Date of Award

Winter 1-15-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Educational Studies

First Advisor

Patricia Crain de Galarce

Second Advisor

Valerie Harlow Shinas

Third Advisor

Marianne Reiff

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to re-analyze and extend findings established by the 2011 – 2015 evaluation of a university partnership with an urban elementary school in the northeast region of the United States. While the original evaluation examined multiple domains related to the impact of the partnership’s effects on these elementary school teachers, my research will narrow and deepen the study of two domains: Teacher Self-Efficacy and Social Networks, both socio-affective variables that change over time. This research is grounded in theories related to teacher self-efficacy, social networks in education, and the emergence of a robust community of practice. This research also embraces the messiness of adaptive change and the human side of relational trust by respecting educators as learners and supporting them in the risk-taking needed to explore, experiment, and integrate new technologies and 21st-century competencies into teaching and learning. Case Study and Qualitative Data Analysis will be used to identify and define the qualities and characteristics of effective professional development for educators as they take on the bifurcated task of learning the skills, competencies, and dispositions needed to embrace new technologies and integrate these tools into their instructional practices. This re-analysis will further develop the concept of educators as learners and more clearly define a model that will serve future university and urban elementary school partnerships.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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