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Jefferson Middle School: A School Of Achievers, Gary C. Niehaus

Masters Theses

The purpose of this field experience was to develop a detailed five-year strategic plan for Jefferson Middle School. The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) Middle School Future Planning Consortium had twenty-four middle schools across the nation that worked collaboratively to share and build their plans. Jefferson Middle School was part of this consortium. The researcher utilized the ASCD format and the expertise of those schools involved to develop the Jefferson Middle School plan. The format has four major areas of focus: (1) Organization, (2) Core Curriculum, (3) Improved Teaching and (4) Educational Technology.

This field study report is …

A Study Of The Administrative Agent's Role Of The Regional Superintendent Of Schools In Illinois, John E. Mcnary

Masters Theses

This work contains a study of the administrative agent's role of the Regional Superintendent of Schools in Illinois. The fifty-seven Educational Service Regions (E.S.R.s) in Illinois were surveyed to determine the number of superintendents acting as an administrative agent for a program, the educational experience possessed by each superintendent, the types of services being offered, the total number of dollars that become the responsibility of the administrative agent, the total number of jobs created, the governance structure, and the benefits and detriments of the role as reported by the superintendents. The data gathered by the survey was tabulated and analyzed …

Developing Self-Esteem: A Search For The Missing Element, Douglas Mack

Masters Theses

Educators have long known the impact a child’s self-esteem, or self-concept, has upon his or her ability to perform in the classroom. This paper explores the variables involved in developing self-concept both in theory and the research. The roles of teacher feedback, student failure and success, and difficulty of task are examined and their impact upon student self-esteem assessed. Learning theories such as constructivism and the use of teams in the classroom are also presented and discussed. Self-esteem does not come about simply as a result of prior success. It develops 1) as a child experiences success at tasks he …

Two Halves Into The Water, Michael Kuo

Masters Theses

In my introductory essay (“The Dying Star: Character in Contemporary Fiction”) I argue that the contemporary fiction writer views character in a new way, breaking with traditional fiction theory and its dependence on the Cartesian division of Self and Other. The contemporary writer “finds Descartes’ division of Self and Other impotent, turning instead to a vision of character in which there are no certainties; a character in contemporary fiction cannot necessarily come to ‘know herself’ or the world around her.” I trace the influence of Descartes in a wide variety of traditional fiction and theory, and then propose a new …

Social Status And The Play Interactions Of Students Labelled Learning Disabled And Their Peers, Tammy S. Bryant

Masters Theses

The relationship between social status and play interactions of students labelled learning disabled and their peers is an area which has received much attention. However, most of the research has focused on students in resource settings. The current study focused on students labelled learning disabled in self-contained settings. The study involved administering the Play With Rating Scale to 41 second and third graders in regular classrooms and to 11 same-aged peers who were learning disabled in self-contained settings. The results were divided into popular/average and unpopular status groups. Thirty-three children were observed at play utilizing an observation tool developed by …

Mainlining, Philip L. Simpson

Masters Theses

Mainlining is a collection of six original stories and a prose foreword. The six stories, each of which can stand on its own but when read together form a unified whole, divide into two sections. The first section introduces three main characters, and the second section details the various fortunes (and misfortunes) of these three main characters and additionally introduces a wide range of secondary characters. When analyzed as a group, these characters provide some insight into the collective experiences and emotions of the people living in Mainlining's fictional community of Lincoln.

Lincoln is a small city bearing more …

A Comparison Of Three Populations Of The Plains Pocket Gophers, Geomys Bursarius Illinoensis, In Illinois, Frank P. Wray

Masters Theses

Morphometric and karyotypic analyses were performed on three Illinois populations of the Plains Pocket Gopher, Geomys bursarius illinoensis, to determine if any differences were present among the populations. Gophers were collected in three localities: 1) Iroquois and Kankakee Counties (IKC); McLean County (MC); and St. Clair and Madison counties (SMC). All three populations had the same kind and number of chromosomes (2n=72, FN=70). External measurements did not differ significantly among the three populations. Multivariate analysis of variance of the cranial characters showed that a significant (P<.05) difference existed in both males, F(78,1825)=1.65, and females, F(78,1961)=1.63, between the three regions. Duncan's multiple range tests of some cranial measurements showed a clinal increase going from east to west.

Communication And Aging: Perceptions Of Family And Friend Interaction On Self Reported Life Satisfaction Among Selected Residents Of Three Nursing Homes, Patricia J. Fetzner

Masters Theses

The study of communication and aging provides great potential for enriching the lives of the elderly. Of course this should be of great interest to each of us as we are all inevitably aging. One rapidly growing area in communication research deals with how communication affects the life satisfaction of the elderly. Of particular interest is the attitudinal effect of family and friend interaction.

Early research dealing with the elderly focused on two theories: 1. Activity theory, which is the idea that social activity is essential to an older person's sense of well being and; 2. Disengagement theory, which suggests …

An Analysis Of The Impacts Of The Illinois Board Of Higher Education' S Admission Requirements On Selected High Schools In East Central Illinois, Stephen C. Selle

Masters Theses

The Illinois Board of Higher Education in 1985 instituted mandatory subject admission requirements for all state universities beginning in the year 1990. Subsequent legislative action by the Illinois General Assembly has moved these requirements back to 1993. This field experience investigated the possible impacts of these requirements on rural schools of under 500 students in east central Illinois. A cover letter explaining the purpose of the study and a two page questionnaire were mailed to twenty- one schools. Sixteen schools in the counties of Vermillion, Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee, and Will responded and were the focus of the study. Enrollment patterns …

Needs Of Families Of Adult Cardiac Surgery Patients During The Intensive Care Stay, Michael L. Williams

Masters Theses

The purposes of this research were to identify needs of family of adult cardiac surgery patients during the intensive care stay, by whom these needs were met, and to identify demographic variables that were associated with identified family needs. Thirty-one families of adult cardiac surgery patients ranked 45 need statements using the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory. The need to have questions answered honestly was identified as the most important need by the families in this study. Nurses were identified as the person who met most of the needs of the families. Some significant differences in needs between spouses and …

Showering In Labor: An Effective Pain Management Alternative, Kathleen A. Austin

Masters Theses

Health care professionals continue to be concerned about the relief of pain and anxiety associated with childbirth. There are recent anecdotal reports in the literature which describe showering as an effective nonpharmaceutical alternative for labor pain management. The effectiveness of showering can most likely be explained physiologically by the "gate control" theory of pain.; The purpose of this descriptive-correlational study was to examine the labor patient's perception of the effectiveness of showering as a comfort measure and the relationship between showering in labor and outcome variables such as analgesia use, anesthesia use, and childbirth satisfaction. After approval by appropriate human …

Staff Nurse Identification Of Nursing Diagnosis From A Written Case Study, Sharon Etheridge

Masters Theses

A descriptive study was conducted to determine how well medical-surgical and critical care staff nurses identified the same nursing diagnoses and defining characteristics from a written case study. A convenience sample of 83 staff nurses from four acute care institutions participated in the study.; Of the total diagnostic statements made, 42.9% were the same as those identified by experts in the case study. Three nurses (3.6%) correctly identified all five nursing diagnoses in the written case study. An additional seven (8.4%) nurses correctly identified four of the nursing diagnoses. The demographic characteristics of these nurses were varied. No statistical relationship …

Cardiac Rehabilitation: Client's Perceived Adequacy Of Education Related To Adjustments Following Myocardial Infarction, Mary E. Flikkema

Masters Theses

Heart disease significantly impacts the lifestyles of clients. Psychosocial difficulties such as anxiety, depression, marital and family conflict are documented in the literature. Various methods and aspects of adjustment have been studied to assist the client with adaptation to changes in exercise, diet, weight reduction and smoking.; This descriptive study used a correlational design to investigate the relationship between the client's perceived adequacy of cardiac rehabilitative education with postdischarge fears and adjustments. Thirty clients participating in a cardiac rehabilitation program completed a self report questionnaire regarding level of preparedness in the areas of exercise, diet, work/activity, sexual functioning, and social …

A Study Of The Relationship Between Entry Time In The Military And Academic Performance In Air Force Resident Training, Ronald Denius

Masters Theses

Purpose of the Study

Do young Air Force recruits who enter the military during the winter months truly perform at a lower level than their counterparts who enlist in the summer, fall, or spring?

Design of the Study

Time frames: This was divided into quarters (three month segments) which used service entry dates close to summer, fall, winter, and spring seasons. Quarter segments were:

1. June, July, and August

2. September, October, and November

3. December, January, and February

4. March, April, and May

It was expected that the summer segment would capture the graduate from high school who immediately …

The United States And German Reunification: The Stalin Note Of 1952, Klaus P. Grillmaier

Masters Theses

This thesis discusses the American and West German reaction to the Soviet note of March 10, 1952. In this so-called Stalin Note the Soviet dictator proposed the reunification of Germany on terms of neutrality and acceptance of the Oder and Neisse rivers as the German-Polish border. By launching his proposal Stalin sought to prevent the integration of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) into the Western alliance system.

The paper starts out sketching the emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as superpowers after World War II. It also analyzes the impact the Cold War had on Europe. …

Effects Of New Science Textbooks On Selected Sixth And Eighth Grade Students At Crestwood Elementary School, Paris, Illinois, David R. Pruim

Masters Theses

This paper describes the results of a six-month field study to determine the effects of a newly adopted and implemented junior-high level science textbook series on student achievement. This study took place in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade science classrooms of Crestwood Elementary School, Paris, Illinois, from December 1988, until May of 1989. This study compared the science achievement of two groups of students in both their sixth and eighth grade years. The Normal Curve Equivalents or NCE's and letter grades as given by the junior-high level science teachers at Crestwood, were analyzed using non-independent t tests. Descriptive data …

The Relationship Of School Enrollment Size With Academic Achievement In Secondary Schools, Randy B. Steinkamp

Masters Theses

This investigation was designed to examine the relationship between school enrollment size and academic achievement. Fourteen schools in the East-Central region of Illinois formed the focus of this study. The schools were grouped according to the number of enrolled students: small-size (less than 300); mid-size (300-799); and large-size (over 800). Data for the study were obtained from the 1987 School Report Cards. Report Cards are documents that were completed by schools in the state of Illinois to review the status of their educational programs.

Data from the Report Cards included measures of academic achievement and also descriptive data on the …

Perceptions Of Registered Nurses Toward Two Patient Classification Systems, Sarah J. Follen

Masters Theses

Patient classification systems provide a means of delineating nursing activities that a patient requires. The majority of patient classification systems consist primarily of delegated services or functional tasks. Two other areas of nursing care, independent and interdependent services, are not a part of most workload measurement systems.; Two patient classification systems were developed for this study. One was designed using primarily delegated services, and the second designed according to the Clinical Practice Model of Nursing (Wesorick, 1988) and consisted of independent, interdependent, and delegated services. The researcher studied how registered nurses perceived each instrument: how acceptable was each instrument to …

Facilitating The Nursing Process For The Nursing Diagnosis "Alteration In Thought Processes", Meridell Veen

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine if nurses who were given a tool to facilitate assessment of thought processes would collect more assessment data, diagnose "alteration in thought processes" more frequently, and include a care plan for this diagnosis more often. A quasi-experimental pre-treatment/post-treatment design was used. An inservice program about the Level of Cognitive Function Scale (LOCF) was the treatment.; Of the 40 randomly selected subjects from the 199 adult critical care nurses at a metropolitan hospital, 20 completed the study with pre-treatment and post-treatment data. Data were collected by scoring patient assessment/care plans pre-treatment and 4 …

Programmer And End User Communication In Computer System Development, Theresa J. Hart

Masters Theses

Many computer professionals agree that good communication between computer programmers or analysts and the people for whom a system is being created is essential for system success. This study researches possible reasons behind the communication problems that exist between programmers and end users and suggests ways to narrow the communication gap.

Many theories, including the theories of hemispheric brain dominance, thinking styles, and motivational factors may help explain the differences in communication styles between programmers and users. To further explore the communication problem, an exploratory survey was given to programmers and users to evaluate their perception of the communication that …

Angelman's Syndrome Case Study And Appropriate Educational Curriculum, Allyson Lesly Hatt

Masters Theses

The purpose of this professional paper is to provide Special Educators with information on a presumably rare type of Mental and Physical Retardation that has been diagnosed as Angelman's Syndrome.

In order to assist this presentation, a previously unpublished case study of a nineteen year and four month old female who has been categorized as having Angelman's Syndrome, will be discussed. This case study will aid in the understanding of the syndrome.

Secondary to informing, it is the author's goal to provide teachers of special education with practical lesson curriculum that will assist the teachers who have a student with …

Gay Masquerade: Male Homosexuals In American Cities, 1910 To 1940, Steven L. Lewis

Masters Theses

Prior to 1900, American scientists struggled to formulate a sexual norm. Their categorization of sexuality ironically led to the creation of a label (homosexual) by which individuals created and expressed a sexual identity at variance with the newly created norm.

By 1910, the climate of moral reform (Progressivism) led to the discovery (and documentation) of a homosexual subculture in larger American cities. With Chicago and New York City as examples, the author documents the growth of this sexual underground in the period between 1910 and 1940. Using primary sources such as diaries, letters, autobiographies and novels, the world of the …

A Review And Evaluation Of Research On Suspension And Expulsion Of Handicapped Students In Public Schools, Debria D. Young

Masters Theses

The purpose of this report is to review and synthesize findings of research studies about suspension and expulsion of handicapped students as a disciplinary procedure in public schools.

The first chapter begins with a glossary of frequently used terms and definitions to assist the reader in understanding the terminology used in this paper.

Chapter II reviews literature relevant to suspension and expulsion of handicapped students.

Chapter III cites statutory and mandatory provisions set forth by the .Michigan State Board of Education on suspension and expulsion.

Chapter IV explores the historical content on suspension and expulsion of handicapped students.

Chapter V …

Effects Of Student Attitudes And Student Time On Achievement Gains In College Developmental Reading, Kathryn K. Welsch

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to provide a new focus on college-level developmental reading programs by examining course content (i.e., instructional activities) in a developmental reading class.

Attitudes and time spent on instructional activities were monitored for 47 students in three sections of college level developmental reading. Multiple regression analyses were used to relate these data to vocabulary and comprehension gains on the Nelson Denny Reading Test (J. Brown, Nelson, & Denny, 1976).

Students made significant gains in vocabulary and in comprehension. Student attitudes predicted gains in both vocabulary and comprehension. Because of reliability problems, the time data do …

Evaluation Of The Effectiveness Of An Educational Presentation In Increasing Chemically Dependent Males’ Report Of Sexual Abuse, Linda L. Hand

Masters Theses

Research has demonstrated several factors among sexually abused males such as males sexually abused as children becoming adult sexual abusers; one in four males reporting sexual abuse; and adult emotional trauma, drug abuse, and sexual dysfunction. To break this abuse pattern, we need to focus on increasing males' reports of sexual abuse and initiating treatment.

The present study evaluated the effectiveness of an oral educational presentation in increasing males' reports of sexual abuse. It also sought prevalence information and treatment needs. Subjects were 51 males from three chemical dependency treatment centers. One control and four experimental groups were used. The …

The Purposeful Use Of An Object In The Development Of Skill With A Prosthesis, Hon Keung Yuen

Masters Theses

Theoretically, perceptual information from the interaction with an object and its surfaces (an affordance) facilitates the development of motor skill. This study investigated the use of an affordance in learning control of flexion and extension of an above-elbow training prosthesis. Fifty-two male college students were randomly assigned to two training procedures: two, 1.5-minute periods of a joining dots activity with a flashlight attached to the hook of the prosthesis (affordance group), and practice moving the prosthesis at the elbow joint (no-affordance group) for the same amount of time. To assess generalization of skill to a different task, each subject traced …

Recidivism And The Self Concept Of Male Juvenile Delinquents, Mary B. Stelma

Masters Theses

It is a common belief that a low self concept is related to deviant behavior. The purpose of this study was to compare the self concepts of juvenile recidivists with those of non-recidivists.

A sample of 162 subjects was taken from juveniles who had been treated at a Michigan detention facility. Measures of self concept, using the Tennessee Self Concept Scale (Fitts, 1965), were taken both prior to and following treatment. Point-biserial correlations were computed for pre-test scores, post-test scores, and changes in scores from pre-test to post-test.

The results showed some significant positive correlations between self concept and recidivism …

Effects Of Caffeine Consumption On Cardiovascular Reactivity To Social Stress, Suzanne L. Keller

Masters Theses

Several risk factors have been linked to cardiovascular diseases; among them are exposure to psychological stressors and caffeine consumption.

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of caffeine consumption on cardiovascular reactivity to role play simulations of social stressors. A double-blind alternating treatment design was employed. Eight subjects (five female and three male) received either caffeine-containing or placebo beverages. Each subject received four samples of each beverage over a total of eight sessions. The results include: (a) stressors increased systolic and diastolic blood pressure along with heart rate in baseline, placebo and drug conditions; (b) caffeine produced …

The Effects Of Performance Anxiety Management Training On Musicians’ Self-Efficacy, State Anxiety And Musical Performance Quality, Nancy Barnes Mansberger

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Performance Anxiety Management Training (PAMT) on levels of perceived self-efficacy, state anxiety, and performance quality of undergraduate musicians performing under stressful conditions. Nineteen undergraduate music majors were selected for this study. Ten received PAMT, and nine received no treatment. Subjects were tested immediately prior to a stressful evaluative performance jury on self-assessed measures of self-efficacy and state anxiety. Adjudicating music faculty determined subjects' level of performance quality. Analysis of variance revealed that subjects in the PAMT group had significantly higher scores on measures of self-efficacy, and significantly lower scores …

A Comparison Of Video Disc-Presented To Teacher-Presented Direct Instruction, Charles P. Schira

Masters Theses

The video disc Mastering Fractions by Systems Impact (1984) was investigated for effects on student on-task behavior. The video disc uses basic principles of Direct Instruction and was compared to teacher-presented Direct Instruction. The study used a reversal design in a Special Education classroom where the classroom teacher normally used Direct Instruction. Three Special Education students at the junior high school level were used as subjects. The results of the study indicate a slight increase in student attending behavior with the use of the video disc. Subjects were also evaluated for the novelty effect of the video disc on attending …