Education Commons^™

Effectiveness Of St Math In College Remedial Mathematics Students Of Learning Fraction Concepts, Taro Ito

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examined the extent to which the iPad app, Spatial Temporal Mathematics (ST Math), diminished college remedial mathematics students’ natural number bias and deepened their fraction conceptual understanding. In this quasi-experimental study one class played the ST Math fraction games for 8 weeks, and they were compared to a control class who were taught without technology. The frameworks for this study included the framework theory of conceptual change, the reorganization theory, the microworld and the Lesh Translation Model. Pre and post- tests were used to examine the fraction conceptual understanding of the students in the ST Math class and …

Effects Of Explicit-Reflective Instruction On Preservice And Novice Teachers’ Epistemic And Conceptual Change Mediated By Reasoning, Danny Murphy

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Teachers’ beliefs shape their daily instruction and the materials presented to students. The personal views of educators are especially relevant when socioscientific issues are involved. Preservice and novice teachers’ mastery of the nature of science (NOS) and personal beliefs in and out of the classroom influence their worldviews and classroom practices. Although research has been conducted regarding conceptual change and epistemic change, it is not understood how conceptual change and epistemic change affect instructional practice. The purpose of the mixed methods explanatory sequential study was to determine how students in a science methods classroom think and reason with explicit and …

Cultural Influences Upon Soviet-Era Programmatic Piano Music For Children, Maria Pisarenko

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Russian Revolution and the ensuing Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) spawned an era of Soviet music education that resulted in generations of gifted musicians. Soviet-era piano composers contributed to the emergence and the development of a unique style of piano training, a Soviet piano school, represented by great pianists and music educators known all over the world. Recent research on Soviet-era piano music focuses on non-programmatic piano compositions. The research conducted in this work appears to be the first to produce a comparative overview of major programmatic piano compositions for children written during the Soviet era.

In Cultural …

Comparing The Differences In Access To Professional Development For General Education And Special Education Teachers And The Subsequent Impact On Instructional Practice, Lori L. Slater

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The demands on schools, teachers, and students continue to increase as greater accountability measures are put into place at all levels. For teachers to meet these increased demands, it is important that they be provided opportunities to improve and enhance their content knowledge and pedagogy. One way to ensure the provision of these opportunities for teachers is through professional development. There is significant evidence that professional development can improve instructional practice and student outcomes (Drago-Severson, 1994; Garet et al., 2001; Guskey, 2000; Sparks & Loucks-Horsley, 1989; Wei et al., 2010; Zhang et al., 2015). However, there continues to be a …

So It’S Not Like The Movies? An Analysis Of The Links Between Popular Culture, Motivation And Expectations In First-Year College Students, Kelle Snow

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The rising concern regarding the graduation rates of university students in the United States has led to research being conducted in order to establish possible relationships between environmental factors and the high attrition rates for first-generation college students pursuing a Bachelor’s degree at a four-year university. One factor to be examined is the portrayal of higher education in popular culture and the impact this has on students’ perceptions, and therefore motivation and expectations, when entering into a four-year program at a university. This study seeks to empirically identify if any such connection exists between the portrayal of higher education in …

Preview-View-Review: Increasing Academic Access For Students With Intellectual Disabilities Who Are English Learners, Dolores Marie Williamson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Recent changes to federal education laws for students with and without disabilities have kindled an increased interest in implementing evidence-based practices for teaching academic skills to all students, including students with severe disabilities and students learning English. Teaching students with significant disabilities who are learning English poses a unique set of challenges. To date, no research has been conducted on teaching science to students with significant intellectual disabilities who are learning English.

This study was designed to measure the effect of an evidence-based science curriculum, delivered in both English and Spanish using the preview-view-review (PVR) strategy, on the science vocabulary …

An Analysis Of Stress And Self-Efficacy Experienced By General And Special Educators, Joanne Lyn Ringer

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Public education and teachers are under considerable scrutiny (Gibboney, 2008). With

the inception of local, state, and national demands being placed on education, teachers are faced

with many challenges (Eppley, 2015). Educational accountability measures have grown out of

the political pressures impacting educational policies (Gibboney, 2008). There is much debate

regarding whom teachers are accountable to and what they are accountable for (Ornstein, 1986;

McDermott, 2011). This scrutiny increases a teacher’s level of perceived stress.

Stress and perceptions of stress differ from person to person, making it conditional and

highly personal (Fimian, 2001; Jary, 2006). Although stress has been an …

Succession Planning For Nursing Leaders In A College Of Nursing, Cheryl Ann Tucker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Institute of Medicine (2011) challenged nursing to ensure the nursing workforce includes a sufficient number of academic nurse leaders, nurse educators, and doctorally prepared nurses for the future healthcare needs of the people of the United States. National data reveals a fragile supply of academic nurse educators and leaders. This tenuous resource is shaped by multifaceted factors including: (1) an aging nursing workforce; (2) impending faculty retirements; (3) lack of qualified faculty; and (4) wage disparity between the academic and clinical settings. As these factors collide, it is imperative that academic nursing plan for the future by retaining, developing, …

Are Universities Providing Non-Stem Students The Mathematics Preparation Required By Their Programs?: A Case Study Of A Quantitative Literacy Pathway And Vertical Alignment From Remediation To Degree Completion, Charles Merritt Allen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Informed by Gagne's belief in the necessity of prerequisite knowledge for new learning, and Bruner's Spiral Curriculum Theory, the objective of this case study was to explore the postsecondary pathway from remedial mathematics, through one gateway mathematics course, and into the quantitative literacy requirements of various non-STEM programs of study. Particular attention was directed towards analyses of the vertical alignment of course content between: (1) the two consecutive remedial mathematics courses (Beginning Algebra and Intermediate Algebra), (2) the two remedial courses and the gateway course (Fundamentals of College Mathematics), and (3) the gateway course and the quantitative literacy needs of …

Preventing Deaths By Writing: In Search Of A Prescriptive Software Solution For Curing Student Writing Ills In Postsecondary Nursing Education, Donald Allen Deever

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Life and death represent the nursing field, and to a number of educators, helping nursing students to develop effective writing skills is equally seen as a life and death matter. A lack of proficiency in writing may literally be the death of a nursing student’s college hopes, but more importantly is the thought that a lack of proficient writing skills by nurses may mean the death of patients. Peer-reviewed studies suggest that 440,000 patients die annually in hospitals due to mistakes called adverse events (AE’s). According to research, a lack of proper communication, including written communication, represents the third leading …

Etudes For The Bassoon: An Annotated Bibliography And Pedagogical Guide, Eric Joaquin Fassbender

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

There are well over one hundred published methods and etude collections written for the bassoon. However, many bassoon teachers and students are only familiar with a few of them, primarily those composed by Julius Weissenborn and Ludwig Milde. This is evidenced by the frequent mentions of these etudes in writings about bassoon literature, repertoire surveys, university syllabi, articles in the journal of the International Double Reed Society, and more. While these specific studies remain an invaluable part of the bassoonist’s repertoire, there are several aspects of bassoon playing they do not address, particularly where post-Romantic musical styles are concerned. When …

A Comparison Of The Effects Of Video Modeling Other And Peer-Implemented Pivotal Response Training To Video Modeling Other On Positive Social Interactions Of Young Children With Developmental Disabilities, Maryssa Kucskar

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Young children with developmental disabilities (DD) frequently have delays in social play skills. Students with DD may require social skills instruction in order to be successful in playing cooperatively with others. These opportunities to practice social play skills learned from specialized interventions must be available throughout the school day. Providing opportunities for positive social interactions, engagement, and play within a classroom setting allows children to make friendships, engage in higher levels of play, participate with peers in multiple social contexts, and lead to overall school success.

The purpose of this study was to answer two research questions. The first question …

An Examination Of Differences In Division I Fbs Student-Athlete Academic And Athletic Performance, Marissa Katherine Nichols

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The student-athlete literature if rife with studies that examine the factors that appear to improve or inhibit academic or athletic performance. However, internal characteristics that may influence variations in performance have been understudied, and athletic performance tends to be examined separately from academic performance. This study examined how different types of Division I FBS performers – high academic, high athletic; high academic, low athletic; low athletic, high academic; and low academic, low athletic – differ on three theoretical and conceptual frameworks representing internal factors. Each of the frameworks, Mindset, Personal Growth Initiative, and Student-Athlete Experiences, have positive attributes relative to …

Success In Online Credit Recovery: Factors Influencing Student Academic Performance, David Nourse

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Recent estimates show nearly 90% of school districts nationwide offer some form of online credit recovery. Additionally, credit recovery services have become one of the fastest growing areas of educational software. Despite the widespread adoption of these programs, there is a lack of scholarly research on the effectiveness, rigor, and suitability of online credit recovery. Given the popularity of online credit recovery and the mixed results that these programs have received, more study is imperative.

Currently there is a dearth of research surrounding the suitability of online credit recovery for students. Much of the research conducted on virtual schooling indicates …

De-Colonizing Language Needs: A Critical Ethnographic Study Of Former And Current Teachers’ Language Dispositions And How Taking A Multicultural Education Course Mediates Those Dispositions, Ravijot Singh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this critical ethnographic research was to examine how taking a Multicultural Education course mediated teachers’ language dispositions. Particularly, this study examined how language and culture have a profound connection that is largely unrecognized in the American education system, and how lack of respect for the home language of students by their teachers leads to negative attitudes towards the children and impedes students’ academic progress.

This study used a theoretical and conceptual framework that incorporate intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1991) as its research paradigm to understand the interaction and overlapping roles of language and culture in society, and how neoliberal …