<p> Using a phenomenological method, this study explored the higher-education affordability perceptions of a purposively-collected group of 19 students at the pseudonymous Crestview Community College (CCC) in Colorado. The defining themes of the study were: (a) knowledge of the College Opportunity Fund (COF) program and perceptions of higher-education affordability in the Colorado context, (b) how participants learned about and implemented college selection, financing, and success strategies, (c) family finances and their impact on work and college decisions, (d) participant views on the financial aid process, and (e) benefits of attending college. </p><p> The findings were: (a) the COF was not viewed as a significant source of support or well-understood as the State of Colorado&rsquo;s contribution to college students, (b) participants described difficulty in high school learning and implementing a college selection and financing strategy with some mitigation of those failures by key adults in their lives, (c) CCC was viewed as the default college choice because of price, location, dual credit experience, and peer recommendations, (d) family structural and financial context strongly influenced participants&rsquo; perceived options and decisions regarding college selection and work, (e) participant perspectives on federal financial aid and college affordability varied drastically between Pell Grant recipients and non-recipients, (f) participants uniformly held a negative perception of student loans, and (g) participants were motivated to stay in college by hope of occupational and financial benefits and discouraged by fear of debt and post-graduation joblessness.</p><p>

abstract: ABSTRACT For more than thirty years the gender gap in science and related careers has been a key concern of researchers, teachers, professional organizations, and policy makers. Despite indicators of progress for women and girls on some measures of achievement, course enrollment patterns, and employment, fewer women than men pursue college degrees and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. According to the results of national assessments, the gender gap in science achievement begins to be evident in the middle school years. Gender and school science achievement involve a complex set of factors associated with schools and child/family systems that may include school leadership, institutional practices, curriculum content, teacher training programs, teacher expectations, student interests, parental involvement, and cultural values. This ethnographic case study was designed to explore the context for science education reform and the participation of middle school girls. The study analyzed and compared teaching strategies and female student engagement in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade science classrooms. The setting was a middle school situated in a district that was well-known for its achievement in reading, math, and technology. Findings from the study indicated that while classroom instruction was predominantly organized around traditional school science, the girls were more disciplined and outperformed the boys. The size of the classrooms, time to prepare for hands-on activities, and obtaining resources were identified as barriers to teaching science in ways that aligned with recent national science reform initiatives. Parents who participated in the study were very supportive of their daughters' academic progress and career goals. A few of the parents suggested that the school's science program include more hands-on activities; instruction designed for the advanced learner; and information related to future careers. Overall the teachers and students perceived their science program to be gender fair. Eighth grade participants who had career goals related to science and engineering, indicated that their science instruction did not provide the rigor they needed to improve their critical skills for advanced placement in high school. Recommendations include the need for professional development on inquiry-based science, equitable student achievement, and diverse perspectives in science education. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Educational Leadership and Policy Studies 2011

<p> In Tanzania, the debate surrounding language of instruction has been rekindled with an announcement in February of 2015 that the language of instruction would be changed from English to Kiswahili in Ordinary Level secondary schools. European languages have perceived economic benefits, while researchers in cognitive learning argue foreign languages of instruction are often detrimental to a child&rsquo;s learning. However, this debate is studied largely at the national and international levels. This dissertation research investigates perceptions of language of instruction in a rural school community using critical theory, the theory of communicative action, and a language ecology framework. Qualitative analysis of community foreign language learning resources and a construct modeling approach was used to create and pilot a quantitative instrument in several rural secondary school communities for the purpose of measuring and acknowledging foreign language learning resources in a rural school community. Findings revealed participants&rsquo; cultural attachment to Kiswahili in tension with the high utilitarian value they place on knowing the English language. Few participants believed there are many resources for learning English in or outside of school. Findings from the survey using descriptive analysis and item response theory revealed that few items captured the variability of the construct within the sample, yet exposed possible weaknesses and offered direction for further, future investigation. This study concludes with a discussion of the findings in relation to the theories and framework guiding this study, as well as a discussion of the child&rsquo;s right to learn.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this research was to evaluate the efficacy of Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment (START) triage during actual mass casualty incidents (MCI) and full-scale MCI exercises. Developed in 1984, Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment triage was created to assist in the process of triaging large quantities of injured patients from natural or manmade disasters and has since been the nationally accepted triage model in the United States. Historically, limited studies have shown patients are in fact, over-triaged 53% of the time. The research goal was to obtain substantial data to determine whether first responders&rsquo; use of the current triage model effectively sustains life. A mixed methods research analysis of quantitative and qualitative data collected from one historical MCI incident and three MCI exercises was evaluated to develop recommendations for protocol change and future curriculum development. Data analysis from actual incidents and exercises confirm that &ldquo;just-in-time&rdquo; training does increase the accuracy of the START triage model used from 42% to 73%. </p><p>

<p> Length of time teaching shapes educators&rsquo; competence with intentional integration of democratic engagement in the classroom. This study finding stems from a pivotal understanding of civic engagement refocused and defined as democratic engagement by Saltmarsh and Hartley (2011). The authors determine that <i>democratic engagement</i> as an ideal includes far more than the civic participation element of voting. These authors suggest that for a representative democracy to thrive, communities and civic institutions must partner to create civic agency among not just the individual, but collective, social, and government entities. In this study, educators in a small to medium sized K-6 district are surveyed to identify differing levels of democratic engagement among demographic indicators as identified by Saltmarsh and Hartley (2011). Democratic engagement constructs of community engagement, political voice, civic participation and political knowledge combine to create a Civic Index Scale measure. This measure describes a sample population of highly democratic engaged versus disengaged participants. Identified educators with the most engaged, somewhat engaged, and disengaged civic scores were interviewed for attitudes, beliefs, and professional practice in relation to democratic engagement. A series of two interviews per educator yielded unexpected results. The study found that democratic disengagement does not equate to disengagement in the classroom, poor teaching, or lack of effort to promote citizenship as developmentally appropriate. A disengaged educator in the study was professionally fulfilled, and successfully created classroom community. A medium engaged educator identified in the interview process exhibited highly effective teaching practice as a seasoned professional with lower levels of job satisfaction and difficulty in classroom management. The highly engaged educator in the qualitative analysis exhibited not only effective teaching practice, but also intentional relationship building, and highly effective classroom management. Hierarchical Regression analysis indicated that time teaching, age, race, and gender were significant in the model and that time teaching persisted as a key factor contributing to variance in the model.</p><p>

<p> Voters&rsquo; hatred of the property tax has led to the enactment of tax and expenditure limitations (TEL) in most states (Brunori, Bell, Cordes, and Yuan, 2008; Sokolow, 1998). Past research suggests that TELs have consequences for school districts, such as reductions in revenue and expenditures, and that these effects may be felt disproportionately by districts that are less able to adapt, such as poorer districts (Figlio, 1998; Joyce and Mullins, 1996; Downes and Figlio, 1999; Mullins, 2004; Wallin and Zabel, 2011; Della Sala and Knoeppel, 2014; Arsen, DeLuca, Ni, and Bates, 2016; Steinberg and Quinn, 2015). Such disproportionate impacts may increase revenue inequity across districts, further widening the gap between the &ldquo;haves&rdquo; and &ldquo;have nots.&rdquo; </p><p> This dissertation explores the impacts of TELs on school district revenue and equity through analyses of Pennsylvania&rsquo;s Act 1, a useful case for studying these effects because it was enacted more recently&mdash;2006&mdash;and is in place in a diverse state with a heavy reliance on property tax revenue that faces ongoing concerns over its allegedly inequitable public education funding system. </p><p> In the first study, I use multivariate regression analyses with fixed effects to consider the effects of Act 1 on various revenue sources available to school districts and whether districts that may be less able to adjust to changes in revenue streams felt these effects disproportionately. I find that local revenue and property tax revenue were reduced for school districts subject to Act 1&rsquo;s tax limits compared to those not subject to them, and that state revenue did not offset these reductions, resulting in reductions in total revenue. My findings do not suggest that these effects were disproportionately felt by districts with greater needs. </p><p> In the second study, I consider the characteristics of districts that are able to avoid Act 1&rsquo;s tax limits. Using logistic regression with year fixed effects, I find that districts with better fiscal conditions were more likely to receive an exception from the state that allowed them to avoid the tax limit. These results raise concerns of potential inequity, albeit with no intent on the part of the districts or Pennsylvania officials. </p><p> In the third study, I use both descriptive and multivariate regression analyses to consider the impacts of Act 1&rsquo;s limits on revenue equity among districts. I find that Act 1&rsquo;s tax limits appear to have reduced revenue equity among districts, and to have had a differential effect on higher need districts, when using poverty as an indicator of need. </p><p> Taken together, the findings suggest that Act 1 may have both reduced funding and revenue equity among districts, and had a differential negative effect on revenue for higher poverty districts. These results therefore suggest that the tax limits may have somewhat widened the divide between the &ldquo;haves&rdquo; and &ldquo;have nots,&rdquo; and raise concerns that revenue equity among districts has been reduced and that districts better able to adjust to tax limits&mdash;those in better fiscal health&mdash;may also be those most likely to avoid them.</p><p>

<p> In this dissertation, I explore questions relating to estimating and framing college net pricing. In the first study, I measure variation in actual grant aid awards for students predicted by the federal template Net Price Calculator (NPC) to receive identical aid awards. Estimated aid derived from the federal template NPC accounts for 85 percent of the variation in actual grant aid received by students. I then consider simple modifications to the federal template NPC that explain more than half of the initially unexplained variation in actual grant aid awards across all institutional sectors. The second study explores perceptions of college net pricing and the resources families use to learn about college expenses. Students and parents show substantial variation in their perceptions of college price and ability to accurately estimate likely college expenses, even when prompted to seek pricing information online. While most participants were able to estimate net price within 25 percent of NPC estimates, others were inaccurate by as much as 250 percent, or nearly $30,000. I then propose possible explanations for more or less accurate estimates that consider parent education, student grade level, previous NPC use, and online college pricing search strategies. In the third study, I explore the potential for shifts in college spending preferences when equivalent college cost scenarios are framed in different ways. I exploit disparities between net price and total price to randomly present participants with one of three framing conditions: gain, loss, and full information. Participants are between five and six percentage points more likely to choose a college beyond their stated price preference when cost information is framed in such a way that emphasizes financial grant aid <i>received</i> as opposed to remaining costs <i>to be paid</i> or full cost information. The results of these studies suggest that clearly structured, simple to use informational resources can accurately and effectively communicate important college information. However, simply making resources available without consideration of accessibility or relevance may be insufficient. Policymakers and other hosts of college information resources should also carefully consider the ways that the presentation of college information might influence students&rsquo; decisions.</p><p>

This thesis explores the nature of teacher collaboration for professional learning, key enabling and inhibiting factors, and their implication for the development of a culture of collaboration for professional learning in Kazakhstani schools. The current teacher professional development reform initiative in Kazakhstani secondary education has incorporated teacher collaboration as a strategy to encourage teachers to take ownership of innovations and changes. The underlying assumption for it is that when teachers engage in professional collaboration, there is both an individual and collective benefit. However, an increasing scepticism that followed the initial enthusiasm about the benefits of teacher collaboration in Western countries, where a second look at collaboration from a cultural and micropolitical perspective identified the contradictions between human agency and power, voluntarism and determinism, action and settings. Against this background, this study was undertaken to examine the Kazakhstani teachers’ beliefs, values and attitudes towards collaboration and interdependence. The study draws upon case study data gathered in three purposefully selected Kazakhstani schools. The first two schools represent Kazakhstani schools established during the Soviet communist era. One of them is selected from among the comprehensive rural schools and the second is a gymnasium located in a district town. The third one is an autonomous school tasked to serve as a platform to pilot a new reform initiative before its dissemination to all the mainstream schools of the country. Each case-study was covered during a six-to-seven week period, which corresponds to a term in a school year in Kazakhstan. The findings demonstrate the dependence of teachers’ personal beliefs and values about teacher collaboration on micropolitical, school organisational culture, and socio-political factors, mainly inherited as a legacy of the Soviet education system, as well as ambiguities in the understanding and implementation of reform initiatives dictated from the top. The study suggests that Kazakhstani school history and the culture of the teaching profession possess the potential to overcome these barriers, for there is a tradition of peer evaluation and peer observation in the system with teachers expected to observe and be observed by other teachers on a frequent basis within an appropriately defined school organisational structure, which historically is seen by the authorities as a means of control. The study concludes that it is of particular importance to build on the momentum of the recent reform initiatives and help teachers to develop agency by providing the support and conditions conducive to the continued development of professional learning communities based on teacher collaboration for learning.

<p> This study employed a model of basic qualitative research which explored teachers&rsquo; pedagogical responses to the unique cultural gaps they experienced in schools where most students were of minority cultural identity. Eight teachers who self-identified as majority culture identity formed the sample group for this study. Semistructured interviews were used to collect their insights regarding their pedagogical decision making they used with the students in the school where they were teaching. Additionally, teachers shared what they described were culturally responsive curriculum samples and then provided a reflection on how they implemented this curriculum. The data showed that these teachers understood the value of providing a culturally responsive pedagogy in their classrooms. Despite this, for numerous reasons, teachers struggled to develop and then apply culturally responsive pedagogy that aligned with models described in literature.</p><p>

<p> Largely because it puts higher education within reach for all people, the community college is thought to play a vital role in the democratic functioning of American society. Partly driven by an ethos of American egalitarianism, low-cost and open access community colleges enroll, train, and educate nearly anyone who aspires to higher education. For low-income and first-generation college students, the community college serves as a primary vehicle for social mobility. Problems associated with low retention and graduation rates have lowered the public perception of community colleges and threaten to exacerbate growing concerns over income and wealth inequality in America. Therefore, it becomes important for policy analysts to explore and better understand the nature of community colleges in an effort to create improvement strategies. </p><p> This qualitative study seeks to understand the community college experience from the perspective of low-income, first generation students. It asked first year students about their background experiences and analyzed how those experiences shaped their transition to the first year of college. It also asked how low-income, first generation students perceived the community college in order to understand how students evaluate it and define its purpose. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to make sense of student experiences and to give voice to community college students who, as a studied population, receive far less attention than students at four-year colleges. </p><p> This study finds that low-income, first generation community college students lived experience includes managing class-based disadvantages; this made navigating their first year of community college challenging. Students had come to the community college expecting to learn skills that would help them to form new professional identities so that they could begin transforming their lives, making it possible to ascend the socio-economic ladder. In order to succeed in this new environment, students had to learn and adapt to a new set of social norms and expectations that the institution uses to socialize its students. Based upon the analysis of student experiences and perceptions, this study makes six recommendations to help improve student success which may lead to improved public perception and funding for community colleges. </p><p>