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An Assessment Of The Role And Impact Of Non-Governmental Organizations (Ngos) In The Management And Sustainability Of Local Environmental Resources: A Case Study Of Nanun, Ghana, Iddrisu Adam

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

NGOs have been heralded as the vehicle of choice for aid delivery by international organizations lice the World Bank and the United Nations and also by western governments, especially in the last two decades. This is a tacit acceptance of their role as development agents in the South. However, no substantive research has been done to find out if these NGOs are indeed contributing to the better management of local environmental resources. This research sets out to examine the role and impact of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the management and sustainability of local environmental resources in rural Ghana. What makes …

Induction Of Pep Carboxylase And Crassulacean Acid Metabolism By Gibberellic Acid In Mesembryanthemum Crystallinum, Lonnie J. Guralnick, Maurice S.B. Ku, Gerald E. Edwards, Darren Strand, Brandon Hockema, Jeannine Earnest

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

The induction of Crassulacean acid metabolism in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum was investigated in response to foliar application of gibberellic acid (GA). After 5 weeks of treatment, GA-treated plants showed 1.7- to almost a 4-fold increase of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPcase) activity with a concomitant increase in acid metabolism when compared to control plants. Immunoblot analysis indicated an increase in the PEPcase protein similar to that of salt treatment while Rubisco did not show a similar rise. The results indicate that exogenously applied GA accelerates plant developmental expression of PEPcase and Crassulacean acid metabolism in M. crystallinum.

Reducing Disciplinary Referrals And Academic Failure Rate Of Seventh- And Eighth-Grade Students, Melad Smith Jr.

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This practicum addressed the excessive disciplinary referrals and the academic failure rate of 7th- and 8th-grade students of Charlton County High School in Folkston, Georgia. The data collected during the 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 school years served as the basis of this practicum. During the 1998-1999 school year, the 7th and 8th grades accounted for 46. 9% of all high school referrals, and an alarming 23. 5% of total students in 7th and 8th grade failed academic courses in social studies, math, science, and English. During the 1999-2000 school year, a preliminary investigation was implemented to curtail the academic and discipline …

A Special Remedial Program To Improve The Skills Of Failing Eighth-Grade Students, John J. O'Malley Jr.

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report describes an afterschool remedial program during the 2000-2001 school year at Forest Grove Middle School in Worcester, Massachusetts. The remedial program was an effort to improve the skills of 8th-grade students who fall short of the state norms on the mandatory 8th-grade Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment Test (MCAS; Massachusetts Department of Education, 1999). An analysis of the 1999 test indicated that 480 8th-grade students in a 905-pupil enrollment at the school fell short of the passing grade, 51% in the mathematics section and 21% in the language arts section.

Planned solution strategies included (a) an afterschool and vacation remedial …

Implementation Of Performance Assessment Tasks To Improve Third-Grade Achievement, Christine Gary-Johnson

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Performance assessment tasks are activities in which students demonstrate in a variety of ways their ability to think creatively and critically in producing a product. The research question that guided this. project was, Can the. implementation of performance assessment tasks improve 3rd-grade achievement as measured by the Baltimore Quarterly Assessment (Baltimore City Public School System, 1996a)? The participants in the program were 74 third-grade students, a cadre of 3 classroom teachers, 1 master teacher, 1 consultant teacher, 1 instructional support teacher, 1 Chapter I teacher, 1 parent liaison, and 2 administrators at Rosemont Elementary. School #63 in Baltimore, Maryland. Extensive …

Harding University Catalog 2001-2002, Harding University

Harding Academic Catalogs

Academic catalog for the undergraduate programs at Harding University.

Pen Or Printer: Can Students Afford To Handwrite Their Exams?, Kif Augustine-Adams, Suzanne B. Hendrix, James R. Rasband

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Digital Libraries And Distance Education, Ana M.B. Pavani

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

This chapter discusses the integration of digital libraries and Web based distance education systems. It shows how useful this integration can be in terms of storing, searching, sharing, maintaining and using courseware due to the consolidated library practices of managing information. Some technical aspects on the identification of the Learning Objects (LO's) are addressed as well as the basic functions of the system. Results of such an implementation are presented.

A Dynamic Programming-Based Approach To Microarray Image Comparison And Registration, Sunil Bosco Rodrigues

Masters Theses

"Microarray technology is increasingly used as a means of high throughput analysis of human, non-human and plant genomes. Manual methods of array production have inherent imperfections and variations of the quality of output data derived from these arrays. A dynamic programming-based approach is presented to validate the quality of such data prior to insertion into evolving databases in order to assign reliably, genetic aberrations to bio-medical functions. Dynamic programming is used for comparing normal and tumor microarray image pairs and a cost function is developed which gives a value representing the difference between the images. Quality of the image pairs …

Design, Construction And Testing Of A Portable Electronic Speckle Pattern Interferometry System For Contouring Applications, Tara J. Kneafsey

Masters

Optical surface metrology techniques offer many advantages over conventional methods. Some of these advantages include a greater sensitivity and a whole field analysis that is non-contract. They also offer greater lateral and vertical resolution and are not subject to electromagnetic influence. Despite these many advantages, there has been reluctance in industry to adopt these techniques. This reluctance can be attributed to the use of high-power lasers which are considered dangerous, the expense of the systems and complicated operation and analysis procedures. The objective of the research described in this thesis was to utilise recent developments in laser diodes, data acquisition …

Literature-Based Language Arts Extended To Science, Jennifer Bruce

Graduate Research Papers

The development of a print-rich learning environment can facilitate the integration of the curriculum. A literature base representative of the different genres can contribute to the dimensions of learning. A literature-based unit on apples provided kindergarten children with quality literature experiences and many expressive activities that extended the students' understanding of the concept of apples. The unit was presented through teacher presentations and learning centers.

Opportunity Knocks Only Once? Challenging Common Beliefs About Adulthood, Marilyn Montgomery, Camille Debell, Patricia R. Mccarthy, Gerald Parr

Faculty Publications - Graduate School of Counseling

Growth-oriented groups for adults are designed to help individuals learn about themselves for the purpose of making constructive life changes. While the success of such groups always depends to some extent on individual characteristics (e.g., motivation, openness to experience), group success can also be affected by members' beliefs or stereotypes about appropriate age-related behaviour. In this article, proverbs such as Don't change horses mid-stream or Opportunity knocks only once are targeted for discussion by group participants as a means of identifying irrational beliefs, confronting stereotypes, promoting flexible thinking, and examining acceptable adult behaviour.

Scholarly Publishing And Intellectual Property In The Electronic Environment, Johann Van Reenen

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Libraries and information service providers cannot stand aloof from the current developments (legal, technological, and organizational) in scholarly publishing. This chapter will discuss these issues and provide ways to influence beneficial change.

Non-Social Play As A Risk Factor In Social And Emotional Development, Charissa S. L. Cheah, Larry J. Nelson, Kenneth H. Rubin

Faculty Publications

Children spend much of their youthful energy engaged in play. Indeed, play, in its various forms, represents a serious business – not only for the active participations, but also for students of the phenomenon. To many researchers, play is viewed as a generative fore in children's social, emotional, and cognitive development (see Rubin, Fein, & Vandenberg, 1983; Saracho & Spodek, 1998; Fromberg & Bergen, 1998). The extent to which children engage in play with others is of added developmental significance. In light of the complexity and developmental significance of children's play and especially play with peers, it seems important to …

Gravitational Descendants And The Moduli Space Of Higher Spin Curves, Tyler J. Jarvis, Takashi Kimura, Arkady Vaintrob

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this note is introduce a new axiom (called the Descent Axiom) in the theory of r-spin cohomological field theories. This axiom explains the origin of gravitational descendants in this theory. Furthermore, the Descent Axiom immediately implies the Vanishing Axiom, explicating the latter (which has no a priori analog in the theory of Gromov-Witten invariants), in terms of the multiplicativity of the virtual class. We prove that the Descent Axiom holds in the convex case, and consequently in genus zero.

Improving Teacher Intern Self-Evaluation Through The Use Of Preservice Experience, Pamela Sanders

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This practicum involved an analysis of the relationship between preservice experience and the self-evaluation of teaching ability of 1st-year teacher interns in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). The preservice experience was part of the Teachers For Chicago (TFC) program. The practicum took place at an elementary and a high school in the CPS that implemented the program between July 2000 and June 2001.

As part of the practicum, a survey was developed by the researcher and the program's independent evaluator. The 110 selected teacher interns in the practicum were a heterogeneously mixed group of aspiring educators with common beginning teaching …

Testing The Invariance Of The Transtheoretical Model Utilizing A Population Of Smokers, Rose Marie Ward

Open Access Master's Theses

A crucial assumption in the development of a measure is that the measurement model is invariant. This means that the measurement model is the same in different populations and across different occasions. Utilizing data from a representative sample of smokers, we examined the invariance of the Decisional Balance Inventory and the Processes of Change. The sample consists of 4144 participants (44.3% male, 55.7% female, 95.7% White, mean age 40.7). After the number of factors for each scale was confirmed using Factor Analysis, the sample was partitioned into subgroups to test the invariance of the model. The scales were compared across …

Runoff Modeling Of The Saugatucket River: An Application Of Hec-Hms Software, Quoc An Nguyen

Open Access Master's Theses

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had revised its HEC-1 software. The new version is HEC-HMS (Hydrological Modeling System). This versatile software retains all computational and analysis capabilities of the old version with additional features, which includes CAD (Computer Aided Design) like modeling techniques (icon and dialogue box driven). The main objective of this project is to model flow response from a rainfall event in the Saugatucket River. Through model selection process, HEC-HMS was selected as the appropriate software for implementation.

The modeling technique used here is different from standard professional practice in the model calibration and validation. This project …

A Facile And Efficient Method For The Rearrangement Of Aryl-Substituted Epoxides To Aldehydes And Ketones Using Bismuth Triflate, Ram Mohan, Kaushik Bhatia, Kyle Eash, Nicholas Leonard, Matthew Oswald

Scholarship

Aryl-substituted epoxides undergo smooth rearrangement in the presence of 0.01–0.1 mol% Bi(OTf)3•xH2O. The rearrangement is regioselective with aryl-substituted epoxides, and products arise from cleavage of the benzylic C―O bond. The highly catalytic nature of this method coupled with the fact that the reagent is relatively non-toxic, easy to handle and inexpensive make it an attractive alternative to more corrosive and toxic Lewis acids, such as BF3•Et2O, currently used to effect epoxide rearrangements.

The Discovery-Oriented Approach To Organic Chemistry. 5. Stereochemistry Of E2 Elimination: Elimination Of Cis- And Trans-2-Methylcyclohexyl Tosylate, Ram Mohan, Marcus Cabay, Brad Ettlie, Adam Tuite, Kurt Welday

Scholarship

The E2 elimination is one of the most important reactions in organic chemistry and is discussed in considerable detail in a sophomore organic course. We have developed a discovery-oriented lab that illustrates the stereochemistry of the E2 elimination reaction and is a good exercise in 1H NMR spectroscopy. The added element of discovery insures that student interest and enthusiasm are retained.

Deprotection Of Ketoximes Using Bismuth(Iii) Nitrate Pentahydrate, Ram Mohan, Bryce Nattier, Kyle Eash

Scholarship

Ketoximes undergo facile deprotection in acetone-H20 (9: 1) in the presence 01' 0.5 equivalents of Bi(N03h•5H20. Bismuth(III) nitrate is relatively non-toxic, insensitive to air and inexpensive. These features coupled with the use of a relatively nontoxic solvent system make this method an attractive alternative to existing routes for deprotection of ketoximes.

Effects Of High Temperature Exposure On The Tensile Ductility Of An Aged Metastable Beta Titanium Alloy, Mohammed Almesallmy

Open Access Master's Theses

The recommended continuos operating temperature for Timetal 21S is below 540 °C. Application temperature for this alloy can, however exceed this level, with attendant embrittlement due to oxidation. The present study examines the effects of exposures in air on the tensile ductility of fully aged Timetal 21S sheet specimens in temperature range 482 - 693 °C. In this thesis, the kinetics of the loss of tensile ductility is investigated as a function of exposure temperature and sheet thickness. The experimental embrittlement activation energies are estimated by determining exposure times at various temperatures to reach close to zero ductility at room …

Two Instructional Approaches - The Electric Maze And The Direct Instructional Model-For Teaching At- Risk Kindergarten Students Alphabet Letter Names, Sherry Marie Jack

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This paper compares the effectiveness of two instructional approaches for teaching the names of alphabet letters to 5 and 6 year-old elementary students who were at risk for academic failure. The literature review examines investigations which had previously addressed the direct instructional model and parameters of active learning. In this context, a variety of perspectives regarding active learning are reviewed followed by a finer examination of self-corrective materials which was a unique component of the active learning paradigm used in this investigation. Nine (N = 9) elementary children were taught the names of five randomly chosen letters (upper and lower …

Illinois State: For Alumni Of Illinois State University, Winter 2001-2002, Illinois State University, University Marketing And Communications

State: The Magazine of Illinois State University (1999-present)

Illinois State University alumni magazine

Impact-Ionization And Noise Characteristics Of Thin Iii-V Avalanche Photodiodes, Mohammad A. Saleh, Majeed M. Hayat, Paul P. Sotirelis, Archie L. Holmes, Joe C. Campbell, Bahaa E.A. Saleh, Malvin Carl Teich

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

It is, by now, well known that McIntyre's localized carrier-multiplication theory cannot explain the suppression of excess noise factor observed in avalanche photodiodes (APDs) that make use of thin multiplication regions. We demonstrate that a carrier multiplication model that incorporates the effects of dead space, as developed earlier by Hayat et al. provides excellent agreement with the impact-ionization and noise characteristics of thin InP, In/sub 0.52/Al/sub 0.48/As, GaAs, and Al/sub 0.2/Ga/sub 0.8/As APDs, with multiplication regions of different widths. We outline a general technique that facilitates the calculation of ionization coefficients for carriers that have traveled a distance exceeding the …

Investigation Of The Physical Mechanisms Controlling Exchange Between Mount Hope Bay And The Sakonnet River, William Deleo

Open Access Master's Theses

The complexities of estuarine circulation control the exchange of physical, chemical and biological quantities between oceanic and riverine systems. This exchange is predominantly driven by three distinct forcing mechanisms: tides, winds and density. The influence of each mechanism must be understood in order to interpret and predict the currents. This study investigates the circulation in the upper Sakonnet River (SR) and Mount Hope Bay (MHB), with respect to each forcing mechanism.

This study also investigates how exchange between the lower SR and MHB is affected by the complex geomorphology of the upper SR. Circulation in the upper SR, or the …

Comparison Of Safety Knowledge Transfer In Employees From Oscar-Ma Yer Davenport Using Computer-Aided And Traditional Methods Of Training Delivery, Barbara L. Durant

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Developments in the use of technology in computing and telecommunications have created a demand in the workplace for individuals with advanced sets of skills. Due to these developments there has been an increase in the range of options in training design and delivery. The problem prompting this study was that it was unknown if the computer-aided instruction (CAI) was an effective means to deliver the necessary safety knowledge.

The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of computer-based training (CBT) versus the traditional lecture method. The research hypothesis for the study was; "Is there a significant difference in …

Center For The Advancement Of Teaching Annual Report, 2000-2001, Illinois State University, Center For The Advancement Of Teaching

Annual Reports - Center for Integrated Professional Development

Annual report of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching at Illinois State University

Windows Are Key To Keeping Warm In Winter, Donna Falkenborg

All Current Publications

“With the price of fuel skyrocketing, now is the time to think about energy-saving projects around the house, and the best place to start is with your windows,” advises Leona K. Hawks, Utah State University Extension housing specialist.

Renters, Too, Can Save On Utility Costs, Donna Falkenborg

All Current Publications

“Most energy conservation information is designed for homeowners, even though an increasing number of people are renting,” says Leona K. Hawks, Utah State University Extension housing specialist. “Many renters develop a short-timer mentality and don’t worry much about energy savings. However, utility bills do add up quickly so renters may wish to conserve on their energy use,” she advises.