The purpose of this quantitative study was to provide school district leaders and policymakers information of the impact grade configuration had on academic performance using math and ELA ILEARN scores over a three-year period. The study included data from 585 schools that were classified into four groups: Elementary Setting, Intermediate Setting,…

My dissertation studies the relationship between counseling and violence within U.S. schools. Much of the research on school security and school safety tends to lean heavily on routine activities theory and other opportunity theories, which limits the study of other factors critically relevant to this topic such as school climate. This…

The increasing prevalence of data emphasizes the importance of statistical literacy. Educational systems are charged with developing students who are statistically literate before entering higher education or the workforce. Adequate teaching and learning of statistics in K-12 education faces challenges, due to limited statistical content knowledge…

The problem in this study was that first- and second-grade teachers are not using relevant and timely data, specifically running records, analysis of oral reading errors, self-correction rates, and word accuracy, as well as the student zone of proximal development (ZPD) in guided reading instruction. The purpose of this qualitative case study was…

My dissertation comprises three studies designed to explore nuances of data use in education that presently confound the relationship between variation in teachers' practice of data use and student outcomes: (1) the relationships between different data sources within and across instructional practices; (2) the dimensionality of teachers' practice…

This study aimed to discover the perspectives and experiences of elementary school teachers in rural southeast Tennessee regarding their collaborative efforts to effectively implement data-driven instruction for individual student success. The research problem is that the current collaboration efforts for teachers to implement data-driven…

The study investigated school-to-family communication efforts to improve daily attendance among economically disadvantaged students at the R Elementary School (pseudonym). Research questions during this study included to what extent does a 6-week school-to-family communication initiative impact student attendance rates and what are the existing…

In an increasingly data-driven society, making decisions with data is a requirement not only for research scientists but also for navigating life more generally (Kjelvik & Schultheis, 2019). An informed citizenry must be prepared to discover patterns, predict outcomes, make decisions with data, and evaluate data-based claims for legitimacy and…

Analogy is a powerful learning mechanism for children to learn novel, abstract concepts from only limited input, yet also requires cognitive supports. My dissertation sought to propose and examine number lines as a mathematical schema of the number system to facilitate both the development of rational number understanding and analogical reasoning.…

The problem explored by this study was that teachers' perspectives are not implemented when selecting and utilizing phonics instruction in kindergarten through second grade classrooms. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore primary teachers' rationales and experiences when choosing and implementing phonics instruction in primary…

For decades, researchers and practitioners have supported developing readers via synchronous oral reader with a stronger peer or adult tutor. These methods--collectively known as Paired Oral Reading--are purported to promote reading achievement for tutee readers. However, despite nearly 60 years of investigation, no known research has adequately…

This qualitative case study was designed to explore elementary teacher perceptions of what it means to provide an equitable education for their students. These perceptions allow educational leaders insight into how teachers navigate systems that create inequities and what professional development may be needed to further support equitable learning…

Current literature exists centered on Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework, its components, and ways in which MTSS is intended to support all students. Yet, there is a gap in the literature that examines how elementary schools are implementing it. This dissertation study sought to understand what the MTSS framework implementation at…

Elementary school teachers struggle to collect and use reading progress data to make instructional decisions. Collecting and interpreting reading progress data when making instructional decisions allows districts to identify and support students who need early reading intervention and may protect districts from Free Appropriate Public Education…

The accountability era has produced school grading systems that purport to evaluate school effectiveness yet utilize hegemonic formulas that label low-scoring schools and neighborhoods, depriving them of incentive monies tied to their school grades. This quantitative study analyzed the publicly available data of 106 elementary schools in one large…