The primary purpose of this study was to examine whether attendance, academic achievement, school climate, student stress, and teacher burnout improved in an inner city, predominantly African American high school after the implementation of a 4 x 4 block schedule. Data concerning student academic achievement and absenteeism in 14 classrooms were gathered from the school's Annual Scholastic Reports. Data concerning the instructional practices of eight teachers were gathered through the teacher version of the Instructional Practices Survey and compared to a student version of the Instructional Practices Survey to determine whether student perception of instructional practices coincided with the teachers' perceptions. Classroom climate was examined by administering the Classroom Environment Survey to seven teachers and 130 of their students. Student stress levels were examined from the results of the School Situation Survey returned by 106 students. The Maslach Burnout Inventory was used to gather data concerning the burnout levels of 13 teachers. This study found that increases in grade point average and decreases in absenteeism were not achieved after three years of block scheduling. Instructional practices of the teachers involved in this study did not change significantly. School climate, student stress levels, and teacher burnout were found to be in the average range.

Hispanic children in the United States are more likely to fall behind in several literacy measures even before they enroll in prekindergarten programs. There are some structural and non-structural factors that have a direct impact on Hispanic children’s early literacy skills. Among the non-structural factors this mixed-method study explored Hispanic caregivers’ beliefs about education as well as their literacy practices at home. The study compared two groups: diverse Hispanic caregivers with 4-year-old children enrolled in the Voluntary Prekindergarten Program (VPK) and diverse Hispanic caregivers whose 4-year-old children were not enrolled in VPK. A total of 125 diverse Hispanic caregivers responded to two surveys: the Parental Reading Belief Inventory and the Adaptation of the Stony Brooks Reading Survey. Twenty Hispanic parents were later interviewed to better understand their beliefs about education as well as their literacy practices at home. The surveys and interviews revealed playing games, drawing pictures and looking at books with their children were the most common literacy practices in which Hispanic caregivers engaged. All participants in the study stated how much they value their children’s education. Some, particularly caregivers whose children were participating in VPK programs, were more likely to engage in their children’s education and experience fewer barriers to reading at home. Country of origin played an important role in differentiating Hispanic parents in their beliefs about education as well as in their literacy practices at home. From the diverse group of participants in the study, Mexican caregivers were less likely to perceive themselves as playing a key role in their children’s education and they also shared experiencing more barriers in their literacy activities when compared with parents from Cuba and Puerto Rico. Overall, enrollment in VPK was dependent upon the type of barriers to reading activities that Hispanic parents experience as well their country of origin.

The nonprofit sector plays a vital role in the quality of life in any community. Challenges such as economic fluctuations, the organization’s image in the community, and adverse legislative policies threaten the vitality of organizations. It is incumbent upon nonprofit leaders to help their organizations overcome these challenges. It is therefore important to understand leadership characteristics and practices of organizations that achieve a high-level of performance and have the ability to overcome threats to their success. The purpose of this mixed-method study was to examine the nonprofit sector in northeast Florida, identify a selected sample of high-performing organizations, and understand the relationship between the paid and volunteer leaders. Using quantitative methods, data were collected on 108 nonprofit organizations located in the Jacksonville Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), a 5-county region including Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns. The data included demographic information such as financial statistics, longevity of service, and service areas provided by these organizations. The qualitative component of this study included data gathered through interviews with elite informants and nonprofit leaders. Elite informants were interviewed to identify a selected sample of high-performing organizations in northeast Florida. Interviews were conducted with 37 paid executive leaders and volunteer board members from the sample of 10 nonprofit organizations. As a result of these interviews, nine leadership characteristics and practices were identified as characteristic of high-performing nonprofit organizations.

Leadership theory routinely focuses on the relationships of leaders within the context of the work environment; however, culture and, specifically, films are a pervasive influence on both individuals and work environments. The literature review revealed that the relationships between higher-education faculty and administrators are strained. A conceptual framework known as the dark side phenomenon identified three dynamics affecting the work between faculty and administration: working relationships, supervisory roles, and the cultural impact. This lead to the research question: How are higher-education administrators portrayed as characters in popular American films? Data collection began with the selection of American films to study and involved four criteria: release of the film in the United States, inclusion of higher education in the film, a high level of viewership, and the substantial portrayal of a higher-education administrator within the film. The theoretical framework for data collection included Kenneth Burke’s (1969) pentadic analysis and parts of George Gerbner’s (1998) cultivation analysis. The data analysis identified that leadership behaviors are portrayed negatively in all but a few instances. Five major themes of negative leadership were identified: serving oneself, expelling undesirables, promoting prestige, finding money, and adhering to rules. Recommendations for leaders in higher education to mitigate the influence of negative film portrayals and suggestions for improving the quality of leadership were offered. Suggestions for further study include how film portrayal of higher-education administrators affects audience members, how the gender of administrators is portrayed in films, and how an institution’s name is used in films. The study concludes by discussing the power of films, the need for media literacy, and the acknowledgement that the dark side of higher-education leadership can be mitigated by thoughtful, positive leadership behaviors.

The purpose of this study was to determine the use of microcomputers by principals in their roles as instructional leaders and managers, and its impact upon the use of microcomputer technology in the school. The research was done by having the randomly stratified selected sample population respond to a survey. The subjects of this study were elementary, middle/junior and high school principals in the Florida Public School System. Of the responding principals 82.8% reported having access to a microcomputer in their office at school. One-third of the principals reported not having a microcomputer in their own homes. Word processing was reported as the most used application program and spread sheet applications the least used. Principals reported using the microcomputer in managerial tasks such as attendance, discipline, scheduling and grade reporting. The data indicated principals have not taken a proactive stance in their own personal learning about microcomputers and how they can be used. Responding principals, for the most part, did not perceive of the teachers within the building they work as using the microcomputer for the managerial functions of teaching. Presently principals are not taking full advantage of the microcomputer as a tool that can help them in their roles as instructional leaders and managers. Principals must also become more actively involved in the decision making process of the various technologies in which their school can participate.

The United States is becoming more diverse; numerous immigrants and refugees enter every year. Among the newer groups are those practicing the Muslim religion. This qualitative research focused on the identity formation process of six adolescent female Muslim refugees from Afghanistan. Based on Erikson's paradigm of psycho-social development and Marcia's modifications to that theory, I used semi-structured interviews to understand how the participants negotiated their identities in the context of their families, the public school, and the community. This cohort appeared to exist within a circumscribed Afghan community, retaining significant parts of their culture, traditions, and roles. The exception to that retention occurred in the Educational/Vocational Domain. Economic necessity impelled them to assume new roles and to plan for post-secondary education and vocations, for which they were inadequately prepared, and for which their parents could provide little guidance. These young women needed assistance in educational and career planning and counseling programs to facilitate their entry into post-secondary education and to develop their job skills. It seems fair to generalize that this deficit exists for most foreign-born and limited-English students. Addressing this deficit is a daunting, but important, task for the educational system and for resettlement programs.

This study focused on the causes of student underachievement in a selected high school in Ghana. The anonymous name chosen for the school was Northside New Era Secondary School. The participants in the study were administrators, teachers, and students. They were selected from the same school where the researcher conducted the study. The school was located in the Northern Region of Ghana. It had proven records of underachievement compared to other schools in the country according to the Ministry of Education's recent statistical report on education. The criterion for measurement was based on the results of the final examination conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) for the years 1996 to 2000. The study employed a qualitative methodology to examine student learning. A list of guiding interview questions were developed and validated prior to the study. Seven categories were identified to be the main contributing factors to student underachievement in the school. The categories fell under two main themes: external and internal factors of underachievement. The external factors included the lack of government intervention in the provision of educational materials, the socio-economic background of people in the demographic settings, unworkable educational policies, and poor working conditions for teachers and administrators. The internal factors were comprised of the apathy and passivity with which teachers conducted themselves in the school, parents' beliefs and psychological underpinnings of what an ideal school should be, and the school's lack of educational resources. This study found that both external and internal factors contributed significantly to student underachievement in schools. Participants' knowledge of the implications of the themes, and their understanding of all the educational stakeholders' role in the provision of a sound-learning environment in the school became the bedrock of the study. The researcher challenges all educational authorities everywhere, especially those in the third world countries, to consider student academic achievement as a major priority, necessary for strong nation-building into the 21st century and beyond.

This descriptive study explored the relationship between moral distress, professional stress and intent to stay in the hospital setting. The study involved 234 nursing participants and was conducted via an online survey over a 90 day period. The survey tool consisted of 51 items taken from known moral distress, professional stress and intent to stay tools. The items were divided into frequency and intensity of occurrence. Various statistical measures were utilized to conclude that moral distress and professional stress factors were significant (p

During 2 decades of debate about teacher preparation education practitioners and policymakers have called for a more skilled professional teaching force (Darling- Hammond, 2010). Of particular concern has been poverty’s impact on education -- specifically in struggling urban schools -- prompting legislation such as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which shifted funding formulas in an effort to directly target poor students and struggling schools (Talbert-Johnson, 2006). The major purpose of this study was to explore novice teachers’ (teachers in their second to fourth year of teaching) perceptions of their preparedness to teach in urban schools following completion of a traditional 4-year undergraduate teacher preparation program. Several issues influenced their perceptions: prior experiences and attitudes regarding diversity, coursework, and field experiences. The theoretical frameworks of Vygotsky’s (1962) social cognition learning model, Piaget’s theory of psychological constructivism (1952), and Moustaka’s heuristic research (1994) framed this research study. Using a qualitative method, focus groups and interviews were conducted to gain an understanding of the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions of novice teachers towards the effectiveness of traditional teacher preparation programs. Pattern coding guided the identification and coding of themes in the data. This generated themes regarding attitudes, beliefs, race, social class, and parental involvement. Recommendations for teacher education included modifying field experiences, extensive xi training of directing teachers, matching preservice teachers with strong mentors, and including content in preparation programs focused on parental involvement. Recognizing the perceptions of novice teachers may assist in influencing schools of education to strengthen current programs to better prepare teacher candidates to work with students of diverse backgrounds.

Teaching vocabulary to middle school students requires that educators find the most effective means of instruction to achieve this goal. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using an interactive word wall as the tool to combine five effective, research-based teaching strategies with social interaction to teach vocabulary to middle school students. In this study, 124 middle school students participated. The control group consisted of 67 eighth grade English students, and the intervention group was comprised of 57 seventh grade English students. The intervention was for a period of four weeks and included specific activities that embraced effective teaching strategies plus social interaction. Throughout the intervention, an interactive word wall was used as the tool that combined the teaching strategies and social interaction. The assessments included a pre-assessment, four weekly assessments, and a four-week delayed assessment. The words for the pre-assessment and the four weekly assessments were taken from each group’s newly assigned words for their respective grade level. The words for the delayed assessment were randomly selected from the lists of words that each group used during the intervention phase of the study. Each assessment used the same format and contained a definition and sentence portion. A discriminant analysis was conducted on the data from the study. Overall, the definition portion of the assessments offered a greater weight to the discriminant function than did the sentence portion. Also, the mean scores between the two groups began to narrow as the intervention continued. On the delayed assessment, the intervention group performed almost as well as the control group, which was an unexpected result. Given the improved overall scores on the weekly assessments, and given the narrowed gap in the means on the delayed assessment, indications are that the word wall intervention yielded success in teaching vocabulary to middle school students.