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in creator/contributor: "Edwards, Wesley"

open access

Newly Opened High School Campus: The Principal's Process in Creating the Teacher Profile to Hire the Inaugural Staff

This study sought to explore the hiring process, including the creation of the teacher profile, of four suburban North Texas high schools implemented when hiring teachers for the first year of the campus' existence. An exploratory sequential mixed methods research design was applied, and three data collection tools were implemented: an electronic survey, interviews with campus administrators, and the analysis of campus hiring process artifacts. Survey data suggested that participating campus p… more

Date: May 2023

Creator: Redden, Jennifer N.

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

What School Leaders Need to Know: The Impact of Teacher Turnover on Student Achievement in Middle School Mathematics

This study looked at the relationship between teacher turnover and student achievement, in addition to the relationship between specific student demographic characteristics and teacher turnover. Within this study, student demographic, staff demographic, and student achievement data from several middle schools within the studied district, as well as data from each of the school's comparison groups, as designated by the Texas Education Agency, was analyzed. The data used was from the 2018-2019, 2… more

Date: May 2023

Creator: Grindle, Colleen D.

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Consideration of Dynamic Assessment to Identify Gifted, Emerging Bilingual Latinx Students: Lessons for School Leaders

Little, if any, research exists that provides guidance for educators on the use of a dynamic assessment as a tool for better identifying Latinx students for gifted programs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perceptions of campus principals and elementary teachers as dynamic assessment was being considered as part of the gifted and talented identification protocol. Data were collected through teacher and principal interviews and focus groups, along with an analysis o… more

Date: May 2023

Creator: Toy, Adam P.

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

A Leadership Framework to Raise Teacher Engagement

The purpose of this study was to determine which principal leadership behaviors are associated with higher levels of teacher engagement. The conceptual framework guiding this study was based on the behaviors associated with four specific leadership styles: transformational, shared, instructional, and transactional. This study used descriptive and inferential statistics to identify teacher perceptions of prominent leadership behaviors of each campus principal. Data related to teacher perceptions… more

Date: May 2023

Creator: O'Bara, Susannah Holbert

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Speech Rights of Public Employees in the World of Social Media

Legal rights for public employees are not clear in the area of social media speech. Following the Garcetti v Ceballos (2006) U.S. Supreme Court case, the pursuant to duty test was established. The social media speech of public employees, including educators, could be considered pursuant to their duties as an employee. This means that public employees are vulnerable to disciplinary action from their employer for social media speech. Furthermore, public employees are vulnerable even when they bel… more

Date: December 2021

Creator: Hairgrove, Benjamin Council

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Strategies Effective Turnaround Principals Use to Improve School Performance Ratings Under the Texas A-F Accountability System

School accountability has been a focus for state and federal legislators for over 50 years. In 2017, Texas passed House Bill 22 to align their accountability system with the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015. This piece of legislation gives every Texas public school a letter grade based on state assessment scores, attendance, and other factors. Schools that received a D or F, or schools that need to improve the scores of certain subpopulations, were identified as in need of targeted support. F… more

Date: December 2022

Creator: Knox, Jessica Lynn

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

More Than Just a Test Score: Designing and Implementing a Community-Based Accountability System in One Texas School District

Since at least the 1960s, federal and state policymakers have debated how best to hold public schools accountable for producing graduates who are prepared to fully participate in our democratic society. Since that time, reform efforts have led to Texas' current test-based A-F accountability system. This qualitative case study explored how one Texas school district worked to design and implement an alternative accountability system. A community-based accountability system (CBAS) is created in co… more

Date: August 2022

Creator: Leader, Joel Alan

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

The Audacity of Authenticity: Personal and Professional Identity Negotiation in Queer Preservice Teachers

The purpose of this study was to examine the intersection of preservice teachers' personal identities as queer individuals with their emerging professional identities as educators. Political and social environments contribute to a separation of these identities, which can further the marginalization of these individuals to the detriment of both their identities as people as well as their professional practice. Guided by a theoretical framework of figured worlds, interviews with students in teac… more

Date: December 2022

Creator: Moore, Kevin Michael

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Teacher Perceptions of Innovative Learning Environments: Implications for Leaders

Innovative Learning Environments are increasingly built and implemented in schools, but are not necessarily being used according to designers' intentions. The goal of this study was to examine teacher perceptions of the innovative learning spaces they were charged with using and to determine if they were being used effectively and as designed. The research was guided by three basic questions: what were the teachers' perceptions of these spaces, was the teacher pedagogy need to change to acco… more

Date: December 2023

Creator: Elliott, Robyn Kaye

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

The Impact of Team Size on Principal Self-Efficacy in Their Role as Instructional Leaders

The ever-changing role of public-school principals is complex and overwhelming. Because instructional leadership impacts teaching practices and student achievement, this important principal role should be cultivated with principals having sufficient time to engage as instructional leaders. A generic qualitative inquiry methodology was used to explore how the size of an administrative team impacts principals' instructional leadership self-efficacy. Exploration was achieved through 10 one-on-one,… more

Date: December 2023

Creator: Graham, Ashlee

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Exploring Principal Burnout

Principal workloads and demands are steadily increasing while principal health and well-being are declining, resulting in increased rates of principal turnover. Currently, principals are experiencing numerous work-related stressors that are increasing burnout. In many cases, school leaders are sacrificing their families and health to lead their schools. As school success is linked with principal leadership, principal burnout and wellness demands further discussion and investigation. Yet, there … more

Date: July 2023

Creator: Cunningham, Tiffany

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries

open access

Self-Efficacy, Grit, and Their Relationship to the Black-White Achievement Gap

Since the reveal of the Black-White achievement gap in 1966, leaders and policymakers have attempted to close the gap to no avail. The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to examine the relationships between self-efficacy, grit, and academic achievement of Black and White students. For the first two research questions,I sought to determine whether there were relationships between self-efficacy, grit, and academic achievement as defined by the PSAT 10 Reading or Math … more

Date: July 2023

Creator: Fingers, Alex Marquise

Item Type: Thesis or Dissertation

Partner: UNT Libraries