Digital Commons Network^™

Rethinking Honors Curriculum In Light Of The Ap/Ib/Dual Enrollment Challenge: Innovation And Curricular Flexibility, David Coleman, Katie Patton

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

Annmarie Guzy’s lead article for this volume speaks of a familiar challenge in the Eastern Kentucky University Honors Program. The nearly universal and dramatic increase in the number of AP, IB, and/or Dual Enrollment credit hours among our incoming first-year honors students over the past two decades served as the primary impetus for a major curricular overhaul within our program in 2013. The result—what we call our new (post-2013) “Honors Flex” curriculum—was initially a source of considerable anxiety among many of our faculty as well as some of our students and alumni. In retrospect, however, we are able to see …

Honors Thesis Preparation: Evidence Of The Benefits Of Structured Curricula, Steven Engel

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

A recent study of honors curricula across the nation indicates that 75.6% of honors programs and colleges at four-year institutions have thesis or capstone requirements (Savage and Cognard-Black). In addition to institutions with thesis requirements, many more also have the option for students to complete theses. For example, an earlier study found that 94.3% of honors colleges offered the opportunity to complete an honors thesis (Sederberg). As Anderson, Lyons, and Weiner indicate, the origins of the honors movement in the United States included an emphasis on the completion of an honors thesis. While discipline-based modes of research and creative scholarship …

Helping The Me Generation Decenter: Service Learning With Refugees, Louanne B. Hawkins, Leslie G. Kaplan

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

Recent research has empirically demonstrated that young adults today are different from prior generations in their decreased empathy, increased narcissism, and decreased civic engagement. The formative years of young adulthood are a critical period for the development of civic values and civil ideologies, a time when college-age adults need to acquire the experiences and skills to decenter and develop into civic-minded stewards of their communities. Engagement in service learning with individuals unlike themselves, i.e., outgroup members, is the approach we have taken at the University of North Florida to encourage this decentering through service learning engagement with refugees embedded in …

Reading Place, Reading Landscape: A Consideration Of City As TextTm And Geography, Ellen Hostetter

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

The fundamental concepts employed by City as Text^TM (CAT)—the established experiential learning practice in honors education—and the discipline of geography, specifically the landscape tradition within human geography, share much in common. The overlaps offer CAT practitioners additional intellectual support from a source outside of honors while the differences suggest opportunities for incorporating new material into CAT programs. While CAT and the landscape tradition share the general concepts of professional orientations grounded in place, of close attention to place, and of place as a text to be read, the landscape tradition offers specific terminology to support and build on these …

Palm Epiphyll Cover Shifts To Higher Elevations In Tropical Cloud Forest, Indicating Local Climate Change, Maya Spaur

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Intensifying patterns of weather and climate as caused by anthropogenic climate change have already caused extensive species extinctions, migrations, and range contractions in endemic species (Parmesan 2006), and pose the potential to induce substantial biodiversity loss on a global scale (IPCC 2014). Such trends have proven exceptionally apparent in tropical montane forests, where the disappearance of range-restricted species indicates a lifting cloud base as caused by rising sea surface temperature (SST) (Pounds et al.1999). Epiphylls serve as a bioindicator of local climate change due to their heightened sensitivity to water availability (Drake 2005). An altitudinal transect of percent epiphyll cover …

Moving Forward With Family Centered-Care: One Step At A Time, Adrianne Dunbar

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Family-centered care is an evolving process between patients, families, and health care providers. The family centered care model emphasizes the strength families bring to the healing process. The research project was a quasi-experimental pre-and post-test study with a communication intervention phase. The study was conducted in a Surgical-Trauma Intensive Care Unit (STICU) in a university affiliated hospital in the Southeast with restricted visitation hours. The purpose of this IRB-approved study was to measure the nurses’ perceptions of communication involvement with family members before and after the intervention phase. Approximately 50% of eligible participants responded. The communication intervention phase consisted of …

Journal Of Undergraduate Research And Creative Activity Volume One

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Contents:

HONORS PROGRAM INDUCTION 3

CAGE'S DUNGEON 18

EACH AND EVERY MINUTE 20

THE "G" WORD 21

DOLLHOUSE 22

"MY PAINTINGS WOULD BE NO DIFFERENT THAN A PICTURE IN A BIOLOGY TEXTBOOK" 23

OF LOVE AND OTHER ILLS 28

SYMPTOMS OF THE VIRUS 36

GODSPEED 43

PALM EPIPHYLL COVER SHIFTS TO HIGHER ELEVATIONS IN TROPICAL CLOUD FOREST, INDICATING LOCAL CLIMATE CHANGE 45

EVOLUTIONARY EXPLANATION FOR INVASIVE ABILITIES OF CENTAUREA STOEBE (SPOTTED KNAPWEED) IN INTRODUCED AREAS 56

CONNEXIN-43 AND TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY 72

MOVEMENTS IN DIALOGUE 93

JARGONS AND PIDGINS AND CREOLES, OH MY! 102

"SO DEAD AND BALD" DESTROYS THE …

Connexin-43 And Traumatic Brain Injury: A Potential Target For Therapeutic Intervention, Lauren R. Moore

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a widespread, degenerative affliction with no current therapeutic interventions. The long-term degradation caused by TBI results from secondary injury cascades that are initiated by primary injury. An early and important step in the damage process is reactive astrogliosis in astrocytes. Astrocytes communicate through gap junctions, which are composed of two connexon hemichannels from the two communicating cells and these connexons themselves are composed of six connexin protein subunits. Connexin 43 (Cx43) is a particularly important connexin to gap junctional communication and could act either to preserve the astrocytes from oxidative stress, or to propagate the …

"My Paintings Would Be No Different Than A Picture In A Biology Textbook", Andi Kur

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

I find that there are innate balances in life, universal dichotomies that permeate our understanding of the world. My paintings are about a duality such as this that exists between art and science. We are told from youth that these subjects are poles in constant strain, as miscible as oil in water. I spent thirteen years in school believing that I must choose between the two, that it is unnecessary to carry both with me. Drawn between a distinct love of each, I realized how vehemently I disagreed. Everything: every rock to every tree to every person is suspended between …

Evolutionary Explanation For Invasive Abilities Of Centaurea Stoebe (Spotted Knapweed) In Introduced Areas, Erin Koren

UReCA: The NCHC Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity

Since every invasion and every exotic species presents a new challenge with novel invasion strategies, the invasion of Centaurea stoebe (synonymously referred to as C. maculosa) into North America will be used as a case study to deeply examine invasion strategies. Centaurea stoebe is a short-lived (approximately 3 years) perennial member of the aster family (Broz et al., 2007). It occurs in two different cytotypes, or with two different chromosomal factors. In its home range, it exists in both diploid and tetraploid cytotypes, but only the tetraploid version is present in introduced ranges in North America (See Figure 1; Treier …

The Use Of Song To Open An Educational Development Workshop: Exploratory Analysis And Reflections, Lawrence Lesser, Song An, Daniel Tillman

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Song has been used by faculty of many disciplines in their classrooms and, to a lesser extent, by educational developers in workshops. This paper shares and discusses a new song (about an instructor’s evolving openness to alternatives to lecture only teaching) and its novel use to open an educational development workshop. Self reported participant data from an exploratory survey suggest that the song was most effective in reducing stress as well as in increasing motivation, morale, engagement, and connection. Practical implications and implementation considerations are discussed regarding the song as well as related creative work.

Systematic Assessment Of A High Impact Course Design Institute, Michael S. Palmer, Adriana C. Streifer, Stacy Williams Duncan

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Herein, we describe an intensive, week long course design institute (CDI) designed to introduce participants to the scholarly and evidence driven process of learning focused course design. Impact of this intervention is demonstrated using a multifaceted approach: (a) post CDI satisfaction and perception surveys, (b) pre /post CDI surveys probing pedagogical confidence and perceptions regarding importance of syllabi components, and (c) pre /post CDI syllabi analysis using a reliable syllabus rubric validated for higher education courses. The combined results of these qualitative and quantitative studies indicate that participants value the CDI experience, believe they learn basic principles of learning focused …

Colby College Catalogue 2016 - 2017, Colby College

Colby Catalogues

Colby College Catalogue: September 2016 - August 2017

The Research Express

Research Express Newsletter

• Grant Award Winners
• Colleges & Departments Covered by the Grant Coordinators & Research Accountants
• A Grant Submission New Year’s Resolution
• Rate my newsletter….

Weatherford: Undergraduate Catalog 2016-2017, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

Undergraduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Graduate Record 2016: Life Is Short Capture Every Moment, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

SWOSU Yearbooks

The 2016 Graduate Record was designed by SWOSU students of the Specialized Publications Class in the Communications Department.

Psyc 287: Psychology Of Personality—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Maital Neta

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

In this portfolio, I am assessing student learning in a mid-level Psychology course, Psyc 287: Psychology of Personality. The course introduces students to the major theories of personality, and covers a wide array of topics intended to provide a broad overview of issues in the field. The course attracts a somewhat representative sample of UNL students, including non-majors, and therefore most are from Nebraska. The course is not a prerequisite to any other courses, but it could be a useful foundation course for students pursuing a career in psychology research, and it could also help people to consider issues related …

Anth 474/874: Applied And Development Anthropology—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Wayne A. Babchuk

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

In what follows, I provide an overview of the Benchmark Portfolio developed for the upper level undergraduate/graduate course ANTH 474/874: Applied and Development Anthropology taught in the Spring Semester, 2016 through the Department of Anthropology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Topics include the objectives for the portfolio, description of the course including course goals, enrollment and demographic information, teaching methods, rationale, course materials and activities, analysis of student learning, planned changes based on this experience, and an overall assessment of the portfolio process. As an Assistant Professor of Practice in the Department of Educational Psychology and the Department of Anthropology, …

Nres/Metr/Bsen 479/879: Hydroclimatology—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Francisco Munoz-Arriola

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Rising temperatures and extreme hydrometeorological and climate events are evidences of a changing climate. An increasing population together with their demands for food, energy and water make changes in climate evidence the need to train a new generation of multidisciplinary professionals with a clear understanding of the effects of a changing climate in their activities. Historically, climate sciences were used for scientific and weather operational contexts and engineers applied stationary assumptions for multi-term planning. My goal is to identify elements built from classroom experiences about (a) the suitability of a hydroclimatology course for engineers and scientists; (b) the multidisciplinary skills; …

Intervention E-Mails And Retention: How E-Mails Tailored To Personality Impact An Undergraduate Student's Decision To Return To School Or Not, John Kelly Heffernon

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Universities and colleges constantly face a costly problem: low student retention rates. One potential solution to low student retention is a personality-tailored e-mail intervention. The researcher tested this idea with a sample of 59 first-year students from Minnesota State University, Mankato. Participants took a personality assessment in order to measure their personality trait of sociability. Then participants were split into an experimental group and a control group based on a matched-sample paradigm that ensured sociability was not significantly different between the two groups. Participants in the experimental group received four different intervention e-mails throughout the course of the 2015 fall …

Sense Of Belonging Of Black Students In Stem Majors: A Mixed Methods Study, Lisa Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine Black STEM students’ sense of belonging. The researcher also sought to understand what factors most contributed to students’ sense of belonging and whether the involvement in a living learning community or summer bridge program had an effect. An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was used. Participants (N = 89) were administered a revised Psychological Sense of School Membership survey, then were purposively selected to participate in follow-up interviews (N = 8). A principal component analysis, an independent t-test, and a multiple regression analysis were conducted.

Results of the principal …

Csbs Statements, V18, 2016, University Of Northern Iowa. College Of Social And Behavioral Sciences.

CSBS Statements

Contents:

--From the Desk of the Dean
--Where in the World is CSBS
--Fashion & STEM: A Perfect Fit
--Sociology of Culture: Engaging New Tastes Thru Art, Chocolate and Community
--Passing the Torch for a Brighter Future
--UNI ROTC Celebrates Shared Anniversary With Army ROTC
--History and Military Science Team Up to Teach Future Citizens
--ROTC Cadet Summer Training
--Social Work Explores Seoul Exchange Program
--The Canterbury Forum
--Elect Her Panther Women Win
--State-of-the-art Lab Gives UNI Students an Opportunityto Impact the Field
--Iowa Bioblitz Program Inspires Young Explorers
--Geotree Center Offers Students Real-World Experience
--Out of the Darkness Walk …

Fact Book 2016-17, Western Michigan University

Western Michigan University Fact Books

• General Information
• Colleges at WMU
• Headcount
• Demographics
• Extended University Programs
• Freshmen Faculty
• Information

Learning Analytics To Inform Teaching And Learning Approaches, Geraldine Gray, Colm Mcguinness, Philip Owende

Student Success

Learning analytics is an evolving discipline with capability for educational data analysis to enable better understanding of learning processes. This paper reports on learning analytics research at Institute of Technology Blanchardstown, Ireland, that indicated measureable factors can identify first year students at risk of failing based on data available prior to commencement of first year of study. The study was conducted over three years, 2010 to 2012, on a student population from a range of academic disciplines (n=1,207). Data was gathered from both student enrolment data maintained by college administration, and an online, self-reporting tool administered during induction sessions for …

A Guided Inquiry-Based Laboratory Experiment: Synthesis And Characterization Of Various Phthiocol Complexes, Turina Jangula

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

Despite proven effectiveness of constructivist guided-inquiry based instruction for college chemistry courses, teaching in advanced chemistry courses such as inorganic chemistry remains very much traditional. This persistence of traditional instructional approaches could be attributed to the lack of inquiry-based curriculum materials for these courses. In this paper a guided-inquiry based inorganic laboratory experiment on the synthesis and characterization of phthiocol complexes with four different metals is presented along with suggestions for implementation as a laboratory activity. The experiment is unique in terms of its development based on a social constructivist framework and has student discussion and conceptual understanding of inorganic …

Finding Relevance, Competence, And Enjoyment: The Development Of Domain Identification And Interest In First-Year Science Majors, Chloe Ruff

Education Faculty Publications

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how first-year college students perceive their development of domain identification with, and interest in, their prospective science major during their initial year of college. Four themes emerged from the coding and analysis of interviews with eight first-year science students: Self-Definition in Flux, Feeling Competent, Expressing Interest through Enjoyment, and Relevant to Me. These themes were mainly consistent with the current model of domain identification (Osborne & Jones, 2011) but differ from the current model of interest development (Hidi & Renninger, 2006). Theoretical and practical implications are included for faculty and advisors …

Annual Report Of The Registrar 2015/2016, University Of Northern Iowa

Institutional Effectiveness & Planning Documents

Contents:

--- Definitions
--- Some Comparisons
--- Annual Report Data
--- Summary of Attendance
--- Attendance by Session
--- Degrees Granted 2015/16
--- Degree Summary 2015/16
--- Program Certificates 2015/16
--- Miscellaneous Enrollment Information
--- Degrees Granted by College, Degree and Racial/Ethnic Classification

Perceptions Of Questionable Research Practices In Social Work And Other Disciplines, Anita M. Gordon, Cindy Juby, Helen C. Harton

Faculty Work

Outline

 Background on research misconduct

 Study purpose and method

 Overview of descriptive results

 Regression results

 Limitations

 Implications for reducing misconduct

Academic Performance In College Online Courses : The Role Of Self-Regulated Learning, Motivation And Academic Self-Efficacy, Catherine L. Basila

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Abstract

Steps To Success 2016-2017, Hart Career Center, Illinois Wesleyan University

Steps to Success

No abstract provided.