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Doctor of Education / Department of Educational Leadership / Kakali Bhattacharya / This dissertation presents autoethnographic narrative of my experience as the Deputy Commissioner of Education in Kansas while I was working to change how schools in Kansas are accredited to achieve better educational outcomes for students who were traditionally being left behind. Two types of data informed the study: tour data, and narrative data. Tour data refer to input that was gathered in 2015 during a 27-city tour across Kansas where the Commissioner of Education and myself asked three key questions to over 2,000 Kansans who attended these tour events. The responses were documented where attendants represented various stakeholder positions regarding educating Kansans. Upon completion of the first tour, the data were analyzed. To verify accuracy of the interpretation of the data, we organized a second tour to share results with stakeholders. Finalizing findings from stakeholder feedback, the State Board of Education set a new vision for educational reform in the state of Kansas. The second type of data informing this study is narrative data that shape the autoethnography. The purpose of this autoethnography is to highlight and connect critical narratives from my positionality of a Deputy Commissioner of the Kansas Department of Education, juxtaposed against state and local culture of public education that contributed to a new Kansas accreditation model. The autoethnography is broadly informed by narrative inquiry and writing as a form of analysis and inquiry. The critical narratives offer a historical documentation of the processes that influenced an educational reform in Kansas when such reform had its own political and logistical challenges. Without a narrative telling of the events that led to a new educational vision and accreditation model for Kansas, important conversations, thoughts and studies would be lost, and questions would go unanswered as to how Kansas developed its new vision and direction. Two broad insights emerged as a result of engaging in this study. First, the tour data informed us that, as an educational system, the model that holds schools accountable to students and communities is out-of-balance with the desires of Kansans. Unless educational leaders and policy makers change the accountability model for schools and students, it is not likely that the educational system will see any significant change in the current educational results and outcomes equitably for those students who are traditionally left behind. Second, by writing the autoethnographic narrative, I was able to trace my upbringing, advantages that I enjoyed, and the responsibilities that come with such advantages. Being from a family of educational leaders and adhering to a belief system instilled by my father regarding equity-based learning for all, the autoethnographic narrative allowed me to stay open to information that I might not have known from my advantageous position as I toured through the state. Further, focusing on the various roles that I play within Kansas such as being a federal liaison and state department educational leader, I engaged in deep listening during the tours to facilitate a responsive educational reform that highlight voices that might have been traditionally unheard or silenced.

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While serving as governor of Mississippi from 1980 until 1984, William F. Winter envisioned education as a key to moving Mississippi away from poverty. He championed educational reform as the means for improving schools with low student achievement. From the beginning of his tenure, Winter?s goal was to improve K-12 education by implementing three needed improvements: public kindergarten, compulsory attendance, and a lay board of education. During the first two years of his administration, Winter struggled to gain support from within the legislative body itself. Mores of Mississippi, which relegated African Americans to a lesser role of social status, were difficult to overcome without causing a great deal of social upheaval. Winter?s goal of educational reform was inclusive and not just aimed at the Whites of Mississippi. This necessitated carefully calculated planning. It was not until a controversial ending to the 1982 regular session that Winter began to explore options of calling a special session and promoting the goals for education to the constituents of the legislators. Through a series of nine public forums that were carefully crafted to explore the issues and spotlight the legislators for that particular venue, Winter and his band of young supporters, called the ?Boys of Spring?, were able to bring about a paradigm shift in attitudes and beliefs. The focus of this study is to examine Winter?s leadership style, relate the story of reform, and highlight one man?s dream for his state. Winter was a master at surrounding himself with a high quality and high energy staff, designing a plan for success, and knowing what changes needed to be made and how to bring them about effectively. Specifically, this study will highlight hard work with purpose. It will also illustrate that those closest to a problem or issue should always be part of the solution to the problem, and finally, the study will show how a leader is only as good as the people with whom he or she surrounds himself/herself, with. The efforts that resulted in this study could and should be used to solve other problems of this society, especially those related to education.

The traditional role of America's principals is changing. The educational reform movement defines principals as instructional leaders responsible for creating professional learning communities in which learning and quality instruction are priorities. National standards for school leaders include the use of data as a resource for instructional leadership. Additionally, new principals are entering the field rapidly. Previous research on the use of data by principals is twenty years or older. This study updates prior research and contributes to a national perspective of the use of data by principals. This study presents two research questions that guide (a) a description of how principals vary in their use of data and (b) the determination of the relationship(s) between predictor variables and principals' use of data. The method used was survey research and included both descriptive and correlational statistics. A national sample of principals randomly selected by the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) responded to a questionnaire developed for this study. Findings of the survey showed that principals are embracing the role of instructional leader and are using data in various ways. Additionally, this study determined that principals' attitudes, self perceptions, professional development experiences, characteristics of their school districts, and personal competencies with data proved statistically significant with influencing their use of data. However, characteristics of their individual schools where principals worked were not found to be statistically significant. This study is important because it provides useful information for planning both principal preparation programs that target aspiring principals and for planning continual staff development for practicing principals. / Ph. D.

Informed by previous research from both the teacher efficacy and data-driven educational reform literatures, this study sought to identify whether teachers’ sense of efficacy for their practice was related to their attitudes toward and use of data-based pedagogical techniques. Data use was operationalized in two ways. First, data use referred to teachers’ use of any type of systematically-collected data (e.g. student performance on yearly state tests, demographic information). Data use was also operationalized as teachers’ use of a newly implemented student assessment system that provided teachers with student performance data and resources for working with those data. This study also examined whether associations between teacher efficacy and teachers’ use of data were related to student achievement. Participants were fourth and fifth grade teachers (n= 96) and students (n= 2042) from 46 elementary schools in a large, urban school district. Sources providing data for this study included student-, teacher-, and school-level demographic information, measures of student achievement in reading and math, a survey administered to assess teachers’ efficacy and their data-use related attitudes and behavior, and computer-generated use logs which captured teachers’ use of the student assessment system. Multilevel modeling was used to explore these relationships. The results revealed that teacher efficacy was related to aspects of teachers’ use of data, though these relationships varied depending on the operational definition of data use. Teachers’ efficacy was positively related to teachers’ use of data in general, but negatively related to their use of the new student assessment system. The latter finding may be at least partially attributable to difficulties this district experienced when implementing the assessment system. Additional analyses demonstrated that interactions between teacher efficacy and aspects of their data use were positively related to student achievement in reading when reading achievement was covaried for prior performance. This study concludes that teacher efficacy appears to be related to teachers’ attitudes toward and use of data, though the exact nature of these relationships should be clarified further with additional research, particularly given the implementation obstacles this district faced during the implementation of the data system (Wayman, Cho, & Shaw, 2009b). Further, these factors appear to be associated with positive student achievement outcomes in reading, a finding that should also be explored at greater length. Explorations such as these lend needed insight into the factors that determine whether teachers adopt or reject data-driven educational reforms and whether student achievement outcomes might benefit from teachers’ attention to these types of data. / text

This study focused on two themes which have recurred in education since the 1980's: equity of educational outcomes for all students and reform in mathematics education. The problem addressed in this study concerned the apparent inability of large- scale reforms to meet equity goals. The purpose of the study was to increase understanding of this problem from both theoretical and practical perspectives. The study was influenced by feminist perspectives in the choice of theoretical framework and methodology. Focusing specifically on gender equity, the study was set in the context of a large-scale reform in the USA, Ohio's Statewide Systemic Initiative, Project Discovery.There were three major objectives in this study. First was to synthesise the literature concerning gender equity in mathematics education to produce a definition of the ideal Connected Equitable Mathematics Classroom (CEMC). There were two parts to the literature review: one concerning explanations for observed gender differences in mathematics education, and another concerning initiatives implemented to try to bring about gender equity in mathematics education.The second objective was to use the definition of the ideal CEMC, derived from the literature, to determine the extent to which reform had occurred in mathematics classrooms in Ohio. This was accomplished through the analysis of quantitative data collected from a random sample of teachers and principals across the state, and qualitative data collected from seven case study sites. The third objective was to determine the barriers to and facilitators of the realisation of equity goals in middle-school mathematics classrooms involved in Project Discovery. This was accomplished through a cross-site analysis of data collected at the seven case- study sites, with the analysis framed around the characteristics of the CEMC.The outcomes of the study are ++ / set out in terms of these three objectives, culminating in a discussion of the implications and challenges which the findings of this study pose for researchers, reformers, equity advocates and practitioners.

The research reported in this thesis is an in-depth study of science education reform in a transitional society. The society in transition is Rwanda - one of the world's poorest countries - a tiny central African nation adversely affected by major social, political, economic, and ethnic upheaval. Rwanda is faced with the challenge of ensuring rehabilitation after the genocide of 1994 and has adopted the following national goals: implementation of a durable educational policy, eradication of illiteracy, national capacity building in science and technology and reinforcing the teaching of mathematics and sciences.The objective of this research is to describe, discuss and analyse information on the status of science education in Rwanda, from the perspective of primary and secondary science teachers, students, education personnel and my personal in-field observations and analysis. This research analyses the constraints in the implementation of educational policies and a relevant science education in a climate of social, political, cultural, ethnic and economic uncertainty.The research used a case study methodology and utilised quantitative and qualitative methods to examine how teachers' and students' knowledge, perceptions and experiences impact on the school learning environment. The study made use of a questionnaire that was administered to teachers and students in Rwanda. English and French versions of a modified School Level Environment Questionnaire (SLEQ) and a modified Teacher Beliefs Instrument (STEBI) were administered to teachers. Two scales derived from the Test of Science Related Attitudes (TOSRA) were adapted for use in Rwandan classes.The qualitative component of the research made use of interviews, classroom observations, personal reflexivity, historical and curriculum document analysis and vignettes. / To enable an interpretation of the quantitative data from questionnaires in a meaningful manner, the socio-cultural, gender and ethnic perspectives of policy makers, teachers and students were examined through interviews and classroom observations of science lessons. My personal experiences and reflections also were used to understand science education reform in Rwanda.The qualitative and quantitative findings of the research identified factors that influence the science education reform process and make meaningful interpretations of background, culture and the situation in Rwanda. Document analysis indicated that there is a need for greater access to secondary education. Interviews and science lesson observations indicated that it is necessary to develop a curriculum that is contextually relevant and to redefine science teacher training programmes. The findings of the research identified the constraints, dilemmas and tensions in the implementation of the educational reform process as young and inexperienced teachers, most of whom do not have university degrees and have difficulties in implementing the curriculum effectively. Further constraints included work pressures due to the examination system, an acute, as well as a lack of material resources and finances required to reconstruct and improve educational institutions.The research investigates the impact of the transition on science education in Rwanda. The research designed to examine the science education reform process in the transitional Rwandan society and economy studied the complex cultural, historical and educational factors that influence science education. / Using multiple research methods, this study is an analysis of my understanding of the changes that have taken place in science education, the impediments to these changes and the identification of aspects that may enhance the prospect for future science education reform, especially in the areas of the science curriculum reform, assessment procedures and teacher professional development.