Education Commons^™

A Study Of The Perceptions Of Pastoral Crisis Intervention As A Crisis Debriefing Strategy Among Resident Directors At Select Catholic Colleges And Universities, Laura Jean Phaneuf Bertonazzi

All Theses And Dissertations

This dissertation examined the postcrisis intervention preferences of a purposeful sample of 23 Resident Directors from 17 Catholic colleges and universities in New England. Using survey and interview data, this study explored whether Resident Directors at the sample institution had preferences regarding services they needed following exposure to a student death and whether these support preferences were aligned with the Catholic identities of their institutions. The research questions that guided this study were: (a) How do Resident Directors at Catholic colleges and universities describe their roles as first responders during a campus crisis?, (b) How do Resident Directors at Catholic …

Fostering The Spiritual Development Of Undergraduates Through Service-Learning, Michelle C. Sterk Barrett

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

By integrating spiritual development theories with Sanford's theory of challenge and support and study findings, this mixed methods study examines how spiritual development may be occurring through service-learning. The relationship between service-learning participation and spiritual growth is analyzed by addressing the following research questions: 1) Does spiritual growth occur among undergraduates participating in service-learning? 2) Which aspects of the service-learning experience relate to the occurrence of spiritual growth? 3) What role do "challenge" and "support" play in the process of spiritual growth?

The 272 study participants are drawn from the Boston College PULSE Program, a service-learning program that requires 10-12 …

Strategic Study Abroad: A Program Proposal For Continued Faith Development Of Chi Alpha Students Studying Abroad, Erin Leonard

Capstone Collection

With around 28,000 individual participants, Chi Alpha is a diverse network of Christian students on U.S. college campuses. By regularly meeting in groups and collectively reaching out to the community, students develop their faith and build lasting relationships.

Faith development is an integral part of Chi Alpha students’ lives. Yet, because community is an important aspect in faith development, studying abroad can cause challenges. Students expressed missing accessible Christian peer support and mentorship while abroad. They further expressed disconnection from their faith and felt their spirituality had declined while studying abroad.

As study abroad participation has been increasing over the …

Forgotten Feminine Foundations: Content Analysis Of Secondary World History Textbooks' Inclusion Of Female Agency In The Rise Of Judaism, Christianity, And Islam, Erica M. Southworth

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated women’s agency in the emergence accounts of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in nine twenty-first century United States’ world history textbooks through a feminist lens. The collected data were analyzed via critical discourse analysis and content analysis to determine if traditional patterns of female marginalization in content and imagery existed. The quantitative and qualitative findings in both text and imagery indicated that all textbooks in this sample supported a traditional content structure on both an individual and collective whole basis. This study then concluded that these gender-imbalanced accounts of world religions may serve as an avenue in which …

Relationship Of Ethical Knowledge To Action In Senior Baccalaureate Nursing Students, Catherine S. Moe

Ed.D. Dissertations

Nursing educators are expected to prepare students to practice in a complex health care environment yet nursing curriculums vary in how the ethical reasoning ability of students is developed. To effectively manage clinical situations that have ethical implications, practitioners need to be able to recognizing these situations and have the ability to take action. Using an established instrument known as Ketefian’s Judgments About Nursing Decisions (JAND) to survey nursing students, this study examined the relationship between knowledge of the Code of Ethics for Nurses to choices of action in senior nursing students in baccalaureate nursing programs enrolled in the last …

The Effects Of Laity Ministry Involvement On Transformational Discipleship, Emmanuel Reinbold

Ed.D. Dissertations

This study sought to determine the impacts of The Place Assessment process within four congregations that are a part of The Church of the Nazarene in central and Eastern Iowa. The Place Assessment process included structured teaching, completing a comprehensive assessment online, and structured coaching. The results of this process showed measurable increases in the areas of discipleship engagement and discipleship transformation.

An Analysis Of Education And Experience In Pastoral Leadership Development, Justin L. Hayes

Ed.D. Dissertations

This study analyzed the relationships between education and servant leadership behaviors and between experience and servant leadership behaviors. The goal was to determine whether education or experience served as the stronger predictor of servant leadership behaviors among Nazarene pastors. Several linear regressions were calculated using data submitted by 37 Nazarene pastors serving in the United States and Canada from a demographic survey designed by the researcher and the Servant Leadership Questionnaire. This study showed participating Nazarene pastors rate strongly in servant leadership behaviors, but no predictive relationships between education and servant leadership, between total years (full time and part time) …

A Qualitative Study On How A Teacher's Religious Beliefs Affect The Choices They Make In The Classroom, Sarah M. Wadsworth

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

This qualitative research project explores how a teacher’s organized religious beliefs may influence their practice and the choices they make in the classroom. Such areas of impact include character development, classroom management, development of lesson plans, the handling of difficult parents and colleagues, discipline, and a teacher’s overall attitude while teaching. It is recognized that there are many hidden ways our beliefs shape the choices we make. This project focuses specifically on how organized religious beliefs and practices affect an educator’s choices. The research involved the interviewing of nine educators from the Ohio school system ranging from those who teach …

A Phenomenological Study On Principal Leadership In Islamic K-12 Schools, Allen Farina

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

The Muslim population in America is increasing and to meet the demand for quality religious and academic instruction for Muslim youth, Islamic K-12 schools are being established throughout the U.S. As these institutions multiply, it becomes necessary to study school board influence and leadership by principals, although literary sources appear to be sparse. This phenomenological study can be a starting point for scholarly research on this topic, as follows:

1. How do Islamic school principals describe their leadership role as administrators of Muslim K-12 schools?
2. What impact does the school board have on the leadership role of principals in Islamic K-12 …

Análisis Crítico A La Didáctica Presente En Los Textos Hablemos De Dios Y Mí Despertar Al Amor De Jesús: Diseño De Lineamientos Didácticos Para La Formación En La Dimensión Espiritual De Los Estudiantes De Preescolar, Mauricio Gómez Sánchez

Licenciatura en Educación Religiosa

Pensar la didáctica para el desarrollo de la dimensión espiritual en el grado preescolar obliga al docente a tener presente el contexto del niño, saber cómo es su proceso de aprendizaje para desde allí plantear la manera de educar. La dimensión espiritual en el niño de preescolar debe posibilitar el encuentro del espíritu humano con su subjetividad, su interioridad y su conciencia. De igual forma debe poseer en su fundamento didáctico los tres principios pedagógicos siguientes: la integralidad, la participación y la lúdica

Uncovering Meanings Of Death, Trauma, And Loss As Experienced By Hospice Bereavement Coordinators: A Phenomenological Study, Rochelle S. Clarke

Department of Family Therapy Dissertations and Applied Clinical Projects

This study examined the experiences of Hospice Bereavement Coordinators (HBCs) and Hospice Chaplains working with grief narratives from patient-family units exhibiting signs of anticipatory or complicated grief. While a significant amount of research has been conducted on Hospice employees, no qualitative studies have examined the interpretation of meaning from employees whose primary role focused on the psychosocial-spiritual aspects of clients exhibiting anticipatory or complicated grief. The researcher identified shared meaning of death, trauma, and loss from six participants in the context of a high stress and high loss environment. This study‘s findings revealed ten central themes: Death is an earthly …

Exploring Selected Online And Face-To-Face Course Inclusion Of Faith Integration In A Business Administration Program, Ellen A. Sorberg

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students enrolled in face-to-face and online business administration courses at a Midwestern Christian college were provided faith-integrated opportunities; however, the challenge was to maintain consistency in providing the online courses with similar faith integration as the face-to-face courses. It was unknown whether the same faith-integrated opportunities were provided in face-to-face and online courses. Kohlberg's cognitive moral development and Fowler's spiritual development theories grounded this qualitative bounded case study. Research questions focused on whether instructors taught the same faith-integrated content in online and face-to-face classes, and whether online and face-to-face students received the same faith-integrated experiences. A purposeful sample was gathered …

Assessing The Effect Of Worship Education And Worship Renewal At First Baptist Church Kings Mountain, North Carolina, Jonathan Bundon

Doctor of Ministry Projects

For many Christians, worship has been reduced to the entertainment value centered on self rather than the Triune God. Ignorance must be combated with worship education and worship renewal. For the worshiper, how one prepares for corporate worship affects their worship experience and informs their private worship. The four-week study, Spirit and Truth, introduced members of First Baptist Church Kings Mountain to worship education and renewal and challenged them to assess their own worship practices. Quantitative and qualitative test results and observations validated this project's needs. In addition, the project afforded opportunities that might contribute to a life-long experiment of …

Religiosity, Spirituality, And Quality Of Life Among Selected University Students, Abby Austin Kreitlow

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Objective: College marks a time of transition and self-exploration. Quality of life can be enhanced or diminished throughout this experience. The objective of this study was to identify the level of religiosity, spirituality and quality of life and identify if there was a relationship between a person's level of religiosity and spirituality and quality of life.

Participants and Methods: The sample group, consisting of 548 Midwestern university undergraduate students, completed the Spiritual Wellbeing Scale (SWBS) and the Ontological Wellbeing Scale (OWBS) in the spring semester of 2015.

Results: Findings indicate that Midwestern university students have a moderate sense of spiritual …

Learning From Experience: A Critical, Collective Process Following International Short-Term Mission Travel, Nancy Vigander Winfrey

Educational Studies Dissertations

This qualitative dissertation seeks to explore the impact of short-term mission (STM) travel on American Christian volunteers, leveraging the small group structure already present in many churches. Using a participatory action research approach, small groups from two different Protestant churches engaged in cycles of dialogue, reflection and action. The group process was framed by Habermas’ concept of communicative space with emphasis on emotional knowing, cognitive reasoning, and creative expression. Data were collected from session recordings, written documents and process field notes. Content and process analyses were guided by transformative and situated learning theories. Findings were unique to each congregational group, …

Assessing Student Leadership Competencies And Adequacy Of Preparation In Seminary Training, Valerie Miles-Tribble

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

As more seminary student-practitioners seek non-pastoral leadership roles in faith-based

and secular organizations, the complexities of the roles demand leadership competencies beyond traditional religious study. Limited research assessing leadership competencies in seminary contexts raises uncertainty about whether leadership preparation needs are addressed adequately in seminary. This quantitative study focused on whether or not student self-assessed adequacy of preparation is related to, affected by, or influenced by self-assessed leadership competencies, individually or in the aggregate. The theoretical foundation joined Evers, Rush, and Berdrow's learner-centered theory that urges student input on competency development needs and Boyatzis's leadership competency theory that frames a …

Altering Tian: Spirituality In Early Confucianism, Jacob Thomas Atkinson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper seeks to analyze the three earliest Confucian thinkers and the foundational texts associated with them. In studying these texts this paper attempts to discover how these early Confucian thinkers conceived of Tian. This paper claims the early Confucian thinkers did not make as radical of a departure from the Ancient Chinese religiosity as many modern scholars have suggested. It has often been asserted that the tradition presented by these Confucian thinkers was entirely humanistic, altogether separate from the Ancient Chinese religiosityThis paper contests such claims,instead insisting that the early Confucian spirituality still viewed Tian as God and that …