Education Commons^™

Acculturation And Alcohol Drinking Behavior Among Chinese International University Students In The Midwest, Shuangshuang Cai

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between alcohol consumption and acculturation among Chinese international university students in the Midwestern part of the United States. A sample of 91 students from a university in the Midwest participated in the study. All were Chinese and included undergraduate and graduate students. Measures used included the General Ethnicity Questionnaire–Chinese Version (Abridged); the General Ethnicity Questionnaire–American Version (Abridged); the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire (AEQ-3); the Alcohol Use Questionnaire, consisting of two subscales, drinking frequency and drinking quantity; and a demographic form created by the author. Results indicated that older Chinese international students …

A Fiscal Model Program Theory Proposal For Training Reentry Citizen Ex-Convicts To Remodel Abandoned Houses, James A. Hanson

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to develop and examine a fiscal program theory model and proposal for training reentry citizen ex-convicts to remodel abandoned houses. A sustainable program theory model describes ways that training and employing these citizens to remodel abandoned houses may be expected to have benefits to a community. The recently released ex-convicts will learn a construction trade, earn a sustainable wage, and the once-abandoned houses will be returned to the city tax rolls. Vocational education and workforce training are key to this program. The literature indicates that national jobless rates for recently released inmates is well …

Latina/O First Generation College Students And College Adjustment: An Examination Of Family Support Processes, Patricia R. Cerda-Lizarraga

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

First generation Latina/o college students are at a higher risk for not completing their college degrees when compared to other ethnic minorities due to added barriers and challenges of being the first to go to college. Researchers reported that poor college adjustment is one of the factors contributing to the lack of college completion among Latina/o college students. A few studies exist on the role that family support has on the college adjustment of Latina/o students and these yielded mixed findings. The central role of the family among Latina/o students and their support during the college adjustment period merits attention. …

Evaluating Count Outcomes In Synthesized Single-Case Designs With Multilevel Modeling: A Simulation Study, Kirstie L. Bash

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Complex statistical techniques such as multilevel modeling (MLM) ideally require substantial sample sizes in order to avoid assumption violations. Unfortunately, large between-subjects sample sizes can be impractical and, in some cases, impossible in real-world applications. The use of single-case designs (SCD) allow researchers to overcome this issue. The ability to handle non-normal outcomes appropriately in such single-case designs, however, remains unclear, especially when the outcome reflects recurrent event (count) data.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the utility of MLM for evaluating recurrent event outcomes in synthesized single-case designs. More specifically, this study seeks to determine the effects …

A Case Study Of The Experiences Of Students With Disabilities Who Did Not Complete High School, Richard Wieringo

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This case study explores the experiences of students with disabilities who have dropped out of high school, so as to identify related factors that led to their decisions. Participants included both males and females who were designated as students with disabilities at Ridgeville High School (pseudonym for a Virginia high school) and who dropped out between their third and fourth years of high school, during the 2010 to 2014 academic years. All participants were between the ages of 18 and 24. The case study was conducted through the use of semi-structured interviews, journaling, and observation of the sample population, with …

The Effects Of Strategy Instruction In Reading Informational Text On Reading Level And Motivation Of Fifth Grade Students, Michelle Adler

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this nonequivalent control-group design study was to determine if students had an increase in reading level and motivation to read when more informational text and instruction was added into the curriculum. The independent variables were the reading curriculum, with Success for All (SFA) used with the control group and SFA with additional instruction in informational text used with the study group. The dependent variables were reading level and levels of motivation determined by the Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) and the Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS) measured after eight weeks of instruction and again three months post-study. The …

Predicting Academic Achievement For Seventh Grade Language Arts Students Using The Seven Dimensions Of The Multi- Dimensional Assessment, Mary Rogers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this correlational study was to test how accurately end of the year achievement scores can be predicted by using the seven dimensions of the Multi-Dimensional Assessment in the seventh grade language arts classroom in a southeastern Tennessee school district. The predictor variables were the seven dimensions of the MDA: community engagement, curriculum expectations, developmental perspectives, educational attitudes, faculty fidelity, leadership potential, and school climate. The criterion variable of interest, academic achievement, was generally defined as scores made on the Tennessee Department of Education state mandated test for seventh grade in reading/language arts, the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program …

Blended Online Learning Versus Traditional Classroom Learning: A Comparison Of Mathematics Content Mastery For High School Students Of Homeowners And Non-Homeowners, Jeannette Hallam

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to compare the methods of traditional face-to-face classroom instruction and blended online instruction for students from differing home environments who were repeating a Mathematics I course at the high school level. This quantitative study, conducted at three high schools in Georgia, used the theories of self-regulated learning, student-centered learning, Keller’s ARCS (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction) model of motivational design of instruction, and cognitive load theory to compare the two approaches to learning. The participants in this study consisted of 398 high school students taking a Mathematics I class for the second time …

Inclusive Education For Preschool-12th Grade Students With Low Incidence Disabilities: A Case Study Of State Leaders’ Perceptions, Charles Kemp

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this holistic single-case study was to examine the state leaders’ perceptions of the readiness for public schools to implement inclusive education for students with low incidence disabilities. The adult learning theory (Knowles, 1990), the sociocultural theory (Vygotsky, 1978, 1986), and the implementation science framework (Blasé, Van Dyke, Fixsen, Duda, Horner, & Sugai, 2009) provided the theoretical framework for this study. The study, set in a Midwestern state, sought to understand from state-level leaders’ perspectives the readiness for and the roadblocks to implementation of inclusive education for students with low incidence disabilities. The data for this study was …

Teacher Preparedness For Spiritually Transformational Teaching: A Case Study In One Christian High School, Wendy Lewis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This single instrumental case study examined a purposive sample of teachers from Live Oak Christian High School (a pseudonym) for indications that they were spiritually qualified, sufficiently trained, and intentionally committed to transformational Christian teaching. Spiritually qualified teachers would evidence an active Christian faith as demonstrated by a sound basic theology, verbalization of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and various spiritual practices. Teachers who were sufficiently trained would evidence personal knowledge, experience, education, or training related directly to Christian education. Teachers who were committed to transformational Christian teaching would evidence that intentionality in documents, surveys, classroom observations, and personal …

Teacher Reaction To Change In The Lutheran Elementary School: A Grounded Theory Approach, Kim D. Marxhausen

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Schools, and the teachers and administrators who work in them, need the flexibility to adapt to current student needs. Past research has focused on organizations and plans for change; little research has been done on individual teacher reaction to change situations leaving a gap in the literature. The goal of this constructivist grounded theory study was to explore how individual teachers, in LCMS Lutheran elementary schools, react when presented with change. Data were collected through interviews involving an event history calendar to facilitate memory. A theoretical sampling process was used to collect and analyze data utilizing a constant comparative method. …

Analyzing Mediation Models With Multiple Informants: A New Approach And Its Application In Clinical Psychology, Christian Geiser, Lesther A. Papa, Kaylee Litson, Ginger Lockhart, Laurie Chassin

Psychology Faculty Publications

Testing mediation models is critical for identifying potential variables that need to be targeted to effectively change one or more outcome variables. In addition, it is now common practice for clinicians to use multiple informant (MI) data in studies of statistical mediation. By coupling the use of MI data with statistical mediation analysis, clinical researchers can combine the benefits of both techniques. Integrating the information from MIs into a statistical mediation model creates various methodological and practical challenges. The authors review prior methodological approaches to MI mediation analysis in clinical research and propose a new latent variable approach that overcomes …

Using Group Video Self-Modeling In The Classroom To Improve Transition Speeds With Elementary Students, Matthew T. Mcniff

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Video self-modeling has been proven to be an effective intervention for individuals with a variety of disabilities and behavioral issues. Very few studies have addressed the impact of video modeling on behaviors that are displayed by groups of students and no studies have tackled the issue of group behaviors with video self-modeling as an intervention. This study focused on analyzing the effects of video self-modeling on students in an elementary classroom in order to increase the speed at which the students lined up and transitioned. Further, the study addressed the question of whether the intervention had a differential impact on …

A Phenomenological Study Of Public School Biology Teachers Who Believe In The Literal Genesis Account Of Creation, Eric Dougherty

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

he purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the experiences of Christian public high school biology teachers who believe in a literal, young earth account of creation as revealed in the book of Genesis. There is a gap in the literature regarding understanding the teaching experiences of Christians who believe in a strict interpretation of the biblical book of Genesis. This study was conducted by interviewing 11 Christian public school biology teachers from multiple states who met the criteria for being identified as young earth creationists. Data were also collected through a focus group and reflective vignettes. Data were …

A Qualitative Grounded Theory Study In Understanding The Teacher/Student Relationship In The College English Freshman Composition Classroom, Jean Tweedy

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative grounded theory study is focused on the teacher/student relationship that develops in a freshman composition class when writing is being taught and how that relationship exists during the writing process. Notes were generated through field observation of three freshman English 101 classes, personal interviews with 12 students who were members of the three freshman English 101 classes observed by me, and final grade records for each student in each class obtained from the registrar’s office. The ability and perceived willingness of the English teacher to communicate with students is the prime motivating factor for confidence within the students …

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 …

Teaching Behavior Questionnaire : Verifying Factor Structure And Investigating Depressive Symptoms In Catholic Middle And High Schools., Caroline M. Pittard, Patrick Pössel, Rosamond J. Smith

Faculty Scholarship

Teaching behavior impacts student psychopathology. This study explored the associations between teaching behavior types and depressive symptoms in students. The Teaching Behavior Questionnaire (TBQ) and the Center for Epidemiological Studies – Depression Scale (CES-D) were completed by 763 middle and 976 high school students from private Catholic schools. In the middle school sample, a confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the four-factor structure of the TBQ previously found in public high schools. As predicted, a two-level hierarchical linear model (HLM) analysis with the high school sample found that only the Negative Teaching Behavior scale of the TBQ was positively related to CES-D …

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 …

Understanding The Concept Of Shame In The Chinese Culture, Jing Zhang Ph.D.

NYS Child Welfare/Child Protective Services Training Institute

This poster explores the concept of shame and its role in Chinese culture and parenting. It was originally displayed at the Fall Research and Creativity Forum at Buffalo State College on October 29 2015.

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 …

The Impact Of Sexual Violence On Intimate Relationship Dynamics: A Grounded Theory Study, Nicole M. Lozano

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study intended to develop a theory that explains the relationship dynamics of opposite-sex couples in which the female partner has been sexually victimized as an adult outside of the couple relationship. Four couples participated in the study sharing their experiences of disclosing the assault, communicating about the assault, physical intimacy, and salience of the assault to the relationship. Using a constructivist grounded theory approach the model emerged from the data. Overall, the women decided to disclose because they felt secure in their current intimate relationship. Disclosure happened for one of two reasons: (a) either to test the relationship and …

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 …

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 …

Maternal Communication During A Deployment With School Staff: A Phenomenological Study, Carolyn Davis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of maternal soldiers’ in communicating with school staff during a military deployment. The increasing number of deployments since 2001 has affected the family unit, especially the children. The primary focus of the research on military deployments has been related to the effects on children and the family. This study used purposeful sampling to select seven maternal veterans who experienced a military deployment within the past five years lasting six months or longer. Participants shared their experiences with a deployment through a semi-structured interview. Prior to the interview, participants completed …

An Initial Meta-Analysis Of Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Treating Substance Use Disorders, Eric B. Lee, Woolee An, Michael E. Levin, Michael P. Twohig

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background: In the past decade, multiple studies have examined the effectiveness ofAcceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for substance use disorders relative to other active treatments. The current meta-analysis examined the aggregate effect size when comparing ACT to other treatments (e.g., CBT, pharmacotherapy, 12-step,treatment as usual) specifically on substance use outcomes. Method: A total of 10 randomized controlled trials were identified through systematic searches. Results: A significant small to medium effect size was found favoring ACT relative to active treatment comparisons following treatment. Effect sizes were comparable across studies for smoking cessation (k = 5) and for other drug use disorders …

Teaching Argument Writing And "Content" In Diverse Middle School History Classrooms, Chauncey Monte-Sano, Susan De La Paz, Mark Felton

Faculty Publications

Monte-Sano et al describe a program in which they worked with curriculum leaders in an academically and culturally diverse school district to develop materials and techniques that would strengthen middle school students' skills in making arguments and using evidence in historical essays. They outline the Shays' Rebellion investigation activity, which enable students to develop inquiry and literacy practices as they integrate critical reading, historical thinking, and argument writing.

The Relationship Between Hexaco Personality Traits And Cyberbullying Perpetrators And Victims, David Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is an increasing problem in high schools across America with the threat of cyberbullying from both a perpetration and victimization standpoint. Cyberbullying is a problem for many youth because of the inability to escape the use of technology and the incapability of escaping the online community. This non-experimental predictive correlational study examined personality traits, using the HEXACO personality structure model, to predict the susceptibility of freshman high school students either being perpetrators or victims of cyberbullying. There were a total of 256 participants who took the Cyberbullying and Online Aggression survey along with the HEXACO personality model survey. This …

Validation Of The Assessment Of Basic Language And Learning Skills-Revised For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder Using An Expert Review Panel, Jennifer Usry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the content validity and inter-rater reliability of the Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills-Revised (ABLLS-R). Lawshe’s method was used to examine content validity of the assessment based on item analysis of responses from a panel of six experts. The six reviewers were experts in the fields of behavior analysis and autism. Inter-rater reliability was measured using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) based on scoring information from a panel of five experts after watching a video model of the assessment being administered to a student. The five reviewers were experts in …