<p> As the method, instrument, and reliability of teacher and principal evaluations has come under extreme scrutiny since the Education Reform Act of 2010, school systems across the nation have examined and refined the evaluation process for teachers and principals. Studies have shown the integration of peer evaluation as a model of teacher evaluations can have a positive impact on the teachers and their performance that participate in peer evaluation as well as the potential for an increase in the academic achievement of students. The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers&rsquo; overall perceptions of peer evaluation and of how the use of peer evaluation could improve their teaching practice. The goals of this study were to determine the level of sharing of instructional practices among their peers currently, and whether or not they perceived an increase in the amount of time spent sharing of best practices would occur as a result of incorporating peer evaluation into the current model of a formative evaluation. Further, teachers were asked to identify potential benefits as well as any potential challenges they see as a result of implementing peer evaluations. This study used an online survey to gather data from participants. </p><p> This study was conducted in a suburban school district in Maryland. A total of 34 teachers participated in the survey questionnaire. One elementary, one middle, and one high school were selected to participate in the survey. Data were collected through an online survey conducted in September 2017. </p><p> This study provides some evidence that teachers do welcome the possible integration of peer evaluation and perceive that peer evaluation may result in an increase in the amount of time spent sharing instructional strategies among other teachers. The findings also reported potential benefits such as increased sharing of best practices of instructional strategies, more timely and relevant feedback, and reduced feelings of isolation could potentially occur as a result of incorporating peer evaluation in the current model of formative evaluations. This study further identified potential challenges such as lack of time to complete peer evaluations, personal bias, and a perceived feeling of needing to add yet another task to the busy professional day of a teacher.</p><p>

<p> This study is a review of the Learning Acceleration Program and the impact it has on student academic success in the Rural School District (pseudonym). This mixed-methods study used qualitative and quantitative data analyses to identify the impact that the Learning Acceleration Program has on the overall attendance and graduation rates for the district. The study also provided an understanding of the impact the Learning Acceleration Program has on perceptions as it pertains to the program. Data for this study were collected for the period of three academic school years on attendance, graduation rate for each year, and surveys completed by participants who have first-hand knowledge of the Learning Acceleration Program. The participants in this study were high school principals, one assistant principal, high school counselors, and Learning Acceleration Program personnel. The findings exhibited statistical significant difference in attendance or graduation rates on district. Furthermore, the findings from the survey highlighted the ability to meet the needs of each individual on an individual basis and provide future recommendations. </p><p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to explore the noncore secondary teachers' lived experience with Georgia's Teacher Keys Effectiveness System (TKES) evaluative feedback. This descriptive phenomenological study examined Georgia's noncore teachers' use of evaluative feedback from TKES to inform and impact classroom effectiveness. The essence of the experience of receiving evaluative feedback is revealed through in depth interviews with 30 noncore secondary teachers from three districts in Georgia. </p><p> The findings in this study suggest that TKES evaluative feedback has the potential to support a positive change in the noncore classroom provided appropriate time and resources are dedicated to implementing the evaluative process with fidelity. Traits of effective feedback that resonate throughout the literature review and study findings are the need for feedback to be specific, timely, ongoing, and linked to professional development. The need in the noncore classroom for teachers to receive content-specific feedback was uncovered. Additionally, the need to build additional time and resources into the school year to ensure evaluative feedback has the potential to accomplish the goal of teacher growth and become a positive part of the teaching profession was uncovered. The findings of this study allow an opportunity for the voice of the noncore teachers' experience with TKES evaluative feedback to be heard, generating a pathway to improved feedback and growth in their classroom.</p><p>

<p> Colleges and universities worldwide are competing with one another to provide undergraduate students with top-tier learning experiences to increase and retain enrollment. Many institutions are developing living-learning communities to maximize non-academic learning, promote social development, and facilitate interactions among students, faculty, and staff. This study was a mixed-methods, single case study of a living-learning program at a top-tier, Midwestern university. The purpose of this study was twofold: to explore the effectiveness of an undergraduate residential living-learning community at a top-tier university in regards to student satisfaction and interaction, and to investigate elements of staff job satisfaction and long-term retention of housekeeping and mechanic employees. Data collection involved surveys, one-on-one interviews, and focus group interviews of key stakeholders. Three research questions informed the purpose of the study. The first research question asked whether the living-learning model provided an environment that encouraged learning and personal growth. Both the qualitative and descriptive findings supported that yes, the model does encourage learning and personal growth, but that there is still room for improvement, especially by contributing to students&rsquo; social development. The second research question asked whether the higher level of staffing among stakeholders resulted in a greater sense of safety, security, and satisfaction. Again, both the qualitative and descriptive findings supported that the model does so effectively, especially for housekeeping and mechanic employees. The third research question asked whether the model supported job satisfaction and long-term retention among housekeeping and mechanic employees. The surveys of these employees indicated that yes, the living-learning model, and especially having a permanent building assignment, contributed to job satisfaction and retention. To improve the program in the future, assessment should recognize housekeeping and mechanic employees as stakeholders in the living-learning community; the physical space should be continually and strategically updated to meet the mission and goals of the program; housekeeping and mechanic staff should be recruited and retained strategically. In order to ensure future prosperity, program leaders should continue to assess how effectively the mission and goals are being met.</p><p>

<p> This study was guided by Deci and Ryan&rsquo;s (2015) self-determination theory, which focuses on meeting three specific psychological needs: autonomy, relatedness, and competence. The literature review for this study included topics relating to alternative education such as educational reform, school improvement, school climate, student discipline, intervention strategies, at-risk students, and the achievement gap. This study involved determining the effectiveness of alternative schools through a mixed-methods examination of graduation rates, school climate, student motivation, and academic rigor in high schools from the southwest Missouri region. Graduation rate data were compared from school districts without alternative schools and those with alternative schools utilizing a t-test. The mean of the graduation rates of districts with alternative schools was significantly higher than districts without alternative schools. Quantitative data collection continued via a survey designed to measure the degree to which high school principals report an improved school climate upon implementation of an alternative school. These data demonstrated an improved school climate within the traditional school due to the implementation of an alternative school. Qualitative data collection consisted of interviewing subject-area high school teachers and alternative school teachers from randomly selected school districts in southwest Missouri. These interviews were designed and conducted by the researcher to gather teacher perceptions of the degree of student motivation and academic rigor evident among alternative school students within their respective school districts. These data demonstrated increased student motivation with mixed results pertaining to academic rigor in alternative schools.</p><p>

<p> This study investigated the relationship between caring and trust within the undergraduate classroom using two valid instruments and an original open-ended survey. The participants were from a mid-western university that included international students. Fifty undergraduate students volunteered to participate in the study. No undergraduate students were excluded from participating in the study, based on diversity. Evidence of a correlation between caring and trust was found using the Caring Professional Scale developed by Swanson (1991) and the Modified Instructional Perspectives Inventory adapted for students (MIPI-S) developed by Henschke (1989). The Cronbach alpha for the CPS was 0.74 to 0.97 and for the MIPI-S, it was 0.81 to 0.85 for factor two 'teacher trust of learners.' Both instruments were scored on a five-point Likert scale. The CPS was originally designed for consumers to rate a variety of healthcare providers on their practice relationship style during a research grant with the National Institute of Health and National Institute of Nursing Research. The MIPI-S was comprised of seven factors that measured engagement between faculty and students. Originally administered at the Chicago City Colleges and the Saint Louis Community Colleges, the MIPI instruments' reliability was established in three other doctoral dissertations as well. A Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient was conducted, resulting in a moderate to strong positive correlation between caring and trust. A comparison of instrument items was also conducted utilizing a <i>z</i>-test (0.95) and <i> t</i>-test (0.24); each test scored below critical value indicating no interchangeability between instruments. This evidence seemed to support measurement of the two separate items of interest: caring and trust. As the benefit of higher education continued to be scrutinized by society, test scores and grades were perhaps a less reliable means of measurement for student satisfaction and retention. Therefore, the learning experience may become the new measurement for student satisfaction and retention.</p><p>

<p> As technology prices continue to decline, access to devices has become less of a barrier, and public schools are able to implement one-to-one initiatives easier (Ruggiero &amp; Mong, 2015; U.S. Department of Education [USDOE], 2016; Zheng, Warschauer, Lin, &amp; Chang, 2016). It has become vital to support teachers in the area of professional development, but oftentimes these programs have failed to prepare teachers for technology integration (Hunter, 2015; USDOE, 2016). The purpose of this study was to identify key aspects of professional development teachers and administrators have found to be of the utmost value when implementing a one-to-one initiative to further the development of future professional development programs. An online survey was sent to school districts known to have been implementing a one-to-one initiative for a minimum of three years. The population included five public school districts in the southwest Missouri area, and the sample was comprised of 16 administrators and 33 high school teachers. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze quantitative data and to provide a statistical summary of the survey findings. A Mann-Whitney <i>U</i> Test was performed to analyze nonparametric values. This causal-comparative study revealed areas of professional development proven to be the most important when considering a technology initiative as well as differences in perspectives, visions, and values found amongst administrators and teachers. The findings of this study further revealed the importance of creating professional development programs to meet the needs of teachers in accordance to their individual levels of knowledge, thus requiring a differentiated approach to future professional development practices.</p><p>

<p> <b>Purpose.</b> The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify and describe the attributes of public charter schools considered important for the selection of a charter school as perceived by the parents of charter school students. A second purpose of this study was to identify the sources parents used to inform their decision to enroll their child in a charter school. </p><p> <b>Methodology.</b> This qualitative study was accomplished by interviewing parents of public charter school students in three districts within San Bernardino County. The interview consisted of nine open-ended questions and each interview was recorded to ensure accuracy of the responses. The results of the interview were analyzed and organized into a narrative form. The population for the study included parents of public charter school students. </p><p> <b>Findings.</b> The participants noted smaller class sizes, higher educational quality, and a more nurturing environment as the main reasons for selecting a public charter school. Their answers also indicated the variety of programs available to them at charter schools influenced their decision to enroll their children. Participants noted talking with friends and family as a major source of gathering information about schools. Using some form of the internet was also instrumental for parents when obtaining information about a given school. </p><p> <b>Conclusions.</b> The results of this study supported the conclusion that parent perceptions of schools and the education they offer may be more influential than the school&rsquo;s performance on state assessments. Results indicated many other factors influenced a parent&rsquo;s selection of a school. A positive environment, which cultivated learning, and a variety of educational opportunities were crucial attributes for many parents. </p><p> <b>Recommendations.</b> The researcher recommended the study be replicated in a different region of California to see if the results remain the same. Additionally, a study should be conducted to see how many and why parents removed their children from public charter schools and returned them to traditional public schools.</p><p>

<p> This study examined the facilitators and barriers to the implementation of an innovative, whole-school reform model, Expeditionary Learning, within the context of the high-stakes accountability policy environment. Twenty-four teachers and four principals were interviewed across four schools, two of which were high poverty and two of which were low poverty. All schools were K-8 charter schools and located either within the urban core or in an inner-ring suburb. Educators across schools reported agreement with the tenets of Expeditionary Learning and a desire to implement the program fully. They preferred this learning model that focuses on student choice, inquiry, and experiential education over more traditional learning models. Respondents pointed to the pressure and time constraints caused by high-stakes standardized tests as barriers to their full implementation of Expeditionary Learning. They also saw the standardized tests as largely misaligned with the model. Educators in high-poverty schools reported more anxiety around the tests and their students&rsquo; performance. Respondents across schools agreed that Expeditionary Learning was a team effort that required significant time and effort to implement with fidelity. Educators at high-poverty schools reported teacher retention and hiring policies as major barriers to implementing Expeditionary Learning, largely because collaborative teams of teachers were unable to coalesce. Other factors affecting implementation of the program included curricular standards that focused on breadth and not depth, a lack of resources, and parent and community support. Overall, the study found that district and state policies served primarily as a constraint to implementation of Expeditionary Learning, and high-poverty schools were more negatively affected by external policies than were low-poverty schools. The ability to function as an Expeditionary Learning school was ultimately based on how well internal practices were able to work with or counteract external policies.</p><p>

M.Tech. / Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is a new and untested policy that has become a reality in higher education in South Africa. RPL is seen as an appropriate approach towards offering equity and redress of past imbalances in education and training system and introduces a new perspective on learning – a challenge between the traditional approaches to teaching and learning and learning through experience. In most of the institutions there is an urgent need for assessment methods to implement RPL. Little research on assessment methods and approaches to RPL has been published in South Africa, or on the experiences of RPL candidates and lecturers who have participated in RPL programmes in higher education. Most institutions have little experience in implementing RPL or in recognising life and work experience as a formal “qualification” for credits or admission. The literature on RPL stresses that, although most of the institutions have an RPL policy, there is still a need for individual academic departments to design their own assessment models. The aim and purpose of this study was to investigate various assessment strategies, methods and instruments for the RPL process for the National Diploma in Fashion at the Vaal University of Technology (VUT). This study will benefit individual students in future, as well as the Department of VAD and the VUT who would be prepared for the implementation of RPL when students do apply. A qualitative research method was used which was based on data collection and analysis of key official documents, application information and an interview in order to identify different assessment strategies, methods and instruments for RPL assessment. During the semi-structured interview which was tape-recorded, pre-set open-ended questions were used to verify data already generated from the application information which confirmed the reliability of this study. The research design was a case study and, although this research involved only one case study, the researcher felt that the identified assessment strategy, methods and instruments could be used where conditions are similar. The participant was selected through purposive sampling on the grounds of extensive, proven experiential learning and also because he was willing to take part in the study. The learning outcomes for the different streams in the National Diploma in Fashion were used as themes. A module-match assessment strategy was proposed for RPL assessment for individual modules and clustering for the qualification as a whole or a substantial part of it. Assessment methods and instruments were identified aimed at collecting sufficient evidence and comply with the assessment criteria in general. The authenticity and trustworthiness of the results were confirmed through the involvement of a real candidate and the valuable contributions from his experience in the field of Fashion. The conclusion is that the study has achieved its aim by designing a strategy, methods and assessment instruments for RPL in Fashion. Recommendations have been made with regard to the design process and the need for further research.