Education Commons^™

Empowering Female English Language Learners To Pursue Computer Science Fields: A Practical 4-Hour Workshop For Beginning Teachers In High School, Osaro Althouse

Master's Projects and Capstones

Female English language learners (FELLs) are not taken under consideration when trying to attract new student populations to computer science fields. Frequently, females are studied cohesively without regard to their individual distinctions and challenges. This unique population has to overcome traditional gender perceptions and linguistic confronts when considering the field of computer science. This paper provides a practical four-hour workshop for novice teachers in high school that are eager to empower female English language learners (FELLs) that demonstrate potential or are interested in entering computer science fields. An overview of research within the last ten years is exhibited, which includes …

From The Whiteboard To The Web: Equipping Administrators To Recruit, Hire, And Induct Top Quality K-12 Online Teachers, Daniel Keith Huld

Dissertations and Theses

Online learning is taking our nation by storm and changing the face of education forever. By 2014 we are projected to have 10 million students taking at least one online class (Nagel, 2009). The online revolution is one of the greatest changes the field of education has seen in the last 25 years (Greenway & Vanourek, 2006). This major shift in education also represents a major shift in how our teachers are prepared and what great teaching looks like in online settings.

The online classroom is distinctly different than the brick-and-mortar classroom, and success in the classroom does not necessarily …

An Online Faculty Training System Proposal For Asbury University, Thomas J. Fee

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Faculty Integration Of Technology In Undergraduate Courses At Private Colleges And Universities, Evelyn G. Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative research study was to investigate the integration of technology in undergraduate courses by faculty at private colleges and universities. Integration of technology is using technology as an instructional tool to improve teaching and learning (Clayton-Pedersen & O’Neill, 2005; Wilson & Hayes, 2000; Woodbridge, 2004). Chickering and Gamson’s (1987) 7 principles for good practice in undergraduate education provided the theoretical framework for this research. The researcher conducted a survey of full-time faculty at 21 private colleges and universities in Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The results of the study indicated that faculty use …

Online Versus Face-To-Face Biology: A Comparison Of Student Transactional Distance, Approach To Learning, And Knowledge Outcomes, Mary Erin Riggins

Dissertations

Community colleges are among many other institutions increasing course offerings online, but there is still some concern about the quality of online learning. Educator concerns, a lack of empirical evidence on biology courses offered online, and the need for an equal opportunity for education support the need for clarification of the quality of distance education in biology, especially in the community college setting. Student attitudes, approaches to learning, and performance should all be studied in order to formulate a better evaluation of the quality and effectiveness of online courses (Svirko & Mellanby, 2008).

The purpose of this study was to …

Microblogging As A Facilitator Of Online Community In Graduate Education, Vincent Anthony Rhodes

English Theses & Dissertations

Part-time and distance-learning students can experience a sense of isolation from their peers and the university. Concern about this isolation and resulting student attrition has increased in the midst of explosive growth in online course enrollments. One possible solution: building a stronger sense of community within the online graduate classroom using microblogging technology such as Twitter. Unfortunately, scholars across disciplines define community in different ways with some rejecting the concept altogether in favor of other theoretical constructs. And, few scholars have examined the notion of online classroom community from an English Studies perspective exploring the rhetorical exigencies that underpin this …

Being Nontraditional And Learning Online: Assessing The Psychosocial Learning Environments, Self-Efficacy, And Affective Outcomes Among College Student Groups, Roslyn La'toya Ashford

Dissertations

The study compared traditional and nontraditional students’ attitudes about the psychosocial learning environment and their influence on self-efficacy, enjoyment of online learning, and student satisfaction by using Moos’ (1979) Model of Environmental and Personal Variables and the three dimensions of social climate as its theoretical framework. Traditional and nontraditional students were selected based on known differences between their personal characteristics/traits. A total of 151 undergraduate students taking online classes at a university in the southeastern United States participated in the online quantitative pretest/posttest. The findings revealed that nontraditional students preferred less student interaction and collaboration and more asynchronicity than traditional …

Using Online Education To Transition Teaching Assistants To Teacher Certification: Examining The Differences Among Teacher Education Programs, Billie Jean Tingle

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare The University of Southern Mississippi elementary education teacher candidates that completed the online or traditional route to determine if there was a significant difference in professional knowledge and skills using Praxis II test scores. The participants included 60 Teacher Assistant Program (TAP) online teacher candidates and 564 traditional face-to-face teacher candidates. This study also compared the two groups’ perceptions of self-efficacy. The instrument used in this part of the research study was the Teacher Education Preparation Program Exit Survey (Appendix A). A selection of the participants that completed their teacher internship during …

Growth And Decline Of "Second Life" As An Educational Platform, Christine Libby Mark

Dissertations

Second Life, a 3D online immersive virtual environment, emerged in 2003 and was predicted to become the predominant online course delivery platform by 2013. Educational institutions initially rushed to create a presence in the Second Life; however, after 2009 those same institutions were disappointed by their experiences and deserted the virtual world. This study sought to uncover the reasons for the rapid decline of such a highly lauded educational platform. Using a mixed methods research design, utilizing a qualitative phenomenology with in-depth personal interviews of higher education administrators followed by a detailed quantitative survey instrument, the researcher was able to …

The Relationship Between Course Design, Sense Of Community, And Student Achievement Of Students In Online Courses, Maria Eugenia Perez-Butron

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The number of students enrolled in at least one online course reached nearly 6.7 million for the 2011-2012 academic year, which represents around 32% of the total enrollment (Allen & Seaman, 2013). As more higher education institutions offer online courses, it is necessary to further study course design and effective online strategies. Numerous researchers (LaPointe & Reisetter, 2008; Liu, et al., 2007; Ouzts, 2006; Rovai, 2002a) have established that high-quality online learning fosters a strong sense of community among its members. The purpose of this study is to describe the strength and direction of the relationship between online course design …

Identification Of Curriculum Content For A Renewable Energy Graduate Degree Program, John R. Haugherty

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the College of Science and Technology Morehead State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science by John R. Haughery on April 24, 2014.

Associations Between Input And Outcome Variables In An Online High School Bioinformatics Instructional Program, Douglas S. Lownsbery

Dissertations and Theses

Quantitative data from a completed year of an innovative online high school bioinformatics instructional program were analyzed as part of a descriptive research study. The online instructional program provided the opportunity for high school students to develop content understandings of molecular genetics and to use sophisticated bioinformatics tools and methodologies to conduct authentic research. Quantitative data were analyzed to identify potential associations between independent program variables including implementation setting, gender, and student educational backgrounds and dependent variables indicating success in the program including completion rates for analyzing DNA clones and performance gains from pre-to-post assessments of bioinformatics knowledge. Study results …

Faculty Perceptions Of Learning Spaces, Paul B. Czarapata, Doyle Friskney

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A capstone submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the College of Education at Morehead State University by Paul B. Czarapata and Doyle Friskney on April 9, 2014.

Improving Argumentation Through Goal Instructions In Asynchronous Online Discussions, Yekaterina Prudchenko

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Argumentation incorporated into class discussions can improve students' problem solving skills and enhance their epistemic and conceptual understanding. Research indicates students sometimes need scaffolding such as goal instructions to improve their argumentation skills. This study examined the effectiveness of different types of goal instructions on participants' argumentation achievement. In particular, the study compared the effects of minimal, moderate, substantial, and no goal instructions in asynchronous online discussions on participants' argumentation achievement, as measured by development, balance, and explanatory discourse scores. The study also tried to understand participants' experiences of the goal instructions by comparing the differences in emergent themes across …

Composing The Classroom, Constructing Hybridity: Writing Technology In(To) First-Year Composition Course Design, Christopher Friend

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Online education has received excessive attention in recent decades as its characteristics and potential have undergone intense debate and scrutiny. Similar debate and scrutiny surround the content of first-year composition (FYC) courses. As we continue to define what composition studies entails, we redefine what we study in FYC. Yet discussions of blended delivery mode---using both online and on-ground teaching methods---get lost amid these debates. This dissertation addresses the dearth of research on blended online writing instruction by asserting the essential nature of connections between the content and the delivery of FYC courses. Through case studies of two experienced instructors teaching …

Wearing Different Hats: Micro Role Transitions In Two Contexts, Opal Man-Ching Leung

2014

Individuals make transitions between roles everyday as they move from home to work to other settings. This dissertation extends the work of Goffman (1959), Hall & Richer (1988), and Ashforth et al. (2000, 2001) on the topic of micro role transitions, which are the "frequent and usually recurring transitions, such as the commute between home and work" (Ashforth et al., 2000: 472). While the context of most of the research on micro role transitions has typically been focused on the work-home boundary (e.g. Rothbard et al., 2005; Nippert-Eng, 2008; Greenhaus & Powell, 2006; Hall & Richter, 1988), the three studies …

Efficacy Of A Growth Mindset Intervention To Increase Student Achievement, Paula Benee' Boozer Wilkins

Education Dissertations and Projects

This research investigation examined the effectiveness of Brainology © , an online/classroom based curriculum, targeted to increase student motivational behavior and academic achievement. Five middle schools within an urban school district in the piedmont region of North Carolina participated in this study. Seventh-grade students and their teachers were the targeted sample (N=684).

A number of school motivational constructs were measured (mindset, effort beliefs, academic self-efficacy, interest and engagement in science, motivation in science, and use of study skills strategies). Teacher ratings of student motivational behavior were used and student academic achievement in math and science was calculated by quarterly grades …

Improving Enrollment In The Construction Management Graduate Program Through Students’ Perspectives, Mouloud Messaoudi

Master of Technology Management Plan II Graduate Projects

Low enrollment and the decrease in graduation and retention rates are challenges facing the growth of the Master’s in Technology Management – Construction Management (MTM-CM) program at BGSU. In addition, the competition between the universities to enroll and retain more in-state, out-of-state, and international students is aggressive. There is a need for a revaluation for the MTM-CM program in order to attract more students in the future. This study is a necessary step to know what the MTM-CM students think about the product delivered to them at BGSU. There was no prior study investigating the satisfaction level of the construction …

Failing The Failed: A Treatise On The Need For A Research Based Pedagogical Approach To Credit Recovery, Elise Anderson Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation in practice is to address the problem of online credit recovery. Although online enrollments have skyrocketed in recent years and all preliminary research indicates a large percentage of those enrollments are from students seeking credit recovery, much of the curriculum currently being offered is not research-based. Following a literature review focused on the history of credit recovery as well as successful current methods, we designed CRIT (Credit Recovery Instructional Treatment), a research-based approach to curriculum design for credit recovery. CRIT is a standards based curriculum relying on criterion based assessments. This approach was then applied …

Failing The Failed: A Treatise On The Need For A Research Based Pedagogical Approach To Credit Recovery, Kelly Scott

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation in practice is to address the problem of online credit recovery. Although online enrollments have skyrocketed in recent years and all preliminary research indicates a large percentage of those enrollments are from students seeking credit recovery, much of the curriculum currently being offered is not research-based. Following a literature review focused on the history of credit recovery as well as successful current methods, we designed CRIT (Credit Recovery Instructional Treatment), a research-based approach to curriculum design for credit recovery. CRIT is a standards based curriculum relying on criterion based assessments. This approach was then applied …

Exploring Faculty Adoption And Utilization Of Blackboard At A Community College In The Kentucky Community And Technical College System, Brent A. Eldridge

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

The study explored the faculty adoption and use of a Blackboard at a community college in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. A cross-sectional survey design was constructed through the lens of Rogers’s Perceived Attributes of Innovations and Chickering and Ehrman’s Implementing Seven Principles: Technology as a Lever to investigate perceptions and opinions on faculty members’ use of Blackboard in their courses. The survey was piloted, modified and deployed to a population of 932 central Kentucky community college faculty who were recruited to participate in the online survey. Descriptive demographic items (gender, age, highest degree attained, years of teaching …

Exploring The Attitudes Of Criminal Justice And Homeland Security Students Regarding Assessment Techniques In Online Courses, Terry Allen Taylor

Online Theses and Dissertations

Substantial increases in online education since the start of the 21st century requires investigation in to how online courses differ from traditional face-to-face courses. It is particularly important to discover how online students learn and which assessment methods they prefer and see as most beneficial to online learning. Using online assessment techniques that correspond with those rated highly my online students can lead to better student experiences in online courses and improved persistence rates in online courses, which have traditionally be lower compared to face-to-face courses.

The participants for the study sample included online students majoring in Bachelor of Science …

Enhancing Critical Thinking In Clinical Laboratory Students: A Multimodal Model, Denise Marie Juroske Short

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to improve critical thinking skills in clinical laboratory technologists through the development, implementation, and assessment of a multimodal model targeting critical thinking skills. Clinical laboratory technologists influence patient care through the testing of laboratory samples. Employers of these entry level professionals identified a need for improved critical thinking skills. This quasi-experimental study aimed to design a multimodal critical thinking model, implement the model into the clinical laboratory educational curriculum, and assesses this skill set for students in a pre-test / post-test format. The model was delivered and assessed for 47 clinical laboratory students at …

Analysis Of Student Perceptions Of The Psychosocial Learning Environment In Online And Face-To-Face Career And Technical Education Courses, Diane L. Carver

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Career and technical education (CTE) courses offered online are becoming more common in secondary schools. Recognizing the adaptability of CTE courses and designing curricula to offer online learners the same experience as face-to-face learners is challenging for education professionals and requires analyses of both environments. A lack of empirical studies makes it important to conduct research on online learning environments from the perspectives of high school students.

This study analyzes student perceptions of the psychosocial learning environment in online and face-to-face career and technical education courses. The research explores and compares how high school students perceive their learning environment and …