<p> The purpose of this study was to examine how much K-12 science teachers working in a virtual school experience a community of practice and how that experience affects personal science-teaching efficacy and science-teaching outcome expectancy. The study was rooted in theoretical frameworks from Lave and Wenger's (1991) community of practice and Bandura's (1977) self-efficacy beliefs. The researcher used three surveys to examine schoolteachers' experiences of a community of practice and science-teaching efficacy beliefs. The instrument combined Mangieri's (2008) virtual teacher demographic survey, Riggs and Enochs (1990) Science-teaching efficacy Beliefs Instrument-A (STEBI-A), and Cadiz, Sawyer, and Griffith's (2009) Experienced Community of Practice (eCoP) instrument. </p><p> The results showed a significant linear statistical relationship between the science teachers' experiences of community of practice and personal science-teaching efficacy. In addition, the study found that there was also a significant linear statistical relationship between teachers' community of practice experiences and science-teaching outcome expectancy. The results from this study were in line with numerous studies that have found teachers who are involved in a community of practice report higher science-teaching efficacy beliefs (Akerson, Cullen, &amp; Hanson, 2009; Fazio, 2009; Lakshmanan, Heath, Perlmutter, &amp; Elder, 2011; Liu, Lee, &amp; Lin, 2010; Sinclair, Naizer, &amp; Ledbetter, 2010). The researcher concluded that school leaders, policymakers, and researchers should increase professional learning opportunities that are grounded in social constructivist theoretical frameworks in order to increase teachers' science efficacy.</p>

<p> The books we care about are part of us (Sumara 1996, 2002). It is the story of this literary experience as told by three currently practicing English teachers that interests me when I ask, "How does a teacher's personal reading inform his or her understanding of curriculum?" Seeking the representation of this story, I employ qualitative methods that value unique perspectives, interpretations, and the presence of my subjectivity (van Manen, 1990; Seidman, 2006; Jardine, 2006). The combined use of autobiography&mdash;in the tradition of <i>currere</i> (Pinar, 1975)&mdash;and the hermeneutic method (Heidegger, 2008; Nakkula &amp; Ravitch, 1998) best matches this responsibility. By representing the profound impact of personal reading on my teaching of literature, I contribute my autobiographical voice and story to this study. </p><p> This dissertation is influenced by contemporary literary theory, Sumara's (1996, 2002) scholarship on reading and curriculum, and Rosenblatt's (1994, 1995) reader response theory. Data collection follows Seidman's (2006) discussion of semi-structured conversations, analysis is performed with attention to van Manen's (1990) qualitative human science design, and representation is carried out following Seidman's (2006) description of participant narrative profiles. I begin this analysis by exploring two super-ordinate themes: personal reading and curriculum understanding. Sub-themes in the area of personal reading are unique. Sub-themes representing curriculum understanding are consistent across participants. These sub-themes include a teacher's definition of curriculum, professional identity, and teaching of literature. Analysis reveals a recognizable relationship between each teacher's personal reading and curriculum understanding: each teacher's personal reading experience is reflected in his or her teaching of literature. </p><p> Through its exploration of the relationship between personal reading and curriculum understanding, this study provides a glimpse into the tangled intricacies of curriculum. Since many reading experiences described in this work were born outside of the classroom, this study confirms the perspective that curriculum includes all learning opportunities inside <i>and</i> outside the classroom. Beyond this confirmation, this study reaffirms several key components of teaching and learning: the fundamental function of literature to interrupt familiarity, the role of teacher as interrupter, and the respect for existential experience as a source of scholarship.</p>

<p> Previous research has identified student engagement as an important antecedent to student learning in higher education. Although student engagement is viewed as important for learning, a significant number of college students still report frequently feeling bored in their courses. The use of music as a pedagogical tool is believed to be beneficial for promoting student engagement and student learning in higher education sociology courses, yet it has been suggested that sociology faculty members do not commonly incorporate the technique into their courses. The purpose of this comparative interview study is to explore higher education sociology faculty members' understandings of the use of music as a pedagogical tool, and the perceived importance of student engagement to student learning among higher education sociology faculty members. </p><p> In this study, it is found that higher education sociology faculty members believe student engagement can lead to increased student learning. It is also found that higher education sociology faculty members generally identify music as an effective pedagogical tool for promoting student engagement and learning in higher education sociology courses. Interestingly, participants believed the use of music as a pedagogical tool to be an uncommon practice in higher education sociology courses in the United States. As part of their efforts to explain their choices to use or not use music as a pedagogical tool, faculty participants described potential barriers that may impact faculty member choices to use music in their higher education sociology courses. </p><p> Sociology faculty participants in this study agreed that a lack of discussion of pedagogical tools among colleagues and in teaching courses might serve as a potential barrier for the use of music as a pedagogical tool. Higher education sociology faculty participants also identified a lack of knowledge of how to use music as a pedagogical tool as a potential barrier for the use of music in sociology courses. This research suggests that the lack of faculty knowledge of music as a pedagogical tool may be due to the lack of discussion of pedagogical tools both among colleagues and in the teaching courses completed by higher education sociology faculty members. </p><p> Past research has suggested that sociology faculty members need to create an environment that encourages students to be active and engaged participants in their own learning through building a community of learners. This study suggests that higher education sociology faculty members may successfully build a community of learners through using music as a pedagogical tool in their courses. This study recommends that changes at the departmental level need to occur in order to make it easier for sociology faculty members to gain the knowledge required to use music effectively in their courses. Suggestions for practice and future research are provided.</p>

<p> Purpose: The purpose of this Delphi study was to identify the essential conditions (ISTE) required for technology integration in Professional Learning Communities for building effective teams, promoting collaboration, and endorsing shared decision making processes as perceived by members of the joint Technology Leadership Network of the Riverside County Office of Education and San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, California. </p><p> Methodology: A structured Delphi Study using mixed methods was conducted to find the expert panel's opinions, the members of the Technology Leadership Network in Riverside County Office of Education. Round 1 and Round 3 comprised scaled questions, producing quantitative data. Round 2 consisted of open ended questions, producing qualitative data. </p><p> Findings: Delphi expert panelists ranked shared vision, ongoing professional learning, empowered leaders, and student-centered learning as the top four ISTE essential conditions required for technology integration in PLCs. The Delphi expert panelists also identified the preconditions necessary for technology integration. </p><p> Conclusions: Based on the findings, a transformational plan and a change model were designed to effectively implement technology integration in Professional Learning Communities. The purpose of the plan and model was to provide step-by-step instructions for a transformational change plan for technology integration in Professional Learning Communities. </p><p> Recommendations: To prepare educators for 21st century PLCs, it is crucial to have technology integrated in professional developments. Technology integration is indispensable for PLCs to build effective teams and to have collaboration and effective decision making; however, it is not possible unless PLCs have a deliberate shared vision, embedded ongoing professional learning, empowered leaders at all levels, and data driven student centered learning. The prerequisites, if addressed properly, can provide the strong foundation required for technology integration in PLCs. Yet, the change needs to come within one's self, and educators as lifelong learners are the right people to integrate this change. </p>

<p> Use of free and open source software (FOSS) by teachers in public schools is limited. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were statistically significant differences among teachers who use FOSS in the classroom, teachers who use proprietary software in the classroom, and teachers who do not use software in the classroom at all, with the goal to propose ways to mitigate barriers to implementation of FOSS by teachers in public schools. The research design was quasi-experimental. Independent t tests were used to measure differences among the three groups on the following independent variables: age of respondent in years, years of teaching experience, primary subject area taught, level of education, number of years of experience in using technology, number of district training sessions or technology initiatives attended in the previous 12 months, impact of school site leadership on implementation of technology in the classroom, and impact of district technology initiatives on implementation of technology in the classroom. The results revealed statistically significant differences only concerning the impact of school site leadership as reported by teachers who used FOSS and teachers who used proprietary software. Recommendations to encourage teachers&rsquo; use of FOSS included establishing collaborative processes by instructional staff, administration and information technology personnel to identify and assess appropriate FOSS solutions, training opportunities in the use of FOSS in the classroom, and guidelines to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the selected software solutions (proprietary and FOSS).</p>

<p> Within successful <i>Inclusive Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)-focused High Schools</i> (ISHSs), it is not only the students who are learning. Teachers, with diverse backgrounds, training, and experience, share and develop their knowledge through rich, embedded professional development to continuously shape their craft, improve their teaching, and support student success. This study of four exemplars of ISHSs (identified by experts in STEM education as highly successful in preparing students underrepresented in STEM for STEM majors in college and future STEM careers) provides a rich description of the relationships among the characteristics of STEM teachers, their professional development, and the school cultures that allow teachers to develop professionally and serve the needs of students. By providing a framework for the development of teaching staffs in ISHSs and contributing to the better understanding of STEM teaching in any school, this study offers valuable insight, implications, and information for states and school districts as they begin planning improvements to STEM education programs. A thorough examination of an existing data set that included site visits to four ISHSs along with pre- and post-visit data, provided the resource for this multiple case study with cross-case analysis of the teachers and their teacher professional development experiences. </p><p> Administrators in these ISHSs had the autonomy to hire teachers with strong content backgrounds, philosophical alignment with the school missions, and a willingness to work collaboratively toward achieving the schools' goals. Ongoing teacher professional development began before school started and continued throughout the school day and year through intense and sustained, formal and informal, active learning experiences. Flexible professional development systems varied, but aligned with targeted school reforms and teacher and student needs. Importantly, collaborative teacher learning occurred within a school-wide culture of collaboration. Teachers were guided in establishing open lines of communication that supported regular engagement with others and the free flow of ideas, practices, and concerns. As a result of this collaboration, in conjunction with intentional pathways to teacher leadership, teacher professionalization was deliberately and successfully fostered creating an environment of shared mission and mutual trust, and a shared sense of responsibility for school-wide decision-making and school outcomes.</p>

<p> Student literacy rates across the country are unacceptably low. Teacher preparation has emerged as a priority in both research and practice in efforts to improve the nation's literacy rates. Teacher knowledge and beliefs influence the quality of instruction teachers are able to implement. This study was designed to help educators and mentors of novice teachers understand the relationship between literacy pedagogical content knowledge and literacy teacher efficacy beliefs and changes to this relationship during the course of student teaching. </p><p> Using a sample of 36 pre-service teachers assigned to student teaching in kindergarten, first or second grade classrooms, literacy pedagogical content knowledge was measured in a multiple-choice assessment that covered a variety of early literacy instructional areas including phonology, orthography, vocabulary, morphology and comprehension. Literacy teaching efficacy beliefs was measured using a self-report questionnaire. Participants completed the survey at two time points, at the beginning and end of student teaching. </p><p> To determine if a literacy pedagogical content knowledge and literacy teaching efficacy beliefs demonstrated a relationship, Pearson correlations were calculated at both time points. Results of this study suggest that these constructs are not related and operate independently. Additionally this study suggested that while literacy teaching efficacy beliefs improved significantly over the course of student teaching, literacy pedagogical content knowledge did not. Results from this study can inform teacher educators, mentors of novice teaches and professional development programmers on the relationship of literacy pedagogical content knowledge and literacy teaching efficacy beliefs in pre-service teachers.</p>

<p> Recruitment and retention of ethnically diverse students in college education preparation programs remains a difficult challenge for many colleges and universities across the United States. Low numbers of education majors yield low numbers of ethnically diverse teachers in the teaching workforce. According to 2010 data from the National Center of Education Statistics, African American students comprise about 16% of our public school students nationwide, but African American teachers only represent about 8% of the teaching workforce. While Asian students comprise 4.6% of the total public school population, only 1% of the teachers in American public schools are Asian (National Center of Education Statistics, 2010). Additionally, Latinos are expected to make up a third of the total U.S. school-age population (ages 3&ndash;17) by the year 2036, while Latino teachers represent only 14% of the teacher workforce (NCES, 2012). </p><p> Although college going rates for ethnically diverse students are increasing, many of those students are not choosing education as a major. Researchers have studied the perceptions ethnically diverse students have about teaching and have identified numerous barriers, such as: limited educational opportunities, more lucrative career options and standardized testing requirements (Madkins, 2011). Furthermore, Gordon's (1994) research points to not graduating from high school, negative experiences in school, lack of respect, teachers not being prepared for diversity, lack of support for college, lack of academic encouragement, racelessness, absence of role models of color, low status of the profession, too much education for the return, low pay, negative image, poor school conditions, having more opportunities elsewhere, and racism as contributing factors affecting students' decisions not to pursue a career in education. Graham and Erwin (2011) who studied African American boys discovered three themes: negative perceptions of teachers and teaching, perceptions of schools as oppressive institutions, and African American men are nonconformists. While these are all significant potential barriers to ethnically diverse students choosing careers in education, those ethnically diverse students who do choose to pursue teaching may be able to shed some light on the issue. Since much of the research focuses on the barriers and limitations ethnically diverse students face in our society, part of the purpose of this research is to highlight what is working for ethnically diverse students who are pursuing a career in education. </p><p> The purpose of this dissertation is to describe the factors that contribute to an ethnically diverse education major's career aspiration and college success. Since the disparity problem is multifaceted, I addressed historical, personal and social aspects that may impact the overall phenomenon, including: desegregation of teachers of color, students' experiences within the context of secondary schools, issues surrounding institutional racism, students' perceptions of teachers and teaching, college readiness, college recruitment and retention of teacher candidates, mentoring, personal motivations and identity development. </p><p> I endeavored to capture the rich stories of ethnically diverse college students' journeys to becoming a teacher and to understand what impact mentoring may have had on their career aspirations and college success. Results from this study can inform students, schools, and colleges and universities about the barriers and support systems that successful education majors of color report affect them. Since the primary focus is on the perceived effect of mentoring, the results may also provide insights regarding the retention of ethnically diverse students once they enroll in college.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Instructional Technology, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 3813. Adviser: Thomas Brush. Title from dissertation home page (viewed Apr. 30, 2008).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Instructional Systems Technology, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 3812. Adviser: Thomas A. Brush. Title from dissertation home page (viewed May 8, 2008).