Education Commons^™

The Influence Of An Annual Meeting On The Sense Of Community Of Association Members, Their Satisfaction, And Future Intentions, Jee Yeon Hahm

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade, many studies have provided some understanding on what influences association members‟ decision to attend a meeting; however, more systematic and theoretical research is necessary. The decision making process of attendees is a complicated human behavior practice. The major contribution of this study is adopting the sense of community (SOC) model from psychology to gain a better understanding of the attendee behavior. By doing so, this study will add a theoretical foundation to the existing research in the meeting industry. Also, this study will contribute to the SOC research in psychology by applying the concept to a …

The Effect Of Visualized Student's Self-Set Learning Progress Goals On East Asian Chinese Student's Motivation And Self Confidence In Learning, Yu Ao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted to determine if visualized goal achievement can help enhance East Asian Chinese students‟ motivation in learning and elevate their confidence in reaching their goals thus improving their performance. The goal achievement was visualized on a goal achievement progress chart that was self-created and self-managed by the East Asian Chinese students and the goal creating was under the supervision of their instructor. In this study, literature reviews on the theories, previous research studies in the perspectives of East Asian students‟ motivation in learning, goal setting on motivation, self-determination, self-efficacy, and expectancy theories are conducted to provide theoretical …

Curriculum-Embedded Reading Tests As Predictors Of Success On Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test In Reading, Nicole Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With the passing of the No Child Left Behind legislation (2001), individual states have been required to administer standardized tests to measure students’ academic achievement in several academic areas, including reading comprehension. Many schools are using curriculum embedded reading comprehension tests to assess students’ progress in achieving grade level expectations before the administration of state standardized test. This study used de-identified student data on curriculum embedded reading comprehension tests and the state standardized reading test, FCAT 2.0 to assess the correlation between a specific curriculum-based measure and the FCAT 2.0. The researcher used Pearson and Spearman Correlation to assess the …

Tier I Rti For English Language Learners With Language Deficits, Maria Jose Soong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Educators are attempting to eliminate the disproportionate representation of culturally and linguistically diverse students in special education through initiatives such as Response to Intervention (RtI). Prior to the implementation of such initiatives, existing research relevant to this population must be critically reviewed and expanded. A synthesis of the available literature can provide significant insight into the type of data necessary to make informed decisions involving English language learners (ELL) at Tier I of an RtI model. In forming the theoretical foundation for this research, cognitive deficits associated with language-based disabilities and principles of cognitive load theory were examined. The study …

Academic Engagement Through Experiential Learning: Building Transferable Skills Within Undergraduate Education, Shara Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Presently, there is a national focus on the industry-benefitting skills developed through undergraduate education. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of an experiential learning course on building three ability-based transferable skills: communication, emotional intelligence, and professional qualities. These skills have been determined to be important components to the skill set of graduates intending to enter any career, including one within the hospitality industry. Results from an examination of three related instruments led to conclusions that an experiential learning course positively impacts self-perceived skill development among the three aforementioned skills as well as perception of overall performance. …

Using Bug In Ear Feedback To Increase The Accuracy Of Discrete Trial Teaching Implementation, Tracy Mckinney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many professionals have successfully implemented discrete trial teaching in the past. However, there have not been extensive studies examining the accuracy of discrete trial teaching implementation. This study investigated the use of Bug in Ear feedback on the accuracy of discrete trial teaching implementation among two pre-service teachers majoring in elementary education and one pre-service teacher majoring in exceptional education. An adult confederate was used to receive discrete trial teaching. Implementing a multiple baseline across participants design, this study examined whether there was a functional relationship between receiving Bug in Ear feedback and the accuracy of discrete trial teaching implementation. …

A Comparative Investigation Of Career Readiness And Decidedness In First Year Stem Majoring Students Participating In A Stem Mentoring Program Imbedded In A Living-Learning Community With Focused Data On Female Stem Students, Nirmala Ramlakhan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Female mentoring success was investigated as an undergraduate intervention utilizing career development practices to reduce dysfunctional career thinking and STEM major retention in first year freshmen females within a living-learning community. Repeated measures MANOVAs and canonical correlations in the causal comparative research design evaluated mentoring’s influence on first year females. Male voluntary participants (n = 126) formulated the comparison group, and female voluntary participants (n = 75) filled the treatment group. Repeated measure multivariate analyses of variances compared differences between the interaction of mentoring and gender over time on dysfunctional career thinking using two assessments: Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) and …

Impact Of The Education Level Of Voluntary Prekindergarten Teachers Upon Kindergarten Student Readiness Rates, Teresa Wright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study addressed the problem of insufficient information concerning the impact of variability in requirements and credentials for Florida Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) teachers statewide on VPK program quality. This study examined the variance in the professional credentials of VPK lead instructors in Florida school districts and whether or not this variability makes a significant difference in program quality as measured by VPK Provider Kindergarten Readiness Rates. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) statistical tests were conducted, as appropriate, for each of four research questions. Research findings indicated there was no statistically significant difference in the mean VPK …

An Exploration Of Secondary Science Grade Teachers' Written Artifacts About Their Experiences With An Online Professional Development In Reading Research And Instruction: A Grounded Theory Study, Carmen Woodhall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Classroom teachers deal with numerous pressures in their classrooms including students’ difficulty with reading at the middle and high school levels. Often, teachers can identify the problems, but are often unable to rectify them because of a lack of understanding and support in incorporating reading as part of their content area instruction. This research was conducted to investigate the impact of a sustained, online reading professional development on the teaching practice of middle school and high school science teachers who took the 14-week course. This grounded theory research used the reflective assignment, a comprehensive, 10-week, job-embedded assignment of 62 science …

The Relationship Between Married Partners' Individual And Relationship Distress: An Actor-Partner Analysis Of Low-Income, Racially And Ethnically Diverse Couples In Relationship Education, Matthew D. Munyon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Couples experiencing relationship distress often require professional help, such as counseling and couple and relationship education (CRE). Research recently discovered that among couples in counseling, a circular relationship exists between individual and relationship distress-stress begets stress. Until this study, a similar examination had not been conducted among couples selecting CRE. This study examined the relationship between individual and relationship distress among married couples that had children, were from predominantly low-income and racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, and selected CRE. A correlational research design was employed and framed in the social interdependence theory. The actor-partner interdependence model was conducted within a …

An Investigation Of Gender, Prior Access To Athletics, And Interest Levels In Intercollegiate Sports Of First-Time-In-College Freshmen, Michelle Ann White

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this research was to investigate the effects of gender and level of prior access to athletic programs sponsored by school, community, church, student or civic groups, and informal programs on level of first-time-in-college (FTIC) freshmen’s interest in participating in intercollegiate athletics. To this end, 1,196 respondents (682 females and 514 males) who were admitted to the University of Central Florida and attended freshman orientation sessions in May and June of 2007 at the UCF-Orlando campus completed the face-to-face survey. Participants ranged in age from 18 years of age to 25 years of age, representing varied racial/ethnic backgrounds, …

Through The Eyes Of Visitors: Understanding The Contexts Of The Visitor Photo Study At The Denver Museum Of Nature & Science, Kathryn Irene Schroeder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This case study describes the analysis of the Visitor Photo Study, a study in which visitors to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science documented their visit through pictures. The origins, implementation, and findings of the Visitor Photo Study are considered within the contexts of the fields of Community-Based Research (Strand, Marullo, Cutforth, Stoecker, & Donohue, 2003b), Visual Studies (Marshall & Rossman, 2011; Pink, 2007), and Visitor Studies (Visitor Studies Association, 2012). This study considers the extent to which the principles and elements of each of these fields were present in the Visitor Photo Study, which elements were not fully …

Multiple Perspectives On Academic Service-Learning Partnerships At The American University In Cairo: A Mixed Method Study, Neivin Mahmoud Marzouk Shalabi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This mixed method study aimed to redress the gap in the literature on academic service-learning partnerships, especially in Eastern settings. It utilized Enos and Morton's (2003) theoretical framework to explore these partnerships at the American University in Cairo (AUC). Seventy-nine community partners, administrators, faculty members, and students from a diverse range of age, citizenship, racial, educational, and professional backgrounds participated in the study. Qualitative interviews were conducted with members of these four groups, and a survey with both close-ended and open-ended questions administered to students yielded 61 responses. Qualitative analyses revealed that the primary motivators for partners' engagement in service-learning …

"I Went To The Woods Because I Wished To Live Deliberately": How A College-Level Academic Course Can Influence A Lifetime, Lauren Elizabeth Victor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study, using the portraiture methodology, provides an analysis of the lifelong significance of an undergraduate program that integrates literature with an outdoor experiential platform. With limited research on long-term effects of an academic outdoor experiential course on one's life, there is space to wonder about the prospect and nature of the long-term significance of an academic course that may offer technical skill, intrapersonal and interpersonal development, and also the delivery of subject matter related to a traditional or mainstream academic area of study.

Utilizing an academic skills-oriented lens as well as a character strengths lens, portraits were crafted of …

Disrupting The Deficit Discourse On Historically Black Colleges And Universities: An Organizational Identity Case Study Of Philander Smith College, Shametrice Ledora Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The federal Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, defines a historically Black institution of higher education as "any historically Black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principle mission was, and is, the education of Black Americans." Today, there are approximately 105 HBCUs, more than half private, the rest public, and a few two-year institutions (Allen, Jewell, Griffin, & Wolf, 2007). While currently only 14 percent of Black college students attend HBCUs, 70 percent of all Black doctors and dentists, 50 percent of all Black engineers and public school teachers, and 35 percent of all Black …

How Do Stem Minority Faculty Members Describe Their Experiences Of Graduate Student And Faculty Socialization?, Ayana Milele Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To remain globally competitive in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), we must increase our number of underrepresented minority scientists (URMs) as our country's population becomes more diverse. For URMs to move up the educational and professional ranks, they need to be properly socialized as graduate students and faculty members (Tierney & Rhoads, 1994; Weidman, Twale, & Stein, 2001). Programs such as the Alliance of Graduate Education in Mississippi (AGEM) are designed to assist in the socialization process of doctoral students and, in turn, increase the numbers of the URMs in faculty roles. Therefore, the purpose of this study was …

Empowering Students With Autism: An Investigation Of School Practices Through The Lens Of The Special Education Administrator, Jenny Rebecca Mcclintic

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: This qualitative study explored the perspectives of special education administrators employed in three school districts in Georgia regarding the empowerment of students with autism spectrum disorders. Participants were first given a screening survey and later interviewed via telephone in reference to empowering practices present in their individual districts. Participants were given the options to be included in the telephone survey. This study draws on the research from the National Research Council's findings published in as Educating Children with Autism (2001) and other leaders in the field of educational interventions. This study provides an analysis of their responses and …

Parent Perceptions Of The Georgia Special Needs Scholarship, Charity C. Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: The purpose of this study was to understand both contributors and barriers to use of the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship (SB10). Although SB10 was designed to offer parental choice of schools for students with disabilities, it has diminished the capacity of parents to access due process granted through IDEA. Perspectives in this study were provided by parents who chose to rescind their child's participation in the voucher program and parents who continued to access the voucher. Analysis of the lived experiences of parents of students with disabilities in Georgia revealed both similar and diverse experiences, perceptions and concerns …

Principals Roles And Responsibilities In Technology Integration In Rural Georgia, Christie Dunham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the elementary school principal’s roles and responsibilities in the use of technology for instructional purposes in Title I rural schools. Three principals, three technology coordinators and 8 teachers in the Southeastern area of Georgia participated in the study. Interview questions for the participants were created after a careful review of the literature on the subject and with input from leadership professors at Georgia Southern University. An analysis was conducted on data provided by the participants from the interview questionnaire and analyzed as separate entities to authenticate results.

Data from principals’ interviews …

Equal Or Not? An Exploration Of Eighth-Grade Students' Experience Of Algebra, Janice L. Reyes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past two decades, a considerable amount of algebra instruction nationwide has shifted from high school to middle school. In Georgia, all eighth-grade students have been required to take a course that is equivalent to about 80 percent of a traditional Algebra 1 course. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how a selected group of eighth-grade students in a suburban Georgia middle school experience algebra within the eighth grade mathematics curriculum. A qualitative research design was used to investigate students’ perceptions of algebra, the strategies employed by teachers to teach algebra, students’ difficulties with algebra, and …

Frankenfoods: Are We Bioengineering Our Children And What Can Curriculum Do?, Patra Rickman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation I explore the effect of biotechnology and food production on children’s physical and mental health. What we eat affects our well-being and unknowingly, we have little control of what exactly we are consuming. Children have even less control and feel the effects of additives and chemicals more than adults. Many of the effects of bioengineered foods are unknown at this time. My dissertation will be a theoretical exploration of biotechnology in food using a bioethical critical perspective. I use my personal experience and research to examine the effects of processed and genetically engineered foods on people, especially …

Curriculum And The Life Erratic: The Geographic Cure, Leslie B. Nissen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines a subset of Children of Alcoholics, whom I call Geographic Cure Children, who cope with both fermented parenting (as I have termed it) AND transient schooling. Viewed by schools and school systems simply as “highly mobile” students, their frequent school changes tell only part of the story. Geographic Cure Children arrive at their newest classrooms bearing the heavy burdens of emotional trauma and dark secrets about the Life Erratic. However, due to frequent mobility, their access to help or support is sketchy at best. Through currere, I employ autobiographical and psychoanalytic lenses to explore the intersection of …

An Analysis Of Secondary School Teachers' Perceptions Of Block Scheduling, Vern Mamon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed method study was to examine the perceptions of public secondary school teachers regarding block scheduling and to identify the perceived advantages and disadvantages of using the block schedule in three secondary schools in one suburban school system in Georgia. Perceptions of teachers were obtained from data collected from a 23-item survey and three focus group discussions.

The study concluded that secondary teachers’ perceptions of block scheduling were generally favorable. However, some teachers did firmly support some statements on block scheduling. The study suggested there is not a significant difference in teachers’ perceptions based on grade …

How Georgia Elementary School Principals Manage Difficult Teachers, Tim M. Tilley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The primary focus of this study is to ascertain how elementary school principals deal with difficult teachers. Two sub-questions were addressed in the study: what the different types of difficult teachers that elementary school principals encounter were and what types of strategies elementary principals found to be effective when dealing with difficult teachers. This study provides information for principals on how to deal with difficult teachers. The researcher found there to be minimal research in this area. A qualitative method in the phenomenological tradition was utilized to explore how elementary school principals deal with difficult teachers. Ten principals from a …

A Study Of Leadership Dispositions Of Transformational Leaders In Georgia High School, Todd Douglas Veland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Education reform has reached new levels of urgency and accountability over the last decade. The role a principal plays in leading the direction of a school is of vital importance. Leadership theories suggest that transformational leadership is the best way to achieve the goals of schools in the 21st century. Educational leadership programs try to emphasize transformational leadership skill, but these schools need to identify transformational leaders before they enter into school leadership. Dispositions are innate qualities and not necessarily a skill that can be taught by educational leadership programs.

The purpose of this study is to identify dispositions of …

Educating Gifted Students In The Regular Classroom: Efficacy, Attitudes, And Differentiation Of Instruction, Daniel William Caldwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine which variable, teacher self-efficacy or teachers’ attitudes toward gifted students, better explains teachers’ willingness to differentiate instruction for gifted students. Survey data from 341third through eighth grade teachers were analyzed using multiple regression. Teachers’ attitudes toward gifted students were measured using the Survey of Practices with Students of Varying Needs (short version). The Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale was used to measure teacher self-efficacy. The outcome variable, teachers’ willingness to differentiate instruction for gifted students, was measured by an instrument adapted by the researcher from an instrument developed by Heacox …

Factors Associated With Adult Literacy Student Outcomes In Campus-Based Versus Community-Based Programs, Charles Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In Georgia, the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) formally trains over 100,000 adult literacy students each year free of charge at a variety of campus-based and community-based programs located at community centers, churches, libraries, or businesses. A common, yet unproven, assumption among senior administrators and adult literacy faculty members at TCSG colleges is that adults who attend literacy classes embedded in the traditional college campus environment have better academic outcomes than those who attend only community-based programs. However, a gap currently exists in the literature with respect to a clear understanding of which student outcome variables are impacted when …

Institutional Factors Contributing To The Under-Representation Of African American Women In Higher Education: Perceptions Of Women In Leadership Positions, Kimberly Ann Robinson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

he purpose of this basic qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of African American women who have obtained senior leadership positions in Predominantly White Higher Education Institutions. Data were collected through open-ended, phenomenological-oriented interviews with 12 African American women holding senior level positions in both academic and student affairs in the north and southeast parts of the United States. This study focused on the perceived institutional barriers that have contributed to the under-representation of African American women in higher education senior administration and strategies that were used to overcome perceived barriers. Critical Race Theory was used as a …

Relationship Of Select Admissions Criteria To Pre-Licensure Requirements In A Graduate Degree Program In Occupational Therapy, Sharon Delaney Swift

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As the profession of occupational therapy continues to become widely recognized as a top career choice, the number of applications to occupational therapy educational programs continues to rise. To date there has been little research regarding the admission process and the admission variables used to select candidates for admission. Healthcare professions such as occupational therapy must reliably select those applicants who can succeed in the academic classroom and in the clinical setting by providing competent compassionate patient care.

This study sought to examine whether select cognitive and non-cognitive admission variables could be used to predict graduate performance on pre-licensure requirements …

Academic Optimism Of Schools And Student Achievement, Pamela J. Mckinnon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The pressure to perform well on high stakes testing may have caused many educational leaders to shift their focus away from developing a healthy organization that may enhance and possibly even predict student achievement to simply focusing on test scores. Hoy, Tarter and Hoy (2006) suggested that high levels of Academic OptimismAO (including collective teacher efficacy-CTE, faculty trust in parents and students-FT, and academic emphasis-AE), when controlling for SES, is a strong force in predicting academic achievement. This study attempted to support previous research findings and to provide educational administrators with a framework for improving school organizational health for the …