Degree Name

EdD (Doctor of Education)

Program

Educational Leadership

Date of Award

8-2022

Committee Chair or Co-Chairs

Pamela Scott

Committee Members

John Boyd, Stacy Edwards, William Flora

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the stories of identified, effective middle school teachers as they experienced changes in instructional strategies and practices as a result of an identified crisis, COVID-19. Although there has been little documentation in the literature specifically regarding adapting instructional strategies and practices as a result of crises, crisis management, change theory, mindset theory, adaptation, and teacher effectiveness characteristics became the framework through which to interpret the data.

Data collection strategies included one-on-one, semi-structured interviews with a total of eight participants, two principals and six teachers, who met specific research participation criteria. Analysis of data occurred in three phases: (a) categorization of data under themes, (b) building the explanation of data in narrative form, and (c) re-examination of the data. Triangulation of data protected the credibility of the analysis by corroboration of teacher interviews with principal interviews, reflexivity, audit trail, and member checking.

The results revealed that crisis management, change theory, mindset theory, and teacher effectiveness impacted the teachers’ adaptations of instructional strategies and practices during the pandemic. The results showed an interconnectedness of themes and the ways in which one impacted another. Seven themes emerged from the analysis of data, including: (1) commitment, (2) collaboration, (3) mindset, (4) teacher effectiveness, (5) supportive culture, (6) engagement challenges, and (7) learning gaps.

Document Type

Dissertation - unrestricted

Copyright

Copyright by the authors.

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