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Development And Assessment Of Key Skills In Undergraduate Students: An Action-Research Experience, Ana Fernández-Santander, María José García-García, Beatriz Sáez-Pizarro, María José Terrón-López

Higher Learning Research Communications

Employers look for professionals able to work in a team, able to approach problems, with the capacity to analyze and resolve problems, under the constant renewal of knowledge and competencies. In this paper, a group of University teachers from different areas of knowledge presents an experience to introduce key employability skills in the higher education students’ curricula. This work has been developed under the action research scope. The first goal was to make an analysis of terms referred to key skills, generating an integrated denomination for each competency. The elaboration of general templates for key skills is proposed here as …

Editorial, The Editors

Higher Learning Research Communications

In this second issue of the Higher Learning Research Communications (HLRC) journal we are pleased to continue in our commitment to innovation in teaching and learning. Thought leadership and research of scholars from Spain, Chile, and the United States on such topics as ranking systems, the web and social media to promote powerful learning communal opportunities, action research project on key skill development, and reflections on the value of liberal education contribute to such discourse.Despite the often controversial nature of higher education institutional classifications or rankings, such systems continue to emerge globally.Aguillo examines a multiplicity of ranking systems with a …

Editorial, The Editors

Higher Learning Research Communications

With this first issue of Higher Learning Research Communications (HLRC), Universidad Andrés Bello in Chile, Universidad Europea de Madrid in Spain, Istanbul Bilgi University in Turkey and Walden University in the United States, in consonance with their mission, are sponsoring collaboratively a journal dedicated to higher learning in the international arena. The knowledge driven society that so clearly marks our era, where real time communications make the phrase “global world” a true feature of our lives, has changed the means through which we learn. The rapid expansion of multicultural environments and the influence of the fast changing techno-scientific advances, social …

Internationalization 2011: An Overview, Drummond Bone

Higher Learning Research Communications

The author provides an overview of internationalization in higher education since 2008 to the present. The essay is a partial follow-up to Bone’s 2008 paper on internationalization.DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v1i1.41

B-Learning Under Examination: Advantages, Disadvantages, And Opinions, Sergio Bemposta Rosende, María José García García, Juan José Escribano Otero

Higher Learning Research Communications

In recent years, learning management systems (LMS) have become very popular in almost all traditional universities, generating a new learning strategy approach, mixing elements from both traditional and online learning: the blended learning or b-learning. How these new environments influence teaching activities and learning processes are the main topic of this paper. References about this subject are also analyzed, enriching them with the expertise and opinion of authors and other teachers. Finally, the students’ point of view is presented, through the results of a survey of Polytechnic School students at Universidad Europea de Madrid.------El b-learning a examen: Ventajas, desventajas y …

Peer Mentoring At The Universidad Europea De Madrid: An Educational Strategy For The Development Of General And Specific Competences, Paloma Velasco Quintana, Agueda Benito Capa

Higher Learning Research Communications

The current educational model for the Europea Higher Education Area (EHEA), demands a greater involvement on the behalf of students in all aspects of their education. In this respect, peer mentorship not only provides effective orientation for newly admitted students, a key element of quality in education, but also the active participation of students mentors, leading to the development of a wide range of skills in both mentor and mentee students. From a research-action perspective, this article describes a program of peer mentoring, in which the student interaction taking place leads to wide-ranging knowledge acquisition (knowledge and know how) for …

Can The Use Of Clickers Or Continuous Assessment Motivate Critical Thinking? A Case Study Based On Corporate Finance Students, Lucia Morales

Higher Learning Research Communications

This study explores the use of clickers as a tool to support, encourage and motivate critical thinking in higher education students. A case study was carried out with a cohort of undergraduate students undertaking the BSc. in Accounting and Finance during the academic year 2009/10, were corporate finance was a major component. Since the students in this sample had previously demonstrated passivity during their corporate finance classes, it was proposed that clickers would help motivate them to participate during face to face sessions. Previous research on the use of clickers shows evidence that this tool has a positive effect on …

2011 Walden University Summer Research Symposium, Walden University

2010-2016 Archived Programs

Welcome to the 2011 Walden University Summer Research Symposium and to the campus of the University of Minnesota. Over the years, our symposia have showcased a diverse range of research from our faculty, students, and graduates; and this year is no different. What is new is that we are excited to welcome our first graduates of Walden’s Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A. ) program to the symposium. The topics for this symposium demonstrate the breadth and depth of the research currently being conducted at Walden. Projects represent studies in both actual and virtual communities, with foci on work, education, and …

Capacity Building Through Integration And Transformational Leadership - A Case Study, Sacha Michael Stocklin

Higher Learning Research Communications

This article suggests that educational managers can have an influence through leadership by establishing certain moderators that integrate and shape the faculty into a solid team working towards a high performing organisation. The study looks at a case in China and draws suggestions that could be used in other similar settings. The conclusion is to make integration a crucial part of capacity building.DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v1i1.28

The Value And Benefits Of Fieldtrips In Tourism And Hospitality Education, Edmund Goh

Higher Learning Research Communications

The objective of this article is to understand how the use of fieldtrips can enhance students’ educational experience in Tourism and Hospitality education. A total of 23 students who participated in a fieldtrip as part of their hospitality and tourism degree programme were included in this research. A comparison study was conducted among Year 1 and Year 2 undergraduates to examine differences between their perception of fieldtrips and their educational experience. Results revealed two key categories of attitudes: 1) learning towards subject, and 2) interest toward subject as motivational factors through fieldtrips. A key finding revealed Year 1 students’ attitude …

Devising And Investigating Benefits Of Interconnected Interventions To Promote Education Majors' Culturally Responsive Teaching, Joan Gipe, Janet C. Richards

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

For five years I have supervised a summer literacy camp that connects graduate education majors with students from diverse ethnicities. Each summer I noted I inadequately challenged the education majors to extend their knowledge, examine their attitudes, and expand their abilities to offer culturally responsive literacy instruction to students in the camp. Therefore, I employed a formative-experimental framework to explore the benefits of adding two interventions to our curriculum to stimulate the education majors’ culturally responsive dispositions. My discoveries indicate teacher educators can help education majors develop culturally responsive understandings, and pedagogical repertoires that meet the needs of students from …

Dietary Education In School-Based Childhood Obesity Prevention Programs, Manoj Sharma

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

The purpose of this article was to review school based interventions designed to prevent childhood and adolescent obesity that focused on modifying dietary behavior and were published between 2000 and May 2009. A total of 25 interventions met the criteria. The grade range of these interventions was from K to 12; 13 studies exclusively targeted elementary school, 2 targeted both elementary and middle school, 9 exclusively targeted middle school, and 1 targeted high school. The majority of the interventions focused on both dietary and physical activity behaviors, whereas 8 interventions focused exclusively on dietary behaviors. Approximately one-half of the interventions …

A Summative Program Evaluation Of A Systemic Intervention On Student Achievement And Ap Participation, Kristal Dawn Ayres

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

Previous research demonstrates that a rigorous instructional environment positively impacts student achievement. Literature also documents that differential access to advanced curriculum is influenced by early development of core reading skills. A problem exists with enrollment patterns in the College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) courses within a moderately sized school district where disproportionately low numbers of minority students enroll in AP courses. The district implemented the SpringBoard curriculum as a systemic intervention to address the need for more equitable enrollment within advanced courses; however, little empirical evidence exists to assess the efficacy of the program. Guided by evaluation theory, a summative …

Lessons Learned Conducting Breastfeeding Intervention Research In Two Northern Plains Tribal Communities, Mary Beth Stepans, S Wilhelm, K Rodehorst-Weber, T Aguirre, M Hertzog, M Clarke, A Herboldsheimer

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

AIM:

The overall purpose of this article was to describe the challenges and benefits of conducting breastfeeding intervention research with two Native American Tribal communities.

METHODS:

A focus group with an interpretive approach was used to collect data within this qualitative study as a means of incorporating a complex, holistic, subjective interpretation of the case managers' perceptions and experiences. In addition, researchers' field notes were used. Findings are discussed in relation to Rogers' Diffusion of Innovation Framework.

RESULTS:

Themes that emerged during the focus group discussions were related to innovation, relative advantage, complexity, compatibility, trialability, and observability.

CONCLUSIONS:

Conducting research …

The Effect Of Gender, Ethnicity, And Income On College Students' Use Of Communication Technologies, Daniel W. Salter, R. Junco, D Merson

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Because campus officials are relying on personal communication technologies to communicate with students, a question arises about access and usage. Although communication technologies are popular among college students, some evidence suggests that differences exist in ownership and use. We examined patterns of student ownership and use of cell phones and use of instant messaging, focusing on three predictors of digital inequality: gender, ethnicity, and income. Logistic and hierarchical linear regression analyses were used to analyze results from 4,491 students. The odds that female and white students owned cell phones were more than twice as high as for men and African-American …

A Relationship Among Public School Leadership, Ethics, And Student Achievement, Don Jones, Christopher Hughes

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

ABSTRACT

Historically, it has always been important for school leaders to possess and adhere to high ethical standards. Ethical standards, when demonstrated by school leaders, inspire trust within students, parents and the community in general. This in turn builds support for the school and establishes an environment that is conducive to success.

However, with the advent of NCLB and high stakes testing, the pressure on schools to demonstrate improved student achievement has accelerated. Hence, the need for ethical leadership practices within public schools has never been greater. Yet, while much has been done to examine the relationship of various instructional …

The Security Implications Of Ubiquitous Social Media, Chris Rose

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Social media web sites allow users to share information, communicate with each other, network and interact but because of the easy transfer of information between different social media sites, information that should be private becomes public and opens the users to serious security risks. In addition, there is also massive over-sharing of information by the users of these sites, and if this is combined with the increased availability of location-based information, then all this can be aggregated causing an unacceptable risks and unintended consequences for users.

A Break In The Clouds: Towards A Cloud Definition, Chris Rose

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

This paper discusses the concept of Cloud Computing to achieve a complete definition of what a Cloud is, using the main characteristics typically associated with this paradigm in the literature. More than 20 definitions have been studied allowing for the extraction of a consensus definition as well as a minimum definition containing the essential characteris- tics. This paper pays much attention to the Grid paradigm, as it is often confused with Cloud technologies. We also de- scribe the relationships and distinctions between the Grid and Cloud approaches.

Using Organizational, Coordination, And Contingency Theories To Examine Project Manager Insights On Agile And Traditional Success Factors For Information Technology Projects, Michael J. Doherty

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Two dominant research views addressing disappointing success rates for information technology (IT) projects suggest project success may depend on the presence of a large number of critical success factors or advocate for agile project management as an alternative to traditional practice. However, after two decades of research, success rates remain low, and the role of critical success factors or project management approach remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to use views of experienced project managers to explore the contribution of success factors and management approach to project success. Applying organizational, coordination, and contingency theories, the research questions examined …

The Effects Of School Home Communication And Reading Fluency In Kindergarten Children, Farjana Khan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many researchers have documented that reading fluency scores continue to be a national concern for the United States and have suggested that early reading failure has long-term detrimental effects on society. However, much less is known regarding specific interventions that could reduce this concern. Investigators in other studies have suggested the development of early school-home partnerships to improve reading scores. The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a systematic school-home intervention to improve reading fluency scores. Following the theoretical foundation of emergent literacy theory and Joyce Epstein's framework, the research question focuses on the association …

Patients' Perspectives On Discussing Complementary And Alternative Medicine Therapies With Conventional Doctors, Deborah A. Mcninch

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Currently, little is known about patients' perceptions and beliefs in discussing complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) with their conventional medical (CM) doctor. The purpose of this descriptive research was to show whether CAM-using patients have an interest in discussing CAM treatments with their CM doctor for comprehensive care as described by the health belief model (HBM) constructs of perceived susceptibility, perceived seriousness, and perceived benefits of taking action. A sample of 165 participants age 18 or older from 2 chiropractic clinics in the midwestern United States completed a Likert-scaled survey. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression …

Exploring Problem Based Learning To Promote 21st Century Learning Skills In Full Day Kindergarten, Jillian M. Tsoukalas

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The kindergarten program at the study site transitioned from half day to full day, yet the curriculum was not updated to accommodate the full day schedule, or to include best practices. In order to prepare learners for their future in education, activities were implemented to determine how problem based learning can promote acquisition of the 21st century learning skills. The purpose of this qualitative study was to create and implement an effective, full day curriculum that promotes 21st century learning skills for kindergarten students. This project, rooted in constructivism which allows for active and social learning, supplements the existing half …

The Effect Of Special Education Student Participation And Engagement In Mathematics On Student Achievement, Ermanno Ferrara

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Engagement in mathematics lessons has a positive impact on student numeracy achievement. Yet special education students have experienced a significant drop in mathematics achievement from one year to the next, and this gap continues to grow. This mixed methods study examined the extent to which equal opportunities, similar to those offered to regular education students, are provided to special education students. It contributes to the body of knowledge regarding level of engagement of regular and special education students, the impact of their increased participation and engagement on numeracy achievement, and the ways to increase their level of engagement. Grounded in …

Transcending Technological Innovation: The Impact Of Acquisitions On Entrepreneurial Technical Organizations, Bruce Crochetiere

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Technology firms with substantial cash reserves acquire smaller entrepreneurial firms for diversification. In 2006, 3 large firms acquired 28 organizations, with the combined deals exceeding {dollar}4.7 billion. The problem addressed in this study is that new start-up companies with innovative ideas may not mature when they are acquired by larger companies and do not fully articulate potential industry-transcending innovation. This is important because the unsuccessful integration of an acquisition can dismantle innovation and compromises economic inventiveness. Drawing from the disruptive innovation and the resource-based theories, the purpose of the quasi-experimental study was to examine the impact of acquisition by larger …

The Impact Of Teacher Collaboration In A Professional Learning Community On Teacher Job Satisfaction, Donna V. Ackerman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A dilemma in some local educational institutions is the lack of a supportive teacher community which could lead to decreased teacher job satisfaction. The purpose of this study was to describe to what extent teacher collaboration in a professional learning community (PLC) impacts teacher job satisfaction. Theoretical foundations by DuFour, Eaker and DuFour supported the relationships between PLC and teacher collaboration. Herzberg's theory of motivation and Maslow's hierarchy also served as frameworks in this study. An interpretive, qualitative research design was used to explore potential connections between collaboration and job satisfaction. Research questions addressed how scheduled school day collaborative time …

An Analysis Of Distributed Leadership Implementation In Schools, Edward F. Burgess Ix

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many policymakers have sought greater levels of success in schools by implementing new and more distributive models of leadership. The problem is that many have not achieved desired outcomes. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to discover what happens within a school organization as it moves from a traditional leadership model to a district mandated distributive leadership (DL) model. DL is an egalitarian balance of leadership among multiple individuals rather than simply administrators within an organization. The method used in this study was grounded theory (GT) which was selected to illustrate events, situations, and conditions from the perspectives …

Hardiness And Attitude On Hypertension Treatment Adherence Among Nigerian Health Care Workers, Chinwe N. Egwuagu-Ndubisi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Racial and ethnic minorities in the United States have higher rates of hypertension than European Americans. In this ethnographic study, 30 Nigerian immigrant health care workers with hypertension described their self-efficacy management of the disease to ascertain the relationship between health-related hardiness, individual attitudes on compliance, and medication adherence self-efficacy. Using a mixed methods designs comprised of survey tools and focus-group questionnaires, the research questions were focused on understanding attitudes and health practices within Nigerian culture that support self-efficacy management. The theoretical framework for this study is the social learning theory and the social cognitive theory postulated by Bandura. Content …

Elementary Teachers' Perceptions Of Technology Proficiencies And Motivation To Integrate Technology In School Curriculi, Laura C. Karl

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the availability of technological resources, the number of teachers integrating and using technology innovatively in the classroom is unknown. This qualitative investigation explored teachers' perceptions of proficiency in the use of computer technology in the classroom. Self-determination theory assisted the examination of motivation as decisions are made to integrate technology into the classroom curriculum. The research questions addressed the self-determination of teachers, decision making processes to integrate technology, and perceived technology competence. A qualitative, multiple case study design was used to explore the views of 10 technology-using elementary teachers in the use of technology in the classroom. These participants …

Project Management Competencies Leading To Technology Implementation Success At A Community College, Bradford Orcutt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed in this study was to understand the knowledge gap between project management competencies available and those needed for successful implementation of technology projects at a community college. The purpose of the qualitative study was to evaluate, compare, and analyze the performance of project managers of 2 large technology projects in a specific community college with respect to each other and what was known about achieving project success at a public institution of higher education (IHE). The research questions for this study examined the competencies exhibited by the project leaders, the success parameters established for the projects, and …

A Synthesized Model Of Compliance Based On Physician And Patient Reported Barriers To Hypertension Guidelines, Pamela Ballou-Nelson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hypertension affects as many as 50-70 million Americans; early and consistent compliance to hypertension guidelines is important to prevent heart attack and stroke, both leading causes of death in the United States. Despite the advances in medicine and health-care technology, the effectiveness with which hypertension is managed at the individual and community level is less than optimal. The research questions in this study addressed the lack of physician compliance to hypertension guidelines and why patients fail to follow guidelines. Improving hypertension management depends on bridging the gap between physician awareness of evidence-based guidelines and patient compliance. Grounded theory was used …