Digital Commons Network^™

Project Second Chance: A Dropout Prevention Program, May W. Bolden

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

During the 1998-1999 academic year, 8.78% of the students in grades 11 and 12 dropped out of the two high schools located in Florence, Alabama. This percentage increased each year and was projected to reach an unacceptable rate of 18.51% during the 2001-2002 academic year.

The researcher initiated a dropout prevention program, called Project Second Chance, in order to reduce the dropout rate. Project Second Chance allowed students to retake failed or lost-credit courses in evening classes. The project had the additional objectives to improve students’ self-image, prevent them from missing regular courses due to the necessity to repeat core …

Improving Teachers’ Skills When Dealing With Grieving Children Through A Grief-Training Program, Mark A. Hale

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation proposal was designed to help teachers have better skills and expertise for when they are dealing with children who are grieving and have experienced loss in their lives. The teachers for whom the program, “Grief Brief” was designed, suggested they felt as though their lack of training in this area left them without the needed tools for helping the children in their classes.

The writer proposed Grief Brief as a strategy that used brief instructional units over the course of 8 months in order to educate the teachers in various methods having to do with children and …

Finding Unexpected Events In Staring Continuous-Dwell Sensor Data Streams Via Adaptive Prediction, Peter G. Raeth

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

This research produced a Predictive Anomaly Detector (PAD). It is an adaptive prediction-based approach to detecting unexpected events in data streams drawn from staring continuous-dwell sensors. The underlying technology is spectrum independent and does not depend on correlated data (neither temporal nor spatial) to achieve improved detection and extraction in highly robust environments. ("robust environment" refers to the data stream's control law being variable and the spectral content covering a wide range of wavelengths.)

The resulting approach uses a network of simple building-block equations (basis functions) to predict the non-event data and thereby present subtle sub-streams to a detection model …

Increasing The Likelihood Of Reading Success In Kindergarten Students Through Early Literacy Intervention, Cindy R. Williams

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to increase the likelihood of literacy success in kindergartners through early intervention services provided by the primary level reading teacher. There had been no early literacy intervention services offered in the writer’s school district prior to the time that the dissertation project was implemented. The goals of the dissertation were to decrease the likelihood that a kindergartner would repeat kindergarten or require remedial reading services in first grade due to the intervention services they received in kindergarten.

The writer designed an intervention program through which 15 kindergarten children were targeted for daily small group instruction …

Addressing Retention, Discipline, And Achievement Problems Among High School Freshmen, John Rhett Harris

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Problems with ninth grade retention, discipline, and achievement and the attempts to correct those problems were examined as a part of the practicum assignment for Nova Southeastern University. The creation of a ninth grade academy patterned around research describing schools within- schools (SWAS) served as the vehicle for reform aimed at correcting these dilemmas. Statistical evidence revealed that our retention and discipline rates school wide were worsening, particularly among freshmen. Consultation between the researcher and the school principal lead to the creation of a new learning setting whose priority was to reverse the negative trends we were seeing through new …

Charting The Effects Of Brain Compatible Learning Strategies On Students With Specific Learning And Emotional Behavioral Disabilities, Mary Ann Slaughter

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide data on the usage of brain compatible strategies in the classroom and how it compounds academic achievement and the number of behavioral incidences. Students with specific learning disabilities were scoring below grade level in areas of reading on standardized tests and those with emotional and behavioral disabilities had a high incidence of discipline referrals along with poor academic performance. Students with specific learning disabilities have been identified with cognitive processing deficits that affect the reading and comprehension of the written word. Students with emotional and behavioral disabilities have been identified with behaviors that …

Prevention Programs For Reducing At-Risk Behaviors Involving Alcohol Abuse, Substance Usage, And Violence In High School Students Ages 14 To 17, Ismail Z. Jihad

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The problem addressed in the applied dissertation was that high school teenagers enrolled in prevention programs are not decreasing at-risk behaviors. This problem can be answered by focusing on distinct characteristics of teenagers who are enrolled in the after-school mental health and substance abuse prevention program. The at-risk behaviors demonstrated by the teenagers in the prevention program included substance abuse, crime, violence, poor academics, truancy, mental health issues, inappropriate sexual behavior, and teenage pregnancy.

The primary solutions for prevention programs to combat the causes of alcohol and substance usage in adolescents is to offer life skills such as: emotional management; …

Improving Reading Comprehension In The High School Setting, Robert L. Harris

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The setting for this applied dissertation is Springville High School. Twenty percent of the ninth grade students at this school scored below the 30th percentile on norm referenced Stanford Achievement Test 9 in reading comprehension. The test results reflect the lack of reading instruction at the secondary level. The implementation period was for two 18-week periods, which used reading strategies from the researched-based Alabama Reading Initiative Program. An intervention was developed and utilized to improve the reading comprehension of a select group of ninth-grade students. The objectives for this project were to significantly increase the reading comprehension scores of the …

Promoting Social Emotional Intelligence In Elementary School Children, Beryl Irene Bailey

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide educators with a curriculum embedded program to prevent, curtail, or reverse the negative trajectory of poor social emotional development of elementary students. Third-grade students failed to demonstrate social emotional intelligence. They lacked discipline. They exhibited difficulty staying on task and working cooperatively with peers, repeatedly interrupted instruction, used negative language, did not return homework, and were often referred to the office for disciplinary action.

In a 5-week training session, teachers learned how to implement the writer’s Sowing SEEDS (Social Emotional and Educational Development of Students) Curriculum. This literacy-based program contained children’s literature aligned …

Improving Science Education For Middle-School Students By Integrating Mathematics Into The Scientific Method Process, Robert L. Wells

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to improve student success in science by integrating mathematics into the scientific method process. Students were routinely asked to perform experiments that required mathematical computations in measurement, numeration, geometry, and statistics; however, they were largely unable to perform these calculations because of their inability to apply mathematical concepts outside the mathematics classroom. The mathematics curriculum did not afford the student the opportunity to apply mathematics to real-life situations, nor did the science curriculum consistently apply mathematics to experiments.

The writer developed a series of science experiments that incorporated these four mathematical concepts into earth science …

Effects Of The Phoenix Program On Behavior And Academic Performance Of Participants, Grace Y. Wyatt

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report is a formative evaluation of the Phoenix Program, an alternative program for high school students who are at risk of dropping out of school. A 1-year follow-up study of 75 of its participants indicated that the program had positive effects on students’ behavior and attendance. The study indicated that the greatest positive impact of the program was on students’ behavior. The program had minimal but positive effects on students’ academic performance.

A time series analysis was used to examine program impact. Data were collected from students, teachers, counselors, and administrators. Data that described attendance, discipline, and grades were …

Effects Of A Violence Prevention Program On The Safe School Component Of School Climate, Vickie G. Tribble

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a violence prevention program at Robert Wood Johnson Memorial Comprehensive High School (hereafter referred to as Johnson High School) on the safe school component of the school climate through discipline data and perceptions of school personnel and clients about safety. Johnson High School, which is located near a large metropolitan area in the south, is a multicultural school with approximately 1,032 students. The school opened in 1972 with approximately 1,200 predominately Caucasian students. With the growth in the community over the last 30 years, there was a noted shift …

Providing A Curriculum In Kindergarten That Develops Reading Skills For Students Prior To Their Entrance Into First Grade, Linda J. Fouse

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report describes programs and activities to assure the development of reading readiness skills in kindergarten students in a suburban elementary school. Kindergarten students were entering 1st grade with little or no reading readiness proficiency. This was apparent by their lack of skills on the 1st-grade entrance survey test developed by the 1st-grade teachers. This report examines research on reading techniques and the effects of early training on reading success.

Strategies included in this report are (a) early phonological awareness, (b) using both whole-language and skill-based instruction through a computerized program, (c) use of centers in the classroom, (d) peer …

Improving The Academic Achievement Of Sixth-Grade Students Who Do Not Perform At Grade Level In Mathematics, Eileen M. Bond

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to assist 6th-grade students who were not performing at grade level in mathematics. Students entered the 6th grade with a great disparity of skills and abilities in mathematics and then progressed through the middle school grades unable to complete tasks appropriate to their grade level as outlined by the state-mandated mathematics curriculum. These findings were documented both by report card grades and by standardized test scores.

The writer developed a cross-age tutoring program that paired 6th-grade students with 8th-grade students who were trained as tutors. The program was executed as an extra-subject period to provide …

Addressing The Training Needs Of Educational Professionals Related To Students With Special Needs, Sue E. Bast

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was developed to provide a solution to the problem of the lack of training for teachers, regular and special education, related to students with special needs. Though the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act specifies that training should be provided to staff working with students having special needs, on-going trainings were not occurring in this writer’s district. Teachers expressed frustration and negativity related to having students in their class who have special needs. Often this was due to the fact that they had not received any training in their undergraduate courses.

To address this problem, an in-service of …

Improving The Readiness Skills Of Kindergarten Students, Karen J. Jensen

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

At New Hope Elementary School, which included Kindergarten through Grade 8, students performed below the system average on standardized tests at every grade level. The eighth-grade students left New Hope Elementary School to attend ninth grade at New Hope High School. New Hope High School received ninth-grade students from only New Hope Elementary School. In 2001-2002, New Hope High School had the highest dropout rate in the system. The academic deficiencies at New Hope High School and New Hope Elementary School were traced to the kindergarten level. Students in kindergarten scored significantly lower than the system average on 2001 state-mandated …

Development Of A Weapons-Of-Mass-Destruction First-Responders Training Program For Peterson Clinic With Plans For Implementation And Evaluation, Angela M. Thompson

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The problem was that there was no valid training program in place to provide the Peterson Clinic first responders with the training they needed to respond effectively to a weapons of mass destruction (WMD) incident involving up to 300 patients. The purpose of this applied dissertation was to develop a WMD First-Responders Training Program for the Peterson Clinic with plans for implementation and evaluation.

A development methodology with a plan to implement and a plan to evaluate was used to complete this project. As a preliminary procedure, the needs assessment methodology was used to determine the training needs of the …

Development Of A Strategic Plan For The Implementation Of A Baccalaureate Degree In Public Safety At St. Petersburg College, Carlene M. Peterson

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

St. Petersburg College (SPC) was established in 1927 as a junior college; the name was changed to St. Petersburg College effective June 6, 2001, in legislation designating SPC as a 4-year college. The problem was that the college was awarded the opportunity to expand its academic offerings and did not have a strategic plan for the implementation of a public safety baccalaureate degree. The purpose of the applied dissertation was to provide a degree path for current associate degree students and for public safety professionals to advance to administrative positions in public safety agencies.

Seven questions were developed for this …

Evaluation Of The Utilization And Usefulness Of Chaos Theory In Human Services Education And Professional Practice At Western Washington University, Trula Morehead Nicholas

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The study evaluates the utilization and usefulness of chaos theory in human service education and professional practice. One purpose of this study was to determine if current and former students in the Human Services Department at Western Washington University use the concepts outlined in chaos theory in the delivery of human services. A second purpose was to discover if chaos theory is being incorporated into the curriculum of other human service education programs that grant four-year degrees.

Methodologies used in this study included the summative evaluation methodology, the development methodology, and the ex post facto research methodology. Surveys were sent …

Meeting The After-School Needs Of Early Adolescents, Ann Michele Allen

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide a more attractive after-school program to youth at a middle school. The program was located on the school campus and offered minimal activities, which were facilitated by untrained staff, with limited activity space for the youth to congregate. The program met daily in a school classroom, offering limited supplies and activities to the youth after school. Due to these limitations, very few youth participated in the afterschool program, thereby placing themselves at risk for harmful and inappropriate behaviors in the after-school hours.

The writer developed a more attractive after-school program for the youth. …

Measuring Teacher Effectiveness: An Examination Of Student Achievement And Teacher Influence, Timothy S. Markley

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to examine new ways to evaluate teachers. The extant North Carolina model placed primary emphasis on the ability of the teacher to demonstrate the certain key practices. These practices centered around the activity of the teacher. The extant evaluation system failed to take into account student learning. This resulted in a system in which over 95% of teachers were rated at standard or better. The high rating of teachers contrasted to the passing rate of students on the North Carolina End-of-Course test. Their passing rate was closer to 60%.

The writer developed a statistical model …

Effective Leadership Skills: The Development Of A Professional Improvement Plan, Maxine Woodside

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation represents a study of personal and professional leadership development. The study consists of reflective chronological accountings of influences on the writer from infancy to adulthood. The analysis highlights the opportunities in the early and formative years that support the development of a professional improvement plan.

The framework of this study was based on assessment results taken from the Florida Principal Competency Assessment (Florida Department of Education, 1995) and the Educational Leadership Appraisal (A. Ellis, 1993). More specifically, previous evaluations and reflections on previous leadership positions were used as a focus of professional growth. Based upon the results …

Resiliency Training Of Sixth-Grade Students In An Educational Setting, Matthew K. Boggan

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This study was designed to investigate the effects that resiliency training had upon a selected group of students in a rural school with a student population of approximately 600. Planned solution strategies included staff development training and implementing activities to establish the school climate and student readiness.

Resiliency Skills and Abilities Scale was used as a pretest, a 45-item survey to determine resiliency scores, before implementing resiliency skills. Training from The Resiliency Training Program, a Training of Trainers by Nan Henderson, M.S.W. was used as an intervention strategy. The intervention strategies involved a section of sixth-grade students, teachers, counselor, administrators, …

Development Of Strategies To Increase The Enrollment And Retention Of Female Engineering Honor Students At Purdue University With A Plan For Evaluation And Implementation, Gayle E. Hartleroad

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The Purdue University Schools of Engineering committee, charged with development of a new strategic plan, set a recruitment and retention goal to “. . . increase the percentage of women undergraduates in engineering to 30 percent” (Purdue University Schools of Engineering Compton Committee, 2002).

A ten-year decline in female enrollment at Purdue University’s Schools of Engineering became a topic of true concern, especially to the Freshman Engineering Honors Program. This enrollment decline is exceedingly problematic because the Schools of Engineering has had a reputation of graduating a nationally known, large population of female engineers. The previously noted goal of 30% …

A Strategic Approach To Promote Ninth-Grade Academic Success, Beverly W. Glover

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation, conducted February 2000 through April 2001, describes an approach to increasing student motivation that promoted 9th-grade academic success in an inner-city high school of a Southeastern Georgia community. The targeted population was freshman students in a very large, diverse, multicultural environment. The students ranged from the very highest affluent socioeconomic group to the lowest poverty group.

Low performance was evident on standardized measures of student progress upon their entering 9th grade. A lack of motivation for successful learning was evident. The students in this study were in need of extensive help to succeed academically and reach their …

Aligning Standards Successfully In A High School Science Curriculum, J. Harrison Goodwin

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This dissertation describes the process of aligning the science curriculum of Chapman High School with the South Carolina Science Curriculum Standards. This was necessary due to the state requirement that students pass an exit examination in science beginning with the graduating class of 2005.

The passage of the South Carolina Education Accountability Act of 1998 required that students pass an exit examination in science beginning with the graduating class of 2006. The act also required that students take end-of-course examinations in certain science classes beginning with biology in the school year of 2003-2004. This exit examination and the end-of-course tests …

Scaffolding Transfer Activities Through The Use Of Concept Maps To Enhance Adaptive Problem Solving, James Jay Houdeshell

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The use of concept mapping following the Schwartz and Bransford (1998) protocols were tested as a scaffolding intervention with ill- and moderately well-structured transfer activities to determine the impact on transferring those skills to the solution of new problems. This study included three faculty members, six course sections, and a total of 55 students conducted at a large midwestern community college. All students completed well-structured pretest and posttests that measured their declarative, structural, and procedural knowledge skills in basic statistics and problem solving tools. Half the students completed a summary page describing the problem solving approaches for two contrasting cases. …

Improving The Nclex Passage Rate And Lowering The Attrition Rate For A Texas Community College Nursing Program, Bonnie Higgins

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to seek ways to improve the NCLEX-RN passage rate and to lower the attrition rate in a community college nursing program. The program had a significant problem because of the decrease in passage rate of the NCLEX-RN by graduating students and an increase in student attrition. Expost facto data were collected from 213 former nursing student records to compare the independent variables of preadmission test scores, academic prerequisites grades, demographic traits, HESI exit exam scores, and grades in the Nursing Skills Course to the completion of the nursing program and passage of the NCLEX-RN. A …

Promoting Social Emotional Intelligence In Elementary School Children, Beryl Irene Bailey

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide educators with a curriculum embedded program to prevent, curtail, or reverse the negative trajectory of poor social emotional development of elementary students. Third-grade students failed to demonstrate social emotional intelligence. They lacked discipline. They exhibited difficulty staying on task and working cooperatively with peers, repeatedly interrupted instruction, used negative language, did not return homework, and were often referred to the office for disciplinary action.

In a 5-week training session, teachers learned how to implement the writer’s Sowing SEEDS (Social Emotional and Educational Development of Students) Curriculum. This literacy-based program contained children’s literature aligned …

Improving Reading Achievement By Integrating Technology In After School Instructional Programs, Timothy L. Cliby

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This research endeavor institutes change in an after school program for elementary students of an inner city elementary school. The program seeks to improve student performance on standardized English language testing, improve student motivation and attendance. The hypothesis that a prescriptive after school program, that utilizes Web based activities as an integrated component of instruction, will lead to improved student performance through increased motivation, instructional habits and attendance. Redesigning the program will establish an environment capable of sustaining student motivation and attendance resulting in sustained instructional engagement.

The instructional design is a transformation of traditional instructional practices for this program. …