<p> This applied dissertation responded to two public problems: digital divides and unequal access to educational opportunities via the growth of virtual schooling in kindergarten through Grade 12 (K-12) in the United States. A qualitative instrumental case study approach was used to explore the relative advantages and disadvantages of public K-12 virtual schools in Florida through the experiences and perspectives of 5 virtual school leaders. This research also evaluated the virtual school leaders&rsquo; level of innovativeness in relation to the innovativeness/needs paradox (INP) in Rogers&rsquo;s theory of diffusion of innovations (DOI). The INP suggests that innovativeness plays a role in social stratification issues between the higher and lower socioeconomic individuals in a system. </p><p> A demographic survey and interviews were used to gather descriptive details for the case analysis. The Innovativeness Scale collected empirical evidence on virtual school leaders&rsquo; level of innovativeness. Results participants were in the early majority category of DOI. Demographics suggested upward social mobility, high educational attainment, and tendencies toward innovativeness. Six themes emerged from the interviews: educational optimism, proinnovation bias, strategies of least resistance, fidelity to old-school norms, virtual schools are a public but private schooling niche, and the counterintuitive gauntlet of innovativeness: the legitimacy of virtual schools and stakeholder divides. </p><p> Findings suggested innovativeness in relation to the INP does have the potential to fuel underlying divides between advantaged and disadvantaged students in public K-12 virtual schools in Florida. The interviews suggested additional factors may play a role in divides in association with innovativeness, specifically, individualistic and systemic epistemologies and cultural relativism.</p><p>

<p> This analysis considers whether or not second-career/career-changer teachers are possibly more effective than traditional, first career teachers in teaching tasks and building relationships with students in low socioeconomic status (SES) schools. Analysis of the differences between those entering the education profession as traditional college students and those who are <i>career- changers</i> provides insight into an alternative type of diversity the latter may bring to the classroom and how that diversity might positively impact students who are not only trying to develop the knowledge and skills necessary for academic and career success, but also a sense of identity and purpose, as we continually transition to a more global society. Challenges unique to second-career teachers are addressed, as well as ways administrators and teacher educators might support these teachers during the early stages of their new vocation. Indications for additional research that could further explore this unique facet of the teaching profession are discussed. </p><p>

<p> This dissertation comprises three self-contained essays. Each essay uses administrative data collected by state and local governments to evaluate a market-based innovation in the delivery of local public services. Chapters 1 and 2 explore school choice programs that were implemented in the state of Indiana starting around 2008, while Chapter 3 is a national study of homeowners associations. </p><p> In Chapter 1, student-level standardized test scores are studied to characterize the joint effectiveness of three forms of school choice---public charter schools, private school vouchers, and inter-district open enrollment. Average test scores of all students residing in a school district are shown to improve when the share of students enrolled through one of these options increases. </p><p> Chapter 2 narrows the focus to a single school choice policy---inter-district open enrollment. Prior studies show that compelling public schools to enroll non-resident students weakens housing demand in communities with good schools, lowering their home prices. Indiana's policy of allowing public schools the option to enroll non-resident students does not exhibit the same relationship, possibly because schools selectively participate based on the local price elasticity of demand for housing (i.e., the responsiveness of local house prices to changes in demand). </p><p> Chapter 3 demonstrates how to detect homeowners associations across most of the country using mortgage riders documented in public real estate records. These private neighborhood governments are shown to involve a fifth of all single-family houses in the U.S. and 80 percent of houses in recently-built subdivisions. Houses with a homeowners association are estimated to cost 4 percent more than nearby similar homes with no homeowners association. </p><p>

<p> Severe teacher shortages, caused by high attrition rates, have been the focus of attention for school districts and policy leaders for over two decades. Teacher attrition accounts for approximately 40 to 50% of new teachers leaving in the first 5 years of service. High teacher attrition rates in the United States impact tomorrow&rsquo;s leaders, innovators, and workers who today are struggling to succeed in math and science in a globally competitive world. By not addressing the reasons teachers leave the profession, or by not conducting further research on preservice teachers to better prepare them for the classroom, the nation will continue to be at risk. This study looks at the research on why teachers say they leave in the first 1 to 5 years of service and asks preservice teachers the extent to which they consider low salaries, working conditions that severely limit their autonomy over classroom decision-making, and the effectiveness of their teacher preparation in content areas and classroom management. Understanding whether preservice teachers considered these factors or felt they needed more effective instruction will help identify gaps in teacher education programs that may prevent new teachers from leaving the profession in the first 5 years. This study uses a semi-structured interview process to attain the unique stories of preservice teachers and to assess their consideration of the issues that have been shown to make teachers leave the teaching profession. A combination of criterion and snowball sampling techniques were used to select a group of 12 preservice elementary education teachers. The qualitative design uses a phenomenological approach to find the main themes of the preservice teachers&rsquo; stories. </p><p> The study revealed that preservice teachers do not consider low salaries, working conditions that severely limit their autonomy over classroom decision-making, and the effectiveness of their teacher preparation in content areas and classroom management prior to becoming a teacher. Although the preservice teachers in this study did not consider these factors, each expressed concern about working conditions during their clinical experience and the quality of their teacher preparation programs. The stories of these preservice teachers and the recommendations for future studies will help guide the transformation of teacher education programs and the teaching profession to lower attrition rates in K-12 schools around the country.</p><p>

<p> The achievement gap in American schools between middle class students and students from poverty is well documented. This paper outlines the findings of a study designed to explore the experience and conscientization of struggling students from poverty. The argument will be made that poverty can be viewed as a culture and that this view may shed significant light on the dynamics of the achievement gap. Further, using the construct of poverty as a culture provides real life applications that have the potential to impact the achievement gap. The study explored the lived experiences in a public school setting of intermediate students from poverty, hoping to capture their voice and insights. The research utilized a Critical Pedagogical Approach to attempt to understand why American schools struggle with these populations and what could be done to address the achievement gap.</p><p>

<p> The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) dispensation requires a Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) in which the public participates in a Public Planning Process (PPP) with the district. The problem this qualitative phenomenographic study addressed is how the LCAP&rsquo;s omission of a definition for the inclusive and transparent PPP may unintentionally lead to disproportionate inclusion of individual participants or stakeholder groups. Therefore, the researcher examined 10 California school district superintendents&rsquo; or their designees&rsquo; conceptions about what constitutes an inclusive, fair, and open PPP. For the purposes of this study, the International Association for Public Participation&rsquo;s (IAP2) Quality Assurance Standards, specifically the 7 core values, served as the conceptual framework. </p><p> The objective of the research was twofold, first to identify how local educational agency (LEA) leaders conceive the use of the IAP2&rsquo;s core values to define successful public stakeholder engagement for the LCAP in terms of inclusivity, fairness, and openness. The second goal was to determine what measures, guidelines, and techniques these leaders believe can contribute to the inclusiveness, fairness, and openness of the LCAP public stakeholder engagement process. </p><p> This study resulted in 3 conclusions study. First, the interviewees accepted the IAP2 core values as a foundation for best practices in the LCAP&rsquo;s stakeholder engagement process. Second, data from the study clearly suggest that each interviewee has his/her own conception of what measures, guidelines, and techniques contribute to the inclusiveness, fairness, and openness of the LCAP stakeholder engagement process. Third, authentic participation, communication, equity, facilitation, local control, and trust are suggested as imperative to an inclusive, fair, and open stakeholder engagement PPP. </p><p> The researcher made three recommendations. First, the California Department of Education (CDE) should adopt a set of stakeholder engagement PPP core values for districts to use as a foundation. Second, the CDE should seek out a district or districts to pilot a set of core values to guide the stakeholder engagement component of the LCAP. Third, until the CDE is able to establish a rubric or set of core values to guide the stakeholder engagement PPP, districts should identify their own set of core values based on current research such as IAP2.</p><p>

<p> Some believe sixth through twelfth grade configured schools offer programs and incentives that aid the success of students. The assumption is that these schools provide inherent motivation supportive relationships, and forward thinking about education and its implications on life (Gootman, 2007; Hall, 2008). This study examined the relationship between sixth through twelfth grade and ninth through twelfth grade configured schools and student achievement. This study was based on a positivist research paradigm, and used quantitative methodology and statistical significance testing. </p><p> The research on grade configuration and its impact on students&rsquo; engagement levels in ninth grade stemmed from Socialization Theory, Flow Theory, and the Human Capital Theory. Quantitative analysis was conducted through multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to discover the relationship between student engagement in both sixth through twelfth and ninth through twelfth configurations. The Research Assessment Package for Schools-Middle School (Institute for Research and Reform, 1998, Wellborn &amp; Connell, 1987) was the data collection tool.</p><p>

Abstract not available.

Debates about book censorship and selection are far-reaching and ongoing, however little research has lingered in the spaces of irresolvable tension within these debates, and specifically the debates that focus on novels read in school. In an intertextual analysis of literary theory and editorial-blog responses to a recent debate about the suitability of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale as a high school text, I work to broaden and trouble understandings of what it means to read this novel in school. The online forum for discussion is a unique space that offers new and different insights into an age-old conversation. Weaving online reader responses to the Handmaid's Tale debate with a large body of research that struggles with our complicated relationship with reading, this thesis strives to add complexity and depth to an often-polarizing issue.

No description available.