Education Commons^™

Limited By Design: Expanding The Boundaries Of Schooling Policies From Demanded Passivity To Transformative Practice, Natalia T. Carvalho-Pinto

Masters Theses

Schooling is often imagined as the great equalizer and the primary venue towards personal and collective liberation. However, hegemonic ideals and practices have limited the ability for educators to craft and utilize policy in a way that best benefits their students. In this thesis, I utilize the state of Michigan’s Common Core curriculum to examine the limits beyond policy and practice. Specifically, I argue that the demands for student passivity and institutional measurable as signs of success, prohibit student growth. Throughout the document, I describe hope in the ability to instill a variety of transformative educational theories and practices that …

How Students Of Japanese Perceive And Use Technology, David Rubino

Masters Theses

The role of technology in education has expanded to a near universal reality. In foreign languages the field of Technology-enhanced Language Learning, has long sought to effectively implement instruction with these tools, and often to great success, often through the guise of Computer-assisted Language Learning. However, most studies investigating the student perception of class structures incorporating technology are based on what instructors have implemented.

Students, the counterparts of instructors, often own more than one technological tool and will often employ these tools in their studies. For learners of foreign languages, certain aspects of technology are selected for various tasks based …

Role-Play In The Chinese Classroom, Matthew Werth

Masters Theses

Over the past decade, there has been an increasing push for foreign language teachers to use a communicative approach to language instruction. One area this can be seen is through role-plays, activities where students take on a persona other than themselves to complete a task in the target language. Despite the growing popularity of role-play, there has been little empirical research looking at the impact of role-play on students. In particular, the differences between large group and small group role-plays remain virtually unstudied.

This thesis looks at role-play in Chinese language classrooms from the perspectives of both teachers and students. …

Zoom-Out : Expansion Of Pedagogical Approaches Within Moving Image Education, Thomas Flint

Masters Theses

The moving image is arguably the most complex form of expression that we have ever invented. Yet, the degree to which the medium can be taken advantage of throughout its process of creation does not always seem to be grasped within the context of education. Zoom-Out examines the current state of moving image education and how the range of ways in which film can be shaped for the purpose of learning might be further expanded upon. An overview of how standard film industry practices transition into educational settings provides a backdrop for highlighting pedagogical tendencies that point to a reliance …

Space In Between : Finding A Third Space For Art Education & Creative Community, Denise Gunter

Masters Theses

The arts remain in the shadow of Education’s assumptions: the arts are a subject of skill, a place for the finished product. While counter efforts, both current and past, have been pursued by the field of Art Education to promote art as an everyday tool, the static presence of this regulated pedagogical space makes it difficult to shift art accessibility from the artist to society as a whole. In response, it is certain the field demands a new environment. A space that validates its convictions and passions into something translatable to the masses, so art education may stand alone. In …

Defining Contagion : Examining Imagination As A Source Of The Infection In Print Studios, Joshua Tangen

Masters Theses

In this thesis, I attempted to define a contagious component of art education within a community print shop. In this quest, I examine theories around imagination, creativity, and psychology through an analysis of the work of Maxine Greene, Kieran Egan, Ken Robinson, and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Gathered from a variety of sources that include, books, scholarly articles, and online video, I link Greene’s concepts of what role imagination plays in critical thinking and empathy, Egan’s promotion of imagination’s ability to create personal and emotional engagement, Robinson’s ideas about creativity in learning, and Csikszentmihayli’s theory of flow. Connecting these four philosophers are …

Learning Environments Of Our Stories, Grace M. Kim

Masters Theses

This thesis reframes the traditional classroom as a “learning environment” in order to broaden the perspective of the causes and effects of learning in the context of today’s culture and technology. Learning environments are examined through the lens of three key learning theories: Lev Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, the Montessori Method of Education , and the Reggio Emilia Approach. The learning environments are further dissected into the three dimensions of: (1) the physical space, (2) the psychological space, and (3) the virtual space, and these dimensions are examined through the various interactions, which happen within each space. Through qualitative …

Privileged And Complicit: Education And Understanding Of White Privilege At A Predominately White Institution, Chase Rourke Dolan

Masters Theses

At predominately-white institutions (PWI), students commonly come from racially homogenous backgrounds and may have never had to think about their racial identity or racial issues. The purpose of this study was to examine white students’ understandings of the concept of privilege, the effectiveness of their education at this institution about privilege, and their comfort with racial dialogue. Without an understanding of privilege and oppression, and their complicity in this system, students cannot be expected to engage meaningfully in any discussion about racial injustice. Helms’ white racial identity development model, Watt’s privileged identity exploration model, and critical race theory were used …

A Guide For The Development Of Theoretical Understanding And Practice Of Teaching For Artistic Behavior: A Response For 21st Century Art Education, Lisa Van Plew-Cid

Masters Theses

Education in the 21st century is restructuring to meet the needs of an increasingly technological society where learning objectives need to focus more on learning abilities rather than knowledge acquisition. Creativity and authentic learning have been identified as new learning objectives for the 21st century. Throughout the history of education, art education has maintained relevance through the integral role it plays in meeting the learning and developmental needs of our students. Teaching for Artistic Behavior (TAB) offers both a philosophy and practice for relevant 21st century art education.

Through research and deep reflection on my ten year practice as an …

What To Expect? An Exploration Of International Student Experience, Meagan Mullen

Masters Theses

International students face particular barriers when attending higher education in the United States, some of which could be due to misguided expectations of their experiences. This research study used Expectancy Violations Theory to explore the expectations of international students in their first semester in the United States. Using semi-structured interviews, this qualitative study found that participants create expectations for academics, relationships, culture, and lifestyle, and that these expectations are either met or violated, which results in differing experiences. These expectations were created both consciously and unconsciously and were sometimes a result of information found online or learned from other people. …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Use Of Counseling Services And Emotional Resiliency Development, Chelse M. Hawkins

Masters Theses

Mental health services remain underutilized and stigmatized within the culture of higher education despite the important role that they play in the development of one’s emotional resiliency competence (ERC). Data suggest that mental health disorders account for nearly 50% of the total burden of disease for young adults in the United States. Students who struggle with mental health concerns in college tend to have lower grade point averages and are at greater risk for dropout than those students who do not struggle with these concerns. Counseling services are able to alleviate the symptoms of mental health concerns through the development …

Access To Higher Education Through Community-Based Organizations, Irma Y. Ramirez

Masters Theses

Although low-income students of color share similar desires as their White, affluent counterparts to attend college, studies indicate that they are at a disadvantage in accumulating the dominant social capital needed to access higher education. Research has yet to explore the accumulation of social capital through community-based organizations to help students access higher education. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to identify the strategies community-based organizations use to help low-income students of color access higher education, using a social capital framework. Nine participants from three different types of community-based organizations participated in this study, including staff, students, and …

Assessing The Benefits And Risks Of Choice-Based Art Education In The Modern-Day Classroom, Kayla Lindeman

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the benefits and risks of choice-based art education by examining the literature and conducting field research in two third grade art classrooms - one that employs a Teaching for Artistic Behaviors-based (TAB-based, a popular version of choice-based art education) approach to art education and another that adheres to a more discipline-based model. Findings related to student observations, student surveys, and parent survey will be presented within these two unique settings. These findings will be matched against claimed choice-based benefits of: increases in student engagement; instructional and learning shifts; and student engagement in authentic art practices. The findings …

Exploring The Relevance Of Art Therapy In Public Education, Brandy A. Jarrell

Masters Theses

This thesis will explore art education as a therapeutic tool in a public education system. This topic will serve as a continuation of research that I conducted previously but will bring more focus upon bringing a certified art therapist into public school districts in West Virginia. Data will be collected through student surveys, interviews of professional art therapists, and administrative officials. Data will also be collected through a review of the literature surrounding the benefits of art therapy to children and adolescents. Through these sources I will explore the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of educational professionals, art therapists, administrators and …

The Role Of Arts Education In Closing The Achievement Gap In High Poverty Schools, Deanne Basse

Masters Theses

This paper will review research that identifies different types of poverty and how brain development may be affected as a result of living in poverty. Although research reflects support and understanding by the American people that arts education is important to the well roundedness of youth and, in fact, correlates with higher standardized test scores, arts programs continue to be cut especially in areas of poverty. There is an achievement gap in educational success when it comes to students that live in poverty and that of students in higher socioeconomic situations. Students of poverty are working with increased internal and …

Peer And Self Reflective Evaluations; Benefits And Techniques Used In A Middle School Art Room Setting, Mary Garrod

Masters Theses

Students’ intentional development as independent learners is increased with the understanding of self efficacy, which contributes to motivation, persistence for learning, and future achievements. However, adolescence is a time when self efficacy and motivation in art often decline. Two effective teaching and learning practices that can aid middle school art educators in the development of adolescent student judgment skills and confidence as independent learners, are self assessment and peer assessment. This paper presents literature on the topics of peer assessment, self assessment, and their link to self efficacy beliefs in adolescents. It then provides applicable, research-based self and peer evaluation …

Teaching The Soft Skills Through The Arts: A Supplementary Art Curriculum, Brittany Boverhof

Masters Theses

Soft skills are the ability to work with, for, and among other people, yet we can no longer expect students to develop these skills organically. This research builds on the knowledge that if we want the students we are educating to be successful in employing their own soft skills, then they must be taught. This paper defines soft skills, shows their importance, and introduces practices that are proven to build soft skill ability. I have constructed twelve lesson plans that teach the soft skills through experientialism, working in groups, art, critique, classroom management, and problem solving. This supplementary curriculum provides …

Preparing The Student For High School Band Leadership: A Praxial And Flipped-Classroom Method Based On Kolb's Learning Theory, Brandon Dennis Woods

Masters Theses

Today's educational climate is rapidly shifting. High stakes testing, both from the federal and state governments, have drastically altered the landscape of public education in America. Although all subjects are feeling the impact of these new educational initiatives, music education is suffering uniquely during this time. With music education so drastically different in modern education compared to what is was before the year 2001, because of the implementation of sweeping federal changes, it is important that we take a new and fresh look at band director education. Students are entering the job field as first year band directors with very …

A Photo Illicit Study Of Black Women's Sense Of Belonging At A Predominately White Institution, Kayla Alexandria Slusher

Masters Theses

This qualitative study sought to examine how Black women define and create their sense of belonging while attending a predominately White institution using a photovoice approach. The women took photographs of spaces that they frequently occupy and then engaged in a face-to-face interview to discuss the photographs. The researcher also investigated four Black women, ranging from junior to graduate level, to identify how they developed a sense of belonging at the research site institution. Results of the study showed that a feeling of comfort was most important when identifying belongingness in a space. The participants were able to create a …

Students Perspective Of Healthy Living In College, Andrea Coxey

Masters Theses

Using qualitative methodology, the researcher studied what participants definition of a healthy lifestyle as compared to how they actually live. Through conducting six one on one interviews with participants, it was found that physical health was the most widely recognized aspect of health, and that each participant had a unique definition of health. Mental health was not initially recognized by participants but was shown to be an important connection to all aspects of health including physical health, emotional health, sleep and nutrition. Participants recognized the importance of involvement and their transition to college as impacting their definition of health and …

The Relationship Between Peer Accountability Within Social Greek Organizations And Violations Of The Student Conduct Code, Danielle L. Burden

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between violations of the student conduct code and the perception of peer accountability within social Greek organizations. The researcher hypothesized that members of Greek organizations would report high perceptions of peer accountability within their organizations, and because of that there would be an effect on violations of the student conduct code. A quantitative study was conducted, surveying the entire Greek population at a mid-sized, Midwestern, 4-year, public institution. A Likert scale was used to measure questions about perceived peer accountability within organizations, students also provided demographics and self-reported violations of …

Influences On International Students' Selection Of A Regional U.S. Institution: A Descriptive Study, Yazmin Rodriguez

Masters Theses

This study examined the factors influencing international students' election to study in the United States in general and at a regional four-year institution, specifically. Furthermore, it was designed to gather descriptive information about the barriers and challenges they face. A triangulation mixed methods approach was utilized based on a previously described push-pull model. The findings indicated that Availability of scholarships or work, cost and fees, and Visa processing and visa cost are the most difficult factors that international students face when making the decision to study in the U.S. This corresponded well with the qualitative responses from the …

A Qualitative Case Study On Best Practices Of Emotional Support Animal Policies, Jordan E. Dadez

Masters Theses

This study sought to understand the best practices and protocols of Emotional Support Animal policies in residential life. A qualitative case study was conducted to provide insight on the best practices of residential life Emotional Support Animal Policies. Four participants from institutions with established policies were interviewed to gain understanding of these protocols and policies, what is involved in the approval and accommodations process, and what challenges the participants face. The results showed a need to evaluate and change the current process that most institutions utilize for Emotional Support Animal approval. The approval process and accommodations process are two separate …

Factors Influencing Persistence Of Students With Learning Disabilities At Four-Year Institutions, Abigail Frye

Masters Theses

This study investigated the persistence and transition of college students with learning disabilities at a mid-sized Midwestern university. The qualitative, narrative approach was used to determine which factors influenced the persistence of students with learning disabilities at a four-year, mid-sized university and which college services and resources students with learning disabilities utilized. This research found that students do utilize college services and supports to assist through their transitions into college. The participants in this research relied on the support of their family and friends while they approached and navigated their college transition. This study found that students with learning disabilities …

Understanding The Transition To College For Students With Learning Disabilities, Breanna Rehor

Masters Theses

This study sought to investigate the transition to college for students with learning disabilities at a mid-size Midwestern university. A qualitative approach was used to provide insight in student's perspectives on the transition from high school to college. Three undergraduate students with learning disabilities were individually interviewed to gain understanding of the transition to college. The results demonstrated a critical need for institutions to address the transition to college for students with learning disabilities and create incentives that guide support for student success. Students utilizing various support systems like academic student services, and peers. The transitions to college for students …

Assessment And Analysis Of Receptive And Expressive English Language Development In Spanish Speaking Ells And Native English Speakers Using The Pre-Klba, Candace Laprairie

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the trends and differences in receptive and expressive English language development in native English speakers and Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELL). It also aims to analyze the relationship between auditory comprehension and narrative production skills and semantic skills and narrative production skills in native English-speakers and Spanish-speaking ELLs. Eighty-three preschool-aged children (17 Spanish-speaking ELLs and 66 Native English-speakers) were administered the Pre-Kindergarten Language Benchmark Assessment (Pre-KLBA) in Fall 2015, Winter 2016, and Spring 2016. This study utilized a three by two ANOVA to evaluate and determine: 1) If there are differences in …

Student And Instructor Attitudes Toward 21st Century Writing Technologies In The Rural Secondary English Classroom, Casey Crowhurst

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on how students and teachers feel about the current use of technologies like Chromebooks and laptops in the rural secondary English classroom. Chapter one describes my personal journey as a student and educator using various technologies in the classroom, and how I came upon the idea for this study while observing one of the first high schools to implement full 1:1 Chromebook technology in the United States. Then, I discuss my review of the current literature on the subject, and find that there is a lack of knowledge about the emergence of these types of technologies, and …

Examining 8th Grade Students Disciplinary Literacy Of Science Material, Chelsie P. Doughty

Masters Theses

Education standards are shifting to reflect a skills-based, rather than a content-centered, curriculum that focuses on students being literate across all disciplines. This study focuses on the skills of critical thinking, close reading, and text-based writing as it applies to the scientific and historical disciplines. Eighth grade students engaged in a text-based writing assignment that required evaluation of multiple sources to support their claims. Student responses were analyzed textually and verbally as it related to the content. Findings included the ability to identify students' struggles and successes with close reading, writing claims, evaluating evidence for importance, and connecting documents to …

The Relationship Between Stress, Preventive Coping Resources, And Burnout Among Elementary Teachers, Joseph Michael Mooney

Masters Theses

This study explored the relationship between stress outcomes, preventive coping, and burnout in a sample of 68 elementary teachers. Teacher training in behavioral modification was also examined due to its established role in teacher stress. Results showed that teachers who had greater demands relative to coping resources were more likely to experience two aspects of burnout; emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. A significant relationship was not found with the third component of burnout, personal accomplishment. Preventive coping resources were found to be associated in the expected direction with all three components of burnout. Those individuals with fewer preventive coping resources exhibited …

Is The Relationship Between College Drinking Behaviors And Social Anxiety Mediated By Alcohol Expectancies And Traumatic Life Experiences?, Cortney Lin Kingsmill

Masters Theses

The relationship between alcohol consumption and social anxiety is difficult to understand, as there have been mixed findings in the research. In general, a positive correlation has been found between the two, with a focus on the mediating effect of alcohol outcome expectancies. Both positive expectancies and trauma have been correlated positively with social anxiety and drinking behavior. This paper reviews the literature and examines the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol consumption. A mediated model between these two variables with the mediators being alcohol expectancies and traumatic experiences was proposed, but this model did not fit the date. Specifically, …