Student evaluation of teachers (SET) is an important method of assessing professors' teaching skills and effectiveness. The purpose of this study is to determine whether and to what extent a relationship between grades and student evaluations of professors exists and how this relationship influences faculty practices, such as teaching styles, grading habits, and employment terms.
This mixed-methods research was significant in that it was conducted at a faith-based institution. The faculty was composed of lay personnel and clergy who were surveyed in 30-to- 45-minute mid-semester interviews. The student population included seminarians—students studying to become priests— and students in religious formation, as well as lay
students. Students were surveyed using a modified SET form distributed near the end of the semester.
The study found that there is a relationship between grades and SETs: students receiving higher grades tended to give higher ratings to their professors, and students receiving lower grades tended to give lower ratings to their professors. The findings also showed that seminarians were less likely to give low ratings to their professors than non-seminary students (rs = .398 vs. .204). The research showed that SETs do have an impact on professors' performances. The data indicated that most faculty made changes to their instructional practices in response to student evaluations. The research also revealed no significant difference between the reactions of lay and religious personnel to SETs.
The results of this investigation include suggestions for modifications of practices and policies that would apply to this college and seminary's administrators, faculty, and students. In addition, recommendations for further research and application to other higher education institutions are discussed.
This qualitative study examined 20 high school counselors’ perceptions of their experience serving LGBTQ adolescents in New Jersey. To begin addressing the gap in the literature, the purpose of the qualitative dissertation study is to examine high school counselors’ perceptions of and experiences with the LGBTQ population’s issues in northern New Jersey high schools. The qualitative study is a phenomenological inquiry that inspects high school counselors' experiences related to the lives of LGBTQ students in their communities.
The four overarching research questions guiding this qualitative study were (a) "What are high school counselors’ perceptions of FERPA, 1974, FERPA, 2016, and Title IX federal law used to protect the LGBTQ population?," (b) "What are high school counselors’ perspectives of school district policies and procedures regarding LGBTQ adolescents’ needs?," (c) What are high school counselors’ perspectives on professional development training related to LGBTQ students’ needs?," and (d) "What are common issues high school counselors have encountered as major barriers for the LGBTQ population, and how have school counselors handled these issues?"
The phenomenological inquiry allowed me to understand how members of the LGBTQ community were treated in their high school settings according to their school counselors. For this study, one-on-one open-ended semi-structured interviews with high school counselors were conducted using Zoom, and each interview took approximately 40 to 60 minutes to complete.
To explore diverse participant experiences and contextual differences, this qualitative study took place at various high schools across northern New Jersey urban school settings. School counselors were recruited via emailed recruitment invitations to high school counselors and school district guidance counselor supervisors. Data were collected through 21 virtual open-ended interview sessions; participants’ questionnaire responses, transcripts from the Zoom sessions, and researcher field notes leading to summaries of interview recordings completed directly after each interview session.
Analyzing qualitative data research was a continuous task that started immediately after data collection. Data were coded and analyzed after the data were reviewed and the interviews transcribed (Galman, 2013). Consistent with this approach, data from the virtual semi-structured open-ended interviews were continuously reexamined. Interview data was carefully coded and grouped into categories as themes were identified. I relied on open coding, research questions, the conceptual framework, transcript, and audio recordings to analyze the data. Research data were reviewed numerous times through an interactive process and coded and analyzed for meaning.
Twenty high school counselors aged 38 to 75 were the participants in this research. Themes emerging from both virtual interview sessions and participants questionnaire were presented together and divided into five overarching thematic categories included (a) counselor advocacy, (a) counselors’ perspectives of district policies, (c) counselors’ experiences of LGBTQ challenges, (d) counselors’ experiences of LGBTQ “ coming out,” and (e) counselors’ view of faculty support/collaboration. The findings demonstrate the advantages of fostering counselors’ advocacy to provide LGBTQ adolescents with resiliency, respect, and affirmation. In addition, the results of this study raised some broader implications for future research into providing LGBTQ-related services and resources in school communities.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education moved almost exclusively to online operations, causing an unprecedented technological shift in college operations, teaching and learning, and professional and social interactions to the digital space of modern videoconferencing. Utilizing Prensky's (2001) digital natives and digital immigrants theory, this qualitative research case study with interview approach identified and examined the strengths, weaknesses, challenges, and frustrations in utilizing modern video conferencing in instruction and college operations in the largest suburban community college in New Jersey with administration, staff, and faculty who skew towards Prensky’s definition of digital immigrants. Drawing upon ethnographic approach, the researcher interviewed fifteen higher education professionals to understand their experiences with video conferencing in their said role, the levels of social presence they demonstrated, how they engaged digital native students in video conferencing, and what challenges these digital immigrants faced in developing social presence to connect with digital natives. The research study found that higher education professionals' experiences with video conferencing caused them to consider how to create and maintain presence, persona, and social interaction and conversation in video conferencing. To address the lack of preparation associated with emergency remote teaching and operations, this research study examined the experiences of higher education professionals' use of modern video conferencing to formulate best practices for training in video conferencing.
There are jobs available today that did not exist 10 years ago. According to employers, there is a significant gap in essential universal skills in recent college graduates necessary for success in any career. Because of student debt and rising college tuition, more than ever, higher education is being held accountable for its contribution to workforce readiness. How does higher education prepare students for jobs that do not yet exist? How can higher education better prepare students for the workforce? Higher education has been a gateway to higher-paying jobs in America and other developed countries. Employers look to higher education to teach students the skills required in the workplace. Some careers in areas such as computer programming, accounting, and engineering require specific skills or hard skills that can be measured by tests and certifications. However, businesses expect students to have developed competencies in areas that are more difficult to measure. These competencies include verbal and written communication, problem-solving skills, critical thinking, and the ability to work well in teams. These soft skills lead toward success in any career, yet according to hiring managers worldwide, these skills are lacking among college graduates. How can higher education continue to provide value to employers if these key competencies have not been learned?
The disproportionality of Black male students is one of the most critical problems in special education within the U.S. (Skiba et al., 2006). This quantitative study aimed to examine how teachers' perceptions of classroom norms and professional development affect how they refer Black males to special education. The issue of disproportionality among Blacks in special education has been discussed in educational literature since the 1960s and continues to be a concern today. This study examined how teachers' perceptions of Black students' language, family history, behavior, cultural differences, and biases affect who they refer to as special education. Data were collected from kindergarten to high school teachers in a small suburban school district. Participants in the survey took the Gresham survey, which is divided into two sections. Part one's purpose was to gather information from teachers about the overrepresentation of Black males that are ultimately referred to special education, while section two's purpose was to collect demographic information on the survey participants. Their responses were then analyzed to determine the extent to which a teacher's perception of classroom norms and professional development affects who they refer to special education.
This research provides an overall view of how teachers' perceptions and lack of professional development contribute to how they refer Black students to special education. In addition, this study highlighted the importance of professional development to ensure that teachers are aware of how their personal beliefs may affect their classroom decisions.
The goal of this qualitative study was to learn more about how online Ed.D. students are persistent and resilient in pursuing their academic goals during the Coronavirus pandemic. With the ongoing pandemic and remote learning circumstances, doctoral students are facing more challenges they must overcome to stay on track with their academics. More specifically, the researcher sought to understand what doctoral students believe are their biggest barriers to completion during the pandemic. To do so, the researcher interviewed 10 current students in the program who were within six credits of completing their program course requirements in order to learn more about their persistence and the factors they felt contributed to keeping them motivated and optimistic about maintaining a growth mindset, despite pre-existing and new pandemic-related challenges they encountered. Understanding students’ potential barriers to completion can help with future implications for practice within the program and the implementation of necessary student resources for support.
The purpose of this case study was to seek insight into the evolution of the Delran School District, within the New Jersey Public School Labor-Management Collaborative. The Labor-Management Collaborative brings together leaders from New Jersey School Boards Association (NJSBA), the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), the American Federation of Teachers New Jersey (AFTNJ), the New Jersey Association of School Administrators (NJASA), and the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association (NJPSA). This has created a state-level learning network that strives to create labor-management partnerships, which improve collaboration at the school-district level.
Our schools are hierarchical organizations, seemingly at odds with the notion of power sharing as collaboration. The Labor-Management Collaborative, however, tries to build a system that, at the very least, makes a difference in how control is expressed.
Results from this study indicated that named collaborative structures such as the School Leadership Teams and District Leadership Teams are functional and have an impact on the success of the collaborative process. Although not originally a finding that was planned for, transformative leadership emerged as a key factor that makes Delran's experience unique. Authentic collaboration in our schools is deeply dependent upon the partnership built between the teachers and administrators, and directly related to the level of trust that partnership engenders. Organizations may appear to collaborate, but in fact it is individuals representing organizations who collaborate (Huxham and Vangen, 2005).
The results from the study indicate the Delran School District has created a strong collaborative structure and culture. Delran's structure takes the traditional hierarchical structure common in education but adds new roles and processes that allow a stable, functioning, democratic network to take shape.
These results can help inform the work of the New Jersey Public School Labor-Management Collaborative, providing a working set of organization structures and processes. These can provide not only a frame of reference for school districts looking for sustainable change, but also an architecture, within which a positive organizational culture can develop.
Teachers’ individual beliefs regarding the value of the academic material they teach, the nature of the subject, how they should teach it, as well as their assumptions regarding students, classrooms, instructional materials, the nature of learning, and how students construct knowledge can all have considerable influence over their teaching practices and effectiveness in the classroom. To become proficient in effective scientific inquiry, students must be paired with teachers who believe in the benefits of scientific inquiry and the inquiry teaching method and who are confident in their ability to teach using inquiry-based instructional methodologies. In this quantitative study, the beliefs held by a group of 11 experienced high school science teachers, charged with delivering an inquiry-oriented science curriculum, were examined to determine whether they preferred inquiry-oriented classroom activities over more traditional teacher directed non-inquiry activities.
To measure each participant’s beliefs quantitatively regarding the efficacy of specific inquiry-oriented, neutral, and non-inquiry student activities, this study made use of the ɣ-version of the Inquiry Teaching Belief (ITB) instrument developed and validated by researchers William Harwood, John Hansen, and Christine Lotter (2006). Statistical analysis was used to compare the mean distance measures taken from each participant’s ITB model to identify their preference for activity types. The findings of this study indicated that although the participants did not share specific preferences for individual classroom practices, they did, as a group, share a measurable and statistically significant preference for inquiry-oriented activities over non-inquiry activities. This finding is significant in that it demonstrates there is alignment between teacher beliefs held by this group of teachers and the design of the curriculum at the high school where they work.
RtI refers to a specific set of interventions to support students who struggle to make progress in the general education settings. Fuchs and Deshler emphasized that teachers need to understand the conditions and contextual factors of RtI within a school district that may influence its implementation. Implementing these reforms requires ongoing professional development, clear expectations for RtI implementation, teacher cooperation, and substantial time to unify these procedures into personal and institutional practices.
RtI implementations tend to lack teacher support, training, and utilizing resources effectively. Implementing systemic reform requires teachers to develop their teaching skills in selecting interventions and conducting assessments to meet students’ needs. Even for generally effective interventions, there is likely to be a substantial proportion of non-responsive children. Learning in the first few weeks of the intervention may be a useful indicator of appropriate response to treatment and could inform instructional decisions.
This study explored teachers’ knowledge of RtI, perceptions of RtI intervention/instruction tiers in their school, and suggestions for RtI implementation. Specifically, to identify the differences in teacher perceptions and if there is a consensus among teachers of the meaning of RtI and its effectiveness for struggling elementary students.
Low student completion rates have increased pressure on college and university administrators across the country to raise retention and graduation rates and have forced the review of many practices on campus. This qualitative study aimed to examine the effects of financial aid on higher educational persistence among African American males. Semi-structured interviews with African American male students were conducted to identify perceptions of the financial aid department and financial assistance related to successful persistence among the identified population. Findings from the interviews showed the perceptions of factors that created successful persistence were (a) meaning interactions with financial aid, (b) percentage of aid coverage, (c) family expectations/support, (d) and additional financial aid opportunities. A detailed analysis revealed that the student participants agreed that staff/student relationships and financial aid stability were important factors related to the retention of African American male students. Students also indicated that the percentage of aid covering their tuition/fees is a huge factor when assessing which college to attend. In addition, family expectations/support were connected to enrolling in a university but were not an important factor in retention when considering financial hardships that arise for college students. Finally, implications for practice and recommendations for future research were identified. The study findings might be helpful to college and university administrators needing to improve student completion rates. The findings might also be helpful to African American male students seeking a college or university to attend.
The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between teachers’ beliefs about social and emotional learning competencies, their perceptions of collective efficacy, and job satisfaction among a group of teachers who work in a district with a systemic whole school approach to social emotional learning (SEL), and another group of teachers who work in a district that does not report a systemic whole school approach to social emotional learning. The study focuses on adult and student social emotional learning framework and teachers’ shared belief that they can positively influence student outcomes. The researcher was interested in this relationship after investigating the question: Do teachers in a district with a systemic whole school approach to social-emotional learning display differences in their beliefs regarding social emotional learning competencies, collective efficacy, and job satisfaction compared to their counterparts in districts without systemic whole school approaches to learning? This question was posed due to the assumption that social emotional learning benefits both students and adults alike, and the acknowledgement that collective efficacy is the number one influencer of student achievement (Hattie, 2019).
First and foremost, the researcher hypothesized that a relationship exists between teacher beliefs about social emotional learning competences and perceptions of collective efficacy. The administrator-researcher further hypothesizes the following: Teachers’ perceptions of collective efficacy in a district that implements a systemic approach to SEL are statistically higher than teachers’ perceptions of collective efficacy in a district that does not implement a systemic approach to SEL, teachers’ self-reports of SEL beliefs in a district that implements a systemic approach to SEL are statistically higher than teacher’s self-reports of SEL beliefs in a district that does not implement a systemic approach to SEL, and teachers’ self-reports of job satisfaction are statistically higher in a district that implements a systemic approach to SEL. By understanding the potential differences in beliefs about social emotional learning competencies, perceived collective efficacy, and job satisfaction between districts that implement systemic whole school approaches to SEL and those that do not, the administrator-researcher aimed to provide guidance for school leaders on ways to draw connections regarding various initiatives.
The participants were teachers of grades K-8 from a New Jersey district that reported a systemic school-wide approach to SEL, and teachers of K-8 grades from a New Jersey district that did not report a systemic school-wide approach to SEL.
The methods included a quantitative, non-experimental design. This study attempted to determine if teachers in districts that report systemic school-wide approaches to social emotional learning statistically differ in their responses than teachers in districts that do not report systemic whole school approaches to social emotional learning. This was consistent with the study’s theoretical framework linking a connection among SEL, behavioral changes, and efficacy.
This research will ultimately help decision makers understand the impact of systemic school-wide SEL programing with regards to beliefs about social emotional learning, perceived collective efficacy, and job satisfaction. The results of this study will assist educational leaders and various stakeholders make thoughtful decisions regarding the implementation of social emotional learning initiatives.
Researchers and policymakers have shown significant concern over urban communities' sociological and criminological disparities. Yet, research has not focused on the direct correlation between life’s hardships and stressors for minority students raised in urban communities and their resiliency to pursue higher education. This study explores the perspectives of 7 students enrolled at a small, private, 4-year higher education institution in Northern New Jersey. The findings illustrate the importance of collegiate programs that directly impact the lives of urban minority students exposed to trauma-related incidents within their communities that create life stressors and hardships.
Schools and Districts continue to look for ways to grow their teaching staff’s professionalism, skills, efficacy, and their positive impact on their students and the community. The State of New Jersey Department of Education has even created a teacher evaluation system where teachers must earn effective or highly effective evaluative status in order to stay off the “In need of improvement” lists and face measures to increase their ratings or face the loss of tenure and his or her employment.
In New Jersey, teachers have a framework to earn points for their effectiveness rating. The framework is well defined and addresses all areas that impact teachers, the students, the school, and the community. It has been recognized that there are teachers who rise above and excel in certain areas. Not only do they excel, but they demonstrate great leadership and help guide other teachers in improving their practices. In 2018, the State of New Jersey developed a teacher leader endorsement program that would harness, grow, and recognize the leadership the effective and highly effective teachers in New Jersey can bring to their schools.
The State created the endorsement program. However, they left it to the school districts to decide if a monetary or higher status position was obtainable from earning the endorsement. The endorsement does not necessarily earn teacher graduate credits, a master’s degree, or a license to do another job within education in New Jersey. The program is still in its infancy as of the year 2020 - 2021. Currently, those interviewed were in the first group of teachers to complete the one-year endorsement program.
This research gathers data from teachers currently enrolled in the Teacher Leader Endorsement Program to learn more about their experiences, where they were novice teachers, and now, as experienced teachers, and what led them to enroll in the program. This research takes a dive into the relationship between the teacher and his or her principal, district grooming, school culture, and if monetary compensation must be a factor in having a robust enrollment in this endorsement program.
First-generation college students are the first in their families to pursue postsecondary education. As a result, they may lack the information and resources to navigate the college process and its transitions. More research is needed on how focusing on first-generation students' strengths can inform programs and support to assist with the postsecondary transition. This study further explores the assets that first-generation students bring to the college experience and how capitalizing on these strengths through programs and support can ease the transition process and help first-generation college students develop a sense of belonging. This qualitative, phenomenological research study was conducted through ten interviews with undergraduate, first-generation college students. The emerging themes were parents and family, peers, professors and staff, and programs and services, which aligned with the literature. This research study had two significant findings: (a) students with older siblings who completed college, extended-generation students viewed themselves differently from traditional first-generation students, and (b) first-generation students felt a sense of belonging and connectedness throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and its continuing effects. Suggestions for future research and implications for practice are also discussed.
The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study is to describe how corporate sponsorship influences an incoming NCAA D-1 student-athletes’ university or college selection decisions from the perspective of student-student athletes and school recruiters. This study may benefit schools and corporate sponsors (Wear et al., 2016). A better understanding of students’ selection processes would aid school athletic programs in recruiting and retaining high-caliber players, which in turn brings them greater team success and corporate sponsorship. Additionally, this study may allow corporate sponsors to better understand how their sponsorship investment influences players.
Despite the exponential growth of sponsorship contracts on college campuses, there has been little research on the effect these contracts have on the decision making of university students (Wear et al., 2016). This study would add valuable knowledge to the literature, while potentially benefiting schools and corporate sponsors that are looking to improve their athletic programs and the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. Students have the potential to benefit from this study as well. By understanding how corporate sponsorship may influence student decision making, students may be able to make more informed choices about the schools they attend. By performing this research, it is possible the researcher may be able to better understand how incoming NCAA D-1 student-athletes’ school choices are influenced by corporate sponsorship.
More than 50% of fourth graders in the United States are reading below a proficient level, with more than 75% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch scoring lower than the U.S. average reading score. A framework of background knowledge is essential for vocabulary acquisition so the reader can comprehend the meaning of a text. Maintaining and building a reader’s foundation of background knowledge means that erosion of knowledge does not occur due to external factors such as socioeconomic status, limited English proficiency, or academic support at home. It is necessary to design literacy instruction with a primary focus on content knowledge to provide a foundation for reading achievement that can have a reciprocal effect on increasing reading comprehension skills. The narrowing of the elementary curriculum has jeopardized this foundation since the inception of NCLB, the marginalization of science and social studies education in elementary schools, the recommendations on how much time is recommended to teach these subjects effectively, and how knowledge in these content areas can support reading achievement. This quantitative cross-sectional field study aimed to measure the current perceptions of kindergarten through fifth grade teachers on whether integrating science and social studies content knowledge into reading instruction is a factor in student reading achievement. Their perceptions of the quality of professional development, resources, and time allotted to integrate content knowledge into reading instruction were also measured. The data from the surveys were analyzed using descriptive statistics to identify the patterns and trends among the self-identified variables and the sum inventory score calculated for both research questions. Once these data were examined, inferential statistics in the form of one-way ANOVAs were conducted to determine if there were significant differences in the mean inventory scores of the categorical variables within the sample population. There was an overall positive response to the statement that integrating science and social studies content knowledge into reading instruction impacts student reading achievement. There was also a statistically significant difference in responses between teachers who have been teaching 11–15 years versus those who have been teaching 1–5 years and a statistically significant difference between teachers who teach kindergarten and first grade and those who teach multiple grade levels. There was an overall negative response to the quality of professional development, resources, and time allotted to integrate content knowledge into reading achievement and a statistically significant difference between kindergarten and first grade teachers versus teachers who teach multiple grade levels as well as between second and third grade teachers versus teachers who teach multiple grade levels.
Community college libraries provide retention support for students navigating through their coursework. This research consists of interviews with 10 out of 18 library directors in New Jersey. This study takes a sizable positive step in determining how an academic library supports retention since a library director is uniquely qualified and able to view and understand the various departments, collections, and how the staff interacts when assisting students. The importance of teaching students how to be self-sufficient to assist in their retention is a fully formed concept that can now be researched, analyzed, and expanded upon in postsecondary education. A student who is self-sufficient in navigating the library improves retention in a college because they possess the tools to stay enrolled in a college for more than a semester or two. Therefore, a self-sufficient student is more likely to attain their individual education goals. The library and the library director are the catalysts for this growth transformation to occur for each student. How the library collaborates with other departments to support retention is also analyzed and discussed. Finally, how the library director communicates and advocates for the library with their academic vice president is also analyzed.
There is an increasing number of people with autism. Autistic women have a different presentation of autism than autistic men and may have different needs. As more autistic men and women go to college, they bring challenges and strengths. They have difficulties with persistence and completion of a degree. To improve the success of autistic students, more information is needed about what influences their success.
This research looked at three autistic women who were successful in college. The three women and various people who supported them were interviewed. There were four themes that emerged regarding factors that contributed to the success of these young women. Their parents were involved with assisting them. They found a close-knit individualized environment in college. They were able to develop interests besides academics and they utilized services that were available to them.
This study contributed to the literature of autistic women in college. Future research can develop these themes by exploring different populations and different schools. Other avenues for future research could be to explore men and women and gender-fluid autistic people to see if there is a difference in their needs, examining a population of autistic people that are not as forthcoming about their diagnosis and the participants in this study, and determining what kinds of training or activities can be done to make the university culture welcoming of neurodiversity.
This quantitative study investigated the relationship between a principal’s grit and the school culture in their building. The research focused on one district in New Jersey with participants from elementary, middle, and high schools. First, principals in each school were surveyed using Duckworth’s Short Grit Survey to determine their self-perceived level of grit. Then educators in each school were surveyed using Gruenert and Valentine’s School Culture Survey to describe the school culture. This study identified factors that contribute to successful leadership, including leadership styles and characteristics such as grit. The study also explored current research about school culture and best practices in supporting professional learning communities, unity of purpose, and promoting learning partnerships.
This study aimed to understand the relationship between a school principal’s grit and school culture and provide further recommendations for increasing school culture. The results of this study successfully established that there was a relationship between the two variables, principal’s grit, and school culture. In addition, the study concluded that there were high mean scores for principal grit and school culture for each building. However, the data showed a statistically significant negative correlation between overall principal grit scores and school culture scores, r = –.161, p ≤ .001. Specifically, the school settings would benefit from collaborating with school administrators and colleagues to improve perceptions of collaborative leadership, teacher collaboration, unity of purpose, and collegial support.
The sustainability of an institution of higher education lies in its ability to attract and retain students. Young-Jones, Burt, Dixon, and Hawthorne (2013) assert that faculty–student interactions contributed to student success along with other factors. One outside factor that contributed to student success was the role of the advisor in linking students to the institutional culture. O’Banion (2012) reminded us that when students first enter college they are unprepared for making sound decisions about courses, their career, and even their future; therefore, they rely heavily on the guidance they receive from institutional representatives. Advisors are one of the main representatives studied by scholars, as well as the theories and best practices associated with advising. What we lack is a clear understanding of what advising practices are beneficial to students, and how those practices can improve advising. The purpose of this study was to compare the viewpoints of supervisors, advisors and students regarding their knowledge, experiences, and opinions surrounding advising at small institutions in North Carolina. To this end, the research questions were the following: How are advisors addressing academic, career, and interpersonal needs of students at small 4-year public institutions in North Carolina? What advising strategies hindered successful advisement of students at these small institutions in North Carolina? What do the various stakeholders identify as beneficial practices that improve advising on small campuses in North Carolina? Surveys, interviews and open coding procedures were used on two North Carolina institutions. Further research should explore efforts to improve advising in other states and their results on retention.
Several studies on the impact of social media usage on adolescent anxiety and/or depression have been done in the last several years (Andreassen et al., 2017; Bell, 2019; Best et al., 2014; Brunborg & Burdzovic, 2019; George et al., 2018; George & Odgers, 2015; Haidt & Twenge, 2019; Hunt et al., 2018; Kelly et al., 2018; Keyes et al., 2019; Lin et al., 2016; Rasmussen et al., 2020; Shensa et al., 2018; Twenge, 2013, 2017, 2020; Twenge & Campbell, 2018, 2019; Vannucci et al., 2017; Wegmann et al., 2015; Woods & Scott, 2016). However, only a few of the studies have focused on adolescents at the middle school level. Research has shown that as social media usage has increased, so has adolescent anxiety and depression (Twenge, 2017a). The present study aimed to gain guidance counselors’ and school psychologists’ perceptions on whether social media use increases anxiety and depression among middle school students within affluent districts in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Participants included eight middle school guidance counselors and two middle school-based school psychologists from affluent districts in Monmouth County, New Jersey. An interview-guide approach was used to conduct individual, semi-structured, virtual interviews. This study revealed that adolescents’ rate of social media usage can be associated with the level of anxiety and depression either indirectly or directly.
Teacher evaluation has existed in many forms throughout history. With or without formal processes teachers are held accountable for student learning and achievement gains through a variety of measures such as standardized test scores, parent feedback, administrative feedback and students' grades. Recent political movement has spurred legislators to support more rigorous and specific evaluation systems that increased accountability of teachers and school districts to link teacher evaluation to student learning. New Jersey adopted the TEACHNJ act in 2012 which required set number of evaluations for tenured and non-tenured teachers, criteria for each evaluation through a variety of models, and test scores and teacher developed assessments were tied into a final score for teachers. If the teacher evaluation system aims to improve practice and identify areas for professional growth, it is important to understand teachers' perceptions on the new system. The purpose of the study was to examine the perceptions of teachers related to the effectiveness of the teacher evaluation system in New Jersey and the perceived benefits and limitations of the new system. This mixed-methods study surveyed teachers from six suburban districts in New Jersey. The districts varied in size and socioeconomic factors, but all districts were in their second year of the new teacher evaluation system. Teachers answered eight survey questions using a Likert scale and two open-ended questions that allowed respondents to expand on any of the questions or any other related comments not addressed in the survey. The study revealed that teachers believe in the fundamental principles that serve evaluation processes. Teachers understood the research behind the systems and the need for accountability. The key in successful teacher evaluation is comprehensive training opportunities for teachers not only in what constitutes effective teaching practices, but with the implementation of these practices into the classroom. Further, teachers need to have training on how to utilize the tools used to manage the evaluation systems so that teachers are not tied up with bureaucratic practices that take away from the time to plan effective lessons or collaborate with colleagues. Additionally, evaluators need to continue to learn alongside the teachers to ensure reliability and consistency within the different evaluations a teacher receives from multiple observers. Further research that aligns teacher evaluation with student achievement, as well as teacher evaluation within a variety of settings with specific evaluation models would be valuable. As new teacher evaluation systems become the norm in districts across the nation, further study would provide school leaders with ways to ensure successful and effective implementation policies that support both students and teachers.
This study collected teacher perspectives on the impact of mandated high-stakes online testing to identify current needs for teachers and students regarding the development of student technology skills for such assessments. Participants included 41 teachers who instruct students in 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade in any capacity from ten school districts in central New Jersey. A mixed-methods design provided data in the form of an online survey complemented by interviews with nine teachers from online survey participants.
No teachers feel that all their students have mastered any of the skills pertinent to high-stakes online testing. Forty-three percent of all participants still feel that fewer than half of their students are prepared to demonstrate what they know in high-stakes online assessment platforms. This finding is critical because even though it has been 5 years since the initial mandate, this testing platform necessitates both students and teachers develop technology skills and classroom integrated practices needed to allow students to utilize the testing platform in high-stakes mandated assessments tacitly.
Teachers felt that many, if not all, students still need to develop skills, including keyboarding, typing math expressions, reading online text, and writing online. Teachers feel that there is a need for time to engage in technology professional development. The preferred venue choice is participating in a presentation/workshop with an in district mentor/coach available after the presentation. It is understood that technology is not going away, and beginner technology skills are not inherent. Young students need to be taught these skills the same way they are taught skills with paper and pencil before applying them. Individual school districts need to work together to identify and plan for the best way to integrate the technology skills development of students, especially those with special needs, across all content areas.
The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate New Jersey public school principals’ and assistant principals’ perceptions on the effectiveness of feedback delivery to teachers during post-observation conferences. Specifically, principals’ and assistant principals’ perceptions of how time, training, and protocols impact the process of providing effective feedback to teachers during the post-observation process. Federal guidelines and NJ state statutes have placed a greater emphasis on the role of principals and assistant principals to provide more complex feedback to teachers in the New Jersey teacher evaluation model (New Jersey Department of Education [NJDOE], 2015; NJDOE, 2017b; USDOE, 2012; Popham, 2013). Studies suggest that if the post-conference feedback is effective and promotes teacher effectiveness, principals and assistant principals must have time for feedback, utilize an effective feedback protocol, and be adequately trained to provide the feedback (Education First, 2015; Park et al., 2014). In addition, these feedback supports or processes, norms, and structures must be in place to ensure that the post-evaluation conference is a success (Park et al., 2014).
In the post-conference, the feedback process must be useful, specific, constructive, timely, allow and encourage teachers to share their thoughts, and create a collaborative process that results in professional goal setting. The study found that principals and assistant principals did not always have time post-conference for an effective feedback process. In addition, instructional leaders did not always utilize an effective post-conference feedback protocol with fidelity. The researcher also found that principals and assistant principals do not strongly agree that they were trained adequately to provide effective feedback in the post-conference session. Collaboration between teachers and instructional leaders yielded the lowest mean in all three supports in the study. This finding suggests that there was not enough time for collaboration in the feedback process. Collaboration was the least utilized by both principals and assistant principals, and both groups perceived they were the least adequately trained in collaborating with teachers to set professional goals.
The purpose of this study was to determine if private high school teachers' characteristics, their knowledge of the 2011 New Jersey Anti-Bullying Law, and the impact on their reporting of bullying incidents. The study was conducted at an urban private high school in northern New Jersey, where the participants in this study were asked to complete a survey. The survey instrument measured demographic information; specifically, gender, age range, ethnicity, the number of years teaching, the number of years teaching in the current school, educational level, and the teachers own experience with bullying as a student. The survey also measured the teachers' general knowledge of bullying; specifically the New Jersey's 2011 Anti-Bullying Law. The data analysis, which was run on SPSS, showed that only ethnicity had a significance influence while the other demographic variables were found not to have any significant influence on a private high school teachers' reporting of HIB incidents. The results also showed teachers lacked knowledge about the New Jersey Anti-Bullying Law of 2011.
This research study looked at the components that may influence teacher attitudes in an accepting manner toward including students with learning disabilities. The purpose of this study was to examine the reasons that may influence the attitudes of general education teachers toward including students with specific learning disabilities. The factors that were examined in the study included gender, length of years teaching, and the amount of special education courses taken in college. Elementary general education teachers from two schools in an urban school district in New Jersey were given the ATTM-m survey to determine their attitude towards special needs students. The results of this study indicated that general education teachers regardless of gender, length of years teaching, and the amount of special education courses take, were not willing to accept the inclusion of special needs students into the general education classroom. It is recommended that future research is needed to further investigate these findings.
