Digital Commons Network^™

Knowledge Spaces : A Context-Driven Concept System Framework For Data Integration, William T. Sabados

Dissertations

This dissertation examines the role of context in data integration. Traditionally, data integration solutions attempt to find semantic correlations between data sources and determine which elements match. These traditional solutions do not ask in what context the candidate data elements match, nor do they make an attempt capture it. Instead, they assume a single implicit "correct" context. This is odd considering how strong an effect context has in how people perceive, process, and make decisions based on the information available to them. The knowledge space framework introduced in this work remedies this shortcoming by introducing a formal way to capture …

The Relationship Between Episodes Of Dissociative Amnesia, Symptomology Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, And Childhood Sexual Abuse, Jennifer E. Perkins

Dissertations

Problem. Identifying the possibility of a significant relationship between childhood sexual abuse, symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and episodes of dissociative amnesia is both relevant and useful in the therapeutic setting. Identifying indicative factors for a history of childhood sexual abuse and including them in a standardized therapeutic assessment will assist therapists in planning future treatment. This study used secondary data to examine the relationship between childhood sexual abuse, symptomology of PTSD, episodes of dissociative amnesia, and selected demographic characteristics.

Method. This quantitative study used a therapist-completed data collection tool which compiled brief client demographics, episodes of dissociative amnesia, …

Curriculum Design And Language Learning: An Analysis Of English Textbooks In Brazil, Ellen Nogueira Rodrigues

Dissertations

Problem

The textbook is the most important resource for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms in Brazil, defining the course to be followed and the teaching and learning processes for language learning. Therefore, it is necessary to understand through an educational perspective the curriculum design employed in the textbook, and the language learning processes used based on the communicative approach, the current favorable approach to English teaching in Brazil. Textbooks writers typically indicate their alignment to the communicative framework. So the problem that exists is the lack of studies on the approaches and processes used in the construction of …

Omnis Determinatio Est Negatio: A Genealogy And Defense Of The Hegelian Conception Of Negation, Russell Newstadt

Dissertations

This dissertation explores a line of philosophical thought that accords negation a fundamental role in the determination of concepts and the kinds, universals and particulars to which concepts provide access. Though it takes the largely historical route of philosophical genealogy, focusing on Plato, Boethius and Hegel, the dissertation is also intended as a defense of the philosophical significance of negation itself, and of a principle Hegel famously attributes to Spinoza, omnis determinatio est negatio. I argue that in explaining negation as difference (to heteron) Plato reveals its originary function as the characteristic operation of cognition, and that this discursive role …

An Approach To Finding Good Anchor Nodes In Ontologies, Zhiqiang Wu

Dissertations

When matching different semantically tagged web service interfaces in the semantic web, it is often necessary to map one ontology to another ontology at runtime, on the fly. In many cases, knowing which nodes are the best nodes to start the matching process before the process begins (which are called anchor nodes) can make the ontology matching much easier. Traditionally, anchor node selection has been performed by humans. However, this is not practical for on-the-fly situations, occurring at runtime. Here we validate a methodology for determining anchor nodes automatically. Our results are shown to be successful, meaning that we were …

Cleansing The Common: A Narrative-Intertextual Study Of Mark 7:1-23, Eike Arend Mueller

Dissertations

The conflict story of Mark 7:1–23 between Jesus and the religious leaders over the issue of defilement is the meeting point of a variety of disciplines: Purity studies, Jewish studies, exegetical studies, Historical Jesus studies, and studies on Jesus and the law. The crux of the passage, the meaning of the parable in v. 15 and the ensuing “cleansing” in v. 19, has been interpreted very differently. Scholars doing exegetical studies and studies on the relationship between Jesus and the law have maintained that the Gospel writer correctly reflects in 7:19 the meaning of Jesus’ parable (7:15), abrogating the clean/unclean …

Under-Represented Students' Engagement In Secondary Science Learning: A Non-Equivalent Control Group Design, Joy J. Vann-Hamilton

Dissertations

Problem.

A significant segment of the U.S. population, under-represented students, is under-engaged or disengaged in secondary science education. International and national assessments and various research studies illuminate the problem and/or the disparity between students’ aspirations in science and the means they have to achieve them. To improve engagement and address inequities among these students, more contemporary and/or inclusive pedagogy is recommended. More specifically, multicultural science education has been suggested as a potential strategy for increased equity so that all learners have access to and are readily engaged in quality science education. While multicultural science education emphasizes the integration of students’ …

A Community-University Partnership: Collaborating To Improve Teacher Preparation For An Urban Indigenous Community, Anna Lees

Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored a community-university partnership for teacher preparation with an urban Indigenous community organization in Chicago, Illinois. In the examined partnership, Indigenous participants collaborated with university faculty to prepare graduate-level students in an initial preparation program. I examined the impact of the partnership on the participating Indigenous community members, emphasizing how their interactions with university faculty and teacher candidates impacted the Indigenous organization and participants. Indigenous participants considered what teachers must understand to serve urban Indigenous children and the community's role in teacher preparation.

I collected data through focus groups with Indigenous participants before and after engagement …

Mother-Infant Relationships In The Nicu: A Multiple Case Study Approach, Ilona Helin

Dissertations

Parent-child relationships consist of both external and internal components. The external component is the behavioral interaction between mother and child, while the internal components are expectations each member of the dyad has for the both the relationship and of the other partner. These expectations are called internal working models (IWMs) and are blueprints that have been developed from an individual’s childhood experience of sensitive or insensitive parenting. A mother’s IWMs influence how she perceives her child, her relationship with her child and herself as a mother, the sensitivity of her caregiving, and ultimately her child’s IWM of him or her …

Shifting Narratives In Doctoral Admissions: Faculty Of Color Understandings Of Diversity, Equity, And Justice In A Neoliberal Context, Dian Drew Squire

Dissertations

Little is known about how faculty make decisions in the doctoral admissions process or how they conceptualize diversity, equity, and justice in those same processes. As the United States continues to diversify, understanding how students are selected into graduate programs and how faculty understand diversity, equity, and justice is increasingly important to supporting diverse leadership bodies and shaping an inclusive campus cultural context. This qualitative study utilized semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and critical discourse analysis to explore how faculty of color understand diversity, equity, and justice norms, values, and behaviors in the doctoral admissions process in Higher Education and Student …

The Trauma Thesis: Medical And Literary Representations Of Psychological Trauma In The Twentieth Century, Sarah Louise Eilefson

Dissertations

The historian Samuel Hynes has observed that World War I was not only the greatest military and political event of its time but also the greatest imaginative event. Soldiers and civilians struggled to comprehend the war’s devastation and the changes it produced while medical practitioners and artists examined the war as a site of extraordinary trauma. My project explores two of the many archives of trauma: the medical discourse through which trauma was defined; and representations of trauma in a variety of English language novels from the early and mid-twentieth century. I begin with a historical survey of the medical …

Public Relations: Diaspora, Media, And The State(S) Of American Literature, Nathan Allen Jung

Dissertations

Like any good public relations campaign, this dissertation aims to offer a persuasive interpretation of certain key facts. The facts, as I see them, are as follows: first, a great number of contemporary novels and poems explore the personal and social consequences of diasporic migration. Second, these texts, along with their print and electronic paratexts, share a pervasive interest in media. And third, these works are rarely read in conversation with one another, despite their mutual concern for migration and media. Owing to this last point in particular, scholarship has failed to fully address the broader media theories developed in …

Censorship And Intolerance In Medieval England, Richard Obenauf

Dissertations

Censorship is difficult to prove conclusively in the Middle Ages because manuscript culture is susceptible to the destruction of evidence, namely by burning works deemed unacceptable. Moreover, medieval authors were subject to many forms of intolerance which shaped their literary decisions. This dissertation proposes that the roots of formal print censorship in England are to be found in earlier forms of intolerance which sought to enforce conformity and that censorship is not distinct from intolerance, but rather is another form of intolerance. I draw on political writings by Peter Abelard, John of Salisbury, and William of Ockham to establish a …

Reform Through A Student Lens: The Experience Of Latino A Students In An International Baccalaureate Diploma Program In Chicago, Sandra Arreguin

Dissertations

This dissertation is a study of Latinos participating in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program in Chicago. Phenomenological interview techniques were used to explore the experiences and perceptions of Latino students in IB. By looking at Latino/a students separately the study captured the strengths, challenges, and needs unique to this group, which will inform the future of this rapidly growing curriculum reform effort.

The Effect Of Stress And Perceived Social Support On Job Satisfaction: A Comparison Between U.S Born And Foreign-Born Faculty, Lisa Owen

Dissertations

Research indicates that academic work-stress is a significant and growing problem for faculty members. General work-stress studies suggest that social support may buffer the negative impact of stress on faculty job satisfaction. To date, little research has been conducted in this area. Even fewer studies have examined the potential differences between U.S.-born and foreign-born faculty members regarding these variables. This quantitative, non-experimental multivariate study utilized a survey to assess academic stressors, perceived departmental social support, and job satisfaction at a large U.S. university. The surveyed institution consisted of 807 full-time faculty members. The three-week survey yielded a response rate of …

The (Not So) New Normal: A Queer Critique Of Lgbt Characters And Themes In Primetime Network Television Situational Comedies, Robert Dallas Byrd Jr.

Dissertations

This analysis of primetime situational comedies feature LGBTQ characters argues that through heteronormative and homonormative constructions of sexuality, race, gender, and class, many LGBTQ people are rendered invisible in the mainstream. Through discourse analysis, the study describes how these programs work to normalize gay and lesbian identity, which then resembles the dominant heterosexuality, aiding in the advancement of white, middle class gays, who privatize sexuality and mimic dominant conventions of gender, race, sexuality, and class in the public sphere. This research is important in understanding the American public’s most recent shifts in public opinion on issues of marriage equality and …

An Attempt To Establish Approval As A Learned Reinforcer, Kelly T. Kohler

Dissertations

Approval does not function as a powerful reinforcer for many children with autism, making it difficult to reinforce appropriate behavior in a functional and consistent manner. The current study first assessed the effects of establishing approval (“Nice,” accompanied by a smile and nod) and nonsense words as discriminative stimuli, with the intent that they might also become learned reinforcers. We conducted several experiments to assess the effectiveness of approval as a reinforcer, including tests on learning new responses (receptive, expressive, freeoperant, and simple simultaneous discriminations) and tests on the performance of previously mastered responses (receptive and expressive responses). Despite the …

High School Graduation Coaches: Supporting At-Risk High School Students, Heather Elise Dunnavant

Dissertations

This study investigated the effectiveness of a new dropout prevention program, Project WALK, which was launched at a low-income high school in Missouri during the 2012–2013 school year. After examining alarming dropout statistics, Washington High School chose 40 students to participate in a new program, Project WALK, which was designed to use graduation coaches to improve at-risk students’ performance. The program’s six graduation coaches formed relationships with at-risk students, monitored student progress, and consistently communicated with parents, teachers, and school administrators about the at-risk students. The researcher, an administrator at the school, gathered quantitative data to measure the effects of …

Paper People And Digital Memory: Recreating The Public And Private In Japan, Meghan Sarah Fidler

Dissertations

This research examines how reading and writing on digital platforms establishes public and private spheres in Tokyo, Japan. Based upon findings from a group of students at an international University, I develop new modes of thinking about people and their use of Internet capable devices by exploring the paradoxes present in contemporary literacies. Contextualizing reading and writing within the speech patterns and exchange rituals (aisatsu) which mark public spheres in Japan, writing practices are found to reflect multiple nuanced identity performances in which the varied use of the cultural principles uchi/soto (inside/outside) and ura/omote (back/front) create parallel publics. Constructed by …

A Comparison Of Fifth Grade Mathematics Curriculum Materials, Michael E. Starks Sr.

Dissertations

In the USA, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 resulted in requirements placed on school districts to show student achievement in mathematics, based on measured adequate yearly progress. This caused school districts to search for standards based programs that improve mathematics learning. A quantitative multi-year study was used to compare the state-assessed achievement levels of 1,695 fifth-grade Midwestern children in the state of Missouri, who learned mathematics from two different curriculum-delivery programs, EveryDay Mathematics and EnVision Mathematics. A 2 by 2 by 8 research design was used through the choice of two elementary schools using EveryDay Mathematics and …

Meeting The Needs Of Students With Traumatic Brain Lnjury, Heather K. Koole

Dissertations

School reintegration following pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI) presents a number of challenges. This dissertation comprises three studies exploring common themes of best practice, training, and supporting success for students with TBI in school settings.

Study 1 reports the results of a survey of 70 speech-language pathologists (SLPs) who responded to questions about their use of clinical activities that described more or less contextualized services. Current literature supports contextualized service delivery as best practice. Findings indicated that 98% of participants reported using at least one contextualized practice. Higher use of contextualized practices was associated with working in schools (compared to …

Bound By Words: Oath-Taking And Oath-Breaking In Medieval Lceland And Anglo-Saxon England, Gregory L. Laing

Dissertations

The legal and literary texts of early medieval England and Iceland share a common emphasis on truth and demonstrate its importance through the sheer volume of textual references. One of the most common applications of truth-seeking in these sources occurs in the swearing of oaths. Instances of oath-taking and oath-breaking, therefore, are critical textual loci wherein the language of swearing unites an individual’s socially constructed reputation and his personal guarantees under the careful supervision of the community. Traditionally, scholars looking at truth and attestation from the later medieval period tend to view early cases of swearing as procedural, artless, or …

The Effects Of Language Complexity On Natural And Emotion Concept Formation In Early Language Learners, Stephanie Eileen Jett

Dissertations

The present study investigated the role of language complexity in natural and emotion concept formation ability in young children (two- to five-year-olds). Language complexity was measured by selections from the Brigance Diagnostic Inventory of Early Childhood Development II, and concept formation was assessed at three levels of abstraction. The natural concepts were presented as two alternative discriminations on a touch-screen computer, as follows: subordinate level (lions versus tigers), basic level (cats versus dogs), and superordinate level (animals versus nonanimals). The following emotion categories were discriminated: subordinate level (anger versus sadness), basic level (positive [happiness and positive surprise] versus negative [anger …

Establishing The Validity And Reliability Of The Fairness Of Items Tool, Nikole Anderson Hicks

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Perspectives Of Elementary Teachers And Ethiopian Immigrant Parents On Parent-Teacher Relations And The Education Of Ethiopian Children, Keno Abdeta Nagasa

Dissertations

This multi-case dissertation describes a qualitative inquiry into the experiences of Ethiopian immigrant parents and elementary school teachers with respect to their perspectives on their relationship for serving the educational needs of select Ethiopian children. Data obtained from interviews and observations of three Ethiopian parents and three elementary school teachers in a large school district in the Rocky Mountain region demonstrated that (a) there was similarity across cases regarding lack of teacher preparation in working with diverse students; (b) barriers to communication between parents and teachers include language and cultural differences and parents‘ invisibility in schools; (c) parents are unfamiliar …

Relationships Between Participation In Extracurricular Activities, Act Scores, Gpa, And Attendance In Select Public High Schools In Mississippi, Lance Kelvin Reed

Dissertations

There are contemporary concerns about improving and sustaining positive student outcomes in secondary schools today. In light of student needs and limited time and resources available to address those needs, educational leaders are faced with making difficult decisions about what should and could be offered to students through their schools. In addition to the general curriculum, schools generally offer a variety of extracurricular activities. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between extracurricular participation and select student outcomes. The findings of this study can provide valuable insight to school leaders as they make decisions about how to …

Increasing Student Achievement In English Language Learners Through Dual Language: A Policy Advocacy Document, Melissa Durrance

Dissertations

English language learners (ELL) represent the fastest growing population of learners in our schools. A substantial and continuing education achievement gap exists between ELLs and English speaking students and an alarmingly disproportionate number of ELL students contribute to the dropout rate. As educators, it is imperative that we provide educational programs to help reduce the achievement gap. All students deserve an education that will enable them to be productive citizens and that will provide them with the skills needed to enter either a career or an institution of continuing education upon graduation. As a solution to the increasing dropout rate …

Teacher And Evaluator Perspectives On The Teacher Evaluation Process For Teachers Of English Language Learners: A Change Leadership Plan, Nancy Martinez

Dissertations

This paper examines the need to add indicators to the current teacher evaluation system that are specific to English Language Learners (ELLs). Florida teacher evaluation protocols do not specify ELL-specific instructional strategies. This study explores perceptions of ELL teachers and school administrators on the fairness of current evaluative practices for ELL teachers. I considered research that supported the need for differentiated instruction for ELLs. I used the diagnostic framework by Wagner et al. (2006) to identify “arenas” of change: culture, context, conditions, and competencies. I used these arenas to present the existing situation in a school district. I then presented …

Including Children With Disabilities In Mainstream Education: An Exploration Of The Challenges And Considerations For Parents And Primary School Teachers, Gail Ferguson

Dissertations

Recent decades have seen children’s rights and the rights of persons with disabilities come to the fore. Current policy emphasis on inclusive education means that more children with disabilities and special educational needs are being placed in mainstream education instead of special schools, as was traditionally the case. The aim of this study was to explore the area of inclusion in education, from the perspective of primary school teachers and parents of children with intellectual disabilities. A key objective was to determine if the reality of including children with disabilities in mainstream settings corresponded with the policy on inclusion.

A …

Read 180: Is It An Effective Reading Intervention For English Language Learners?, Carissa Gober

Dissertations

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to determine if READ 180 is an effective reading intervention program for English Language Learners (ELLs). School districts nationwide are seeking effective programs to close the achievement gap between ELLs and the general population in order to fulfill federally established Title III requirements. This study examined the results of the 2011-2013 Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State (ACCESS), an English Language Proficiency assessment tool specifically designed for ELLs. At the time of this study, 35 states, including Missouri utilize the ACCESS test to measure proficiency levels of their ELLs in partial fulfillment …