<p> Relational aggression acted out through social media or cyber bullying is an ever-growing limitedly researched issue that is impacting students and parents alike. A mixed-method study was conducted using existing older and aspiring younger social workers and counselors to investigate attitudes (focus groups and text box comments) and relationships (surveys) between variables. The research questions asked how attitudes toward cyber bullying based on gender, type of social media, parent versus nonparent status, and involved parent versus not involved parent status. Hypotheses tested correlations between the same elements.</p><p> Participants were 75 existing social workers and counselors working at a Midwestern school district, and 137 aspiring social workers and counselors enrolled in a Midwestern university undergraduate social worker program and a graduate counselor program. The participant age varied&mdash;the youngest group was the undergraduate social worker students and graduate counseling students the oldest group was the existing social workers and counselors. Gender varied, but the majority of participants were female.</p><p> All participants were surveyed with an instrument designed to measure attitude that included three scenarios of relational aggression. Among those surveyed, some also participated in a video recorded focus group to measure attitude. Survey results were analyzed using <i>t</i> tests and <i> F</i> tests that found minimal significance between participant responses. Focus group results were first analyzed using axial coding for three key elements: parent involvement, relational aggression, and social media, and found that by far, the majority of responses aligned with the element, parent involvement. Next, open coding of just the parent involvement responses resulted in the following emerging themes: general parent involvement, parent monitoring, parent involvement as a resolution, parent involvement as a prevention, and parental advisement.</p><p> There was more female representation that took the survey than males. Lack of familiarity with social media websites made it difficult for honest responses and if they were used to cyber bully. Most respondents felt parent involvement is important in preventing cyber bullying despite parental status. Involved parental monitoring of their child&rsquo;s social media are aware of their online behavior. Cyber bullying is a prevalent topic that provided strong reactions from all data sets.</p>

The current program evaluation of school-wide positive behavior support (PBS) in an alternative education setting was conducted in three phases (Phase 1: initial evaluation; Phase 2: intervention; Phase 3: follow up evaluation). The purpose of the evaluation was to identify strengths and weaknesses of the PBS program and to implement changes to improve program effectiveness and positive outcomes for students. An exploratory case study design was used to achieve an in-depth understanding of the program through the use of quantitative and qualitative data collection. The evaluation was completed within one school year, between November 2007 and May 2008. The participants in this evaluation were the students and staff of the alternative school. Quantitative data included behavioral data on the students, inter-observer agreement data, and survey data; qualitative data included survey data and data from student and staff focus groups. Overall, the evaluation was successful in that the evaluators were able to identify strengths and weaknesses, and areas of concern to be addressed through interventions. The evaluators were able to implement a variety of interventions, and received feedback that the interventions were successful. Although student behaviors were not effectively changed as a result of this evaluation, the evaluators did develop a plan for ongoing evaluation, future trainings and program modifications, to be implemented over the course of the 2008-2009 school year.

Many restructured public middle schools assign their classroom teachers to interdisciplinary teams (math, English, etc.) with common planning time scheduled weekly. Students are then assigned to one team of teachers, and this team and their students stay together throughout the school year. As a result, teachers and students learn more about each other, and teachers can increase their emphasis on the social, emotional and physical needs of their students. One goal of this increased emphasis is a reduction in disruptive behaviors in the classrooms. However, many teachers from these teams have reported little or no reduction in these disruptive behaviors. This study framed middle-school restructuring as a beginning systemic intervention and hypothesized the following: If teachers learned about systemic ideas that underlie restructuring and applied systemic interventions in the classroom, the disruptive behaviors would decrease. A team of four public middle school teachers were introduced to systemic thinking and interventions during weekly meetings for ten consecutive weeks. They viewed classroom behavior from a systemic perspective and practiced systemic interventions in the classroom. They kept track of their efforts each week and reported any changes that occurred. Some of the students from the team talked about their classroom behavior as well as other events in their lives which they believed influenced their behavior in the classroom. The results show that one member of the team reported a significant decrease in disruptive behaviors and one reported some decrease. Two members who rarely experienced disruptive behaviors in their classrooms reported an increase in their confidence as a result of learning a theoretical basis for their past and present successes. The team as a whole reported feeling more cohesive and productive, and, as a result, more successful in accomplishing their goals. Almost all the student participants reported wanting their classroom teacher to know about the events in their lives outside of school. The students also reported that much of their disruptive classroom behaviors increased in amount and intensity if they could get no help or understanding with their out-of-school problems.

Although school adjustment counseling has existed in the schools of Massachusetts since 1952, there has been no resource guide or handbook which has guided the work. Because of the increased demands put upon schools to meet the complex emotional needs of our students, the job has grown, but without a clear sense of direction or approach to the work. The writer believed that there was a need for a handbook for persons studying to become school adjustment counselors, persons recently hired as school adjustment counselors, and perhaps even persons already in the field. A handbook was developed dealing with school adjustment counseling from a systemic perspective enhanced with some aspects of Carl Rogers' philosophy. The handbook is not a comprehensive cookbook of all aspects of school adjustment counseling, but rather it is a discussion of an approach. Activities for dealing with individuals, groups, classrooms, staff, parents, and the general community are included from the writer's personal experiences with these activities. Twenty-five people read the handbook, including new school adjustment counselors, experienced school adjustment counselors, people in training to become school adjustment counselors, school personnel in related fields and administrators. After reading the handbook, they completed a matrix and a questionnaire. Their responses were overwhelmingly positive. Based on the responses, the writer plans to revise and expand the handbook with hopes of it being a factor in enhancing the training for the field and preserving the uniqueness of the position.

<p> Process-based approaches to writing tend to overlook the self-regulatory skills and motivational beliefs required for proficient writing (Harris, Santangelo, &amp; Graham, 2008) and do not provide the support many students need to develop into effective writers (Graham, Harris, &amp; Mason, 2005; Harris, Graham, &amp; Mason, 2006). Additionally, restricted writing opportunities preclude the sustained deliberate practice students need to develop expertise in writing (Kellogg &amp; Whiteford, 2009). This study examined an intervention that incorporated the self-regulated strategy development model (SRSD, Graham &amp; Harris, 1993) with the automated writing evaluation (AWE) program NC Write. An embedded quasi-experimental mixed methods design was used to determine the impact of the intervention on students&rsquo; argumentative writing performance, knowledge, and self-efficacy. Middle school students (<i>N</i>=829) participated in one of three conditions: NC Write + traditional writing instruction, NC Write + SRSD instruction, or a comparison condition.</p><p> Results of multi-level models that controlled for pretest performance and predicted posttest performance averaging across students and within teachers showed that students in the NC Write + SRSD instruction condition produced posttest essays that were of a higher quality, longer, and included more basic elements of argumentative essays than students in the other two conditions. Students in the NC Write + traditional writing instruction condition produced higher-quality essays than students in the comparison condition at posttest. Students in the NC Write + SRSD instruction condition identified more essay elements at posttest, though there were no between-condition differences in writing knowledge of substantive processes or in students&rsquo; writing self-efficacy at posttest. </p><p> Additional multi-level models were specified to include all essays written by treatment condition students and examine the shape of growth in writing performance. Results showed that students&rsquo; growth in writing quality, essay length, and essay elements was best represented by a quadratic growth model. On average, students&rsquo; growth in writing performance reached a plateau following the fourth essay written during the intervention. Differences in rates of change and deceleration in writing quality, essay length, and essay elements were not significantly different between the two treatment conditions.</p><p> Survey results showed students and teachers held generally favorable opinions of NC Write. Interview results determined that NC Write as well as the overall writing intervention had acceptable social validity. Qualitative data analysis revealed that NC Write provided a framework for deliberate writing practice. In this framework students&rsquo; growth in writing performance is supported by a cycle of learning, practice, and feedback. NC Write enabled deliberate practice by affording writing quality feedback, efficiency, and evidence of growth, and supporting teachers&rsquo; writing instruction and students&rsquo; intrinsic motivation. Limitations of the framework included some aspects of feedback, limited lesson data, and lack of a plagiarism scanner in NC Write. Implications from these findings support integrating SRSD instruction with an AWE program to support teacher implementation of the SRSD model and more efficiently provide students with the strategy instruction, practice opportunities, and feedback needed to develop proficiency in writing. Recommendations are provided for AWE programs to better support students&rsquo; maintenance of writing quality growth.</p>

<p> Every year millions of students drop out of school. Research indicates that student engagement is a major indicator of whether a student will or will not complete high school (Jackson, 2015). A student&rsquo;s decision to drop out is not an instantaneous event, but one that occurs because of a developmental process of withdrawal (Finn, 1989). Student engagement is a student&rsquo;s feelings of connectedness, belongingness, and valuing of school, developed early in a student&rsquo;s academic career (Voelkl, 1997). Increased student engagement offers students a chance to increase their achievement in school. One measure of student engagement is increased participation in school (Finn, 1989). Staff members who take the time to build relationships foster a greater sense of connectedness to the school for the student. A greater sense of connectedness may increase the levels of participation in the school thus resulting in greater achievement. The current study found that the engagement levels of at-risk middle school students in grades six through eight with and without disabilities increased after a staff-led mentoring program. The current study used the Identification with School Questionnaire (Voelkl, 1996) to measure student engagement. In addition, the current study analyzed the staff-mentor perceptions of the mentoring program and found that the staff-mentors valued the relationships with the students, that they wanted to meet periodically to collaborate on ways to better reach the students, and that most of the staff contacted parents as a natural part of the mentoring process. </p><p>

Thesis--University of Florida. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 116-121).

<p> Building on Dr. Tschannen-Moran &amp; Dr. Gareis&rsquo; research into principal self-efficacy, as well as Dr. Dweck&rsquo;s work regarding growth mindset, this study explores the relationship between principals&rsquo; performance on the Pennsylvania Framework for Leadership evaluation tool and their corresponding self-reported degree of self-efficacy and growth mindset. Principals in one Pennsylvania County were included in the sample and asked to complete an electronic survey comprised of: (a) demographic questions, (b) performance evaluation data, (c) mindset scales, and (d) principal self-efficacy scales. The data analysis consisted of both a linear regression of principal performance on principals&rsquo; mindset, moral leadership self-efficacy, and instructional self-efficacy scores. Additionally, correlation matrices were employed to identify the presence and direction of relationships between self-efficacy levels and the degree of growth mindset reported by principals. </p><p> Results demonstrated a positive association between principals&rsquo; instructional self-efficacy reports and their overall performance evaluation. Alternatively, both growth mindset and moral leadership self-efficacy evidenced a negative association. There was no association reflected between growth mindset and either the overall self-efficacy measure, nor the sub-scale self-efficacy measures. A secondary relationship revealed a negative association between school performance profile (SPP) and growth mindset. This relationship held true in subsequent regression analyses.</p>

Thesis (EdD)--Open University.

<p> In recent years students' academic engagement has gained increasing favor as a necessary component of authentic learning experiences. However, less research has focused on what students do when they run into everyday problems in school that allows them to return (or not) to a state of ongoing engagement. Expanding on these ideas, this project explores students' <i>motivational resilience</i> in school, that is, the dynamic interactions among their ongoing engagement, emotional reactivity, academic coping, and re-engagement after encounters with difficulties and setbacks in school. Grounded in an established motivational model based on Deci &amp; Ryan's (1985) self-determination theory, and building on earlier studies suggesting that these components of motivational resilience form self-reinforcing internal dynamics (Skinner, Pitzer, &amp; Steele, 2015), this project comprises two free-standing manuscripts that examined key components of this process. </p><p> Study 1 explored the external dynamics of motivational resilience within a single school year to identify the extent to which outside forces (e.g., students' experiences of teacher support and self-system processes) can shape students' motivational systems which tend to be self-sustaining. The study used data from 1020 3^rd through 6^th grade students to examine feedforward and feedback effects between students' composite motivational resilience and a set of hypothesized antecedents and consequences, and also investigated whether teacher support can shift established motivational patterns. </p><p> Study 2 looked more closely at motivational resilience and its antecedents and consequences as students made the transition from elementary to middle school. Data following 281 students as they moved from fifth to sixth grade were used to test a structural model examining the extent to which students' ongoing engagement and teacher support act as resources that encourage adaptive coping and re-engagement, which then lead to continued engagement and subsequent achievement. Students' coping was explored as a particularly important mediator between students' resources at the beginning of fifth grade and their subsequent motivational actions and achievement. The study also examined differences in patterns of motivation across the transition for students who had high levels of teacher support and adaptive coping profiles as compared with students who had fewer of such resources. </p><p> This project provides a deeper understanding of students' experiences in dealing with everyday challenges and struggles in school, especially during the transition to middle school. Discussion focuses on the utility and potential drawbacks of examining the individual components of students' motivational resilience through this conceptual lens, with suggestions for next steps for future research. Implications of this model for improving students' academic development highlight the important role teachers can play in supporting or undermining students' ability to bounce back after encounters with setbacks. </p>