Discussion: Capstone Components To Help Recognize The Best P

Discussion Capstone Components To Help You Recognize Best Practices In

Review the work of other scholars by examining a capstone paper from the Walden Library, specifically Schofield (2020) on elementary principals’ considerations when hiring and assigning mathematics teachers. Focus on the sections: The Local Problem, Purpose of Study, Research Questions, Conceptual Framework, and Data Collection. Analyze the alignment among these components, ensuring they coherently support the study's goals, and justify your evaluation with appropriate citations from scholarly sources.

Paper For Above instruction

The analysis of Schofield's (2020) capstone study reveals insights into the critical alignment of research components necessary for a robust and coherent research design. The study investigates elementary principals’ considerations and constraints when hiring and assigning mathematics teachers, with the overarching goal of addressing mathematics achievement issues in elementary schools. The alignment across the sections enhances the validity and clarity of the research, ensuring each component logically connects to the other, thereby creating a cohesive study framework.

Starting with the Local Problem, Schofield identifies an instructional achievement problem related to inadequate mathematics preparation among elementary students in Florida, supported by data from the Florida Department of Education (2017). This sets a clear contextual foundation for the research, highlighting a specific educational challenge. The Purpose of Study directly addresses this issue by aiming to understand and improve hiring practices through professional development for principals, ultimately expecting to enhance student outcomes. The purpose is well-aligned, as it focuses on the root cause (teacher hiring and assignment) of the identified problem, aligning with best practices outlined by Single (2010), who emphasizes coherent problem and purpose statements to ensure relevance and focus throughout the research process.

The Research Questions further support this alignment by probing the practices, backgrounds, and constraints faced by principals in staffing decisions. These questions effectively operationalize the purpose, as they aim to uncover the determinants of teacher quality and staffing challenges. For example, the first question about human capital management practices directly relates to understanding staffing processes that influence student achievement, while the second question about principals' preparedness provides context for designing targeted professional development (Butin, 2010). The third question regarding budget and applicant pools identifies systemic constraints that may hinder effective staffing strategies. Collectively, these questions encapsulate the multifaceted nature of the problem, providing a comprehensive framework for data collection and analysis.

The Conceptual Framework, grounded in the work of Odden and Kelly (2008), emphasizes strategic human resource management to identify talented teachers and improve staffing practices. The integration of this framework aligns with the research questions and purpose by guiding the inquiry toward strategic HR processes that influence teacher quality and student achievement. This coherence is vital, as it ensures the theoretical foundation supports the investigation’s aims, aligning with principles outlined by Single (2010) regarding the importance of theoretical alignment in dissertation research. The framework’s focus on talent identification and strategic management reflects best practices in educational research, aiming to promote instructional excellence through systemic improvements.

The Data Collection section describes the use of open-ended interviews with principals, a qualitative method providing rich, detailed insights into staffing practices and systemic constraints. This method aligns with the research questions, which seek to explore perceptions, backgrounds, and systemic barriers. The choice of interviews supports data triangulation and in-depth understanding, consistent with best practices for qualitative research outlined by Butin (2010). The coherence between data collection methods and research questions enhances the study's validity, enabling the researcher to draw meaningful conclusions about the systemic issues affecting mathematics instruction. Overall, Schofield’s (2020) study demonstrates a high level of component alignment, consistent with established research design principles (Walden, n.d.).

References

• Butin, D. W. (2010). The education dissertation: A guide for practitioner scholars. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
• Odden, A., & Kelly, J. (2008). Strategic management of human capital in public education. Madison, WI: Consortium for Policy Research in Education.
• Single, P. B. (2010). Demystifying dissertation writing: A streamlined process from choice of topic to final text. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.
• Walden University Office of Research and Doctoral Design. (n. d.). Design Alignment Tool.
• Florida Department of Education. (2017). FSA Algebra I EOC. Retrieved from https://www.fldoe.org