Education Commons^™

Building A Cognitive Readiness Construct For Violent Police-Public Encounters, James Eric Preddy

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this multi-methods study was to explore police use-of-force (UoF) instructors’ perceptions about cognitive readiness in the context of violent police-public encounters, examine how experience influences those perceptions, identify competencies of cognitive readiness deemed essential for preparation and response to violent encounters, and align those competencies deemed essential with current UoF training strategies. The results of the study suggest that UoF instructors generally feel that police officers are not adequately prepared for violent police-public encounters. They cited deficiencies in the range of tactics taught, the frequency with which UoF training is delivered, and obstacles such as: time, resources, …

Decision Making In The Sciences: Understanding Heuristic Use By Students In Problem Solving, Elizabeth Csikar

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of heuristics by students and gain insight into the thought process behind their problem-solving skills. The study used an adaptive narrative as the information delivery medium. An adaptive narrative was chosen because it could be designed to simulate decision making processes encountered in real world situations. Students enrolled in an introductory biology major class were chosen for the study because their fields of interest all require complex problem solving and decision-making skills. It was of interest to investigate what decisions were made when heuristics were given and how that may …

The Impact Of Professional Development Grounded In Social Learning On Community College Faculty Efficacy, Shanika Shantell Strickland-Davis

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Community college faculty have experienced a shift in focus from access to access and student success. Given this shift in responsibility for student learning, community college faculty should be sufficiently prepared to teach a diverse student body and subsequently uphold beliefs regarding their ability to bring about desired outcomes of student engagement and learning. Given preparedness is a measure of self-efficacy, professional development for community college faculty is a critical investment in the support and development of teacher efficacy and faculty skill.

Social learning theory specifically speaks to a means of increasing self-efficacy. As a professional development practice, social learning …

The Effect Of Emotive Content On Knowledge Acquisition And Ethical Sense Making Using An Ill-Structured Case Example, Tina M. Souders

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Social workers encounter ethics related challenges on a daily basis. These real-world problems are incredibly complex and can produce intense emotional reactions. The use of ill-structured case examples as an instructional strategy to teach ethical lessons is well-supported in the literature, however, case examples often lack an emotional or affective component. Given the importance of crafting cases for learners, more research is needed to better understand how to construct and present case examples to enhance learning outcomes, specifically related to the influence of emotive content. This study was conducted to assess the effect of emotive content on knowledge acquisition and …

Reimagining The Chalk Talk: Animated Handwriting As A Social Cue To Improve Motivation In Multimedia Video Lessons, Hillary C. Kaplowitz

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Animated handwriting in multimedia video lessons, such as those popularized by the Khan Academy, has reimagined the classic teaching technique of writing on a chalkboard while lecturing for online delivery. This digital chalk talk effect mimics classroom lectures where words are written letter by letter on a chalkboard as they are spoken. Low-cost applications, tablets, and document cameras allow instructors at all levels to easily create their own animated handwritten videos. As adoption increases, it is important to understand the effects of this strategy.

This study employed a true experimental, between-subjects, posttest design that compared multimedia lessons with different text …

Instructional Designer Awareness And Application Of Strategies To Manage Cognitive Load, Justin A. Sentz

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

This study examined how practicing instructional designers manage cognitive load in a standardized scenario as they select and implement instructional strategies, message design, content sequencing, and delivery media within various domains with learners at different levels of expertise. The study employed a quasi-experimental, mixed methods design to gain insight into how practicing instructional designers perceive their awareness of strategies to manage cognitive load and implement those strategies within a standardized design scenario. The research design involved the collection of quantitative data from the participants during an initial web-based questionnaire and a second collection of both quantitative and qualitative data as …

Motivating And Enabling Factors For Military Service Members Earning A Post-Secondary Degree, Rossie Dean Johnson

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate what motivated and enabled military service members to earn a post-secondary degree. This problem was investigated to better inform institutions of higher education regarding how to recruit and retain military-affiliated members and how to provide career-enhancing information to service members at institutions of higher education.

Education for military service members was a process that facilitated the growth, learning, and maturity of individuals in an effort to achieve their goals while simultaneously achieving the collective goals of the organization. This study sought to identify the enabling and motivating factors that empowered service members …

Exploring The Effects Of Pacing In Community College Courses, Robin Dillon Shepherd

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

For-profit colleges are threatening community college enrollments by recruiting low-income and minority students with the appeal of quick degree and certificate program completion rates. To remain competitive, community colleges are creating guided pathways for student success. A guided pathway is a clear road map to certificate or degree completion. Community colleges that offer guided pathways challenge students to choose an academic program in their first semester and no later than their second semester. Once students choose their academic program they begin taking specific classes in pursuit of certificate and degree completion, which offer students flexibility in format (face-to-face, hybrid, and …

Investigating Application Of The Self-Explanation Learning Strategy During An Instructional Simulation, Paul Michael Macloughlin

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Computer-based simulations effectively support the acquisition of scientific knowledge when combined with a guided learning approach. Active learning drives complex cognitive processes that enable the integration of new information with existing knowledge. The iCAP (Interactive, Constructive, Active, Passive) Framework provides a conceptual model to describe different types of active learning. Computer-based simulations fit neatly within this framework. Similarly, self-explanation is a generative learning strategy that fits within this framework. Promoting self-explanation using instructional prompts is an effective method for driving application of the strategy. This study compared three combinations of self-explanation prompt and learner activity (closed prompts – overt activity, …

The Effect Of The Behavioral Analysis Feedback Model On Improving Performance Of Nursing Students During Clinical Rotations, Melanie Elizabeth Ross

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

This study explored the effects the Behavioral Analysis Feedback (BAF) Model had on improving nursing student’s performance. Research studies surrounding feedback primarily centered on frameworks designed as models for delivering feedback as well as the timing for delivering feedback. In addition, past research has also focused on individual elements that affect performance with little regard to environmental elements. The BAF Model was conceptualized based on the importance of providing feedback to nursing students while emphasizing three individual and three environmental elements that have the potential to influence behavior.

This multiple measure, single-case study utilized a quasi-experimental pre-post intervention study design. …

Factors Influencing Student Enrollment In Career Academy Programs, Whitney Stokes Ketchledge

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Career academies are small learning communities that allow high school students to learn their core content in the context of the career field they may be interested in pursuing. This type of learning environment incorporates business and industry and postsecondary institutions so academy students receive academic curricula that prepares them for higher education and allows students to have experiences in the career field. There is considerable research demonstrating strong benefits of the academy model to students and teachers, but there is little indicating why students enroll in the academy and what methods of recruitment may work best.

The purpose of …

Community College Faculty Compensation For Online Course Development And Delivery, Radhika I. Prout

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to determine the most common compensation practices community colleges in the United States provided to faculty for online course development and delivery. Many community colleges provided compensation as an incentive for faculty participation in supporting their online learning initiatives; however, limited research was available on fair compensation for these services. The population consisted of 980 community colleges that were identified using the American Association of Community College’s membership directory.

Data for this study were collected using a survey that contained 31 closed and open form response questions requesting demographic information and current practices for …