Education Commons^™

Principals’ Perceptions Of Administration – Related Uses Of The Internet: An Exploratory Study, Ekoka Andrew Molindo

Student Work

The use of computers in assisting in administrative tasks has revolutionized the workforce. Today, principals and administrators in many fields rely on accurate, fast, inexpensive and up-to-date information in order to make sound decisions. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of school principals regarding the use of the Internet for administrative purposes. This descriptive study focused on the potential benefits and problems of Internet use perceived by school principals. The research questions focused on seven areas: demographics, attitudes, benefits of the Internet, frequency of use, experience, policies and issues. A total of 292 principals in Nebraska …

Students' Perceptions Of The Effectiveness Of The Tennessee Pre-Professional Program For The State's Black Residents From 1984 Through 1994, Ercille Hall Williams

Doctoral Dissertations

The 1984 Stipulation of Settlement of Geier v. McWherter, the State of Tennessee's desegregation case, mandated the development of a series of programs that would provide access to the state public higher institutions for all of its residents. These initiatives were developed to remedy the vestiges of a dual system of higher education that practiced legal discrimination and segregation. The Tennessee Pre-Professional (TPP), one of the desegregation mandates, was designed to increase the representation of black Tennessee residents in the state-supported professional schools of law and medicine. Under the state's dual system of higher education, these opportunities were non-existent …

Perceptions Of Tenured Faculty Members About The Post-Tenure Review Process In Tennessee Community Colleges, Stephen W. Wright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine if differences exist between tenured faculty members perceptions about what actually occurs during the post-tenure review process and what they believe should occur in the twelve community colleges in the Tennessee Board of Regents System. This study presents the status of higher education tenure from a historical and legal basis nationally and in Tennessee. The study also presents various models of faculty evaluation and post-tenure review practices in higher education nationwide, as well as in Tennessee. The data in this study are analyzed through descriptive statistics and presented the demographic data including …

Collegiate Activities That Influence Adult Physical Fitness Habits, Linda L. King

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This descriptive/correlational study analyzed the perception of recent graduates regarding the effectiveness of the college environment at Milligan College in influencing adult fitness habits. Graduates were divided into five activity level groups through a self-report of physical activity. The purposes of the research were to determine if significant differences existed between the dependent variable, activity level, and the independent variables such as: (a) participation in specific college activities, (b) preferences for types of exercise, (c) social influence, (d) influence of a required freshman fitness course, and (e) environmental barriers. A profile of the student most likely to exercise after graduation …

Ideal And Actual Mentor Teacher Characteristics As Perceived By Second-Year And Non-Returning First-Year Public School North Carolina Teachers, Barbara D. Tipton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The researcher examined non-returning first-year teachers and second year teachers who taught during the 1994-95 school year. The research design included five research questions with six null hypotheses testing for differences among second year teachers' perceptions and non-returning teachers' perceptions of their mentor teachers. After calculating ratings on desired and demonstrated scales by 464 subjects, criteria were ranked on mentor characteristics on 12 tasks. The extent to which each task was demonstrated during their first year's teaching experience was also calculated. Participants indicated that the ideal mentor would advocate for the novice and would demonstrate a sensitive approach in assisting. …

Parental Involvement In Education, Linda Louise Fletke

Masters Theses

Research has shown that parental involvement is essential to a child’s educational success. This thesis document addresses the important role that parents play in their child’s educational experience.

This paper includes a thorough review of the existing literature regarding parental involvement in education as well as original research conducted by the author. Three questionnaires - one for parents, one for teachers, and one for students - were created and then an average of 100 parents, teachers, and students responded to each respective survey. All of the data were then analyzed and recommendations were made.

There are numerous strategies for teachers …

A Measurement Of Total Quality Management In Selected North Carolina Community Colleges, Gene C. Couch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many of the colleges in the North Carolina Community College System have embarked on a "quality" journey to continuously improve the educational programs and services that they provide to their communities. The primary focus of this study was to determine the level of Total Quality Management (TQM) principles implemented in selected North Carolina community colleges and to determine if there was a difference in the perception of its implementation between administrators and faculty. Additionally, this study examined the influence of the following variables on the implementation of TQM in selected North Carolina community colleges: personal factors (age, gender, ethnicity, and …

Block Scheduling: From Possibility To Reality?, Frederic M. Muse

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines teacher practices and student learning as perceived by teachers within public high schools that have implemented block scheduling. Comparisons are made between the possibilities advanced by block scheduling advocates and the actual results as interpreted from the data gathered. Comparisons are made between teaching and learning with the traditional schedule and the manner in which it takes place with block scheduling. Open-ended questionnaires were developed for use with voluntary participants who had worked with traditional scheduling and now taught with some form of block scheduling. Participants recorded observations based solely upon personal perceptions of experiences with students …

Teacher Perceptions Of Channel One's Influence On Middle School Students In Sullivan County, Tennessee, Joy M. Ramsey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines Channel One's influence on middle schools in Sullivan County, Tennessee. The purpose of the study is to investigate the views, feelings, and opinions of Sullivan County middle school teachers regarding the use of Channel One in their classrooms. The study utilizes data gathered from surveys and personal interviews from five middle schools in Sullivan County, Tennessee that subscribe to Channel One. Areas of data presentation include the uses of Channel One in each teaching classroom, the positive and negative consequences Sullivan County middle school teachers perceive Channel One has on their students, the effects of Channel One's …

A Survey Of Factors Affecting Computer Implementation In Rural Northeast Tennessee K-12 Public Schools, Carl S. Rapp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the variables that are apparently affecting the incorporation of computer technology in Northeast Tennessee rural K-12 public schools. Therefore, the present study investigated the relationship between the independent variables--gender, age, and prior experience, and the dependent variables--knowledge about, attitude toward, and use of computer technology among Northeast Tennessee teachers and principals. This study utilized a survey methodology seeking responses from teachers and administrators in Sullivan, Hawkins, Johnson, Washington, Carter, and Unicoi counties. The findings were based on the return of 208 completed surveys which represented a 52% return rate. Based on the …

The Use Of Data In School-Based Decision Making, Walter J. Deboer

Dissertations

This study examined the extent to which various types of commonly available data were used by staff for school-based decision making at 24 elementary schools in the Grand Rapids Public School district. The level of data use w as correlated with measures of school effectiveness. Further correlational analyses examined: (a) whether principals' attitudes toward data influenced the level of data use, (b) whether staff at more effective schools made exemplary or effective use of data to a greater degree, and (c) whether staff at more effective schools were more likely to overcome traditional barriers to data use.

School effectiveness was …

Critical Thinking Attributes Of Undergraduate Nursing Faculty, Julie A. Coon

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the critical thinking skills of undergraduate nursing faculty to determine how these skills compared with the established critical thinking skill norms for undergraduate nursing students and if the critical thinking skills of nursing faculty were related to the type of program they teach in, their years of experience in nursing education, their level of formal education, their preferred methods of instruction, and their level of formal training in critical thinking. Nursing faculty from 17 Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) programs and 11 Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) programs in the State of …

The Effects Of A Cooperative Learning Environment On Attitudes, Social Skills, And Processing Of Baccalaureate Nursing Students, Mary J. Cairy

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a deliberate, planned cooperative learning environment on the attitudes, social skills, and processing of baccalaureate nursing students. A convenience sample of 43 students (Registered Nurses) randomly assigned to one of eight cooperative learning groups were the subjects for this study. Cooperative learning was used as a teaching methodology for the entire class of 15 weeks duration. The study sought to answer the following questions: (a) What effect does a deliberate, planned cooperative learning environment have on the attitudes of BSN (Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing) students toward group work? …

The Effect Of Managers' Clarification Of Business Linkage Of Training On Trainees' Transfer Of Training, Elizabeth J. Benanzer

Dissertations

This study investigated the hypotheses that if managers were engaged in specific activities aimed at increasing their understanding of the linkage of employee training to business goals, then they would in turn create a more positive transfer environment, resulting in greater transfer of training received by their employees. Some managers of trainees participated in a workshop in which they used an “impact mapping” procedure to clearly explain the relationship between training of their employees and strategic goals of the business; another group of managers did not receive this impact mapping training. Then, all managers’ employees participated in a supervisory training …

The Effect Of Remedial Education Programs On Academic Achievement And Persistence At The Two-Year Community College, Lyn Ann Batzer

Dissertations

Community colleges are open door institutions that serve students who may lack the basic skills necessary to succeed in college. The number of academically underprepared students attending community colleges has been increasing over the years. Thus, there is a corresponding need for effective remedial programs to prepare the academically underprepared students for college-level work.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of remedial education. More specifically, the study was designed to measure the performance of academically underprepared students who complete required remediation compared to academically underprepared students who do not complete remediation.

The study tested two hypotheses: …

An Assessment Of Generalization Across Settings Of A Parenting Strategies Program For Adhd Children, Barbara M. Todd-Nelson

Dissertations

When collapsed across gender and subject pools, Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects three to five percent of school-aged children (DSMIV, 1994). Intervening upon environmental contingencies for ADHD-diagnosed children is one of the least intrusive forms of treatment and is often very effective (Atkeson & Forehand, 1978; Forehand & King, 1977; Barkley, 1986; Webster-Stratton, 1993). As noted by many researchers (Allen, Tamowski, Simonian, Elliott & Drabman, 1991; Drabman, Hammer, & Rosenbaum,1979; Stokes & Osnes, 1989), it is necessary to assess generalization of treatment effects across the behavior therapy literature. Few have examined generalization from the home setting to the classroom. Since …

Programmed Instruction: Within-Subject Analysis Of Four Types Of Instructional Material, Matthew L. Miller

Dissertations

Skinner (1958) expressed the need for an increase in the effectiveness and efficiency of education. In particular, he suggested that programmed instruction could provide such efficiency. The present study used a within-subject design to compare the effects of four types of instructional materials: those requiring overt construction responses, overt discrimination responses, covert reading of text with highlighted key words, and covert reading of standard text. The material requiring overt responding produced greater learning than did the covert reading materials, with or without highlighting. There was no difference found between the two types of overt responding; nor were there differences between …

A Portrait Of Assessment In Reformed Mathematics Classrooms, James R. Kett

Dissertations

During the past decade, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics published three documents (1989, 1991, 1995) which propose changes in content, instruction, and assessment. These documents call for instructional and assessment goals that support students as they construct their own meaning to mathematics. A next step is to develop assessment models consistent with these goals which would guide and support classroom teachers.

As a result of mathematics reform, many curriculum development projects are underway. One such project is the Core-Plus Mathematics Project (CPMP) . This research documents the assessment practices of four CPMP teachers working in 9th and 10th …

The Availability Of Inferences In Children And Young Adults, Gerilyn A. Katz

Student Work

Much of the research on age-related differences in the ability to inhibit irrelevant information in a given task has been on the study of younger and older adults. Only a minimal amount of research has focused on the developmental differences in children and young adults. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether age-related differences exist between children and young adults in processes consistent with inhibition.

Third-, sixth-grade children, and college undergraduates listened to twenty-four garden path passages containing either expected or unexpected, but acceptable, conclusions. The twenty-four passages were divided into four subsets, with each subset containing …

Gender-Influenced Language: The Undressing Of Pornography, Caryn Blow

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Humanities at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Communication by Caryn Blow in November of 1997.

Differences In The Leisure Activities Of Mathematically Advanced Secondary School Students, Mary L. Cornell

Culminating Projects in Special Education

A survey designed to gather information about extracurricular and leisure activities was distributed to 332 tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grade students between March 30, 1997 and June 1, 1997. Two hundred and ten surveys from the original sample were analyzed by grouping the various activities into eleven activity indices. Each index was then compared statistically using a series of one-way ANOVAs, and Tukey's box plots. Students were also divided into six groups based on their mathematical accomplishments, and their gender.

Statistically significant differences were found for six of the eleven Activity Indices. The Academic Index, Math Index, and Science and …

Reading Comprehension Needs Of Students With Learning Disabilities In An Inclusion Setting: Class-Wide Peer Tutoring With A Summarization Strategy, Jeffrey A. Vandyke

Masters Theses

Many challenges face educators as they attempt to meet the needs of increasingly diverse students in general education settings. Students with learning disabilities are among them. Meeting the specific reading needs of such students within general education settings is one such challenge. This study reviews the literature on summarization and class-wide peer tutoring as they effect students with learning disabilities. This study also examines the strategy of summarization coupled with class-wide peer tutoring as a program to address reading comprehension needs of upper elementary learning disabled and non-disabled students in an inclusion setting. An experiment is performed and results are …

Inclusion: An Overview Of Working Models, Robertta Ruth Devries

Masters Theses

Increasingly, students with disabilities are being placed in general education classroom; defined as inclusion, to be educated with students without disabilities. Proponents such as parents, professionals, economists, researchers, and the general public are recommending a change in the continuum of services and a move toward a more integrated setting. Supporters proclaim: (a) special education is discriminating because it segregates students, (b) combining special education with general education will decrease the ever expanding budget, and (c) the American educational system is lacking and a “higher quality” education is essential. But, current research is not proving inclusion is a positive move forward …

Effects Of Auditory Oral Patterns As An Intervention For Expressive Language With Students With Disabilities, Scott Riley Swinehart

Masters Theses

The effects of using Auditory Oral Patterns to remediate expressive language in students with learning disabilities w as examined in a cross categorical classroom. Ten students with special education needs were in the study. Six of the students were labeled a s learning disabled, three of the students were labeled as educable mentally impaired, one student was labeled as emotionally impaired, and one student was labeled as autistically impaired. Four of the students in the study also had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Quantitative results of the study showed an increase in average words per sentence in oral expressive language for …

Charter Schools And Educational Vouchers: Battling Over Who Should Educate America’S Children, Kelly M. Mathews

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Teaching Two Syllable Types And One Syllabication Rule On The Spelling Achievement Of Students With Learning Disabilities, Tracey Ellen Taylor

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine whether teaching two syllable types and one syllabication rule in a reading program would affect the spelling achievement of students with learning disabilities. Seven fifth-grade students with learning disabilities from western-lower Michigan participated in this study. The intervention involved teaching the closed syllable and silent-e syllable in conjunction with the VC/CV syllabication rule. During the closed syllable phase and the silent-e phase, the students were given a ten word spelling test on Monday of each week. To determine spelling achievement, the students were evaluated for both word accuracy and syllable accuracy. The …

Is The Educational Level Of Technology Coordinators Aligned With International Standards?, Keith Alan Platte

Masters Theses

School districts that employ technology coordinators have not fully implemented standards set by the International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE) for technology coordinators. This research examines the role of the technology coordinator, the ISTE standards for technology coordinators, graduate programs available to technology coordinators, and job descriptions of technology coordinators. This research also includes the results of a self-assessment survey of technology coordinators in southwest Michigan. The average proficiency of technology coordinators on select ISTE benchmarks is 2.54 on a 3.0 scale (3.0 is proficient). However, their proficiency level is considerably lower when most of their skills are attained …

An Examination Of Students' Beliefs About Intelligence And Self-Talk Patterns, Mary Musto

Masters Theses

The relationship between students’ beliefs about intelligence and the type of self-talk used was examined among two students with learning disabilities who were identified as having a helplessness profile. Both students viewed intelligence as a static entity and demonstrated a lack of will to learn. Additionally, these students practiced the most negative type of self-talk about their ability when undertaking difficult learning tasks. The students were taught about theories of intelligence and the effects of negative self-talk on their classroom behavior. The results indicated that teaching students about the incremental view of intelligence and the self-talk model may enhance their …

A Compilation Of Instructions In The Art Of Dancing, Martha Jane Alexander

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the Caudill College of Humanities at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Communications by Martha Jane Alexander in the Fall of 1997.

How Parental Involvement Increases The Academic Performance Of Special Education Students, Esperance St. Louis

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

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