Digital Commons Network^™

Revealing Students’ And Teachers’ Perceptions Of Challenges And Strategies In Arabic Reading Comprehension, Osama Othman

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the perceptions of Arabic as a Foreign Language (AFL) students and teachers regarding the influence of eight textual features on reading comprehension. These features are: vowelization, word patterns, roots, vocabulary, case endings, word order, punctuation marks, and text organization. It also investigates reading comprehension strategies employed by both groups to overcome comprehension challenges associated with these features. Data were collected from 102 AFL students and 26 AFL teachers through questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 students and 11 teachers. Results revealed that students generally rated the influence of these features more highly than teachers. The …

Securing A Virtual Reality Classroom Using Unity, Okemute Samuel Idonor

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how security features might be incorporated into a Unity created virtual reality (VR) classroom, with a particular emphasis on important concerns including user privacy, data security, and illegal access. The increasing usage of virtual reality (VR) technology in educational settings has made it crucial to ensure the security of these immersive systems, especially when it comes to safeguarding sensitive user data. Designing and implementing a secure VR classroom prototype that could successfully protect against common security concerns, such as unauthorized access and data breaches, was the main goal of this project. Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), Role-Based Access Control …

Mental Rotation: Psychometric Analysis Of The Online Purdue Spatial Visualization Test: Rotations And Relationships Between Mental Rotation Skill And Engineering Undergraduate Success, Savanna Dautle

Theses and Dissertations

“Literature shows that spatial skills, and in particular, mental rotation skills, are predictors of success in STEM. Students who have strong spatial visualization skills are more likely to demonstrate better academic performance and higher graduation rates in STEM. Several instruments are used to measure mental rotation skills, most of which are paper-based… To measure the range of skills typically seen in undergraduate engineering students, the PSVT:R has been historically preferred for its use of a variety of 3-dimensional shapes, which are appropriately challenging to visualize, and for its established reliability and validity [using classical test theory]. An [online] version of …

Sentiment Analysis For Stock Market Prediction Using Machine Learning Techniques, Rajendiran P

Theses and Dissertations

Sentiment analysis has become one of the most important procedures to predict the stock market behaviour according to the customer reviews about a particular topic such as news, movie, event, and remarks related to the product. Due to the huge number of reviews generated from the customer, for analyzing information in an accurate manner. In order to detect general view of product, sentiment analysis technique is performed. Lately, the majority of research works is designed for Sentiment analysis by application of an organization and ranking techniques. But it suffers less exactness of the accurate classification of the customer reviews.

The …

Using Satellite Image Segmentation To Detect Trails, Jeremy Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

This masters thesis proposes an innovative approach to satellite image segmentation by focusing on the detection and mapping of walking, hiking, and biking trails. The motivation behind this project comes from the underexplored area in segmentation techniques for trail identification and offers potential benefits for urban planning, environmental monitoring, and public health. The problem statement addresses the need for a model that can differentiate between various trail types and other natural or man-made elements. The project aims for efficiency and scalability in processing satellite imagery across different compute hardware. The work details several stages: researching existing segmentation techniques, specifically road …

Autistic Female University Students And Their Experiences With Depression: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Rosemarie Joy Hopkins Keenan

Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (autism) can have significant impacts on the lives of those who experience it. However, as autism can affect each person in unique ways, the exact impacts of the condition on a person's experiences are not well understood. This is especially the case for women and girls with autism, who are on diagnosed later in life and have historically been neglected in research studies when compared to autistic men and boys. Autistic people are underrepresented in university populations, and characteristics of a university education present new challenges for autistic students. Little research has been done to inform supports …

A Randomized Trial Of Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback Following Traumatic Brain Injury, Leah D. Talbert

Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects over 1.7 million people annually in the U.S., often leading to autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysregulation and reduced heart rate variability (HRV), which may impact cognitive performance. This study investigated whether HRV biofeedback (HRV-B) improves HRV at rest and recovery after stress in individuals with TBI. Secondary aims examined links between HRV improvements and reductions in physical symptoms, enhanced emotional functioning, and better cognitive performance, as well as the role of practice adherence in moderating HRV-B effects. This randomized controlled trial compared HRV-B treatment to a sham control using a pre- and post-assessment design. Of …

Investigating The Thermodynamic Properties Of Fat10 And Fat10ylated Proteins, Aravind R

Theses and Dissertations

Degradation of proteins by the proteasome is crucial in regulating protein levels in the cell. Post-translational modifications, such as ubiquitylation and Fat10ylation, trigger proteasomal degradation of the substrate proteins. While ubiquitylation orchestrates multiple cellular processes, Fat10ylation is primarily involved in the inflammatory response. Unlike ubiquitin, recycled upon substrate degradation, Fat10 is degraded along with its substrate. Although the thermodynamic properties of the substrate are critical for effective proteasomal degradation, they remain poorly understood for the Fat10-proteasome pathway.

Here, we demonstrate that Fat10 exhibits markedly lower thermodynamic stability and faster unfolding kinetics compared to ubiquitin. This is due to the absence …

It Is Not Her Fault She Didn’T Know Mary Had A Lamb, Samer Ridikkuluz

Theses and Dissertations

“It is not her fault she didn’t know Mary had a lamb” is not an Arab Queer conflict. It is the genocide of everything they told me art was and the decolonial clarity of what art can be. Whether it be bridging the gap between the East and the West, the straights and the gays, or me and the world—I investigate the human condition, the parts we play, and how identity evolves and hides.

How Eye See, Now I See, Michael Anthony Simon

Theses and Dissertations

Michael Anthony Simon’s paper addresses ideas surrounding the fluid nature of perception, time, and ideas of control, or lack there-of. Creating a symbolic relationship between paintings and sculpture. Simon both embraces and confuses the notion that understanding is never truly stable or secure.

Shapes That Hide Their Shadows, Jennifer Blaine

Theses and Dissertations

shapes that hide their shadows concerns itself with the mutability of memory. The complexities of girlhood to womanhood, and the way we are shaped by place and space, are explored through the artist recounting childhood memories connected to her grandparents' hometowns. Divided into three different sections, the artist discusses drawing as medium, creating a lexicon through using visual symbols, and the logistics of building your own archive.

Geospatial Machine Learning Approaches For Studying Urbanization Impact, Surface Reflectance Patterns, And Groundwater Health Risks, Bibhash Nath

Theses and Dissertations

Geospatial machine learning techniques have been used to study: the impact of urbanization on land use and land cover change, surface reflectance patterns in boreal regions, and groundwater health risks from arsenic in India. These studies combined spatial data, remote sensing, and predictive models to gain valuable insights for sustainable living and protecting human health.

Activism Within The Music And Recorded Sound Archive, Julius Tanner

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the integration of applied ethnomusicology within the recorded sound archive of the New York Public Library. The process of repatriating recorded sound through community engagement lead to the development and eventual reparative work of outdated subject headings and other descriptive language within the archive. This thesis also explores how cultural preservation of similar non-physical fields such as naming conventions within linguistics and the development of gastronationalism combats globalization and ultimately colonization.

Equity's Garden, Nicole A. Barreras

Theses and Dissertations

Equity’s Garden is a narrative-driven video game that explores fairness and communication through the framework of a community garden. Players take on the role of the director of a garden's allocation committee, responsible for distributing planting spaces among neighborhood residents. Through branching storylines, players navigate the consequences of their decisions.

Body Of Work: Wax As Medium In Art And Science In Enlightenment Bologna, Kristen Pou

Theses and Dissertations

Eighteenth-century Bologna is well known for its body of accurate and precise wax anatomical models. However, wax was also used for non-scientific purposes: for portraiture and religious artworks. This paper sets forth an argument to explain the scholarly neglect of enlightenment Bolognese waxworks that did not depict anatomized human bodies.

Optimizing Biofilm Assay Reproducibility And Characterizing The 12-Hydroxystearic Acid On Escherichia Coli, Khilola Khusanova

Theses and Dissertations

Biofilm formation in Escherichia coli plays a critical role in microbial chemical communication and surface-associated persistence. This study investigates the antibiofilm activity of 12-hydroxystearic acid (12-HSA), evaluating its R and S enantiomers as well as a racemic mixture. E. coli BL21, biofilms were grown under standardized laboratory conditions and quantified using the Crystal Violet staining assay. Treatment with 12-HSA resulted in a measurable reduction in biofilm biomass, with differences observed between the individual enantiomers and the mixture. These findings suggest that 12-HSA influences early adhesion and biofilm development, supporting its potential as a small-molecule modulator of bacterial surface behavior. This …

Predictors Of Mental Health Clinic Staff Self-Efficacy In Recognizing And Responding To Suicide Risk, Hannah Ritz

Theses and Dissertations

Staff self-efficacy is critical to suicide prevention, yet its predictors within Zero Suicide initiatives are not well understood. Among 1,038 CCBHC staff, perceived organizational support, response-focused training, and lower suicide myth endorsement most strongly predicted self-efficacy. Clinical role and prior experiences contributed modestly, highlighting multilevel influences on workforce readiness.

The Existence Of Critical Thinking Skills In Higher Education: Evolving Or Vanishing, Michele Monroe

Theses and Dissertations

This study will encompass research on how and why a void has evolved in students' critical thinking skills between the secondary and higher education realms. The research questions that will be addressed are whether instructional methods, tools, and strategies meet the demands of our 21st-century students and how assessments facilitate students' analytical and critical thinking beyond content. The participants for this study will be four English professors from a suburban area private university. The design for this research will be a qualitative methods approach using an interpretative phenomenological design. Qualitative data will be collected through the use of interviews asking …

The Effects Of Single-Gender Private Parochial School Education On Performance In Stem Coursework, Adam Jacob Rappoport

Theses and Dissertations

Traditionally, women do not enter STEM fields as often as men. Stereotype threat could be one of the causes behind this. This study sought to examine the effects on classroom climate, self-efficacy, and performance on girls in single gender and mixed gender private parochial school settings. Eight schools were chosen, four schools with mixed gender classes and four with single gender classes. The target population were secondary school seniors currently in a STEM course. Surveys were distributed to these schools (N=222 from the mixed gender schools, N=25 from the single gender schools). The questions were answered by students using a …

Emotional Flooding: Examining Associations With Family Of Origin Violence And The Mediating Role Of Attentional Bias To Threat, Rachel Zukerman

Theses and Dissertations

Emotional flooding, or the experience of partner negative affect as intensely disorganizing and overwhelming, has recently emerged as an important variable in predicting maladaptive relationship behaviors, including intimate partner violence (IPV). However, not much is known about risk factors for flooding beyond qualities of the interpersonal interaction. While flooding depends on the experience of intense partner negative emotion, some individuals may vary regarding their propensities to feel flooded in a relatively stable way, and therefore may be more likely to engage in destructive relationship behaviors. Theory and research suggest that family violence negatively impacts emotional processing by increasing emotional arousal …

Testing Mediation Models Of Antisocial Behavior In The Context Of Parental Criminal Justice System Involvement, David Alfonso Tio

Theses and Dissertations

Parental criminal justice system involvement (CJSI) affects a significant portion of our children in a multitude of ways, including increasing the child’s risk for developing antisocial behaviors and, in doing so, perpetuating the intergenerational cycle of criminal offending that uniquely and unjustly afflicts marginalized communities of color and leaves behind what many have termed the ‘hidden victims’ of CJSI. This dissertation aimed to answer two research questions: 1. Does the division into two categories, the aggression, and rule breaking dimensions, provide a superior fitting model than the more commonly used unidimensional measure?; 2. Is it more accurate to model the …

My Writing Makes It So Others Can Feel Seen: A Queer Phenomenological Study Of Lgbtq+ College Students Affective Experiences In An Out-Of-School Poetry Workshop, Jenna L. Lynch

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the affective experiences of LGBTQ+ undergraduates in an out-of-school poetry workshop. Through the lens of queer and affect theories, the study asks the following research questions: 1) How does reading and writing poetry foster community in an LGBTQ+ out-of-school poetry workshop? (2) How can participation in an out-of-school poetry workshop with members who identify as LGBTQ+ engender a love of writing in queer students? (3) How do LGBTQ+ college students’ affective experiences manifest in a queer out-of-school poetry workshop? Using queer phenomenological methods (Ahmed, 2006) to engage with such data sources as audio and video class recordings, …

Impact Of Different Leadership Styles On Job Satisfaction Of Private Sector School Teachers In Private Schools In Pakistan, Saira Ali

Theses and Dissertations

he present study aims to investigate educational leadership styles i.e. Transformational and distributed leadership style, teacher job satisfaction, and student outcomes in secondary schools in Pakistan. The present study employed phenomenological interviews with a sample size of 5 teachers and 1 principal in order to investigate the potential relationship between transformational leadership styles and indicators of teacher satisfaction and student success. The findings of this research revealed a positive association between transformational leadership styles and both teacher satisfaction and student success. Positive school climates conducive to growth were fostered by leaders who demonstrated empathy, collaboration, and transparency. The challenges encountered …

The Perceived Knowledge Of Effects Of Radiological Effects Amongst Radiologic Professionals, Kenneth Martinucci

Theses and Dissertations

X-ray, an accidental discovery in 1895, has been used to diagnose and treat various ailments. Despite the benefits of X-rays, it has been established that the radiation has the potential to cause harm to individuals and even death following its use. The harm associated with radiation has been evidenced in various historical tragedies globally, including the Chernobyl accidents, the Goiania accidents, and even the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These incidents highlight the potential hazards associated with radiation use. Individuals exposed to the radiation from the incidents had higher risks of cancer, neurological dysfunctions, congenital disabilities, predispositions to cardiovascular …

From The Words Of Our Fathers: Black Paternal Perspectives On Literacy And Recommendations For Literacy Instruction For Black Males, Imani A. Irving

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the literacy experiences of Black fathers and their recommendations for enhancing literacy instruction for Black male children from birth through Grade 12. Grounded in African American Male Theory, the research aimed to address knowledge gaps in understanding Black male literacy experiences and provide insights for improving Black male literacy education. Using participatory action research with an initial modified Delphi approach, the study gathered potential areas of consensus among Black fathers on essential curricular revisions to promote positive Black male literacies. Participants included a purposive sample of 10 Black fathers with Black sons from birth to adulthood. Through …

Extending The Classroom Boundaries: An Evaluation Of Asynchronous Graduate Student Discussion Boards To Build Community And Critical Thinking, Robyn Menna Strausser

Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation investigates how Asynchronous Online Discussions (AODs) contribute to community building and critical thinking development among graduate students in asynchronous online courses. Grounded in the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework, the research examines the interplay of cognitive, social, teaching, and learner presences to foster collaborative learning environments and enhance analytical reasoning skills in online education. Employing a qualitative design and thematic analysis of surveys and interviews with asynchronous online graduate students, this research reveals the role of AODs in facilitating meaningful interactions that support knowledge construction and critical thinking. Findings indicate that cognitive, social, and teaching presences in AODs …

Health Literacy’S Relationship With Hearing Loss And Tinnitus In Marines And Sailors At An Air Base, Caton Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Health literacy is listed as an international health issue by the World Health Organization (WHO) and is one of the primary goals of Healthy People 2030 (USDHHR, 2023; WHO, 2023). Health literacy is the minimal amount of information needed to make appropriate health decisions (Nutbeam, 2017). Individuals must have adequate health literacy to sufficiently read and comprehend medical brochures and medical pamphlets and understand verbal instructions from their medical providers (Bo et al., 2014). Poor health literacy can reduce overall quality of life and access to health care. Health literacy is lower in adolescents and lower socioeconomic groups; therefore, the …

The Implementation Of Social-Emotional Learning: The Role Of Leadership And Administrative Support In Producing Change, Joann M. Luisa

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative dissertation explores the administrative implementation and organizational change required for effective social-emotional learning (SEL) programs in K-12 schools. Through interviews with school educators, psychologists, social worker, deans, administrators and assistant superintendents along with analysis of implementation documents from multiple district buildings, this research examines the key factors, challenges, and best practices in implementing comprehensive SEL practices. The findings of this study imply that successful SEL implementation requires several collaborative alignments to be successful. District-wide commitment, planning for individual schools, and ongoing support and professional development for staff are vital to the success of this implementation. Strong leadership from …

The Perceived Self-Efficacy, Barriers, Facilitators, And Needs Of Special Education Teachers That Teach Reading To Elementary Students With Emotional Disabilities, Donna Mecca

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of elementary special education teachers who work in self-contained classrooms with students who have emotional disabilities. This research sought to understand the perceived self-efficacy teachers had for teaching reading to this population of learners, and to further explore the perceived barriers, facilitators, and needs they have related to reading instruction. Participants included sixteen teachers and one specialist from a large public-school division in the southeastern region of the United States. The data for this study was collected through teacher completion of an online survey and through individual semi-structured interviews. The …

Perspectives From Mentees And Mentors: A Study Of How Mentor Programs Influence Teacher Self-Efficacy, Patricia Sihksnel

Theses and Dissertations

School districts often implement teacher mentor programs to support educators new to teaching. The components of mentor program frameworks require further research to determine their effectiveness in supporting new teachers. This non-experimental correlational study used Kram’s Mentor Theory and Bandura’s Self-Efficacy theory to determine if there is a significant influence of mentor programs on new teacher self-efficacy, classroom environment, instruction, and preparation and planning. The participants were teachers who have served as a mentor or mentee from suburban school districts in the northeastern United States. This study used a survey to collect participants’ demographic data and mentor program characteristics. Data …