Teacher-student relationships.

Research shows that there is a disconnect between student and faculty perceptions
in a range of areas. One area that has not been researched is comparing student and
faculty perceptions regarding desirable and undesirable traits in professors. The purpose
of this mixed methods study was to identify what students perceive are the most and least
desirable qualities in professors, and how those qualities affect their overall college
experience. This study also identified what professors thought students perceive as the
most and least desirable qualities in professors, and how those qualities affect students’
overall college experience. The findings indicate that the largest disparity in perceptions
between students and faculty was faculty perception that students rate them based on
class rigor and assigned grades, which were two of the least important qualities according
to students. The largest similarity that faculty and students agreed upon is that students
desire professors who are knowledgeable, passionate, engaging, and able to connect with students. Both groups also perceive that students do not like professors who are boring
and monotone. In addition, students and professors agree that students perceive
professors as playing an important role in their lives that affect their ability to learn, the
grades they receive, and also impact their overall college experience and trajectory in life.
The two groups differed when describing how professors’ undesirable qualities can
negatively affect students’ emotions and self-confidence.
Faculty and students were in agreement in a variety of areas, but they were
disconnected in several areas as well. This is a problem as we move into the future. Cox
(2009) said, “the traditional college student is no longer the typical college student” (p.
7), especially when it comes to state and community colleges. Professors would benefit
from listening to students instead of assuming that their ratings are untrustworthy and
based on how hard or easy the class was or what grade they received. The researcher
asserts, along with others in the literature, that expertise in content area is no longer good
enough to be an effective educator in higher education. Faculty also need to be experts in
understanding students.

The purpose of this study was to determine if teachers who use thinking and
leading actions have higher student achievement as measured by the teacher’s Value
Added Measure (VAM) score. A quantitative non-experimental design investigated the
relationships between teacher cognitive and behavioral agility and student achievement.
Cognitive agility, measured through the Strategic Thinking Questionnaire for Teachers
(STQT ), refers to the leader’s ability to use their repertoire of thinking skills. Behavioral
agility, measured with the Strategic Leadership Questionnaire for Teachers (SLQT ),
denotes the leader’s ability to use a wide array of leader influencing actions. Teachers
were surveyed and the data were analyzed through correlation and multiple regressions to
determine the relationship among the variables.
Although the cognitive and behavioral agility was not correlated with a teacher’s
VAM score, the results indicate that teachers do perceive themselves as leaders in their
classrooms. Educational leadership certification, higher degrees, and years experience of a teacher did moderate the relationship between local VAM and both cognitive and
behavioral agility. The sub-scales of systems thinking and transforming of the survey
instruments also were significant to the results. Theoretically, this study contributes to the
teacher leadership literature, focusing on the classroom teacher and their effect on student
achievement. Practically, with educational accountability changing the landscape, school
districts should train teachers to engage in leadership skills, reward teachers for earning a
Master’s degree in leadership, and work to retain high quality teachers who are leaders
within their classroom. Greater student achievement could be the result.

A report issued in 2012 by the United States Government Accountability Office
(US Government Accountability Office, 2012) concluded that the United States is not
producing enough graduates in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
(STEM) to meet the demands of its economy. According to the National Center for
Educational Statistics (2001), fewer than fifty percent of students nationally possess a
solid command of mathematical content. This study tested whether the insertion of
Academic Service Learning (ASL) into intermediate algebra courses improved students’
performance, their motivation to learn the subject, and attitudes towards mathematics
learning. ASL is an educational strategy that integrates meaningful community service
with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic
responsibility, and strengthen communities (Duffy, Barrington, West, Heredia, & Barry,
2011). The subjects in this study were thirty-four students enrolled in intermediate
algebra at a large public university in southeast Florida. The participant group consisted
of fifteen students who completed the requirements of the ASL program and the
comparison group consisted of nineteen students who initially showed interest in the
program but dropped out of the study early in the semester.
Through a mixed method analysis, the study found that the proportion of students
who passed the course in the ASL group was greater than the proportion of students in
the non-ASL group. Similarly, the mean final course grade in the ASL group was higher
than the mean final course grade in the non-ASL group.
The results of the qualitative analyses showed that all the participants enjoyed the
ASL experience. In addition, some participants felt that the ASL project raised their
motivation to learn mathematics and increased their competence in mathematics.
However, both quantitative and qualitative analyses revealed that the students’
participation in the ASL project did not affect their attitudes towards mathematics
learning. The study concluded that Academic Service Learning has the potential to help
improve students’ success rates in developmental mathematics courses as well as increase
their motivation to learn the subject.

The purpose of this non-experimental study was to determine whether teacher
cognitive and behavioral agility relates to student achievement as measured by their
value-added model (VAM) score and their performance evaluation measured through the
Marzano instructional practice (IP) framework, and whether that relationship is
moderated by contextual variables. Cognitive agility, measured through the Strategic
Thinking Questionnaire for Teachers (STQ T TM), refers to the leader’s ability to use their
repertoire of thinking skills. Behavioral agility, measured with the Strategic Leadership
Questionnaire for Teachers (SLQ T TM), relates to the leader’s ability to use a wide array of
leader influencing actions. Teacher VAM score is the percent of the teacher’s students
that met or exceeded a statistically predicted score on the end of year assessment.
Teacher IP scores were also collected and were based on classroom walkthroughs, and
other factors, conducted by their respective school-based administrator(s). The study included 75 teacher participants at the middle and high school levels
and used correlational, linear regression, moderator, and mediation statistical analyses.
The research findings indicate that cognitive agility continues to be a significant predictor
of behavioral agility and that both cognitive and behavioral agility were significantly
related to VAM or IP in teachers over the age of 50. Additionally, VAM scores
significantly increased through the use of reframing and IP scores increased when
utilizing bridging leader actions. However, it was also found that VAM scores were
negatively correlated to the managing leader actions in the total population.