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(1 - 10 of 10)
- Title
- LISTENING TO STUDENT VOICES: WEB-BASED MENTORING FOR BLACK MALE STUDENTS WITH EMOTIONAL DISORDERS.
- Creator
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Grant, David, Dieker, Lisa, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The voices of Black male students labeled ED are seldom heard regarding their perspectives on education and their lives in general. By excluding their opinions, educators are missing an important aspect that could improve educational services for Black males with ED. Therefore, this study was undertaken to determine the implications of Web-based mentoring as a platform for Black male students with ED to articulate their thoughts on the factors that impact their behaviors and achievement....
Show moreThe voices of Black male students labeled ED are seldom heard regarding their perspectives on education and their lives in general. By excluding their opinions, educators are missing an important aspect that could improve educational services for Black males with ED. Therefore, this study was undertaken to determine the implications of Web-based mentoring as a platform for Black male students with ED to articulate their thoughts on the factors that impact their behaviors and achievement. Mentoring as an intervention granted Black males with ED a platform to share their thoughts. Technology was used as an educational resource to academically engage students with ED. Mentoring and technology were combined in a Web-based mentoring model designed to simulate traditional mentoring. Individual mentoring was simulated using live video conferencing. Role modeling was simulated by featuring video clips of the mentor in authentic capacities and group mentoring discussions were simulated by featuring a participant blog on the web site. To determine the implication and emergent themes of Web-based mentoring, two Black males with ED in high school participated in the study. Results of the study revealed that the participant's behavior and achievement were impacted by negative school and home environments. For Student One, negative school environments, specifically poor peer relations, resulted in aggressive behaviors that interfered with his academic progress. He stated, "I thought it would be different in high school, but it is the same as middle school. Student Two expressed disappointment with his home environment stating, "With all I got going on, it is hard to focus on school." Implications of the model on attendance, achievement, and behavior did not demonstrate an appreciable impact. However, both student participants expressed satisfaction with the model and the opportunity to share their thoughts openly.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2008
- Identifier
- CFE0002316, ucf:47828
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002316
- Title
- Development and Validation of a Scale to Measure Misconceptions About Educational Psychology Among Pre-Service Teachers.
- Creator
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McAfee, Morgan, Boote, David, Hayes, Grant, Vitale, Thomas, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Misconceptions are widespread or commonly held beliefs explicitly contradicted by empirical evidence. When teachers harbor misconceptions or unjustified beliefs about teaching, learning, and human motivation, the potential pedagogical consequences are profound, and these inaccurate beliefs may be instilled into future students through ineffective teaching strategies and gross misinterpretations of learning science. While existing research has examined misconceptions about general psychology...
Show moreMisconceptions are widespread or commonly held beliefs explicitly contradicted by empirical evidence. When teachers harbor misconceptions or unjustified beliefs about teaching, learning, and human motivation, the potential pedagogical consequences are profound, and these inaccurate beliefs may be instilled into future students through ineffective teaching strategies and gross misinterpretations of learning science. While existing research has examined misconceptions about general psychology and neuroscience among various populations, no prior work has evaluated pre-service teachers' misconceptions about topics of educational psychology, comprising inaccurate beliefs about teaching, learning, and human motivation. The purpose of this research is to describe the development and validation of a scale to measure misconceptions about educational psychology among pre-service teachers. Employing an experimental 2 (scale: true/false, six-point Likert-type) x 2 (valence: positive, mixed) x 2 (order: true/false presented first, Likert-type presented first) factorial, repeated measures design, a randomized experiment was performed to systematically evaluate the conditions under which the proposed scale for misconceptions of educational psychology performed best. As expected, the Likert-type scale was more sensitive to detecting misconceptions relative to the true/false scale. However, contrary to extant research on the valence effect, mixed-valence scales outperformed the positively-valenced scales across conditions indicating that misconceptions are best measured with a Likert-type response format using a heterogeneous mix of positively- and negatively-valenced items rather than a homogeneous set of positively-valenced items. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2018
- Identifier
- CFE0007051, ucf:51969
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007051
- Title
- Closing the Gaps in Professional Development: A Tool for School-based Leadership Teams.
- Creator
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Sampayo, Sandra, Boote, David, Hayes, Grant, Vitale, Thomas, Flanigan, Jacquelyn, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The field of professional learning in education has been studied and added to extensively in the last few decades. Because the importance of learning in authentic contexts through professional dialogue has become so important, high quality, school-based professional learning is vital to building capacity at the school level. Unfortunately, the literature on professional development (PD) does not provide much guidance on how to bridge theory and practice at the school level, creating a gap....
Show moreThe field of professional learning in education has been studied and added to extensively in the last few decades. Because the importance of learning in authentic contexts through professional dialogue has become so important, high quality, school-based professional learning is vital to building capacity at the school level. Unfortunately, the literature on professional development (PD) does not provide much guidance on how to bridge theory and practice at the school level, creating a gap. With the goal of PD ultimately being to improve teacher performance and student learning, the problem with this gap is that school-level professional development is arbitrarily planned, resulting in variable outcomes. I propose the reason for this is schools lack a comprehensive framework or tool that guides the design of a quality professional learning plan. This problem was identified in Orange County Public School and this dissertation in practice aims at developing a solution that accounts for the district's specific contextual needs. My proposed solution is the design of an integrative tool that school leaders can use to guide them through the professional development planning process. The School-based Professional Learning Design Tool incorporates the professional development standards in planning, learning, implementing, and evaluating outlined in the Florida Professional Development System Evaluation Protocol. It also guides leaders in taking an inventory of the culture and context of their school in order to plan PD that will be viable given those considerations. The components of the Tool guide teams through assessing school teacher performance and student achievement data to help identify focus groups; determining gaps in learning through root cause analysis; creating goals aligned to gaps in performance; and selecting strategies for professional learning, follow-up support, and evaluation. The development of the Tool was informed by the extant literature on professional development, organizational theory, state and national standards for professional development, and principles of design. The Tool is to be completed in four phases. Phases one and two, the focus of this paper, include the literature review, organizational assessment, design specifications, and the first iteration of the Tool. In the next phases, the goals are to solicit feedback from an expert panel review, create a complete version of the Tool, and pilot it in elementary schools. Although the development of the Tool through its final phases will refine it considerably, there are limitations that will transcend all iterations. While the Tool incorporates best practices in professional development, the lack of empirical evidence on the effectiveness of specific PD elements in the literature renders this Tool only a best guess in helping schools plan effective professional development. Another limitation is that the Tool is not prescriptive and cannot use school data to make decisions for what strategies to implement. Taking these limitations into consideration, the use of this Tool can significantly impact the quality and effectiveness of professional development in schools.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005883, ucf:50889
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005883
- Title
- Understanding and Mitigating Sources of Teacher Dissatisfaction.
- Creator
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Howard, Carl, Boote, David, Hopp, Carolyn, Vitale, Thomas, Hayes, Grant, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This dissertation in practice focuses on a review of literature to answer the guiding question, what can teachers and other educational stakeholders do to help address their sources of dissatisfaction in order to build a positive school climate? The author used a modified frame analysis from Bolman and Deal, other published literature, and personal experience to identify seven different, but sometimes related, domains that affect teachers and school climate. These seven domains include...
Show moreThis dissertation in practice focuses on a review of literature to answer the guiding question, what can teachers and other educational stakeholders do to help address their sources of dissatisfaction in order to build a positive school climate? The author used a modified frame analysis from Bolman and Deal, other published literature, and personal experience to identify seven different, but sometimes related, domains that affect teachers and school climate. These seven domains include operations/management, contract application, professional development, classroom management, interpersonal, financial, and unanticipated events. The modified frame analysis was used to help empower teachers to solve problems that affect their performance and motivation, to prevent burnout, attrition, as well as help build and maintain a positive school climate. This dissertation promotes the notion that school climate is composed of and constructed from these seven domains as constituent parts that combine to create the school climate. The author-created tool, Tools for Teachers to Address Domains of Dissatisfaction, enables teachers to quickly reference potential solutions to problems faced. The tool is a prototype, created based on professional literature sources focusing on research-based strategies to identify problems and methods a teacher can use to solve a problem, thus preventing a negative school environment for the students, staff as well as other stakeholders. The domains of dissatisfaction were tested against real-life issues submitted to a Faculty Advisory Committee in order to provide veracity and justification of the domains.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005956, ucf:50796
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005956
- Title
- SYSTEMS DESIGN: ACADEMIC ADVISING SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION, A CASE STUDY OF USER CENTERED SYSTEM DESIGN AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA.
- Creator
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Jones, Tracy, Boote, David, Hayes, Grant, Little, Mary, Vitale, Thomas, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This dissertation presents a case study in user-centered design completed at the University of Central Florida. Leadership in the College of Graduate Studies at UCF realized the need for an advisement tool to assist advisors in the academic colleges to track the success of their students.After an advisement product was selected, the user-centered design approach started to be implemented. End-users were shown the basic functionality and known benefits of the product. Then they were asked how...
Show moreThis dissertation presents a case study in user-centered design completed at the University of Central Florida. Leadership in the College of Graduate Studies at UCF realized the need for an advisement tool to assist advisors in the academic colleges to track the success of their students.After an advisement product was selected, the user-centered design approach started to be implemented. End-users were shown the basic functionality and known benefits of the product. Then they were asked how they could make it standardized across programs. The users selected the order in which information and degree requirements should display. The users asked for additional information to be shown on the new advising report called the Graduate Plan of Study (GPS). This information would assist them in advising students and certifying that the students' had met requirements to earn their degree.With the help of the end-users, a prototype was developed and delivered to computer services. End users assisted with the testing of current and additional functionality. After attending focus groups, the end-users had a better understanding of the need for testing. They assisted in providing ideas for training and a deployment plan to the university. The use of the user-centered design approach helped to keep our end-users engaged in the project. They were the central cause of the successful implementation of a new advisement module for graduate students at UCF.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005637, ucf:50230
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005637
- Title
- Organizational Factors that influence the Retention of Special Education Teachers in Osceola County.
- Creator
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Keenum, Carla, Boote, David, Little, Mary, Vitale, Thomas, Hayes, Grant, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The loss of special education teachers is a problem for all school districts. The effects of special education teacher attrition are felt in the classrooms and by all school district personnel. The impact on student achievement can be profound, especially if the teacher leaves in the middle of a school year. This study examines the organizational factors that influenced the attrition of special education teachers in one Central Florida school district.Participation in the anonymous survey was...
Show moreThe loss of special education teachers is a problem for all school districts. The effects of special education teacher attrition are felt in the classrooms and by all school district personnel. The impact on student achievement can be profound, especially if the teacher leaves in the middle of a school year. This study examines the organizational factors that influenced the attrition of special education teachers in one Central Florida school district.Participation in the anonymous survey was voluntary. Invitations to participate were sent directly to 385 special education instructional personnel and distributed to all district personnel using an e-mail forum. After removing participants who did not meet the inclusion criteria, 250 completed surveys were included in the analysis. In addition to quantitative items, the survey also included open(-)ended items at the end of the survey. While special education instructional personnel were the focus of the study, data from general education instructional personnel were also collected for comparison. The findings indicated that the major organizational causes of attrition among exceptional education teachers were in the areas of the human resources, political and structural frames. Human resource factors included the emotional, physical, and mental toll of daily classroom responsibilities and the perceived lack of district administration support. The main structural frame factor was the lack of compensation for the extra duties that special education teachers must perform. The main political factor was the lack of time needed by the special education staff to complete assigned duties during an average school day. In addition, the symbolic frame factors suggested a lack of perceived support from the general education staff; however, respondents did not indicate that this was major factor affecting in the attrition of special education teachers in this district. The school district has implemented strategies to support teachers to meet State certification requirements, Federal mandates of being highly qualified, and with monthly district level support visits. However, based on these data, the school district needs to recognize organizational factors affecting attrition. The district should pinpoint and alleviate the daily factors that cause undue stress on the special education staff. It should also reallocate resources and personnel to provide more frequent district and school level administrative support. Additional monetary or non-monetary compensation for the extra duties or reducing the workload on the special education teachers may also reduce attrition.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005816, ucf:50035
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005816
- Title
- "Build Your Own Adventure" ACT Prep Manual: Beating the Odds of High-Stakes Standardized Assessments.
- Creator
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Holter, Natalie, Boote, David, Hayes, Grant, Taylor, Rosemarye, Vitale, Thomas, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Today's focus on high-stakes standardized tests has had a massive impact on education throughout America, and standardized test preparation is one of the ugly, open secrets of education. Ever since 2001 when President Bush signed into law No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a bipartisan reauthorization of Johnson's landmark Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, students have been bombarded with standardized tests from the earliest grades. Politicians believe these measures are the only way...
Show moreToday's focus on high-stakes standardized tests has had a massive impact on education throughout America, and standardized test preparation is one of the ugly, open secrets of education. Ever since 2001 when President Bush signed into law No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a bipartisan reauthorization of Johnson's landmark Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, students have been bombarded with standardized tests from the earliest grades. Politicians believe these measures are the only way to remedy the perceived weaknesses in the education system because (")stringent accountability mandates… [provide] vital levers of change, inclusiveness, and transparency of results(") (Education Week, 2011, para. 15). Yet as time progresses, the quantity and importance of the exams increase to such proportions that, by the time students are in high school, their performance dictates whether they will graduate or attend college. While proponents of such exams say that they only test the skills that students ought to be learning anyway, the reality tends to be that teachers start to focus only on the specific questions the test will cover, and thereby lose the ability to provide full, comprehensive education. "Teaching to the test" is the much-maligned experience of most high schools. In order to combat the pressure students feel to perform and teachers feel to shortchange the learning experience, a (")Build Your Own Adventure(") manual designed around research-based principles demonstrated to improve student learning gains will allow students to focus on the key areas needed to improve test performance, demystify the test itself, and thus help students obtain score improvement. In so doing, students will not only perform better on standardized assessments, but ultimately be able to attend more elite colleges.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005806, ucf:50031
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005806
- Title
- A Systematic Review of Research on Successful African American Students in Mathematics: Implications for Seminole High School.
- Creator
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Vong, Trung, Boote, David, Vitale, Thomas, Robinson, Edward, Hayes, Grant, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The purpose of this study was to synthesize the counter-narratives of mathematically successful African American students. The gap in educational achievement between African American and White students is well documented in the United States, especially in mathematics education. Although Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores have increased for both groups at Seminole High School, the gap has remained over 30% for nearly a decade. Most research on this topic has focused on the reasons...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to synthesize the counter-narratives of mathematically successful African American students. The gap in educational achievement between African American and White students is well documented in the United States, especially in mathematics education. Although Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores have increased for both groups at Seminole High School, the gap has remained over 30% for nearly a decade. Most research on this topic has focused on the reasons why African American students fail to achieve. Various individual, social, and organizational factors have been suggested. However, a growing body of research has highlighted the stories of mathematically successful African American students.Using best evidence review methods, an exhaustive review of the literature identified 22 research articles published between 2004 and 2013. All studies collected interview data with mathematically successful African American middle school, high school, and higher education students in the United States. Meta-synthesis was used to synthesize findings across studies. Among the 151 participants across 22 studies, six common experiences were identified as contributing to students' mathematical success: supportive teachers, supportive family, supportive peers, a strong mathematics identity, ability to deal with racial stereotype, and supportive organizations. Most importantly, this meta-synthesis highlights the tendency of prior research to focus on de-contextualized factors rather than understanding students holistically within their broader social and community environment. Insights from this study lead to several recommendations for improving mathematics education for African American students at Seminole High School and for suggested future research on this topic.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005438, ucf:50387
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005438
- Title
- Staffing Practices of Elementary School Principals for Teachers in Primary Grades and Implications for the PreK-3rd Continuum.
- Creator
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Albers-Biddle, Laura, Boote, David, Culp, Anne, Levin, Judith, Hayes, Grant, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Principals are considered the educational leaders of their schools and face pressure to improve the quality of education across all levels and disciplines. Principals were interviewed to understand their beliefs, knowledge, and dispositions on staffing teachers in the primary grades. A purposive sample of elementary school principals was drawn from one mid-size suburban district in Florida. Data were analyzed using Bolman and Deal's four-frame organizational theory framework, Cohen's...
Show morePrincipals are considered the educational leaders of their schools and face pressure to improve the quality of education across all levels and disciplines. Principals were interviewed to understand their beliefs, knowledge, and dispositions on staffing teachers in the primary grades. A purposive sample of elementary school principals was drawn from one mid-size suburban district in Florida. Data were analyzed using Bolman and Deal's four-frame organizational theory framework, Cohen's cognitive frame, and Boote's theory of professional discretion.The data strongly suggest that principals do not understand the foundations of early childhood practice. In addition, they do not understand the differences between Early Childhood Education (ECE) and Elementary Education (EE). The principals tend to hire teachers with EE certification as opposed to ECE training. This is partially due to their lack of understanding of ECE and to the perceived advantage of being able to place teachers in a wide range of grade levels. Although all principals stated that primary teaching requires specialized knowledge, most principals consider flexibility to move teachers into the upper grades more important.Three main implications for practice are suggested based on recommendations for advocacy and public education for young children within PreK(-)3rd continuum initiatives. (1) Professional development in ECE should be implemented at the district level for principals to learn and understand the differences in preparation between ECE and EE teacher preparation and to demonstrate the importance of the early years of child development and education. (2) Curriculum enrichment in ECE needs to be added to higher education, graduate teacher leadership programs to demonstrate the importance of the early years of child development and education. (3) The policy for hiring should be centralized at the district level and require teachers with training in ECE for the primary grades. The limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are also discussed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005294, ucf:50547
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005294
- Title
- A needs analysis for K-12 school improvement projects and their use as the dissertation in practice for the professional practice education doctorate program at the University of Central Florida.
- Creator
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Biddle, Jeffrey, Boote, David, Taylor, Rosemarye, Vitale, Thomas, Hayes, Grant, Flanigan, Jacquelyn, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This study conducted at the University of Central Florida was completed to inform the Ed. D. in Education program within the College of Education and Human Performance. The main purpose of the study was to determine the Dissertation in Practice (DiP) project types that should be allowed for use as the capstone requirement based on a needs analysis of K-12 schools and school districts. The secondary purpose was to inform the instructional design of the program to ensure the necessary skills...
Show moreThis study conducted at the University of Central Florida was completed to inform the Ed. D. in Education program within the College of Education and Human Performance. The main purpose of the study was to determine the Dissertation in Practice (DiP) project types that should be allowed for use as the capstone requirement based on a needs analysis of K-12 schools and school districts. The secondary purpose was to inform the instructional design of the program to ensure the necessary skills and knowledge required are included in the program.The study was conducted in the University of Central Florida's Ed. D. in Education program and employed a qualitative approach to a needs analysis. Interviews were conducted with two distinctly different participant groups. The first group was comprised of administrators and teacher-leaders identified by a superintendent of a rural school district in Central Florida as (")highly effective("). The second group of participants was comprised of current Ed. D. students working in K-12 education with more than 10 years' experience.This research identified specific project types that best support school improvement and should therefore be integrated into the Ed. D. in Education program as allowable project types for use as the Dissertation in Practice. The results also identified qualities of highly effective administrators and teacher-leaders that may be considered by program faculty for inclusion in the design and implementation of the curriculum for the Ed. D. in Education program.Implications of this research include using the results to inform instructional practices and the allowable DiP projects for the Ed. D. in Education program. As this study was a needs analysis that serves as a basis for program instructional decisions, the results of this study may inform other Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) member institutions how to modify or enhance their programs as well.The focus on this study was exclusively on K-12 education. However many students enrolled in the program work in business, government, or non-profit settings. This research could be replicated to determine improvement project types that are commonly implemented in those settings in order to better meet the needs of all students enrolled in the Ed. D. in Education program.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005306, ucf:50539
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005306
