Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Dispersion Or Re-Segregation: A Spatial And Temporal Analysis Of Public Policies And Their Impact On Urban African American Mobility, Brandi Lynette Blessett

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This study seeks to test Hirsch's second ghetto thesis in the city of Baltimore, Maryland. Hirsch suggested that the role of government, public policies, and administrative discretion were responsible for the re-segregation of African Americans into second ghetto communities in Chicago. Many scholars have used Hirsch's framework to explain ghetto formation. This investigation seeks to extend the literature in several ways. First, several national policies were investigated to determine their impact on African American mobility in Baltimore: the Housing Act of 1937 (public housing), the Housing Act of 1949 (urban renewal), and the Interstate Highway Act of 1956 (transportation). Second, …

Foundation Year Field Instruction In A Master Of Social Work Program: A Comparison Study Of Learning Outcomes For On-Campus And Off-Campus Students, Martha T. Early

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

One of the major concerns in delivering a Master of Social Work program away from the main campus is comparability with the program as it is delivered on campus. Field education constitutes a substantial portion of the hours in a graduate program and is valued as the place where theory meets practice. Persons are involved in the delivery of field education include the students, the clients, the field instructors, and the field liaisons who teach the accompanying field seminars, and the Field Office personnel. This paper reports on a study that focused on learning outcomes of a foundation year field …

Wealth And Achievement Gaps: An Examination Of Virginia Middle Schools, Paulette Natasha Richmond

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Achievement gaps, the focus of this research, result from unequal achievement and the variance in achievement existing between different segments of the student population, for example, the difference in achievement between minority students and non-minority students. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) focus on achievement gaps despite contradictory expressions about the efficacy of the act. The No Child Left Behind Act has created discussion and awareness of race, SES (economically advantaged and disadvantaged) and academic achievement.

There are conflicting beliefs about the impact of resources, funding and wealth on student achievement. This study …

A Cross-Cultural Study Of Epistemological Beliefs And Moral Reasoning Between American And Chinese College Students, Zhongtang Ren

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This study investigated the cultural differences of epistemological beliefs and moral reasoning between American and Chinese college students (N=452) recruited from three universities, Old Dominion University in the eastern United States, Luoyang Normal University in the central China and Central University for Nationalities in northern China. A series of factorial MANOVA was conducted to explore the influence of gender, ethnicity and nationality as the independent variables on epistemological beliefs measured with five EBI (Epistemological Beliefs Inventory) scores and moral reasoning measured with two DIT (Defining Issues Test) scores as dependent variables.

No effects were found for gender and …

Culture Of Growth: Teacher Collaboration For The Empowerment Of All Students, Kamilla Bahbahani

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This dissertation documents an in-depth year long qualitative case study of three elementary school teachers to address the following research question: what characterizes, and what are the major influences on, an integrated, constructivist-oriented approach to elementary math instruction? The researcher, working collaboratively with the teachers, used a combination of interviews, observations, journaling, and informal discourse to learn about what they want to do in their classes, the various pressures they feel for performance and student learning, the forces they balance in making their instructional choices, and the ways in which they make instructional choices and change their approaches over time. …

Complementarity Of Politics And Administration: An Empirical Examination, Jothi S. Themozhi

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This dissertation is designed to examine the impact of the complementarity of politics and administration on local governments' fiscal performance. The study adopts Svara's Politics-Administration Complementarity Model, which explains the mutual interdependence and reciprocal influence of administrative relationships between the elected and appointed officials of local governments towards a General Management City (a traditional mayor-council city that appoints a professional city manager to conduct the city's administration without formally adopting the council-manager form).

By adopting the politics-administration complementarity model to a general management municipal administrative structure, this thesis hypothesizes that cities with general management administrative structures achieve measurable fiscal …

The Effect Of Same-Sex Grouping Versus Mixed-Sex Grouping On Mathematics Achievement And Attitudes Of Academically Gifted Fourth And Fifth Grade Females In The Urban Classroom, Martha J. Tompkins

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Reports of the neglect of gifted students in America's schools and the inadequate mathematics involvement of females have made educators aware of a crisis in public education. Attitudes and opportunities are believed to be major influences in helping females become more involved with mathematics courses and careers. The research project examined the effect of same-sex groups versus mixed-sex groups on mathematics attitudes and achievement in fourth and fifth grade females in a mathematically gifted pilot program at a magnet center. The experimental study was analyzed with Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA), Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Regression Analysis, Post-Hoc tests, and …

Academic And Therapeutic Potential Of The Sierra Ii Process: An Evaluation Of An Adapted Outward Bound Diversion Program For Adjudicated Juvenile Delinquents, Ronald Clifford Callahan

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the Sierra II program on adjudicated juvenile delinquents. Specifically, this research measured the program's effect on the self-esteem, self-efficacy, locus-of-control, problem-solving skills, school behavior, and follow-on academic achievement. All study variables, except school behavior and follow-on academic achievement, received pre and post treatment assessments. Both school behavior and academic achievement received pre, post, six-month and twelve-month follow-up assessments. Individuals were assigned (by the court services staff) to an experimental group and a control group.

The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, modified Internal-External Scale, and the Generalized Expectancy of Success Scale …

The Emergence Of A Medical School In Hampton Roads, John Pierce Flemming Iv

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This dissertation documents the early years in the campaign by community leaders in Norfolk and adjacent cities to establish a local medical school as a means to improving the quality of medical education in the Hampton Roads area. Although attention is focused on the period 1959 to 1973, it is not strictly limited to this period of time.

The methodology for this dissertation is based heavily upon oral research. As one historian pointed out, "What better way to learn about a particular time than from the mouths of those who lived it." Approximately forty individuals instrumental in the founding of …

The Impact Of Public Investment On Urban Revitalization: A Case Study On The Redevelopment Of Downtown Norfolk, Virginia 1935-1985, Marvin W. Lee

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

This study focuses on downtown revitalization. It examines the effect of public investment in Downtown Norfolk in relation to various theories that have been developed to explain the growth of the central cores of cities.

A chronology is presented of the events that marked the beginning and the first fifty years of redevelopment in Downtown Norfolk, Virginia. Through reliance on newspaper articles, interviews and other documented sources, a record is provided that attempts to give deeper insight into the struggle that transformed slums and blight in downtown to a revitalized center of social and economic activity. This historical review allows …

A Study Of Decision Making: The Case Of Brown And Root, Inc., Mary Blossom Springle

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

The process of community decision making has been examined by many theorists in the field of political science. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the case of Brown and Root, Inc., a marine fabrication industry that hoped to construct a large plant in the rural town of Cape Charles, Virginia. The industry underwent a lengthy decision-making process before a final decision was made.

This case was selected because a wide variety of factors affected the ultimate outcome of the decision-making process. Because the decision-making process covered a five year time span in this case, it includes more factors …