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The Many Masks Of A Writer: A Dramaturgical Approach To Composition Pedagogy And Literature Analysis, Kathryn Quesenbury

English Dissertations - Archive

Audience theories discuss many aspects of the entity of audience, from specific, concrete individuals to general, abstract readers. Composition pedagogical approaches to audience, however, seem limited. Writers, at times, are directed to have a concrete reader in mind, and other times, writers hold certain expectations for those readers and provide textual clues for them to follow. Which approach to take varies on the situation, but teaching writers this type of discernment can be challenging. Erving Goffman provides a possible solution in The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life.Goffman analyzes how individuals portray themselves differently depending on the social situation, and …

The Leadership Practices Of A Novice Head Teacher In A Public Primary School In Kenya, Peter Ochieng Okiri

Master of Education

The general purpose of this study was to investigate the leadership practices of a novice head teacher in a public primary school in Kenya. A qualitative research approach using a case study design was employed. Purposively selected participants included a Teachers Service Commission sub county director in charge of teacher management, a novice head teacher, a deputy head teacher, four teachers and a chairperson of the school Board of Management. Data collection was through face-to-face semi-structured interviews, Focused Group Discussion with the teachers and observation of the novice head teacher as the key informant. Data from the interviews as well …

Presentation Of Disability In English Textbooks In Secondary Schools In Kenya, Maria Waruguru Mwaura

Master of Education

Textbooks do not only provide a framework for language learning; they also provide information about social issues, for instance disability. This study sought to find out how disability is presented in English textbooks in secondary schools in Kenya. I adopted content analysis methods to collect and analyze data. Data collected was coded and categorized into theoretical categories. These were then analyzed and grouped into themes and presented using a descriptive narrative. Data revealed that disability is featured in a limited way in textbooks. This presentation is both positive and negative. On the positive side, characters are presented as accepting disability …

Investigating Teacher Educators’ Application Of Active Teaching And Learning: A Case Of Belgian - Teacher Training Education Project At A National Teachers’College In Arua, West Nile-Uganda, Drani Ronald Bileah

Master of Education

The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher educators’ application of active teaching and learning in initial teacher preparation in one NTC in Uganda. It explored how teacher educators perceived ATL, the strategies they used for engaging learners in teaching and learning and the facilitating factors and challenges as teacher educators were applying ATL. The study employed a qualitative case study with multiple data gathering methods, namely, In-depth structured face-face interview, FGD, lesson observation and document analysis with academic staff and student teachers. Purposive sampling procedure was used to select seven academic staff, one BTC staff, one library staff …

Exploring The Head Teacher’S Preparedness For The Implementation Of The Kenya Competence Based Curriculum, Cecilia Mwakisha Mganga

Master of Education

Kenyan public education has experienced numerous educational reforms since independence. In 2016, Kenya endorsed its decision to change its curriculum to the Kenya Competence Based Curriculum (KCBC) motivated by the need to provide every learner with globally competitive standards in the skills and knowledge that are much needed to harness the 21st century opportunities (MOEST, 2015). With each of these reforms comes the need to educate and prepare the head teacher in an effort to build capacity and understanding of the new reform expectations. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the head-teacher’s preparedness for the implementation of …

Exploration Of The Enhancement Of Scientific Literacy By Nursery School Teachers: A Case Of Excel Nursery School, In Eastern Uganda., Adengo Emmanuel

Master of Education

This study investigated on the enhancement of scientific literacy (SL) by nursery school teachers in Uganda. It studied the teacher’s perception about SL, approaches used by teachers to enhance SL amongst learners and the challenges they face while promoting such approaches in the teaching and learning process. The study involved four nursery school teachers and one head teacher from a purposefully selected nursery school in Iganga Municipality, Uganda. The study engaged the qualitative research approach and case study design where by data were collected through one on one semi-structured interviews and also involved non-participatory classroom observation together with document analysis. …

Exploring Teachers Practices In The Teaching Of Composition Writing Skills, Watsulu M. Jacquline

Master of Education

The teaching and learning of composition writing in the rural context is a laborious task both to the learners and the teachers. This is as a result of language incompetence in English as a second language. The study aims at identifying the teaching strategies teachers in primary schools used in the teaching of composition writing and the impact of the strategies in the learners’ development of composition writing skills. The study was guided by research questions and was based on the process based genre approach of Badger and White that champions an integrated teaching approach by blending the process, product …

Exploring The Application And Importance Of Multimodality In Language And Literacy Classrooms: A Case Of A Primary School In Monduli District, Abdallah Shaban Hoza

Master of Education

Modern language and literacy teaching and learning in pre- primary and lower primary classrooms becomes meaningful and successful if teachers apply multimodality to facilitate representation and communication to young learners. In this study I explored the application and importance of multimodality in language and literacy classrooms for the young children in early grades in Tanzania. The study has mainly focused on the Pre- primary class, Standard One, Two and Three as elementary levels of language and literacy learning. I made a review of literature on the application and importance of multimodality in language and literacy teaching and learning in Tanzania, …

Promotion Of Scientific Literacy In Primary Education: A Case Of A School In Taita-Taveta County, Kenya., Wamvua Andrew Mshambala

Master of Education

Demands of 21st century living have rendered Scientific Literacy (SL) a more than just desired learning end in primary education worldwide. As a result, SL has become a core objective for teaching of primary science that is aimed at producing individuals capable of making choices and decisions affecting their daily lives that are based on considerations of science. However, in spite of educational professionals’ emphasis on the need for teaching for this objective, only a little fruit has been realized so far. Inadequate conception of SL, over-use of traditional teacher-centered pedagogies and low levels of motivation have partly been cited …

The Use Of Multimedia In Teaching And Learning Of Difficult Chemistry Practical Concepts, In One Secondary School In Homabay County In Kenya, Chrispine Ochieng Odindo

Master of Education

The performance of learners in science in Kenyan Secondary schools has been consistently low over the years. Chemistry being one of the science subjects has continued to perform poorly compared to the other science subjects (Biology and Physics). Practical work is important for effective learning of Chemistry. However, certain practical concepts due to their nature and their difficulty for instance being poisonous, explosive and harmful limits teachers’ ability in conducting experiment. The initial findings of this study indicated that teachers preferred approach to use in teaching and learning such concepts remains teacher-centered pedagogy which disengages students from learning. The purpose …

Effects Of Lep Status, Gender, Instructional Type On Positive Student Engagement And Motivation Of Middle School Students, Holly Harris Cothren

College of Education Dissertations

The researcher used a causal-comparative, 2 x 2 factorial between-groups research strategy for all four hypotheses. The two independent variables for the Hypotheses 1 and 2 were gender and LEP status (students designated as LEP versus students not designated as LEP). The dependent variable for the first hypothesis was positive student engagement, and the dependent variable for the second hypothesis was positive student motivation. The two independent variables for Hypotheses 3 and 4 were gender and instructional type (traditional instruction and small group pull-out with hybrid computer-based instruction). The dependent variable for the third hypothesis was positive student engagement, and …

Marketing For The Beginner: Resources From The Acrl Library Marketing And Outreach Interest Group, Lindsay Davis, Jen Park, Sabine Dantus, Chris Davidson, Bonnie Cohen Lafazan, Joan Petit

Library Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations

Are you new to outreach work? Were you tasked with planning events highlighting your services, collections, or spaces and don’t know where to start? Do you need to create promotional materials but have no background in design? Is there little to no budget? The administrators of ACRL’s Library Marketing and Outreach Interest Group have put together a beginner’s guide that includes groups to join, blogs and websites to read, free and low-cost graphic design tools, collections of free images and icons, and other online resources that spark inspiration when you have hit the proverbial creativity wall.

Academic Interventions In Secondary Schools: Examining Teachers' Perceptions Of Implementing A Multi-Tiered System Of Support, Shannon Mortrud

Theses and Dissertations

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2015) only 34% of eighth grade students in the U.S. scored at or above proficient in reading and only 33% were at or above proficient in math. Reading comprehension is essential for the acquisition of knowledge in all coursework and those students who have reading deficits may experience increased academic failure. Deficits in math skills may also increase core academic failure for secondary students expected to complete rigorous courses in algebra and beyond. In a review of the literature, Blount (2012) deduced that academic failure is one of the main predictive risk …

The Parthenon, December 1, 2017, Jared Casto

The Parthenon

The Parthenon, Marshall University’s student newspaper, was published by students Monday through Friday during the regular semester and weekly on Thursdays during the summer. Due to budgetary constraints, beginning with the 2016 Fall semester, the newspaper is only published two days a week. Physical issues are printed on Tuesdays and Fridays. The editorial staff is responsible for the news and the editorial content.

Barriers To Implementation Of Lean Techniques In Printing Firms And The Impact Of Implementation, Sandeep Yellinedi

Theses

Lean practices including 5S Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma DMAIC and Value Stream Mapping are gaining more and more importance in a wide range of industries. Firms in various industries have implemented one or more of the techniques that comprise Lean techniques and have realized reduced wastes that in turn has contributed to increased profits. The researcher, being associated with the field of printing, has observed the Lean techniques practicing trends in the printing industry. This report builds upon the previously published research that has examined the implementation of Lean Methodologies, including studies that have investigated the impact of the adoption …

The Impact Of White Space On User Experience For Tablet Editions Of Magazines, Fanyi Cheng

Theses

After declining for six years (Wang, 2016), printed magazines are facing the dilemma of a paperless era. As magazine publishing emerges into the digital world, it needs to achieve the degree of readers’ desire that is comparable to or surpassing print publications.

Limited research has been done regarding white space in digital magazines. This thesis aimed to investigate how user experience is affected by white space in the layout of digital editions of food magazines designed for the Apple iPad.

The study focused on the evaluation of white space as the factor influencing the quality of the user experience. White …

Better Fit: A Conceptual Solution For Seamless Exercise Experience, Hongwei Huang

Theses

The development of fitness technology has changed the way we exercise over time, and each technology has allowed people to exercise independently in various ways, such as wearable devices, fitness apps, game consoles, and even social media. The consequence is that more people get used to exercising solely with their digital device and get motivated from virtual communities rather than in a real environment. However, the research shows there can be even more benefit for people by exercising with others in a physical space.

The thesis utilizes UX design methodologies to develop a seamless-workout experience that enables a user to …

Deer: Creating A Realistic 3d Animal Using Photogrammetry, Karie Carita

Theses

Creating a 3D animal using the process of photogrammetry can bring more realism to a user’s game experience.

In the 3D world, there are various ways for creating animals in video games. Specifically, quadrupeds are known to be very challenging. Since technology is evolving every day, there are always newer ways of creating video game assets. It is challenging to have complex model details and also have smooth real-time rendering in a game engine.

Photogrammetry can capture exact details of a real world animal and incorporate them into a 3D asset. The purpose for using this process is to create …

Development Of A Self Aligned Cmos Process For Flash Lamp Annealed Polycrystalline Silicon Tfts, Paul Bischoff

Theses

The emerging active matrix liquid crystal (AMLCD) display market requires a high performing semiconductor material to meet rising standards of operation. Currently amorphous silicon (a-Si) dominates the market but it does not have the required mobility for it to be used in AMLCD manufacturing. Other materials have been developed including crystallizing a-Si into poly-silicon. A new approach to crystallization through the use of flash lamp annealing (FLA) decreases manufacturing time and greatly improves carrier mobility. Previous work on FLA silicon for the use in CMOS transistors revealed significant lateral dopant diffusion into the channel greatly increasing the minimum channel length …

Customizable Textured Tablet Case And Magnetic Prompting System To Improve Communication For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Christina Maragioglio

Theses

As Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnoses increase in prevalence, there is a growing need for assistive devices to help meet the communication needs of each person and their own unique set of challenges. Autism is a neurological disorder which most prominently impacts communication and social skills but can impact each person differently by way of coupled conditions. Of these conditions, two of the most common with Autism are Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and Motor Skill delays.

Additionally, to help with communication and language development, Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) techniques are often used, with tablet AAC applications being one of the …

Renewable Energy-Aware Routing In The Internet, Ziyang Liu

Theses

The increasing power consumption of the Internet infrastructure has attracted a lot of world-wide attention because of the severe impact on the environment. Many research works have started to search for solutions of how to reduce the energy consumption in data networks. Other works have considered that generation of electricity from fossil-based fuel emits greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which leads to global warming. Consequently, another approach for sustainable networks is the utilization of renewable energy to power the infrastructure.

This thesis introduces a new backbone Internet routing protocol that performs routing considering the different renewable energy availability at various …

Black Behind The Ear: Using Motion Graphics To Encourage Self-Awareness And Embrace Racial Heritage., Carolina Lopez

Theses

Black Behind the Ear is an animated visual representation of Elizabeth Acevedo’s poem “Hair”. This poem uses hair as a metaphorical element to represent the internalized racism and racial amnesia predominant in the Dominican Republic, a place that owes African slaves for much of the island’s racial, and cultural heritage.

This motion graphics piece intends to encourage self-awareness in a time when embracing one’s culture and race can break the ossified schemes passed through generations about personality standards based on physical attributes. Understanding where one comes from helps people see why certain ideas are worth standing for, and consequently results …

The Soul’S Speaker: Give Your Eyes Some Rest, Fuye Zhang

Theses

The students studying in colleges often fix their eyes on books, on computer screens and archives for a long time to gain knowledge. As a result of this, their eyeballs often turn red out of fatigue. Researches have shown that college students lack the awareness of the benefits of giving their eyes some rest. However, there are few of eye protection advertisements which suggest the need for students to give their eyes some rest. As a designer, I need to let people know the important roles that eyes play in the human body. I feel it is important for designers …

Dzone: An Interactive Platform For Designers Seeking And Sharing Ideas., Yidie Xue

Theses

The principle of design is to create something both beautiful and effective. However, not all designs are created equal. There are plenty of inefficient designs in existence. The reason is not because of bad designers, but because of the lacking platforms for designers to communicate and test their designs.

There are many tools available, both application and website, for designers to express their ideas. However, the majority of these resources are focused on sharing project on the social media and treat it like an element of personal portfolio. Platforms for designers to actually test their project, gathering critical product-developing feedback …

Discover Yixing: Using A Mobile Application To Promote Tourism And Marketing For A Small Chinese City, Hanxi Xie

Theses

Tourism is an indispensable domain for many cities’ successful economic development. For tourists who are exploring popular cities and major resorts, there are a variety of mobile applications and websites can provide detailed information and instructions. It is convenient for independent travelers to use these tools to visit large and well-known cities. However, travel agencies, tourist applications, or multi-lingual travel guides do not cover some lesser-known cities. Although such cities may be underdeveloped in terms of economic conditions, some of these cities have potential to become valuable tourist resorts.

Many lesser-known cities can’t provide professional travel agencies and/or multiple language …

Living In Place: A Study Of Vitality Through Sense Of Place, Susan M. Wylie

Theses

The built environment can respond to human needs and influence behaviors. An approach to design that grows from essential human conditions arguably is a preferable means of structuring the built world in a responsible and sustainable manner. Although new and innovative building technologies can achieve great strides in sustainability, underlying and fundamental human needs and behaviors may be an equally important source of inspiration and creativity in the built environment.

This thesis addresses social and psychological needs of the aging population in three communities in the vicinity of Rochester, New York. Through understandings of sense of place, the inquiry is …

Datasets Used In Fifteen Years Of Automated Requirements Traceability Research, Palak Sharma

Theses

Datasets are crucial to advance automated software traceability research. Acquiring such datasets come in a high cost and require expert knowledge to manually collect and validate them. Obtaining such software development datasets has been one of the most frequently reported barrier for researchers in the software engineering domain in general. This problem is even more acute in field of requirement traceability, which plays crucial role in safety critical and highly regulated systems. Therefore, the main motivation behind this work is to analyze the current state of art of datasets used in the field of software traceability.

This work presents a …

Audialtext: Improving Communication Accessibility For The Deaf Through Automatic Voice-Recognition And Wearable Smart-Technology., Ernest Roszkowski

Theses

Whether you are ordering food at a restaurant, asking for directions, or receiving a phone call from a family member, it is apparent that human communication is an important part of everyday life. Those who are deaf have limited communication accessibility compared to their hearing counterparts, and by default, obtain less public information and face more obstacles during social interactions.

This thesis project will attempt to bridge this communication gap through the exploration of human interactions with user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design. The goal is to design and develop an application concept for wearable smart-technology that will …

Automated Rf Over Fiber Signal Measurement System, Mageswaren Ravichandran

Theses

The demand for lossless data at a low cost has lead its way to use fiber optic in field of RADIO FREQUENCY. This research proposes the automation technique which can be used in RF-overfiber measurements. All other automation technique used visual basic or Labview as the source, this paper uses python an open-source language to create generic automation software. Python optimized the code to run faster and gave advantage of modularity and portability. The code was successfully developed and verified by the two-different test setup, which give an accuracy of 97%.

Abyss, Manojh Reddy

Theses

“When the human civilization continues to pursue its darker deeds, the wrong doings, the dark demons in every individual, the rage we show towards Mother Nature is the path to the end of the entire civilization. And, that end will not come with a bang, but with a whimper “ - Manojh Reddy