Digital Commons Network^™

Making Pla(Y)Ces: Softening The City Through Play, Shivani Pinapotu

Masters Theses

Cities that grow naturally over time integrate spaces of gathering that allow for serendipitous happenstance. However, the cities we design today instruct and codify through intentional planning and design; they assign use, hardening specific function to place. Such strategies lead to spaces devoid of spirit, inculcating in city-dwellers to a sense of disconnect from the city.

In contrast to this, the places we make as children, express our intuitive, direct, and unselfconscious relationships with space and one other. These spaces embody softness through their malleability and adaptability, borrowing from the world around them and imbuing the ordinary with imagination. …

Liquid Border, Yingfan Jia

Masters Theses

A River is a mighty and constantly-evolving force, leaving behind an intricately designed and constantly changing system. Not just a river, the Rio Grande stretches all the way from Colorado before intersecting with the US-Mexico Border in southern Texas - a point where the powerful forces of nature now merge with a clearly-defined political boundary. The outcome of this is a unique ecological niche, which may often go unnoticed despite its distinctiveness.

Texas is famous for its farms and ranches, and the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas was once an agricultural hub. However, urbanization and the depletion of water …

Assessing Student Empowerment In Mobile-Assisted Extensive Reading In A University Setting, Misdi Misdi, Nunung Nurjannah, Suwarno Suwarno, Kardi Nurhadi, Anna Riana Suryanti Tambunan Ant

The Qualitative Report

Mobile-assisted language learning and its impact on students’ learning outcomes have been examined as one of the attractive methods in English extensive reading (ER). Yet, studies investigating mobile-assisted extensive reading on students’ empowerment are scarcely reported. Grounded in a learning empowerment scale, this research aimed to assess students’ empowerment toward the enactment of mobile-assisted extensive reading in a private university in Indonesia. This case study involved students (n=27) from the Department of English Education at the university. All participants were voluntarily recruited according to the research protocol assigned by the department. All data were garnered from closed-ended questionnaires, reflective journal …

Challenges Faced By Jesuit Worldwide Learning Students: Piloting A Mixed Methods Investigation, Martha Habash, Alexander Roedlach, Jill M. Fox, Gretchen Oltman, Ashley T. Abraham, Yasmine H. Jakmouj

Jesuit Higher Education: A Journal

In 2017 a Creighton University Global Initiative grant provided 20 scholarships in its online B.S. in Leadership Studies for Jesuit Worldwide Learning graduates of the Diploma in Liberal Studies. In 2018-19 the first cohort of scholarship students living in Afghanistan and Jordan were enrolled at Creighton University (CU). In spring 2019, three Creighton University students collaborated with two of the co-authors to develop and to implement a research project to explore barriers faced by Jesuit Worldwide Learning students enrolled in Creighton’s B.S. program. The purpose of this project was to test if Group Concept Mapping, a mixed methods research approach …

Examining The Influence Of Access To District Provided Prekindergarten On First Grade Students’ Academic And Social Emotional School Readiness, Jennifer Brooks

Student Theses and Dissertations

The study explored teachers’ perceptions of how district provided prekindergarten influences academic and social emotional school readiness for first grade students in a low socioeconomic school district in Southern Arkansas. Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development and Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development were the guiding theories. A qualitative case study design was employed. Data was collected through two-round interviews with seven teachers who teach first grade students in a low socioeconomic district in south Arkansas. The interview questions were derived from the Arkansas Child Development and Early Learning Standards. The interviews were transcribed and then coded to derive themes. Findings showed …

Portfolio For Soci 346: Environmental Sociology, Gwendwr Meredith

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Environmental sociology, SOCI 346, is the study of how social systems interact with ecosystems. As such, it is a very broad course that is tasked with understanding complex and often controversial questions about the social causes, consequences, and responses to environmental disruption. In this teaching portfolio, I enumerate how I use a backward design for crafting assessments that cater to my specific teaching goals and learning objectives for the course. In the first stage of this process, I reflected on what learning outcomes I wished to achieve and determined that structuring the course in modules aligned with the learning objectives …

A Team Science Training Approach To Enhance Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration In Communication Science And Disorders Programs, Carla Wood, Victor A. Lugo, Miguel Garcia-Salas, Wayne T. Mccormack

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

This paper aims to describe the core components of a cross-disciplinary team science training offered in a Communication Science and Disorders (CSD) program delivered to 17 doctoral scholars in CSD, education, special education, psychology, and social work. The team science training model is offered as one approach to consider in preparing pre-service leaders and faculty in CSD to engage in scientific collaboration with other researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds. In addition to an overview of training, the paper includes preliminary data on participants' perceptions of team science training and recommendations for future offerings.

Aged 539 Project- Soledad High School, Jacob Torres

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship and project report includes documentation required in meeting the quality criteria for secondary-level programs of instruction in agriculture. The documents are concurrently used for the Agriculture Incentive Grant review process at Soledad High School conducted by representatives of the California Department of Education. The supporting material includes information to receive state and local funding, outline the goals and objectives of the program, along with an overview of Soledad High School, the agriculture program and the community.

Reclaiming And Reconceptualizing Accountability, Joseph Hailpern

Dissertations

This body of work contributes to the exploration of the intended and unintended consequences of the policy levers, referred to as education accountability policy, that have driven entire systems toward the inclusion of student performance data into educator performance ratings and the impact on the profession. Only from an extensive understanding of where we have been can a reimagined path forward be born to serve our youth and society better. This mixed methods dissertation does so by uncovering the legal landscape that defines the policy levers and bringing educators together in focus groups to delve deeply into these levers’ impact …

A Proposed Fair Approach For Disseminating Geospatial Information System Maps, P. Travis Thompson, Sweta Ojha, Christian D. Powell, Kelly G. Pennell, Hunter N. B. Moseley

Markey Cancer Center Faculty Publications

We present a draft Minimum Information about Geospatial Information System (MIaGIS) standard for facilitating public deposition of geospatial information system (GIS) datasets that follows the FaIR (Findable, accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) principles. the draft MIaGIS standard includes a deposition directory structure and a minimum javascript object notation (JSON) metadata formatted file that is designed to capture critical metadata describing GIS layers and maps as well as their sources of data and methods of generation. the associated miagis Python package facilitates the creation of this MIAGIS metadata file and directly supports metadata extraction from both Esri JSON and GEOJSON GIS data …

Bringing Covid To College: Incoming First-Year College Students’ Making Meaning Of The Pandemic, Gabriel M. Velez, Erin Hoekstra, Samuel Nemanich, Jody E. Jessup-Anger, Max Herteen

College of Education Faculty Research and Publications

As time passes from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, new cohorts of emerging adults transition to college, carrying with them experiences and effects of the pandemic on their lives and development. This study uses semi-structured interviews and reflexive thematic analysis to investigate how a cohort of 36 young people made narrative meaning of the pandemic in relation to their identities. Data were collected at the beginning of their first year at college and focused on their experiences of the pandemic, its impact on their lives, and the lessons they took away from it. Findings demonstrate that …

2023 June, Morehead State University. Office Of Communications & Marketing.

Morehead State Press Release Archive, 1961 to the Present

Press releases for June of 2023.

Teaching Beyond ‘Kings Leopold’S Ghost’: New Sources And Voices In A Global History Curriculum On The Democratic Republic, Jen Chapin

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The complicated history of the Democratic Republic of Congo is not typically part of high school curricula, yet events and historical trends concerning this nation connect with many key topics and themes, including feudalism, Haitian Revolution, New Imperialism, genocide, World War I & 2, Decolonization movements, Cold War politics, neo-colonialism/globalization, modern China’s economic power, authoritarianism, cult of personality, grassroots democracy movements, responses to climate change, etc. Designing and delivering a rigorous yet accessible curriculum on Congo poses a challenge for teaching beyond “King Leopold’s Ghost”, meaning, working past the prevalence of materials focusing on Belgian king’s genocidal two-decade rule over …

Reflections On Universities, Politics, And The Capitalist State: An Interdisciplinary And Intergenerational Discussion With Clyde W. Barrow, Clyde W. Barrow, Heather Steffen, Isaac Kamola

Political Science Faculty Publications

Since its publication in 1990, Clyde W. Barrow’s book, Universities and the Capitalist State: Corporate Liberalism and the Reconstruction of American Higher Education, 1894-1928, has been a touchstone text for generations of scholars studying higher education. This conversation between Barrow, Heather Steffen, and Isaac Kamola examines the book’s legacy in order to explore how the interdisciplinary study of higher education has changed over the past three decades. In doing so, they examine the space and place of academic knowledge and academic labor, offering an interdisciplinary discussion of critical praxis within the university.

Parental Perspectives On The Role Of Music As A Core Subject, Justine M. Hansen

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Despite the designation of music as a core subject by federal and many state education policies, instructional time for elementary music classes is disproportionately less than that allocated to other core subjects. The perceptions held by parents of elementary school children may indicate the extent to which elementary general music education is valued by the public, affecting the allocation of instructional time. At present, no research exists examining the views held by parents concerning the designation of music as a core subject and its role in a well-rounded education. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions held …

Twice-Exceptional Autism And Home Education: A Phenomenological Analysis, Tiffany Brook Hartman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

It is common for autistic and particularly twice-exceptional (2e) children to be schooled from home at a higher rate than their neurotypical peers. Much of the current research investigating this phenomenon is conducted from the perspective of the public school system. This point of view is generally critical of the curriculum taught in the home, has largely limited parental voices in the literature, and overlooks possible circumstances in the public school system that might have led families to choose to homeschool. This qualitative analysis conducted open-ended interviews of parents with twice-exceptional autistic children who have home-educated or currently educate their …

Exploring The Semblant Effects Of Covid-19 On Minnesota High School Band Programs, Matthew Glen Marsolek

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

At the time of this writing, the impact of the recent COVID-19 pandemic on music education at the secondary level is yet unknown. This study aims to collect and review available data to determine if the COVID-19 pandemic may have had an effect on participation in high school band in Minnesota. This convergent parallel mixed methods research study examines statistical data available through the Freedom of Information Act from a sampling of 167 out of a possible 476 public high schools in Minnesota to determine a potential impact between the COVID-19 pandemic and enrollment in high school band. This is …

A Causal-Comparative Study Of Teachers' Attitudes Toward Science Teaching Based On Biological Sex, Teaching Experience, And An Instructional Resource In An Urban Elementary School Setting, Melissa Davis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative, causal-comparative research study analyzed the difference in teachers’ attitudes toward science teaching in an urban elementary school setting based on biological sex, teaching experience, and the use of a science instructional unit of study. The study was significant because it revealed that teaching experience influenced elementary teachers’ attitudes toward science teaching, contributing to the body of knowledge about elementary teachers in an urban setting and related to science education. A convenience sample of 120 study participants in the Georgia urban area was selected. The teacher participants completed the online ten-minute Dimensions of Attitude Toward Science instrument that measured …

A Multiple Case Study Examining Collaborative Nature Of Bahamian Pastoral Teams Considering Contextual And Biblical Transformational Leadership, Kevin Andrew Hall

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to examine the nature of pastoral leadership teams in Bahamian churches. Three Bahamian pastoral leadership teams served as the sample frame for this research, with four research questions narrowing its scope to identifying collaborative and transformational behaviors and attributes. The study collected qualitative data regarding leaders’ character formation and the role of the Christian doctrine in shaping (pastoral) team dynamics, along with data regarding pastoral (team) leadership development and the usage of spiritual gifts. The data was then analyzed to determine if the leaders’ behaviors aligned with Cooper’s (2005) contextual and …

The Impact Of Classroom And Behavioral Management On The Quality And Level Of Learning In Music Education, Matthew Nicholas Farr

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Music classrooms are often larger in class size than other subject areas. Larger class sizes affect discipline, especially in areas where there is only one teacher for the class or where classroom and behavior management is a point of concern. While little research will support the idea that effective classroom and behavior management can impact learning in music education, research does support the idea that lower discipline infractions in a classroom have higher academic achievement results. Classroom management in the band room can be well maintained when there are limited distractions that take the focus off of the instruction. If …

Enhancing Culturally Responsive Practices: A Phenomenological Study On How Elementary School Leaders Demonstrate Cultural Proficiency In Teacher Development, Dana Synora Jones

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In education, a lack of culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) may mute the success of students of color. A lack of culturally responsive pedagogy practices can drastically alter students’ educational outcomes and their outlook on the value of education. This hermeneutic phenomenology explored the experiences of elementary school leaders on their mission to implement culturally responsive practices through teacher professional development. The theory guiding this study is Khalifa’s theory on Culturally Responsive School Leadership which was developed to make teaching and the entire school environment responsive to the schooling needs of all demographics of children. This phenomenological study focused on teachers’ …

A Phenomenological Study Of Church Growth Strategies Used By Pastors Of Digital Churches During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Nicholas D. Cole

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the digital church growth methods that pastors of digital churches in the United States used to increase church attendance during the 2020-2022 COVID-19 pandemic. For the purpose of this study, pastors of digital/online churches were studied. Since the 1950s, the church growth strategy for many Christian churches has been to attract as many people as possible for in-person worship services. However, in-person church attendance has declined consistently for the past 20 years. The shutdowns of churches worldwide during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic amplified this trend. The only option available …

Stop The Clocks: Enabling Practitioners And Precarity In Pandemic Time(S), Anita Olds, Susan Hopkins, Joanne Lisciandro, Angela Jones, Juliette Subramaniam, Marguerite Westacott, Ana Larsen, Rebekah Sturniolo-Baker, Helen Scobie

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced new tensions and pressures for universities. While students and staff already experienced time pressures in competitive neoliberalised economies, these strains accelerated during the pandemic. The aim of this autoethnography study was to capture the lived experience of eight practitioners working in teaching, leadership and professional practice within the field of enabling education, across six Australian institutions between 2020–2021. The problem of ‘time’ emerged as a dominant theme. Without adequate time to balance work and life, sustaining personal and collective wellbeing became precarious. This paper engages with ‘precarity’ (Butler 2004, 2012) as manifested in workplace anxiety, stress …

Cripping And Deafening Covid-19- Re-Framing A Pandemic In Higher Education, Wendy S. Harbour

International Journal on Responsibility

This article looks at ways institutions of higher education (IHEs) can use the models of disability, disability studies, and Deaf studies to “crip” and “Deafen” their response to COVID-19. A review of previous epidemics and pandemics, including yellow fever, the 1918 influenza epidemic, polio, and HIV/AIDS disease, disability, and Deafness. Health services, counseling centers, and disability resource centers expanded over time, and IHEs still rely heavily on them for health, disability, and Deaf concerns. By cripping and Deafening COVID-19 responses, higher education can use a more holistic view of the pandemic, making illness, mental health, disability and Deafness the responsibility …

Book Review: Qualitative Studies Of Exploration In Childhood Education: Cultures Of Play And Learning In Transition, Transitions In Childhood And Youth Series By M. Fleer Et Al., Ridhi Sethi

International Journal of Playwork Practice

This review of Qualitative Studies of Exploration in childhood Education: Cultures of Play and Learning in Transition outlines the manner in which chapters in the book use qualitative data to inform understandings of how culture affects children’s development. With little research on how play and culture affect the wellbeing of children, this book fills the void. It uses data qualitatively and answers the how and why about play and transitions. The review also looks at how the book informs my work as a developmental psychologist, and some of the book’s limitations or omissions.

Racism Without Race: The Racialization Of Middle Eastern And North African Students At U.S. Colleges, Hannah Mesouani

Dissertations

Although a growing body of literature covers the experiences of international students at U.S. colleges, the stories of those who do not fit into the U.S. racial schema remain untold. This study examined how Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) students understood their racial identities given the United States’ tense history with Islam and the MENA world. Using foundational texts on critical race theory, current scholarship on Arab Americans and foreign-born students, and facets of the Ethnic Identity Scale (EIS), this study examined the experiences of MENA students who study amid a national backdrop of xenophobia and racialized Islamophobia. This …

Desde El Suelo: Resources For Anti Colonial And Abolitionist Educators In Puerto Rico, Jazdil Poupart-Feliciano

Master's Projects and Capstones

“Desde el Suelo” is a set of resources, activities and reflections created for educators looking to name, understand and heal from the systemic harms experienced in our schooling in order to interrupt these cycles and better support children, youth and ourselves in our liberation. For Puerto Rican educators, this process begins with the understanding that any system created with the goal of expanding the u.s. empire through racist occupation and epistemicide can never be reformed into promoting freedom or social justice. Pulling from abolitionist teaching and critical pedagogy, inspired by historical struggles for Black liberation across the diaspora and in …

Leading Department Causes Of Acculturative Stress Among International Students At A South Jersey Public Institution, Meagan Kathleen Mcferren

Theses and Dissertations

The study in this paper was conducted at Rowan University, a South Jersey public institution founded in 1923. The purpose of this study was to collect data regarding various university departments that might cause and affect acculturative stress in international students and determine which area has the greatest impact on the students’ stress levels at the university. During the 2022-23 academic year, I distributed an anonymous online survey to the majority of Rowan international and domestic students, both undergraduate and graduate, to better understand their perspectives of specific campus resources and departments. In this paper, I state my questions as …

Post-Pandemic Digital Experiences & Attitudes Among Adult Immigrant Esol Learners, Lacey D. Goodloe

Master's Theses

This mixed-methods study considers the current reality of the “digital divide” as experienced by adult immigrant ESOL learners following the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period. Although prior research often assumes foreign-born individuals to have lower rates of access, skills and motivation to engage with technology, or to lack it altogether, this study seeks to contribute a more realistic picture which encompasses the full diversity of digital experiences among the foreign-born population. The review of the literature first covers two levels of the digital divide that often evince socioeconomic disparities: primarily access, skills and usage; and more recently, attitudes and motivation. Then, …

Equity And Inclusion For Gender Diverse Middle School Students, Xiaoyan Nadler

Education | Master's Theses

About a third of teenagers experience an anxiety disorder, with steadily increasing numbers (McCarthy, 2019). LGBTQ+ students have a history of being a group without a voice because the dominant gender classification was a binary male or female model. They have seldom dared to express and identify their real selves. According to Lewis (2020), this form of oppression could make them feel unwelcome, overlooked, and unsafe, eventually creating tremendous anxiety. This qualitative research focused on understanding what creates an inclusive and safe learning environment for all students, including students who identify as LGBTQ+. Interviews were conducted with students, parents, and …