation sampling and a focus group provided the needed information, and findings were analyzed in relation to the research questions. This study provided insight into how teachers perceive their experiences in a teacher leadership development program as a foundation for future professional development processes to develop teacher leadership. Findings showed that teachers who are provided the opportunity to participate in professional development related to leadership in a cohort setting gain a self-identity as a teacher leader and want to serve as teacher leaders. Implications for social change include a guide for other districts to use to establish a Forum or other leadership initiative and potentially greater teacher retention.

The goal of this study is to examine what challenges in classroom management language teachers who are working at the gymnasium are facing when they are doing distance teaching. A qualitative study is performed where interviews are used as the data collection method. Five language teachers from a school in Stockholm county were chosen to take part in the interviews. These interviews were recorded and later transcribed and analysed to find categories to be able to further describe and discuss the data. This resulted in eight different categories forming. Results that are noticeable is firstly that planning and communication is the two most difficult aspects of classroom management for the interviewed teachers. For planning the time was considered difficult to control in distance teaching. When it comes to communication, the primary difficulty was to get used to communicating via a monitor which does not mediate body language and facial expressions in a satisfactory way. Furthermore, it was discovered that many teachers have problems with the technological aspects of distance teaching. There are a lot of new and complicated software that the teachers need to learn and understand to be able to efficiently educate.

State and regionally recognized New Jersey teachers struggle to use their professional knowledge in their schools and districts in roles other than teaching. The purpose of this study was to discover the perceptions of highly recognized New Jersey teachers who were interested in taking on additional roles and responsibilities in schools. Guided by Sergiovanni's concept of school communities, DuFour's vision of school culture, and Lieberman's professional development practices, this study examined the connection among these 3 concepts and explored approaches to the creation of trusting communities of teachers who work collaboratively to improve schools. The research questions focused on teacher leaders' perceptions of teacher leadership roles and the skills, knowledge, and dispositions they most valued. The participants were 12 state teachers of the year in New Jersey with 3 or more years of teaching experience. A case study design was used to capture the insights of participants through interviews, online discussions, and a focus group. Emergent themes were identified from the data through open coding, and findings were developed and validated. The key results were that teacher leaders have a desire to engage with school leaders to find ways to share their knowledge and skills with colleagues, and that they value big-picture thinking, fearlessness, and a clear commitment to their students. A project of customized content was designed to guide interested classroom teachers who aspire to be teacher leaders in order to develop the awareness and capacity to take on new roles in schools. Implications are that teachers will be empowered to become more deeply involved in school leadership and that school administrators will foster a culture that supports emerging teacher leaders.

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