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Characteristics and strategies of effective teachers of at-risk intermediate-level children: A grounded theory study
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics and strategies of effective teachers of at-risk intermediate level children in order to develop a grounded theory or theories that might explain the effectiveness of those teachers. In-depth interviews, classroom observations, a student writing project, and artifacts were used to collect data which were simultaneously analyzed using the constant comparative method of data analysis. Six teachers chosen because of their reputations as effective educators of at-risk students in districts with large populations of at-risk students were the primary participants in the study. Additional sources of data included the school principal and two colleagues of each teacher. Input of students was obtained through a student writing project administered by the teachers. The research was conducted in four schools in three school systems in small and medium-sized cities in the south and midwest. The study began in the fall of 1997 and was completed in the spring of 1998. This study generated four theoretical propositions which included: (1) Effective teachers of children who are at risk of failure in school may develop important personal relationships with their students and may use those relationships in a positive way to encourage and motivate students to learn; (2) Effective teachers of children who are at risk of failure in school believe that their students can succeed; (3) Effective teachers of children who are at risk of failure in school may see themselves as learners and constantly seek to acquire more and better teaching methods to reach their students; (4) The effectiveness of teachers of children who are at risk of failure in school may be advanced by self-confidence and self-efficacy that includes a personal calling to the profession, and personal decision-making processes. Evidence to support the generation of the theoretical propositions and a proposed model of the qualities of effective teachers of at-risk intermediate level at-risk children were presented. Recommendations for teacher educators, school district officials, and policy-makers as well as suggestions for additional research were presented.
Subject Area
Elementary education|Curricula|Teaching|Teacher education
Recommended Citation
Schulz, Merryellen Towey, "Characteristics and strategies of effective teachers of at-risk intermediate-level children: A grounded theory study" (1998). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9902975.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9902975