Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding Children's Safety Through Parental Views Of Risks And Strategies, Kayla Ramirez, Letizia Maukar, Michael Wendell, Jerry Alan Fails, Jessi Boyer, Kendall House, John Ziker, Hollie Abele

Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research

Children are introduced to technology when they are young, resulting in the need for parents to learn about child-interfacing technologies to ensure their children remain safe while using digital devices. In our research, we investigated parental perspectives of technology platforms and risks as well as how their strategic approaches to mitigate those risks vary based on how much they “trust” their children when using those devices. Our research was conducted using an online survey, initially analyzing data from a previously distributed survey of 99 families (with children ages 6-12), revising the survey instrument, and redistributing the survey to 100 additional …

From Mind To Matter: Patterns Of Innovation In The Archaeological Record And The Ecology Of Social Learning, Kathryn Demps, Nicole M. Herzog, Matt Clark

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Archaeology and cultural evolution theory both predict that environmental variation and population size drive the likelihood of inventions (via individual learning) and their conversion to population-wide innovations (via social uptake). We use the case study of the adoption of the bow and arrow in the Great Basin to infer how patterns of cultural variation, invention, and innovation affect investment in new technologies over time and the conditions under which we could predict cultural innovation to occur. Using an agent-based simulation to investigate the conditions that manifest in the innovation of technology, we find the following: (1) increasing ecological variation results …

Technology And The Leading Of Learning: The Use And Effects Of Technology In The Classroom, Eric M. Hannah

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

In the present research paper, the focus is on exploring the various methods of collecting data through technological means and examining the views of 6th-grade students and teachers on the utilization of technology within the classroom setting. As a researcher without a background in education, this study seeks to understand the transformative influence of technology on contemporary learning, highlighting its positive outcomes for teachers, students, and those participating in remote education. The significant increase in the adoption of technology, particularly during and following the recent pandemic, has prompted schools and educators globally to reassess their instructional approaches, striving to create …

5Th Kidrec Workshop: Search And Recommendation Technology Through The Lens Of A Teacher, Monica Landoni, Theo Huibers, Maria Soledad Pera, Jerry Alan Fails

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this past year, the role of technology to support education has been more prominent than ever. This has prompted us to focus the 5^th Edition of the International and Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Children & Recommender and Information Retrieval Systems (KidRec) around a major stakeholder when it comes to technology adoption for the classroom: the teacher. Much like in the previous editions of the workshop, our priority remains understanding what is good when it comes to information retrieval systems for children, this time from the perspectives of teachers. In order to control scope of our discussion and …

Teaching Mathematics Education Online: Instructional Theories, Strategies, And Technologies, Angie Hodge-Zickerman, Cindy S. York, Patrick R. Lowenthal

Educational Technology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This overview chapter provides an introduction to instructional theories, strategies, and technologies that can guide teachers new to teaching mathematics (both content and methods) online in a formal online classroom setting. We begin by discussing different types of online learning environments, including synchronous, asynchronous, bichronous, and HyFlex environments. We then focus on different theories, such as cognitive apprenticeship, individualized/personalized instruction, social learning, and inquiry-based mathematics education theories. After that, we focus on some common technologies and strategies, such as think/pair/share, student groups, whiteboards, discussion boards, and more that someone new to teaching mathematics teachers online may use to engage learners.

Impact Of Internet Connection On Gifted Students’ Perceptions Of Course Quality At An Online High School, Stacy Hawthorne

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Online learning is on the rise in K-12 education and, with the lockdowns and social distancing measures implemented as a result of COVID-19, has gained increased prominence. While the demand for online learning is on the rise, many U.S. students lack adequate Internet connectivity to have a successful online learning experience. Connectivity issues, particularly when they impact audio, can cause students to tune out or even drop out of online learning. This is problematic for online schools and course providers who often have no control over the speed of a student’s home Internet connection. Online schools also have to balance …

The Expatriate And Transnational Distance Student Phenomenon: A Series Of Investigations, William H. Stewart Iii

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The scale and scope of distance education has changed significantly over the last 250 years. Technology, from the early days of correspondence courses to radio, television and satellite broadcasting, has continually increased the scope, scale, and access potential to education. Distance courses and programs, however, were typically serving local, regional, or national communities. The Internet, by contrast, has transformed distance education by enabling access to education by virtually anyone, anywhere in the world. Students are no longer limited or constrained by geography or residency, yet how such potential has been conceptualized, identified, and subsequently researched has been limited by homogenous …

Risk And Uncertainty Regarding Inuit Transportation In The Face Of Climate Change, Mitchell Brinton

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The evaluation and minimization of risk and uncertainty is an integral part of human decision-making. There are many strategies humans employ to help manage risk and uncertainty. One kind of strategy that has been important for Homo sapiens involves technological innovation. For example, the ancestors of contemporary Inuit developed the dogsled which was likely critical to their expansion into, and survival in, the harsh environments of the North American and Greenlandic maritime Arctic. Much like how the automobile replaced the horse, however, snow machines have all but replaced the dog team as the main transportation technology employed by today’s Inuit. …

Leveraging Academic Partnerships To Improve Logistics At Nonprofit Organizations, Andrew S. Manikas, James R. Kroes, Thomas F. Gattiker

IT and Supply Chain Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article presents the results of a partnership between a nonprofit organization and a team of academic researchers that developed a low-cost spreadsheet-based tool that allows organizations to effectively schedule vehicle operations. Specifically, the tool (1) handles the real-world constraints present in moderately complex logistics environments; and (2) uses general computing hardware and software that is already deployed in most organizations, thereby rendering the solution radically low cost (effectively free). We deployed this tool to a humanitarian organization, the Idaho Foodbank, which realized a substantial improvement in its fleet efficiency and a corresponding reduction in route-planning time. The methodology used …

How Education Level And Willingness To Learn Affect Older Adults In Their Use Of Mobile Technology In Southwest Idaho, Kimberly M. Neagle

McNair Scholars Research Journal

As a person’s age increases, their use of technology decreases (Casado-Muñoz, 2015), which can hinder their access to resources, such as medical care, online products and services, and basic communication. Previous research shows that if seniors have higher education levels and willingness to learn, they are more likely to use technology (Bailey & Sheehan, 2009). This project used the cultural evolution theory and social learning to examine how education levels affect a senior’s use of technology, and how their willingness to learn affects their adoption of mobile technology. Seventy individuals were surveyed, aged 65 years or older: 45 individuals enrolled …

Game-Based Online Antenatal Breastfeeding Education: A Pilot, Jane S. Grassley, Kelley C. Connor, Laura Bond

Nursing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Healthy Moms intervention on antenatal breastfeeding self-efficacy and intention and to determine the feasibility of using an online game-based learning platform to deliver antenatal breastfeeding education.

Background: The Internet has potential for improving breastfeeding rates through improving women's access to antenatal breastfeeding education.

Methods: Twelve computer-based breastfeeding education modules were developed using an online learning platform. Changes in participants' breastfeeding self-efficacy and intention pre- and post-intervention were measured using descriptive statistics and a one-way ANOVA.

Results: Of the 25 women submitting the pretest, …

Sheriff's Deputies' Perceptions Of The Implementation Of Video Visitation Programming In A Jail Setting: An Exploratory Study, Caitlyn O'Very

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to understand how sheriff’s deputies at the Ada County Sheriff’s Office perceived the implementation of a remote video visitation program at the Ada County Jail, as well as what the deputies believed to be the strengths and weaknesses of the system in terms of how it affects their daily job, and inmates and their families. Anecdotal evidence suggests that video visitation can positively impact the work of sheriff’s deputies by decreasing the amount of time they spend processing visitors into the facility and moving inmates around the facility. An exploratory secondary data analysis was conducted by reviewing …

How Education Level And Willingness To Learn Affect Older Adults In Their Use Of Mobile Technology In Southwest Idaho, Kimberly Neagle

College of Arts and Sciences Presentations

As a person’s age increases, their use of technology decreases (Casado- Muñoz, 2015), which can hinder their access to resources, such as medical care, online products and services, and basic communication. For 90% of American adults, the use of mobile technology is a part of daily life (Pew Research Center, 2014). Previous research shows that if seniors have higher education levels and willingness to learn, they are more likely to use technology (Bailey & Sheehan, 2009). This project will examine how education levels affect a senior’s use of technology, and how their willingness to learn affects their adoption of mobile …

Metro Meals On Wheels Treasure Valley Employs A Low-Cost Routing Tool To Improve Deliveries, Andrew S. Manikas, James R. Kroes, Thomas F. Gattiker

IT and Supply Chain Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this paper, we discuss a project in which we developed a spreadsheet-based system that interfaces with a no-fee driving-directions application programming interface to quickly and accurately build a travel time and distance matrix and then rapidly determine near-optimal delivery-route schedules using a modified genetic algorithm. To the best of our knowledge, the method we used to create the travel matrix had not been employed previously in an academic study. The tool was tested and refined in a humanitarian setting—a local branch of the Meals on Wheels Association of America (now Meals on Wheels America), an organization that combats hunger …

Teachers’ Perceptions About Math Snacks Spanish Materials, Sara Morales, Lida J. Uribe-Flórez, Karen Trujillo, Karin Wiburg

Educational Technology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Mathematics has been a gatekeeper especially for diverse students (Martin, Gholson & Leonard, 2010). The implications of an increasingly diverse school population calls for the development of culturally and linguistically responsive materials, including support materials for mathematics in Spanish. Teachers of mathematics in the United States have limited resources available to them in Spanish to support bridging mathematics content and practices for English Learners (Moschkovich, 2013). The CCSS-M requires deep conceptual understanding in order for students to be successful in their formal K-12 education. Students, whose home language is other than English, need support and opportunities to success in mathematics …

Technology In The Linguistics Classroom: Instructor And Student Perspective, Michal Martinez, Kelli Jones, Jessica Milanez, Danielle Yarbrough

Michal Temkin Martinez

This poster will highlight best practices for incorporating technology into the linguistics classroom. From facilitating real-time feedback in large lecture-style introductory classes to the use of mobile technology and document sharing in field methods courses, this presentation will highlight the benefits and downfalls of the incorporation of technology into undergraduate courses. It will also demonstrate the importance of using technology as a tool to better meet and assess learning objectives. Both instructor and student perspectives will be outlined and discussed.

Let’S Make A Connection: Understanding How Physically Interactive Technology Is Taking The Virtual To The Physical, Lacey Vander Boegh

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study offers initial research on Physically Interactive Technology (PIT). Findings of this research reveal how people made sense of PIT, how the ways people understand PIT reveal presence due to physical interaction, and how PIT challenges the definition of online interaction. Current and past literature on social presence theory and social cues theory provide a rationale for how “present” a person can be during online interaction via Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC). Current research states CMC is used in many contexts because of the beneficial ways it allows individuals to feel face to face. However, within this literature, scholars tend to …

Using Google Apps To Teach An Online Course, Memo Cordova

Library Faculty Publications and Presentations

Boise State uses Blackboard as its main content management system. Moodle is another. But we are free to use whatever platforms we choose. I have been teaching the main online UNIV 106 course since 2005. Since then it has evolved from a single, paper-based course into a hybrid of courses taught by several librarians. UNIV 106 is offered several times during the school year and delivered in a variety of formats: some are offered online, some in person; some are paired with English 102 courses (known as PoWeR: Project Writing and Research); and others are offered based on subject-specific areas …

Splat: Spreading Innovation & Ideas, Amy E. Vecchione, Memo Cordova

Amy E. Vecchione

Libraries are never short on innovation, especially when budgets are lean. How can staff stay on top of the latest library trends, and empower individuals to think “lean and mean” when times demand creativity? One solution, developed in Idaho during a summit on developing services for digital natives, was to create a Special Projects Library Action Team (SPLAT). SPLAT members act in the crow’s nest capacity of technological change. They search and share innovative ideas, leads on projects, and experiment in social media statewide; vet ideas; and bring ideas back to the local level. Supported by the Idaho Commission for …

Handy Manny And The Emergent Literacy Technology Toolkit, Howard P. Parette, Jack Hourcade, Nichole Boeckmann, Craig Blum

Early and Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper outlines the use of a technology toolkit to support emergent literacy curriculum and instruction in early childhood education settings. Components of the toolkit include hardware and software that can facilitate key emergent literacy skills. Implementation of the comprehensive technology toolkit enhances the development of these critical literacy skills in at-risk young learners.

(R)Evolution In The Information Industry: What The Information Industry Can Learn From The Music Industry, Amy M. Elliott

Library Faculty Publications and Presentations

A failure to adapt to and adopt new and changing technology caused the music industry to crash, a fate that the information industry currently faces. This paper is an overview of the music industry's crash, as a result of emerging digital technology, and the lessons that the information industry can learn from the music industry's mistakes in order to avoid its own crash now that technology allows for quicker, easier, and cheaper publication. In the 1980s and 1990s record companies refused to effectively adapt to and adopt the new digital technologies of CDs, MP3s, and digital recording. This resulted in …

(R)Evolution In The Information Industry: What The Information Industry Can Learn From The Music Industry, Amy M. Elliott

Library Faculty Publications and Presentations

A failure to adapt to and adopt new and changing technology caused the music industry to crash, a fate that the information industry currently faces. This proposal is an overview of the music industry's crash, as a result of changing technology, and the lessons that the information industry can learn from the music industry's mistakes in order to avoid its own crash now that technology allows for quicker, easier, and cheaper publication. In the 80s & 90s record companies refused to effectively adapt to and adopt the new technologies of CDs, MP3s, and digital recording. This resulted in a slow …

Keepass = Password Miracle, Amy E. Vecchione

Amy E. Vecchione

No abstract provided.

Using Clicker 5 To Enhance Emergent Literacy In Young Learners, Howard P. Parette, Jack Hourcade, Jenny M. Dinelli, Nichole M. Boeckmann

Early and Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

Best practices in emergent literacy instruction for young children acknowledge and facilitate the smooth progression between children’s early engagement with print materials and subsequent fuller literacy mastery. In so doing, model programs target five key emergent literacy skills. The rapid rise in the breadth and depth of educational technology, including computer software, is offering early childhood education professionals new and powerful tools in teaching early literacy. This paper offers a brief review of best practices in emergent literacy, notes the growth of technology in this instruction, and examines the potential contributions of one specific software program, Clicker 5, in helping …

Using Microsoft® Powerpoint™ To Support Emergent Literacy Skill Development For Young Children At-Risk Or Who Have Disabilities, Howard Phillips Parette, Jack J. Hourcade, Nichole M. Boeckmann, Craig Blum

Early and Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the 21st century, “Digital Children” (Edyburn, 2002) are growing up in a world rich with technology, including cell phones, iPods, email, PalmPilots, Web sites, discussion boards, chat rooms, the Internet, and electronic toys and learning games (Siraj-Blatchford & Whitebread, 2003). Young children whose families use technology acquire knowledge of and skills in language and literacy in part through exposure to technology in the home (Jewitt, 2006). For example, McGee and Richgels (2006) observed that many young children become aware of the existence of print and its use by their families in their daily lives through screen presentations on the …

Use Of Writing With Symbols 2000 Software To Facilitate Emergent Literacy Development, Howard P. Parette, Nichole Boeckmann, Jack J. Hourcade

Early and Special Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper outlines the use of the Writing with Symbols 2000 software to facilitate emergent literacy development. The program’s use of pictures incorporated with text has great potential to help young children with and without disabilities acquire fundamental literacy concepts about print, phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, vocabulary development, and comprehension. The flexibility and features of the software allow early childhood professionals to create a variety of early literacy tools for the classroom, including worksheets, storybooks, and interactive activities.

Resistance To It Change In The Aec Industry: An Individual Assessment Tool, Kirsten Davis, Anthony D. Songer

Construction Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Numerous IT adoption studies within the AEC industry identify issues with individuals resisting IT changes. Current change models often only look at organizations and tasks and frequently neglect the individuals involved. The limitations in existing change models and the criticality of people issues in the successful implementation of change necessitates the investigation of individual resistance to IT change.

Change management theory and attitude-behavior connections provide a framework to study variables associated with impeding/promoting the use of technologies. Data collected from a 50-person sample of the AEC population allowed reductions of the attitudes, fears, and beliefs variables. Reducing the variables indicative …