Education Commons^™

The Effects Of Applying Authentic Learning Strategies To Develop Computational Thinking Skills In Computer Literacy Students, Wendye Dianne Mingo

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study attempts to determine if authentic learning strategies can be used to acquire knowledge of and increase motivation for computational thinking. Over 600 students enrolled in a computer literacy course participated in this study which involved completing a pretest, posttest and motivation survey. The students were divided into an experimental and control group based on class meeting day. The experimental group was given access to an authentic learning tool called COTHAULE. COTHAULE, which is an acronym that stands for Computational Thinking Authentic Learning Environment, is a website that was developed using a variety of technologies. The intellection behind COTHAULE …

A Model For Designing Instructional Narratives For Adult Learners: Connecting The Dots, Debra Mary Smith

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

A MODEL FOR DESIGNING INSTRUCTIONAL NARRATIVES:

CONNECTING THE DOTS

by

DEBRA M. SMITH

May 2013

Advisor: Ingrid Guerra-López, Ph.D.

Major: Instructional Technology

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

The purpose of this study was to develop a research-based model for designing and deploying instructional narratives based on principles derived from narrative theory, development theory, communication theory, learning theory and instructional design theory to enable adult learning and retention and the effective transfer of that retained learning to practice (performance contexts). Findings from these five areas were used to identify elements to inform the development of a model for the design and …

Factors That Are Associated With Workkeys® Assessment Scores Of Inmates In Michigan Department Of Correction's Community And Employment Readiness Training Program And Michigan State Industries Program, Pamela S. Jackson

Wayne State University Dissertations

Inmates face challenges in obtaining employment once they leave prison because many are undereducated and lack work skills. This study examined demographic and criminogenic variables of inmates in Michigan Department of Correction's (MDOC) Community and Employment Readiness Training (CERT) and Michigan State Industries (MSI) programs that were associated with their scores obtained on the WorkKeys® assessment test. MDOC uses the WorkKeys® to assess the gaps between inmates' current job readiness skill level and skills needed for various types of jobs upon release. There is no published literature comparing MDOC's Community and Employment Readiness Training (CERT) and Michigan State Industries (MSI) …

Practice As Pedagogy: Learning Through Participation In The Caribexams Online Community Of Practice, Kathy-Ann Daniel-Gittens

Wayne State University Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to develop community redesign strategies to support community members' participation in the CaribExams online Community of Practice and to investigate the impact of these strategies on members' participation levels and trajectories.

CaribExams online community was developed to assist out-of-school learners who were preparing to sit for the Caribbean Examinations Council's regional English exam. The redesign project was developed to address an ongoing problem of low participation by members in the online community. A second purpose of the study was to investigate and empirically validate theoretically grounded design principles based on social practice learning theory …

An Empirical Examination And Metaevaluation Of The Impact Evaluation Process, Anne Maechling Blake

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation empirically examines the Guerra-Lopez (2007a) Impact Evaluation Process (IEP), which is a prescriptive program evaluation model. Since there is no generally accepted process for arriving at final judgments about the usefulness, appropriateness, effectiveness, reliability, and validity of evaluation models, this study used a combination of approaches to begin to build a body of evidence about the effectiveness of the IEP. Primarily, the study used Stufflebeam's (2011) recently revised Program Evaluations Metaevaluation Checklist to examine the model. The Checklist is based on the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation's (2010) Program Evaluation Standards. Fitzpatrick, Sanders, & Worthen (2011) …

The Rigor/Relevance Framework©:Its Relationship To K-12 Student Achievement On Statewide Tests, Catherine Colagross Willoughby

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

THE RIGOR/RELEVANCE FRAMEWORK©:ITS RELATIONSHIP TO K-12 STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT ON STATEWIDE TESTS

by

CATHERINE COLAGROSS WILLOUGHBY

December, 2012

Advisor: Dr. Ingrid Guerra-Lopez

Major: Instructional Technology

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

This study generated empirical evidence about the characteristics of effective professional development for K-12 teachers and explored the relationship between professional development and student achievement. This study provided evidence about whether characteristics found in past studies could also be found in the Rigor/Relevance Framework, a teaching model, used for the purpose of improving student learning through activities which are rigorous and have relevance in students' lives.

In order to fully understand …

Remembering Thespis: How Former Student Actors Value Their Experiences In High School Plays, Michael Edgar Butterworth

Wayne State University Dissertations

The high school play is an iconic pastime in many schools across the United States. Historically, educators, and scholars often characterize the school play as a performance of a script by an established playwright presented in a school in a manner that replicates the standards of professional theatre. Current scholars and educators discuss the school play as the latter part of a continuum that runs from informal dramatic play to formal presentation in front of an audience. Although scholarship in theatre education regularly discusses the school play as one of the most prevalent forms of theatre education, scholarly studies of …

Supporting The Growth Of Principals As Instructional Leaders: An Interpretive Study About The New Work Of School Leaders, Jeffrey Thomas Hillman

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study explored the emerging context of elementary school principals as they engaged in the work of Instructional Leadership. Naturalistic Inquiry was adopted as a methodological framework to explore the unique perspectives and understandings of participants. Focus Group activities, surveys, small group interviews, and recursive ethnographic interviews were used to capture rich and descriptive representations of principal understandings. Research questions explored the experiences and conditions that participants identified as essential for their growth as Instructional Leaders. The concept of paradigm and the implications of system structures and hierarchies was investigated as it relates to the supporting conditions necessary for principal …

Effect Of Personalized Instruction On The Achievement Of Solving Mathematical Word Problems, Danica Vukmirovic

Wayne State University Dissertations

Graduation rates are negatively affected by college learners' inability to demonstrate proficiency in mathematics. The purpose of this research study was to determine the effect of individual personalized mathematical instruction on the achievement of solving mathematical word problems by undergraduates enrolled in a college mathematics course. As well, the effect of individual personalized mathematical instruction on undergraduate motivation to solve mathematical word problems was also examined.

The research undertaken was a true experimental post-test only, control group design that took place over three consecutive weeks. Participants were randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. The experimental …

Instructional Designers' Perceptions Regarding Preparation For Practice In A Health Care Environment, Nandita S. Mani

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study utilized a multi-case, bounded case, single-site case study research design to examine how well instructional designers perceive themselves able to practice ID in health care industries. Questions central to this study focused on how instructional designers perceive their preparation to practice, usefulness of professional development organizations or affiliations in which they participated while practicing ID, both academic and non-academic curricula, and utilization of ID practices when designing and developing ID projects in health care environments.

The site selected for this study was a teaching hospital in Southeast Metropolitan Detroit, Michigan. Sampling size was limited to five instructional designers …

A Qualitative Study: Integrating Art And Science In The Environment, Deborah Naughton Mills

Wayne State University Dissertations

The study was used to develop an understanding of the nature of a creative learning experience that incorporated the foundational elements of Reggio Emilia, place-based education, and experience design. The study took place in an urban high school with eight students in an advanced placement art class. The qualitative research project revolved around the pollinator garden that the science teacher planted in the year prior to the study and the garden that was planted in the spring. Students were asked to create an art project that could withstand the Michigan climate. The science teacher lectured on elements of the pollinator …