<p>The central question in this research asks why some women do "men's work." The literature suggests two basic approaches: according to the demand approach, women are placed in certain jobs because of employment practices; according to the supply approach women are inclined to look for certain kinds of work. The supply explanation suggests that the socialization of a woman influences her work motivation and the kinds of work she will consider for employment. Our research focus is on such supply factors. Our general hypothesis is that women who enter non-traditional occupations will have had non-traditional socialization experiences; women who enter traditional occupations will have had traditional socialization experiences. Specific hypotheses are developed to capture the influence of the family and, in particular, the role of a working mother on the work behavior of the daughter.</p> <p>To test our hypotheses a sample of 111 women was drawn. Our aim was to select both a traditional and nontraditional occupation in professional and non-professional categories. Two occupations were chosen--elementary school teachers and registered nursing assistants--and defined as traditional areas of female employment. Two occupations--pharmacists and policewomen--had a small number of women employed and they were titled non-traditional female occupational areas of employment. The quantitative and qualitative data gathered through interviews are used to test specific hypotheses and explore patterns within each hypothesis. The data are presented in three chapters: the influence of the family of origin, the effect of education and school experiences and the importance of the work environment and conjugal family on the work behavior of women in traditional and non-traditional occupations.</p> <p> The research shows that the socialization experiences within the family of origin reveal no significant difference between women who selected traditional occupations and those who selected non--traditional employment. In fact, almost all of the women in our sample, in all occupations, expressed traditional values regarding work and home. However, the research did find that socialization experiences are important in providing more general occupational orientations which directed the women toward either "professional" goals or "work" goals. Moreover, social class variables were more important in determining these occupational orientations than were the hypothesized sex-role variables.</p> <p>As well, the women's attitudes regarding school were largely a function of their socialization experiences in the home. Professional women placed a high evaluation on schooling and were more likely to report that they had done well in school. This was rarely the case for the non-professional woman. For women who had acquired professional aspirations, academic performance seems to have been an important factor in their occupational choice. The women who did not aspire to careers and who therefore did not view formal education as an important occupational route seem to have been most vulnerable to the vagaries of chance. The most important factor in their occupational choice appears to have been the influence of close informal work contacts.</p> <p>With respect to their experiences at work, women in non-traditional occupations were more likely to report that they had experienced sexual discrimination than were women in traditional occupations. However, the data suggest that such perceptions may reflect a greater consciousness of a "minority status" than actual discrimination. Almost all of the married women in our sample were concerned about the potentially conflicting demands of family and work. However, professional women seem to have the greatest number of alternatives in dealing with these demands. The problems are greatest for those women who work because they need the money and who work in occupations which are inflexible. </p> <p>The central theme of the data suggests clearly that women's early socialization experiences are important in the development of professional or job orientations but less important in the selection of a traditional or nontraditional occupation. In the most general terms, the research suggests that supply factors are important in constraining women's occupational behavior. However, the data also lead us to believe that as more male dominated occupations are ''opened up" to women, there will be women-even traditional women--to take the positions.</p> / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Since the 1980s, researchers have suggested that principals are an integral part of school effectiveness through their actions as instructional leaders. Standardized testing and strict accountability, which heavily influence today's public schools, make principals responsible for student achievement. They fulfill this responsibility by influencing and guiding the quality of teaching and learning in their schools. The purpose of this study was to measure how high school principals influenced change in teachers' instructional practices; however, other factors influencing classroom instruction surfaced. A two-step methodology was used. The first step was a qualitative study in which interviews with 9 principals and 9 teachers from high schools across the country were conducted. The purpose of this step was to collect data that helped develop a questionnaire that was used in a quantitative study. The constant-comparative method was used to analyze data collected from the interviews. The influence of principals on change in teachers' instructional practices was limited. Several other factors emerged as influences on teachers. The original theory was modified and the new theory guided the development of the questionnaire. Step two of the methodology was a quantitative study in which a questionnaire was distributed to a national sample of teachers. Multiple regression analysis was used to analyze data collected from the questionnaire. Two of the five predictor variables were significantly related to change in teachers' instructional practices. The strongest predictor of change in teachers' instructional practices was pressure influences. External growth influences was the other variable significantly related to change in teachers' instructional practices. The remaining variables, administrative influence, peer influence, and self/family/student influence, were not predictors of change in teachers' instructional practices. Issuing directives, one of the pressure influences, was the only principal influence significantly related to change in teachers' instructional practices. Results indicated that teachers were influenced by many variables, many of which are outside of the principal's control. / Ed. D.

Throughout the last 30 years, there has been a movement to use computer technology in schools to enhance teaching and learning. In recent years, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 has mandated that states have a long range strategic educational technology plan that describes the many facets of their technology integration efforts (2002). However, at this time research indicates that technology integration in classrooms is still low tech and infrequent (Cuban, 2001; NCES, 2005a). The purpose of this quantitative study was to gain insight into a teacher's use of computer technology with students in K-5 general education public school classrooms across the state of Virginia. Eleven independent variables (e.g., teaching philosophy, professional development, hardware proficiency, software proficiency) and 2 dependent variables (i.e., frequency and application of technology integration) were selected based on a review of literature and input from educators. A questionnaire, designed to measure variables, was field tested for validity and reliability then administrated to teachers. The population of the study was approximately 16,500 K-5 general education public school teachers from the state of Virginia with active e-mail addresses in the Market Data Retrieval (MDR) database. A systematic sample of 1,400 K-5 teachers was selected from the MDR database. Teachers' responses rendered 313 usable questionnaires. Analysis of the data revealed that the majority of independent variables (8), with the exception of 3 independent variables (i.e., technical support, student to computer ratio, technology integration support), yielded significant correlations with the dependent variable frequency of technology integration. Whereas, all independent variables (10), with the exception of technical support, yielded significant correlations with the dependent variable application of technology integration. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to determine whether the 11 independent variables were significant predictors of variation in the dependent variables (frequency and application of integration). The results of both regression analyses rendered significant models for the prediction of variation in frequency and application of integration (R2= .16, R2=.39), respectively. The researcher concluded that the predicted variance (R2= .16) of regression model 1 was too small to be considered a viable model for the predication of variation in frequency. Whereas, regression model 2 predicted a greater level of variance (R2=.39), thus it was considered a good predictor of variation in the application of technology integration. Three of the 11 independent variables (i.e., software availability, teaching philosophy, and software proficiency) were among the variables that were significant predictors of variance in the application of technology integration. The strongest predictor was software availability followed by teaching philosophy and software proficiency. Teachers who reported moderate to low variety in the application of technology integration also reported moderate access to software, moderately low software proficiency, and use of instructional practices that were consistent with constructivism. / Ph. D.

Given Virginia's Standards of Learning (SOL)(1995) mandates, Virginia's Algebra I teachers and school leaders should utilize research for teaching methods; further, the relationship between teaching methods and student achievement on Virginia's End of Course SOL Test for Algebra I deserves investigation, since Virginia's students must pass this test to earn verified credit toward high school graduation. Replicating Marcucci's (1980) methodology for meta-analysis, the present study focuses on research with methods for teaching secondary level algebra from 1980 to 2001. From a sample of 34 studies with 62 effect sizes, six categories for teaching methods and corresponding effect sizes were derived for "good" studies: direct instruction (.67), problem-based learning (.44), technology aided instruction (.41), cooperative learning (.26), manipulatives, models, and multiple representations (.23), and communication and study skills (.16). Using results from the meta-analysis and review of literature and extensive content validation, a 51-item questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of .89 was developed. The questionnaire was posted as a web-site to survey selected Algebra I teachers in Region VII to ascertain how frequently they use research-based teaching methods and to determine the influence of teaching methods on their students' achievement on the spring, 2002, Algebra I SOL Test. Ninety-eight percent of teachers surveyed responded. The 53 participating Algebra I teachers, representing 1,538 students, produced a passing mean scale score of 438.01 (SD = 32.67). Teachers indicated they used all teaching method categories more than half the time with mean usage frequencies ranging from 2.56 to 3.75 times out of five class sessions. Teaching method categories were then entered into a blockwise multiple regression analysis, ranked according to the strength of their correlations to teachers' mean scale SOL test scores. Teaching method usage shared 9.7% of variance with participating teachers' scores. Meta- and regression analysis results suggest that Algebra I teachers should emphasize direct instruction, technology aided instruction, and problem-based learning. These three teaching method categories ranked highest in both analyses. The questionnaire developed here could be used with a larger sample for research into the influence of teaching methods on individual reporting categories on the Algebra I SOL test. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this study was to describe the leadership practices of women superintendents of public school divisions. The researcher interviewed eight women superintendents in the Commonwealth of Virginia examining the participants' self-perceived leadership practices and their reflections of these practices. Data collection occurred through use of interviews, member checks, field notes, a reflexive journal and completion of the Leadership Practices Inventory-SELF. Descriptive accounts of the women's leadership practices in the context of their professional lived experiences and within the framework of transformational leadership theory are presented in a narrative format. Findings and conclusions, were determined by analyzing the collected data, the research question and the review of literature. The findings produced eight leadership practices: 1) use consistent and accurate communication with all stakeholders, 2) be visible, 3) use limited delegation, 4) be collaborative, 5) remain poised, 6) accept personal sacrifice of time and family, 7) exhibit confident, and 8) self-educate, be a quick learner. The findings concluded that women described their leadership practices as relationship building practices and practices incorporating issues of gender and silencing. An implication for future research included discussion for a study which would go beyond the self-described leadership practices of the women superintendents and examine how their leadership practices are implemented and perceived by stakeholders and employees. Data from these direct observations may offer further, detailed insights as to how the described leadership practices of this study are practiced, implemented and perceived by others. / Ph. D.

Effective substitute teachers are needed in classrooms across the United States; however, little attention is given to the policies and practices that school districts use to recruit, train, and evaluate them. The challenge of finding quality substitute teachers, despite the absence of definitive policies and practices to guide them, continues to be a problem nationwide. The purpose of this study was to identify, using a three-round Delphi technique (Linstone & Turoff, 1975), policies and practices school districts could use to recruit, train, and evaluate substitute teachers. Data were gathered from a panel of experts who represent a variety of independent thinking on school district policies and practices for recruiting, training, and evaluating substitute teachers. The Delphi had three rounds of questions. During each round the panel members did not meet as a group (Tam & Mills, 2006). Data were collected in 2008-2009. The nationwide panel of experts included writers and researchers, human resources directors, developers of programs for training substitute teachers, and participants at a national conference who managed programs for substitute teachers. The panel represented all six regions of the American Association of School Personnel Administrators, even though all were not active members of the association. The findings provided information about substitute teachers on policies and practices to assist school districts in providing high-quality substitute teachers in classrooms when the regular teachers are absent and intended to affect policies and practices regarding the manner in which substitute teachers are recruited, trained, and evaluated. By the end of the third round of the Delphi, the panel identified 27 policies and 51 practices school boards could enact and employ, respectively, to recruit, train, and evaluate substitute teachers. The panelists recommended policies on compensation, district support, strategies and processes, and performance expectations. They recommended specific performance criteria and evaluation practices, content and methods of training, and procedures for recruitment of high-quality substitutes. An instrument for evaluating the policies and practices covering substitute teachers is a product of the study. / Ed. D.

The decision to drop out of high school can affect a person's life in many ways, as lifetime earnings, employment options, overall health, and the probability of incarceration are all negatively influenced when students drop out of school. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the perceptions of faculty, staff, parents, and high school graduates regarding factors leading to the high graduation rates of students in a dropout prevention program during the 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 school years. A total of 15 one-on-one interviews were conducted to collect data around participants' perceptions of how the application process; onboarding and orientation program; academic progress monitoring and interventions; and social, emotional, and mental health supports contributed to the program's high graduation rate. Data were reviewed, analyzed, and coded, resulting in emerging themes across the data set. Themes were then synthesized and aggregated into four findings. Findings indicated the advisor role and the student–advisor relationship, staff training in trauma-informed practices, staff collaboration, and providing a flexible and responsive program structure were factors influencing the high graduation rate of students in this dropout prevention program. These findings were used to develop four corresponding implications for district and school leaders to create and maintain structures where students are supported by at least one trusted adult, provide meaningful and consistent trauma-informed professional learning, create an environment where staff collaboration around student needs is a priority, and provide flexible schedules and options for students to positively affect student graduation from alternative educational settings. / Doctor of Education / The decision to drop out of high school can affect a person's life in many ways, as lifetime earnings, employment options, overall health, and the probability of incarceration are all negatively influenced when students drop out of school. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the perceptions of faculty, staff, parents, and high school graduates regarding factors leading to the high graduation rates of students in a dropout prevention program during the 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 school years. A total of 15 one-on-one interviews were conducted to collect data around participants' perceptions of how the application process; onboarding and orientation program; academic progress monitoring and interventions; and social, emotional, and mental health supports contributed to the program's high graduation rate. Data were reviewed, analyzed, and coded, resulting in emerging themes across the data set. Themes were then synthesized and aggregated into four findings. Findings indicated the advisor role and the student–advisor relationship, staff training in trauma-informed practices, staff collaboration, and providing a flexible and responsive program structure were factors influencing the high graduation rate of students in this dropout prevention program. These findings were used to develop four corresponding implications for district and school leaders to create and maintain structures where students are supported by at least one trusted adult, provide meaningful and consistent trauma-informed professional learning, create an environment where staff collaboration around student needs is a priority, and provide flexible schedules and options for students to positively affect student graduation from alternative educational settings.

Despite reform efforts to broaden historically underrepresented populations across STEM disciplines, the data continues to highlight gaps of achievement across racial demographics. In an effort to address educational inequity, current reform efforts have touted the implementation of learning progressions as a promising strategy that can produce equality of outcomes across racial groups in STEM. Despite this promising effort, few studies have examined how to integrate practices of equity within learning progressions for groups such as African Americans that have been traditionally excluded from science and STEM. This study argues that an equity oriented learning progression should be responsive to sociohistorical factors of epistemic injustice that dissociated African Americans identities from being producers of knowledge. This study argues that the construction of a learning progression to advance the epistemic participation of African American students is aligned with goals of social justice related to diversifying STEM. The aims of this study explored how African American students progressed toward epistemic agency as STEM learners as a result of identity transformation through the engagement of the epistemic practices of engineering. This study used qualitative methodology to explore how student participants demonstrate epistemic development in their artifacts and discourse when engaging in engineering activities across a learning progression designed to develop epistemic agency. The findings from this study contribute to a broader understanding of how equity-oriented learning progressions can be designed to promote epistemic justice, how sociocultural positionings influence epistemic communities, and how students can become epistemic agents to raise STEM awareness within their local community. Advancing students epistemic practices of engineering and epistemic agency as STEM learners is key to creating meaningful pathways into STEM for students in K-12. / Doctor of Philosophy / National imperatives to broaden the STEM participation of underrepresented groups remains a prominent priority across educational research. Due to marginal effectiveness associated with racialized minorities, researchers continue to explore equity oriented initiatives. In an effort to address educational inequity, current reform efforts have touted the implementation of learning progressions as a promising strategy that can produce equality of outcomes across racial groups in science and STEM. Educational inequity prevents underrepresented populations, such as African Americans, from having the types of educational experiences that position them as significant contributors in STEM and more specifically engineering. This study argues that the construction of a learning progression to advance the epistemic participation and agency of African American students in STEM is a sociohistorical response to a legacy of epistemic injustice. Qualitative methodology was used to explore how African American students progressed toward epistemic agency as STEM learners as a result of identity transformation through the engagement of the epistemic practices of engineering. The findings indicated that the engineering design activities within the curriculum positively influenced students' identity, self-efficacy, and demonstration of epistemic agency across the learning progression. Additionally, the findings indicated the effectiveness of using the epistemic practices of engineering to facilitate the cognitive development of the engineering habits of mind. Lastly, the findings indicated the significance of using the epistemic practices of engineering to reposition African American students' identities as epistemic contributors both within the classroom and within their local community.

Change in educational settings is a complex and multifaceted process that commonly implies change in teaching practices. Different initiatives have shown the significance of teachers and their perceptions when change in teaching practices is intended. Additionally, various factors may influence change in teaching practices at three different moments: before it happens, during, and after its implementation. Considering teachers' perceptions, I studied different factors that may be related to positive change in teaching practices. I studied the relationship between three groups of factors and positive change in teaching practices: motivational factors, including teachers' self-efficacy and autonomy; learning opportunities that include professional development, feedback, and leadership; and the academic and community domains as part of the school climate factor. In particular, I answered the following research question: To what extent do learning opportunities, teacher motivational factors, and school climate predict positive change in teaching practices? In this study I posited that teacher factors such as self-efficacy and school factors such as leadership influence positive change in teaching practices. I also posited that school factors influence the relationship between teacher factors and positive change in teaching practices. To study these relationships, I analyzed data from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). This survey provides clustered data: teachers are clustered by schools and schools by countries. I used multilevel modeling statistical methods (i.e., a two-level hierarchical linear model) to examine the Colombian and United Stated datasets. Before estimating the hierarchical linear models, I conducted an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to identify the teacher-level variables. One follow-up EFA focused on teacher self-efficacy yielded three variables that allowed me to focus on three specific teaching tasks: managing student behavior, motivating students, and varying instructional strategies. I found that learning opportunities, motivational factors, and school climate predict positive change in teaching practices. Learning opportunities, such as feedback from the principal has a stronger effect than feedback from colleagues. The impact of feedback from the principal has significant unnoticeable variability across schools, and it is negatively influenced by the feedback received by the teachers at the same school. Additionally, teachers' self-efficacy in different teaching tasks predicts positive change, however, these relationships differ by country. Finally, distributed leadership as part of school climate is a significant predictor of positive change that also affects it by influencing teacher interactions positively. Implications of these findings are also discussed as it relates to the existing literature and the educational system in each of the two countries. / Doctor of Philosophy / Over many decades there have been different initiatives in education to improve teaching. Unfortunately, many of those efforts have had unsuccessful results, although they are solid proposals. Thus, change itself has become a focus of study. My study focuses on factors that may influence positive change in teaching practices. I focus on three groups of factors: learning opportunities, motivational factors, and school climate. For learning opportunities, I studied the participation of teachers in professional development, feedback to teachers from different educational community members, and interactions between teachers. For motivational factors, I focused on teachers' autonomy and self-efficacy. Finally, for school climate, I studied factors associated with leadership, interactions between teachers at the same school, and participation of teachers from the same school in professional development. I analyzed data from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). TALIS is an international survey administered to teachers and principals worldwide. I considered TALIS data from Colombia and the US. Within each country, teachers are grouped by schools, that is, teacher are nested within schools. In this study, teachers are considered the level-one unit, and schools, the level-two units. Therefore, I analyzed the data using a statistical method known as Hierarchical Linear Modelling. This method allowed me to identify different relationships: between teacher-level factors and positive change, between school-level factors and positive change, and between school-level factors and the relationship between teacher factors and positive change. I was also able to partition the variance associated with these relationships between teachers and between schools. I found that learning opportunities, motivational factors, and school climate are predictors of positive change in teaching practices. This means that teachers are more likely to implement changes in their teaching practices if they: participate in professional development, interact with their colleagues, receive feedback from the principal and their colleagues, have a high level of self-efficacy for different teaching tasks, and belong to a school where leadership is well distributed among different stakeholders. In particular, feedback could have a stronger impact if it is based on different sources of information. Finally, I discuss the implications of these findings and conclusions that lead to a better understanding of these relationships.

Over the past few years, White Americans have been exposed to moments of "racial reckonings" –where America was forced to realize racial injustice—often caused by police killings of Black Americans. The summer of 2020 sparked various discussions about White allies and their role in racial justice. Previous scholarship has explored White racial awakenings, also referred to as turning points, when White allies transition into allyship; however, little is known about how these narratives affect White allies' definitions and practices of White allyship. By interviewing self-identifying White allies in college, I examine types of turning point narratives and how they correspond to understandings of ally definitions and practices. I argue that experiencing turning points led White allies to similar definitions and practices of White allyship depending on whether these points occurred in routine or non-routine White experiences. Turning points that arise from typical White experiences (exposure to diversity and education) led White allies to common allyship failures and complicity with racialized structures. Alternatively, turning points resulting from uncommon White experiences (exposure to protests and diverse families) led allies to definitions and practices representing non-complicity with racialized structures. / Master of Science / Over the past few years, White Americans have been exposed to moments of race related dialogues, often caused by police killings of Black Americans. The summer of 2020 sparked various discussions about White allies and their role in racial justice. Previous scholarship has explored White racial awakenings, also referred to as turning points, when White allies transition into allyship; however, little is known about how these narratives affect White allies' definitions and practice of White allyship. By interviewing self-identifying White allies in college, I examine types of turning points and how they correspond ally definitions and practices. I argue that experiencing turning points led White allies to similar definitions and practices of White allyship depending on whether these points occurred in routine or non-routine White experiences. Turning points that arise from typical White experiences (exposure to diversity and education) led White allies to common allyship failures. Alternatively, turning points resulting from uncommon White experiences (exposure to protests and diverse families) led allies to beneficial definitions and practices of allyship.