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Crossing The Tracks: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of An Urban Inner City Charter High-School, Yuliya Reznikova-Eisenberg Jan 2016

Crossing The Tracks: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of An Urban Inner City Charter High-School, Yuliya Reznikova-Eisenberg

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the college-related self-efficacy of 12th Grade English learners enrolled in a public charter school in Southern California. College-related self-efficacy is defined as a student's belief that they can attend college. This qualitative exploratory study was designed to explore the beliefs and attitudes that current English language learners (ELL) have regarding the possibility of attending college. A cross sectional data collection approach was utilized to explore college-related self-efficacy during English Learner's senior year. The senior class studied was the first to experience a high-school pathway designed to culminate in English language learners …

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Best Storytelling Practices In Education, Calvin Bonds Jan 2016

Best Storytelling Practices In Education, Calvin Bonds

Theses and Dissertations

Effective teaching strategies can be defined as utilizing the higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy, which include understanding, application and analysis (Flynn, Mesibov, Vermette & Smith, 2004). Teachers that use effective teaching strategies can significantly impact the future earnings of their students. Students that are recipients of these strategies receive a higher quality of K-12 education, which leads to a higher caliber of colleges and universities chosen. As a result of the higher education institutions attended, students become more competitive when entering an evolving workforce, earning higher salaries. This study explores the effective teaching strategy of storytelling. It identifies best practices …

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Self-Perceived Cognitive Decline, Neuropsychological Functioning, And Depressive Symptoms In Hiv+ Spanish-Speakers, Ahoo Karimian Jan 2016

Self-Perceived Cognitive Decline, Neuropsychological Functioning, And Depressive Symptoms In Hiv+ Spanish-Speakers, Ahoo Karimian

Theses and Dissertations

Within the United States, HIV is a growing epidemic that has important neuropsychological and functional consequences. Early detection and treatment of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) is associated with better outcomes. In major metropolitan areas such Los Angeles County, HIV disproportionately impacts the Latino community. For those individuals who are primarily Spanish-speakers, there may be limited access to comprehensive neuropsychological assessment in the preferred language. Consequently, self-reports of cognitive functioning are often relied on to help determine the presence of HAND. However, self-reports of cognitive decline may be influenced by factors such as depressed mood, variable motivation, and culture, raising important …

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Custom-Built Environments For Communities Of Online Informal Learning: An Exploratory Study Of Tools, Structures, And Strategies, Kim Welch Jan 2016

Custom-Built Environments For Communities Of Online Informal Learning: An Exploratory Study Of Tools, Structures, And Strategies, Kim Welch

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative, exploratory study grouped together and explored custom-built environments for communities of online informal learning (COILs) with a special lens on the socio-technical relationship of platform tools, structures, and strategies that lead to social learning. The study was conducted through a three-phase process. First, a list of possible candidate sites was analyzed for appropriate fit based on the defining terms of a custom-built COIL environment. Second, an observational content analysis was implemented on 10 of the sites to aggregate a list of the tools, structures, and strategies used in the sites. Lastly, the same 10 sites and the lists …

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Modification Of The "Gold Standard"? Leadership Selection From An Attachment Lens: A Critical Analysis., Rebecca Pearlstein Jan 2016

Modification Of The "Gold Standard"? Leadership Selection From An Attachment Lens: A Critical Analysis., Rebecca Pearlstein

Theses and Dissertations

The demands of corporate America are placing increased pressures on supervisors and executives to create and manage optimal organizational cultures. Relational capabilities and emotional intelligence have come to the fore as an essential component of effective and successful business leadership. When leaders are unable to create positive relationships with their working teams and navigate the day-to-day stressors of the workplace, the costs can be significant. In addition to losses in productivity, absenteeism, stress, burnout, and demoralization all take a heavy toll. From the perspective of attachment theory, the ability to connect with others, cope with stress, and engage in productive …

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Strategic School Solutions: A Capacity Building Framework For Leaders Accelerating 21st Century Teaching And Learning, Alessaundra D. Mills Jan 2016

Strategic School Solutions: A Capacity Building Framework For Leaders Accelerating 21st Century Teaching And Learning, Alessaundra D. Mills

Theses and Dissertations

This grounded theory study sought to create a viable framework that may help school leaders accelerate the expansion of an authentic 21st century instructional model. The U.S. economy is now more dependent on knowledge work than manufacturing. Yet, many for-profit, non-profit, and public sectors perceive schools as not adequately preparing students for 21st century careers and colleges. However, customary principal-led change is challenging. Leaders face several complex organizational challenges, including a modern-day duty and role expansion that limits time, and the inherent difficulty of human-behavior and organizational change, observed in the fact that schools have deeply entrenched norms: an estimated …

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Stem-Themed Schools: A Case Study Of Its Effect On Student Educational Pathways, Monika R. Mcknight Jan 2016

Stem-Themed Schools: A Case Study Of Its Effect On Student Educational Pathways, Monika R. Mcknight

Theses and Dissertations

As the country looks to increase the STEM workforce it is important to examine the effect of the programs in place, specifically the effect on the students choices in education. The Mathematics & Science Academy (MSA), is a STEM-themed, public magnet school in Southern California whose mission is to increase the nation’s pool of graduates in mathematics and science. It is 1 of the many schools and programs in place to increase the United States (U.S.) Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce. This study, designed as a qualitative case study investigated how MSA has influenced female, African American students …

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Healing From Historical Trauma For Persons Of African Ancestry In The United States: An African Centered Psychology Approach To Wellness, Elizabeth Burke-Maynard Jan 2016

Healing From Historical Trauma For Persons Of African Ancestry In The United States: An African Centered Psychology Approach To Wellness, Elizabeth Burke-Maynard

Theses and Dissertations

This critical analysis of the literature explores the potential of African-centered psychology to address the sequelae of historical trauma in the 21st century persons of African ancestry in the United States. African American face significant health and wellness challenges including socioeconomic disparities, interpersonal violence, substance abuse, psycho-spiritual distress, and physical health issues. The literature questions the validity of mainstream psychological science to effectively conceptualize and treat persons of African ancestry, and calls for the identification of specific, culturally relevant interventions to increase physical and psychological wellness. The concept of historical trauma helps to explain the psycho-spiritual distress experienced by many …

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An Examination Of The Practice Of Aligning Speech-Language Therapy Goals To The Common Core State Standards For English Language Arts, Gerard Francis Shine Dec 2015

An Examination Of The Practice Of Aligning Speech-Language Therapy Goals To The Common Core State Standards For English Language Arts, Gerard Francis Shine

Theses and Dissertations

Implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is now a curriculum priority for school districts across the United States. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are exploring ways to incorporate the CCSS into their assessment and therapy practices. Literature centered on the development of language goals aligned with the CCSS for English language arts (ELA) was limited. The purpose of this study was to identify if SLPs working in public elementary and middle school settings had adopted the practice of aligning their language-intervention goals to the CCSS for ELA for students on their caseloads. Perceived feasibility of language goal alignment to the …

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Using Literature Circles To Increase Reading Comprehension And Student Motivation, Michelle Jacobs Dec 2015

Using Literature Circles To Increase Reading Comprehension And Student Motivation, Michelle Jacobs

Theses and Dissertations

Many educators arrange students in guided reading groups based on their reading lexile. Usually the books selected for guided reading are from a basal reading series and are used to teach different reading components and strategies. However, the books don’t always reflect student cultures, making it difficult for students to hold discussions and make connections. Oftentimes, students are unmotivated to read the assigned books and rarely engage in discussions. Based on research conducted by Daniels (2006), when kids are engaged in well-structured book clubs their comprehension and their attitude towards reading both improve. With ongoing changes in education, educators must …

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Performing Conquest And Resistance In The Streets Of Eighteenth Century Potosí: Identity And Artifice In The Cityscapes Of Gaspar Miguel De Berrío And Melchor Pérez De Holguín, Agnieszka A. Ficek Dec 2015

Performing Conquest And Resistance In The Streets Of Eighteenth Century Potosí: Identity And Artifice In The Cityscapes Of Gaspar Miguel De Berrío And Melchor Pérez De Holguín, Agnieszka A. Ficek

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the ways in which Potosí's two most influential colonial artists represented the urban dynamics of race, class and labor in their depictions of the Andean 'City of Silver' during the eighteenth century, when silver production, profits and population were dramatically declining.

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Archival Enactment, Retelling 'The Big Book': Alison Knowles, Something Else Press And Fluxus, Meghan A. Dellacrosse Dec 2015

Archival Enactment, Retelling 'The Big Book': Alison Knowles, Something Else Press And Fluxus, Meghan A. Dellacrosse

Theses and Dissertations

"Archival Enactment, Retelling 'The Big Book': Alison Knowles, Something Else Press and Fluxus," positions Knowles’ Big Book (1966) as a case study of historical methodology and interdisciplinary artistic practice in the post-war period. This comprehensive analysis of Big Book, a work of art no longer extant, contextualizes its publisher, Something Else Press through Dick Higgins’ concept of “intermedia,” and important lesser-known junctures relevant to Fluxus and the group’s leader George Maciunas are illuminated. Knowles' early and lesser-known silkscreen paintings are also examined.

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Assessment Of Classifiers For Potential Voice-Enabled Transportation Apps, Md Majbah Uddin Dec 2015

Assessment Of Classifiers For Potential Voice-Enabled Transportation Apps, Md Majbah Uddin

Theses and Dissertations

Transportation apps are playing a positive role for today’s technology-driven users. They provide users with a convenient and flexible tool to access transportation data and services, as well as collect and manage data. In many of these apps, such as Google Maps, their operations rely on the effectiveness of the voice recognition system. For the existing and new apps to be truly effective, the built-in voice recognition system needs to be robust (i.e., being able to recognize words spoken in different pitch and tone). The goal of this study is to assess three post-processing classifiers (i.e., bag-of-sentences, support vector machine, …

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Beyond Ideals: Proslavery Reforms On A Nineteenth-Century Cotton Plantation, Kevin R. Fogle Dec 2015

Beyond Ideals: Proslavery Reforms On A Nineteenth-Century Cotton Plantation, Kevin R. Fogle

Theses and Dissertations

The last four decades of the antebellum period witnessed the rise of a proslavery plantation reform movement aimed at preserving slavery in the face of increasing abolitionist pressure. Reformers promoted the image of ideal enslaved households operating as part of efficient modern plantations ruled by reason, benevolent management techniques, and scientific agriculture. Where implemented, reforms resulted in numerous changes to plantation life both around the home and in the fields. Slaves who bore the brunt of these changes struggled to resist plantation reforms or grudgingly accepted them depending on the impact upon established daily routines and any potential benefits bondsmen …

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Relationship Between Job Satisfaction Among Frontline Staff And Patient Satisfaction: Evidence From Community Health Centers In South Carolina, Ashley Lynn Barnes Dec 2015

Relationship Between Job Satisfaction Among Frontline Staff And Patient Satisfaction: Evidence From Community Health Centers In South Carolina, Ashley Lynn Barnes

Theses and Dissertations

The role of frontline staff (FLS) is vital to the success of health delivery organizations as they are often the main point of patient contact and the primary source of feedback regarding the patient experience and satisfaction. Anecdotal evidence suggests that FLS have among the highest turnover rates in health delivery organizations, resulting in high recruitment and training costs as well as disruptions in day-to-day operations. However, few studies have examined the role of FLS and the factors affecting job satisfaction among FLS. Researchers have also not examined the impact of FLS satisfaction on patient satisfaction. To address these research …

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Framing Risk, Responsibility, And Resolution: A Mixed-Methods Study Exploring Traditional And Social Media Coverage Of The 2014 Elk River Chemical Spill, Tracey Thomas Dec 2015

Framing Risk, Responsibility, And Resolution: A Mixed-Methods Study Exploring Traditional And Social Media Coverage Of The 2014 Elk River Chemical Spill, Tracey Thomas

Theses and Dissertations

Background: The 2014 Elk River Chemical Spill raised policy questions concerning chemical safety and revealed an immediate need for improved emergency communication. This two-phase study explored how media presented causes of and longterm solutions to the spill through an examination of media frames. The study also explored how health risks were communicated through traditional and social media. The specific aims of Phase I were to examine media coverage in the days following the spill and compare coverage across media channels. The specific aims of Phase II were to understand how public health stakeholders perceived coverage of the spill and how …

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A Phenomenological Study Of The Experiences Of Parents Of A Child Or Children Diagnosed With Deafness, David Patrick Leach Dec 2015

A Phenomenological Study Of The Experiences Of Parents Of A Child Or Children Diagnosed With Deafness, David Patrick Leach

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examined the lived experiences of twelve parents who have a child or children diagnosed with deafness, and the meaning these parents have made of their experiences. The researcher conducted individual, semi-structured interviews and analyzed the data in accordance with the practices of phenomenological research. Thirty-seven themes were identified in the interview data, which were discussed in terms of their implications for efficacious clinical services to this population, as well as for the field of counselor education.

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Invective Drag: Talking Dirty In Catullus, Cicero, Horace, And Ovid, Casey Catherine Moore Dec 2015

Invective Drag: Talking Dirty In Catullus, Cicero, Horace, And Ovid, Casey Catherine Moore

Theses and Dissertations

Invective Drag: Talking Dirty in Catullus, Cicero, Horace, and Ovid, studies the relationship between invective texts and masculine self-fashioning. Using gender theory, rhetorical theory, and philology, I examine how invective speech in these authors operates outside the normative social parameters of Roman masculinity.. I examine the invectives of Catullus, Cicero, Horace, and Ovid to argue that in the speaker’s aggressive articulation of masculinity, he often ends up effeminizing or queering himself as he attempts to make his opponents radically other. I show that the hypermasculine speaker of the invective genre utilizes a strategy I term “invective drag,” the adoption of …

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Framing Death: Politics, Meaning, And The Strategic Communication Of Organ Donation Messages In South Carolina, Jeremy T. Vanderknyff Dec 2015

Framing Death: Politics, Meaning, And The Strategic Communication Of Organ Donation Messages In South Carolina, Jeremy T. Vanderknyff

Theses and Dissertations

This study applies framing theory within a critical-interpretive anthropological context to understand how organ procurement organizations (OPOs) design messages to promote organ donation registration and how cultural factors including notions of embodiment and structural inequalities influence audiences’ processing of those messages. The first part of the study employs content analysis to deductively identify OPO-produced message frames. The second part of the study uses focus groups across South Carolina to explore audience reactions to different message frames. Themes from donors and non-donors alike reflected a mistrust of the medical establishment, a keen awareness of structural inequality, and complex notions of embodiment …

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A Case Study Of An Elementary School's Reading Assessment Practices While Implementing Response To Intervention, Sandy A. Davidson Dec 2015

A Case Study Of An Elementary School's Reading Assessment Practices While Implementing Response To Intervention, Sandy A. Davidson

Theses and Dissertations

This case study, conducted during the 2014-2015 school year, examined the reading comprehension instruction and assessment practices at an elementary school implementing the Response to Intervention (RtI) framework. Observed assessment practices were compared to what the International Literacy Association (ILA) deems appropriate assessment standards for literacy achievement. 3 educators from an elementary school (~ 750 students) participated in this case study. The participants included females of various backgrounds; a school administrator, lead teacher, and fourth grade classroom teacher. 3 research questions guided this case study: (1) What does reading comprehension assessment look like in a school implementing RtI?; (2) What …

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Interactive Whiteboards And Tpack For Technology-Enhanced Learning: Secondary Mathematics Teachers Barriers, Beliefs, And Support Needs In One Rural School District, Shelita Mccadney Brown Dec 2015

Interactive Whiteboards And Tpack For Technology-Enhanced Learning: Secondary Mathematics Teachers Barriers, Beliefs, And Support Needs In One Rural School District, Shelita Mccadney Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Low-income students and blacks make up nearly half of public school students, and on nearly every indicator of educational access, particularly technology, these students have less access than white affluent students (Darling-Hammond, Zielezinski, and Goldman, 2014). The National Center for Education Statistics (2005) reported that teacher quality and missed opportunities to learn accounted for 93% of African Americans, and 87% of Hispanics performing below proficiency in mathematics. Students that do not master mathematics standards by the end of compulsory education are less likely to complete general mathematics courses in upper secondary school and beyond successfully (Levpušček, Zupančič, & Sočan, 2013). …

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The Impact Of Athletic Participation On At-Risk High School Students, Anthony D. Blevins Dec 2015

The Impact Of Athletic Participation On At-Risk High School Students, Anthony D. Blevins

Theses and Dissertations

The need to lessen the dropout rate for America’s high schools necessitated a search for answers by examining the impact of athletic participation on at-risk high school students. Research supports the contention that benefits athletics for students at-risk of dropping out. However, the majority of empirical research on athletic participation has been conducted on athletes and non-athletes, leaving a gap in regard to at-risk students. The study provides a comparison between athletic participation and non-participation with at-risk students. The goal of this study was to share the findings of an investigation of the impact of athletic participation on at-risk high …

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Influences Of African American English On Cognitive Processing And Reading Comprehension For African American Adolescent Readers, Alma Renee Dawson Dec 2015

Influences Of African American English On Cognitive Processing And Reading Comprehension For African American Adolescent Readers, Alma Renee Dawson

Theses and Dissertations

There has been a virtual wave of studies investigating influences of African American English on academic achievement. Many of these studies have taken a sociolinguistic stance citing language stratification and low perception of the language as causes for the success and failures of these students. Others have suggested that the language used in family and community settings are not congruent with the academic language in school. In this study, I investigated the influences of African American English on reading achievement from a psycholinguistic perspective. This study analyzed the oral language, linguistics, and the cognitive processing behaviors of African American students …

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A Qualitative Analysis Of The English Language Teaching Practices Of Latter-Day Saint Missionaries, Rachel Tui Smith Dec 2015

A Qualitative Analysis Of The English Language Teaching Practices Of Latter-Day Saint Missionaries, Rachel Tui Smith

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the teaching practices of recently returned Latter-day Saint (LDS) missionaries who voluntarily taught the English language on their full-time missions' serving for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout various parts of the world. The analyses performed in this research offer an insider's perspective by looking at a large selection of qualitative data gathered directly from these missionaries to provide evidential insight into what those practices are, including the most effective and the most ineffective teaching practices as principally perceived by the missionaries themselves. Thus far, there has been no research reported or data gathered …

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The Development Of An Esp Vocabulary Study Guidefor The Utah State Driver Handbook, Kirsten M. Brown Dec 2015

The Development Of An Esp Vocabulary Study Guidefor The Utah State Driver Handbook, Kirsten M. Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis project details research conducted and the method employed to create a tool for acquiring the technical vocabulary from the Utah Driver Handbook. Technical terms were compiled into a vocabulary tool for English as a Second Language (ESL) learners. ESL programs within the state have noted the need for materials to help learners acquire this vocabulary. The tool will assist ESL learners preparing for the written driving exam by reinforcing the vocabulary through various iterations, including flash cards, simplified definitions, and an L1 gloss. Learners preparing for the exam will be able to study difficult vocabulary terms using the …

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Syriac Rhetorical Particles: Variable Second-Position Clitic Placement, Patrick Brendon Pearson Dec 2015

Syriac Rhetorical Particles: Variable Second-Position Clitic Placement, Patrick Brendon Pearson

Theses and Dissertations

Investigation on second-position clitic phenomena has steadily increased since Wackernagel’s (1892) observations. Researchers have applied contemporary clitic typology to various Semitic languages though Syriac has received little attention. This thesis identifies a group of Syriac rhetorical particles and describes their categorization as clitics, versus words or affixes. It establishes each of the Syriac particles as second-position clitics and provides evidence of this conclusion from a state-of-the-art digitized corpus of Syriac literature. Extending previous Syriac analyses, this thesis describes the nature of attachment of these second-position clitics as enclisis to either the first word or the first constituent/phrase of their domain. …

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Exploring The Language Of Assessment On Reading Proficiency Exams Of Advanced Learners Of Russian, Jeremy S. Evans Dec 2015

Exploring The Language Of Assessment On Reading Proficiency Exams Of Advanced Learners Of Russian, Jeremy S. Evans

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have intermittently treated the topic of the language in which reading comprehension test questions should be presented in, or language of assessment (LoA). The overall consensus has been that questions in L1 lead to better scores and that questions in L1 should be used for reading comprehension particularly at the beginning levels. However, minimal research has been conducted at the advanced level, and no research has been found where proficiency items, empirically validated, were utilized in testing instruments. Furthermore, explanatory data from qualitative analysis has been sparse. The present research endeavored to satisfy these areas of needed research. It …

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A Page Of Her Own: How Women Navigate The Public And Private Facets Of Blogging, Emily Marie Flinders Dec 2015

A Page Of Her Own: How Women Navigate The Public And Private Facets Of Blogging, Emily Marie Flinders

Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores the complexity of the texts women create through blogging and their inherent value. I seek to explore how the mothers who blog are constructing online identities for their family units and family members in this space and how those constructions affect and inform the mothers' construction of their personal identities online. I analyze how perceptions of gender norms and practices of gender performance may affect and inform the identities thus constructed, and further complicate the liminal nature of blogging spaces. I begin with the sociological framework of Erving Goffman, which is commonly used to deconstruct identity performance …

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Teacher Participation And Motivation Inprofessional Development, Krystal A. Hill Dec 2015

Teacher Participation And Motivation Inprofessional Development, Krystal A. Hill

Theses and Dissertations

Although professional development is accepted as important for making educational improvements, some have been unsuccessful due to how the teachers choose to participate, and the lack of motivation in teachers to attend or implement the suggested changes. A case study of secondary mathematics teachers in a required professional development is used to look at teachers' motivation and participation during the professional development. This study compared mathematics teachers' motivation to attend with ways of participating in order to determine how these influence a teacher's intent to change. It was found that certain aspects of motivation and participation does influence a teacher's …

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The Right Ear Advantage In Response To Levels Of Linguistic Complexity: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study, Elizabeth Hyatt Dec 2015

The Right Ear Advantage In Response To Levels Of Linguistic Complexity: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study, Elizabeth Hyatt

Theses and Dissertations

The right ear advantage (REA) phenomenon has been utilized in clinical and research settings to study auditory processing disorders and linguistic lateralization. Previous research has established that the REA is not reliable in its measures within or between individuals. This is likely due to the influence of other variables, such as neuromaturation and attention. One variable that has not been studied in depth in this context is linguistic complexity. It was hypothesized that stimulus conditions with levels of linguistic complexity would elicit corresponding levels of temporal lobe activity. Understanding and controlling the variables that affect the REA will increase the …

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