This qualitative case study conducted in a higher education institution in Guyana aimed to address a need for more transformative approaches to professional learning and development given that accelerated transformation of the education system is required to meet the fast-paced national economic development. Through the lens of the Transformative…

Recent efforts to help teachers improve have centered on teacher evaluation. This qualitative dissertation explored how eight teachers from one middle school described and understood improving their practice Additionally, this study used purposeful developmental sampling to explore how, if at all, participants' way of knowing (meaning their…

In an era of educational transformation, teacher leaders play a pivotal role in facilitating systemic change within schools. This dissertation presents a single-case action research study investigating the support structures provided by a Team Lead Communities of Practice (TL CoP) to nurture teacher leaders. The primary aim of this research is to…

The purpose of this Action Research study was to explore the influence of leadership roles on the persistence of early-career public school teachers in a large suburban school district on the East Coast of the United States. By examining teacher retention and expanding teacher-leadership skills for teachers in their second and third years, the…

Some professional learning communities (PLC) are successful, and others are unsuccessful leading to questions about which characteristics of a group of people are important to the success of the community. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the factors contributing to the presence of a community of practice between…

In this portfolio, I reflect on my efforts to provide professional development targeted to support teachers during the launch phase of their mathematics teaching, to elicit and respond to student ideas and experiences. I grounded my study in research on ambitious teaching practices for launching complex mathematical tasks using problem-based…

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the organizational factors necessary for an inclusive special education model as identified by special education teachers and school site administrators. Specifically, explored the importance of implementation factors (i.e., fidelity) and organizational factors (i.e., administrative support), as well as…

Teachers are struggling to transfer newly acquired knowledge and skills from professional learning experiences into their classrooms. This study aimed to explore teachers' perceptions of how professional learning communities (PLCs) enhance elementary teachers' instructional practices based on interviews with teachers in a rural school district.…

A Title I elementary school in New York City faced a challenge in supporting students in Grade 3 to Grade 5 who did not meet state proficiency standards in mathematics. The student body of approximately 300 was 80% Black and Brown students, with 40% of students identified as English language learners or students with disabilities. The assistant…

Teachers' beliefs are importantly linked to teachers' classroom actions and, ultimately, to student achievement. Although much is known about general education teachers' beliefs about how children learn mathematics and mathematics instruction, there is little known about special education teachers' beliefs. This study then examined special…

Low achievement in literacy for children entering kindergarten exists despite district-sponsored professional development (PD) in literacy pedagogy for prekindergarten teachers. PD has been shown to be important in improving teachers' instruction, so low achievement of children is unexplained. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to…

More than 85% of federally funded research initiatives fail to produce significant positive results (Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, 2013). Moreover, of the less than 15% that do yield positive results, none show replicability outside of their original setting (Pogrow, 2017; Kizilcec et al., 2020). Mixed results are present in even the most…

This dissertation in practice created a new form of educator development called the Virtual Educator Network (VEN) and examined its impact on educators' attitudes towards inclusion, feelings of support, and incorporation of new strategies to solve problems of practice they find important. The VEN is a form of professional development that pulls…

This Dissertation in Practice (DIP) was a group dissertation as required by the Doctorate in Educational Leadership program and created a new form of educator development called the Virtual Educator Network (VEN). This DIP examined the VENs' impact on educators' attitudes towards inclusion, feelings of support, and incorporation of new strategies…

Reform standards in mathematics education have called for classrooms that are student-centered and that incorporate problem solving and reasoning for meaningful learning. After decades of reform efforts involving multiple stakeholders, research indicates that most classrooms remain teacher-centered and procedurally focused, due to the complexity…