Digital Commons Network^™

Un Paso Adelante, Dos Pasos Atras : La Mujer Espanola En Insolacion Y Nada, Sarah Elizabeth Minogue

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

During the 19th and 20th centuries, Spanish women struggled to maintain the rights and independence they deserve. In present day, this challenge persists. Though much progress has been made, the author posits that the position of Spanish women has also regressed in many ways. Using the novels Insolacion by Emilia Pardo Bazan and Nada by Carmen Laforet as the analyzed texts, the author provides evidence to prove that overall, Spanish women have not experienced the true freedom and equality they are entitled to.

The Mirage Of Curriculum Decentralization : A Case Study Of Local Stakeholders' Involvement In School-Based Curriculum Development (Sbcd) Policy Implementation In Indonesia, Muhamad Ali Akrom

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study examined local stakeholders' involvement in the School-Based Curriculum Development (SBCD) policy implementation in five elementary schools in a city in the southeastern region of Indonesia. An interpretive qualitative case study design was applied. Participants in the study consisted of principals, teachers, parents/School Committee members, and key officials from the local education authority. Four data collection strategies were employed in this study: semi-structured interviews, focus groups, observations, and document analysis. The data obtained were analyzed qualitatively using a constant comparative method. Nvivo 10 was also used to facilitate the analysis process.;Findings of the study indicated that the local stakeholders …

The Role Of A Residential Learning Community In The Faith Development Of Catholic College Students, Michael J. Stang

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The college years are a transformative period for undergraduate students, especially in their spiritual development. Fowler (1981) initially proposed the stages of faith model, and Parks (1986) clarified the unique faith journey experience of college students. There are many aspects in the lives of college students that influence faith development. Residence halls have long been known as having a great impact on student learning and development (Astin, 1993; Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005). This study examined college student spiritual development by exploring the impact of a residential learning community on the faith development of Catholic college students. This qualitative study examined …

Using Tablet-Based Instruction To Improve Communicative Responses In The World Language Classroom, Ashley C. Soriano

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Since students of this generation are being raised with technology at their fingertips, it is becoming more essential to find ways to implement tablet-based learning into classroom instruction. With new apps and websites appearing each day for use in the foreign language classroom, the purpose of this action research paper was to investigate the resources already available. In this action research project, I implemented different iPad applications and websites accessible on an iPad into my own classroom instruction in order to increase student communicative responses in terms of vocabulary usage, detail expansion, and fluidity. Results showed that extra practice utilizing …

The Protective Role Of Social Support And The Relations Among Cyber And Traditional Victimization, Depression, And Suicidal Ideation, Stephanie Secord Fredrick

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The current study investigated the relations among the constructs of traditional victimization, cyber victimization, social support, depression, and suicidal ideation in a sample of adolescents. Although these constructs have been extensively studied in the literature, the relation among these constructs, especially among cyber victimization and social support, is not well known. Results indicated that both traditional victimization and cyber victimization were found to be positively related to depression. Traditional victimization, but not cyber victimization, was found to be positively related to suicidal ideation. Depression was found to fully mediate the relation between traditional and cyber victimization and suicidal ideation. Finally, …

Illinois' Performance Evaluation Reform Act (Pera) Examined Within The Context Of The Federal Government's Expanding Role In Public Education, Hillary A. Nasso

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the ever-expanding role of the federal government's involvement in the American public education system to put the 2010 Illinois Performance Evaluation Act (PERA) into context. Understanding the history of federal education policy and the federal government's involvement in public education (historically the domain of the states) helps illuminate the current situation in Illinois. The 2010 Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA) changed the method of evaluating the performance of public school teachers. This alteration incorporated student academic growth data into the evaluation calculation. This is the first time Illinois teacher performance evaluations will be based in part on …

I'M Ready Warden : An Examination Of The Rhetoric Of Death, Zac Wendler

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the rhetorical context, preservation, and dissemination of the final statements of American felons executed between 1985 and Spring 2012, as well as the history of these items in the West generally and America specifically. This examination found little variance in final statement genre incidence rates with respect to ethnicity, gender, date of utterance, or any other temporal or demographic factor. As a result, it examines in detail the cultural context which stabilizes and centers this type of utterance, and explores how such statements move through American society and are transformed in the process. It argues that such …

Impression Management, Super Pacs, And The 2012 Republican Primaries, Nathan Katz

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Super Political Action Committees (PACs) are relatively new organizations within American politics that allow individuals to donate unlimited funds to campaign causes. This was particularly noticeable during the 2012 Republican primary, which was one of the most well-funded primaries in American history. One of the ways both candidates and Super PACs spend their money is for the production of campaign ads to develop candidate images. These advertisements contribute to a political impression management that develops candidate performances. I have used the Symbolic Interactionist perspective for this study because the theory states that the images or presentations of individuals are continuously …

Fan Fiction : An Analysis Of Genre And Success, Jory C. Keller

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis project contains the study of four works of fan fiction based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Through analysis of authorial intent, attribution to the source material, and faithfulness to the original in plot, theme, characterization, and style, this paper finds a correlation between the level of transformation and the work's commercial success.

Fe, Cu And Zn Concentration In A Mvp As A Function Of Sulfur In Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems Comparable To The Porphyry-Style Environment, Colby James Lubanowski

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Ore deposits are local and/or regional deviations from the country rock where desired minerals and/or metals are deposited in elevated concentrations. Porphyry ore deposits are those temporally and spatially associated with intermediate to felsic igneous intrusion(s) and commonly form via magmatic and hydrothermal components. In these systems, the MVP is thought to be the dominant transporter of desired elements (e.g. Cu, Au) towards sites of deposition. Commonly, the minerals that exist in porphyry deposits are sulfides (e.g. chalcopyrite, bornite, etc.), oxides and native elements. In this study, we conduct a fluid inclusion study to evaluate the concentration of metals (e.g. …

La Contra-Hegemonia Como Tactica Cultural En Dos Obras Teatrales De Paloma Pedrero, Jeffrey Bainbridge

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines the relationship between Paloma Pedrero's plays, Esta noche en el parque and De noche a alba, as they explore the evolution of gender roles in a post Franco Spain. After the death of General Franco Spain launched into a transition to democracy. In its wake, as the balance of power transformed the body politic, the traditional gender roles were in equal upheaval and redefinition. With selected theoretical references to Antonio Gramsci and Michel Foucault, this thesis explores how Pedrero's works hone in on the nucleus of these renegotiations placing the interpersonal nature of the relationship under the …

La Musica Y El Cine Durante La Movida Madrilena Como Un Movimiento Politico Y Cultural, Salvador Macias

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The research I have done for this thesis is about the songs and movies that were created during la Movida madrilena during the decades of the seventies and eighties, and how this art served as an influence for those Spaniards who wanted to live with more freedom. In this thesis I analyze lyrics, as well as movies from the most predominant artist of that time; artists such as Alaska, Miguel Bose, Nacha Pop, Hombres G, Mecano, or the great film maker Pedro Almodovar, amongst other ones, are the ones in which I focused my research. Seeing these arts up close …

Linkages Between Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (Cafo) Expansion And County Board Politics In Rural Illinois, Eric A. Sterling

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) are rapidly expanding in rural Illinois. This research explores the political power linkages between county boards and corporate entities in four Illinois counties. The hypothesis is that collusion and impropriety within county board politics and CAFO expansion in rural Illinois are attributed to stakeholder influence and power at the local county government level. My research revealed a connection between ownership of CAFOs, county board political power, and endorsement of expansion. Utilizing Walter Goldschmidt's method of a controlled comparison, the research analyzes two CAFO inundated counties (Pike and Adams) with two less affected counties (LaSalle and …

Liquid Level Measurement Using Non-Contact Radar, Kaushik Bukka

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The present research is related to liquid level measurement using a non-contact radar. For this purpose we employ a Mono-Doppler transceiver whose function is to transmit and receive electromagnetic waves. The primary objective of the research is to estimate the height of water level in a tank and to build an efficient measuring device.;"Mono-Doppler transceiver operates as a pulse radar device. It emits pulses of microwaves in a duration of nanoseconds. For this reason the transceiver has high repetition rate. Within very short duration, a received signal is observed, the time delay of the received signal is used to evaluate …

Male Health Promotion Professionals In Higher Education : Why They Enter And Remain, Alicia Katherine Czachowski

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines men in the career of health promotion in higher education. This study was designed to gain insight from men currently working in health promotion in higher education about why and how they entered their career as well as what is keeping them working in this field. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of men working as health promotion professionals in the higher education setting regarding their entry into and persistence in their chosen profession.;Using a basic interpretive qualitative study approach, five participants took part in three semi-structured interviews, in which …

Modulation Of The Il-6 Receptor Alpha Underlies Gli2-Mediated Regulation Of Immunoglobulin Secretion In Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia, David A. Jackson

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Immunoglobulin (Ig) secretion by terminally differentiated B cells is an important component of the immune response to foreign pathogens. Its over-production is a defining characteristic of many B cell malignancies including Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia (WM), where elevated levels of IgM is associated with significant morbidity and poor prognosis. Therefore, the identification and characterization of the mechanisms controlling Ig secretion are of great importance for the development of future therapeutic approaches for this disease. Here, we define a novel pathway involving the oncogenic transcription factor GLI2 which modulates IgM secretion by WM malignant cells. Pharmacological and genetic inhibition of GLI2 but not …

Mosfet Parameter Extraction And Spice Modeling, Sai Subhash Sripada

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This paper proposes a simple extraction technique which can be used to extract device parameters of any power MOSFET easily. It only requires the use of transfer and output characteristic graphs to extract threshold voltage and transconductance and a few formulas to extract the parasitic capacitances of the power device. The extraction technique is presented in an easy to understand step by step procedure. The parameters extracted using this process are used to develop a spice model. Transient analysis is done for the extracted model and the resistive switching performance is compared with the datasheet in order to prove the …

Not Under My Roof : Interracial Relationships And Black Image In Post-World War Ii Film, Andre Berchiolly

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines the historical implications of miscegenation and interracial interactions between minority males and white females in Post-World War II independent cinema. Elia Kazan's studio film Pinky (1949) exemplifies the perceived acceptable studio representations of interracial coupling. My examination of Kazan's film provides a starting point from which to evaluate other textual situations of interracial interaction, particularly in relation to casting. In contrast, Pierre Chenal's adaptation of Richard Wright's Native Son, Sangre Negra (1951) exhibits key differences in interracial depictions between studio productions and independent productions of that era. After a comparative analysis of Kazan's and Chenal's films, further …

Pedagogical Beliefs Of Bilingual Teachers About Technology Integration, Manuel Cuauhtemoc Martinez Castro

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the pedagogical beliefs of a group of bilingual teachers, and how those beliefs shape their decisions regarding the extent to which they will integrate technology in their academic work. It also explores how unfavorable conditions affect such efforts. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) include clear expectations for students, teachers, and K-12 schools regarding technology skills and use, as well as hardware and infrastructure requirements. However, many barriers to technology integration persist in schools serving low-income communities and make those goals difficult to accomplish. Some of those barriers are related to teachers' pedagogical beliefs. Ten bilingual teachers …

Pem Fuel Cell With High-Performance Bipolar Plates, Sathwik Singari

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The consumption of electricity has drastically increased over the last decade and the need for cheap energy efficient sources has augmented. Fuel cells have been proposed as possible power sources to address issues that involve energy production and the environment. A proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is a likely alternative as a zero-emission source due to its high efficiency, low temperature operation and high power density. The Bipolar plate is a vital element of PEM fuel cell, which supplies fuel and oxidant to reactive sites, removes reaction products, collects produced current and increases the effective contact area for higher …

Portable Responsive Instructional Materials 1957 To 1982 : A Historical Content Analysis Using Failure Mode And Effect Analysis, Bettylynne F. Gregg

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This historical content analysis study examined portable responsive instructional materials used by United States teachers and students in primary, secondary, and higher education instructional settings for the period of 1957 through 1982---the beginning of the space race with the stimulus of educational funding from the National Defense Education Act (NDEA) to the introduction of classroom computers into the mainstream education population. During this period, a plethora of instructional materials was implemented in classrooms, which supported the audiovisual movement to improve performance and knowledge. This study focused on the pedagogical and functional uses of instructional materials from the specified period of …

Predictors Of Attitudes Toward The Use Of Moodle For Learning English In A Blended Learning Environment In Cambodia, Chenda Hong

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The study aimed to investigate the extent to which perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and levels of computer proficiency predicted attitudes toward using Moodle for learning English as a foreign language in blended learning in Cambodia. The study was significant because there is no known extant research conducted on this topic in Cambodia yet. The study was a correlational design which used an online survey tool to collect data from 150 English language learners in English for Academic Purposes program at Australian Centre for Education in Cambodia. The findings showed that students' attitudes toward the use of Moodle for …

Preparing Elementary Pre-Service Teachers To Integrate Stem : A Mixed-Methods Study, Erin Marie Evans

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This mixed-methods study longitudinally examined 12 elementary pre-service teachers' perceptions, attitudes, confidence, and abilities to integrate STEM into their instruction. In three phases spanning two semesters, the pre-service teachers from a small, private, Midwestern university were studied as they completed a combined science and social studies methods course, during which they designed and implemented an Integrated STEM Unit at a local elementary school. Phases I and II of this three-phase study took place before the methods course and after the methods course, while Phase III of this study took place during the final student teaching semester in order to gain …

Hist 208: History Of World War Ii—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio, Thomas Berg

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

This Inquiry Portfolio explores the efficacy of the “flipped classroom” format for university-level history courses for students, the professor, and the history department. While creating a clear outline of expectations, readings, examination and quiz requirements will allow the student to better organize their study time, I wanted to know if the “flipped format” would help my students master the knowledge, develop good discussion skills, and practice critical thinking skills learned during classroom discussions. Also, not having taught any flipped courses, I needed the experience to discuss cogently with my peers the desirability and practicality of offering flipped history courses.

Fors 401: Forensic Biochemistry—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio, Ashley Hall

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Students who participate in active and experiential learning activities develop a better understanding of basic scientific principles and are also more likely to be retained in a STEM discipline. Developing such activities, however, can be difficult. In the present study, we sought to develop classroom activities to engage university students and increase understanding of the theory and practice of forensic science. One common accessory amongst the target audience was the ever-present media, both social and popular (entertainment). In fact, a majority of students report watching at least one of the many popular forensic science shows on TV. Therefore, we hypothesized …

Arab 102: First-Year Arabic Language—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Abla Hasan

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Goals of the class are derived from goals nationally recognized and agreed upon for low intermediate Arabic learners .This systematic consistency with the nationally recognized standards -albeit can be more challenging- insures students' ability to pursue national major programs in Arabic or their ability to compete for national grants, scholarships and study abroad programs. The standers adopted by ACTFL and STARTALK equally consider the linguistic as well as the cultural content of teaching Arabic. These standers known as the five C's are: Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Community. The cultural content of learning Arabic is part of the international and …

Adpr 450/850: Public Relations Theory And Strategy—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Ming Wang

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

I decided to join the Peer Review of Teaching program to achieve the following three objectives: to better align course objectives with course content, to improve ways of documenting and assessing student learning, and to fit the course into the broader curriculum.

Participation in the Peer Review of Teaching program has been most illuminating and beneficial. I got to focus on tackling three tangible objectives for my ADPR 450/850 Public Relations Theory and Strategy class. Then I got to apply many ideas introduced in this program, such as backward design principle and assessment methods, in my teaching. I had the …

Msym 109: Physical Principles In Agriculture And Life Sciences—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, David Mabie

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

This benchmark course portfolio was developed for MSYM 109 - Physical Principles in Agriculture and Life Sciences. The class is a general service course taken by majors as a prerequisite for future coursework along with several other CASNR majors to fulfill their physics course requirement. MSYM 109 is a high enrollment course, with 115 students in lecture, along with four separate 30 person recitation sections. This portfolio was developed to assess the following objectives: 1. Identify, evaluate, and justify the course objectives 2. Assess and evaluate the course pedagogy and assessment methodology 3. Analyze the historical students assessment results against …

Edps 859: Statistical Methods—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Matthew S. Fritz

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

The key goal of creating this benchmark teaching portfolio is identifying what my course objectives for EDPS 859 really are and to revise my current course materials, activities, and evaluations to emphasize what I consider to be important in the class in order to better meet the course objectives. I would like this portfolio to serve primarily as a way for me to identify and address issues with my particular section of EDPS 859. The secondary purpose of this portfolio is to provide information regarding the purpose and placement of EDPS 859 as a service course within CEHS and the …

Teac 921b: Seminar In Literacy Studies (Special Topics: Schooling And The Multilingual Mind)—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Theresa Catalano

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

This portfolio will document the creation and implementation of a new doctoral seminar in my department. This introductory course to multilingualism and schooling (TEAC 921B) will cover topics related to teaching and learning in the multilingual classroom. The key goals for creating this portfolio are to aid me in creating this new doctoral seminar that reflects and builds on departmental goals for graduate students. In particular I would like to document and address the implementation of two new activities to my teaching ; a language study/journal, and the creation of a documentary film. I foresee using this course portfolio as …