Digital Commons Network^™

Attitudes Of Preservice Teachers Towards Teaching Deaf And Esl Students, Claire Ting, Linda Gilmore

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study explored preservice teacher attitudes towards teaching a deaf student who uses Australian Sign Language (Auslan) compared to a student who is new to Australia and speaks Polish. The participants were 200 preservice teachers in their third or fourth year of university education. A questionnaire was created to measure attitudes, and participants were also asked to list teaching strategies they would use with the two students. A factor analysis yielded two subscales: Teacher Expectations and Teacher Confidence. Results showed that teachers had higher expectations of the Auslan student than the Polish student, and were more confident about teaching the …

Is A Degree Relevant? A Comparison Of Pedagogical Thought Units Of Teachers With And Without Elt-Related Academic Credentials, Ramin Akbari, Shahab Moradkhani

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper studies the difference between the pedagogical thought units of ELT practitioners with English-relevant degrees and those with non-relevant degrees. An entire teaching session of eight EFL teachers’ performance was video recorded and their pedagogical thoughts were identified by using stimulated recall technique. The findings revealed that, in general, teachers with English-related degrees significantly reported more pedagogical thoughts than their colleagues with unrelated degrees. With respect to the categories of pedagogical thoughts, although the same families were reported by participants in both groups, there were slight differences in their rankings and significant differences in their frequency.

Transition To College: Nonacademic Factors That Influence Persistence For Underprepared Community College Students, Ann M. Paulson

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Community colleges provide access to higher education for a broad range of students. The majority require ‘remedial’ coursework in reading, writing and, especially, math. Most students who begin with this remedial coursework do not go on to earn a certificate or degree. Low levels of college graduation have high direct cost, adversely affect the U.S. economy and contribute to socioeconomic inequity.

The literature review shows that both academic and nonacademic factors influence both completion of remedial coursework and completion of first year in college. It introduces research on a variety of strategies for increasing completion and persistence for underprepared students. …

Development And Evaluation Of Beat Management Practices (Bmps) For Highway Runoff Pollution Control, Daniel Edward Jones

Department of Environmental Engineering: Theses and Other Student Research

As non-point source pollution, storm water runoff is one of the main contributors to stream impairment in the United States. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) requires Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4s) to obtain a permit under the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) to manage this pollution. Many municipalities and non-traditional MS4s such as the Nebraska Department of Roads are under federal regulations that require new developments or redevelopments of a certain size to capture (and treat) runoff from all new impervious surfaces (roofs, driveways, sidewalks, and so forth) onsite, instead of allowing it to run into …

A Study Of Hdpe In High Pressure Of Hydrogen Gas: Measurement Of Permeation Parameters And Fracture Criteria, Sompong Prachumchon

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The permeation parameters of hydrogen gas in high density polyethylene (HDPE) system are sought by comparison with a diffusion model. The method of Green’s functions is used to obtain solutions for the diffusion model. Permeation parameters are found from transient experimented data during two processes; pressurization followed by depressurization. The mechanical compression of HDPE during the pressurization process resulted in lower diffusivity coefficient values and higher solubility values. The results show that the diffusivity coefficient value in the pressurization process is 37% of that during the depressurization process. At the start of the depressurization process, a short-duration fast flow rate …

The Road To Pomp And Circumstance For Ell Students: The Perceived Ambivalent Schooling Experience Of Ell Students With Mexican Ancestry In An Urban Midwestern High School, Kristine M. Sudbeck

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

Perceptions of high school faculty and staff members about the graduation outcomes of English language learners of Mexican ancestry were explored. Throughout the course of one semester, observations were made and field notes taken in classrooms and other school locations. Interviews were conducted with 25 faculty/ staff members and 7 students, all of whom were former or current English language learners of Mexican ancestry. The author used a mixed methods strategy; interviews were coded for themes to assess qualitative data, and SPSS was used to analyze quantitative data. Faculty/staff perceived the top three indicators of whether or not an ELL …

Divided We Stand: Defying Hegemony In Theory And Practice, Anne Gregory, Gregor Halff

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The last decade has seen the world becoming increasingly complex. One way of dealing with complexity, according to Schwab (2010a), is to look for certainties or solutions that impose order by simplifying. The authors contend that this is also happening in public relations practice and the academy. They criticise attempts to produce global models which lead to hegemony and argue for maintaining a diversity that reflects reality. They take the cases of the UK and Singapore as respective exemplars where hegemony has succeeded and where it needs to be resisted. They call for a professional and epistemological stand against hegemony.

Melbourne Mandate: Key Document Defining The Direction Of The Global Pr Industry And Endorsed By 160 000 Professionals, Jurrien Gregor Halff, Daniel Tisch, Anne Gregory, Jean Valin

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

No abstract provided.

Muddy Cloud With Silver Lining? Bring It On!, Themin Suwardy

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

No abstract provided.

Banks' Survival During The Financial Crisis: The Role Of Regulatory Reporting Quality, Jeffrey Ng, Tjomme O. Rusticus

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

In this paper, we investigate the effect of bank transparency before the crisis on bank stability during the financial crisis that erupted in 2008. Using a large sample of private and public commercial banks in the United States, we find that transparency enhances stability. We use two measures of transparency. We develop a new measure of financial reporting transparency based on loan loss provision estimation errors. We corroborate our findings using a second measure based on the incidence of accounting restatements. We show that lower transparency before the crisis is associated with higher non-performing loans and lower profitability at the …

Intraday Price Discovery In Emerging Equity Market: Analysis Of Set50 Index, Set 50 Index Futures And Thaidex Set50 (Tdex), Chiraphol New Chiyachantana, Julaluck Choochuay, Tanakorn Likitapiwat

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This study employs Vector Error Correction Model (VECM), information share and conditional information share methods to investigate price discovery in SET50 Index (cash index), SET50 Index Futures (futures index) and ThaiDex SET50 (exchange traded fund). Our findings indicate that there exists a long run relationship among three markets and a multi-market trading of derivatives markets and its underlying asset helps improve price efficiency. With respect to the degree of price formation process, SET50 Index Futures contributes most in price discovery process, followed by SET50 Index and ThaiDex SET50.

Fuelling The Asian Growth Engine: Talent Challenges, Strategies And Trends, Mario Ferraro, Catherine Mudford, Karina Kuok, Saumya Sindhwani, Rebecca Siow

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The emerging economies of Asia are increasingly playing a critical role in the global arena, even as there is continuing turmoil and uncertainty in other parts of the world due to economic, financial and political upheavals. While Asian economies are undoubtedly impacted by global headwinds, most of them have been buffered by their sound economic and policy fundamentals, healthy domestic demand and continued inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Meanwhile, Asia is undergoing its own transformation: many countries in Asia are experiencing greater economic prosperity and rising affluence, translating into higher demand for goods and services. As businesses flock to …

Taxonomy And Dna Barcoding In The Genus Manfreda (Salisb.) Asparagaceae, William David Ritchie

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The genus Manfreda Salisb. of Asparagaceae is a genus of potential horticultural interest and is currently subject to breeding efforts at the University of Arkansas. A lack of taxonomic clarity however undermines the classification of potential inter - and intrageneric hybrids. The study aims to assess existing species delimitation within the genus Manfreda employing morphology while investigating the potential utility of Consortium for the Barcode of Life Plant (CBOL) DNA Barcodes for identification of specific taxa and an External Transcribed Spacer (ETS) - Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) DNA barcode for developed hybridized taxa.

Observation of 855 herbarium specimens facilitated phylogenetic …

Stochastic Tools For Network Security: Anonymity Protocol Analysis And Network Intrusion Detection, Lu Yu

All Dissertations

With the rapid development of Internet and the sharp increase of network crime, network security has become very important and received a lot of attention.
In this dissertation, we model security issues as stochastic systems. This allows us to find weaknesses in existing security systems and propose new solutions. Exploring the vulnerabilities of existing security tools can prevent cyber-attacks from taking advantages of the system weaknesses. We consider The Onion Router (Tor), which is one of the most popular anonymity systems in use today, and show how to detect a protocol tunnelled through Tor. A hidden Markov model (HMM) is …

Application Of Carbon Dioxide Towards The Development Of Smart Materials, Green Reaction Schemes And Metallic Nanoparticle Synthesis, Fiaz Mohammed

All Dissertations

Global carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions have steadily risen over the last 50 years, with 34 billion tons of CO₂ released in 2009 alone. Its potential as a greenhouse gas has negatively affected of our lives and environment by the resulting ocean acidification and climate change. To mitigate atmospheric CO₂, various strategies have been implemented for CO₂ separation, capture, storage and use as a chemical feedstock. The use of CO₂ in various chemical industries is attractive as its non-flammable, non-toxic, and relatively inert properties have made it an inherently safer alternative to traditional organic …

Factors That Predict Hispanic/Latino Entrepreneurs' Intentions To Use Thirteen Entrepreneurial Behaviors, Rosanna Saladin-Subero

All Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what attitudinal, normative, and control beliefs most significantly predicted Hispanic business owners' intentions to engage in 13 entrepreneurial behaviors. In 2011, Hispanic business owners from five cities in Greenville Country, South Carolina were invited to participate. Only owners of for-profit business that had been in operation for a year or more participated. Seventy four Hispanic business owners were interviewed or completed an online survey.
Aizen's Theory of Planned Behavior (1980, 1991, 2002a, 2002b, 2006) was used as the framework for constructing a survey to examine stated intentions, and concomitant attitudes, norms, and …

Characterization Of Two Type Iv Collagens Involved In Autosomal Recessive Hereditary Nephropathy, Keri Tabb

All Dissertations

The glomerular basement membrane (GBM) of the kidney is highly specialized and required for filtration of waste products from the bloodstream. One of the major structural and functional units of the GBM is a network composed of type IV collagen heterotrimers, or protomers. Early in development of the human and dog, an isoform switch occurs, and the α1α1α2 (IV) network found in the nascent GBM is replaced with α3α4α5 (IV) protomers. Mutations in any of the genes encoding proteins found in the mature GBM network may prevent protomer formation and cause a progressive disorder leading to end stage renal failure …

Evaluation Of A Practice Change To Improve Screening, Identification, And Management Of Patients With Prediabetes, Murrita C. Bolinger

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background: The prevalence rate of type 2 diabetes among adults in West Virginia (WV) is 10.85, which ranks fourth in the United States in 2007. Furthermore, WV ranks as second highest state for diabetes related deaths in the nation. Prediabetes increases the risks for development of type 2 diabetes. Studies have supported lifestyle modification education for prediabetic adults in an effort to reduce progression to type 2 diabetes.;Objective: To evaluate the use of an EMR reminder to improve the screening, identifying, and documentation of treatment plans for patient at risk for prediabetes.;Methods: A provider focused education session was offered to …

Mindfully Teaching In The Classroom: A Literature Review, Nicole J. Albrecht, Patricia M. Albrecht, Marc Cohen

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The practice of mindfulness is being used with increased frequency in schools around the world. In the current literature review we outline some of the core concepts and practices associated with mindfulness and discuss studies analysing the process of mindfulness teacher training. Preliminary research in this emerging field suggests that mindfulness has the potential to improve classroom management, teacher-student relationships and instructional strategies. Mindfulness instructors recommend that before teachers can feel comfortable and effectively teach mindfulness in the classroom they need to embody and practice mindfulness in their own lives. It is proposed that in order to improve our knowledge …

Prospective Teachers' Comprehension Levels Of Special Relativity Theory And The Effect Of Writing For Learning On Achievement, Ali Yildiz

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In the present study, the comprehension levels of special relativity theory in prospective teachers who take the Introduction to Modern Physics lesson in the faculty of education science teaching department and the effect of writing for learning on their achievement is researched. In the research, a control group pre-test post-test quasi-experimental research model was used. Research data were obtained by using open-ended questions prepared by the researcher. The lesson was conducted in the beginning by using the verbal-written explanation method. Then each student in the experimental group wrote a summary which clearly explains the special relativity theory for a high …

A Professional Experience Learning Community For Pre-Service Secondary Mathematics Teachers, Michael S. Cavanagh, Thomas Garvey

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper reports the development and implementation of a collaborative professional experience learning community for a group of nine pre-service secondary mathematics teachers. The pre-service teachers and their methods lecturer made 12 school visits over one academic year to a local secondary school. The pre-service teachers observed and co-taught problem-solving lessons in two Year 8 classes. They discussed the lessons with the teacher and the university lecturer, and later posted reflective comments to an online forum. Data from questionnaires, interviews, and reflections indicate that participation in the learning community helped pre-service teachers make stronger links between theory and practice, learn …

Becoming Artifacts: Medieval Seals, Passports And The Future Of Digital Identity, Mawaki Chango

School of Information Studies - Dissertations

What does a digital identity token have to do with medieval seals? Is the history of passports of any use for enabling the discovery of Internet users' identity when crossing virtual domain boundaries during their digital browsing and transactions? The agility of the Internet architecture and its simplicity of use have been the engines of its growth and success with the users worldwide. As it turns out, there lies also its crux. In effect, Internet industry participants have argued that the critical problem business is faced with on the Internet is the absence of an identity layer from the core …

Exploring Healthcare Simulation As A Platform For Interprofessional Education, Janice Christine Palaganas

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Interprofessional education (IPE) is gradually recognized as essential to patient safety and implemented as a standard for healthcare education through professional organization recommendations and accrediting bodies. Given the increasing adoption of experiential and team-based learning, healthcare simulation (HCS) has become a preferred vehicle for IPE. As healthcare professional educators explore simulation as a platform for IPE, a need to better understand the state of the science has become apparent. This descriptive comparative study examines how the most commonly used simulation modalities and IPE teaching methods (low-technology versus high-technology; multiprofessional versus collaborative team-based activities; observational versus active methods; standardized patients versus …

The Impact Of The Dominions Of Mindfulness On The Organizational Innovation “Descriptive Analytical Study In Some Faculties Of The University Of Baghdad”, Asmaa Taha Nouri

Journal of Economics and Administrative Sciences

Research seeks to test the impact of the dimensions of mindfulness on organizational Innovation, proposed in the light of the review literature on two variables of the research, which referred in General to the dynamic relationship between them, as result of weakness of mindfulness as one important factor driving the diversity of innovation and time, ways to sustain and preserve and then support innovations made by creators, weakness in the overall level of organizational Innovation, this represents the problem research, data collection over designing identification, distributed to sample Formed from (30) head Department at a number of colleges of the …

Hopeful Measures: Characteristics Of Hope At A Community College, Thomas C. Priester

Education Doctoral

Snyder’s Hope Theory defines the construct of hope as the “sum of perceived capabilities to produce routes to desired goals, along with the perceived motivation to use those routes” (Snyder, 2000, p. 8). Hope is a tenant of positive psychology that can be used to measure personal as well as academic potential (Seligman, 2002). In fact, Lopez (2009) claims that “hope predicts GPA and retention in college, and hope scores are more robust than high school GPA, SAT, and ACT scores.” Researchers have measured the relationship between hope and academic performance in college students at four-year, baccalaureate degree granting institutions …

The Impact Of Superintendent Turnover On Student Achievement In Rural Districts, Rebekah Parker-Chenaille

Education Doctoral

The field has gained knowledge in the area of superintendent influence on student achievement; however, more research on superintendent turnover and its impact on organizational performance in a rural context is needed. Student achievement measures have become the primary indicator of school, principal, teacher, and student success (New York: Race to the Top State Scope of Work, 2011) and has become a measure of the superintendent’s performance. Using time series data analysis with twelve years of district data across the 21 schools studied, results indicated that superintendent turnover did impact student achievement. The motive of the superintendent, examined in this …

School Type And Student Achievement: Does School Type Affect Student Achievement In Hidalgo County, Texas?, Krystal Estarei Garcia

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study concentrates on identifying whether school type affects student achievement. Throughout this thesis, school type is the independent variable and student achievement is the dependent variable. School type was measured according to whether the school was classified as either a public school or charter school. In addition, school type was further defined according to the following variables: total academic and administrative staff, number of principals, number of assistant principals, school size, number of teachers, student teacher ratio, and student type. School expenditures, time, and method of teacher certification are the control variables. For the purpose of this thesis, student …

Aqui Es: The Rhetoric Of Identification In An Act Of Local Branding, Bonnie M. Garcia

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Brands are a large part of our cultural discourse. In the Rio Grande Valley a group of network-marketing sponsored entrepreneurs has tapped into branding as a rhetorical resource. I use Burke’s concept of consubstantiation to analyze the rhetorical motives represented both in the use of branding in general and in the “Aqui Es” sign utilized by local nutrition clubs. Burke’s concept of consubstantiation allows me to contextualize the production of the sign and open avenues to explore the relationships behind the sign’s use. I then utilize Lacanian psychoanalysis to explain the psychological motives behind the sign’s use and production. I …

Selected Factors Related To The Mathematics Academic Achievement Of Eighth Grade English Language Learners, Anthony Garza

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The purpose of this study was to examine selected factors related to the 8th grade mathematics achievement levels of English Language Learner (ELL) students in selected South Texas middle schools. The dependent variable, ELL mathematics achievement, was measured by the ELL student’s raw score on the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) or the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness linguistically accommodated test (STAAR L). The factors examined in this study were 1) parent’s educational background, 2) socioeconomic status, 3) parental involvement status at school, 4) number of people in the household, 5) family structure, 6) primary …

Zumba® Fitness As A Cultural Mediator, Cole E. Durain

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This ethnography describes local experience as it pertains to aspects of music, dance, and fitness which are compiled into Zumba® Fitness classes of the Rio Grande Valley. While Zumba is not unique to this region, it is locally interpreted based on geo-cultural factors of the Texas-Mexico border region. A large part of Zumba’s success in the Valley can be attributed to the way music is used to identify with regional popular culture and becomes a catalyst for changing the way locals think about health. Research gathered through participant-observation shows that Zumba has become a cultural expression where participants perform both …