Education Commons^™

Administrator Perspectives Of Post-Secondary Educational Opportunities For Michigan High School Students, Carl Wozniak

Dissertations

Administrator perspectives regarding current and potential increased participation in post-secondary educational opportunities by Michigan high school students were explored in this descriptive quantitative study. Targeted concerns included current institutional levels of involvement, personal knowledge concerning program rules and regulations, efficacy of existing programs, barriers to program expansion, and potential solutions to those barriers as perceived by the participants.

The study utilized an online researcher-created survey instrument and stakeholder and complexity/contingency theories to explore commonalities and differences between three administrator groups. These stakeholders included college dual enrollment officers, school district superintendents, and high school principals. Information gained from the exploration of …

Advanced Placement Courses And College Student Success: Evidence From Bps: 96/01, Jinhai Zhang

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is, based on the application of Tinto's student persistence theory, to explore whether AP course taking, as one pre-collegiate student background characteristic, impacts college students' persistence, academic achievements, and college completion. This study used the national Beginning Postsecondary Study 96/01 longitudinal data set collected by the National Center of Education Statistics (NCES), which includes 12,100 first-time postsecondary beginners over a period of 6 academic years from 1995/96 to 2000/01.

In this study, students were categorized into three groups by their SAT scores. Logistical regression analysis indicated that overall students who took any AP course in …

Transgender People On University Campuses: A Policy Discourse Analysis, Doris Andrea Dirks

Dissertations

The goal of this study is to examine the language used to discuss transgender people on university campuses. My main research question was: What do university reports describe as problems and solutions for transgender people in universities? The primary data for this study consists of 16 reports issued at four Big Ten schools from 1992-2010. These reports address the inclusion of gender identity and expression in nondiscrimination policies, the status of transgender people on university campuses, or both. This study employs policy discourse analysis, a hybrid methodology that analyzes written documents using feminist, critical, and poststructural theories in order to …

African American Male Teachers In K-12 Education: A Limited Quantity, Kelley A. Peatross

Dissertations

This study examined the underrepresentation of African American (A/A) male teachers in three Midwestern school districts. The study sought to determine: (1) the perception of A/A teachers concerning their K-12 teaching experiences when disaggregated by the number of years of teaching, (2) their perception of why they went into teaching when disaggregated by the number of years of teaching, (3) their perception of the need for A/A male teachers, and (4) their perception of value and accomplishments as A/A male teachers in the classroom.

This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological design and was based upon Maslow’s (1970) hierarchy of needs …

Highly Qualified Public School Teacher: Its Status, Distribution, Determinants, And Relationship With Job Commitment And Job Satisfaction, Samuel Striker

Dissertations

Highly qualified teacher (HQT) has been promoted as a policy instrument to improve our public education. In this study, I investigated the quality of public school teachers by examining the distribution pattern of highly qualified teachers across school level, urbanicity, minority student population, and core academic fields. I also investigated what teacher characteristics (age, gender, ethnicity, total years of teaching, certification, bachelor's degree in mathematics and sciences vs. in other areas, teaching level) predict highly qualified teacher status after controlling for school characteristics (% of minority students, % of free and reduced-price lunch, school size, and school location). Finally, I …

Generalization Or Specialization In High School Based Health Careers Transition Programs: What Is The Impact On The Health Care Work Force Shortage?, James Wm. Taylor

Dissertations

Background: Health care experts are predicting major shortages of caregivers as a result of aging demographics and anticipated retirements of health workers. Numerous approaches are being used to increase the supply of health care workers, but little, if any, literature demonstrates the role of secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs in helping meet the anticipated demand.

Methods: Data from secondary educational health career programs were obtained from students completing five area programs (Allied Health, Health Occupations, Emergency Medical Technology, Dental Assisting, and Pharmacy Technician). Data analysis was performed on student demographics (chi-square), academic performance on standardized exams (ANOVA), and …

The Impact Of Leadership Training On Collegiate Student Athletes, Jerry Bergsma

Dissertations

This research is an exploratory study of the impact of leadership training on the student-athletes at an NCAA Division III member institution. Leadership education and training for athletics has seen a lack of research that could give insight into identifying attributes and actions that are associated with high-quality leadership training experiences. The purpose of this study is to identify the: (a) quality and outcomes of the Gainey Leadership Retreat training program, and (b) the attributes and impact of the Gainey program using the lens of Eich's (2008) wounded theory of high-quality student leadership programs.

The study participants are 60 female …

A Descriptive Case Study Of The Perceptions And Use Of Adventist Edge : An Initiative Developed In Response To The North American Division Of Seventh-Day Adventists' Document, "Journey To Excellence", Pamela C. Forbes

Dissertations

Problem. The Southern Union started the Adventist EDGE initiative as an action plan in response to the North American Division's document, Journey to Excellence . The Adventist EDGE became a comprehensive educational reform initiative. However, there were different ideas on how the innovation should look when inaction in the schools, and these differences became obvious during the initial EDGE school validation visit, resulting in hurt feelings and confusion. Thus, the need for my study to clarify EDGE became critical for the survival of the initiative.

Purpose. The purpose of my study was to develop two operational definitions or …

The Effect Of Repeated Reading With Pairs Of Students In A Large-Group Setting On Fluency And Comprehension For Students At Risk For Reading Failure, John N. Frame

Dissertations

Problem. Some students are failing to develop acceptable reading skills; however, instructional time allocated to reading fluency can increase reading comprehension. The purpose of this study was to compare students who received repeated reading with pairs of students in a large-group setting with those who did not in terms of reading fluency, rates of reading fluency growth, and reading comprehension for students at risk for reading failure in a school in a Midwestern mid-sized city.

Method. An experimental pretest-posttest with control group design was used with grade level stratified (2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade) intervention (N = 27) and …

A Grounded-Theory Study Of The Teaching Methods Of Jesus : An Emergent Instructional Mode, Liv Fønnebø

Dissertations

Problem. While models of teaching and teaching methods have manifested themselves in the wake of most major world philosophies and thus are accessible to present-day educators, a defined model of teaching based on the Christian worldview is harder to find. This is strange, given the fact that the person who, by definition, stands as close to the Christian worldview as one can possibly get, Jesus Christ has the reputation of being one of the greatest teachers ever. Institutions that offer an education aligned with the Christian worldview should be the ones showing greatest interest in a model of teaching derived …

Bayesian Item Response Theory: Statistical Inference And Power Analysis, Jason W. Bodnar

Dissertations

The regulatory pharmaceutical approval process is flawed in that industry clinical trials (ICTs) are always powered for efficacy and rarely powered for safety. The key safety parameter is the adverse event (AE). This practice may result in efficacious products with confounded safety. An ICT’s ability to be powered for detecting AE trends may improve patient safety. Therefore, this dissertation’s purpose was to determine if power analysis resulted in feasible sample sizes for substantiating AE hypotheses. AEs were modeled with three Bayesian 2PL IRT models. The unidimensional latent trait, transfusion-related AE, was modeled as a patient predisposition for experiencing an AE. …

Children‘S Protagonism At The Centro Cultural Da Criança: A Case Study, Claudia Protasio Ceccon

Dissertations

This dissertation provides a thick description and discussion of how child protagonism, participation and autonomy were implemented in an out of school center – The Children‘s Cultural Center – in a favela, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The researcher visited the center for more than two years, twice a week from February 2008 to June 2009, and once a week from June 2009 to July 2010. She conducted in-depth interviews with educators and children, recorded observation sessions in the activity rooms, and observed actualization sessions for educators and family days. This study describes the perspectives and expectations of the Center‘s …

An Examination Of Post-Secondary Education Access, Retentionand Success Of Foster Care Youth, Angelique Day

Dissertations

Changes in the U.S. economy have made the attainment of a higher education credential more important than ever to ensure self-sufficiency. Therefore, it is critical that the child welfare, K-12, and higher education systems encourage and support the postsecondary educational aspirations of court wards. When the state makes the decision to remove a child from his/her biological home, it bears the responsibility to provide the educational guidance as well as assistance otherwise provided by families during the transition from high school to college.

This dissertation explores the educational outcomes of older youth in care by first looking at the perceptions …

Experiences That Influence A Student's Choice On Majoring In Physics, Donya Rae Dobbin

Dissertations

Currently the production of college graduates with science and engineering degrees is insufficient to fill the increasing number of jobs requiring these skills. This study focuses on physics majors with an in-depth examination of student transitions from high school to college. Many different areas of influence could affect a student's decision to major in physics. The first phase of this study addresses all of the potential areas of influence identified from the literature. The goal was to identify common influences that might be used to increase students' interest in majoring in physics. Subjects (N=35) from the first phase were recruited …

How Politics, Economics, And Technology Influence Evaluation Requirements For Federally Funded Projects: A Historical Study Of The Elementary And Secondary Education Act From 1965 To 2005, Maxine R. Eversley-Gilling

Dissertations

Program evaluation does not take place in a vacuum. Its context is the interaction of political, economic, and technological developments that influenced the formation of federal policies for mandated evaluation requirements. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 established policies to provide “financial assistance to local educational agencies serving areas with concentrations of children from low-income families to expand and improve their educational program” (Public Law 89-10—Apr. 11, 1965). This legislation also had another consequence: it helped drive the establishment of educational program evaluation and the field of evaluation as a profession.

The purpose of this study is …

Death By Boredom: The Role Of Visual Processing Theory In Written Evaluation Communication, Stephanie D. H. Evergreen

Dissertations

Evaluation reporting is an educational act and, as such, should be communicated using principles that support cognition. This study drew upon visual processing theory and theory-based graphic design principles to develop the Evaluation Report Layout Checklist intended to guide report development and support cognition in the readers of evaluation reports. It was then reviewed by an expert panel and applied by a group of raters to a set of evaluation reports obtained from the Informal Science Education evaluation website with maximum variability sampling. Results showed fairly high exact percent agreement and strong to very strong correlation with the author’s ratings. …

The Role Of Experiential Learning In Nurturing Management Competenciesin Hospitality And Tourism Management Students: Perceptions From Students, Facultyand Industry Professionals, Kristen Jack

Dissertations

Previous research has revealed that industry professionals and educators in the field of Hospitality and Tourism Management (HTM) agree that classroom theory and experience in the field are essential components of undergraduate HTM education. Yet there is some disagreement on internship hour requirements, and limited data on actual outcomes. This study therefore examines the perceptions of students and industry professionals as to the extent HTM undergraduate students actually develop key management competencies while participating in experiential learning components. In addition, it captures the views of university faculty and hospitality industry professionals who work with these students regarding essential competencies and …

Daily Practices Elementary Principals Utilize To Increase Student Readingachievement: A Case Study Of Successful Michigan Elementary Schools, Susan L. Johnson

Dissertations

This case study examined three K-5 schools, one 3-5 school, and two K-2 Analysis of the data provided six dominant themes related to the research questions: Behavior/Positive Behavior Support, Visibility, Professional Development, Team/Distributed Leadership, Data, and Deliberate/Focused. The dominant themes were cross tabbed with the theoretical frameworks from Marzano et al. (2005) and Fullan (2008a). Connections were made to both Marzano et al.'s Seven Responsibilities of the School Leader for Second-order Change and 21 Responsibilities of the School Leader as well as to four of Fullan's Six Secrets of Change. This study supports previous research and adds to the literature …

Evaluating The Effects Of A Job-Aid For Teaching Visual Inspection Skills To University Students, Candice M. Jostad

Dissertations

Visual inspection is the primary method of data analysis used in behavior analysis. Thus, it is important that behavior analysts have the skills necessary for accurate visual inspection. Research has shown that visual inspection can sometimes be unreliable, which has broad implications for the evaluation of treatment effects using this method. Traditional lectures have been shown to be ineffective in teaching visual inspection skills to a satisfactory level, although improvements in visual inspection have been accomplished using statistical methods and aids such as celeration lines superimposed on graphs. However, these methods are not effective when the aids are removed and …

Differentiated Instruction In The Secondary Classroom: Analysis Of The Level Of Implementation And Factors That Influence Practice, Duane Kiley

Dissertations

Differentiated instruction is designing and implementing instruction to meet the needs of every student. Differentiated classrooms adjust to individual student’s needs through a combination of practices proven effective in teaching at the student’s point of learning acquisition.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which secondary teachers differentiate instruction and whether selected independent variables influence teachers’ use of differentiated instruction. Academic teachers were surveyed to determine the extent to which they utilized differentiated instructional strategies. Focus group meetings were conducted to delve deeper into understanding the information received from the teacher survey. Statistical analysis of the …

An Exploration Of Worldview And Conceptions Of Nature Of Science Among Science Teachers At A Private Christian High School, Kara M. Kits

Dissertations

Both worldview and conceptions of nature of science (NOS) are important components in teaching and learning science. However, few empirical studies have examined the interplay between both of these components for teachers or students. Therefore, this study examines the possible relationship between worldview and conceptions of nature of science for secondary science teachers who currently teach at a Christian school.

Qualitative methodologies developed a rich description of the worldview beliefs and conceptions of NOS for teachers in this study. Eight secondary science teachers employed at a private Christian school participated in the study. A Views of Nature of Science (VNOS) …

A Case Study Of How Students Enrolled In Cte Programs And Faculty Understand And Assess The Implications Of Globalization On Career Preparation, Mohammad A. Moradi

Dissertations

Globalization reflects a shift in the workforce development paradigm. This descriptive qualitative case study was conducted at a Midwestern university with 12 student participants and three faculty members from three engineering programs. The purpose of this body of work was to explore the participants‘ perceptions of globalization, and to understand the implications of globalization on career and technical education (CTE) programs, program selection, and career choices, the training of the students enrolled in CTE programs, and the role of teaching faculty and the college in this process.

How CTE programs aligned many diverse programs to meet a growing demand for …

White Male College Students: An Examination Of Identity Development, Masculinity, And Institutional Connections, Randy Ott

Dissertations

White, male college (WCM) students have been a central focus of researchers in higher education throughout its existence, but have not been studied as a group whose identity development is a key issue. This study looked at WCM, their masculinity levels, and how their past connections with peers, instructors, or staff influenced their White identity development. In this study I utilized a phenomenological research approach to learn about the lived experiences of eight WCM. The eight WCM were at least junior status at a medium size, Midwestern, public university.

The results point to multiple conclusions and themes. This study supported …

A Qualitative Study Of Instructional Strategies Used By Elementary General Education Teachers In Inclusive Classrooms, Kristen Peterson

Dissertations

It has become evident in recent years that it is not the placement in the general education classroom that makes the difference for the education of students with disabilities, but it is the instructional strategies used by general education teachers (King- Sears, 1997; Vaughn & Schumm, 1995; Zigmond, 2003; Zigmond & Baker, 1995). In the last two decades, considerable progress has been made in designing, implementing, and evaluating effective interventions for students with learning disabilities. Although the research on effective instruction is abundant, studies continue to reveal general education teachers minimally change their instruction when students with learning disabilities are …

African American Students’ Experiences, Achievement And Outcomes; Examined Through The Lenses Of Teacher Expectations, Racial Congruence And Stereotype Threat, Carla Postell

Dissertations

The phenomenological study examined the retrospective perceptions of academic experiences and outcomes of 13 African American full or part-time college students enrolled in either a community college or university located in an urban area. For the purpose of this study, educational experiences are defined as self-reported academic achievements and perceived success levels attained by participants during high school. Academic outcomes are the self-reported academic achievement and success level attained at their colleges and universities. The researcher interviewed participants, using a one-on-one interview process to conduct the interviews.

This study examined influences of race congruence between students and teachers. This topic …

Learning Organization Principles: The Impact On A Midwest State Government As Perceived By Its Employees, Rosalee Billingslea Rush

Dissertations

This study sought to determine the extent to which learning organization constructs influence performance in state government. The overarching purpose was to examine the relationship between Peter Senge’s five learning disciplines and organizational performance.

The study utilized an ex post facto survey design. The sample population was composed of supervisors and professional and administrative staff within the 19 agencies of a Midwestern state government. Participants were administered an instrument that asked them to rate their perception of the organization and its performance along seven dimensions of learning. Of the randomly selected 381 participants, 110 (or 28.9%) returned the survey instrument. …

Stability Of Popular R-Cbm Progress Monitoring Tools: Dibels® Next And Aimsweb®, Christine Russell

Dissertations

Currently there is no agreed-upon method for determining the difficulty level, referred to as the readability level, of Reading Curriculum-Based Measurement (R-CBM) passages. A key tenant of R-CBM is that the passages across each grade level are equivalent in difficulty level and therefore can be used to monitor student academic improvement. The primary objective in this study was to evaluate the homogeneity of oral reading fluency progress monitoring passages of two popular passage sets that are used frequently in schools. The purpose of this research was to examine the stability of each R-CBM progress monitoring passage set as well as …

Evaluating The Use Of A Self-Advocacy Strategy As A Means Of Improving Progress In The General Curriculum For Individuals With Cognitive Disabilities, Amy L. Schelling

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate if the use of a self-advocacy strategy, with high school students identified as having a mild cognitive disability, would increase student use of self-advocacy skills across multiple school settings. Participants in the study were also identified as participating in at least one general education class at the time the study was conducted.

A multiple baseline across participants and across settings design was applied to determine the effects of instruction on students' use of a self-advocacy strategy before and after the instructional period and across settings. Use and generalization of a self-advocacy strategy …

Understanding The Career Paths And Experiences Of Division I-A Athletic Directors: A Phenomenological Study, Harold Thomas Swift

Dissertations

The focus of this study was to understand the career paths and experiences of Division I-A Athletic Directors. There are only 120 of these coveted positions in the country. The limited research on how to obtain this position led to this investigation.

This research examined the career paths of 10 Division I-A ADs male (five African American and five White) and their experiences reaching their position. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used as the methodology. One-on-one phone interviews were conducted using open-ended interview questions that elicited information from each participant. The Social Cognitive Career Theory and Critical Race Theory were …

Reading, Writing, And Repetition: Performance On Nonword Measures Bystudents With And Without Language-Learning Disabilities, Patricia J. Tattersall

Dissertations

The central purpose of this three-paper dissertation was to explore the ability of school-age children with and without language-learning disabilities (LLD) to apply sound/word level structure knowledge when performing speaking, spelling, and reading tasks. Data came from a larger investigation that used stratified sampling to create two ability groups—children with typical language (TL) and with LLD—comparable in terms of age (range 6 through 18 years), sex, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.

The central purpose of this three-paper dissertation was to explore the ability of school-age children with and without language-learning disabilities (LLD) to apply sound/word level structure knowledge when performing speaking, …