Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Gender In Elementary Science Groups, Melissa Parks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This action research study investigated the effects of gender on same and mixed gender elementary school science groups. Qualitative data for this study was collected using surveys, student focus groups, student journals, and teacher-researcher field notes and observations. Students in this study were eager to participate in science groups and demonstrated a positive attitude toward the study of science. Results also showed the types of interactions between boys and girls varied and those interactions affected their science attitude and participation. Recommendations were made for continued research to examine the long-term effects of gender groupings in the elementary science classroom.

Integrated Inp Photonic Switches, Daniel May-Arrioja

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Photonic switches are becoming key components in advanced optical networks because of the large variety of applications that they can perform. One of the key advantages of photonic switches is that they redirect or convert light without having to make any optical to electronic conversions and vice versa, thus allowing networking functions to be lowered into the optical layer. InP-based switches are particularly attractive because of their small size, low electrical power consumption, and compatibility with integration of laser sources, photo-detectors, and electronic components. In this dissertation the development of integrated InP photonic switches using an area-selective zinc diffusion process …

The Effect Of Different Presentation Formats Of Hypertext Annotations On Cognitive Load, Learning And Learner Control, Yuanming Yao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation study was intended to verify whether the positive effects of the roll-over annotation presentation format on reducing cognitive load and enhancing vocabulary and comprehension of 5th-grade children (Morrison, 2004) can be extended to college students' learning from a web-delivered text. In order to answer this research question, relevant constructs, such as cognitive load, learner control and learning, have been examined in this experimental study of 149 undergraduate students in a state university at College of Education. No single effect of annotation presentation format on cognitive load was found, but an interaction effect on cognitive load was revealed between …

Teaching Characteristics And Practices Which Affect Language And Literacy Development For Students With Complex Communication Needs, Laura King

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined teacher characteristics and practices identified as effective through current research for teaching students with complex communication needs. For this population, communication issues are more complex than those typically encountered in other settings. Specifically, the researcher asked: what are the desired characteristics and practices for this population, and are the desired characteristics and practices present in current settings? Working with six teachers in a large urban school district, this study utilized a multiple case study design. Criteria for participation included the teacher as the primary reading/language arts instructor for a student who used an augmentative and alternative communication …

Teacher Retention In Brevard County, Florida K-12 Schools, Kenneth Winn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This descriptive study was designed to determine the extent to which selected self-reported practical and professional factors of teaching influenced teacher job satisfaction and retention within the K-12 public education system. The population of the study was 1321 certified teachers from a large Central Florida school district. The researcher developed the survey instrument based on the constructs of teaching known for motivating teachers to remain within the public school setting (Brunetti, 2001; Farkas, Johnson, & Folena, 2005). The researcher's survey was based on the studies of Perie (1997), Brunetti (2001), and Gary (2002). The researcher personally distributed 1321 surveys, respondent …

An Investigation Of Altruism And Personality Variables Amongbeginning Counseling Students, Laura Schmuldt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Altruism is loosely defined as a desire to help others as well as acts and behaviors towards that end, particularly when no expectation of personal gain or reward exists (Batson, Fultz, Schoenrade & Paduano, 1987). It seems likely that individuals who choose to pursue acareer in counseling might be doing so out of some altruistic interest; in other words a desire to come to the aid of others in distress. It has been noted as well that some individuals may enter the counseling profession based more on self-interest; for example, as "wounded healers" hoping to work on personal issues (Wheeler, …

The Analysis Of The Relationship Between Learning Styles And The Learners' Knowledge Acquisition And Reactions Through The Online Case Study, Rui Zeng

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between learning styles and student performance on a pre and post test, using an online case study, while also documenting their reactions to the case study. The case studies used in this research contained different storylines that showed multiple perspectives of case scenarios, giving students more choices to see what may happen in real school situations. Working with undergraduate students (N = 138) from the College of Education at a southeastern university, the researcher examined how students learned and responded to an online case study relative to their learning styles. …

Effect Of Germanium Doping On Erbium Sensitization In The Erbium Doped Silicon Rich Silica Material System, Forrest Ruhge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The continued size reduction in electronic integrated circuits has lead to a demand for on-chip high-bandwidth and low loss communication channels. Optical interconnects are considered an essential addition to the silicon electronics platform. A major challenge in the field of integrated Si photonics is the development of cost effective silicon compatible light sources. This thesis investigates the sensitization of group IV doped silica films emitting at 1.535μm for applications as silicon compatible light sources. Thin erbium-doped silica films containing excess silicon and germanium were deposited using a multi-gun sputter system. The composition of the deposited materials was verified by Rutherford …

The Kiosk Culture: Reconciling The Performance Support Paradox In The Postmodern Age Of Machines, Thomas Cavanagh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Do you remember the first time you used an Automatic Teller Machine (ATM)? Or a pay-at-the-pump gas station? Or an airline e-ticket kiosk? How did you know what to do? Although you never received any formal instruction in how to interact with the self-service technology, you were likely able to accomplish your task (e.g., withdrawing or depositing money) as successfully as an experienced user. However, not so long ago, to accomplish that same task, you needed the direct mediation of a service professional who had been trained how to use the required complex technology. What has changed? In short, the …

External Cavity Multiwavelength Semiconductor Mode-Locked Laser Gain Dynamics, Luis Archundia-Berra

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

External cavity semiconductor mode-locked lasers can produce pulses of a few picoseconds. The pulses from these lasers are inherently chirped with a predominant linear chirp component that can be compensated resulting in sub-picosecond pulses. External cavity semiconductor mode-locked lasers can be configured as multiwavelength pulse sources and are good candidates for time and wavelength division multiplexing applications. The gain medium in external cavity semiconductor mode-locked lasers is a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA), and passive and hybrid mode-locked operation are achieved by the introduction of a saturable absorber (SA) in the laser cavity. Pump-probe techniques were used to measure the intracavity …

General Social Trust And Political Trust Within Social And Political Groups: A Case Study, Weylan Craig

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

People in society with high levels of generalized social trust and political trust are more likely to engage in civic activism and participation. Therefore, people involved in social and political groups will likely have higher levels of generalized social and political trust than the general public. What lacks in this realm of scholarship is a solid comparison of trust among people involved in social and political groups. This case-study analysis of generalized social trust and political trust among social and political groups shows the trust that is not only generated within each group, but also which types of groups are …

Effects Of Atmospheric Turbulence On The Propagation Of Flattened Gaussian Optical Beams, Doris Cowan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In an attempt to mitigate the effects of the atmosphere on the coherence of an optical (laser) beam, interest has recently been shown in changing the beam shape to determine if a different power distribution at the transmitter will reduce the effects of the random fluctuations in the refractive index. Here, a model is developed for the field of a flattened Gaussian beam as it propagates through atmospheric turbulence, and the resulting effects upon the scintillation of the beam and upon beam wander are determined. A comparison of these results is made with the like effects on a standard TEM00 …

High Birefringence And Low Viscosity Liquid Crystals, Chien-Hui Wen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, liquid crystal (LC) materials and devices are investigated in order to meet the challenges for photonics and displays applications. We have studied three kinds of liquid crystal materials: positive dielectric anisotropic LCs, negative dielectric anisotropic LCs, and dual- frequency LCs. For the positive dielectric anisotropic LCs, we have developed some high birefringence isothiocyanato tolane LC compounds with birefringence ~0.4, and super high birefringence isothiocyanato biphenyl-bistolane LC compounds with birefringence as high as ~0.7. Moreover, we have studied the photostability of several high birefringence LC compounds, mixtures, and LC alignment layers in order to determine the failure mechanism …

Blind: Talking About The New Racism, Victor Villanueva

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

Writing Center Assessment: Why And A Little How, Isabelle Thompson

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

Esl Student Participation In Writing Center Sessions, Jane Cogie

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

International Writing Centers Association Information

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

50+ Recent Young Adult Novels That Can Work In The Classroom, Diana Mitchell

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Taking Stock: Language Arts At The Beginning Of The Nineties, Sheila Fitzgerald

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Next Generation Heterogenous Telemetry Modules, Pierce Brady

Theses

Remote monitoring is used in many applications within the scientific, industrial and commercial communities. These applications can range from the simple monitoring of wind farm generators to the complex behavioural monitoring of a local fox habitat to the simple but extremely urgent monitoring of water depth for a flood prone river. Each application of remote monitoring requires different aspects of the remote monitoring device, but typically, not all these applications can be implemented, as the technologies required for their construction are extremely large, expensive, energy inefficient, slow and do not meet the constraints for the given application.

However with the …

Enhancing Science Education Through Engaging Visual Content, David Kavanagh

Theses

In recent years a decline in the number of Irish students choosing to study science, at second level and on into third level, has become potentially harmful to the desired creation of a science-based knowledge economy. A primary contributing factor towards this decline is a lack of interest in the subject within the classroom, as was established by The Task Force on the Physical Sciences in 2002.

The primary aim of this Masters research is to investigate the role of visualisation in making the study of science more accessible and engaging to students to counter this decline. To this end …

Quantification Of Mrna Expression Of Her2/Neu, Estrogen Receptors Eralpha And Erbeta, And Progesterone Receptor Using Real-Time Reverse Transcription Pcr In Small Tumor Biopsies, In Human Breast Cancer, Evonne Marie. Mc Cabe

Theses

Early detection is an effective means of reducing cancer mortality. Early detection greatly improves treatment options and the chances for successful treatment. The prognosis for patients with breast cancer is determined by well-established biological features associated with biological aggressiveness, histological grade, tumour size, and nodal involvement. Breast cancer results from multiple genetic abnormalities, and cellular differentiation, tumour growth, and metastatic potential are the end result of these changes. Identification of molecular changes is of considerable value in enhancing the accuracy of prognostic indices, and more importantly, it may indicate various changes as putative targets for therapy. In recent years a …

Educating The Public About Best Practices In English Language Arts, Patricia Dunn

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Opportunities For Advocacy: Making Our Pedagogy Public, W. Douglas Baker, Jonathan Bush

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Delivery Workshop: Writing Notes Of Significance, In Class, Suzan Aiken

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

Are Nouns Easier To Learn Than Verbs? Three Experimental Studies, Jane B. Childers, Michael Tomasello

Psychology Faculty Research

A current controversy in the study of word learning is whether it is conceptually easier to learn nouns as compared to verbs early in development. This chapter describes three experiments which address the noun-verb question in different ways. In the first experiment, researchers asked how many times (and on how many days) does a 2-year-old need to hear a word to be able to learn it, and does this differ for nouns and verbs? This second study investigates whether — when nouns and verbs are presented in comparable sentence contexts, controlling the number of exposures, and presenting a dynamic event …

Connecting With Aim: The Search For A Virtual Reference Niche, Lucretia Mcculley, Olivia Reinauer

University Libraries Faculty and Staff Publications

Launching virtual chat reference services at Boatwright Library at the University of Richmond has been an interesting challenge of “trial and error” over the years. After trying several different software programs and staffing options, librarians have finally found a niche with AOL’s Instant Messenger service. The first section of the article describes a path of experimentation, including early collaborations with the computing services help desk, staffing patterns within the library, technical and financial challenges with virtual reference software, and attempts to get students to use reference chat services. The second half of the case study will describe the great success …

Engendering Student Empathy For Disabled Clients With Urinary Incontinence Through Experiential Learning, Karen A. Karlowicz, Kay L. Palmer

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

As part of a rehabilitation clinical course for senior baccalaureate nursing students, a disability-incontinence experiential learning activity is required. The assignment is intended to familiarize students with some of the challenges encountered by a client with mobility problems, including continence management issues using disposable undergarments. Wearing the undergarments dry and wet while being confined to a wheelchair provides insight and promotes empathy for patients with bladder control problems.

Personal And Political Bias In The Debate Over Federal Income Taxation Rates And Progressivity, Richard Kovach

Akron Law Faculty Publications

Recently, the Boston College Law Review published a symposium issue containing twelve articles on federal income taxation issues pertaining to rates, progressivity, and budget processes. These articles are well written, copiously researched, and representative of contemporary legal scholarship. For the most part, these articles variously support the idea that our federal taxation system is insufficiently progressive. Often this body of work attributes deleterious social effects to insufficient progressivity caused by tax cuts legislated in 2001 and 2003. Some of the symposium writing advocates for increased federal taxation on wealthy taxpayers without structural limitations beyond those that might be necessary to …

Front Matter

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

Front Matter includes Masthead, advisors, and Table of Contents for the Intercultural Human Rights Law Review Volume 1 (2006).