Gifted Education Commons^™

Ua64/2 The Challenge: Magazine For The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 53, Fall 2022), Western Kentucky University, Elizabeth Joyce Editor

Gifted Studies Publications

Magazine created by and about the WKU Center for Gifted Studies.

Stress Arising From The Covid-19 Pandemic: Impacts On Coparenting Quality And Child Internalizing And Externalizing Problems, Michelle R. Ebrahim

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Since emerging in late 2019, the highly contagious coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has caused worldwide disruptions, with major shutdowns in school, work, and other aspects of life. These stressors uniquely impacted families with young children. The present study investigated the impact of the pandemic on family functioning and risk for child internalizing and externalizing problems during the first year after the pandemic. The study included three waves of data collection from a larger longitudinal study aimed at understanding how couples navigate the prenatal-postpartum transition and the impacts of the family on early child development. We found that family pandemic-related stress was …

Intestinal Parasite Prevalence In Fecal Samples In Nebraska Dog Parks, Kristianna Muller

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

From February to April 2022, fecal samples were collected from eight dog parks in the Omaha and Lincoln, NE areas. A total of 160 samples were collected and assessed for the presence of intestinal parasites. The zinc sulfate double centrifugal flotation technique was used to determine infection. Out of the 160 samples, ten were positive for parasite contamination (6.25% prevalence). The most observed parasites were hookworms, found in 3.75% of all samples (6/160). Cystoisospora, Giardia, Toxocara canis, and Toxascaris leonina were all found only once, for a prevalence of 0.625% each. Compared to other studies, our infection …

A Strategic Audit Of Hasbro, William Weiner, Amanda Fuechtmann, Avery Smith, Michaela Webb, Zach Buhman

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This strategic audit dives into ten components of Hasbro’s strategic management. The first component discusses Hasbro’s history and current strategic leadership. This is followed by an analysis of the impacts of its external and internal environment. Next, the audit examines Hasbro’s recent performance and competition it faces in the Toy Wholesaling industry. The sixth, seventh, and eighth components consider different levels of strategy that Hasbro pursues. Lastly, the strategic audit considers Hasbro’s corporate governance and its organizational structure and controls.

Overall, we conclude that Hasbro is a mature company in a slow-growing industry. Its ability to translate its iconic and …

Executive Functioning In Language Learning Disabilities: Defining Executive Functioning, Executive Functioning Deficits, And Clinical Intervention Strategies To Support Children, Kaylie Trumble

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This thesis aims to select a working definition of executive functioning (EF) to identify possible EF deficits and clinical interventions strategies to support children. Included are EF deficits, ways of assessing EF components, and intervention strategies for executive dysfunction in LLD. Scenarios are provided to demonstrate both matching strategies to a child and strength/deficit in EF, along with a sample intervention script.

Developing A K-12 School Leadership Plan, Marian E. Truehill

Journal of Research Initiatives

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to develop a K-12 School Leadership plan for public, private, and parochial educational institutions. The K-12 School Leadership plan will help principals, teachers, staff and students focus on how to accurately operate a successful school culture, climate, and improve academic performance at their educational institutions. I used a pseudonym JFK for the high school examined in this paper. Themes represented in this paper will include assessment of ineffective leadership style, assessment of school culture, climate and performance, school improvement areas, explanation of leadership style, most effective style to improve school performance, research-based leadership …

Trauma-Informed Practices For Test-Taking Anxiety At The Elementary Grade Level, Kate Campbell, Shalini Mathew

Journal of Research Initiatives

Test -Taking Anxiety (TTA) is a challenging experience for children of all ages. Childhood exposure to trauma and adverse experience has been increasing. Fortunately, trauma-informed practices, such as mindfulness activities have become more widespread in schools throughout the last few years. Existing school counseling literature offers limited perspectives on how school counselors can support elementary students for TTA. This conceptual article explores the effects of trauma-informed practices on elementary-age students' test anxiety and overall academic success in schools and offers implications for practice.

Utilizing Counter Narratives To Develop Culturally Sustaining, Critically Conscious Preservice Teacher Practitioners, David Wolff

Essays in Education

The content areas that get most attention in an elementary classroom include mathematics and English/Language Arts (ELA), and little time is devoted to other content areas like social studies. Preservice elementary teachers can learn to maximize instructional time by integrating social studies content in the ELA block. Using counternarratives, preservice teachers can learn to use children’s literature to teach multiple perspectives to the dominant narrative in the textbooks. This article shares strategies to present counternarratives and examples of children’s literature that can be used in an elementary classroom.

Case Study: Exploring Inservice Teachers’ Perceptions And Experiences Of The Effectiveness Of Gifted Preparation And Training Programs In Saudi Arabia, Khlood Khaled Alshareef

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In Saudi Arabia, the teaching of gifted and talented students is relatively new, and research that describes the quality and effectiveness of teachers' gifted preparation programs and the training sessions they receive remain rather limited and inconsistent. Purpose: This dissertation focuses on understanding the perceptions and experiences of in-service teachers regarding gifted-focused preparation and training programs in the country. Research Design: Data were collected through observation and semi-structured interviews with teachers of gifted and talented students in the country. Findings: Analysis of the data revealed six themes related to teachers’ perceptions and experiences of preparation and training programs in Saudi …

Exceptional And Able: Supporting The Social Communication Skills Of Gifted Neurodiverse Students In The Classroom, Victoria S. Henbest, Brenda L. Beverly

APLL Lab Presentations

These are the presentation slides from the 2022 MEGA Conference (Mobile, AL) sponsored by the Alabama State Department of Education.

Faculty Perspectives On Online Teaching In Higher Education: A Qualitative Approach To Understand Faculty Members’ Challenges And Experiences, Felix O. Quayson

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study explored faculty members' perspectives on online teaching in higher education and described, analyzed, and interpreted faculty members challenges and experiences of teaching online courses. Participants were twelve (12) faculty members who have taught online courses or currently teach online courses. Data was collected from 60-minutes semi-structured interview sessions, 78 open-ended questions, three research driving questions, background questionnaire, and personal artifacts from faculty members. Five major themes with subthemes, 15 code categories, and code co-occurrences emerged from the data collection, field notes, memos, and data analysis. However, not all of the code categories were replicated by all of the …

The Passive Approach: How Academically Motivated Students Approach Their Mental Health., Megan E. Mccoy

Anthós

The research utilizes qualitative interviews and focus groups to understand how academically motivated students approach their mental health. Mental health is defined as “emotional, psychological, and social well-being,” by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and is becoming a more significant concern in collegiate student populations. At Portland State University, the effects of mental health concerns on students are nearly double that of students around the U.S (Community Commons, n.d.). Academically motivated students are a group who seemingly strive for success and likely experience high levels of stress daily. The study found that students often take a passive approach …

Contribution Of A Differentiated Counseling Program Based On Self-Organization And Goal Orientation In Improving The Level Of Scientific Flow And Self-Awareness Among Economically Disadvantaged Gifted Students, Refah M. Al-Johar, Abdulhamid A. Al-Arfaj

International Journal for Research in Education

The current study aimed to improve the level of scientific flow level and self-awareness of economically disadvantaged gifted students through an online counseling program that depends mainly on self-organization and goal orientation. The study used a mixed-methods design. The sample consisted of 6 gifted economically disadvantaged students; 3 middle school students and 3 secondary school students. The authors developed the scientific flow scale and the self-awareness scale. Moreover, a differentiated counseling program was developed. The results have shown statistically significant differences (α < 0.01) on the scientific flow scale in favor of the post-testing. The results also showed statistically significant differences at the level of (α < 0.01) on the self-awareness scale in favor of the post-testing, which indicates the effect of the counseling program. The study also identified the factors affecting the nature of the relationship between economic deprivation, self-regulation, and goal orientation by determining the impact of economic deprivation on talent aspects, then determining the influencing factors. Data analysis revealed that there are three influential factors, namely the degree of economic deprivation, age, and the level of family education. The role of the counseling program in reducing the effectiveness of the factors affecting the nature of the relationship between economic deprivation, self-regulation and goal orientation was analyzed.

Keywords: Program, differentiated counseling, self-organization, goals orientation, scientific flow, self-awareness, gifted students, economically disadvantaged.

The Impact Of Community Support During Covid-19 In Meeting Needs, Developing Academic Commitment And Volunteer Values Among Gifted Students At The Intermediate Stage In Poor Environments, Alaa Eldin Abdel Hamid Ayoub, Helmy Mohamed Elfiel

International Journal for Research in Education

The current research aimed at developing a program based on community support and assessing its impact during the covid-19 pandemic in meeting needs, developing academic commitment and volunteering values among gifted students in the intermediate stage in poor environments. The quasi-experimental method was used for the experimental and control groups. The sample consisted of 41 gifted students (21 experimental group, 20 control group) and the experimental group underwent a community support program that lasted for 14 weeks. Measures of academic needs, academic commitment, and volunteer values were administered before starting and after completing the program. The results revealed that there …

English Teachers' Opinions On Challenges Face In Teaching English As Foreign Language: The Case Of Jalalabad Selected Secondary Schools, Fahim Rahimi, Hangama Samadi

Journal of Research Initiatives

One important goal of teaching is to achieve learning outcomes. It has been observed in universities that many students have different levels of English language proficiency. However, they study in the same English courses at the school level. The main objective of this study is to learn the challenges that exist in teaching the English language as a foreign language in secondary schools that affect the English proficiency of students. In addition, ways in which these challenges will be overcome is reviewed. The data collection tools were questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to collect data from English language teachers in selected …

Does The Mathematics Self-Concept Explain The Gender-Gap In Advanced Mathematics Achievement Among Us Secondary School Students?, Asitha Kodippili, Deepthika C. Senaratne

Journal of Research Initiatives

This study examines the role of self-concept regarding mathematical ability in explaining the gender gap in advanced mathematics performance of US high school students. The study is based on data generated from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 1995 – 2015), a large-scale project which investigated the relationship between self-concept in mathematics and mathematical achievement. In the US, secondary school males in advanced mathematics classes consistently show a statistically significant higher mathematics self-concept than females. Male students also consistently have significantly higher mathematical achievement scores than females. However, by controlling for the mathematics self-concept, we found that this …

Using The Visual Activity Schedule To Improve Self-Regulation Skills For Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Atef Abdalla Bahrawi Dr

International Journal for Research in Education

This study aimed to find out the level of using the visual activity schedule to improve self-regulation skills for students with autism spectrum disorder. The study consisted of a sample of 74 male and female students with autism spectrum disorder. The study tool was used to improve self-organization skills, and a program of using visual activity tables was administered, in which the validity and reliability of the tool was calculated. The study found statistically significant differences between the pre and post testing of the experimental group which refers that the training program improved self-regulation skills for the experimental group participants. …

Real Time Call-Flagging System To Respond To Suicidal Ideation In Call Centers, Vishnu Menon, Joseph Carrigan, Charles Floeder, Thomas Walton, Devin Mcguire

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The 2021-2022 Signature Performance Design Studio team developed a live audio call-flagging system that enables faster responses and new response pathways to veteran crises by call service representatives and their management team. Using a custom made deep learning model, live audio streaming server, and Teams broadcasting add-on, the system empowers Signature Performance call service representatives to make quicker and more well informed decisions to provide veteran’s the best care possible.

Evaluation Of Selected Computer Software For Concussion Recovery And Diagnosis, J.P. Jensen

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Acquired traumatic brain injuries, such as concussions, impact many athletes participating in sports, particularly at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels. The risks posed by concussions – particularly when an athlete suffers repeated injuries – demands that protocols and tools be developed to maximize athlete health and safety. Computer technology can perform critical roles in the analysis and management of concussions. While specialized devices in the areas of imaging and impact sensing, are most associated with concussion management, researchers within the last two decades have increasingly explored the incorporation of various consumer technologies into the identification and treatment of …

Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of Different Techniques For Creating Cross-Platform Compatible Software, Michael Westberg

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Creating cross-platform compatible software is a major issue in a world where users utilize a variety of devices and platforms. To ensure that a piece of software is accessible to as many users as possible, software must be cross-platform compatible. There are four main approaches that can be done to achieve this state of being cross-platform compatible, each with both advantages and disadvantages. These methods are: creating the software as separate binaries, using a scripting language with a cross-platform interpreter, compiling to an intermediate language, and creating the software as a web application. This paper will discuss how each of …