Education Commons^™

The Effect Of A Minimum Credit Diploma Pathway On High School Graduation Rate, Teresa Strickland

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There are many paths to high school graduation. The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act has driven schools to be creative in seeking strategies by which students successfully earn their high¬¬¬¬ school diploma. In this non-experimental, causal-comparative study, a large Western North Carolina school district utilizes a minimum credit diploma to help students who previously experienced repeated academic failure achieve high school graduation by earning 21 course credits. The district requires traditional diploma-seeking students to earn seven additional credits to the 21 required by the State. Participants included high school graduates from the 2013-2014 school year. Both traditional …

A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of The Lived Experiences Of Adults In The North Georgia Area That Were Retained In Grades K-12, Betsy Green

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the impact retention has had on the lived experiences of adults in the North Georgia area that were retained in their K-12 education. The 10 participants were adults over the age of 18 that live in a rural North Georgia community and have experienced retention. The sampling was purposive and took place at public schools in Mountain Town, Georgia. The research questions for this study were: • How is the experience of grade retention remembered by adults retained in their K-12 education? • How has K-12 retention impacted self-efficacy, the …

Community College Students' Academic Success And Persistence In Math Courses After Developmental Math: A Case Study, Robin Bontrager

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative research study was a bounded case study exploring how and why community college students achieved academic success after completion of the developmental math sequence and a college level math course. The purpose of this research was to explore how and why community college students were academically successful in college algebra or elementary statistics after completion of the developmental math sequence. For the purpose of this study, the students' changes in behavior that influenced academic success and persistence in their math courses were generally defined as involvement in academic support programs, integration into social groups, and the perception of …

Student Athletes’ Perception Of Sexual Harassment, Lynn Hunt Long, Regina Rahimi, Delores D. Liston

Department of Curriculum, Foundations, & Reading Faculty Publications

Purpose: This qualitative study examined the perceptions of student athletes regarding sexual harassment and other forms of gendered harassment (homophobic bullying) as well as knowledge of and/or experiences with harassment in high school and university settings, primarily in athletic school culture.

Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-seven former high school athletes/active university athletes. The data were analyzed regarding theme and their relationship to the reviewed literature.

Findings: Findings indicate that the athletic culture poses particular issues pertaining to the vulnerabilities and persistence of sexual bullying and harassment.

Discussion: Educators, coaches, and administrators must understand harassment, work to establish and …

The Power Of Nature: Developing Prosocial Behavior Toward Nature And Peers Through Nature-Based Activities, Ibrahim H. Acar, Julia C. Torquati

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

An early childhood teacher nurtures children’s perspective taking and respect for another living thing. These interactions happen daily at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center (SANC) Preschool in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Experiences like this promote children’s development of prosocial behavior, consistent with the Early Childhood Environmental Education Programs: Guidelines for Excellence (NAAEE 2010). This article examines the research question, How can teachers nurture the development of prosocial behavior for preschool-aged children through nature-based play and activities? To address this question, five researchers (including the second author) conducted 74 running record observations of children’s behavior and social interactions over the course of two …

Strengthening Executive Function Development For Students With Add, Lori Desautels

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

What are the root causes of Attention Deficit Disorder in our children and youth, and how do we address these challenges? According to the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 11 percent of children in the United States age 4-17 (6.4 million) have been diagnosed with ADHD as of 2011.

Dr. Russell Barkley, clinical professor of psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina and medical expert in ADD, shares that this disorder is primarily about emotional regulation and self-control. It is not just about inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. Emotional regulation, which is foundational to social, emotional, and …

Brain Labs: A Place To Enliven Learning, Lori Desautels

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Although emotion and cognition originate in different parts of the brain, they interact and play a powerful role in learning and memory. According to neuroscientists like Eric Jensen, priming the brain for particular states of engagement -- such as curiosity, intrigue, surprise, suspense, a bit of confusion, skepticism, and the feeling of safety -- prepares the mind to learn. Furthermore, incorporating emotion into our instruction and content supports long-term memory. This might not be news to teachers, but not enough students know how to optimize their brain for learning. That's why every child should have the opportunity to explore …

One Minute Tips: Take Two! Student Perceptions Of Videos Used For Information Literacy Instruction, Lucinda Rush, Rachel Lux, Christopher Lawton, Megan Smith

Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Digital learning objects are all the rage, but what does the YouTube generation think? We will discuss student perceptions of videos used for information literacy instruction and methods for incorporating short videos into assessable learning activities.

School Leadership Along The Trajectory From Monolingual To Multilingual, Laura Ascenzi-Moreno, Sarah Hesson, Kate Menken

Publications and Research

This article explores the critical role of school leaders in language policy change, and specifically in shifting their language education policies and practices from monolingual to multilingual. We examine the process of language policy change in three schools that were involved in a project aimed at increasing the knowledge base of school leaders about bilingualism and language learning, and which required that participating schools use bilingualism as a resource in instruction and cultivate a school-wide ecology of multilingualism. The project encouraged translanguaging pedagogical strategies that engage the entire linguistic repertoire of emergent bilinguals flexibly. Our findings demonstrate that the school …

The Role Of Perception, Interpretation, And Decision Making In The Development Of Beginning Teachers’ Competence, Rossella Santagata, Cathery Yeh

Education Faculty Articles and Research

This study investigates beginning US elementary teachers’ competence for teaching mathematics and its development during teacher preparation and into the first 2 years of full-time teaching. Data are drawn from three longitudinal case studies and include the classroom video analysis survey, classroom observations and interviews about teachers’ instructional decisions, and whole-day shadowing. A multi-case study design was used to examine the processes of perception, interpretation, and decision making in participants’ comments on video clips of teaching episodes and in reflections about their own teaching. Findings support the central role of these processes in teacher competence and the generative power of …

Journal Of The National Collegiate Honors Council, Volume 16, Number 2, Fall/Winter 2015 (Complete Issue)

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

50th Anniversary Issue

Forum on the Value of Honors

with essays by James Herbert and by 39 college and university presidents:

Paul W. Ferguson, President of Ball State University; Honors Dean: James S. Ruebel

J. David Armstrong, Jr., President of Broward College; Honors Director: Sheila Jones

Soraya M. Coley, President of Cal Poly Pomona; Honors Director: Suketu P. Bhavsar

Elizabeth A. Dinndorf, President of Columbia College; Honors Director: John Zubizarreta

Quintin B. Bullock, President of Community College of Allegheny County; Honors Director: Julia Fennell

Michael T. Benson, President of Eastern Kentucky University; Interim Honors Director: David Coleman

Jake B. Schrum, …

Honors Research Symposium Program Fall 2015, University Honors Program Students And Staff

University Honors Research Symposium Programs

No abstract provided.

Reflecting On Reflection, Janine S. Davis

Education Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

“No Somos Ratones”: La Negociación De Disciplina, Democracia Y Derechos En La Convivencia Escolar Un Estudio Etnográfico Del Liceo Confederación Suiza, Daniel Bergerson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este estudio de campo investiga la negociación de disciplina, democracia y derechos en la convivencia escolar del Liceo Confederación Suiza. Este liceo emblemático de Santiago de Chile es conocido por su carácter combativo en el movimiento estudiantil y el éxito excepcional de su nuevo Proyecto Educativo, lo que reemplaza ciertos aspectos del modelo neoliberal y escuela disciplinaria con elementos de la convivencia democrática y educación popular. Mediante una etnografía realizada en las aulas y el patio del liceo durante las últimas semanas del año escolar, la presente investigación analiza las interacciones observables entre los adultos y jóvenes del liceo con …

Preservice Elementary Teachers' Self-Efficacy For Teaching Writing: A Phenomenological Study, Kallen Dace

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the self-efficacy of teaching writing for elementary preservice teachers at a small private university in southern Missouri. Preservice elementary teachers’ self-efficacy for teaching writing was defined as the level of confidence preservice teachers possess in their ability to effectively teach writing to elementary students. This study explored how the preservice teacher participants viewed their self-efficacy as writers and their experiences as writers in both kindergarten through twelfth grade education and higher education. Additionally, the study explored how the writing experiences of these preservice elementary teachers shaped how they might teach writing …

A Correlation Analysis Of Faculty Interaction With Undergraduate Students In Online Courses And Student Course Completion Rates, Claudia Restiano

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The extent in which a teacher communicates with his or her students in an online setting may affect student course completion rates. The increased use of online courses and degree programs at the post-secondary level has fundamentally changed the way faculty members and students interact, and ultimately may impact student course completion rates. Course completion is an aspect of student retention. The purpose of this quantitative correlational research study was to analyze the correlation between faculty interaction with online undergraduate students in required introductory English composition courses and student completion rates in those courses. Blackboard is a learning management system …

Special Educators’ Perceptions Of Using Educational Rap Music To Build Phonemic Awareness Skills For Students Identified With Mild Intellectual Disabilities: A Phenomenological Study, Martha Plumlee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to understand special educators’ experiences and perceptions of using rap music to teach phonemic awareness skills to students with mild intellectual disabilities, in three Smith County (pseudonym) public school self-contained special education classrooms. A purposive sample utilized six participants in data collection comprised of semi-structured interviews, observations, documents, and one focus group. Data was analyzed using phenomenological reduction. Using Vygotsky’s (1978) sociocultural theory, Gardner’s (1983) multiple intelligences theory, and Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning theory, the essence of the shared experiences and perceptions were reported. An analysis of the data from semi-structured …

The Relationship Between Gaming Addictive Behavior, Satisfaction, And Success In Computer-Based Learning, Marlene Carrilho

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to examine the association between college students’ levels of gaming addictive behavior and their levels of student satisfaction and student success in a computer-based learning environment. Additionally, gender was investigated as a moderator of the association between gaming addictive behavior and student success and between gaming addictive behavior and student satisfaction. Data was collected through online surveys from a convenience sample of undergraduate students enrolled at a large, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)-accredited, evangelical Christian university located in Virginia. The statistical program SPSS 22.0 was used for the analyses. Hierarchical …

A Phenomenological Study Of Differentiated Instruction For Fifth Grade Gifted And High Ability Learners Through Math In Focus, Elizabeth Keithley Sizemore

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

his phenomenological study investigated the differentiation techniques implemented for gifted and high ability learners by fifth grade general classroom mathematics instructors utilizing the Math in Focus (Great Source/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009) Singapore Mathematics program in a suburban school district. To provide an understanding of the differentiation process currently being implemented by general classroom mathematics teachers, six participants completed an open-ended questionnaire and two representative participants were interviewed, observed, and asked to provide artifacts for analysis in the study. Data analysis using transcendental phenomenological reduction, including bracketing and horizonalization, revealed several overarching lessons. Participants analyzed multiple student data sources throughout the …

Teacher Implementation Of Mobile Learning Initiative At A Sixth Grade School: A Phenomenological Study, Tina Hemphill Fitts

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to investigate teachers’ perceptions of and experiences with the adoption and implementation process as teachers at Tops Sixth Grade School (all participant and institutional names herein are pseudonyms, unless otherwise specified) transition from a one-to-one laptop initiative to a school-wide adoption of mobile learning. Using Rogers’s (1995) IDT and Wenger’s (1998) CoP theories, this study defined the adoption process as the manner through which an individual or group seeks and processes information about an innovation and then forms an attitude that leads to adoption or rejection. Participants included eight sixth-grade teachers whose …

Juntos Ya Somos El Cambio Que Buscamos: Por Qué La Confech Debe Fusionar Los Movimientos Sociales Para Aumentar Participación Electoral Y Desmantelar El Régimen Neoliberal, Nathaniel Harding

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Esta investigación examina cómo las actividades de la Confederación de los Estudiantes de Chile (CONFECH) hacen el movimiento estudiantil más efectivo o inefectivo en lograr su meta de realizar una educación gratuita y de calidad para eliminar la desigualdad que el régimen neoliberal produce a través del sistema educativo chileno. Para contestar esta cuestión, el estudio analiza tres aspectos: cómo las personas de distintas clases sociales reaccionan y participan en el movimiento, cómo esta inclusión o exclusión socioeconómica en la participación en el movimiento influye el desarrollo de una consciencia colectiva crítica en la sociedad chilena, y las consecuencias políticas …

Critical Thinking Skills And Information Literacy Skills: Discerning Online Information Among High School Students, Patricia Flood

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the impact of discerning information accessed on the Internet that is authentic, reliable, and valid as facilitated by a 1:1 iPad program on students’ critical thinking skills and information literacy skills. Students enrolled in a Career Magnet School where each student has an iPad to receive and deliver assignments were measured on their critical thinking skills in solving real-world problems using the Test of Everyday Reasoning (TER). Their information literacy skills were measured using iSkills which is based on real-world problem solving through digital means. Students enrolled in a traditional high school with limited exposure to the …

A Proactive, Experiential And Student-Centered Learning Approach: A Case Study Of The Effects Of A Social Media Video Editing “App” In A Traditional Classroom Setting, Bruce Kirk

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The use of social media App’s has exploded in recent years. The purpose of this case study was to explore the use and implications of a social media App for shooting and editing video, when used in a higher education classroom where video projects are required. The study examined how the use of a student-centered App — in place of more traditional video and editing instruction — effected the student-learner model. The research questions included: RQ1 How does a social media video App impact student learning in a traditional higher education classroom? RQ2 What is the impact of a social …

Exploring The Convergence Of Ministry, Tenure And Efficacy: A Phenomenological Study Of Long-Tenured Pastors, Joshua Strunk

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In recent years there has been an increased interest in understanding the cultivation of effective pastoral ministry. While much has been written on the dynamics of short-tenure, less attention has been devoted to the dynamics of long-tenure. Why do pastors stay and how do they perceive their efficacy is affected by this? In light of this gap, the purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to explore the lived experience of long-tenured senior pastors. Data was collected by a purposeful sampling of 10 participants and consisted of a combination of documentation, field notes and interviews. Data analysis utilized Moustakas’ methodology …

The Impact Of E-Readers On The Domains Of Reading Comprehension In High School Students, Erika Zeidler

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

n this quasi-experimental static comparison group design, a homogenous sample of 128 American Literature (high school juniors) students were placed in a comparison and treatment group to determine whether e-readers can improve decoding skills and language comprehension, the two main domains of reading comprehension. Both groups took a pre- and posttest that measured their reading comprehension skills in both areas. The comparison group read a class assigned novel in a traditional paperback version while the treatment group read the novel on either a Kindle or a Kindle app on his or her smart phone or device. The treatment group was …

Using What They Know To Teach Them What They Need To Know, Lucinda Rush

Libraries Faculty & Staff Presentations

Social networking sites (SNS) have been integrated seamlessly into our everyday lives, and college students are one of their biggest consumers (Lenhart, et al., 2010). While we see deskilling as a result of this consumer training, we see training in other areas (Rush & Wittkower, 2013). For example, students are fluent at information grazing, sharing and building relationships online, but they cannot explain how the filter bubble works or how their Google search results are ranked (Rush & Wittkower, 2013). Students come to college as consumers of social media but are not necessarily adept at using social media to contribute …

A Reflection On My Challenged Assumptions, Darvesh Karim

Professional Development Centre, Gilgit

No abstract provided.

Creating Safe, Strength-Based Classrooms, Lori Desautels

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

Schools are not machines. Schools are a network of human beings who feel, think, behave, and function within a human system that is alive and never static. Inside living systems, we need to feel safe and felt. This system is wired to thrive, even through difficult times. We're here for deep learning, which is profoundly relational, and connection to one another is a prerequisite for our collective emotional, social, spiritual, and cognitive growth and development.

Elementary Students’ Perceptions Of Gender Equity In Mathematics Classes, Debra Jacobson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There have been various research studies stating that in elementary school, gender bias in all subjects is nonexistent. However, other researchers interested in gender equity in the mathematics classroom have recognized that gender bias does not occur in early elementary school grades but exists by middle school. Thus, research in this area is greatly needed. This study examined children in the third, fourth, and fifth grades to determine whether students’ perceptions of their own mathematical abilities relate to their perceptions of their teacher’s beliefs about gender bias in mathematics. Pearson Product-Moment correlation and Point-Biserial correlations were used to analyze data. …

Adoption Of Ereaders By Senior Adults: A Phenomenological Study, Dale Tysor

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A majority of the previous research on older adults and their use of technology has focused on computers and the Internet. Most of the eReader-specific research examined younger participants in an academic setting. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the perspectives of Georgia senior adults in their adoption of eReaders. The adoption of an eReader was generally defined as the acquisition of an eReader, followed by the selecting, downloading, navigating, and reading of eBooks using an eReader. This study took place in a public library and was designed to answer 3 research questions: (a) What are contributing …