Digital Commons Network^™

Bringing Pragmatics Into The Esl Classroom, Tahnee Bucher Barbosa Da Silva

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

As a result of the expanding interest in the cognitive and social dimensions of language use beyond single sentences, a great number of research studies have been conducted in order to examine nonnative speakers' ability to use language appropriately in a social context. Recently, with a growing understanding of the key role pragmatic competence plays in second language development, researchers have also investigated the benefits of direct instruction in helping language learners become aware of the pragmatic conditions governing the uses of grammatical structures. This thesis reports on the design and administration of a study that investigated language learners' knowledge …

Civic Education In West Virginia: Guidelines And State Standards In A Case Study, Carolyn Jackson Brejwo

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Civic teachers are members of their community and are responsible for preparing their students to be future citizens. West Virginia is one of nine states that requires students to pass a class whose title includes the word "civic." All 12th grade students in the state must take a year long civic education course. The goal for the course is offered by the state in published documents. The documents lay out a course that is guided in part by the definition of civic education offered by the National Council for Social Studies (NCSS). West Virginia offers a much broader and deeper …

Optimization Models For Locating Cross-Docks Under Capacity Uncertainty, Anshul Soanpet

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The objective of this thesis is to develop mathematical models for locating cross-docks in a supply chain. Cross-docking is a strategy which can help consolidate the goods in the supply chain and save costs by reducing the number of truck trips. In this thesis four optimization models were developed. First two optimization models termed Model A and Model B were deterministic models. The goal of model A was to choose exactly P locations to locate cross-docks so that the transportation and handling costs are minimized. The goal of model B is to locate as many cross-docks as needed so that …

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 …

Constructing A Professional Identity: Non-Native Speakers As Teachers In College Freshman Composition Classes In An American University, Marcela Hebbard

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study is a qualitative, quantitative investigation of how non-native speakers of English construct a professional identity as teachers of English composition and rhetoric in freshman classes in an American University and how their students perceived such identity. A sample of 4 participants teaching ENG 1301 Rhetoric and Composition classes were recruited. Data were gathered through personal interviews, questionnaires, class observations, and students' anonymous survey at the end of their course to measure course satisfaction and their perception of their non-native speaker instructors. The investigation revealed that in order to develop a Professional Teacher Identity, non-native speakers of English need …

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 …

Do U.S. Firms Fly Higher When Bypassing The U.S. Capital Markets? An Investigation Of The Short- And Long-Run Performance Of Foreign Ipos?, Robert N. Killins

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This dissertation studies the performance of U.S. firms that partake in a foreign IPO – bypassing their domestic exchanges and raising their equity in a foreign market. Chapter one provides an introduction and brief review of the main research questions and results. Chapter 2 provides a detailed literature review on initial public offerings-IPOs. This includes relevant studies on the long- and short-run performance of IPOs, theories for IPO underpricing and an international component of the IPO literature. Additional cross-listing literature is also reviewed to provide a more complete and balanced understanding of the international market for equity. Chapter 3 develops …

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 …

Identifying Local Entrepreneurship Development System Policy In Rural Areas And How Local Context Shapes Entrepreneurship Policy Formation, Stacey Wright Mccullough

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As rural communities struggle to maintain a sustainable economic base in today's global economy, many are exploring strategies to encourage entrepreneurial development. The purpose of this study was to better understand how local public policy is being be used to support the creation of entrepreneurship development systems in rural communities and how local context shapes entrepreneurship public policy formation. In phase one of the study, a survey and analysis of documents available on the Internet were used to identify county and municipal policy actions associated with entrepreneurial development in 16 counties in North Carolina. In the second study phase, two …

Assessing The Impacts Of Surface Water Removal For Use In Natural Gas Extraction On A Watershed Level, Carrie Ann Davis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Test (SWAT) was used as a tool to predict whether diffuse water removal from the Cadron Creek watershed for use with natural gas development would have an impact on downstream flow within the watershed. Cadron Creek watershed expands across four counties within Arkansas and is located in the Fayetteville Shale Gas region. This region is experiencing significant growth in natural gas development. Successful development of shale gas depends on the identification of what water supplies are available for production without interfering with community and environmental needs. The SWAT model used to evaluate …

Inquiry-Based Instruction In The Social Studies: Successes And Challenges, Crystal Maree Beshears

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' perceptions, understanding, and use of inquiry-based instruction in the Social studies, to assess the impact of inquiry-based units on instruction, to detail implementation successes and challenges reported by teachers when implementing inquiry-based instruction, and to provide recommendations for future efforts. Teachers' perceptions of teaching and learning, particularly their beliefs about inquiry-based instruction, changed during the study. Throughout the study, teachers' perceptions and beliefs about teaching Social studies had an impact on how they planned, implemented and reflected on inquiry-based instruction. Many of the teachers changed their perceptions and began regularly teaching …

Midwest Or Lesbian? Gender, Rurality, And Sexuality, Emily Kazyak

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Research suggests a gendered dimension to the geography of sexual minorities, as gay couples are more likely to live in cities than are lesbian couples. Using data from 60 interviews with rural gays and lesbians, this article employs an intersectional analysis of the mutually constitutive relationships among place, gender, and sexuality in order to assess how acceptance of gays and lesbians in small towns is gendered. Findings indicate that femininity aligns with gay sexuality but not rurality. In contrast, masculinity underpins both the categories “rural” and “lesbian.” Furthermore, both lesbian women and gay men gain acceptance in rural areas by …

Policy-Making Under Evo Morales: Explaining Ethnopopulist Redistributive Measures In Bolivia, Luis Ferreira

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The Evo Morales administration has radically transformed the Bolivian state since his election in 2005. As a result of Morales' indigenous identity and overt ethnic tensions in this state, there is a perception that this factor plays a decisive role in Bolivia's policymaking. However, as the 'renegotiation' of the hydrocarbon industry in 2006 demonstrates, ethnopopulism and political survival provide the most comprehensive approach to predicting the policies of the current Bolivian government.

The resistance to liberalization efforts, the success of redistributive measures and the role identity has had in Bolivia explains why this approach to policy-making has allowed Morales to …

The Effectiveness Of A District-Wide Training Initiative On Determining Preparedness Of Educational Leaders In A Large, Southeastern Louisiana School System, Jeanne Bordelon Wagner

Dissertations

A nationwide shortage of qualified, experienced applicants to fill the roles of educational leaders has led to a hiring crisis among school districts across America. The diminishing pool of applicants, accompanied by a high turnover rate of practicing administrators and increasing accountability demands, has revealed the importance of recruitment and retention of educational leaders. As the roles of school administrators are constantly evolving and increasing in complexity, recruiting skillfully trained personnel proficient in all dimensions of school leadership is a catalyst for increasing student achievement and for reducing principal attrition rates. The purpose of this research was to reveal perceived …

Uplift And Blame: Minority Parents In The Discourse Of Professional Educators, Katie Mitchell

Master's Theses - Sociology and Anthropology

This historical document analysis explores the professional discourse on minority parents in education during the Progressive (1900-1914), Post-Civil Rights/ESEA (1960-1974), and NCLB/Accountability Eras (1995-2009). Grounded theory was used to code and analyze 430 articles mentioning parents and/or home life from two peer-reviewed journals of education. Research questions asked which minority parents are of interest to educators in each era, how minority parenting roles are portrayed in the educational discourse, and why minority parents concern educators. Findings include a focus on immigrant parents in the Progressive Era and on African American and Hispanic parents in the Post-Civil Rights/ESEA and NCLB/Accountability Eras. …

Agent-Based Virtual Humans In Co-Space: An Evaluative Study, Yilin Kang, Ah Hwee Tan, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah

Business and Information Technology Faculty Research & Creative Works

Co-Space refers to interactive virtual environment modelled after the real world in terms of look-and-feel, functionalities and services. We have developed a 3D virtual world named Nan yang Technological University (NTU) Co-Space populated with virtual human characters. Three key requirements of realistic virtual humans in the virtual world have been identified, namely (1) autonomy: Agents can function on their own, (2) interactivity: Agents can interact naturally with players, and (3) personality: Agents can exhibit human traits and characteristics. Working towards these challenges, we propose a brain-inspired agent architecture that integrates goal-directed autonomy, natural language interaction and human-like personality. We conducted …

Pataya: Suatu Tinjauan Konstruksi Tempat Ngèbèr Komunitas Gay Di Surabaya, Kathleen Azali

Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia

Tempat ngèbèr, or hanging-out places where gay men in Indonesia meet, can be found in various—though relatively hidden—public places across Indonesia. Tempat ngèbèr as one of the more prominent sites in the constellation of gay serves not only as a space to find sexual partners, but also to socialize, to be open in expressing oneself, and to gain acceptance from one’s peers. Surabaya has a number of famous, well-known tempat ngèbèr, with Pataya being one of the largest places. Yet changes within the last few years have diminished its popularity. Through participant observation and non-formal interviews, this research attempts to …

Remote Sensing Of Tanzanian Volcano Oldoinyo Lengai: Verifying Detection Methods Of Flow Activity, Scott Richard Frystak

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Designbridge: Integrating Transportation Into Service Learning Design/Build Projects, Juli Brode, Nico Larco, John Roswell

TREC Final Reports

This proposal develops transportation-related projects through the work of designBridge. This active, student-based organization is composed of members from the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture and Allied Arts working cooperatively with participants from the UO’s Planning, Public Policy and Management, Landscape Architecture, Geography, and Art departments. The program provides an opportunity for students to gain valuable, real-world experience by encouraging them to explore significant design issues in the community, to seek appropriate solutions to transportation problems, and to develop professional skills. Students are engaged in all phases of the design and building process, from the first client meeting through …

The Influence Of Market Proximity On National Forest Hazardous Fuels Treatments, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Susan Charnley, Cassandra Moseley

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The US Department of Agriculture Forest Service's focus on hazardous fuels reduction has increased since the adoption of the National Fire Plan in 2001. However, appropriations for hazardous fuels reduction still lag behind wildfire suppression spending. Offsetting fuels treatment costs through biomass utilization or by using innovative administrative mechanisms such as stewardship contracting are two approaches to stretching appropriated dollars further across the landscape. We use fuels treatment data (n = 8,451 locations) to ask how wood- processing infrastructure influences where and how much hazardous fuels treatments, biomass utilization, and stewardship contracting occur on national forests in Oregon and Washington. …

Long-Term Integrated Studies Show Complex And Surprising Effects Of Climate Change In The Northern Hardwood Forest, Peter M. Groffman, Lindsay E. Rustad, Pamela H. Templer, John L. Campbell, Lynn M. Christenson, Nina K. Lany, Anne M. Socci, Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur, Paul G. Schaberg, Geoffrey W. Wilson, Charles T. Driscoll, Timothy J. Fahey, Melany C. Fisk, Christine L. Goodale, Mark B. Green, Steven P. Hamburg, Chris E. Johnson, Mryon J. Mitchell, Jennifer L. Morse, Linda H. Pardo, Nicholas L. Rodenhouse

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Evaluations of the local effects of global change are often confounded by the interactions of natural and anthropogenic factors that overshadow the effects of climate changes on ecosystems. Long-term watershed and natural elevation gradient studies at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest and in the surrounding region show surprising results demonstrating the effects of climate change on hydrologic variables (e.g., evapotranspiration, streamflow, soil moisture); the importance of changes in phenology on water, carbon, and nitrogen fluxes during critical seasonal transition periods; winter climate change effects on plant and animal community composition and ecosystem services; and the effects of anthropogenic disturbances and …

Educational Genocide: Examining The Impact Of National Education Policy On African American Communities, Christopher B. Knaus, Rachelle Rogers-Ard

The Bridge: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Legal & Social Policy

Abstract This paper clarifies the cumulative impact of the current national education policy on African-American children, which ultimately aims to limit local control of urban schools. The authors argue that urban schools in the United States are increasingly required to rely upon temporary teachers who are trained to implement a curriculum focused on standardized testing. The No Child Left Behind Act and the current Duncan administration’s approach to closing (and re-opening) schools combines to further exclude low-income community involvement in local schools. These efforts to control the development, hiring, and evaluation of local educators further expands educational racism that silences …

The New Hampshire, Vol. 102 [103], No. 23 (Nov. 30, 2012), The New Hampshire

The New Hampshire Print Edition

An independent student produced newspaper from the University of New Hampshire. This volume was printed as 102, but it is the 103rd volume in the series. This was corrected in pencil.

Comparison Of Three Collection Techniques For Capture Of Coleoptera, With An Emphasis On Saproxylic Species, In Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Usa, Michael L. Ferro, Matthew L. Gimmel, Kyle E. Harms, Christopher E. Carlton

Insecta Mundi

Collection methods and/or habitats sampled influence how many and which species are captured during entomological surveys. Here we compare Coleoptera catches among three survey activities, each using a single collection method, at the same study sites in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA. Activities included: short-term flight intercept trapping (FITs); sifting/Berlese funneling of leaf litter and extremely decayed downed coarse woody debris; and using emergence chambers containing coarse woody debris of various decay classes. In total, 2472 adult beetle specimens, representing 217 lowest identifiable taxa within 164 genera and 42 families, were collected during the FIT survey. Each survey activity …

Agenda, University Of South Florida St. Petersburg General Education Committee Meeting, November 30, 2012, University Of South Florida St. Petersburg. Faculty Senate. General Education Committee

USF St. Petersburg General Education Committee Meetings

Agenda from the November 30, 2012, meeting of the General Education Committee of the University of South Florida St. Petersburg's Faculty Senate.

Imagining Integration, Bethany Keisner

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Montesquieu's Theory Of Government And The Framing Of The American Constitution , Matthew P. Bergman

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Cellphone Diaries: Mobile Technology And Self-Authored Digital Videos In Asset Mapping, Kofi Boone

PRISM: A Journal of Regional Engagement

The Cellphone diaries project engaged African-American residents of historic South Park East Raleigh, North Carolina in the use of “smartphones” to document places that had meaning for them in Chavis Park. Chavis Park is the green heart of their community, and is undergoing rapid change. The project was a component of an effort by NC State University investigators to support a neighborhood revitalization framework organized around a community vision plan. Cellphone diaries attempted to 1) train residents in the use of “smartphone” digital videos for individual on-site asset mapping, and 2) compare the results of individual on-site “smartphone” based approaches …

Responding To The Need For Language Support: Partnership In Primary, Secondary And Tertiary Education, Gail A. Mceachron, Joy Martin

PRISM: A Journal of Regional Engagement

Abstract

This study explored how school, university, and community partners provided language support to K-12 students whose first language was something other than English. Six English as a second language (ESL) supervisors representing six Virginia school divisions were asked to describe school-university language partnerships. Research questions were: According to ESL supervisors, how do PK-12 public school divisions and institutions of higher education collaborate on behalf of students whose first language is not English? What do ESL supervisors perceive as ways in which current partnerships could be improved and expanded? Tape-recorded interviews were transcribed and analyzed along with information available through …

Equity In International Experiential Learning: Assessing Benefits To Students And Host Communities, Erika D. Nelson, Thomas Klak

PRISM: A Journal of Regional Engagement

This research uses participant observation and other qualitative methods to evaluate whether faculty-led short-term study abroad programs can successfully carry out responsible ‘fair trade’, and thereby substantially benefit not only students but also the host communities. The research draws insights by comparing two experiential learning courses taught in South Africa and Dominica. Results suggest that students benefit in various transformative ways in both courses, by applying sustainability and development studies concepts to real-life service and hands-on learning in cross-cultural situations. The Dominica course yields more host community benefits, however, because of the instructors’ long-term commitments to reciprocal partnerships and equitable …