Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, Educational Policy and Leadership

This descriptive quantitative online survey research explored the relationships among Teachers' Sense of Efficacy, Collective Inclusion Efficacy, Technologyand other predictor variables to determine their saliency in relationship to the criterion variable Teachers' Sense of Inclusion Efficacy. Data were collected from a random sample of general and special educators in all teaching positions, across all grade levels, in urban, rural and suburban Ohio school districts. Descriptive quantitative statistics, frequencies, means, standard deviations, percentages, reliability coefficients, correlation coefficients, principal component analyses, multiple regression analyses, and a one-sample t test, were used to analyze the relationships and interrelationships among the predictor variables and the criterion variable. The results provided rich contextual and situational data. The predictor variables, Teachers' Sense of Efficacy, Collective Inclusion Efficacy, and Attitudes Toward Inclusion, had strong or moderate relationships with the criterion variable Teachers' Sense of Inclusion Efficacy. Analyses of the data support the new scales developed and used in this study to assess teachers' personal and collective efficacy for the inclusion of students with disabilities in the general education classroom. The Teachers' Sense of Inclusion Efficacy Scale (I-TSES)was adapted from the 12-item Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) (Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2001), and the Collective Inclusion Efficacy scalewas adapted from the 12-item Collective Efficacy scale (Goddard, 2002). Further research and application of these new scales should help inform schools, colleges, and departments of education (SCDEs) of the need to ensure that teachers are prepared to integrate technology to teach every student in the 21st century.

Committee: Anita Hoy (Advisor) Subjects:

Doctor of Education, University of Akron, 2011, Secondary Education

Self-regulated learning refers to students taking responsibility for what and how they learn in the classroom, and how it affects their thoughts and actions in their academic requirements. This action research case study sought to investigate the use of self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies and beliefs of secondary high school juniors enrolled in the International Baccalaureate English A1 curriculum at an urban secondary school. The focus of this study was students' behavior and beliefs through LASSI testing, phenomenological interviews, student journaling, classroom observations, and artifacts in an authentic classroom setting in the final semester of their junior year. The self-regulated learning strategies of Zimmerman and Pons (1986) were the foundation for this study in an attempt to align the SRL strategies and student beliefs with the International Baccalaureate student profile. Data were gathered through LASSI testing, triadic interviews, student journaling, external observations, and artifacts (an assigned research paper), and the results triangulated with the International Baccalaureate student profile and mission of "learning to learn." Emerging themes became apparent and were explored as the interview process continued at 3-week intervals. The emerging self-efficacy beliefs and strategy use elicited future questions as the results were analyzed and new interview questions were formulated. LASSI testing results were compared with students' interviews and journaling, as well as their reflection letters concerning their research projects. The SRL strategy of collective efficacy, or social assistance from peers, is considered to be the key factor in achieving academic success by all the subjects. The successful students employed forethought and goal-setting, and strategic planning, and found particular intrinsic value in their academic tasks. They valued student engagement, social assistance, and self-control processes. Their volition, or will to succe (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Harold Foster Dr. (Advisor); Catharine Knight Dr. (Committee Member); M. Kay Alderman Dr. (Committee Member); Susan Colville-Hall Dr. (Committee Member); Huey Li-Li Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Curriculum Development

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Urban Educational Leadership

The challenge of ensuring educational equity, closing the achievement gap between African American students and White students attending public schools has gone on for half a century. As we enter the twenty-first century, neither educational reforms enacted by the public school system nor legislative actions, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, with its accountability mandate have produced solutions that will insure that African American children are equally educationally prepared to pursue a post-secondary education or to enter the workforce with marketable skills that would allow them to compete for jobs which offer competitive salaries more than a step above minimum wage. In fact the gap is widening (Ladson-Billings, 2006; Lee and Orfield, 2005). It has been suggested that public schools must change how they improve student learning outcomes and consider developing outside relationships (Elmore, 1996). There has been growing agreement on the importance of community involvement in schools (Epstein and Sheldon, 2005; Noguera, 2003; Sanders 2003). Researchers are continually examining what affect community involvement may have on the academic outcomes of children attending schools in urban communities. However, examining perceptions and beliefs of residents in predominantly African American communities and what variables may influence individuals in those communities to commit to working collectively for the educational success of children in their neighborhood required investigation. Using one-on-one in-depth interviews, field observations and documentation, this qualitative study examined long-term and short-term residents, and community organizational representatives' views from one community on perceived collective efficacy. This study utilized the conceptual framework of Bandura, (1982) and Sampson et al., (1997) Collective Efficacy construct. The findings suggest that using a qualitative approach provides data for studying perceived collective effic (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Lionel Brown EdD (Committee Chair); Vanessa Allen-Brown PhD (Committee Member); Roger Collins PhD (Committee Member); Scott Dewitt PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Education Policy

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2022, Antioch New England: Environmental Studies

As a social change discipline, social marketing has demonstrated its effectiveness in addressing many types of wicked problems. However, despite its utility in environmental contexts, it is neither well known nor widespread in its uptake in these settings. This study's purpose is to reveal opportunities to drive the adoption, implementation, and diffusion (“institutionalization”) of social marketing within the domains of environmental sustainability and natural resource conservation. This research considers the use of social marketing as an innovative practice within a diffusion of innovations framework and uses a systems lens to examine early adopter social marketing professionals and the institutional contexts in which they operate. It employs an exploratory sequential mixed-methods research design within a two-phased inquiry consisting of three independent but interconnected studies. The dataset includes 90 qualitative interviews and two quantitative surveys. The first phase of this research examined 1) challenges and opportunities facing the discipline, and 2) status and trends within social marketing formal academic training. Findings from this phase included a thematic analysis of challenges related to institutionalization that centered the conceptualization of the discipline alongside the importance of key aspects of organizational culture and the critical role of formal education and professional development opportunities. Recommendations were developed to address these challenges broadly as well as increase social marketing academic programming. The second phase consisted of a case study of environmental social marketing within the Pacific Northwest United States. Findings revealed several aspects of organizational culture and practice that can be considered success factors driving social marketing implementation, particularly the diffusion concepts of observability, relative advantage, adaptation and reinvention, and innovation champions. This study also i (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Abigail Abrash Walton PhD (Committee Chair); Meaghan Guckian PhD (Committee Member); Kayla Cranston PhD (Committee Member); Nancy Lee MBA (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Conservation; Environmental Management; Environmental Science; Environmental Studies; Marketing; Pedagogy; Social Psychology; Social Research; Sustainability

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2017, Social Welfare

Neighborhood disorder is a social welfare issue that is associated with multiple negative outcomes for individuals including increased substance use, increased exposure to violence and crime, and mental health challenges. Collective efficacy is a widely studied predictor of positive community-level outcomes including lower levels of neighborhood disorder. However, relatively few community interventions based on collective efficacy have been developed. Further, studies evaluating interventions based on collective efficacy have reported mixed findings. A possible reason for the difficulty of operationalizing collective efficacy may be our current conceptualization of collective efficacy. The current understanding of collective efficacy views the concept as a combination of social cohesion and informal social control. However, recent research suggests that social cohesion and informal social control are unique constructs that are best conceptualized and measured separately. Further, research suggests that there may be factors that mediate the relationship between social cohesion and informal social control. This dissertation seeks to advance our understanding of collective efficacy in order to increase its utility for social work practice. A key component of collective efficacy is a community's shared belief that collective action will be successful. Although this belief has been discussed conceptually, it has yet to be measured in collective efficacy research. To address this limitation, I develop a concept called, “Mutual efficacy,” which is defined as, “community members' beliefs that collective action will be successful at attaining group goals.” This dissertation utilizes data from the Seattle Neighborhood and Crime Survey (SNCS) to explore mutual efficacy's role as a mediator between social cohesion and informal social control. The SNCS is a survey of 3,365 residents in Seattle, Washington. The factor structure of social cohesion, mutual efficac (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Mark Joseph (Committee Chair); Claudia Coulton (Committee Member); Mark Singer (Committee Member); Darcy Freedman (Committee Member) Subjects: Social Psychology; Social Research; Social Work; Sociology

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2014, Industrial/Organizational Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

Self-efficacy theory has driven research on collective efficacy's role in team performance. As such, empirical findings for the role of collective efficacy in motivation and performance mirror that of early self-efficacy research. This parallel between collective efficacy and self-efficacy research extends to the deficiencies exhibited in early self-efficacy research as well. For example, control theory supplies an alternative description regarding the relationship between self-efficacy and motivation that has gone unexamined at the team level of analysis. The current study used an experimental design to assess the generalizability of the individual-level control theory model to collective efficacy and motivation at the team level. Specifically, the negative self-efficacy-to-resource-allocation relationship was found to hold at the group level of analysis.

Committee: Jeffrey Vancouver Ph.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2014, College of Education

Project-based learning (PBL) is a teaching method that has the potential to address the Common Core State Standards and 21st Century skills. I described four teachers' experiences with implementing PBL in middle school science and its effects on teacher self- and collective-efficacy. Pre- and post-implementation administrations of the Science Teachers Efficacy Belief Instrument (STEBI) indicated that teachers' overall self-efficacy did not change; however teachers experienced moments of changing self-efficacy, and high effort indicated high efficacy. Belief in the ability of the group indicated high collective efficacy. Some of the teachers had to adjust their concepts of teaching and learning. The findings are a call to school leaders to provide collegial support for implementing new curriculum and methods.

Committee: Carla Edlefson Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Carol Engler Ph.D. (Committee Member); James Olive Ph.D. (Committee Member); Sarah Hall Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Educational Leadership; Middle School Education

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2007, Education : Urban Educational Leadership

Over the last twenty years there has been increased interest in facilitating and sustaining change in the education. The bulk of past research has focused on systems change with little insight into the role of individual educators as change agents. The purpose of this study was to examine the role individual teachers play in creating and sustaining change in a large Midwestern urban school district. This study focused on how teachers in a system that was made turbulent by both the neighborhood environment it existed in and the ever changing environment of the large urban district it was a part of. Multiple noteworthy studies have been completed to identify the characteristics and qualities of successful change initiatives. More recently researchers have begun to turn their attention to the human elements of change that occur within systems change. These studies have revealed the importance of collaboration, professional development, available resources, and systems supports to facilitate teachers in change. However, further knowledge is needed to understand how individuals build capacity for change and what the causal factors are that drive teachers to sustain their new practices. In addition, there is a need to discover when it is that teachers begin to plan for sustaining change. The research sought the answer to one question. How do teachers sustain change in turbulent times? The study design was qualitative and involved the analysis of in-depth interviews conducted during the last year of a three year Reading First change initiative. The study also included archival data and field observations. It was found that teachers sustain what is within their power to sustain. The larger the support system for sustaining changes the broader teachers plan for sustaining it. In this instance teachers had a very small support system remaining after the withdrawal of grant monies. Their vision for sustaining change was limited by the withdrawal of most support structures put (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Dr. Nancy Evers (Advisor) Subjects:

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2004, Educational Policy and Leadership

This study investigated student teachers' efficacy beliefs, pupil control ideologies, collective teacher efficacy beliefs, and perceived cooperating teachers' efficacy beliefs. These student teacher beliefs were examined in conjunction with contextual factors, primarily the school setting (i.e., rural, suburban, and urban) but also the length and nature of the student teaching assignment, to determine if these contextual factors played a role in the development of the student teachers' efficacy beliefs and pupil control ideologies. The research participants included 108 student teachers: 29 student teachers in the rural group, 45 in the suburban group, 28 in the urban group, and 6 that switched school settings at the halfway point. Participants completed surveys before, during, and after a 16-week student teaching experience. Results indicated that all three setting groups exhibited significant increases in teachers' sense of efficacy following student teaching. School setting did play a role in the student teachers' pupil control ideology (suburban student teachers were the only group to become more humanistic following student teaching) and perceived collective teacher efficacy (urban student teachers exhibited significantly lower perceived collective teacher efficacy scores than the rural and suburban student teachers). Additionally, a positive and significant relationship was found between student teachers' efficacy beliefs and their perceived cooperating teachers' efficacy beliefs. As for the nature and length of the student teaching assignment, the group of student teachers that did not switch placements at the halfway point showed significantly higher efficacy scores in the second eight weeks than the group that switched placements. Finally, significant increases in student teacher efficacy beliefs occurred at both the 8-week and the 16-week point.

Committee: Anita Woolfolk Hoy (Advisor) Subjects: Education, Teacher Training

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Leadership , Franklin University, 2024, International Institute for Innovative Instruction

In an ever-diversifying country, the landscape of the American classroom is shifting, requiring educational leaders and teachers to possess curriculum knowledge, cultural intelligence, and self-efficacy to understand students' cultural differeces. This study aims to offer specific insights into four schools in the suburban Midwest working to improve the historically low achievement of Hispanic students. Utilizing a non-experimental correlational quantitative approach grounded in Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986) and Cultural Intelligence Theory (Earley & Ang, 2003), this study examined the relationship between Hispanic students' academic outcomes and individual cultural intelligence and collective teacher efficacy. The findings of this study have several practical implications for educational practice, especially in high-poverty schools serving diverse student populations. Fostering an environment that promotes continuous professional development in cultural intelligence is crucial. Although cultural intelligence was not found to have a statistically significant impact on student achievement in this study, the broader literature suggests its importance in culturally diverse settings. The weak yet positive correlation between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement highlights the need to build a strong, supportive school culture. This study contributes to the body of research on educational equity and provides practical insights for improving academic outcomes for Hispanic students.

Committee: Valerie Storey (Committee Chair); Linda Locke (Committee Member); Lori Salgado (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Leadership

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), University of Findlay, 2023, Education

The intent of this mixed-methods case study was to examine the practices, processes, and associated factors of a school-based team mandated by the district for the purpose of supporting freshmen students during their first year of high school. The study utilized the Theory of Change theoretical framework with the logic model as a reference for aligning and connecting the activities and outcomes investigated. The purposeful sampling included eight teachers, one counselor, and one assistant principal of curriculum and instruction. The data collected consisted of archived data, a survey, a focus group, interviews, and an observation. According to the research, school-based teams along with quality teacher collaboration have been shown to positively impact the ninth-grade transition (Knacckendoffel, 2017; Liebech-Lien, 2021; Rosenfield et al., 2018). Based on the findings of this study, the school-based team implemented numerous practices and activities to help ensure the academic, social, and emotional success of ninth-grade students. It was found that the members of the team perceived the freshman cluster – school-based team as effective due to the atmosphere of trust and mutual respect among the freshman cluster team members, the genuine concern for the students, and the continuous implementation of interventions and support. Although this study did not find statistically significant increases or decreases in the attendance and credits earned before and after the implementation of the school-based team, the study did find practical increases in attendance and credits earned for individual students. This study also supports current literature in providing various support and interventions to ninth-grade students during their transition to high school to increase their chances of a smooth transition and academic success.

Committee: Kara Parker (Advisor); Robin Wheatley (Committee Member); John Gillham (Committee Member); Jon Brasfield (Committee Chair) Subjects: Education; Educational Leadership; School Administration; Secondary Education

PHD, Kent State University, 0, College of Public Health

Community health workers (CHWs) serve the communities they are from and are more likely to experience a similar low socioeconomic status, leading to a higher-than-average risk for chronic diseases and poor health outcomes. CHWs also often work in environments that rarely facilitate their wellness and self-care, indicating a need for wellness and self-care programming. Two critical aspects are burnout and physical activity (PA). To our knowledge, there are no published CHW wellness or self-care programs. Therefore, we adapted a participant-led program, HANS KAI, using the collective efficacy conceptual framework. This study had three aims: (1) conduct a CHW HANS KAI program formative evaluation, (2) pilot the CHW HANS KAI program, and (3) conduct a mixed-methods evaluation of the CHW HANS KAI program. Focus groups (n = 5 ) were conducted using a web conferencing platform. Data were analyzed using descriptive and interpretive qualitative research methods. Participants were from the Midwest, United States, and included CHWs (n = 35) and supervisors (n = 5). Eight salient themes were developed within five domains. Findings reveal that CHW HANS KAI is culturally appropriate and beneficial to CHWs. For Aim 2, nine Ohio CHWs participated in the pilot CHW HANS KAI intervention. We used a quasi-experimental one-group design with a double pretest, double posttest, and non-equivalent dependent variable. Despite following focus group recommendations and working closely with a community partner to implement the pilot CHW HANS KAI, our study was underpowered and had incomplete, non-normally distributed data. Therefore, we present challenges and recommendations for practitioners and researchers to implement future CHW HANS KAI groups. For aim 3, we conducted a mixed-methods summative evaluation to explore how the qualitative interview results about HANS KAI participants' PA, burnout, and collective efficacy contextualize the quantitative intervention results. Overall, a few partic (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Jeffrey Hallam (Committee Chair); Sheryl Chatfield (Committee Member); Abbey Eng (Committee Member); Lisa Borgerding (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Health; Public Health

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2022, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

Staff meetings are a regular occurrence in schools, yet both teachers and principals typically report dissatisfaction with these meetings. Teacher dissatisfaction with staff meetings can be influenced by how content they are with their own level of silence. Previous research tended to focus on the negative aspects of silence during meetings. However, silence behaviors should be viewed on a continuum from negative to positive, depending on the context. Silence is detrimental to group functioning when it is a result of oppression, fear of negative consequences, or a lack of engagement. Silence is a positive behavior when it leads to reflective thinking, respectful communication, and active listening behaviors. This study used Q-methodology, which is a mixed-methods research design that combines quantitative and qualitative methods to examine individuals' subjective experiences around one topic. Teachers fell into three distinct groups related to their perspectives on silence during staff meetings: Get the Party Started, I Don't Care Anymore, and Don't Stop Believin'. The meeting format and how the principal facilitates the meeting seems to have a more pronounced influence on teacher silence behaviors, teacher attitudes towards staff meetings, and their own silence levels; the leadership style was less impactful. Teachers report increased satisfaction when the principal intentionally designs and facilitates relevant and impactful staff meetings where group norms are followed. The proposed iceberg model of teacher silence can be used to assist principals with assessing teacher silence in their own school buildings.

Committee: Karen Larwin Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Sherri Harper Woods DM (Committee Member); Patrick O'Leary Ph.D. (Committee Member); Patrick Spearman Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Communication; Education; Educational Leadership; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Organizational Behavior; School Administration; Teacher Education

Master of Science in Criminal Justice, Youngstown State University, 2019, Department of Criminal Justice and Consumer Sciences

This research addresses the results of multimodal interventions within a target area on the south side of the city of Youngstown, OH. The Youngstown Police Department (YPD), Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation (YNDC), and Youngstown State University (YSU) commenced this strategy due to the disproportionally high rate of violent crime on the city's south side compared with national averages and the city as a whole, in addition to high rates of poverty, urban decay, unemployment, and low rates of formal education. The hypothesis is that intervention reduces specified UCR Part 1 violent crimes. Crime data was analyzed by block group (target area N = 7; control area N = 7) over thirty-six months. Independent and paired samples t-tests on the limited set of data show the results of intervention to be effective but not statistically significant. Likewise, an innovative crime reduction calculator developed for criminal justice practitioners also showed the interventions to be strongly successful for crime reduction in the target area compared to the control, with overall violent crime being reduced by 29.1%, robberies by 53.6%, and aggravated assaults by 4.0%.

Committee: John Hazy PhD (Advisor); Gordon Frissora PhD (Committee Member); John Bralich MA (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology; Operations Research; Public Policy

Doctor of Education, University of Akron, 2018, Educational Leadership

School principals are continually searching for leadership practices that have the potential to directly enhance adult behavior and indirectly and positively influence student achievement. Previous research has indicated that a positive and statistically significant relationship exists between collective teacher efficacy beliefs and principal transformational leadership practices (Demir, 2008; Ninkovic & Floric, 2018; Prelli, 2016; Ross & Gray, 2006). In addition, schools characterized by higher levels of collective teacher efficacy have demonstrated higher levels of student achievement. Previous studies of collective teacher efficacy have focused on group outcomes based on the levels of collective efficacy beliefs held by the teacher's studied. However, the research examining the relationship between specific leadership practices associated with transformational leaders that may develop and/or strengthen collective teacher efficacy beliefs has been minimal. The purpose of this study was to examine whether principal transformational leadership practices statistically significantly predicted collective teacher efficacy beliefs amongst K-12 teachers, while taking the contextual conditions of building level and teacher experience into consideration. Participants consisted of voluntary educators from one school district serving five elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. A total of 233 participants completed the Educational Leadership Survey, Collective Efficacy Scale: Short Form, and demographic questionnaire. Results from the hierarchical linear multiple regression indicated that transformational leadership practices, when taken collectively with the demographic variables of building level and teacher experience, statistically significantly predicted collective efficacy beliefs in teachers. The positive and statistically significant relationship between transformational leadership practices and collective teacher efficacy beliefs i (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Xin Liang Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Susan Kushner Benson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Susan Clark Ph.D. (Committee Member); Alfred Daviso Ph.D. (Committee Member); Kristin Koskey Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Leadership

Master of Arts (M.A.), Xavier University, 2018, Psychology

This study examined the relationship between perceptions of group cohesion, collective efficacy, and social loafing. A mediational model was proposed, identifying collective efficacy as the mediator between perceptions of group cohesion and social loafing. A sample of 88 college students participated in this study. First, participants were asked to read a vignette asking them to imagine themselves working in a group setting. They were then asked to complete measures of perceived group cohesion, collective efficacy, and social loafing. Results indicated that perceived collective efficacy mediated the relationship between perceptions of group cohesion and perceived social loafing according to the Baron and Kenny (1986) methodology for determining a mediation model. By increasing the awareness of the importance of collective efficacy within work groups, organizations can enhance the likelihood their work groups' success. Future research should seek to replicate these findings within actual work groups as well as clarify the definition and measurement of group cohesion and collective efficacy.

Committee: Dalia Diab Ph D. (Advisor); Mark Nagy Ph D. (Committee Member); Morrie Mullins Ph D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Management; Organizational Behavior; Psychology; Social Psychology

Doctor of Education, Miami University, 2018, Educational Leadership

Since the publication of the Coleman Report in 1966, educational researchers have been studying what schools can do to close the achievement gap. This study examined the relationship between collective teacher efficacy and servant leadership behaviors in elementary principals. Collective teacher efficacy is positively correlated to student achievement even when controlling for the socio-economic status of the student. Teachers in five Ohio elementary schools were surveyed using the Collective Efficacy Scale (Goddard, 2000) and the Servant Leadership Scale (Liden et al., 2008). The study used two sample T-Test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) of domains and sub-domains and correlational analyses of variables aggregated at the school level. One hundred, fifty-seven teachers were surveyed in the five Ohio elementary schools. Overall aggregate school collective efficacy scores were not significantly correlated to overall servant leadership scores as predicted. However, a positive relationship between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement was confirmed and a positive relationship between servant leadership and student achievement was found. More specifically, the servant leadership dimensions of helping teachers grow and succeed and emotional healing were positively correlated to student achievement. This finding deserves more study as researchers continue to determine how leaders can positively impact student achievement.

Committee: Thomas Poetter (Committee Chair) Subjects: Educational Leadership

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2018, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

The Pennsylvania Educator Effectiveness System strives to place an effective teacher in every classroom. This evaluation system incorporates the use of value-added growth measures, not only at the teacher level, but also at the building level. These building level scores are included in every teacher's yearly evaluation. This study sought to determine if a relationship existed between the value-added scores and collective teacher efficacy; the faculty's collective belief that they have the capabilities to make an educational difference for their students. 120 middle school teachers from southwestern Pennsylvania were surveyed using the Collective Teacher Beliefs Scale. The study found that a relationship did not exist between the value-added scores and collective teacher efficacy. Additionally, the relationship between value-added scores and several other variables was examined. The socio-economic status of the building was found to serve as a moderator for collective teacher efficacy. Finally, this study provides administrators with examples of how to boost collective teacher efficacy and in turn improve teacher effectiveness.

Committee: Karen Larwin PhD (Committee Chair); Spearman Patrick PhD (Committee Member); Cummins Lauren PhD (Committee Member); Hilton Jason PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2016, Psychology/Clinical

Social contexts have long been identified as having an impact on adolescent behaviors, including the neighborhood context. However, most literature examining neighborhood influences on juvenile behavior have focused on urban and semi-urban populations. When these urban-centric models are applied to rural populations, results are generally mixed, and oftentimes contradictory to patterns established in urban populations. The current study tested an alternative model for predicting juvenile problems behaviors in rural areas but examining the validity of previous conceptualized “neighborhood collective efficacy” in rural schools. Constructs similar to Sampson et al.'s (1997) neighborhood collective efficacy were found in this sample, and this construct was significantly negatively correlated to juvenile self-reported problems behaviors. As hypothesized, school collective efficacy was more strongly related to self-reported problem behaviors than neighborhood collective efficacy for this sample. Directions for future research and implications for policies are discussed.

Committee: Carolyn Tompsett (Advisor); Eric Dubow (Committee Member); Anne Gordon (Committee Member); Paul Johnson (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

MA, Kent State University, 2016, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Sociology and Criminology

Drawing from the theoretical framework of the social disorganization, the present study explored how primary caregivers' level of acculturation affected Hispanic adolescents' positive development, conceptualized through the five Cs and their delinquent behavior, as well how neighborhood conditions and collective efficacy also affect adolescents' positive development and delinquency. Much of the literature regarding adolescent acculturation has focused on adolescents' mental health, delinquency, or academic. To date, there are no studies that examine how acculturation impacts adolescents' positive youth development, specifically their Five C's. My study attempted to fill the gap in this literature. Using secondary survey data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) I explored whether Hispanic acculturated parents, neighborhood disorder, and collective efficacy impacted adolescents' positive development, as conceptualized through the five Cs and delinquency. Due to the clustered nature of the PHDCN data, I closely followed the methodology used by Sampson and colleagues (2005) and performed a multilevel logistic regression model that estimated the effect of acculturation. My analysis found similar results to previous research (Lopez and O'Donnell-Brummett 2003; Marsiglia, Kulis, and Hecht 2001; Wong 1999; Szapocznik and Kurtines 1993; Touliatos and Lindholm 1980) acculturation did have an effect on adolescents' delinquency. In general, adolescents with less acculturated parents were significantly less likely to be delinquent. However, regarding adolescents' positive youth development, my study found that acculturation did not have an impact on their positive development.

Committee: Richard Adams (Committee Chair); Allyson Drinkard (Committee Member); Adrianne Frech (Committee Member) Subjects: Sociology