UNT Theses and Dissertations - 265 Matching Results

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Academic Progress Scores to Predict Performance on a State Assessment

Description: This quantitative study examined seventh-grade reading scores to determine the extent to which certain demographic variables (race/ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status) explain and MAP reading scores predict reading scores on the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) in a selected northeast Texas public school. Standardized assessments only compare the relative performance of an individual student to other groups of students using scaled scores, which can vary from year to… more
Date: December 2016
Creator: Curry, David Mitchell
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Academic Reading Online: Digital Reading Strategies of Graduate-level English Language Learners

Description: English language learners (ELLs) face many linguistic and cultural challenges in their attempts to succeed academically. They encounter complex academic text, which is increasingly presented online. Although some research has addressed the challenges that university-level ELLs face when reading online texts, almost all of this prior work has focused on undergraduates. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the reading strategies employed by graduate-level ELLs when reading an acade… more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Knezek, Lois Ann
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Accomplished Teachers' Instructional Decisions About Shakespeare

Description: Teachers' decisions are a powerful influence on student learning and it is important to fully document accomplished teachers' instructional decisions, as well as to investigate possible influences on those decisions. Shakespearean dramas are central to high school curricula across the U.S. and pose particular instructional challenges, therefore teachers' decisions about teaching these texts are of particular interest. There is limited empirical research, however, about these instructional decis… more
Date: May 2013
Creator: Parris, Sheri Rene’
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Accountability in Schools: a Study of High School Accountability Ratings and College Success

Description: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between high school campus accountability ratings, college readiness indicators, and the percent of students who achieved first year college success. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were used to analyze the relationship between the variables. Data was analyzed for two-year and four-year postsecondary educational institutions which were divided by eight school district types. Regression analysis of the relationship between … more
Date: August 2013
Creator: Orsborn, Shannon
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Accreditation Facilitation Projects: Supporting High Quality Early Childhood Education and Care

Description: High-quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) are linked to positive developmental outcomes for children. Systems have been created to define, measure and promote high-quality ECEC. National accreditation status is deemed the gold standard of a high-quality program, yet many centers are unable to achieve this without assistance. With the help of Accreditation Facilitation Projects (AFPs), many low-income centers are able to achieve accreditation. Centers collaborating with an AFP r… more
Date: May 2013
Creator: Reinke, Stephanie L.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Actions Taken by Texas School Districts to Prevent Fraud

Description: This research is a descriptive analysis answering the question, what measures are currently taken by the leadership―boards of trustees and superintendents of schools―of Texas school districts to prevent embezzlement? The research perspective utilized was quantitative with a descriptive, cross-sectional design. Data collection was accomplished through a survey with questions constructed from the most commonly recommended strategies discovered through the review of literature. The sur… more
Date: May 2011
Creator: Taylor, Gordon Douglas
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Adequacy and Equity: How the Texas Supreme Court's Perceptions Have Changed Over the Past 50 Years

Description: The purpose of this study identifies state court cases involving public school finance specifically related to adequacy and equity in funding. Results address how state court cases have challenged the constitutionality of school finance in the United States, including Texas, over the last 50 years. The study further shows how the decisions from previous cases have influenced the Supreme Court of Texas decision in the Texas Taxpayer & Student Fairness litigation.
Date: May 2017
Creator: Ford, Daniel William
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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African-American Achievement in Charter Schools and the Impact of Connectedness, Alignment, Rigor, and Engagement (C.A.R.E.) on School Effectiveness: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review

Description: The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of charter schools on African-American students, this study sought to determine if the practice of connectedness, alignment, rigor, and engagement (C.A.R.E.) influenced academic outcomes. The research methodology employed a meta-analysis in conjunction with a systematic review as a cross-reference and to address variables not covered in the meta-analysis. Utilizing a meta-analysis allowed for a synthesis of the existing quantitative publishe… more
Date: December 2018
Creator: McCloud, Margie J
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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African American Student Placement in Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs

Description: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship (predicative capability) between selected variables, specifically, African American student enrollment, teacher ethnicity, and urban or rural district classification and the number of African American student placements in a disciplinary alternative education program (DAEP). The study used a non-experimental ex post facto design. Archival data from the Texas Education Agency were used to identify Texas schools that sent African Ameri… more
Date: December 2017
Creator: Foss, Ivy
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Analysis of Factors for Successful State-Level Support of Low-Performing Schools

Description: This study provides a qualitative look at Texas' Professional Service Providers' (PSPs) strategies for supporting low-performing schools. Four PSPs were selected for participation based on the number of schools they helped exit the Texas Title I School Improvement Program from 2007-2012. Data collected and analyzed included provider and principal interviews, providers' progress reports documenting services, and principals' evaluations of provider services. Results indicated key support strategi… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Ewing, Angela R.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Analysis of Legal Liability of Virginia Educators and School Systems

Description: The doctrine of sovereign immunity in the Commonwealth of Virginia has evolved over time and the redefinition of the doctrine has been subjected to the interpretation by courts involving cases with varied facts and circumstances that have challenged the boundaries and flexibility of this legal concept. Determining the protection that a state agent was entitled to was the guiding principle in case law regarding sovereign immunity; however, understanding the purpose and intent of the doctrine of … more
Date: May 2019
Creator: Johnson, Tracy Lou
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Analysis of Litigation against Kansas Educators and School Districts under the Kansas Tort Claims Act

Description: This dissertation examines the significance of the Kansas Tort Claims Act of 1979 on state of Kansas court decisions in litigation against Kansas school districts and their employees. Through providing a historical perspective of the adoption and abolishment of the doctrine of sovereign immunity in the United States, which subsequently led to the enactment of the Federal Tort Claims Act, and ultimately led to the Kansas Tort Claims Act, the researcher analyzes pertinent case law and scholarly … more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Perry, Shaun P.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Analysis of Performance Differences Between Self-Directed and Teacher-Directed Alternative Education Campuses in Texas

Description: This study was conducted to analyze the performance differences between alternative education campuses in Texas that used teacher-directed strategies and those that used self-directed strategies. The study was also conducted to inform educators of the results these two strategies had achieved with at-risk students during the three years of 2006-2008. The study used the results from the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test as reported in the AEIS annual reports from the Texas Education … more
Date: May 2010
Creator: Wimberley, Alan
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Analysis of Texas Education Agency Commissioner of Education Decisions Regarding Superintendent, Associate Superintendent, School Administrator, Athletic Director and Central Office Administrator Term Contract Nonrenewal Appeals From 1983 to 2013

Description: I conducted a legal analysis of decisions by Texas Commissioners of Education in appeals by Texas school administrators from nonrenewal decisions made by Texas school districts from 1983 to 2013. I analyzed the findings of fact and conclusions of law described in the commissioners’ rulings to determine the legal basis of school districts’ decisions to nonrenew school administrators’ term employment contracts. I also examined the legal rationale for commissioners’ rulings and determined which pa… more
Date: December 2014
Creator: Ramirez, Carlos
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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An Analysis of the Leadership Development Competency Frameworks of Nontraditional Principal Preparation Programs

Description: This study explored the competency frameworks of nontraditional principal preparation programs to determine how they aligned to research-based best practices for school leaders. The research questions that guided this work were: To what degree are the McREL 21 Leadership Responsibilities addressed in the competency frameworks of nontraditional principal preparation programs? How do the leaders of the nontraditional principal preparation programs view the degree to which their competencies in… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Horton, Tonya
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Anti-bullying Policies And Practices In Texas Middle Schools

Description: For over a decade national attention to bullying in American schools has increased, fueled by publicity about suicides of severely bullied youth. Schools have the charge of maintaining the safety of all students in order to ensure a positive learning environment, but there is little information about what they are doing to prevent bullying. The purpose of this study was to provide information on principals’ perceptions of bullying and what anti-bullying policies, procedures, and programs exist… more
Date: December 2011
Creator: Robbins, Rosemary
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Are Things Falling Apart Again? A Dialectical Analysis of Language Education Policy in Nigeria

Description: Today's globalized world presents challenges for formulating language education policies in multilingual countries, and postcolonial Nigeria presents a dramatic illustration because of ongoing colonial influences as well as neocolonial factors. This study focused on dialectical relations over time among languages in Nigeria's National Policy on Education (NPE), published in 1977, 1981, 1998, 2004, 2013, and 2014. The title of the study harks to Chinua Achebe's novel, Things Fall Apart, which d… more
Date: August 2019
Creator: Olaniyi, Adepeju Folasade
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Artistic Decision Making and Implications for Engaging Theatrically Gifted and Talented Students in Non-Arts Classes

Description: This cognitive ethnographic study explored the mental processes that professional actors used when making artistic choices while engaged in creative practices to begin a conversation about how the theatrically gifted and talented population is viewed, researched, and educated in non-arts subjects. Professional actors at two sites were observed, videotaped, and interviewed over several rehearsals during play production. The major thematic findings indicated that artistic decision making result… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Willerson, Amy
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries

Asian and Asian Indian American Immigrant Students: Factors Influencing Their Academic Performance

Description: Asian American students have done well in school; they have had higher academic achievements, higher academic scores, lower dropout rates and higher college entrance rates as compared to other minorities and generally other students in the United States (U.S.). A possible explanation to the higher academic performance and achievement of the Asian American students is that they are more likely to have experienced an environment that is conducive to learning at home; their parents were involved a… more
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Date: August 2019
Creator: Mathew, Subhas
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
open access

Association of College and Career Readiness Indicators on Hispanic College Enrollment and Postsecondary Resiliency

Description: This investigation was a post-hoc, quantitative analysis of secondary academic performance and participation choices of Hispanic students. Three years of longitudinal student-level data was collected to examine the likelihood of college enrollment based on college and career readiness (CCR) factors. At the time of the study, CCR was defined as qualifying exam scores, credit for at least two advanced/dual enrollment courses, or enrollment in a career and technology education (CTE) coherent seque… more
Date: May 2018
Creator: Parker, Patricia
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Becoming Successful in Education: Beating the Odds, Despite a Background Entrenched in Poverty

Description: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of three relationships on academic achievement in mathematics in students of poverty. The three factors that were examined included: teacher-student relationships, parent-student relationships and peer- student relationships. The driving question for the research was as follows: Do external factors such as teacher-student relationships, parent-student relationships and peer-student relationships lead to academic success for students of pov… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Thompson, Pauline Andrea
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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The Beliefs and Expectations of Effective Secondary Choral Teachers in Culturally Diverse Schools

Description: Through the years, educational theorists and researchers have been interested in a possible relationship between teachers' effectiveness and their beliefs and expectations. Three concepts underpinned this work: teacher effectiveness, cultural diversity, and teachers' beliefs and expectations. The premise of the study was that the beliefs and expectations of effective secondary choral teachers are related to the social-cultural contexts in which they teach. The study implemented critical discour… more
Date: May 2013
Creator: Spradley, Mackie V.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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Beliefs of Mathematics Pre-service Teachers About Project-based Learning

Description: This study explored the beliefs of pre-service secondary mathematics teachers about project-based learning (PBL), as they encountered a project-based learning high school where they implemented a project-based unit of instruction. A qualitative study was conducted with one undergraduate cohort in a higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) national initiative that has 40 U.S. replication sites. Using teaching philosophy statements and focus group discussions, t… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Watson, Cindy Gay
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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A Case Study of 1:1 Technology Policies in Four Texas High Schools and Their Relationship to Practice

Description: With increasing emphasis on technology in schools, the importance of technology policies is great. This study investigated policies for four 1:1 secondary schools in Texas (schools with a ratio of one computing device per student), particularly with respect to the relationship of those policies to practice. The purpose of the study was to determine the current status of the National Education Technology Standards (NETS) essential conditions as reflected in policy and the relationship of those … more
Date: December 2013
Creator: Bauter, Cynthia
Item Type: Refine your search to only Thesis or Dissertation
Partner: UNT Libraries
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