This dissertation consists of three essays focused on policies that hold the potential to reduce gender and socioeconomic gaps in the developing world. The first two chapters focus on higher education while the last chapter focuses on STEM gender gaps during primary school. Chapter 1 looks at the impacts of new transportation infrastructure on…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how public-school teachers experienced transaction-based technostress while providing remote instruction through the COVID-19 pandemic. This study's sample consisted of 17 teachers working within the same mid-sized suburban school district in a Western state. Data collection entailed…

Learning-focussed educational models require the development of pedagogical, methodological, assessment and technological competences among the faculty community. The COVID-19 pandemic has accentuated the need for this training. This study evaluates the impact of the training project "Educate to Transform" on teacher attitudes, knowledge…

Existing literature points to skilled facilitation as a key factor in enabling a team's success in the context of inquiry-based reform. There is little understanding, however, of "how" precisely facilitators make the needed difference. This study analyzes the moves of expert facilitators in a team-based reform found to be successful…

This learning activity describes changes made to teach Recreation Programming in an online format, specifically the use of weekly student-led discussions on readings and films related to programming. The three components of weekly discussions (weekly summaries, weekly participation, and one-time discussion leader) are explained.

If the RPP field is to bring our stated commitments to equity to life, it will require engagement with the political dimensions of RPP work, starting at the outset when a partnership is being established. In particular, prospective members must consider how the research process and products might (or might not) lead to more equitable systems.…

The purpose of this phenomenological case study was to explore the perceived effectiveness of a restructured developmental education program at one campus of a large, multi-campus community college in North Texas. The restructuring process was guided by the mandates of Texas House Bill 2223 passed in 2017. One of the components of the bill allowed…

For students with a significant amount of student loan debt, the excitement of graduating from college can be overshadowed by feelings of anxiety and fear. Debt perception is about more than the cost of a college degree, the amount of financial aid received, or the value families place on education. In this article, the author tells a story about…

School reform efforts, though the subject of a great deal of scrutiny and research since the publication of A Nation at Risk in 1983, have resulted in negligible positive net results for student achievement on any of our current scales of measurement. Additionally, our current school system has yet to fully or successfully pivot to a twenty-first…

Policy makers in the US and several other countries are recommending that more schools offer an International Baccalaureate (IB) programme. However, little is known about the challenges that IB programmes present for teaching and learning particularly those meeting national curriculum. In this study, we examined the challenges of the IB's Middle…

While the student population in higher education has become more ethnically diverse the professoriate in universities remain predominantly of European descent. Reflecting this disparity of representation within the context of higher education in the United States, women faculty of color continue to experience tokenization, among other…

"Am I My Brother's Keeper?" offers powerful insights into the challenges of implementing large-scale educational change. The book, chronicling the Expanded Success Initiative (ESI), a four-year study focused on improving the educational outcomes of fifteen thousand Black and Latinx males in New York City public high schools, covers what…

In 2017, the BHP Foundation launched its Education Equity Global Signature Program, which is meant to enhance opportunities for disadvantaged young people to access a quality education and, through this, strengthen the civil and economic components of society. It does so through investing in efforts that increase the use of evidence to improve…

California's new Statewide System of Support is grounded in the fundamental principles of the Local Control Funding Formula, especially its emphasis on the central role of local educators in determining the best approaches to improvement. This report examines the early implementation of the System of Support, with a focus on the work of the county…

The goals of placement reform and the elimination of developmental education at community colleges were to decrease the misplacement of students and to provide students with quicker access to college-level courses to improve retention and student success rates. However, the new placement reforms may be preventing some nontraditional students from…