Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Education Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 9 of 9

Full-Text Articles in Education

Exploring The Relation Between Office Discipline Referrals And Reinforcement Rates In Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support Programs, Michelle Woidneck May 2011

Exploring The Relation Between Office Discipline Referrals And Reinforcement Rates In Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support Programs, Michelle Woidneck

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The implementation of schoolwide positive behavioral support (SWPBS) programs is becoming increasingly common in schools across the nation. Although a primary assumption of SWPBS is that schoolwide administration of positive supports to students who meet behavioral expectations will result in fewer behavior problems, surprisingly few studies have investigated the effects of various positive reinforcement rates (RR) on office discipline referral rates (ODR). This study investigated the relationship between RRs and ODRs among schools (N = 44) implementing SWPBS programs with high fidelity. Results revealed no significant differences in RRs or ODRs between Title I and non-Title I schools but …


The Impact Of Study Skills Courses On Academic Self-Efficacy In College Students, Brenna M. Wernersbach May 2011

The Impact Of Study Skills Courses On Academic Self-Efficacy In College Students, Brenna M. Wernersbach

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Colleges across the nation are increasingly interested in improving retention of students. Many universities have begun offering workshops and courses targeted at improving study skills in academically underprepared students with the goal of helping students succeed in higher education and continue enrollment. The impact of such courses on study skills themselves has been supported, but prior research has not examined the courses impact on students' beliefs about their ability to succeed in college–that is, their levels of academic self-efficacy. This study examined pre- and post-test levels of academic self-efficacy in college students enrolled in a study skills course in comparison …


The Role Of Student Gender For Determining The Impact Of A Pedagogical Agent, Yanghee Kim, J. Lim Apr 2011

The Role Of Student Gender For Determining The Impact Of A Pedagogical Agent, Yanghee Kim, J. Lim

Yanghee Kim

This study was to understand how male and female teenage students reacted differently to the presence of a pedagogical agent (an animated human-like character) in a computer-based algebra-learning environment. The study first examined, in classroom experiments, if learner gender would be a determining factor for the effectiveness of a pedagogical agent on learner attitudes and learning. Next, in-depth interviews inquired into the two groups of students’ perspectives of their agent’s role for their learning and affect.


Collaborative Strategic Board Games As A Site For Distributed Computational Thinking, Matthew Berland, Victor R. Lee Apr 2011

Collaborative Strategic Board Games As A Site For Distributed Computational Thinking, Matthew Berland, Victor R. Lee

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

This paper examines the idea that contemporary strategic board games represent an informal, interactional context in which complex computational thinking takes place. When games are collaborative – that is, a game requires that players work in joint pursuit of a shared goal – the computational thinking is easily observed as distributed across several participants. This raises the possibility that a focus on such board games are profitable for those who wish to understand computational thinking and learning in situ. This paper introduces a coding scheme, applies it to the recorded discourse of three groups of game players, and provides qualitative …


The Impact Of User Attributes And User Choice In An Agent-Based Environment, Yanghee Kim, Quan Wei Feb 2011

The Impact Of User Attributes And User Choice In An Agent-Based Environment, Yanghee Kim, Quan Wei

Yanghee Kim

This study examined the impact of learners’ attributes (gender and ethnicity) on their choice of a pedagogical agent and the impact of the attributes and choice on their perceptions of agent affability, task-specific attitudes, task-specific self-efficacy, and learning gains. Participants were 210 high-school male and female, Caucasian and Hispanic students who worked at computer-based algebra integrated with pedagogical agents. The results indicated, first, that students preferentially chose a same-gender agent and a same-ethnicity agent, supporting similarity-attraction theory. Second, males who chose an agent showed more positive attitudes toward working at the learning environment than did males who were assigned to …


The Impact Of User Attributes And User Choice In An Agent-Based Environment, Yanghee Kim, Quan Wei Jan 2011

The Impact Of User Attributes And User Choice In An Agent-Based Environment, Yanghee Kim, Quan Wei

Yanghee Kim

This study examined the impact of learners’ attributes (gender and ethnicity) on their choice of a pedagogical agent and the impact of the attributes and choice on their perceptions of agent affability, task-specific attitudes, task-specific self-efficacy, and learning gains. Participants were 210 high-school male and female, Caucasian and Hispanic students who worked at computer-based algebra integrated with pedagogical agents. The results indicated, first, that students preferentially chose a same-gender agent and a same-ethnicity agent, supporting similarity-attraction theory. Second, males who chose an agent showed more positive attitudes toward working at the learning environment than did males who were assigned to …


A Model Of Resurgence Based On Behavioral Momentum Theory, Timothy A. Shahan, Mary M. Sweeney Jan 2011

A Model Of Resurgence Based On Behavioral Momentum Theory, Timothy A. Shahan, Mary M. Sweeney

Psychology Faculty Publications

Resurgence is the reappearance of an extinguished behavior when an alternative behavior reinforced during extinction is subsequently placed on extinction. Resurgence is of particular interest because it may be a source of relapse to problem behavior following treatments involving alternative reinforcement. In this article we develop a quantitative model of resurgence based on the augmented model of extinction provided by behavioral momentum theory. The model suggests that alternative reinforcement during extinction of a target response acts as both an additional source of disruption during extinction and as a source of reinforcement in the context that increases the future strength of …


A Study Of Grade Level And Gender Differences In Divergent Thinking Among 8th And 11th Graders In A Mid-Western School District., Leah Christine Roue Jan 2011

A Study Of Grade Level And Gender Differences In Divergent Thinking Among 8th And 11th Graders In A Mid-Western School District., Leah Christine Roue

Dissertations

No abstract provided.


Behavioral Momentum Theory: Equations And Applications, John A. Nevin, Timothy A. Shahan Jan 2011

Behavioral Momentum Theory: Equations And Applications, John A. Nevin, Timothy A. Shahan

Psychology Faculty Publications

Behavioral momentum theory provides a quantitative account of how reinforcers experienced within a discriminative stimulus context govern the persistence of behavior that occurs in that context. The theory suggests that all reinforcers obtained in the presence of a discriminative stimulus increase resistance to change, regardless of whether those reinforcers are contingent on the target behavior, are noncontingent, or are even contingent on an alternative behavior. In this paper, we describe the equations that constitute the theory and address their application to issues of particular importance in applied settings. The theory provides a framework within which to consider the effects of …