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Improving Second-Grade Students’ Mathematics Skills At Clyde C. Cox Elementary School, Barbara J. Reininger

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was developed to improve the second-grade math skills at Clyde C. Cox Elementary School. The program's plan began with an analysis of the standards based assessment program scores from 1997 through 2001. Clyde C. Cox Elementary School scored below the district minimum during those years. The intervention plan detailed within this document was developed to increase student achievement in second-grade math. Specific steps were outlined to address the continued inability of second-grade students to meet the minimum mastery standard. The major components of the improvement plan were as follows: (a) provide focused staff development to teach best …

Graduate Certificate In Information Security 2004, Nova Southeastern University

College of Engineering and Computing Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

A History Of Apportioning Joint Offers Of Judgment In Florida: Is Willis Shaw Really The Bottom Line, Or Is There An Exception?, Katherine H. Miller

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

When Bull Market Myths Unravel, Gretchen Morgenson

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sarbanes-Oxley Act Of 2002, Congress' Response To Corporate Scndals: Will The New Rules Guarantee "Good" Governance And Avoid Future Scandals?, Aulana Peters

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Child's Play No Longer: Children Charged And Tried As Adullts In Florida - Ending Up In Prison For Life Without Parole, Richard L. Rosenbaum

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

2003 Survey Of Juvenile Law, Michael J. Dale

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sarbanes-Oxley: A Primer For Public Companies, And Their Officers And Directors, And Audit Firms, Robert C. Brighton

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

College Of Pharmacy Entry Level Program Overview, Nova Southeastern University

Health Professions Divisions Course Catalogs and Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Learning Disabled Facilities At College Of Aeronautics And Comprehensive Development Plan Bringing The College Into Compliance With American With Disabilities Act Mandates, Vincent Driscoll

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The nature of the problem in this applied dissertation is that the College of Aeronautics (COA) is not disabled student friendly. The purpose of the study was to do an evaluation of the disabled facilities and a Development Plan at the COA, compare the facilities with the Americans With Disabilities Act (1990), and develop a campus-wide plan to implement the necessary changes.

The evaluation and developmental research methodologies were appropriate for this study. The procedures followed in included the establishment of criteria based on the ADA. Formative and summative committees were organized with experts to review and validate the criteria. …

Development Of A Retention Plan For The Indian River Community College With A Plan For Implementation And Evaluation, Maribeth Craft

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Indian River Community College is a comprehensive two-year public postsecondary institution located in Fort Pierce, Florida. IRCC serves the career, training and cultural needs of the quad-county residents of St. Lucie, Martin, Indian River, and Okeechobee counties, on the Treasure Coast of Florida. The 2002-2003 IRCC enrollment was approximately 38,500 full-time and part-time equivalent students.

The problem addressed in this dissertation was that the college identified high attrition and failure rates of the students in college developmental courses as a major barrier to student success in their post secondary programs. Remedial courses are the gateway for over 70% of first-time …

Efficacy Of Administrator Support In Influencing Teacher Retention, Barbara Mcphail Armstrong

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation examined the teacher retention rate in Thomasville City Schools and its correlation to administrators influence. The school system had exceeded the state’s teacher turnover average over the 7 years that immediately preceded this applied dissertation. The turnover rate for Thomasville was the highest of all of the 3 school systems in Davidson County. In order that the school system could proactively respond to increased retention efforts, this study correlated the influence administrators had on this issue. Administrator support or nonsupport had been shown to have a direct effect in influencing teachers’ decisions regarding retention.

Through the use …

A Study Of The Correlation Between Self-Reported Fear/Anxiety And Mathematics Grades At The University Of Phoenix, Las Vegas Campus, Mohammed Miah

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The goal of this research is to persuade math instructors that there may be an inherent flaw in how math is taught in traditional settings, and there is a need to revise the delivery of math in the adult learning environment. This new approach should emphasize equally the content and the need for alleviating the fear and anxiety adult students experience in a math class. However, before such an application can be put in place, it is imperative that the presence of fear/anxiety factor in math class and its influence in overall performance of a student be established by empirical …

Postsecondary Students’ Perceptions Of The Value Of Learning Communities In Distance Education, Lorraine Miller-Nara

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation examined and compared the perceptions of participants regarding learning communities in distance education. Specifically, it sought to determine how the development and implementation of distance education programs affected perceptions of the learning community among students in 3 different cultural groups: Micronesia, Russia, and the United States. The study sought to develop a deeper understanding of the elements and processes involved in creating virtual learning communities in distance education. It also sought to consider an even more basic question, namely, how relevant and important are learning communities to distance education?

This research study was survey based. Between May …

Development Of A Competency-Based Communication Curriculum With Plans For Evaluation And Implementation, Julie Morgan

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The problem was the curriculum in the Communication Program at Eastern University was not strategically integrated with core communication competencies and no program-wide assessments were available to determine if students in the Communication Program learned established core competencies. The purpose of this applied dissertation was to develop integrative learning objectives for each of the four concentrations and establish a process for evaluation of learning with plans for implementation.

There were four research questions for this project. First, in order to establish an integrated curriculum around the nine core competencies, What courses in each concentration should focus on which competency? Second, …

Attitudes Of Professors Toward Instructional Technology In American Colleges Of Education Offering Graduate Degrees Via Distance Education, James L. Mowery

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to determine the attitudes of professors teaching advanced degrees via distance education towards the technology tools used for distance education. Today many courses taught via distance education are little more than correspondence courses that use e-mail to send and receive instruction, coursework, and tests. Should distance education attempt to replicate the face-to-face classroom or are simple chat rooms and discussion boards enough? This study provides a heretofore unresearched view of how selected professors feel about the technology.

A survey was conducted among a group of distance education professors from various colleges of education throughout the …

Increasing Student Achievement In The Five Strands Of The Mathematics Portion Of The Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, Pamela B. Murphy

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The passing and implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 dramatically increased public awareness of accountability in U.S. public schools (S. Charp, 2003). State-mandated testing is now present in nearly 40 of the states. Florida educators have struggled to meet the demands of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). In 1998, the Florida A+ Accountability program, which assigns grades to elementary, middle, and high schools, was initiated. The standards-based accountability has forced administrators, teachers, and parents to search for practices that will increase student achievement.

This applied dissertation describes the practices put in place in one South …

Improving High School Mathematics Instruction: Using Constructivist Pedagogy, Kimberly L. Neal

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to enable 11th and 12th grade students to perform at the state-mandated levels of proficiency in basic skills in mathematics on the state exit exam. Students who were repeating the test did not meet standards on the mathematics subtest after multiple attempts, did not meet the predetermined passing score on an in class achievement test in mathematics, and obtained classroom grades, in mathematics, below the 75% mark. In addition, based on teacher observation, high school students did not demonstrate sufficient motivation to master grade-level basic skills concepts in mathematics.

The writer developed a program using …

Increasing Elementary School Teachers’ Understanding And Use Of Metacognitive Reading Strategies, James T. Noftle

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to address the lack of understanding and use of metacognitive reading strategies at the elementary school level. Information about the importance of metacognitive reading strategies was provided at teacher workshops and meetings. Preintervention questionnaires revealed that teacher preparation programs often fail to provide preservice teachers with opportunities to learn about metacognition as it relates to literacy instruction. As a result, many elementary school teachers fail to provide students with opportunities to monitor their thinking. The 4th-grade teachers who volunteered to participate in this study were not modeling metacognitive reading strategies to facilitate optimal learning, and …

Experiential Learning In Communication Courses: Development And Evaluation Of Learning Activities With Development Of A Resource Manual For Experiential Learning At Olivet Nazarene University, Elizabeth J. Patrick-Trippel

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation addressed the relative lack of experiential learning activities in communication courses at Olivet Nazarene University. Though there had been changes in the curriculum, degrees, and identity of the department over the past 5 years, there had been no attempt to understand the pedagogical implications of these changes.

The objective of this applied dissertation was threefold: first, to develop original experiential activities for use in 3 different communication courses that were content/lecture-based courses; second, to evaluate the newly developed educational activities; and third, based on the evaluation information, to compile a resource manual for interactive learning for professors …

The Prairie Peace Project: A Program Designed To Reduce Violence And Aggression In Middle School Students, Tony Poole

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to address the problem of violent and aggressive behavior among students in a large, urban/suburban middle school. Despite reductions in all other types of behavioral offenses at the school over a 2-year span, behaviors characterized as violent and aggressive increased, resulting in increased out-of-school suspensions.

The intervention, called the Prairie Peace Project, was a multifaceted approach to reduce student aggression and violence. The first component of the intervention was the implementation of a school-wide antiviolence campaign. Through the use of posters, video announcements, and awareness activities, students were presented with resources to enable them to …

The Development And Validation Of A Mentoring Program For The Cook County School District, Torrance D. Choates

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The problem under investigation was the current mentoring program in the Cook County School District in Georgia. The mentoring program was not providing support and guidance to student teachers, beginning teachers, and colleagues in establishing peer-coaching relationships. At present, mentorship is left up to each school-based administrator. The concern was that there was not enough consistency in relation to a true systemwide mentoring program in the Cook County School District. Within the project, 7 questions were addressed: (a) status of mentor and teacher induction program within Cook County School District, (b) attrition rates for new teachers in the district, (c) …

The Development Of A Community Of Practice For The Academic Senate At Contra Costa College With Plans For Evaluation, Saul P. Jones

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Currently the Academic Senate at Contra Costa College does not have a recognized formal mechanism to preserve its knowledge capital, or cultivate the growth of prospective and current Academic Senate members. The purpose of the project was to develop a community of practice for the Academic Senate at Contra Costa College along with plans for its evaluation. The community of practice was designed to support faculty in sharing and evolving their governance practices and would allow faculty to virtually visit and consult one another through the use of a link in the Academic Senate’s World Wide Web page. The community …

A Proactive Approach To Middle School Discipline: An Eighth Grade Social Studies Class, Terry Mcmullen

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Students were frequently removed from class or school for discipline, with the consequence that they would fall behind or fail. This applied dissertation was designed to improve the way educators address school discipline. Removal of students from class or school would be less frequently used, resulting in better student performance.

The writer implemented six proactive strategies to reduce the rate of students being removed from class or school for discipline (a) A structured classroom discipline plan and log to keep all stakeholders aware of the students disciplinary status, (b) A Conflict Resolution class pertaining to violence and anger management, (c) …

Development And Validation Of An Off-Campus Master Of Social Work Program, Michelle E. Alvarez

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purposes of this project were to design and implement an educational and occupational needs assessment and a review of existing accredited off-campus Master of Social Work (MSW) programs and to design an off-campus MSW program that would meet current and future demand for the program. The research questions for this project addressed what constituted a good needs assessment, whether students would be willing to enroll in a distance education program, how Council on Social Work Education standards applied to this program model, how the program should be staffed, what other resources were needed for this program, what should be …

The Development Of An Advisory Board Retreat For Criminal Justice Executives With A Plan For Implementation And Evaluation, Arthur C. Amann

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The applied dissertation problem was that criminal justice executives did not have the education necessary to be effective concerning the use of collaborative advisory boards. Therefore, the purpose of this intervention was educating criminal justice executives using a retreat setting on subject matter such as systems thinking, change theory, strategic planning, and the importance of collaboration.

Six research questions addressed in this report were: (a) What are the criteria for an effective criminal justice executive retreat? (b) What is an appropriate and valid curriculum for a criminal justice advisory board retreat? (c) What is the best delivery system for the …

Improving Lee-Hamilton Elementary Third Grade Reading Scores On The Missouri Assessment Program, Gwendolyn Wilson Diggs

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This study served as a tool to increase third grade scores in communication arts on the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) standardized test. Teachers focused on providing rigorous content material and implementing strategies to improve student performance on the MAP. Interventions included using test study material, after-school tutoring, Computer Assisted Technology (CAT), and school-wide programs.

Even though a different group of third graders are administered the MAP each year, a comparison of Lee- Hamilton’s third grade student’s MAP scores in communication arts over a two year period indicated a decline in student performance. Further analysis of the student data revealed that …

Development Of A Mentoring Program For Nursing Students At Tennessee State University With Plans For Implementation And Evaluation, Beverly M. Brown

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The nursing students’ attrition rate and the nursing course examination failures at Tennessee State University were the foci of the problem that was investigated in this research project. The purpose of this applied research project was to develop a mentoring program for nursing students at Tennessee State University with plans for implementation and evaluation.

The methodologies used in this study were research, development, and evaluation to determine their needs in order. The procedures included a thorough review of the literature. The formative and summative committees provided input at all stages of the research and the development of the program. An …

Blocks For Tots: Constructing A Language Environment Through Play, Cynthia R. Graham

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to increase the vocabulary size and frequency of spontaneous child-to-child speech of children 24 to 36 months in a countywide Early Head Start Program. Additionally, this applied dissertation was designed to increase the number of children 24 to 36 months exhibiting age appropriate language skills as assessed by the Early Learning Accomplishment Profile (Early Lap). Research indicates that the context in which children learn and interact influences the frequency with which they use spoken language to communicate with each other.

Children in the experimental group interacted socially while engaged in self-directed constructive play in an …

Increasing Parental In-Home Schoolwork Assistance For Elementary School Children, Pedro Suarez Jr.

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide parents with more knowledge and better resources in order to assist their children with schoolwork at home. At an elementary school, a lack of parental cooperation and support was impeding their children's achievement and behavior. Students who had low academic achievement usually had parents who were uneducated, non-English speakers, or who were too busy to attend school-related workshops. There were also difficulties in getting teachers acculturated to a parental involvement program.

The writer developed workshops and strategies aimed at helping parents educate their children as well as themselves. The workshops were also designed …