In today's context of schooling, most teaching is aimed at output, coverage, and high scores which is in direct contrast to what pre-service teachers are taught to cherish -- differentiation, academic choice, and student autonomy. However, there is an approach that shows promise in counteracting the tendency to over stress scores and undermine a…

This dissertation seeks to address limitations of Practice-Based Teacher Education (PBTE) in relation to (1) narrow conceptions of practice and teacher learning, and (2) peripheralization of equity and justice. After aiming to understand the landscape of limitations in PBTE, this study situates itself within specific manifestations of these…

The purpose of this study was to examine the phenomena of play by exploring kindergarten teachers' perceptions of play, specifically investigating teachers' perspectives on the importance of play, the role of the educator in play, and the changing face of play in response to evolving academic standards. This study utilized the qualitative approach…

The number of students from ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse backgrounds in K-12 public education settings has increased in the past two decades. However, 80% of teachers in public schools are White and middle-class, which does not mirror the student population. Even though higher education prepares teachers to be culturally…

Paramount to both academic success and success in life is the ability to read. Faced with the arduous task of teaching this process, teachers must be knowledgeable of reading theories and pedagogies. Although the theory-to-practice gap is a valid concern that has been researched in many professions, more needs to be known about how novice teachers…

In the United States, healthcare-associated infections are one of the top 10 causes of death. With the rising costs of treating infections in the millions of dollars range, prevention is a core issue for the nursing profession. Due to the complexity of disease transmission and the persistent nature of certain microorganisms, traditional teaching…

The literature review in this dissertation examined what writing intervention strategies have been implemented with high school students in special education, with what measures, and with what found outcomes. The study following the literature review surveyed and interviewed high school special education teachers to determine what practices the…

Culturally relevant pedagogy includes three tenets: academic success, cultural competence, and sociopolitical consciousness (Ladson-Billings, 1995). Despite personal interests in social justice, many teachers that pursue aspects of culturally relevant pedagogy fail to challenge students to recognize, critique, and act against societal inequities;…

This study addressed the challenge of connecting elementary teacher candidates' course work and fieldwork in order to foster a cohesive experience in learning to teach mathematics. In this study, a Mediated Field Experience was designed for five elementary teacher candidates in their internship setting. The study utilized qualitative methods to…

Educational research has been around for over one hundred years and has faced periods of optimism, pessimism, and skepticism. Currently, there is a plethora of educational research available for teachers and districts to use. However, there is a research-practice gap. This gap refers to the amount of research available and educators using the…

While teachers and schools across the country actively work to impart curricula that is relevant and meaningful to their students, the written standards and reading lists too often represent a Eurocentric perspective and reinforce inequities perpetuated by the status quo. Too frequently, teachers are inadequately supported with or provided…

Adaptive tutoring systems often model student knowledge in ways that break away from a "one size fits all" approach to learning. Nonetheless, the strengths of these systems can often be limited, as knowledge representations are not easily interpreted by teachers, which make these systems difficult to integrate into pedagogical practices.…

Scientific literacy is an important and relevant 21st century skill. People with a strong scientific literacy are better equipped to be involved in public discourse which can drive social and political decision-making processes and are more adept at determining valid scientific information. Unfortunately, American citizens have consistently…

This study was conducted to reveal how and why teacher self-efficacy developed by bridging the theoretical instruction of teacher education program coursework to the real-world enactment of specific classroom management strategies. Low teacher classroom management self-efficacy has been correlated with early teacher attrition, perpetuating the…

This dissertation focuses on the professional philosophies, practices, and collaborative negotiation skills used and developed in two teacher education programs within two countries and how novice teachers integrate these ideas, skills, and processes in classrooms and schools. Simultaneously, this research examines how the patterns of democratic…