Digital Commons Network^™

Komunikasi Ritual Peziarah “Ngalap Berkah”Di Kawasan Wisata Gunung Kemukus(Studi Etnografi Komunikasi Tentang Budaya Ritual Ziarah Di Kawasan Wisatagunung Kemukus, Desa Pendem, Kecamatan Sumber Lawang, Sragen-Jawa Tengah), Rahmi Setiawati, Priyanto Priyanto

Jurnal Vokasi Indonesia

This article is explain of ritual commucation pilgrim "ngalap berkah" in the Kemukus mountain, ethnographic study of communication about cultural tourism zone ritual pilgrimage in Mount Kemukus, Pendem Village, District Sumber Lawang, Sragen, Central Java. The results showed that for the local community a message of what is hidden behind this ritual is still ambiguity. But in the process of social interaction between indigenous communities with immigrant communities, both in terms of livelihoods, different behavior patterns, causing local people trying to accept changes to the meaning of "ngalap berkah". It is caused when the pilgrimage locations have changed or constructed …

The Impact Of A Common Approach To Instruction Within A Nebraska Rural School District, Bret Allan Schroder

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the instructional understanding and effectiveness of a district wide implementation of a Common Approach to Instruction. This research study provided a greater understanding of the affects that such an implementation had on certified staff regardless of grade level, experience, subject, or gender.

This explanatory, sequential, mixed methods study was conducted during the summer, spring, and fall of 2014-2015. The study initially gathered data using an online survey, based on Marzano’s 41 instructional elements, in a single class-B school district in Nebraska. All certified staff members within this school district were …

Despite Best Intentions: A Critical Analysis Of Social Justice Leadership And Decision Making, David E. Dematthews, Angus Shiva Mungal, Paul A. Carrola

Administrative Issues Journal

The purpose of this article is to explore the relationship between social justice leadership and organizational decision making in order to make recommendations for how principals can make more socially just decisions in difficult school contexts. This article begins with a discussion of social justice leadership, facets and theories associated with social justice, and how facets can be contradictory and problematic in practice. Then, rational choice theory is presented to detail key assumptions and criticisms that are associated with decision-making in complex organizations. Next, rational choice theory is utilized as a straw man for analyzing principal decision-making in complex organizations …

Deaf Children’S Science Content Learning In Direct Instruction Versus Interpreted Instruction, Kim B. Kurz, Brenda Schick, Peter C. Hauser

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

This research study compared learning of 6-9th grade deaf students under two modes of educational delivery – interpreted vs. direct instruction using science lessons. Nineteen deaf students participated in the study in which they were taught six science lessons in American Sign Language. In one condition, the lessons were taught by a hearing teacher in English and were translated in ASL via a professional and certified interpreter. In the second condition, the lessons were taught to the students in ASL by a deaf teacher. All students saw three lessons delivered via an interpreter and three different lessons in direct ASL; …

International Doctoral Students, Their Advising Relationships And Adaptation Experiences: A Qualitative Study, Katherine Najjar

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Thirty four international doctoral students were interviewed to determine what types of advising and mentoring experiences were effective and beneficial, and what experiences had been difficult or unhelpful. The students reported a high level of satisfaction with their advisors and with their program of studies. However, during the interviews, students began to describe other factors that contributed to their well-being and their experiences.

Issues described included language difficulties and problems developing relationships with other students. Although most students developed close, personal relationships with advisors or departmental colleagues, few students reported having large numbers of friends and associates outside of their …

University Supervisors' Perspectives On The Student Teaching Timeframe, Sally E. Arnett-Hartwick, Sarah Bradshaw

Online Journal for Workforce Education and Development

Structured Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this research study was to describe university supervisors’ perception of extending the student teaching time frame in a family and consumer sciences (FCS) teacher education program. Background: Recently, a Midwestern State University FCS teacher education program extended the length of student teaching from 10 to 16 weeks. To verify if the student teaching timeframe mattered in enhancing the development of FCS teacher candidates, this study sought the perspectives of university supervisors who worked in both timeframes. Method: Using a qualitative design, interviews were conducted with two FCS university supervisors who supervised student teachers in …

Review: Growing A Soul For Social Change: Building The Knowledge Base For Social Justice By Warring, Tonya Huber-Warring (Ed.), Connie L. Fulmer

Connie L. Fulmer

No abstract provided.

Broadening Students’ Perceptions Of Conflict: The Challenge Of Metaphorical Change, Justin D. Walton

Administrative Issues Journal

This qualitative investigation examined the semester long effects of a critical transformative pedagogy on students’ metaphorical understandings of conflict interaction. The study included five university conflict management seminars taught over a four year period. Findings revealed that (a) while most students entered the course with predominantly negative and oppositional perceptions of conflict, the use of a critical transformative pedagogy did indeed (b) help support new metaphorical understandings of conflict interaction and (c) supported instances of personal empowerment and expanded self-knowledge. Implications and suggestions for future research are considered.

An Exploration Of The Reasons And Purposes Of Non-Japanese Undergraduate Students For Taking A Beginners’ Japanese Language Course, Asuka H. Mashav

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study took place at Florida International University (FIU), a large public research university in Miami, Florida and one of largest Hispanic serving institutions in the United States. The purpose of this study was to explore the motivations of non-Japanese undergraduate students for taking a beginners’ Japanese language course. In-depth one-hour semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 participants before the fall semester of 2014 (Phase I) and 10 after the semester (Phase II). Two major themes emerged from the inductive analysis of the data: attraction to Japanese culture and utility of using the Japanese language. Sub-themes for attraction to Japanese …

October Agenda, Wku Graduate Council

Graduate School

Meeting agenda.

Effects Of Dual-Language Immersion On Students’ Academic Performance, Jennifer L. Steele, Robert O. Slater, Gema Zamarro, Trey Miller, Jennifer Li, Susan Burkhauser, Michael Bacon

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

Using data from seven cohorts of language immersion lottery applicants in a large, urban school district, we estimate the causal effects of immersion on students’ test scores in reading, mathematics, and science, and on English learners’ (EL) reclassification. We estimate positive intent-to-treat (ITT) effects on reading performance in fifth and eighth grades, ranging from 13 to 22 percent of a standard deviation, reflecting 7 to 9 months of learning. We find little benefit in terms of mathematics and science performance, but also no detriment. By sixth and seventh grade, lottery winners’ probabilities of remaining classified as EL are three to …

The Making Of Knowledge-Makers In Composition: A Distant Reading Of Dissertations, Benjamin M. Miller

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Combining qualitative coding with original algorithmic and quantitative analyses, this project aggregates and visualizes metadata from 2,711 recent doctoral dissertations in Composition/Rhetoric, completed between 2001 and 2010 (inclusive), in order to establish an empirical baseline of what new and established scholars in Composition/Rhetoric agree upon as acceptable research in the field. I find that both subject matter and methodologies largely collocate within a small number of clusters, but not without cross-over among these clusters, and I call for increased dialogue among schools focusing on these different methods and subjects.

Chapter 1, 'Disciplinary Anxiety and the Composition of Composition,' reviews the …

Parent Engagement At A Cristo Rey High School: Building Home-School Partnerships In A Multicultural Immigrant Community, Thomas M. Crea, Andrew D. Reynolds, Elizabeth Degnan

Journal of Catholic Education

Catholic social teaching affirms the primary role of parents in their children’s education, as well as the importance of a home-school partnership. The purposes of this article are to review the results of a mixed methods study of parent engagement at Cristo Rey Boston High School, and how the results of this study led to specific efforts to include parents more closely in the life of the school. Results suggest that parents in multicultural communities perceive their engagement to be an important part of their children’s education. Yet, this engagement may take different forms that may go unrecognized by school …

Autism Spectrum Disorders: Available Public Education Programming And The Influence Of Professional Perceptions, Heather Wilmot

All Theses And Dissertations

A mixed-methods research study was conducted in a small, rural western Maine school department. The intent of this research was to reveal what kind of programming is available to students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and how the availability of programming is influenced by the perceptions of educators and leaders in a public school department. In addition, the research addressed how the background and professional development of the employees impacted the availability of programming for students with ASD. Forced survey questions included quality indicators for programming for students with ASD and pre-selected follow-up focus groups questions were used.

Data analysis …

The Development Of Intercultural Competency In School Psychology Graduate Students, Susan C. Davies, Abigail A. Lewis, Amy E. Anderson, Elana R. Bernstein

Counselor Education and Human Services Faculty Publications

School psychologists often have the opportunity to work with students and families from varied backgrounds and cultures. While this can be an exciting and enriching part of the job, it can also be daunting for some practitioners, particularly those who are inadequately prepared. A number of strategies have been implemented in school psychology training programs to improve students’ intercultural competency.

This exploratory study investigated the results of one university’s short-term study abroad program for school psychology graduate students. Pre- and post- intercultural development assessments were given to school psychology graduate students who completed a course abroad; results were compared to …

A Structurational Approach To Organizational Change: Exploring Idaho’S Students Come First Initiative, Matthew Aaron Mccarter

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study embraces a structuration approach to explore how the staff at the Idaho State Education Agency (SEA) reacted to implementing a unique and sweeping K-12 education reform package commonly known as “Students Come First.” By embracing a communicative perspective to studying change in public education, this study provides insights to how public sector employees at an SEA who work in a field governed by a unique set of features (politically-driven policies from elected officials and outcome expectations from the electorate), and who are driven by a passion to serve children engaged in changes that challenged their everyday understandings of …

Tennessee Per-Pupil Expenditures In Special Education And Academic Achievement, Melanie C. Davidson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Federal legislation known as the No Child Left Behind act has required states to close achievement gaps. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between special education spending by districts in the state of Tennessee and standardized achievement for students with disabilities.

Secondary data were obtained from the Tennessee Department of Education’s website (www.tn.gov/education). Data from each local education association were collected for the years of 2010-2014 in the areas of special education spending, special education population, and TCAP proficiency percentages in reading and math grades 3-8. Data from each local education association were collected …

African American Parents’ Perceptions Of Public School: African American Parents’ Involvement In Their Childrens’ Educations, Eric D. Howard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goals for public schools are to educate all students so that they may attend colleges and/or develop relevant job and citizenship skills. African American students enrolled in American public schools struggle to keep up academically, revealing a so called “achievement gap.” Consequently, many African American children are unable to realize their potential and participate as successful contributing citizens. This study examined how African American parents might engage in their children’s schooling and how schools might support this participation to better meet the needs of these students.

The segregation and racism historically practiced in public schools has led to negative …

What Motivates Middle School Students To Become Better Writers?, Julie Mahoney

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study is to examine and evaluate adolescents' perspectives on academic writing and investigate ways in which a teacher can motivate these students to become better writers. Common Core curriculum was used along with collaborative, technology-based and independent writing tasks in which students learned how to identify their writing motivations in a variety of writing tasks. Qualitative inquiry strategies such as student surveys, student written work and observations were used to collect data. The data revealed that the students were motivated by writing assignments in which they knew they would present to the class and receive …

Action Items, Wku Graduate Council

Graduate School

Overview of action items handled by the Graduate Council.

Longitudinal Effects Of School Climate On Middle-School Students' Academic, Social-Emotional And Behavioral Outcomes, Jennifer Lynn Engelland-Schultz

Theses and Dissertations

Millions of youth are at risk for low academic achievement, school dropout, risky behavior, bullying, and mental health concerns, especially those living in rural areas. Protective factors can reduce the likelihood of children and adolescents experiencing these negative outcomes. Research shows that positive school climate is a powerful protective factor for youth. The present study investigated the longitudinal relations between middle school students' school climate perceptions and their academic, social-emotional, and behavioral development over two years. Specifically, 510 students in grades 5-9 from six rural schools rated their support and influence at school as well as their internalizing problems, personal …

An Investigation Of Nominalization And Lexical Density In Undergraduate Research Proposals, Thu Ha T. Nguyen, Emily C. Edwards

Bahram Kazemian

Academic writing is considered an essential skill for academic success not only for undergraduate study but also for students’ further education and professional development. This writing genre has certain characteristics often lacking in students’ research writing. This study explores two characteristics in students’ research proposals, nominalization and lexical density (LD), after the students completed courses on academic writing and Second Language Research (SLR) in their second year at a Vietnamese pedagogical university. It also investigates the effectiveness of writing training in increasing students’ performance regarding the use of given features. The findings, obtained from analyzing students’ proposals and recorded interviews, …

A Study Of The Impact Of Mental Contrasting And Implementation Intentions On Academic Performance, Suzanne Velasquez-Sheehy

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

According to the U.S. Department of Education, the national high school graduation rate is 81% and only 59% of college enrolled students in 2006 obtained a college degree within ten years of entering 9th grade (U. S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, 2014). Studies conclude that high school grades predicted academic performance no matter what type of high school the students attended and that students who had good grades went on to graduate from college as a result of self-efficacy, motivation, and academic goals (Bowen, Chingos, & McPherson, 2011). Limited research suggests that using mental contrasting and implementation …

Searching For Innovation, Creativity And 21st Century Skills: A Case Study Of A Suburban Elementary School District, Robert Alexander Serdar

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to seek out and identify the traits, attitudes and characteristics of innovative, creative and highly effective teachers within a suburban elementary school district. Participants included five elementary teachers who were identified by their colleagues as being exceptionally innovative, creative and fostering 21^st Century Skills. The research method for this qualitative case study consisted of teacher interviews, student interviews, and multiple classroom observations by the researcher. From this, seven themes, or practices, of highly innovative, creative teachers of 21^st Century Skills emerged: (1) See the Teacher as Lead Learner (2) Encourage Learner Reflection …

Stakeholders’ Perceptions Of Culturally Responsive Leadership In A K-12 Public Charter School In North Carolina, Kimberly M. Jones-Goods, Comfort Okpala

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to explore stakeholders’ perceptions of the culturally responsive leadership practices of charter school leaders. The goals were: (a) to explore how the school leadership team perceived culturally responsive leadership in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina, (b) to explore how the teachers perceived culturally responsive teaching and learning in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina, and (c) to explore how parents perceived a culturally responsive home-school connection in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina. The participants were members of the school leadership team, teachers, and parents. Results revealed the …

Beyond Information: College Choice As A Literacy Practice, Jeremy Samuel Greenfield

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Every year more than two million high school seniors prepare for and apply to college. These students visit college websites, write college admission essays, complete online application forms and use digital literacy tools to elicit and share knowledge about college. These literacy practices are central to the college choice process. Nonetheless, few scholars have examined how these practices are experienced by students or framed by the schools these students attend. Guided by Gee's Discourse theory, this study examines how a group of 14 high school seniors who attended a high poverty high school in the Bronx, New York developed the …

Teaching Community College Students Strategies For Learning Unknown Words As They Read Expository Text, Leslie Craigo

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The study reported here investigated methods that enable college students to learn the meaning of unknown words as they read discipline specific academic text. The ability to read and comprehend text is known to be positively correlated with academic success. However that ability is challenging to college students in part because of the sophisticated vocabulary encountered in academic text. The study reported here utilized an experimental design. Forty one participants read specific passages aloud during three sessions. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four intervention groups to investigate alternative methods of learning the meaning of unknown words. In the …

Culturally Responsive Teaching With Adult Language Learners, Christy M. Rhodes

Adult Education Research Conference

This study examined how frequently adult education English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) teachers in Florida used specific culturally responsive teaching practices and how important they believed those practices were to their teaching. Using Ginsberg and Wlodkowski’s Motivational Framework for Culturally Responsive Teaching, an online survey of 17 teaching practices was developed, validated, and administered to 143 adult ESOL and EAP teachers in Florida. This article describes the findings of this study, examining which practices were used with the highest and least frequency, as well as the practices described as most and least …

Learning Identity A Sociocultural Perspective, Hyewon Park

Adult Education Research Conference

This study examines the sociocultural perspective as the initial step to discovering an appropriate theoretical framework for describing how people learn identity. By illustrating the relation between the sociocultural perspective and identity, it suggests implications to overcome the limitations of existing adult learning studies to understand identity construction.

Mentoring While Black & Femalethe Gendered Literacy Phenomenon Of Black Women Mentors, Juanita Johnson-Bailey, Tennille Lasker-Scott, Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz

Adult Education Research Conference

Black women’s social positions in American society allow them to experience life in ways that are different than other women. In this study, we are suggesting that the mentoring that Black women give and receive is a form of literacy that is distinct.