Digital Commons Network^™

Charting The Technological, Ethical, And Academic Concerns And Potentials Of Generative Artificial Intelligence In Qualitative Research, Joseph A. Villarama, Bench G. Fabros, Abegail V. Dela Fuente, Jordan Dale L. Canosa, Samapika Roy

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objectives: This research determines the academic, ethical, and technological concerns and potentials of GenAI as perceived by teacher–researchers and explores the concerns and potentials of using GenAI in academic classrooms and qualitative research undertakings.

Methods: This study employed the hermeneutic phenomenological postmodernism approach, which is a qualitative research design that, in the present study, delved into the intricate tapestry of lived experiences of 120 purposely selected teacher–researchers from France, India, Nepal, and the Philippines. The teacher–researchers participated in hybrid in-depth interviews and informal conversations guided by 10 interview questions. Responses were thematically analyzed following the phases of the hermeneutic phenomenology …

Becoming Our Best: Professional Identity Formation As A Pathway To Lawyering Excellence In The Age Of Generative Ai, Jessica Lynn Wherry, Frances C. Delaurentis

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Redefining The Law Of Bloodstain Pattern Analysis, Richard Caldwell

St. Mary's Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Reining It In: From Reflexive To Intentional Instructor Self-Disclosure, Rona Miles, Alla Chavarga, Chelsea Blaney

Essays in Education

Instructor self-disclosure is often promoted as a means of humanizing the classroom environment and improving learning outcomes. Though disclosure has the potential to be highly beneficial, it also carries a risk to students and learning that is often overlooked. This paper presents a point of departure perspective that instructor self-disclosure should be approached with far greater caution than most educators consider. We argue that disclosures should occur only when they are justified with a clear pedagogical purpose. Casual or spontaneous disclosures, by contrast, carry sufficient potential for unintended harm such that their risks outweigh presumed benefits to classroom rapport and …

Cultural Competency Beyond The Classroom: Employing Visual Culture Art Education In Museums, Kaylee Long

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

In an increasingly diverse and media-dominated world, critical thinking and cultural competency have become crucial skills. Visual Culture Art Education (VCAE), a pedagogy employed in the formal education setting, serves as an effective practice to foster these skills. Although not explicitly employed, elements of VCAE are found in museums. As VCAE has shown success in the classroom environment, museums can supplement their current practices through the conscious use of this pedagogy. Through a multi-site case study of five art museums in the Mid-Atlantic region, this project aimed to find ways that VCAE practices could be adapted into the museum setting.

Solving Affordability Challenges In Education, Housing And Childcare, Brad J. Hershbein, Michelle Miller-Adams, Brian J. Asquith, Chloe R. Gibbs

Presentations

These three presentations emphasize that affordability challenges across education, housing, and childcare stem from structural market and policy frictions, and that effective solutions require coordinated public investment, simplified systems, and attention to both supply and demand. The first presentation argues that while college tuition growth has slowed and aid has increased, affordability challenges persist due to complexity, misperceptions, and uneven costs, and it advocates for simple tuition-free programs combined with investments in advising, streamlined pathways, and stronger school-to-work connections. The second presentation highlights a growing housing affordability crisis in the Rust Belt driven by aging housing stock and limited supply, …

The Applicability Of Artificial Intelligence In Tour Guiding: Perspective Of Sustainable Service Innovation In Tourism With Technology, Chiranjib Kumar Choudhary Phd, Aditi Choudhary

International Journal of Tour Guiding and Visitor Attraction Research

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly transforming various sectors of the tourism, travel, and hospitality industry. Among these, the role of tourist guides remains crucial, as they act as cultural ambassadors representing destinations and nations. The primary objective of this study is to explore the applications of AI in developing intelligent audio-visual tour guides and assistive devices that enhance tourists’ real-time experiences at heritage sites, tourist attractions, and places of archaeological significance. The research adopts a qualitative approach, utilising secondary data gathered from academic literature, printed and electronic resources, online databases, and expert opinions from tourism professionals. The collected data were …

An Equity-Based And Culturally Responsive Bill Of Rights For Early Childhood Students Of Color With Exceptionalities, Evette Simmons-Reed, Michelle Frazier Trotman Scott, Gloria Tardash, Mildred Boveda, Donna Y. Ford

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing disparities in early intervention (EI) and early childhood special education (ECSE) services for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) disabled children, exposing critical gaps in access, services and support. systemic inconsistencies in implementation, training, and funding, remain barriers limit opportunities for CLD students to benefit, despite the aims of the Individuals with Disabilities Improvement Act (IDEA). To address these inequities, this manuscript proposes an expanded and updated Culturally Responsive Equity-Based Bill of Rights for EI and ECSE. Building upon Ford and colleagues' (2018) work, this revised document extends protections to children aged zero to five, emphasizing …

Phenomenological Variant Of Ecological Systems Theory (Pvest): Implications For Early Childhood Education, Kathryn L. Fletcher, Qunishia N. Carter

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

The current article provides an introduction for researchers and educators in the field of early childhood education to Spencer’s Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems theory (Spencer’s PVEST; Spencer et al., 1997; Spencer, 2006). Spencer has expanded the importance of context with her position that children experience contexts differently, particularly children from marginalized groups (Spencer et al., 1997; Spencer, 2006). Two main goals for this article are: 1) introduce Spencer’s PVEST to the field of early childhood education; and 2) apply components of this theory to young children’s self-awareness. The overarching aim of this paper is to argue that Spencer’s PVEST …

Practical Applications Of Play Therapy Principles In Early Childhood Classrooms, Colleen D. Martinez, Beth A. Trammell

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Play in early childhood is a central tenet to everyday life for children and is thus of great importance to early childhood practitioners. However, the wide variety of definitions, policies, and practices related to play make implementing it effectively in the classroom nuanced. This article explores components of both child-led and adult-led practices—viewed through the lens of play therapy—to aid early childhood educators in applying these practices in the classroom. Case examples from the authors are included to further explore these topics in real-life situations.

Latent Transition Analysis: A Statistical Method For Identifying Underlying Subgroups Over Time, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Researchers working in early childhood research are often interested in assessing change over time in multiple variables. In addition, they may wish to ascertain whether there exist subgroups in the data with respect to these variables, and whether/how membership in these groups is related. Latent transition analysis (LTA) provides such researchers with a useful tool for investigating questions around such groups, including their composition, frequency, and the likelihood of moving from one to another at different points in time. The purpose of this manuscript is to provide a full demonstrate of LTA and show how it can be used to …

Comparison Of Multidimensional Models For Extreme Response Styles, Holmes Finch, Brian French

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Self-administered scales are ubiquitous throughout the social sciences. Therefore, it is crucial that they properly reflect the measured latent trait(s), and are not influenced by other factors. One potential threat to validity is the response style favored by an individual completing the items. In particular, a tendency to engage in extreme responding (ERS) can result in a tendency to provide responses in the outer range of the response scale, independent of the actual level of the response to the item. The purposes of this study was to demonstrate how these models can be used to account for ERS in practice, …

A Tutorial For Identifying And Comparing Change Points In Developmental Trajectories, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Researchers in a variety of social science fields work with sequential data, such as measurements made over time. In some instances, one or more of the moments (e.g., mean, variance) of the series may change abruptly at some point in the sequence, yielding what is known as a change point. There is a broad literature describing methods for changepoint detection. Researchers working with multiple sequential series containing change points may be interested in comparing the locations of these changes. The purpose of this manuscript is to demonstrate how a researcher can detect changepoints and compare changepoints between two or more …

Using Multilevel Modeling To Understand Nested Data, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Researchers in the social sciences often work with nested data, in which individuals are collected in higher level clusters. For example, educational research often involves working with samples in which students are nested within schools. Standard data analyses, such as regression and analysis of variance (ANOVA), yield statistically biased results when this nested structure is ignored. One widely used and effective approach for handling such nested data is multilevel modeling. The purpose of this manuscript is to review the basics of multilevel modeling and to provide the reader with a fully worked example in which the analytic approach and results …

Using Effect Sizes, Confidence Intervals, And The Bayes Factor To Better Understand The T-Test, Analysis Of Variance, And Regression Results, Holmes Finch

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Null hypothesis testing is a widely used paradigm for assessing research hypotheses across the social sciences. Despite their ubiquity, researchers have discussed a number of problems and limitations to hypothesis testing and have suggested alternatives that might provide greater depth and explanation of research results. The purpose of this paper is to describe the use of several such alternatives and to show how they can be integrated with one another and with null hypothesis testing in order to provide a more holistic view of research hypotheses.

Early Education Indirect Service Research With Generalization Data: A Systematic Review Of Single-Case Design Methodological Rigor, Zachary C. Labrot, Brittany D. Garza, Tyler Smith, Emily Maxime, Abigail Lawson

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

Consultation and coaching are both forms of indirect service delivery that have been found to be effective for improving early childhood educators’ implementation of evidence-based practices. These indirect service delivery modalities have also been found to be effective for promoting early childhood educators’ generalization of evidence-based practices. However, less is known regarding the methodological rigor of early childhood indirect service delivery research that collected generalization data. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to apply the 2020 and 2020 What Works Clearinghouse single-case design standards to this literature base to determine the extent to which these studies were conducted in …

Guest Editor's Introduction: Methodological Innovations For Advancing Early Childhood Educational And Psychological Research, Anthony Mangino Ph.D.

Perspectives on Early Childhood Psychology and Education

The goal of this special issue is to provide you, the inquisitive reader and developmental scientist, with some of the methodological tools to aid in augmenting your analytic capacity.

Supporting Teachers To Adopt Art-Based Pedagogy In Grade 10 Science Teaching: An Action Research, Rabina Maharjan Ms, Binod Prasad Pant Dr.

The Transdisciplinary STEAM+ Journal

Science classrooms in Nepal are far from real-life connections and are dominated by conventional teaching methodologies which makes classrooms appear monotonous and boring. As a result, interest in science is decreasing day-by-day. In this scenario, the integration of art into science can be a ray of hope as humans, by nature, love art. In this research, I (first author) supported and empowered a group of five science teachers from different community schools in Kathmandu metropolitan city to implement art-based pedagogy in their classrooms. Though initially the teachers were reluctant to adopt art-based pedagogy, with a series of sessions, they designed …

Fifty Years And Counting: Middle School Principals’ Experiences, Beliefs, And Preparation For Serving Students Of Color With Disabilities, Lourdes Rodriguez Flores

LMU Theses and Dissertations

This study explored how middle school principals understand and support students of color with disabilities (SOCWD) on comprehensive school campuses. This topic is deeply personal and professional, shaped by my experiences as a mother, special education teacher, and district leader who has witnessed ongoing challenges in how schools serve students with disabilities, especially Black and Brown students. Guided by Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit; Annamma et al., 2013) and Social Justice Leadership (Theoharis, 2007), this study examined how race and disability intersect in school systems and influence leadership decisions, practices, and access to opportunity. Using a qualitative approach, I conducted …

Learning To Get Out Of The Wing - The Motivations Of Learners Incarcerated In Québec Provincial Prisons, Frédérick Armstrong

Journal of Prison Education Research

41 men and women incarcerated in the Québec provincial prison system were asked why they enrolled in educational activities. Relying on self-determination theory’s to describe and categorize their motivations, we found that most respondents had extrinsic motivations to participate in educational activities and that only three respondents could be described as intrinsically motivated. Respondents joined programmes to escape boredom, to receive financial compensation or to receive some other benefits; not for the pleasure of learning. These results are different from other research reporting that a majority of incarcerated learners were intrinsically motivated. After addressing this contrast and arguing that it …

May 12, 2026 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

Using Children’S Books To Promote Recovery And Resilience In Students With Trauma, Tyler Anderson

Graduate Teacher Education

This Capstone Paper investigated how trauma affected learning in the classroom and how narrative-based interventions to support students facing adversity. The two dovetailed to show how children’s literature could be used as a tool for supporting students facing adversity. A comprehensive review of the existing literature was conducted that sought to answer the question: What are the potential impacts of trauma on learning, and how can children's literature that explores trauma be used to foster resilience and recovery in students who have experienced adversity? Research on the impact of trauma on learning and research on children’s literature often existed separately. …

Examining The Development Of Resilience Through Youth Sports, Mae Grigsby

Graduate Teacher Education

Research has indicated that resilience was an essential skill necessary for facing life’s adversities. The completion of 15 qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method studies in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Slovakia, and The United States determined that sports provided numerous benefits in childhood and into adulthood. Based on this research, sports offered a stable, supportive environment with positive interpersonal relationships that fostered resilience and supported youth when faced with setbacks, giving them skills they would use well into their futures. With a growing number of youths impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), protective factors such as resilience …

Survey Of Student Perceptions And Use Of Artificial Intelligence When Reading Primary Literature In The Biological Sciences, Erin L. Zimmer, Michael I. Zimmer

Biology Department Faculty Articles

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are increasingly used by students in higher education, yet little is known about how they are applied when reading primary scientific literature. This study investigated how undergraduate biology students use AI while engaging with primary research articles and how such use influences confidence, engagement, and perceived learning. Using a mixed-methods design across two institutions, we collected pre-course surveys assessing prior AI experience and attitudes, weekly self-reported AI usage logs during a semester-long primary literature–based course, and post-course surveys evaluating changes in practices and perceptions. Students entered the course with broad familiarity with generative AI but expressed …

Magnifying Genius: Culturally Responsive Leadership And One School’S Story Of Teacher Empowerment Implementing An International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme, Ryan Hansen

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Limited research exists on how principal leadership has shaped teacher empowerment and collective efficacy in public schools implementing the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (IB MYP; International Baccalaureate Organization [IBO], 2020a).This qualitative study was grounded in culturally responsive leadership (CRL; Khalifa et al., 2016) and leader–member exchange (LMX) theory (Graen & Uhl-Bien, 1995; Northouse, 2022) as interpretive lenses and examined a leadership problem of practice at Hiller School, a diverse, high-needs public K–8 campus serving students in Grades 6–8. The study centered on how leaders foster teacher agency, identity development, relational trust, and intentional co-leadership during the early stages of …

Leveraging Mobile Health To Prevent Coronary Artery Disease Through Physical Activity Promotion Among Underserved Youth, Alina Yang, Jessh M. Mavoungou, Matthew C. Miller, Zarmina Amin, Zan Gao

International Journal of Physical Activity and Health

Coronary artery disease (CAD) develops earlier than often recognized, with underserved youth facing disproportionate cardiometabolic risk. Low participation in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (PA) is a key driver. This viewpoint explores how mobile health (mHealth) technologies can serve as tools to increase PA engagement among underserved youth, guided by a combined Self-Determination Theory and RE-AIM (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) framework. It highlights current barriers to mHealth adoption, limited cultural relevance, engagement challenges, and accessibility gaps, and presents key considerations for designing culturally informed, age-tailored, and youth-centered mHealth interventions. Overall, the paper calls for a more inclusive and targeted approach …

The Mediating Effect Of Physical Activity On Mental Health Among Sexual Minority Adolescents During Covid-19, You Fu, Ryan D. Burns, Hayley Almes, Xiangren Yi, Nora Constantino

International Journal of Physical Activity and Health

Purpose: Adolescents identifying as a sexual minority frequently experience mental health issues exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Physical activity (PA) has numerous benefits for mental health and emotional development. The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of PA on the association between sexual minority status and mental health among adolescents during COVID-19. Methods: A sample of adolescents (grades 9-12) completed the online Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey (ABES; N = 7677; 49.6% male) in 2021. The independent variable in this study was a recorded binary response item asking about sexual orientation. The dependent variable was a …

Teachers’ Perspectives And Experiences On Using Assistive Technological Tools To Support Middle School Students With Dyslexia, Crystal Courtner

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

The Lone Star Luminarias: 1880–1980, Dolores Atencio, Tracy C. Almanzán

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

The Lone Star Luminarias recovers and documents the lives, careers, and legal contributions of the first Latina lawyers licensed to practice law in the State of Texas. This article is a series of articles based upon the original research conducted by Visiting Scholar, Dolores Atencio (2016–2022) to identify and document the accomplishments of the first generation of Latina attorneys in the country, circa 1880–1980, Luminarias. The Luminarias Study involved archival research of 167 law

schools across the country, and a review of bar records, state bar records, past and contemporary news accounts, oral histories, and other records such as U.S. …

Left Behind: How The Ssi Program Fails To Support Young People With Disabilities, Caitlyn B. Acosta

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Program was created to protect people with disabilities from extreme poverty. However, its outdated rules and punitive structures trap millions in cycles of poverty and exclusion. For young adults with disabilities, the SSI system worsens existing barriers by limiting income and savings, discouraging work, and fostering dependence instead of independence. Drawing on personal narratives, historical context, and current policies, this Comment highlights how SSI reflects a long legacy of ableism and systemic neglect. The stories of individuals who have been denied dignity, family stability, and community belonging illustrate that reform is not just about policy, …