Digital Commons Network^™

Second Grade Students' Cognitive Understanding Of Heart Rate Monitors And Pedometers, Carolyn Lee Tozer

Theses and Dissertations

Childhood obesity has become a significant health problem in the United States (Dietz, 1998, Blair et al., 2007, Robinson, Wadsworth, 2010). In children, obesity is defined as being at or above the 95th percentile for BMI according to age growth charts (Carroll, 2006). There are several approaches to combating the epidemic of obesity. In physical education classes, teachers are using are heart rate monitors and pedometers to assess the students' levels of physical activity (Blair et al., 2007). However, it is uncertain if elementary students better understand the results from the pedometer, or the heart rate monitor. A study of …

Adult Enrichment Learners In St. Cloud, Minnesota: Motivational Reasons For Participation, Scott Wallner

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to identify reasons and motivation of adult stakeholders that influence participation in adult community education enrichment classes in the St. Cloud Public School District, St. Cloud, Minnesota. The study also examined the perceptions about adult learners held by leaders, planners, and facilitators of these programs, and identified similarities and differences between perceptions by district staff and program participants.

Participants were 289 adult learners who had taken at least one adult enrichment course during the 2009 or 2010 calendar year. 284 participants completed the online Education Participation Scale-Form A, a 42-item survey developed by Boshier …

Leadership Development In Higher Education: Exploring Model Impact Among Students And Alumni, Michael Scot Bommarito

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of an institution-wide leadership development model on students at a private Christian university. The university being studied in this research made a significant commitment to the principles of servant-leadership as well as Kouzes and Posner's (2002) Leadership Challenge development model. In 2001 the university adopted the mission of ensuring that every student grows as a leader in his or her own field of study. All courses and programs are required to include servant leadership development opportunities and outcomes. Key to the model selected is the premise that leadership, as a …

Design And Testing Validation Of An Extendable Pressurized Tunnel For An Inflatable Lunar Habitat, Timothy Jani Holland

Theses and Dissertations

In the design of the UND inflatable lunar habitat (ILH), the need for an extendable pressurized tunnel to link the habitat to a wheeled terrestrial vehicle (rover), and secure the connection between both elements is one of the critical problems to be solved in order to test the validity of the ILH concept. The design of an extendable pressurized tunnel is required in order to allow access to and from the rover without the use of pressure suits. It is expected than using an extendable tunnel will allow simple docking procedures. An experimental process is required to determine the best …

Voices Of The Prairie, Jeanette Kenner

Theses and Dissertations

Voices of the Prairie

Computation Of The Response Of Thin Piezoelectric Films, Marc Cierzan

Theses and Dissertations

This work shows that a mix of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and numerical differentiation and integration methods can be used in order to calculate the output charge of a thin piezoelectric film bonded to a shell structure. The method is applied to cases of a cylindrical shell structure, as well as a beam and plate for both generic and shaped piezoelectric films. An overview of the fundamentals of shell vibration theory is presented where the development of the piezoelectric film equation is reviewed and applied to the three different structure cases. The FEA process used is discussed in terms of …

Selective Mutism And Art Therapies, Dalene Erickson

Theses and Dissertations

Selective Mutism (SM) is a social anxiety disorder characterized by a child's inability to speak in selected social situations, usually school. The causes of SM are multi-factorial. Affected children often have a history of anxiety, linguistic and motor disorders. Current therapies include a mix of anti-anxiety medication, behavioral modification therapy and anxiety reduction techniques.

Art therapy, (dance, drama and theater), has been shown to be beneficial in reducing anxiety and encouraging communication through forms other than speaking. Art therapy could be a valuable modality, benefitting children with SM.

I surveyed parents, teachers, former teachers of children with SM, and adults …

Perceived Deployment Stressors And Well-Being Among Veterans Of Iraq And Afghanistan, Abigail Fuller

Theses and Dissertations

The current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are unlike previous wars and present new challenges for service members post deployment. Currently, service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan are experiencing a number of stressors that may have implications during their post deployment adjustment (Kline et al., 2010; La Bash et al., 2009; McNulty, 2005). Few studies were found that examined the stressors of deployment and their relationship to the health and well-being of veterans upon return home. Therefore, a more complete understanding of the deployment experiences of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans is needed in order to have an adequate understanding …

Media Portrayals Of Political Spouse's Communication On The Campaign Trail: A Content Analysis, Anita Lynn Herold

Theses and Dissertations

A good public image is important to everyone, but it is vital to political

candidates. Media content has been the focus of much research, but most centers on the candidate as an individual. This research explores media portrayals of the communication that occurs between a candidate and their spouse.

A content analysis of newsmagazine articles from September 1, 2010 to November 1, 2010 was conducted exploring concepts relating to candidate status, spouse's sex, gender roles and stereotypes, acceptance, and media ideology.

Only 8.82% of the articles contained instances of spousal communication. All of these communication events portrayed in the article …

Workshop Training And Instructional Coaching: A Model For Professional Development That Results In Academic Student Growth, Amy Jo Leonard

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined two forms of Professional Development, workshop training and instructional coaching together and workshop training alone. All participating teachers attended the same workshop training on vocabulary instruction and were trained in using procedural cards for teaching science vocabulary. Two teachers were randomly selected to be in the experimental group (workshop training and instructional coaching together) and two teachers were randomly selected to be in the control group (workshop training alone). The experimental group received six weeks of instructional coaching including pre-conferencing, post-conferencing, and classroom observations with feedback. Using posttest t-test, the researcher determined the effects of both the …

Auditory Recall In Normal Children And Children With A Diagnosis Of Central Auditory Processing Disorder, Kara J. Nunziato

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in level of performance on auditory memory tasks between individuals with and without a diagnosis of Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD). The study was also designed to examine the differences in performance among different auditory memory tasks. A total of ten participants were recruited for the study. Five typically developing individuals served in the control group and five individuals with a clinical diagnosis of CAPD served in the experimental group. Results from the study indicated that individuals with a diagnosis of CAPD performed significantly lower than the control group on …

Analysis Of Yscf And Associated Homologs And The Presence Of An Inflammatory Molecular Pattern, William Andrew Roughead

Theses and Dissertations

Gram-negative pathogen, Yersinia pestis, expresses a type three secretion system to accomplish its virulence. The YscF needle protein provides a conduit of effectors from bacterium to eukaryote and is exposed to the host immune system. This thesis explores YscF and its associated needle homologs and the possibility of recognition as pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMP) by macrophage tissue culture. Interestingly, Salmonella homologs PrgI and SsaG are inflammatory suggesting conservation of the inflammatory pattern in the T3SS needle protein.

Perceptions Of North Dakota Principals Regarding Teacher Hiring Practices, David James Saxberg

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which North Dakota public school principals consider research-based professional and personal teacher characteristics when hiring teachers. Additionally, this study sought to determine North Dakota public school principals' perceptions regarding teacher hiring practices - the interviewing and teacher selection process.

This study utilized the conceptual framework on effective teacher qualities and personal teacher characteristics that are taken into consideration during the interviewing and teacher selection process. Participating principals completed surveys that asked them to rank order professional and personal teacher characteristics when considering teachers for hire. The principals also reported …

Emerging Adults In College: Assessing Expectations And Perceptions, Diane J. Wolter

Theses and Dissertations

This study uses qualitative methods to investigate the expectations and perceptions of freshmen at a regional university. Research suggests that stratification in American higher education has resulted in differing student populations at different types of institutions, and that regional universities and their students are underrepresented in the literature. The study examines the utility of Arnett's emerging adults model to describe how freshmen at a regional university perceive the role of college in their lives. Application of metaphor theory reveals that students view college as either a commodity to be exchanged for a desired future outcome, or as one of a …

Mental Health And Social Engagement Among American Indian Elders, Twyla Beth Baker-Demaray

Theses and Dissertations

Elderly American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) in the United States are increasing in number, and with their increase come a greater need for quality, culturally sensitive long term care. Mental health is one facet of overall health that is little explored for this particular population. Social engagement has been shown to be a protective factor for depressive symptoms amongst mainstream elder populations. This study looked at data from a nationwide AI/AN elder needs assessment. The purposes of this study were threefold. First, the data were analyzed to describe the characteristics of the study population. Second, a regression analysis was …

Community College Faculty Satisfaction Teaching Online: Does Using Prepared Curriculum Materials Matter?, Ryan Michael Long Brovold

Theses and Dissertations

Community colleges are offering online coursework at a rapidly increasing rate; however, the growth of online coursework is not the result of new enrollments, but rather currently enrolled students' shifting from a face-to-face modality to an online modality. This shift presents some challenges because previous studies of college faculty satisfaction regarding online teaching have indicated that faculty members (faculty) are frustrated, particularly with two primary issues: the technology used to teach online and the time it takes to develop and administer an online class. Nonetheless, community college faculty are increasingly expected to teach online classes in spite of the previous …

Tools For School: Student Fluency And Perception Of Cell Phones Used For Learning, Mary Beth Humble-Thaden

Theses and Dissertations

Technology is changing the way society interacts, communicates, collaborates, and learns. Improved cell phone capabilities and an ever increasing amount of cell phone applications allow individuals to connect globally and afford almost instantaneous access to information inside and outside the classroom. The majority of students today possesses and uses cell phones and cell phone technology in most every aspect of their daily lives. Most schools enforce current policies banning cell phone use within classrooms during the school day.

The purpose of this study was to investigate current high school junior and senior academic standing students' mobile cell phone technology use, …

Tornadogenesis And Tornadogenesis Failure In Numerically Simulated Supercells, Jason Naylor

Theses and Dissertations

Simulations were performed in an idealized cloud model to study the processes responsible for tornadogenesis and tornadogenesis failure. The simulations were initialized with supercell proximity soundings taken from the Rapid Update Cycle (RUC) model. Because of the large number of simulations performed, several objective techniques were developed and tested to assist in the simulations--including automated supercell and tornado detection. In addition, the vast majority of the RUC soundings contained capping inversions, and thus the traditional `warm bubble' convective initiation technique was unsuccessful. A new sustained convective initiation technique was tested to determine which configuration produced the strongest, longest-lived supercells.

Twenty-one …

The Effects Of Vibration Exercise On Anaerobic Performance Using The Wingate Test, Daniel Duane Veith

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this study was to investigate whole-body vibration (WBV) and its effects on anaerobic performance using the Wingate test, specifically the changes in peak and mean power. Thirty five collegiate students completed three days of training in which they performed 3 different weighted exercises under vibratory or non-vibratory conditions. Participants then performed a Wingate. Two 2 x 2 mixed-design ANOVAs were used to examine the influence of the independent variables of sex, protocol, and order on peak and mean power output (SPSS 18.0; p ≤ 0.05). Results indicated a significant main effect of sex in regards to peak …

A High Energy X-Ray Diffraction Investigation Of Sodium Phosphate Glasses Doped With Less Than 5 Mol% Praseodymium Oxides, Kailing Zhang

Theses and Dissertations

Rare earth phosphate glasses (REPGs) are excellent materials for high energy (103 - 106 J) / high peak power ( 1012 - 1015 W) lasers. Previous work of the rare earth doped sodium phosphate glasses with compositions (R₂O₃)_x(Na₂O)_y(P₂O₅)_1-x-y where R= Nd, Eu and Dy, 0.04 < x < 0.13 showed that the intensity of the emission spectra increases with decreasing R₂O₃ content. In this study, praseodymium doped sodium phosphate glasses with even lower praseodymium oxide concentrations, (Pr₂O₃)_x(Na₂O)_yP₂O₅)_1-x-y , where 0.005 < x < 0.05 were processed and characterized focusing on the region where the lasing efficiency is possibly going to peak. Emission spectra for the glass samples were measured to study how the florescence efficiency change with Pr3+ concentration. High Energy X-ray diffraction technique was used to study the atomic-scale structure of the rare-earth doped sodium phosphate glass samples. Structural features such as inter-atomic distances, coordination numbers and their dependence on the concentration of the rare earth oxides were gained from analyzing pair distribution functions extracted from diffraction data.

Willingness To Use Adhd Treatments: A Mixed Methods Study Of Perceptions By Adolescents, Parents, Health Professionals And Teachers, Regina Bussing, Mirka Koro-Ljungberg, Kenji Noguchi, Dana Mason, Gillian Mayerson, Cynthia W. Garvan

Faculty Publications

Little is known about factors that influence willingness to engage in treatment for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). From 2007 to 2008, in the context of a longitudinal study assessing ADHD detection and service use in the United States, we simultaneously elicited ADHD treatment perceptions from four stakeholder groups: adolescents, parents, health care professionals and teachers. We assessed their willingness to use ADHD interventions and views of potential undesirable effects of two pharmacological (short- and long-acting ADHD medications) and three psychosocial (ADHD education, behavior therapy, and counseling) treatments. In multiple regression analysis, willingness was found to be significantly related to respondent …