School vouchers are state-funded programs--often called scholarship programs--that allow students to use public monies to attend a private school. The state provides a set amount of money, typically based on the state's per-pupil amount, for private school tuition. There are currently 27 voucher programs in 16 states and the District of Columbia.…

Workforce training is needed throughout the construction industry to create and maintain competent workers; unfortunately, most construction training and education research focuses on university student education. The focus of this dissertation research is the current state of educational-theory embedded construction workforce training, how such…

Some elementary students may exhibit challenging externalizing or internalizing behaviors in addition to difficulty with mathematics. In this study, we explored the behavioral patterns of 441 3rd-grade students with and without mathematics difficulty (MD). Compared to students without MD, students with MD demonstrated higher rates of externalizing…

The education system's purpose is to enable every student to have the knowledge and skills to reach their full potential -- which requires students are college and career ready. But for far too many students, the system is falling short. A recent report found 60 percent of high school graduates were not college or career ready. Closing this gap…

The purposes of this sequential, mixed-methods, multiple-case study were to understand how fully-accredited medical schools in the United States operationalize the accreditation standard for self-directed learning (SDL), and to recommend an innovative framework for guiding SDL implementation across the continuum of medical education programs. The…

An intelligent computer-assisted language learning (ICALL) system is an application to provide users instruction and practice as they learn a second language. In order to be more effective and more widely adopted, ICALL must better align with second language acquisition (SLA) research, moving away from menu-based or fill-in-the-blank exercises and…

This study aimed to increase enrollment in accounting degree programs at Azusa Pacific University's Leung School of Accounting (LSA). Forty-four undergraduate students, four graduate students, and five faculty members participated in surveys and Zoom discussions to provide insight into two potential initiatives intended to increase accounting…

Childhood trauma carries multiple implications that adversely impact children; not only does it negatively impact mental health and well-being, resulting in behavioral issues at home and in the classroom, but it also has lasting, negative consequences on an individual's mental and physical health throughout their lifespan. Trauma-informed care…

With troop withdrawals in Iraq and the recent U.S. peace treaty with the Taliban in Afghanistan, community colleges can expect more veterans on their campuses in the near future. Many institutions are eager to serve these students but are not certain how to meet their needs. Veteran students contend with a range of issues, from the bureaucracy of…

This qualitative study gathered the perspectives of public school superintendents on truancy interventions. The study sample consisted of five school superintendents employed within five New Jersey Public School Districts and included four males and one female with a minimum of twenty-five years of experience in public school settings. Each…

The purpose of this study was to identify and characterize the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) held by secondary mathematics preservice teachers. Task-based interviews were conducted to determine whether evidence of PCK exists in preservice teachers and, if so, what form that evidence took. Participants included preservice teachers near the…

Transition policy and procedures are integral for districts promoting students with disabilities to successful post school outcomes in career or in higher education. School districts are given a set of standards that must be addressed in their curriculum but are not clearly delineated by state and national organizations. Additionally, transition…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if students' participation in the ALP co-requisite developmental English program relates to the likelihood of passing gateway college-level English. Data was collected to allow for analysis of gateway college-level English passing probability for all students who participated in gateway…

Capacity-building family-centered practices are a fundamental component of Early Intervention (EI) service delivery, yet their adoption by EI practitioners remains inconsistent. Lack of sufficient practitioner training and overly broad recommended practices for practitioners are cited as potential barriers to their implementation. The triadic…

Mixed methods (MM) research is an emergent methodology that involves collecting, analyzing, and intentionally integrating qualitative and quantitative data in a study. MM is increasingly used by graduate students and scholars across contexts. These researchers? practices of MM research, however, have been found to be limited in the literature, and…