Educational Psychology Commons^™

The Missouri Student Transfer Program, Howard E. Fields Iii

Dissertations

In 1993, the state of Missouri passed the Outstanding Schools Act. This law was created as a means to ensure that “all children will have quality educational opportunities, regardless of where in Missouri they live.” Section 167.131 of this law states that an unaccredited district must pay the tuition and transportation cost for students who attend an accredited school in the same or adjoining district. This portion of the law became known as the Student Transfer Program.

The Riverview Gardens School District (RGSD) was one of three unaccredited school districts in the state of Missouri in 2013. With close to …

School Climate, Stigma By Association, And Adolescent Psychological Distress, Kathryn D. Ferdon

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis reports the results of a research project that examined whether school climate has a moderating effect on the relation between Stigma-by-Association and psychological distress among adolescents in a rural Midwestern county.

Images, Speech Balloons, And Artful Representation: Comics As Visual Narratives Of Early Career Teachers, Julian Lawrence, Ching-Chiu Lin, Rita Irwin

SANE journal: Sequential Art Narrative in Education

The ways in which teachers adjust to challenges in the process of becoming professionals are complicated. Teacher mentorship, however, is an important step to creating and sustaining a strong professional career. This article discusses new understandings from a Canadian research project: Pedagogical Assemblage: Building and Sustaining Teacher Capacity through Mentoring Programs in British Columbia. Through our use of an a/r/tography informed methodology in teacher mentorship, we have come to understand how the use of comics permits an unfolding of visual narratives as a unique way of contextualizing the complex stories of teaching and learning. Our motivation in employing comics as …

Review Of Captain Marvel And The Art Of Nostalgia, By Brian Cremins, Sean Kleefeld

SANE journal: Sequential Art Narrative in Education

No abstract provided.

Promoting Happiness In Elementary Schoolchildren: Evaluation Of A Multitarget, Multicomponent Classwide Positive Psychology Intervention, Brittany Valle Hearon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Youth psychological well-being has become increasingly acknowledged as not merely the absence of psychological distress, but the presence of positive indicators of optimal functioning. Students with complete mental health (i.e., low psychopathology and high well-being) demonstrate the best academic, social, and physical health outcomes. As such, there remains a need to address children’s well-being through a holistic approach emphasizing the prevention of mental health problems and promotion of flourishing. Positive psychology interventions (PPIs) have emerged as a promising method of enhancing students’ complete mental health. Previous investigations support the utility of multitarget PPIs with middle school students and single-target PPIs …

Partial Mediation And Moderation Effects Of Class Peer Norms On The Relations Of Teacher Support With Student Aggression And Academic Engagement During Early Adolescence, Huanhuan Wang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediation and moderation effects of classroom peer norms (CPN) on the associations of teacher support with student engagement and aggression during sixth grade (first year of middle school). Current literature suggests that early adolescence is a critical developmental period with many changes occurring, including a peak in aggression, decreased academic engagement, increased peer influence, and decreased teacher support. Despite these challenging changes, teachers often serve as a powerful yet “invisible hand” (Farmer, Lines, & Hamm, 2011) that can influence student behaviors directly or indirectly via CPN. However, these two routes of …

Extending The Model With Internal Restrictions On Item Difficulty (Mirid) To Study Differential Item Functioning, Yong "Isaac" Li

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Differential item functioning (DIF) is a psychometric issue routinely considered in educational and psychological assessment. However, it has not been studied in the context of a recently developed componential statistical model, the model with internal restrictions on item difficulty (MIRID; Butter, De Boeck, & Verhelst, 1998). Because the MIRID requires test questions measuring either single or multiple cognitive processes, it creates a complex environment for which traditional DIF methods may be inappropriate. This dissertation sought to extend the MIRID framework to detect DIF at the item-group level and the individual-item level. Such a model-based approach can increase the interpretability of …

Mindfulness And Power Posing Interventions To Decrease Emotional Distress, Lydia Carlson, Cori Bohnenblust, Jacklyn Johnson

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

While mindfulness interventions have gained acceptance, power posing as an intervention is more controversial. It became of interest with the release of Amy Cuddy’s 2012 TED talk, Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are. Those who attend this presentation will learn about mindfulness and power posing interventions and their effect on reducing emotional distress in late adolescents.

A Review Of Lead Pd Writing In The Content Areas: Measures Of Teacher Self-Efficacy And Student Performance, Andrea Paige Greene

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Data from recent college and career readiness measures indicate an alarming number of students are beginning college courses unequipped with the necessary writing skills to meet the demands of these courses. This, in addition to the Common Core State Standards, leave many teachers feeling underprepared to effectively teach writing. The current study sought to evaluate the effectiveness of LEAD PD: Writing in the Content Areas, a writing professional development initiative for teachers grounded in the writing standards and best practices of writing instruction. In partnership with a university of higher education, teachers from a local middle school were trained to …

The Goal-Driven, Resilient, And Influential Teens Program In Kentucky High Schools: The Impact On Social And Emotional Learning And Influencing Factors, Brant Von Goble

Dissertations

In order to assess the effects of the Goal-driven, Resilient, and Influential Teens (GRIT) program on social and emotional learning and academic performance in high schools throughout Kentucky, data from several sources were compiled and analyzed. These sources included results from the Student Engagement and Performance (STEP) survey, an instrument developed by the Rock Solid Evaluation Team at Western Kentucky University and administered yearly to high school students and teachers, and school-level academic and socioeconomic data from the Kentucky Department of Education. Additional data on fidelity of GRIT program implementation were obtained from FranklinCovey, the GRIT program’s developer and publisher. …

Using Professional Development To Build Pre-Service Teachers' Self-Efficacy For Helping Students With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder To Learn, Natalie J. West

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current study determined if a professional development on PTSD would improve pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy for helping students with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to learn. Participants consisted of 59 college students from one large, comprehensive, Mid-Southern university who were enrolled in an education program and an educational psychology course. Using a quasi-experimental method, participants either received the PTSD professional development (treatment) or regular instruction (control group). All participants completed a measure of demographics, a pre-test measure of selfefficacy for helping students with PTSD to learn, which was further dissected into four constructs (i.e., self-efficacy for identifying students with PTSD, adapting …

Abc Or Aei: A Comparison Of Approaches To Early Childhood Education In Samoa, Sofia Valbuena

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Due to discussion about the importance of early childhood education (ECE), the scene in Samoa has shifted. The present study compares and analyzes approaches to ECE in Samoa from three schools: Brilliant Star Montessori Preschool, Divine Mercy Preschool, and Saoluafata Preschool. Data was collected through participatory observation over the course of two and three days at each school. Results showed both similarities and differences within the preschools in themes such as play, academic curriculum, and classroom management. Analysis found ECE in Samoa is developing and potential tools to further improve the schools were presented. This study will provide a report …

The Effects Of Inclusion And Positive Reinforcement Within The Classroom, Danielle Morin

Honors Program Contracts

The concepts of inclusion and positive reinforcement in classrooms has been prevalent within many schools for a number of years, both practices slowly becoming more universal as research is released. Separate, these practices have significant positive effects on students, and when they are treated as a duo inclusion and positive reinforcement have tangible results on both students with and without disabilities. Several studies and interviews were conducted in pursuit of the significance of each practice, with one study in particular linking the two to provide for a successful, positive general education classroom environment. The research found indicates that both practices …

Effect Of Student Classroom Cell Phone Usage On Teachers, Daniel Pulliam

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The increase in student cell phone use in classrooms has led to a decrease in academic performance and satisfaction with instruction (Dietz & Henrich, 2014). Currently, it is unknown as to whether student classroom cell phone usage has any effect on the teacher. The purpose of this study was to determine student and teacher opinions of classroom cell phone usage and perceived distraction. Surveys were conducted with a sample of college students (N = 163) and college faculty (N = 289), from a university in the Southeastern region of the United States. Data indicate there are differing opinions on classroom …

The Effects Of Provided Powerpoint Presentations On Student Perceptions Of Personal Responsbility, Sarah Elizabeth Mannon Cravero

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Psychologists have examined the effects of numerous variables on classroom performance, but little research exists to demonstrate how specific teaching techniques, specifically the provision of printed presentation notes (such as presentation slides), affects student perception of responsibility. This study sought to discover the impact that providing presentation slides for use during lecture would have on students’ performance, as well as their perceptions of personal responsibility. In order to determine the effects of provided presentation notes on performance and perceived responsibility, this study examined the self-efficacy and locus of control of students assigned to either take their own notes or to …

Where Do You Want To Get To? Effective Professional Learning Begins With A Clear Destination In Mind, Thomas R. Guskey

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

Educators often shy away from evaluating professional learning experiences because they believe the process requires knowledge and skills they don’t possess. In truth, evaluation is a relatively simple process that begins by answering three essential questions.

Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Ptsd And Trauma: An Empirical Review., Ron C. Bean, Clarissa W. Ong, Jason Lee, Michael P. Twohig

Psychology Faculty Publications

Many treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including variants of cognitive behavior therapy, have been found to be effective in clinical trials. However, even with these useful treatment options PTSD continues to be a difficult disorder to treat. A possible alternative treatment is acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), which has demonstrated effectiveness across a variety of presenting problems, including PTSD and trauma. This article summarizes the existing data on ACT for PTSD and trauma and discusses its clinical implications. The present review included data from case studies, single-subject designs, and randomized controlled trials. Overall, the extant literature suggests that ACT …

Individual And Intra-Individual Differences In Interest During Instrumental Music Classes In Suburban High Schools, Beth Ann Turner

Doctoral Dissertations

Individual differences in interest (how students’ interest differs from one another in response to the same experiences) and intra-individual differences in interest (how each student’s interest changes across different experiences) are theorized to play a part in a complex system of interactions between students, lesson content, and educational context. In this study, 360 students from two suburban high school instrumental programs in Northern California rated an average of 12 classroom tasks and music selections on the dimensions of interest, meaning, involvement, complexity, and comprehension. Expected relationships between interest and the other variables were informed by literature on situational interest in …

Structural Equation Modeling Of Multiple-Indicator Multimethod-Multioccasion Data: A Primer, Christian Geiser, Fred A. Hintz, G. Leonard Burns, Mateu Servera

Psychology Faculty Publications

We provide a tutorial on how to analyze multiple-indicator multi-method (MM) longitudinal (multi-occasion, MO) data. Multiple-indicator MM-MO data presents specific challenges due to (1) different types of method effects, (2) longitudinal and cross-method measurement equivalence (ME) testing, (3) the question as to which process characterizes the longitudinal course of the construct under study, and (4) the issue of convergent validity versus method-specificity of different methods such as multiple informants. We present different models for multiple-indicator MM-MO data and discuss a modeling strategy that begins with basic single-method longitudinal confirmatory factor models and ends with more sophisticated MM-MO models. Our proposed …

Institutional Review Board: Ally Not Adversary, Melanie M. Domenech-Rodriguez, Samantha M. Corralejo, Nicole Vouvalis, Alan K. Mirly

Psychology Faculty Publications

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) were developed in response to a historically demonstrated need for ethical guidance and accountability in research with human subjects. The inhumane and unethical treatment of prisoners of war and underrepresented populations in the pre-IRB era are the antithesis of today’s national and international acts, codes, and declarations. Over the last five decades of IRB-reviewed research, several concerns about the IRB process have been raised. In this editorial, we review common concerns regarding the scope and functioning of IRBs. We also review the updated federal Common Rule, effective January 2018, and discuss how some of the reviewed …