Education Commons^™

1, 2, 3: Counting On Problem Based Learning To Improve Mathematical Achievement In African American Students, Kelley P. Spahr

Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics is an important component of our everyday lives. It involves necessary skills, such as computation, problem solving, and critical thinking. In spite of this, a significant portion of our students are unable to demonstrate proficiency. These students are typically the underserved, marginalized students who are over represented in remedial classes and behavioral statistics (Gibson, 2022; Harper, 2010, 2021; Zilanawala, et al., 2018). This research study presented two instructional interventions, culturally relevant pedagogy and problem-based learning, to examine the impact of self-efficacy, critical thinking, and mathematical achievement. This study utilized a mixed-methods triangulation design. The participants of this study were …

A Study Of Computational Thinking Skills And Attitudes Towards Computer Science With Middle School Students, Lorien W. Cafarella

Theses and Dissertations

Many middle school students come to Computer Science (CS) classes without any previous CS instruction or any Computational Thinking (CT) skills that are needed to be successful. To overcome this, many curriculums and programming environments have been used to engage students and to instill a love of CS. Which curriculum should be used to develop CT skills that will also increase positive attitudes towards CS so students will continue in this field of study in higher grades? The purpose of this mixed method action research study was to evaluate how Code.org’s block-based programming curriculum affects middle school CS students’ CT …

Assessing The Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices Of Elementary Teacher Educators On The Inclusion Of Computational Thinking Through Coding, Megan Christine Swanson

Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to understand the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of teacher educators regarding Computational Thinking (CT) and coding. All elementary teacher educators in the state of Utah were sent a survey and asked to participate in a follow up interview. Twentynine faculty replied. Five of the 29 survey respondents were interviewed. Teacher educators shared their definitions of CT and coding, which primarily dealt with problem solving and computer programming, respectively. Overall attitudes were positive about incorporating CT and coding, but many participants questioned how it would fit into the already overwhelming nature of the elementary education major. However, those …

Connecting Writing To Life: The Effects Of Place-Conscious Education On Writing In A First Grade Classroom, Tara P. Dietrich

Theses and Dissertations

This study describes a problem of practice encountered in a first-grade class in the southeast. Students exhibited negative attitudes during the writing process. Because of this, the quality of their writing suffered. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between attitudes and writing achievement in a first-grade class using place-conscious education. Additionally, this study was also built upon the social constructivism learning theory. To address the problem of practice, the researcher conducted a mixed-methods action research case study to analyze the effects of place-conscious education on students’ attitudes and proficiencies on writing. The study was guided by …

What Factors Impact Black Adolescents’ Attitudes Towards Literacy In The Classroom?, Sheila R. Harris

Theses and Dissertations

In the Black community, there is a paradox about how education is a key to success and a way out of a person’s unfortunate socioeconomic situation (Mickelson, 1990). Over time, Black adolescents have continuously performed low academically (NAEP, 2019). According to the Nation’s Report Card (2019), when viewed by racial/ethnic groups, the percentages of students performing at or above Proficient ranged from 18% for Black students to 46% for white students (NAEP, 2019). While holding such a vital belief in the “power of an education” (focusing mainly on literacy as reading), the current study seeks to understand what factors play …

Competencia Digital De Profesores Universitarios: Evaluación De Actitudes Hacia La Tecnología, Conocimiento De Las Tic Y Uso De Tecnologías En Una Universidad Privada De Colombia, Claudia Yanive Prieto

Theses and Dissertations

Competencia Digital de Profesores Universitarios: Evaluación de Actitudes hacia la Tecnología, Conocimiento de las TIC y Uso de Tecnologías en una Universidad Privada de Colombia. Claudia Yanive Prieto Castillo. 2021: Disertación Aplicada, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice. Palabras clave: digital competence, attitudes, technology knowledge, technology use, ICT, university level teachers Esta investigación partió del problema de que, en el programa de Licenciatura en Lenguas Extranjeras, de una universidad colombiana, no se habían realizado investigaciones que determinen la competencia digital de los profesores. Además, la revisión de la literatura indicó que la …

Understanding Public K-12 Building Principals' Perspectives On The Greatest Successes And Challenges In American Education, Buck Ekstrom

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study was conducted in a suburban intermountain school district. The research purpose was to (a) solicit narratives from principals about the greatest successes and challenges in American education; (b) conduct deep insightful analysis to find emerging themes from the interviews with principals; and (c) to provide important information for policy and law makers. The findings focused on data collected from interviews asking 25 principals to share perspectives and examples from their work in schools and education in general. The principals were asked about educational successes. Those cited regularly highlighted positive cultures, doing tremendous work with minimal funding, and …

Community Attitudes Towards Juvenile Sex Offenders And Registration In Virginia, Paige Reed

Theses and Dissertations

The collateral consequences and harmful effects of juvenile sex offender registration and restrictions has been the forefront of conversation surrounding sex offender legislation in the United States. The literature available has consistently shown that juveniles profoundly differ from adults in significant areas such as decision making, cognitive capability, judgment, and overall development. The literature has also consistently shown that juvenile sex offenders are amenable to treatment, have considerably low recidivism rates, and are unlikely to offend into their adulthood. Despite this, and even though the juvenile justice system prioritizes rehabilitation over punitive measures, juvenile sex offenders are commonly subjected to …

Globalization And Cultural Attitudes Of Teachers In Faculties Of Education In Egypt, Marwa El-Shinawy

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the cultural orientation of the students in the faculties of education in Egypt towards the phenomenon of globalization as manifested in the visions of the professors and the students, and the curricula of these faculties. Thus, the study aimed to explore to what extent the cultural attitudes of the prospective teachers and the professors in the faculties of education in Egypt motivate/ hinder the globalization of teacher education.

The second section presented the theoretical perspective, which is the transformationalists view of globalization. This perspective represents a mid-way point between the Hyper- globalists …

Going Digital With Peer Review: Using Action Research To Explore The Effect Of Digital Peer Review On Student Writing Composition And Student Attitude In A Rural Primary School, Kemberly Jean Owens

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to explore the use of peer review on student writing composition and student attitudes toward writing for third grade students at Little Rural Primary School. This study focused on two research questions. The first research question explored how and to what extent the use of digital peer review effects student writing composition. The second research question explored how and to what extent digital peer review effects student attitudes toward writing. The study took place in the third and fourth grade gifted and talented classroom at Little Rural Primary School in South Carolina and …

Asd Training: Knowledge, Attitudes & Perceptions Of A South Georgia Police Officer, Heather Banks Mcneal

Theses and Dissertations

This study offered a preliminary look at the evidence to support the benefits of training South Georgia Police Officers on the phenomenon that is autism. Research suggested that there was limited experimental data available regarding why persons with ASD entered the criminal justice system, as well as how to manage them once they are there (Chovanec, 2013). Various regions of the United States embraced the importance of ASD training amongst their law enforcement officers; however, Georgia has only recently taken steps to do the same by the inclusion of a voluntary, online course regarding autism and de-escalation. Participants shared their …

Teaching K-6 Computer Science: Teacher And Student Attitudes And Self-Efficacy, Stacie Lee Mason

Theses and Dissertations

This article-format dissertation addresses elementary student and teacher attitudes and self-efficacy for computer science. The first article (Mason & Rich, in press) describes what the literature says about preservice and inservice training to help K-6 teachers increase knowledge and self-efficacy to teach computer science. The second article (Mason, West, & Leary, under review) describes an effort to provide training for local elementary school teachers to teach computational thinking with robots. The third article (Mason & Rich, under review) describes how we developed and validated an instrument to assess K-8 students' coding attitudes and beliefs, including perceived self-efficacy, interest, utility value, …

The Impact Of Intelligent Tutoring Software On Geometry Students, Simela Oueini

Theses and Dissertations

This purpose of this paper is to deepen the understanding for a problem of practice in the mathematics educators’ classroom of low retention of information thus leading to poor mathematics achievement. The identification of the problem of practice led to a development of a research focus examining the effects of using intelligent tutoring software in the mathematics classroom and the impact it has on mathematics achievement, student motivation as it relates to self-efficacy, student engagement and attitudes towards mathematics. Using a convergent mixed methods approach (Creswell, 2012), this paper elaborates on the research questions addressing “What effects does the integration …

Testing Acceptance Of Language Difference In Academia: Perceptions In A First-Year Composition Classroom, Crystal Rodriguez

Theses and Dissertations

In response to Bawarshi’s collective call for educators to be “more responsive and responsible users and teachers of English,” and motivated by the research of Michelle Hall Kells, I argue that it is necessary for educators to introduce first-year writing students to the historical and sociopolitical aspects of language use in academia through implementing lessons that focus on facets of language diversity. After describing a lesson plan focused on language diversity, I then analyze student feedback using Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis as a lens. I also discuss the results of a Likert scale implemented during the three-phase study. Student …

Parent Beliefs, Attitudes, And Needs In Preschool Age Literacy Development In A Head Start Program, Dianna Jean Mccoy

Theses and Dissertations

The topic of this applied dissertation concerns parents from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds participation in support of literacy development of their preschool aged children. Evidence from the limited research on this topic suggested that some parents rely on the school to teach literacy to their children beginning in kindergarten. Consequently, little time and effort is dedicated to preschool narrative skills, letter knowledge (other than the ABC song), print awareness, phonological awareness, print motivation, and vocabulary.

Literacy development begins before children enter kindergarten. Kindergarten teachers expect children to be able to identify letters, their sounds, print their names. Children without …

The Effect Of Teachers’ Instructional Style On The Motivation And Attitudes Of At-Risk Science Students Attending Alternative Education Programs, Michiko B. Mcclary

Theses and Dissertations

Despite a steady improvement in overall graduation rates since the 1960s, many students in the United States continue to leave school without a diploma (Balfanz, Bridgeland, Moore, & Fox, 2010). In an effort to educate children who present increased risks for dropping out of school, alternative schools are mandated by all states. Typically, high-risk youth who attend these types of programs have been exposed to negative social and environmental risk factors throughout their lives stemming from problems associated with poverty, family adversity, inadequate parental monitoring, and/or physical and emotional trauma (Guerin & Denti, 1999; Mclntyre, 1993; Waldie & Spreen, 1993). …

College Student Attitudes Toward Intercollegiate Athletics At Rowan University, Donald Nathanial Parsley

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to (a) analyze undergraduate residential student attitudes towards athletics at Rowan University; (b) discern differences between self-identified student-athletes and non-athletes with respect to athletic programs at Rowan University in regards to resource allocation, corruption, relevance of athletics to the college experience, and academic matters of student-athletes; and (c) examine differences in attitudes of the student sample at Rowan University with previous studies. The survey tool that was utilized consisted of 44 items, which collected demographics and employed a series of Likert-style statements. The subjects consisted of 431 residential, undergraduate students at Rowan University enrolled …

The Effects Of Peer Tutoring On Junior High General Education Students' Attitudes Toward Students With Severe Disabilities, Amanda Kim Hunsaker

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if and how the perceptions of general education students toward their peers with severe disabilities changes when they participate in a peer tutoring program. The study was conducted in a suburban/rural district in Utah and included 102 participants in treatment and control groups over three junior high schools. The data found mixed results. One of the three schools had a significant difference in the attitudes of the treatment group after being part of a peer tutoring program. The study shows that being part of a peer tutoring program can have a …

Island Of Tranquility: Rhetoric And Identification At Brigham Young University During The Vietnam Era, Brian D. Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

The author argues that beyond religious beliefs and conservative politics, rhetorical identification played an important role in the relative calmness of the BYU campus during the turbulent Sixties. Using Bitzer's rhetorical situation theory and Burke's identification theory, the author shows that BYU's calm campus can be explained as a result of communal identification with a conservative ethos. He also shows that apparent epistemological shortcomings of Bitzer's model can be resolved by considering the power of identification to create salience and knowledge in rhetorical situations. During the Sixties, BYU administration developed policies on physical appearance that invited students to take on …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Career Appraisal And Status Of Burnout Among Religious Educators: Within The Education System Of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, Keith W. Allred

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the predictive power of items regarding career appraisal in correctly classifying the status of burnout among Church Education System educators with six to ten years of service. Also, the factors considered most effective as deterrents to burnout were determined.

It was found that those who (1) did not feel they were progressing in their careers and (2) would change careers if possible were most likely to report burnout. Feeling needed in one's assignment and being recognized and appreciated for one's accomplishments, besides having a happy marriage, enjoying life, and living Gospel …