Giving Them a Voice: Middle School Students Living in Poverty Perceptions of Effective Teaching

• Other Authors: Gordon, Bernadette (author)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Education; Education and state; Educational leadership
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/2018_Su_Gordon_fsu_0071E_14747

This study examines middle school students from low wealth communities and their perceptions of poverty and teacher efficacy. Additionally, this study seeks to provide valuable insight into educators regarding the skills and dispositions economically disadvantaged students identify effective teachers as possessing. It begins by exploring the history of poverty in the United States. It has been more than half a century since President Lyndon Baines Johnson declared a war on poverty. Yet, statistics show that the number of Americans living in poverty is increasing. The study reviews the literature on accountability in the education system, teacher efficacy, and student perception. It uses qualitative methods to collect student perception data through focus group and individual student interviews. By incorporating narrative analysis, stories from the middle-school classroom are unearthed. Keywords: middle school, middle school students, teachers, effective teachers, efficacy, teacher efficacy, poverty, students of poverty, low-income communities, students living in poverty, perception, student perception === A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. === Summer Semester 2018. === July 18, 2018. === effective teachers, middle school, middle school student perceptions, perception, poverty, students of poverty === Includes bibliographical references. === Toby Park, Professor Directing Dissertation; Steve McDowell, University Representative; Ayesha Khurshid, Committee Member; Stephanie Zuilkowski, Committee Member.