PHD, Kent State University, 2024, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies

This study's purpose was to determine how well education colleges in Saudi Arabia prepare pre-service teachers to address 21st-century skills with their future students. The perceptions of college professors and pre-service teachers at several Saudi education colleges across the country were examined according to the methods of quantitative research and descriptive statistics. Data was obtained through a Likert scale survey consisting of 30 closed-ended questions regarding how well Saudi education colleges impart four 21st-century skills— computer literacy, research skills, critical thinking, soft skills—and two support programs—special education and English as a foreign language (EFL). The data was analyzed using pairwise t-test comparisons to discover which skills were most prioritized by professors and pre-service teachers. It was found that special education was perceived as requiring the most improvement, with EFL in second place and computer literacy in third place, followed by research skills. An extensive literature review was also conducted on the topic. Based on the findings, it is recommended that special education, EFL, computer literacy, and research skills receive the most focus during any future attempts to reform the Saudi education system, and that the input of Saudi pre-service teachers be consulted during any process of upgrading curriculum related to critical thinking, special education, research skills, and soft skills. Keywords 21st-century skills, Saudi Vision 2030, English as a foreign language (EFL), critical thinking, research skills, soft skills, computer literacy, special education, Saudi education system, teacher preparation programs, colleges of education in Saudi Arabia, perceptions of pre-service teachers, perceptions of college professors. .

Committee: Scott Courtney (Advisor) Subjects: Curricula; Curriculum Development; Education

Master of Arts, Wittenberg University, 2022, Education

The purpose of this study was to examine to what extent students with disabilities experience a sense of belonging in their high school. The study was conducted with five students with disabilities in the ninth grade whose least restrictive environment is the inclusion classroom. Students were given the Psychological Sense of School Membership Likert scale and asked to rate how true they found each of the 18 different statements. Two students were interviewed about their school experiences to take a deeper look at the factors that may impact a students' sense of belonging. Common themes in both the Likert scale responses and interview responses were compiled and used to draw conclusions regarding the sense of belonging experienced by the students who participated in the study

Committee: Brian Yontz (Advisor); Jeff Pellerito (Committee Member); Amy McGuffey (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Secondary Education; Special Education

Doctor of Education (EdD), Ohio University, 2014, Educational Administration (Education)

This study explored how nine African American students in secondary-level special education placements perceived their school experiences and the benefits, challenges, and detriments associated with their placements and accompanying disability labels. In examining the experiences of these students, the study focused on the students' interactions with others in the school environment: teachers, peers, counselors, and administrators. The study used the qualitative method of in-depth interviewing to collect data—an approach that incorporated a sequence of three interviews with each student. Participating students attended one of three high schools in an urban district in the Midwestern United States. Respectively the schools had low, medium, and high percentages of students on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). Three participants came from each of the schools. They met the following criteria: (1) they were African American, (2) they were juniors or seniors, (3) they carried a diagnosis of learning disabilities or mild cognitive impairment, and (4) they had received special education services for at least three years. With transcribed interviews as the source of data, qualitative analysis involved several steps: (1) inductive coding, (2) development of case-specific profiles for participants and schools, (3) organization of codes to identify categories and patterns in the data, and (4) identification of emergent themes through a process of postulating and then testing these potential explanatory patterns. This process of data analysis substantiated two emergent themes. The first is captured in the following statement: "students' journeys from general education to special education had three predictable milestones." And the second is captured in the following statement: "special education was a dead-end." With respect to the first theme, three sub-themes described predictable milestones: (1) placement in special education, (2) initial reaction to placement (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Aimee Howley EdD (Committee Chair); William Larson PhD (Committee Member); Dwan Robinson PhD (Committee Member); Mona Robinson PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Academic Guidance Counseling; African Americans; Counseling Education; Education; Education Policy; Educational Leadership; School Administration; School Counseling; Secondary Education; Teacher Education

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2003, Education : Educational Leadership

The passage of P.L. 94-142 greatly expanded the principal's role in serving the educational needs of all children. While some insights regarding administrator preparation were gained through the Hirth and Valesky (1991) study completed in 1989, the current status of the preparation of principals on special education issues was not known. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to examine how university educational administration programs prepare principals in special education issues. Ninety-four department chairs of educational administration programs responded to a web-based survey which was developed for the study. In addition to basic demographic information, participants were asked to respond to a range of questions regarding certification endorsements, course offerings, the perceived degree to which special education issues should be addressed and the degree of effectiveness in addressing them, and current methods for preparing future administrators on issues specific to special education. Based on the findings of this study, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. While department chairpersons value the inclusion of key special education topics in educational leadership preparation programs and perceive their programs to effectively address those topics, there is a perceived “need” for improving the effectiveness of preparing principals in those same special education topics areas. 2. A combination of university-based and field-based experiences is the most common method for addressing student learning in key special education topics. School Law is the primary course used to address key special education topics. 3. Nearly half of all educational leadership preparation programs plan to change the way they address special education issues through a variety of approaches. 4. An average of one-half of all programs that offer administrator certificates or licenses require a general knowledge of special education, which means that one-half of all programs do not r (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Dr. Nancy Evers (Advisor) Subjects:

Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, 2010, College of Education and Human Services

Educators and mental health professionals search for interventions to help students with emotional and behavioral problems. Bibliotherapy, the therapeutic use of literature, has been a widely used yet sparsely researched intervention. Research regarding bibliotherapy and students‟ emotional awareness is absent. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among bibliotherapy intervention exposure, level of emotional awareness, and characteristics of students with emotional and behavioral disorders.Archival data sets from 182 students ages 6 - 13 in day treatment were analyzed in this study. One archival data set was scores from the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale for Children (LEAS-C; Bajgar, 2004). The LEAS-C is a self-report instrument, designed to assess emotional awareness in children. Another archival data set detailed the amount of bibliotherapy intervention exposure that each student received. The final archival data set came from existing student demographic information such as gender, age, race, DSM-IV-TR diagnosis and length of stay in day treatment. Quantitative and qualitative methods specific to each question were used for data analysis. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and regression modeling examined relationships among bibliotherapy intervention exposure, level of emotional awareness and student characteristics. Qualitative methods were used to analyze archived interviews of students‟ experience with bibliotherapy. Results established a range of the levels of emotional awareness for students with emotional and behavioral disorders. The level of emotional awareness for Self and Other was found to be correlated. Differences in emotional awareness were found among students with differing DSM-IV-TR diagnoses. Bibliotherapy intervention exposure did not predict student level of emotional awareness. However, student exposure to bibliotherapy intervention combined with PATHS was correlated to students‟ level of emotional awarene (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Judy Stahlman EdD (Committee Chair); Joshua Bagaka's PhD (Committee Member); Karl Wheatley PhD (Committee Member); Kathryn MacCluskie PhD (Committee Member); Kathleen McNamara PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Behaviorial Sciences; Curricula; Education; Mental Health; Special Education; Therapy