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- All Subjects: Self-efficacy
Description
The United States is facing an emerging principal shortage. This study examines an intervention to deliver professional development for assistant principals on their way to becoming principals. The intervention intended to boost their sense of efficacy as if they were principals while creating a supportive community of professionals for ongoing professional learning. The community was designed much like a professional learning community (PLC) with the intent of developing into a community of practice (CoP). The participants were all elementary school assistant principals in a Title I district in a large metropolitan area. The researcher interviewed an expert set of school administrators consisting of superintendents and consultants (and others who have knowledge of what a good principal ought to be) about what characteristics and skills were left wanting in principal applicants. The data from these interviews provided the discussion topics for the intervention. The assistant principals met regularly over the course of a semester and discussed the topics provided by the expert set of school administrators. Participant interaction within the sessions followed conversation protocols. The researcher was also a participant in the group and served as the coordinator. Each session was recorded and transcribed. The researcher used a mixed methods approach to analyze the intervention. Participants were surveyed to measure their efficacy before and after the intervention. The session transcripts were analyzed using open and axial coding. Data showed no statistically significant change in the participants' sense of efficacy. Data also showed the participants became a coalescing community of practice.
ContributorsRichman, Bryan (Author) / Puckett, Kathleen (Thesis advisor) / Smith, Jeffery (Committee member) / Foulger, Teresa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
For decades, there has been a concerted effort to support the transition of first-generation students from high school into higher education, yet there is a continued troubling gap in the number of first-generation students attending college who attain success once enrolled. This disparity is particularly pronounced among low-income students of color. This study illustrates how action research can be used to analyze a program that aims to assist students and their parents in navigating the American higher education system. Participants included (N=20) twelfth grade, first-generation, Latino, students and their parents (N=20) in rural Yuma County, Arizona, a geographically isolated area which is a three-hour drive from the nearest metropolitan city. Mixed methods were utilized to examine the impact of the American Dream Academy on self-efficacy in cultivating a college-going culture among first-generation, Latino students. Since parents play a significant role in the academic success of students, this program also sought to bolster the self-efficacy of the parents of the twelfth-grade student participants. A concerted effort was made to bring the American Dream Academy to the San Luis High School, Arizona Western College, and Arizona State University. The Academy’s curriculum included eight sessions that covered college-going topics that were collectively facilitated by university, college and high school faculty. Outcomes of this study indicate the need to support first-generation Latino students and their parents to foster college readiness and increase college access. Additionally, this study highlights how increasing the self-efficacy of students and parents can positively shift self-perceptions and sense of belonging among first-generation college students.
ContributorsCorr, Laura (Author) / Puckett, Kathleen (Thesis advisor) / Mathur, Sarup (Committee member) / Carrasco-Jaquez, Diane (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023