Education Commons^™

Teaching Christian Readings Of Secular Young Adult Literature, Angela R. Lee

Honors Program Projects

The purpose of this project is to empower Christian young adults to engage with secular literature adolescent literature in a manner that encourages them to grow in their faith. The project has three main components: a case study article on Christian reading practices based on their reviews of The Shack, a literature review of Christian reading theory, and a five day instructional unit plan designed to teach high school freshmen Christians to engage appropriate with secular literature.

In the case study, over 400 Amazon.com reader reviews and comments on the Christian fiction novel The Shack were examined in order to …

Exploring Student Perceptions To Explain The Relationship Between Physical Activity And Academic Achievement In Adolescents: A Mixed Methods Study, Megan J. Hylok

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A nationwide survey conducted by the Center for Disease Control in 2007 reported 65% of high school students did not meet the recommendation that youth participate in at least 60 minutes of physical activity most days of the week (CDC, 2008). While research has focused its attention primarily on bodily health, growing evidence supports the benefits of physical activity on brain health (Ratey & Hagerman, 2008). Physical activity is important and many adolescents are not meeting the recommendation, therefore, it is important to explore the adolescent perceptions to understand which factors influence physical activity participation. The significance of this study …

The Influences Of Acculturation, Marianismo And Ethnic Identity On Sexual Activity Among Latina Adolescents, Keyona M. Jarrett

Dissertations (1934 -)

This mixed methods study examined the influences of acculturation (e.g., assimilation and enculturation), marianismo, and ethnic identity on the sexual behaviors and attitudes of Latina adolescents. In the quantitative portion of the study, 204 Latina adolescents completed measures regarding acculturation, gender roles, ethnic identity, and sexual behaviors. In the qualitative portion of the study, three focus groups were conducted (with a total of 10 participants) in which Latina youth were asked questions regarding their ethnic group membership and its influence on their attitudes about sex.

The results of the quantitative portion of the study revealed that ethnic affirmation was negatively …

The Effects Of Expressive Writing On Anxiety, Mathematics Anxiety, Stress, Cognitive Processes And Psychological Processes On The Virginia Standards Of Learning (Sol) On A Sample Of Urban High School Students Failing Mathematics, Claudia Lorene Hines

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

High school students who fail one or more mathematics' classes tend to be more likely to fail the Virginia Standard of Learning (SOL) tests and thus delaying their graduation. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of expressive writing on general anxiety, math anxiety, stress, cognitive processes and psychological processes on the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) on a sample of urban high school students failing mathematics. The participants (n=93) male and female students in grades 9-12, ranged in ages from 14 to 19 years of age, from various socio-economic backgrounds. The intact classes were used to …

The Alpha Health-Related Physical Fitness Test Battery For Children And Adolescents, Rute Santos, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

In this issue of Nutricion Hospitalaria, Ruiz and colleagues present the new health-related fitness test battery for youth based upon the work developed by the ALPHA (Assessing Levels of Physical Activity) study. The ALPHA was a study funded by the European Union aimed "to provide a set of instruments for assessing levels of physical activity, its underlying factors (e.g. build environment, transport, and workplace), as well as, fitness in a comparable way within the European Union". The work presented in this issue by Ruiz and colleagues relates to the working package 6 of the ALPHA project -Assessing Healthrelated Physical Fitness- …

Metabolic Risk Factors, Physical Activity And Physical Fitness In Azorean Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study, Carla Moreira, Rute Santos, Jose Cazuza De Farias Junior, Susana Vale, Paula Clara Santos, Luisa Soares-Miranda, Ana I. Marques, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome has increased over the last few decades in adolescents and has become an important health challenge worldwide. This study analyzed the relationships between metabolic risk factors (MRF) and physical activity (PA) and physical fitness (PF) in a sample of Azorean adolescents.

Methods

A cross-sectional school-based study was conducted on 417 adolescents (243 girls) aged 15-18 from the Azorean Islands, Portugal. Height, weight, waist circumference, fasting glucose, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure were measured. A sum of MRF was computed, and adolescents were classified into three groups: no MRF, one MRF and two or more …

Ability Of Different Measures Of Adiposity To Identify High Metabolic Risk In Adolescents, Carla Moreira, Rute Santos, Susana Vale, Paula Clara Santos, Sandra Abreu, Ana I. Marques, Luisa Soares-Miranda, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Introduction. This study aimed to evaluate the screening performance of different measures of adiposity: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) for high metabolic risk in a sample of adolescents. Methods. A cross-sectional school-based study was conducted on 517 adolescents aged 15-18, from the Azorean Islands, Portugal. We measured fasting glucose, insulin, total cholesterol (TC), HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, and systolic blood pressure. HOMA and TC/HDL-C ratio were calculated. For each of these variables, a Z-score was computed by age and sex. A metabolic risk score (MRS) was constructed by summing the Z-scores of all individual risk factors. …

Understanding The Behaviour Of The Target Market: What Do Adolescents Think About When Asked Questions About Their Behaviour In The Sun?, Melinda Williams, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

We undertook a project to develop a psychometrically sound instrument measuring adolescent sun-related behavior for use in the evaluation of a social marketing program. During the preliminary stages, we conducted a pilot study to test the face validity of the instrument with adolescents. Think-aloud sessions were completed with 24 adolescents. Results identified gaps in our understanding of adolescent sun-related behavior. Adolescents interpreted 'tanning' as specifically lying at the beach in the sun, however also reported behaviours to 'get a bit of sun', suggesting adolescents and researchers have different interpretations of key terms. The study highlights that use of the think-aloud …

Rebuilding Character: The Practices Of Positive Youth Development Teachers In A Youth Correctional Setting, Edward Anthony Cope

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There is a worldwide call for alternatives to current systems focused on restorative justice. The United States currently has a process but no plan in implementing effective programs for rehabilitating youth offenders. For many years, the prevailing idea in youth corrections has been that nothing works as studies continued to have difficulty pinpointing effective programs. Yet, over the last several decades, prison populations have risen dramatically, as have penal housing costs.

Positive Youth Development (PYD) offers a different framework focused on developing youth assets and promoting positive adolescent development. Derived from research in behavioral sciences, PYD programs promote the development …

One Adolescent's Construction Of Native Identity In School: "Speaking With Dance And Not In Words And Writing", Amy Wilson-Lopez, M. D. Boatright

Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications

This case study describes how one eighth-grade student, Jon, asserted Native identities in texts as he attended a middle school in the western United States. Jon--a self-described Native American, Navajo, and Paiute with verified Native ancestry--sought to share what he called his Native culture with others in his school wherein he was the only Native American, despite his perception that schools have historically suppressed this culture. To study how the texts that Jon designed in school may have afforded and constrained the expression of Native identities, the authors collected three types of data over the course of eight months: (a) …

A Comparative Historical Analysis Of Post-War Moral Panics And The Construction Of Youth From 1938 To 2010, Judy L. Castillo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For the past 50 years, various moral panics have emerged in response to concerns about children and teens. In particular, interest in entertainment appealing to youth has been the focus of social and legislative changes aimed at protecting youth from increased sexual and violent content associated with comic books, music lyrics, Internet content, and film and television.

The intent of this study is to compare the emergence and progression of moral panics related to entertainment appealing to youth, such as comic books, music lyrics, the Internet, and film and television, since 1938 to 2010 to better understand the ways we …

Increasing Awareness Of Sun Protection Among Australian Adolescents: Results Of A Community-Based Intervention, Sandra C. Jones, Melinda Williams, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

No abstract provided.

Rural Adolescents’ Help Seeking Intentions For Emotional Problems: The Influence Of Perceived Benefits And Stoicism., Coralie Wilson

Coralie J Wilson

This paper is the second from a larger multi-cite study developed and led by the third author which explores factors that influence adolescents' help-seeking intentions. Specifically, this paper investigates the extent to which perceived benefits of help seeking, stoicism, gender and symptoms of psychological distress are associated with intentions to seek professional help for emotional problems. A cross sectional self-report questionnaire was administered to adolescents recruited from seven high schools in rural towns in the Riverina region of New South Wales. A total of 778 adolescents were recruited. The sample included 373 male and 404 female participants between 13 and …

Moderating Influence Of Gender On The Link Of Spiritual And Emotional Intelligences With Mental Health Among Adolescents, Siti Hassan

Siti Aishah Hassan Ph.D.

This study examined whether, Spiritual Intelligence (SI) and Emotional Intelligence (EI) can be considered as predictor for Mental Health (MH). Also, this study explored the moderating effects of gender on the link between SI and EI with MH among high school students. The participants in the study were 247 high school students, (124 male and 123 female, in the age range between 14-17 years old) at the Gorgan City, north of Iran. The research design was an ex post facto and tested the alternative hypotheses. Three valid and reliable instruments were used to assess SI, EI and MH. Descriptive statistics, …

Predicting Adolescents’ Future Intentions To Seek Help For Mental Health Problems., Coralie J. Wilson

Frank Deane

This study examined whether high school students’ current symptoms of general psychological distress, self-rated social problem-solving skills, and recent help-seeking experiences predict their future intentions to seek help for a mental health problem. At Time 1, 98 high school students, aged 12-17 years, completed the study self-report survey that included measures of psychological distress, social problem-solving skill, and recent help-seeking behaviour. At Time 2, three weeks later, the same students completed measures of help-seeking intentions. Students with more severe levels of distress symptoms at Time 1 had lower intentions to seek help for a mental health problem at Time 2. …

One Adolescent's Construction Of Native Identity In School: "Speaking With Dance And Not In Words And Writing", Amy A. Wilson, M. D. Boatright

Amy Wilson-Lopez

This case study describes how one eighth-grade student, Jon, asserted Native identities in texts as he attended a middle school in the western United States. Jon--a self-described Native American, Navajo, and Paiute with verified Native ancestry--sought to share what he called his Native culture with others in his school wherein he was the only Native American, despite his perception that schools have historically suppressed this culture. To study how the texts that Jon designed in school may have afforded and constrained the expression of Native identities, the authors collected three types of data over the course of eight months: (a) …

Predicting Adolescents’ Future Intentions To Seek Help For Mental Health Problems., Coralie J. Wilson

Coralie J Wilson

This study examined whether high school students’ current symptoms of general psychological distress, self-rated social problem-solving skills, and recent help-seeking experiences predict their future intentions to seek help for a mental health problem. At Time 1, 98 high school students, aged 12-17 years, completed the study self-report survey that included measures of psychological distress, social problem-solving skill, and recent help-seeking behaviour. At Time 2, three weeks later, the same students completed measures of help-seeking intentions. Students with more severe levels of distress symptoms at Time 1 had lower intentions to seek help for a mental health problem at Time 2. …

Rural Adolescents’ Help Seeking Intentions For Emotional Problems: The Influence Of Perceived Benefits And Stoicism., Coralie J. Wilson

Frank Deane

This paper is the second from a larger multi-cite study developed and led by the third author which explores factors that influence adolescents' help-seeking intentions. Specifically, this paper investigates the extent to which perceived benefits of help seeking, stoicism, gender and symptoms of psychological distress are associated with intentions to seek professional help for emotional problems. A cross sectional self-report questionnaire was administered to adolescents recruited from seven high schools in rural towns in the Riverina region of New South Wales. A total of 778 adolescents were recruited. The sample included 373 male and 404 female participants between 13 and …

Passing As Literate: Gender, Dyslexia, And The Shaping Of Identities, Ellen Burns Hurst

Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the ways in which currently diagnosed dyslexic females, who navigated adolescence and their concomitant schooling without a definitive diagnosis of dyslexia, negotiated their identities in the figured world of school. To explore this phenomenon, it was necessary to understand the complexity of dyslexia as well as the theoretical underpinnings of identity construction, adolescence, and ―passing as literate.‖ This case study is informed by poststructuralist thought; through this lens I examine how my subjects perceived their worlds and how they negotiated the challenges associated with undiagnosed dyslexia. As they describe their …

What's All That Noise?: A Study Of Constructed Gender Meanings In News Publications For High School Students, Laura M. Moran

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

It is nearly impossible to escape from the influence of media in today’s world, between newspapers, magazines, radio, television and the internet. School settings are no exception to this rule and even allow the in-school distribution of publications produced by major media companies. These publications can be used for entertainment purposes or as supplements to classroom lessons, but they can also contribute to the replication of unbalanced and highly stereotypical representations of gender at a time when their readers are typically struggling to create their own identities. Four issues of two different in-school news publications were studied to gain a …

The Effect Of Video Modeling And Social Skill Instructionon On The Social Skills Of Adolescents With High Functioning Autism And, Bruce Blake

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research conducted on video modeling has shown that these strategies are most effective when they include specific strategies to address conversation skills. Social skills research has also shown that teaching social skills to adolescents in group settings may be more effective than presenting them on an individual basis. Adolescents with Aspergers Syndrome (AS) and High functioning Autism (HFA) participated in a12-week Social Skills Training (SST) program. In addition to pre-and post-study measures, conversation skills data were collected before and after the application of the independent variable (video modeling). Follow-up interviews were also conducted with participants, secondary participants, and parents of …

Parenting Self-Efficacy And Parenting Practices Over Time In Mexican American Families, Larry E. Dumka, Nancy A. Gonzales, Lorey A. Wheeler, Roger E. Millsap

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Drawing on social cognitive theory, this study used a longitudinal cross-lagged panel design and a structural equation modeling approach to evaluate parenting self-efficacy's reciprocal and causal associations with parents' positive control practices over time to predict adolescents' conduct problems. Data were obtained from teachers, mothers, and adolescents in 189 Mexican American families living in the southwest U.S. After accounting for contemporaneous reciprocal relationships between parenting self-efficacy (PSE) and positive control, results indicated that parenting self-efficacy predicted future positive control practices rather than the reverse. PSE also showed direct effects on decreased adolescent conduct problems. PSE functioned in an antecedent causal …

Examining The Relationship Between The Overexcitabilities And Self-Concepts Of Gifted Adolescents Via Multivariate Cluster Analysis, Anne N. Rinn, Sal Mendaglio, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Kand S. Mcqueen

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between gifted adolescents’ forms of overexcitabilities and selfconcepts. Clusters of adolescents were formed on the basis of their overexcitabilities, and these clusters of adolescents were then compared with regard to their self-concept scores. Gender differences were also examined. The sample consisted of 379 gifted adolescents, ranging in age from 11 to 16 years of age. Forms of overexcitabilities were measured using the Overexcitabilities Questionnaire–II, and various facets of self-concept were measured using the Self-Description Questionnaire–II. Using cluster analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and chi-square analysis, results suggested a distinct four-cluster …

Educating Adolescents About Puberty: Are We Missing Something?, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Adolescents undergo significant physical and cognitive changes during their pubertal development. These changes contribute to and impact their future development. Educating adolescents at an early age about their expected development decreases the possible anxiety associated with this period of life and also helps adolescents make better choices in regards to their sexuality. In order to assess the degree of education regarding pubertal development and sexuality, we conducted a survey of late adolescents (median age 19 years) and parents of adolescents. A total of 409 adolescents (237 females, 172 males) and 124 parents completed the survey. 14.4% of teens (36.6% of …

Quality Of Life And Adolescents In Rural Kentucky, Hatim A. Omar, Søren Ventegodt, Joav Merrick

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

In many rural areas in Kentucky, adolescents lack the basic assets for a good quality of life, such as having caring adults, a safe place and useful activities after school. In this chapter we analyze data from middle and high school students referred to a comprehensive school based health promotion center (SBHPC). From August 2006 to February 2008, a total of 382 students (200 female, 182 male, aged 12-18 years) were referred to the SBHPC for help. Only two (0.5%) students had two parents living with them and 12 (3.1 %) had safe, organized after school activities. 19.9% of the …

The Relationship Of Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Birth Weight And Parental Bmi On Adolescents Obesity Status, Susana Vale, Rute Santos, Luisa Soares-Miranda, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background/Objectives:

The aims of this study were as follows: (1) to analyze differences in cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), parents’ body mass index (BMI) and birth weight (BW) between non-overweight (NOW) and overweight/obese (OV/OB) adolescents, and (2) to investigate the association of those variables with the risk of their biological offspring being OV/OB.

Subjects/Methods:

This study comprised 788 adolescents (477 girls and 311 boys), aged between 12 and 18 years. CRF was predicted by maximal multistage 20-m shuttle-run test according to the procedures described in FITNESSGRAM. Children's BMI was classified according to the International Obesity Task Force. Adolescents’ BW was assessed from …

Associations Between Insulin And Glucose Concentrations And Anthropometric Measures Of Fat Mass In Australian Adolescents, Elizabeth Denney-Wilson, Christopher T. Cowell, Anthony D. Okely, Louise L. Hardy, Robert Aitken, Timothy Dobbins

Faculty of Education - Papers (Archive)

Background One of the most serious, yet common co-morbidities of obesity is insulin resistance, which if untreated may progress to type 2 diabetes. This paper describes the insulin and glucose concentration distributions, the prevalence of elevated insulin, the associations between insulin and body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and fat mass index in a representative sample of Australian adolescents. Methods Cross-sectional population-based study of adolescent boys and girls (N = 496, mean age 15.3 years) attending schools in metropolitan Sydney, Australia. Fasting venous blood collected and analysed for insulin and glucose concentrations. Height, weight, waist circumference measured, …

Dichotomous Musical Worlds: Interactions Between The Musical Lives Of Adolescents And School Music-Learning Culture, Todd Edwin Snead

Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology Dissertations

This ethnographic study investigated the interactions between the musical lives of adolescents and school music-learning culture in a suburban high school. Participants included two music teachers and seven adolescents. Framed within a symbolic interactionist perspective (Blumer, 1969), data were collected via methods consistent with qualitative inquiry, including an innovative data collection technique utilizing music elicitation interviews with adolescents. Findings emerged from the data via thematic analysis (Grbich, 2007). Findings indicate limited interactions between the musical lives of adolescents and school music-learning culture because participants portrayed and experienced a dichotomy between the musical assumptions and practices inside and outside of school. …

Matching Time Of Day And Preference For Adolescent Achievement, Leisha Moree Parker

Dissertations

Research shows that adolescents enter a circadian-phase delay as they approach and enter high school. On or about age 14, teens become less of a morning learner due to biological factors. Researchers have determined consequences to the adolescent's circadian shift as related to learning; therefore, morning time may have a negative influence on the cognitive functioning of teens resulting in lower test scores. This study was an attempt to determine if time of day, gender, and learning preference using the Morningness/Eveningness Scale for Children (MESC) as proposed by Carskadon, Vieira, and Acebo (1993) would result in a statistical difference in …

A Place At The Blackboard: Including Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, & Queer/Questioning Issues In The Education Process, Todd A. Savage, Debra A. Harley

Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education Faculty Publications

We know from history that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people have always existed in society (Campos, 2003; Sullivan, 2003). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersexed, and queer/questioning (LGBTIQ) individuals, collectively known as sexual minorities, represent approximately 10% of the population. As many as nine students in every classroom of 30 are in some measure affected by sexual minority issues (e.g., having a gay or lesbian relative or being gay oneself) (AFSC Gay/Lesbian Youth Program, 1991). “Yet even with this substantial number, the code of silence in our nation’s school systems concerning homosexuality remains” (Fontaine, 1997, pp. 101-102).