Prototyping For Game Design With Unlv Libraries, Silvey Benson, Amber Sewell

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

Involving students in a hands-on creative way to implement ideation, design, and prototyping skills gives students the opportunity to apply the theory of iterative design. Students analyze and reverse engineer current game designs prior to beginning their own innovations. They are then encouraged to apply innovation and creativity to their own game designs, test the games’ effectiveness through having others play their game and provide feedback, and fail safely in a controlled environment. Students will ideally increase their tolerance for failure through the implementation of the iterative design process while gaining a variety of skills that will serve them outside …

Learning With Ai: A Structured Approach To Student-Ai Collaboration, April Ursula Fox

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

The rapid integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) into higher education has created an urgent need for instructional models that move beyond tool use toward intentional, pedagogically grounded practice. This study presents a structured assignment design that positions AI as a scaffolded collaborator within undergraduate educational psychology courses. Across a multi-part, semester-long sequence, students engage in concept explanation, self-directed inquiry, AI-supported knowledge construction, and reflective documentation of their learning process. Findings from recurring student artifacts indicate progressive gains in conceptual understanding, integration of research sources, and transfer of knowledge to personally meaningful contexts. Students demonstrate increased capacity for self-regulated learning …

From Generation To Judgment: A Structured Approach To Teaching Responsible Ai Use, Necole Leland, Lisa Nicholas, Jennifer Vanderlaan

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

A structured approach to teaching responsible use of generative AI in nursing education is critical. As AI becomes increasingly integrated into professional practice, students must move beyond simple AI content generation to critically evaluate and refining AI outputs. Using the RISEN prompting framework to guide learners in designing effective prompts while also emphasizing analysis of accuracy, relevance, bias, and ethical considerations in the output. Through classroom modeling and applied activities, students engage actively with AI as a tool for inquiry rather than passive consumption. This approach offers a practical and adaptable model for integrating ethical and effective AI use across …

Arts Integration: Teaching Through The Senses Just Makes Sense!, Isabella Shenouda, Noah Karnafel, Hongming Xu

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

Arts Integration is a high-impact teaching practice for both higher education and K-12 settings. Because students bring diverse backgrounds, learning preferences, and ways of making meaning, the arts offer flexible, multi-sensory pathways to content comprehension that traditional lecture-based and text-based instruction often cannot. Drawing on classroom evidence from an Honors First-Year Seminar at UNLV in which students identified an arts-based workshop as their favorite lesson, we argue that creative, hands-on activities deepen knowledge retention and foster genuine intellectual engagement. Arts Integration is inherently an asset-based and inclusive practice, as it encourages students to connect through various sensory learning experiences, whether …

Catalyzing Learner-Centered Ecosystems In Pennsylvania For A Future Of Human Thriving, Danielle S. Shylit

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

School-centric education has failed to produce equitable outcomes for Pennsylvania's learners. Declining student engagement, widening opportunity gaps, and the demoralization of educators and leaders escalate an urgent need to shift systems, mindsets, and praxis from a school-centric to a learner-centric paradigm. This action research dissertation elevates what is learned at individual, group, and system levels through disciplined inquiry with aligned district public education leaders in Pennsylvania willing to co-create learner-centered ecosystems with community stakeholders for a future of human thriving. Grounded in Education Reimagined's definition of Learner-Centered Ecosystems, and the theoretical frameworks of Bryk et al.'s Networked Improvement Communities and …

Examining The Psychometric Structure Of An Instrument To Measure Students’ Interests And Motivation In Science Learning: Factor Analysis And Measurement Invariance, Fuhui Tong, Shifang Tang, Zhuoying Wang, Beverly J. Irby

Faculty Publications

In this study, we examined the psychometric properties (reliability, validity, and underlying factor structure) and measurement invariance of a researcher-developed instrument: Motivated Strategies for Science Learning (MSSL). Data were collected from 2765 fifth-grade students across [state withheld] school districts. Results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested satisfactory psychometric properties of MSSL. We further identified strong evidence to support configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance across school location groups (i.e., rural and non-rural), confirming that the instrument can accurately capture the construct of science learning motivation among fifth-grade students from both rural and non-rural Texas schools. The study provides the …

Digital Toolkit: Making Room For Partnership In Information Literacy Instruction, Samantha Legrand, Rachel Fundator

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

This digital toolkit provides reflective and practical exercises, examples, and resources to explore how Students as Partners (SaP) pedagogy (Cook-Sather et al., 2014) can transform information literacy (IL) instruction. The toolkit was designed to accompany a workshop presented at LOEX 2026, but can be implemented independently, as well. This approach to IL pedagogy draws on a conceptual model integrating SaP with the Framework for Information Literacy (LeGrand, 2025). The toolkit guides the reader through practical design exercises to engage students’ knowledge and goals within the Frames. Reimagine instruction with asset-based, relational language and design learning for …

2026 April 30 - From My Notepads Newsletter, Office Of The President, East Tennessee State University, Brian Noland

From My Notepads: A Newsletter from President Brian Noland

No abstract provided.

Reclaiming The Writing Process Using Ai: A Scaffolded Writing Assignment That Promotes Critical Thinking, Reflection, And Accountability, Hannah M. Schapiro, Manuela Tripepi, Julia Blackley

College of Life Sciences Faculty Papers

As the educational landscape changes with the widespread use of generative artificial intelligence (AI), we have made the deliberate choice to adapt with intention through the constructive integration of this tool within the curriculum. Writing assignments are often vulnerable to AI shortcuts, and therefore, we reimagined the project in our online microbiology lab to incorporate AI in a structured and pedagogically sound way that prioritizes both the writing process and the final product. Students must work with AI to create a script for a 5-minute video which they then illustrate and record on the differences between Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant …

Creating Open Educational Resources With Artificial Intelligence, Serena Scalzi

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

The adoption of artificial intelligence is becoming widespread in higher education. AI-driven technology has the ability to support academic and administrative faculty in designing and delivering course content. As a Part-Time Instructor in the College of Education, I used AI to enhance my teaching practice by creating course resources for my class, CIT 647 Creating Online Learning Environments. These open educational resources, developed through a reflective teaching practice facilitated by the UNLV Teaching and Learning Commons, promote equitable, inclusive education.

A Comparative Study Of Traditional Training And Xr-Based Simulation In Healthcare Professional Education, Fazal Qudus Khan, Gohar Khan, Ibrar Ahmad, Owais Khan, Suleman Shah

All Works

Immersive Virtual Reality or VR/VX stands poised to revolutionize healthcare education through interactive learning modules, overcoming current deficiencies in existing methodologies for instruction. This research compared the effectiveness of VR/VX-based training to traditional CT scanner operator training using a within-subjects design, involving 30 subjects, and concluded the effectiveness of using VR/VX in enhancing knowledge retention, task accomplishment, and engagement, and proved it by showing significant enhancement in immediate knowledge acquisition scores (Δ = 8.87, t(29) = 6.71, p < .0001), relative to delayed knowledge retention scores (Δ = 11.03, t(29) = 6.85, p < .0001), procedural achievement scores (Δ = 5.40, t(29) = 4.45, p = .0001), reduced overall task completion time using VR/VX for increased speed of execution (t(29) = 10.74, p < .0001), as well as reduced task errors for lower error rates using VR/VX in comparison to existing methodologies, as testified by the results, t(29) = 8.14, p < .0001, respectively, while showing no significant difference in usability, although assessed superior in terms of engagement and relative usefulness by the involved subjects.

Volume 12 Full Text, Bjur Staff

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.

Collegiate Experiences Of Genderqueer And Nonbinary Youth, Angela Clark-Taylor, Alexandra Kay Hicks, Heather Johnson

New York Journal of Student Affairs

This study explores the collegiate experiences of genderqueer and nonbinary students, frequently marginalized in higher education research. While scholarship on transgender students has expanded, it often centers on binary identities, thereby excluding those who identify outside the man-woman dichotomy. This research responds to that gap by asking: What are the experiences of nonbinary students in college? Drawing on in-depth interviews with six genderqueer and nonbinary undergraduate students, the study amplifies their voices to challenge dominant gender norms and essentialist narratives within academic spaces. Participants shared experiences of systemic erasure, invalidation, and microaggressions, as well as the resilience and strategies they …

From Sequence To Skill: Building Argumentative Writers Through Structured Inquiry, Elizabeth Huffmaster

Create@State

This research project examines the National Writing Project’s College, Career, and Community Writers’ Program (C3WP) and other resources that assist teachers in developing a multi-lesson argumentative writing instructional sequence. The project curated the entire process of writing an argumentative essay with pre-selected topics and resources for students to explore as small groups in order to contribute to class-wide discussion(s), which connect to the Self-Regulation and Constructivism learning theories. In addition to the outline of an instructional sequence, student resources such as guided note organizers and a peer-review rubric were developed, demonstrating how teachers adapt instructional materials. The significance of this …

An Investigation Into Bridging The Rural Stem Gap With Multimedia Learning Principles: A Phenomenological Study, Joseph W. Halko

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand the lived experiences of STEM teachers at rural secondary schools concerning the use of multimedia learning tools to support cognitive processes during instruction. Meyer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning (CTML) provides the theoretical framework for this study, ensuring that multimedia learning modalities, such as e-learning platforms and educational technology, are grounded in sound cognitive theory. The central question is, “What are the lived experiences of rural secondary STEM teachers concerning the use of multimedia learning tools to support cognitive processes during instruction?” To support this investigation, a phenomenological methodology based …

A Causal-Comparative Study Of Student Self-Efficacy And Academic Persistence Among Non-Traditional College Students With And Without Remedial Math Coursework, Lakin Fannin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative causal-comparative study examined whether differences existed in math self-efficacy and academic persistence between non-traditional community college students who completed developmental math coursework and those who did not within the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. Data were collected from 81 non-traditional students using the Mathematics Self-Efficacy Scale and the College Persistence Questionnaire. A one-way multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to compare outcomes between the two groups. Results indicated no statistically significant differences in math self-efficacy or academic persistence based on developmental math enrollment status. The null hypothesis was not rejected, suggesting that completion of developmental math coursework …

The Predictive Relationship Between Teachers’ Knowledge Of Developmental Dyslexia And Literacy Self-Efficacy Among General Education Teachers: A Predictive Correlational Study, Robyn Nicole Mcclellan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative, predictive correlational study explored the relationship between teachers' knowledge of dyslexia and their literacy self-efficacy instruction in the general education classroom. The study is important because when a teacher is not confident in teaching literacy to this special-needs population, they are less likely to provide appropriate and effective interventions and accommodations. The sample of this study consisted of 111 public school general education teachers from multiple school districts across multiple states. A convenience sample of 111 participants was given two scales: Knowledge and Beliefs About Developmental Dyslexia (KBDDS) and the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy for Literacy Instruction (TSELIS). …

Examining The Perceived Self-Efficacy Of Governing Board Members Of Charter Schools In Florida: A Qualitative Holistic Case Study, Donald Toy Williams Jr.

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative, holistic case study was to examine the perceived self-efficacy of governing board members in charter schools in Florida. The theory guiding this study was Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory, which explains how personal beliefs, behaviors, and environmental influences shape an individual’s and collective governance self-efficacy. The central research question guiding this study was: How does the self-efficacy of governing board members in Florida charter schools influence their governance practices? This study used a qualitative, holistic case study design and purposeful sampling to select governing board members from charter schools across Florida. Data were collected through …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Exploring Teacher Retention Through The Lens Of The Four Capital Theory, Mary Ruth Callaway Hertweck

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand teacher retention from the experience of teachers in a school with high retention rates for two or more consecutive years. Furthermore, this study described teacher retention in a school with high retention, and how the high retention rate has influenced teachers decision to remain in that school. The theory guiding this study is the four capital theory as it includes the social, human, structural and positive psychological capitals and provided insight on how these relate to teacher retention. The central research question for this study is: what are the experiences …

Career And Technical Education Teacher Efficacy In Embedding Disciplinary Literacy: A Predictive Correlational Study, Susan Gwin Higley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this predictive correlational nonexperimental study was to determine the relationship between high school career and technical education (CTE) teachers’ years of experience, teachers’ highest level of education, and teachers’ participation in disciplinary literacy professional development, and their relationship to teachers’ efficacy in embedding disciplinary literacy instruction into their content area teaching. The reading requirements for CTE students are very different from the curriculum taught in English Language Arts classes. Also, texts in specific disciplines of CTE vary greatly. As such, CTE teachers must embed disciplinary literacy in their daily teaching to ensure that their students develop the …

Teacher Leadership Inventory Among The Nine Seventh-Day Adventist Unions Of The North American Division: A Quantitative Causal-Comparative Study, Adam C. Littell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to determine if there was a difference in sharing expertise, sharing leadership, and/or supra-practitioner behaviors among the teachers of the nine Seventh-day Adventist Unions of the North American Division. This study is important because it meets an important gap in teacher leadership understanding, both within the broad context of education and specifically within the Seventh-day Adventist educational system. The sample was composed of 264 Seventh-day Adventist full-time teachers from across the North American Division (with the exception of the Seventh-day Adventist Church of Canada due to privacy laws prohibiting participation) who did …

Fostering Innovative Leadership: A Case Study Of Academic Leaders’ Role In Integrating Ai Technologies In Higher Education, Dorian Ryleigh Harris

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study was to understand the role of higher education leadership in the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for faculty and administrative decision-making at higher education institutions in the United States of America. The theory guiding this study was the transformational leadership theory as it provides a framework for examining how institutional leaders influence the adoption, implementation, and ethical considerations of AI in higher education. The central research question guiding this study was: How do higher education leaders navigate the integration of AI technologies within their institutions? This study employed a qualitative case study design, …

A Phenomenological Study On The Experiences Of Educators As Mentors For Homeless And Highly Mobile Students In A Rural Community, Tracy Dawn Mcpheron

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to explore how educators perceive an implemented mentoring program in which they will serve as mentors of homeless and highly mobile students in a rural school district. The mentoring program will include educators working as mentors to students coded as homeless through the McKinney-Vento Act for Homeless Education. The educators participating in the mentoring program will be the participants in this study. The participants will include middle school (6th-8th grade) through high school (12th grade), teachers, counselors, librarians, the district’s homeless liaison, and the federal programs coordinator for an East Tennessee school …

Becoming Better Teachers Through Community: A Transcendental Phenomenological Dissertation Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Adjunct Faculty In A Cohort-Based Faculty Learning Community, Gerard Wayne Hall

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand how adjuncts’ participation in a cohort-styled faculty learning community designed specifically for them shaped their teaching and connectedness with their institution. The theory that guided this study was situated learning theory, which explained the relationship between participation in learning communities and teaching practice. Additionally, this theory provided a foundation for understanding how the social dynamics of a learning community affected connectedness. The central research question examined in this study was, ‘What are adjunct faculty’s experiences participating in a cohort-based faculty learning community?’ To explore this topic and question, a transcendental …

A Causal-Comparative Study Of Critical Thinking Skills In Community College And University Stem Students, Jason H. Tucker

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine the relationship between STEM students’ classification (freshmen, sophomore, junior, and senior) and their overall critical thinking scores among community colleges and universities in north central Ohio. This study is important because critical thinking has been shown to improve success in collegiate STEM programs and the future careers of their students. In addition, there has been growing interest in examining potential critical thinking differences between STEM students enrolled in two-year community colleges and four-year universities. The sample is composed of 231 community college and university students enrolled in STEM programs. Data …

A Phenomenological Study Exploring The Experiences Of Rural Elementary School Teachers’ Stem Education And Training Development, Jack W. Owens

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the lived experience rural elementary school teachers receiving STEM education, professional development, and training to provide high-quality STEM education to students at rural elementary schools. The theory guiding this research study was Ryan and Deci’s self-determination theory, which promotes autonomy, competence, and relatedness; when these factors are present, thereby teachers’ motivation and effectiveness in teaching STEM are enhanced. The central research question was: What are the lived experiences of rural elementary teachers concerning their preparedness to teach STEM subjects? This research study used a transcendental phenomenological qualitative design. This …

Understanding Public School Montessori Teachers Who Align Their Methods Of Teaching Reading To The Texas Reading Academies: A Phenomenological Study, Christian T. Mcglory

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of the phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of K-3 public Montessori teachers who must align their methods of teaching reading to the Texas Reading Academies. To advance reading achievement for students, teachers must implement evidence-based instructional practices. The theory guiding this study was Lev Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of cognitive development. The central question for this study was, “What are the experiences of public Montessori teachers who provide reading instruction to students and incorporate reading comprehension strategies through the implementation of Texas Reading Academies?” The data collection process included interviews with 16 teachers who provided reading …

Parents As First Teachers Living In Their Home Environment: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study, Dana Lynne Horne

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of parents as their child’s first teachers and how these experiences influence their child’s early educational development for Head Start parents at a school in Virginia. The central phenomenon of the study was generally defined as the multidimensional lived experiences of parents of children ages 0 to 6, living in unstable or substandard housing, and navigating the roles of caregiver, teacher, and advocate within complex social-cultural ecological environments. The theory guiding this study is Bronfenbrenner’s (1974) sociocultural environmental framework. This study focused on understanding Head Start Program parents’ …

(Re)Imagining Research-Practice Collaboration And Partnership: Constructivism By Way Of Interdisciplinarity, Multimodality, And Humanity, Bethany Silva, Alecia Magnifico, Laura Allen, David Baroody, Ashley Barry, Shawna Coppola, Cathy Fraser, Emily Geltz, Anne Mcquade, Christina M. Ortmeier-Hooper, Laura Smith, Donna Turco

Journal of Practitioner Research

Research-Practice Partnerships (RPPs) have become an important vehicle for educational research. By connecting researchers and educators, RPPs can couple systematic research and practical application. However, relational practices for building research collaboratives are understudied, and RPPs often reinscribe power imbalances among practitioners and researchers. With its focus on the centrality of practitioners and their knowledge, practitioner research offers possibilities for disrupting such power imbalances. In this reflective essay, our team describes our efforts to harness practitioner research’s capacity to identify and address salient school-level issues and RPPs’ power to impact a wider audience. We identify practices to build relationships, inform research …

From Inquiry To Action: Leveraging Group Level Assessment To Elevate Teacher Voice, Claire C. Underwood, Leslie Kochanowski, Abraham Underhill

Journal of Practitioner Research

This methodological paper explores the use of Group Level Assessment (GLA) (Vaughn & Lohmueller, 2014; Vaughn, 2024) as a participatory approach to practitioner inquiry within an early childhood education program. Using Cochran-Smith and Lytle’s (2009) inquiry as stance as a guiding conceptual framework, GLA is framed as a methodology that affirms educator expertise, fosters collective reflection, and generates tangible action. We document the adaptation and implementation of the GLA protocol at the Arlitt Center, a university-affiliated early childhood laboratory school committed to teacher-led professional learning. Through an adapted GLA process, teaching staff engaged in identifying barriers and opportunities related to …