Date of Conferral

2021

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Olga Salnikova

Abstract

AbstractThe problem that is facing one community college in Central Florida is the decrease in enrollment of teacher education majors and the low persistence of students who choose to pursue education as a major. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore why education majors at this community college chose to enroll and their reasons for persisting and completing their respective programs. The conceptual framework of the study was grounded in Atkinson’s expectancy-value theory and Tinto’s retention theory. The research questions focused on the reasons for the enrollment and persistence of education majors in a community college in Florida. Open-ended interviews were administered to five purposefully selected participants. Participants included two current education majors who completed the introduction to education and a diversity course, one education major graduate who completed his education program in a community college and earned associate degrees, and two education department faculty members with at least 2 years of teaching experience in a community college. All data were analyzed using thematic analysis, and five themes were derived. The themes were (a) making a difference for students, (b) teaching job that fulfills learning, (c) driven to become a teacher, (d) highly motivated to earn a degree, and (e) teaching experiences helped growth. The findings informed the development of a position paper with program recommendations for recruitment program improvements. The position paper can promote positive social change by providing insight on programs that can enhance the enrollment and persistence of education majors in community colleges, which may increase the number of qualified teachers available to teach in society.

Download

Share

 
COinS