Digital Commons Network^™

A Comprehensive Description And Critical Analysis Of Portfolio Assessment, Cindy J. Simione

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive description of portfolio assessment and analyze critically the use of portfolios for student assessment at the high school level with specific application to the mathematics content area.

A portfolio is a purposeful collection of student work that demonstrates their learning experiences, knowledge, applications and development over time. There are many variations of portfolio assessment depending upon the specific purpose of compiling the portfolio.

Portfolio assessment is a new trend in the area of student assessment that will address the need for an alternative to traditional pencil and paper testing procedures. …

A Study Of The Implications Of The Internet Upon Two-Way Symmetric Communication In Public Relations, Tarek M. El-Kharboutly

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined the implications and ramifications of the advent of online communication technologies, such as the Internet, on the profession of public relations.

As brokers of information, public relations professionals must adapt to and incorporate online tools into their arsenals. As the consumer public takes to the Internet in search of information, the Internet provides a means by which organizations can gauge which issues are of concern. It is the only alternative to falling out of touch with a restless consumer public that demands ever-higher levels of customer service.

The author presented a case study of the Pentium microprocessor …

A Study Of Public Relations Practice In The Tobacco Industry: Misuse And Social Responsibility, Andrew M. Casper

Theses and Dissertations

The study's major purpose was to improve the quality and reputation of public relations practice in private industry. The study examined needed improvements m public relations by focusing on the ineffectual and negative practices of the tobacco industry, Also, the study reviewed public and media perceptions of tobacco companies.

The research involved telephone inquiries, information from not-for-profit organizations, and a review of 108 publications using the headings, "Public Relations" and "Tobacco Industry."

Other research included an opinion survey administered to 100 undergraduate students at Rowan College of New Jersey.

Survey results found that a majority of students, smokers, and nonsmokers …

A Survey Of The State Of Teacher Effectiveness In Four South Jersey High Schools, Maryanne A. Knudsen

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' subjective perception of their teaching effectiveness and the factors that facilitate and/or inhibit their sense of efficacy in four South Jersey high schools. In addition, two problems were examined as to the impact of class size on teaching efficacy and does experience in teaching affect a teacher's sense of effectiveness?

The sample was selected from high school teachers in a two county area in southern New Jersey. Teachers were given a questionnaire to complete which was designed to identify important attitudes toward teaching efficacy. A total of 275 questionnaires were distributed …

A Study Of Meeting Planners' Tactics To Market Conferences, Seminars, And Workshops, Erika March

Theses and Dissertations

This study identified, through secondary research and a written survey, methods to effectively market meetings. The research found patterns in the areas of Communication, Direct Mail, Program Planning, Feedback/Evaluation, and Follow-up. These research areas were used in forming the structure of the survey questions.

The meeting planning survey was sent to 17 meeting planners who were chosen based on a June 1995 ranking in Meeting News as "The 25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry." The 25 represent different types of planners in different industries. These planners were surveyed to obtain marketing ideas from the top meeting planners in …

Secondary Teachers' Attitudes Toward Increased Mainstreaming: Use Of Effective Instruction For Students With Learning Disabilities, Nancy Tartaglione

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the types of instructional strategies offered in mainstream classes. Twenty mainstream teachers of academic subjects in grades 9 through 12 were asked to complete a self-evaluation concerning instructional strategies used in their general education classes. Also, the teachers completed a questionnaire concerning their attitudes toward mainstreaming and their perception of the success of the mainstreaming program in their school. Results indicate that over one third of the teachers felt no strong commitment to mainstreaming and did not utilize many instructional modifications that are proven to benefit students with disabilities. Implications of these …

A Study To Determine The Effects Of Word Recognition Scores On Total Grade Level Scores For Adolescents With Reading Disabilities, Wesley L. Myers Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

A large majority of classified students have reading problems. Many of these classified students fall behind in reading because their decoding skills are deficient in first and second grades when most children begin to read. This study was an attempt to find out if students who are at least three grade levels behind their same age peers in reading could benefit from a direct instruction flash card procedure to see if an increase in word recognition scores would result in increased scores on total reading scores. The study used a pretest posttest data gathering technique with an experimental versus control …

A Descriptive Analysis Of Students Referred To A Pre-Referral Intervention Committee, Kelly A. Cruice

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to descriptively analyze the students referred to the pre-referral process in one New Jersey suburban school. The pre-referral process used in this school is a pre-referral intervention committee.

The sample size consists of twenty-one students from elementary school grades kindergarten through grade six. The descriptive data was obtained by developing a coding instrument and coding data from student files. The major method of data analysis used is percentages.

This study yielded the following findings: a majority of the students referred were boys, the total sample scored below average on all areas of standardized tests, …

The Effects Of Premenstrual Syndrome On Women With Mental Disabilities, Richard H. Doughty Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Studies have shown that P.M.S. has a negative effect for women on many aspects of life. P.M.S. seems to affect social situations, family life, stress, mood, substance abuse, and crime. The purpose of this one way analysis study is to evaluate the effects of P.M.S. on women with mental disabilities with non-compliant behaviors. Fifty women, whose intelligence quotient levels range between severe and profound, who reside in an institution for individuals with mental disabilities were selected for this study. Each woman has some type of non-compliant behavior. Each female has been placed on a behavior modification program plan to reduce …

A Study Of General Education Teachers' Perceptions Of Their Ability To Provide Effective Instruction In An Inclusive Model, Judith A. Myers

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to determine if general educators felt they were meeting the diverse needs of classified students in the mainstream setting. The sample consisted of twenty teachers from an elementary school in an affluent community. The classification of the special education students ranged from perceptually impaired to emotionally disturbed. A questionnaire consisting of four open ended questions was distributed and content analysis methodology was used to analyze the responses. Fifty-five percent of those surveyed felt they had a positive experience teaching the special education student, while thirty percent expressed negative experiences and fifteen percent of the …

Enrichment Course In Environmental Education For Studying Coastal Wetlands Ecology Through The Visual Arts, Cynthia Lynn Hasbrouck

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to develop an environmental education course to be offered to students in grades 4-6 at the Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor, New Jersey. The course was designed to teach coastal wetlands ecology through the visual arts to supplement and enrich the current environmental education program offered by the Institute. Although the course is designed specifically for use at the Institute, the activities can be adapted to a similar wetland site and used in part by a resourceful teacher to suit the needs of students of any age or level.

The course format consists of …

The Faculty Writing Seminars As A Means Of Faculty Development: Enhancing Faculty Writing, Improving Instructions, And Fostering Collegiality, Joyce A. White

Theses and Dissertations

University faculty are charged with three major responsibilities: research, teaching, and service. While universities have developed various strategies to assist faculty in balancing these professional demands, minimal institutional effort has been devoted to nurturing faculty writing, despite the fact that scholarly research productivity is in reality the primary criterion for decisions regarding promotion and tenure. In the last ten years, however, several faculty writing support groups have been instituted to address this aspect of faculty development.

This study examined the University of North Dakota Faculty Writing Seminar to determine the effectiveness of the Seminar as a means of increasing scholarly …

Development Of A Grant Proposal For Funding Of A Nonprofit Land Conservation Organization, Janet Eisenhauer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to solve the dilemma of how to acquire funding for operational expenses of a private nonprofit land conservation organization through foundation grants. A model grant proposal is also developed as part of the study.

The methods employed to determine strategies and to develop a grant proposal for funding of operational expenses for a private nonprofit land conservation organization include: review of literature on grantswriting, and interviews with foundation representatives, conservation organization grantswriters and others in the field of conservation organization fund raising.

Based on the literature review and interviews carried out, it was determined …

An Enrichment Unit On Local Water Resources And Water Conservation To Supplement Eighth Grade Earth Science Curriculum, Michele Junod Memis

Theses and Dissertations

Currently, there is no written curriculum for educating students about local water resources and water conservation practices in the Glassboro Eighth Grade Earth Science Curriculum. Utilizing all available references and agencies, (federal, state and local) the author created an enrichment unit dealing with local water resources and water conservation practices to supplement the existing Eighth Grade Science Curriculum, specifically the Geology unit of the Merrill Earth Science textbook. The lessons are hands-on activities which promote critical thinking, problem solving, and cooperative learning. Though designed for a specific audience and for a specific reason, lessons in the unit can be easily …

Characterization Of Spatial And Temporal Anisotropy In Turbulent Mixing Layers Using Optical Techniques, Patrick J. Gardner

Theses and Dissertations

The optical aberrations induced by mixing layers of dissimilar gases are recorded and analyzed in order to characterize the spatial and temporal properties of the flow. Laser light was propagated through a mixing layer of Helium and Nitrogen gas, having velocities of 8.5 m/sec and 1.5 m/sec, respectively. The light was propagated in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the mixing layer. The mixing layer was evaluated in two experimental regimes: free turbulent mixing, where the mixing layer spreads into the surrounding air; and channel flow, where the mixing layer is confined to a rectangular channel. The optical perturbations …

Perceptionsof School Personnel Regarding A Site-Based Decision-Making Model In Four Elementary Schools In Northwestern Minnesota, Judith Lynn Lindquist

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Misinformation As Revealed Through The Concealed Knowledge Test, Susan L. Amato-Henderson

Theses and Dissertations

Misinformation effects occur reliably in laboratory settings despite disagreement over the mechanism(s) responsible for such effects. Both memory impairment hypotheses (e.g.f Lindsay & Johnson, 1987; Loftus 1975, 1977, 1979; Loftus & Hoffman, 1989; Tversky & Tuchin, 1989) and non-impairment hypotheses (e.g., McCloskey & Zaragoza, 1985; Zaragoza, McCloskey, & Jamis, 1987) have been used to explain the phenomenon of misinformation. The present study examined the effects of misinformation on the Concealed Knowledge Test (CKT), a psychophysiological detection of deception technique. Furthermore, the psychophysiological measurements were used to elucidate the controversy surrounding the misinformation effect. Ninety-six subjects watched a videotaped crime used …

Adolescent Tobacco Use : A Generation Up In Smoke, Kay L. Provo

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescent tobacco use is on the rise in the United States. It is a significant health problem. In spite of the fact that adult smoking has decreased dramatically since 1964, the number of adolescent smokers remains high and has not decreased for the last 7 years (Winkelstein, 1992). The purpose of this study was to investigate adolescent tobacco use among ninth-grade students in five rural communities. Specifically, the following questions were addressed:

1. What is the incidence of tobacco use among ninth graders in rural communities?

2. Which variables influence rural adolescents' tobacco use?

3. Where and from whom do …

The Effects Of Positive Action And The Sexual Abuse Prevention Program On Sexually Abused Students' Behavior, Social Skills, And Self-Esteem, Paul W. Houser

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine the effects of the Positive Action Program and the Sexual Abuse Prevention Program on sexually abused students' behavior, social skills, and self-esteem. Four classrooms of multiple handicapped elementary aged students in Burlington County Special Services District were selected, giving a sample of forty-four. Each week pupils received four lessons, for twenty minutes each, of instruction in the two programs. Prior to program implementation in the Fall and again in the Spring students rated their social skills development, behavior problems, and self-esteem.

Results indicated that the programs in the course of only a six month …

A Comparison Of The Learning Styles Of Community College Versus Four-Year College And Male Versus Female College Students, Michele M. Booth

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the learning styles of community college versus four year college General Psychology students and male versus female college students from the combined groups, to ascertain if differences in learning style existed between the groups. The study identified David Kolb's Learning Styles Inventory elements that were important to the males/females and community college/four-year college students.

The sample included 16 General Psychology students from Salem Community College, and 29 General Psychology students from Rowan College. There were 27 female and 18 male students who participated from Salem Community College and Rowan College combined.

All …

Performance Study Of Shared Versus Nonshared Bandwidth On A Packet-Switched Network, John P. Stevens

Theses and Dissertations

In wide area computer data communications, many networks have evolved by satisfying increased user demands in the most expedient manner. In some cases, new users’ demands are satisfied by installing a new link, rather than sharing the links that are already in place. This research investigates the differences in performance between using a dedicated link for each source destination pair (nonshared bandwidth) and using a single link to be used by all source destination pairs (shared bandwidth). Simulation models are developed for a wide area network using shared bandwidth, and a wide area network using nonshared bandwidth. The quality of …

A Response Surface Methodology Approach To Groundwater Model Calibration, Jeffrey B. Rowland

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined the effect of parameter bounding, a reduced data set, and data enrichment techniques on a response surface methodology (RSM) approach to groundwater model calibration. The four phases of the study included a calibration using a very dense data matrix, a calibration using a sparse calibration matrix, an evaluation of several data enrichment techniques, and a calibration using a data matrix enlarged with the use of the best enrichment technique. All calibrations were conducted using only a first order approximation to the response surface and with bounds placed on the input parameters. The first two calibrations using the …

A Study Of The Integration Of Language Arts In An Elementary Music Curriculum, Kimberly Ann Kell

Theses and Dissertations

The problem of this study was to determine the effects of the integration of the language arts in a first grade music curriculum.

Two first grade classes from the Marie D. Durand Elementary School, in Vineland NJ, participated in the study. The groups received 12 weeks of an integrated language arts music curriculum based on materials from Harcourt, Brace, and Jovanovich (HBJ) reading series and Carson-Dellosa "Phonics Fun K-1." The two control groups, which also consisted of first grades, received traditional music instruction, with no specific emphasis on the language arts.

For problem one, a survey was administered to all …

A Public Relations Plan For The New Jersey Association Of Family And Consumer Sciences Regarding The Association Name Change And Its Impact On The Profession, Linda A. Strieter

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to create a public relations plan to help promote wide acceptance of the name change, Association of Family and Consumer Sciences and a better understanding of the profession's future in New Jersey among its members. For non-Association members, awareness of the name change and its ramifications are the goals.

A scientific random survey of approximately 10 percent of Association members in November 1995 revealed an almost equal split in opinion about the name change among those questioned.

When most of the membership understands the benefits of the name change, the feeling will become more …

Occupational Sex Type And Gender Differences In Vocational Preference: An Internal Analysis Of Item Bias On Selected Items Of The Strong Interest Inventory Using Dif Procedures., Jesse R. Aros

Theses and Dissertations

Presenting problem. The measurement of expressed occupational preference continues to be affected by occupational sextyping, a non-interest related variable. Teasing out bias (sextype) from restrictiveness (real and artifact gender differences) is needed to help improve sex-fairness in vocational measurement. Occupational sextyping may affect internalizations of external expectancies of what one should be like or likes as much as what an individual is truly like or likes, altering preference.Research and methods. Responses were obtained from an anonymous data pool (n = 16,484) of 18-22 year olds who submitted their SII to the test publisher for scoring. Mean age and standard deviation …

Evidence Of Oxidative Stress In Copper Deprived Hl60 Cells, Anne C. Thomas

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between Competitive Anxiety And Self-Presentational Concern, Philip M. Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Replication Arrest In E. Coli : A New Dnab Mutant And The Function Of Reca, Dai-Di Gan

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Instruction Delivered By Two-Way Interactive Compressed Video And Traditional Conference: Attitudes And Achievement Of Residents In Family Medicine, Yvonne Larocca Lewis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if the attitudes and/or achievement of family practice residents differed as they received instruction by two-way interactive compressed video or by the traditional conference method. The attitude survey, completed before and after the presentations were delivered, provided feedback from the residents in the experimental group on how they felt about the sessions. Pre- and post-test scores provided information about the achievement of residents and the possible difference between scores of those who received the presentations by two-way interactive compressed video as opposed to those taught by the traditional conference method. Results from …

The Pursuit Of Happiness, John W. Chapin

Theses and Dissertations

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University.