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Breaking Boundaries: A Qualitative Exploration Of Scientific Motivation And Persistance From The Perspectives Of Arab Women Undergradute Students In Stem In The Us, Fadwa Hamad

Dissertations

There is a lack of information regarding the motivational experiences of Arab women undergraduate students in STEM fields in the US and the factors that contribute to their engagement and persistence in this field. This is because of their categorization as white on census documents, which renders them invisible. Research has shown that motivational beliefs are effective predictors of students' persistence especially for women from minority groups. Thus, it is important to understand the motivational experiences of Arab women students as part of the minority women in STEM in the US. Using an intersectionality framework, and a multi-component motivational model, …

A Microgenetic Learning Analysis Of Contextuality In Reasoning About Exponential Modeling, Elahe Allahyari

Dissertations

This work explores the complex cognitive processes students engage in when addressing contextual tasks requiring linear and exponential models. Grounded within Piagetian constructivism and the Knowledge in Pieces (KiP) epistemological perspective (diSessa, 1993, 2018), this empirical study in a clinical setting develops a Microgenetic Learning Analysis (MLA) of the reasoning of 14 students from an Algebra II course. It reveals the critical role of cognitive disequilibrium as an essential cognitive state for conceptual development and the process of reorganizing knowledge systems. The study uncovers the fluctuations in students’ reasoning patterns and the significant impact on students’ reasoning patterns of task-specific …

From Doctoral Student To Professor: The Professional Socialization And Career Development Of International Counselor Educators, Ayla Martine Ludwig

Dissertations

Becoming a counselor educator is a complex and rigorous process wherein students grow both personally and professionally (Dollarhide et al., 2013). Throughout this process, students develop in accordance with doctoral competency standards (CACREP, 2021) which help socialize them into the role of professor. For international learners, their education has historically included unique challenges such as language barriers (Behl et al., 2017; Hegarty, 2014; Jang et al., 2014; McDowell et al., 2012; Ng, 2012; Pollock et al., 2017; Sato & Hodge, 2015; Sherry et al., 2010), cultural adjustment (Jang et al., 2014; Kuo et al., 2018; Woo et al., 2015), and …

An Examination Of Specific Learning Disability Identification Post Participation In The Michigan Department Of Education Transformation Zone, Erin E. Senkowski

Dissertations

The identification of students with specific learning disabilities has evolved since the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) in 2004. This reauthorization gave state agencies parameters that disallowed using the severe discrepancy model for identification as a stand-alone method. In response to this change, Michigan provided Intermediate and local school districts with further guidance that disallowed the use of the severe discrepancy model for identifying children with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLDs) and instead required Intermediate School Districts, on behalf of their local districts, to choose one of three models, including Patterns of Strengths and Weakness (PSW), …

A Case Study Of The Organizational System Of Articulation At A Midwestern Regional Public University, Katherine J. Giardello

Dissertations

Quantitative research has long shown lagging community college transfer student completion rates, in addition to excess credits earned and lengthened time-to-degree for transfer students that do earn a bachelor’s degree (Horn & Skomsvold, 2011; Jenkins & Fink, 2016; Simone, 2014; U.S. GAO, 2017). Scant qualitative studies exist related to student transfer, particularly the academic enterprise of articulation and the university perspective on transfer.

This qualitative study takes up the cause, using organizational and systems theories (Birnbaum, 1988; Clark, 1983; Cohen & March, 1974; Morgan, 2006; Senge, 1990; von Bertalanffy, 1972; Weick, 1976) to frame a single site case study with …

Principals Staying In Concentrated Poverty School Districts: Voices From Within, Mark Wilke

Dissertations

School principals are facing an increase in demand and challenges from district, state, and federal agencies for improvements both behaviorally and academically. Each year, more school principals exit their positions for other professions. The concentrated poverty school districts have been hit the hardest by this exodus.

The purpose of this basic qualitative study is to examine why some principals within concentrated poverty school districts remain in their positions, especially when they are located near other districts with much lower poverty concentrations. The factors of interest are issues such as district leadership support for principals, compensation, climate and culture of the …

Opportunity That Transforms Lives: Exploring The Lived Experience Of Graduates From A New Community College In The Dominican Republic, Sally Joslyn Peña Martinez

Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of graduates from a recently established community college in the Dominican Republic (DR). The study sought to understand from graduates' perspective the influence of completing an associate degree at the first Dominican Community College, Instituto Técnico Superior Comunitario (ITSC), and if their experience was transformative. Enrolling in higher education initiates a potentially transformative journey, consciously or unconsciously (Taylor et al., 2000). These changes stem from personal reflections on new experiences, forming new beliefs and assumptions that infill life with new meaning (Brookfield, 1984; Mezirow, 1978). This phenomenon is evident in community college students …

Investigating The Critical Literacy Practices Of Adult Learners: A Case Study Of Four Leveled Reading Courses At A Community College, Anna Fontaine

Dissertations

This study investigates the critical literacy practices of adult learners at a community college. Student participants were selected from four different leveled reading courses. In this study, four guiding questions were adopted from Klenner and Sandretto (2011): (1) How do students make personal connections to text?; (2) In what ways do students identify multiple points of view in the text?; (3) In what ways do students identify where people in the text and included or excluded from social situations?; (4) In what ways do students discuss the influences the text has had on their views of society? These four questions …

Adaptive Instruction Through Reflection: How Preservice Teachers Create And Implement Individualized Literacy Lessons In A University Reading Center, Jennifer Marie Lennon

Dissertations

Modern classrooms are increasingly diverse. Students vary in their academic abilities, personal interests, cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and previous experiences (Allen et al., 2013). To meet the varied needs of students, educators must adapt their instruction so all are able to find success. Modifying lesson plans and changing instruction based on student needs are forms of adaptive instruction (Hoffman & Duffy, 2016; Vaughn, 2019). This study explored the metacognitive processes of preservice teachers (PSTs) as they implemented adaptive instruction within their literacy lessons in a university reading center tutoring program. Adaptive instruction was examined through two lenses: first, as PSTs …

Teaching Without A Roadmap: A Mixed Methods Study Of New Teachers' Experience With A Missing Curriculum, Christopher Reid Williams

Dissertations

As new teachers enter the field of education, they face many challenges as they work to quickly adapt to the many demands of the job. One of the most pressing factors for new teachers is deciding what to actually teach each day. For educators, the curriculum represents the master plan that both guides their educational efforts and supplies the tools to get the job done. However, new teachers experience varying levels of curriculum support when they begin their careers, and some receive absolutely no support at all. This study describes those cases of beginning a teaching career with little to …

The Effects Of Adolescent Trauma, Mental Health Treatment, And Demographic Variables On Educational Outcome, Christopher Postema

Dissertations

Poor educational performance in adolescence can occur due to trauma, substance use, or other stressors. This study used conflict theory as a foundation, suggesting differences in educational outcomes can be attributed to systems perpetuating the current power structures that cause inequality in academic opportunities and performance. Trauma in adolescence can have adverse effects on educational outcomes and emotional stability. Research suggests that mental health therapy as well as a reduction in trauma symptoms can improve educational outcomes. Race, gender, substance use, socioeconomic status, and employment are important variables that could influence educational outcomes. Interaction terms were found in the literature …

Strategies To Increase Engagement In K-12 Stem Programs Among Bipoc Students Grades 3rd – 8th, Denisha C. Griffey

Dissertations

The WIRE Youth Development Programs, housed within the Lewis Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI foster two enrichment programs geared towards strengthening the gap in academic knowledge through STEM/STEAM activities. Since its inception, WIRE has impacted over 1,000 youth grades 3-8 among the BIPOC population through its programs, most notably the WIRE Math and Science Summer Camp and Saturday Academy. In 2020, during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, many K-12 education school systems switched to remote learning. As a result of this transition, there was a decrease in access …

School Accountability Within The Dominican Republic: A Qualitative Study Of School Principals’ Beliefs And Knowledge, Massiel Cohen Camacho

Dissertations

The school accountability system in the Dominican Republic (DR) involves the use of several national assessments, the reporting of such data, and the training of principals on how to use such data as part of school improvement efforts. While this type of indicator accountability system does not include specific consequences, there is still significant measuring and reporting of student achievement data, with the implied connotation of teacher and principal responsibility for specific school outcomes. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of research on what school principals know about such school accountability in the DR, and how they …

The Skin I’M In: A Critical Content Analysis Of Picture Books Written By Black Authors, Angela Latrece Justice

Dissertations

This study seeks to explore the experiences of Black male protagonists in picture books. The following question guided this study: How do Black authors demonstrate a commitment to social justice? The theoretical framework that guides this study is Critical Race Theory (CRT), which aids in understanding how Black authors use experiential knowledge to represent experiences that challenge dominant ideologies about Black males. The sample consists of 20 pictures books all written by Black authors and published within the United States from 2018 to 2021. The deductive and inductive approaches to critical content analysis is used as it is effective for …

Using Visual Imagery To Develop Multiplication Fact Strategies, Gina Kling

Dissertations

The learning of basic facts, or the sums and products of numbers 0–10 and their related differences and quotients, has always been a high priority for elementary school teachers. While memorization of basic facts has been a hallmark of elementary school, current recommendations focus on a more nuanced development of fluency with these facts. Fluency is characterized by the ability to demonstrate flexibility, accuracy, efficiency, and appropriate strategy use. Despite recommendations to focus on strategy use, there is insufficient information on instructional approaches that are effective for developing strategies, particularly for multiplication facts. Using visual imagery with dot patterns has …

Development Of Modeling Tools To Determine The Effects Of Customer Diversification On Customer Lifetime Value Volatility In Higher Education, Oscar Neal

Dissertations

As societies become increasingly global the competition for customers continues to increase. In competitive markets, it is important to identify a process to acquire and retain the most profitable customers. To discriminate customers, it is important to understand the value different customers bring to an organization. Much research has been done modeling customer value using customer lifetime value, however, there is limited research on the effect current customer diversity has on future customer lifetime value of future customer portfolios.

In this dissertation, a Lifetime Value Model considering the interaction between customer diversity, revenue management, and customer lifetime value in an …

Experiences Of Female Muslim International Graduate Students With Children In The U.S.: Strategies To Cope With Academics And Family Life, Nizoramo M. Haitova

Dissertations

The literature on adult students, and in particular, graduate students with children, reveals that female students often struggle to balance their studies and home life due to juggling multiple roles. To date, research on student mothers has primarily focused on domestic students, with few studies examining the experiences of international student mothers, and even fewer studying Muslim international student mothers. The purpose of this study was to understand the lived experiences of female Muslim international graduate students with children in the U.S., as well as to explore the coping strategies they employ in both academia and family life. Thus, the …

Community College Students’ Awareness Of Their Reading And Writing Proficiency, Martha Paulina Campusano Rojas

Dissertations

Student’s low reading and writing proficiency in higher education has been the subject of a large body of research (e.g., Bahr, 2011; Bailey, 2010; Carlino, 2005, 2010, 2012; Flink, 2017; Jaggars, 2014 Pacello, 2014; Perin, 2011; Perin et al., 2013).The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how students in a first-year developmental Spanish course at the Dominican community college think of the connection between their reading and writing abilities and their performance in both their current and future undergraduate courses. The study also explored how these students view the importance of the developmental course and how they understand …

Research Training And Certification Protocol For Medical Students, Michelle Arisleida Padley

Dissertations

Early and frequent exposure to research is imperative to initiating and sustaining long term for medical student research interest. The attitude and approach of physician mentors has been demonstrated to have a substantial effect on student perceptions of research involvement. The purpose of this study is to determine best practices for assessing student perceptions for a research certification program. An additional long-term objective is to utilize these findings to help maintain interest in research throughout their medical careers. Research is an essential aspect of the prestige of medical schools, and the benefits of academic research institutions have numerous facets, including …

Factors That Influence High School Students' Postsecondary Career Decisions In A Guaranteed-Tuition Based School District, Tracy Y. Miller

Dissertations

This study explored factors that influence the postsecondary career decisions of 427 11th and 12th grade students in a guaranteed tuition-based school district in a Midwestern state. Since 2005, this district has had a “Promise” program where eligible students can get up to 100% of their postsecondary tuition paid to attend a college, university, technical, or skilled trade program, or participate in an apprenticeship. Students have up to 10 years after graduating high school to utilize the funding. In addition, students who decide to enter the military after high school have up to 10 years to utilize the funding after …

The Acculturation Process Of International Students In Cacrep Counseling Programs: A Grounded Theory Approach, Hanny Wuysang

Dissertations

International students bring diverse, multicultural perspectives to the U.S. postsecondary education system through their participation in higher education. However, in their adjustment to U.S. higher education, international students in counseling programs face barriers and challenges such as language differences, lack of support, microaggressions and discrimination, culture shock, and different perspectives on mental health treatment as compared to their home cultures. These factors can interfere with their daily personal and academic lives, yet there is often minimal support from their academic programs and host institutions. The growing number of international students in counseling programs increases the importance of understanding their acculturation …

Heterogeneity Estimators In Random-Effects Meta-Analysis In Education, Qian Wang

Dissertations

Over the last four decades, meta-analysis has proven to be a vital analysis strategy in educational research for synthesizing research findings from different studies. When synthesizing studies in a meta-analysis, it is common to assume that the true underlying effect varies from study to study, as studies will differ in design, participants, interventions, or sample size that can lead to heterogeneity in their underlying effects. The magnitude of this heterogeneity between studies can be quantified as τ2 in a random-effects meta-analysis. Estimating the between-study heterogeneity (τ2) becomes an important part of random effects meta-analysis reporting, since this quantity plays a …

Higher Education Professional Involved In Or Aspiring To Careers In Strategic Enrollment Management: Competency Development And Career Pathways, Jodi Ward

Dissertations

Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) is an emergent and evolving field in higher education (HE). While the concept has often been researched as a system or process implemented by an institution of HE to optimize enrollment, this study examined the professionals that currently lead or aspire to lead those systems. The HE competencies areas that current SEM professionals are most engaged with, the activities they participate in to gain and cultivate competency development, as well as their educational backgrounds and career pathways was the focus of this study. Additionally, this study investigated the competency development opportunities available to individuals working in …

Crafting A Different Kind Of Story: Experiences Of Creative Writers Leading In Higher Education, Meredith L. Dodson

Dissertations

Connections between creativity and leadership often focus on how fostering creativity can help an organization. Despite the value that creativity can bring to organizations, Mueller et al. (2011) found that creative people themselves are not seen as leadership material. Yet many people with creative backgrounds do take on leadership roles, particularly in higher education.

This qualitative study explores the experiences of higher education leaders who have a background in creative writing and how those leaders perceive the interaction of the leadership role with their creative experience. The sample included 12 mid-level leaders in higher education who had an MFA or …

Power, Privilege, And Permission: A Qualitative Study On The Perspectives Of Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors Who Serve Racially Diverse Clients, Cherrelle Singleton

Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the experiences of vocational rehabilitation counselors (VRC) serving racially diverse clients and how VRCs are trained and educated to work with racially diverse clients. VRCs are typically employed by federally funded state or federal rehabilitation agencies. In their role, they aim to provide individualized tools and services that empower people with disabilities by alleviating barriers to being successful when preparing for and maintaining employment and being independent in their adult life (Donnell et al., 2013). Often tasked to work with clients who have marginalized identities including race and disability, VRCs must be able to understand and …

Teacher Perceptions Of Competence In Supporting Lgbtq+ Students, Christina Beushausen

Dissertations

LGBTQ+ students continually express concerns about safety in school. This population experiences various forms of bullying and harassment from not only their peers, but from their teachers. Teachers are unaware of the unconscious bias and heteronorms they carry into their classroom that alienate these students. Teachers express that they do not have adequate training to feel confident in their competence to intervene in the issues their LGBTQ+ students face. This study examined how teachers’ perceptions of their competency changed after participating in role-playing simulations as part of professional development. Participants included Midwestern middle school teachers who voluntarily participated in role-playing …

Pathways To Success For African American Students At Predominately White Institutions: A Qualitative Study Exploring Academic Readiness, Jeffery Jackson

Dissertations

African American students’ completion of post-secondary education is among the lowest of any other subgroup in higher education (Banks & Dohy, 2019; Broom, 2018; Carter- Francique et al., 2015; Cokley et al., 2016; Dulabaum, 2016; Karkouti, 2016; Moragne-Patterson & Barnett, 2017; Strayhorn, 2017). This study focuses on addressing this problem by exploring the academic and social experiences of African American college students who persisted at a regional predominantly White institution (PWI) in the Midwest and secure information that can be used to improve their graduation rates.

To address this issue, this study is designed to explore initiatives and practices that …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Health-Related Baccalaureate And Graduate Web-Based Simulated Clinical Learning Platforms, Kathrine Choura Branch

Dissertations

Simulation has been recognized as a teaching, learning, evaluation, and research strategy based on learning theories, that has come to play a significant role in healthcare education (Beal et al., 2017; La Cerra et al., 2019). Health-related academic programs in higher education have traditionally used simulation to fill gaps in learning and strengthen students’ clinical and critical thinking skills in conjunction with didactic classroom content, laboratory practice, and clinical education in the community setting (Hayden et al., 2014). With the onset and unpredictability of COVID-19, there was almost an immediate need for health-related academic programs across the world to transition …

Stressors And Coping Of Mexican American College Undergraduates, Jeanette Calvario Perales

Dissertations

Empirical literature indicates that current mental health practices with Mexican American college students are lacking. Mexican American undergraduates have unique challenges that need to be addressed by counselors within the university context and in community settings. This study addressed the dearth of empirical literature on stressors and coping strategies by exploring the experiences of Mexican American students at a predominately White institution (PWI) in the Midwest region of the United States. Through grounded theory, a theory was generated from multiple in-depth interviews using a comparative analysis process to enhance understanding of how Mexican American college undergraduates at PWIs cope with …

Teacher Evaluation In Saudi Arabia Relative To National And International Teacher Evaluation Standards And Best Practices, Suhayb Kattan

Dissertations

Teacher evaluation systems are essential in tracking the quality and effectiveness of teachers and education systems. This dissertation examines the teacher evaluation system in Saudi Arabia through multiple perspectives, including research-based frameworks for teacher evaluation, norms and best practices from OECD countries, and established Saudi Teaching Standards. An explanatory sequential mixed methods model was used. Data collection involved 643 responses to a teacher survey that covered working conditions, existence of professional learning communities, and teacher evaluation practices, methods, and uses. Following the survey, in-depth interviews were conducted with 11 teachers and 3 key informants.

Findings from this study indicate the …