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Early College High School: A Study Of Dual Enrollment Students' Academic Success Based On Classroom Environment, Cynthia A. Johnston

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This ex post facto, causal-comparative, quantitative study examined variations in academic success of Early College High School (ECHS) students who completed a dual credit course in two separate classroom environments, specifically a high school classroom environment and a college classroom environment. The researcher sought to determine if a relationship existed between classroom environment and final grades of students enrolled in an ECHS. Students in the high school classroom environment sample completed a dual credit English 101 course in a high school classroom located in an ECHS, taught by a high school teacher who had been credentialed by the partnering community/technical …

“Brute Force Teacher”: Outlasting The Turbulent Cycle Of Teacher Turnover, Anne Marie Light

Education Policy and Leadership Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to debunk negative stereotypes that surround educators in urban schools and depict how high-performing veteran teachers became the resilient educators they are now. Teachers are the greatest determiner of student success (Marzano et al., 2001). Therefore, understanding our highest-performing teachers in our schools is imperative. Skaalvik and Skaalvik (2011) found that a staggering percentage of the teachers who entered the field left within their first three to five years of teaching. Understanding our highest performing teachers with five plus years of experiences through research is necessary.

This generic qualitative study utilized Polidore’s Theoretical Model …

Student Perceptions Of Male And Female Instructors In A Post-Secondary Welding Course, S. Kjersti R. Decker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Agricultural mechanics and welding have traditionally been perceived to be careers reserved for males, yet more females have entered professions using welding such as agricultural education. This research was developed because of the lack of gender research in welding. The purpose of this study was to examine students’ perceptions of learning from a male instructor versus a female instructor in a post-secondary welding course. We examined associations and differences between students’ preference of a male and a female welding instructor as well as individual self-efficacy and perceptions towards using welding technology. The population for this study was undergraduate students and …

Maureen Biology: Teaching Environmentalism Through Television, Maureen Kennedy

Senior Honors Projects

Children’s television is proven to be an effective instrument for educational material for young age groups and can be utilized to teach social awareness, traditional educational content, and about worldly issues. Highly successful shows for varying adolescent ages, such as Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow, and Bill Nye the Science Guy, exist for the sole purpose of increasing young viewers’ cognition and knowledge. Differing formats are used to convey educational content, such as narrative and expository structures, depending on the material and target age group. This project will develop the script for a children’s television show in the expository format that …

Mental Health Education Protocol For Staff Members In An Inpatient Rehabilitation Center, Charles Nicholas Salvatera

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Mental health illnesses have a significant impact on the lives of individuals and society. Despite the availability of effective treatments, many people with psychosocial issues or cognitive impairments do not receive the right care. This highlights the importance of timely care and effective help-seeking opportunities. Increased mental health literacy and supportive behaviors in the social networks of people with mental health disorders can be achieved by providing hospital staff with education on mental health disorders. It is believed that improvements in these areas increase the likelihood that people will seek effective assistance. When healthcare providers are educated about mental health …

History Doesn’T Repeat Itself, But Often Rhymes: An Analysis And Extension Of Models Influencing Special Education, Rebecca Owens

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The American special education system is largely hailed as a beacon for inclusion and support of students with disabilities, but was developed on the back of a deep, complicated history of isolation, fear, and ignorance. This historical analysis examines special education in the context of parallel-developing models of how those with disabilities are perceived and treated in the United States. Rather than juxtaposing the widely-discussed models of disability (moral, medical, and social) with the development of special education, I argue that they are consistent with a wave pattern, initially proposed by disability scholar and advocate Wolfensberger (1969), that traces the …

The Impact Of Hands-On Environmental Science Lessons On Middle School Students Learning, Molly Mansfield

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone research focuses on the impact of hands-on environmental science lessons on middle school students learning. In this research project, besides conducting an extensive literature review, I collaborated with five middle school educators in a local school district to understand how student engagement and retention are affected by hands-on science material and surveyed 151 7th-grade students. This senior capstone explores the individual experiences of middle school students, their relationship to science education, and possible future implications of their learning. Many aspects of a student’s personal and educational life can positively or negatively impact their relationship with science and their …

Oral Health Program Assessment, Jacqueline Quintero

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The Local Oral Health Program is a chronic disease prevention program focusing on providing educational workshops to parents who have children enrolled in schools with rates of 80% or higher of free or reduced lunch. Studies and surveys have revealed that low-income children have more cavities than those children in moderate and high-income families and they are not being addressed. The purpose of this project is to assess the effectiveness of the Oral Health Program which provides parents with educational workshops regarding dental services, government assistance, oral hygiene, and nutritional information. Post-surveys were distributed and collected after each workshop by …

Better Budtender Training, Vincent Mcdonald Castillo

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

A survey conducted by the cannabis education program in the Monterey County Health Department (MCHD) concluded that around 57% of users in the county do not feel educated enough in the subject to form their own educated opinions about cannabis use (Cannabis Education Survey 2022). The MCHD decided to address this concern by collaborating with local dispensaries to provide an educational course in video form for budtenders. This video provides factual information on consumption methods, how differently they may affect people and the recommended time to wait before operating a vehicle. Following this education, consumers of cannabis will have reliable …

Attention To Attendance At Marina Vista, Jaylord Gapol

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Marina Vista Arts Elementary school has a high rate of absenteeism among students, which is negatively affecting their education. Problems associated with chronic absenteeism include illness, communication issues between schools and parents, and socioeconomic status. Consequences of chronic absenteeism include being at an academic disadvantage, increased risk of not graduating, and potential involvement with the criminal justice system. The capstone project created an educational flier that standardized the expectations for student attendance and highlights the negative consequences of chronic absenteeism. A database of 50 students were selected for the project with their attendance inputted into a database for tracking. Results …

Media Analysis And Journalistic Applications, Jose Villasenor Cervantes

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Media has been a part of our lives now for a better part of over a century or more. From newspapers, radio, tv, film, music. All of these have impacted our lives since their creation and have influenced our society for better or worse for educational or not so educational purposes. Media in all of its aspects have been around for many years and that has translated to every part of our society. We see a film and we quickly talk about its whether it was good or bad but we analyze it. This goes for everyone from children to …

The Hidden History Of Chicanx Literature And The Importance Of Incorporating Chicanx Literature In The Curriculum, Lucia Gonzalez-Gonzalez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This essay will analyze and look into the issue in K-12 education where there is little representation of Chicanx students and a little talk about their culture, history, and novels to which they can relate. This essay will examine why Chicanx writers and books do not remain in the K-12 curriculum and how we can fix this. To answer the following questions and find a solution, I will examine the history of Chicanx students' treatment in the educational system. I will also create a lesson plan catered to middle school/high school Chicanx students in which they will be able to …

Academy-Based Learning: The High School Education You Wish You Had, Desiree Gomez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project focuses on the impact of high school academies on student success. This is important because high school academies provide students with cross-curricular experiences related to a specific pathway or field they are interested. An evidence-based argument is offered that high school academies provide specialized programs catering to students' interests and career aspirations. These academies provide students with a comprehensive and challenging curriculum that enhances their academic performance and prepares them for college and career readiness. By focusing on a particular subject or field, students receive a high-quality education that fosters their skills and knowledge in a specific …

Academy Based Learning: The High School Education You Wish You Had, Derek Gomez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This Capstone Project focuses on the impact of high school academies on student success. This is important because high school academies provide students with cross-curricular experiences related to a specific pathway or field they are interested in. An evidence-based argument is offered that high school academies provide specialized programs catering to students' interests and career aspirations. These academies provide students with a comprehensive and challenging curriculum that enhances their academic performance and prepares them for college and career readiness. By focusing on a particular subject or field, students receive a high-quality education that fosters their skills and knowledge in a …

Supporting English Language Learners In California K-12 Classrooms, Emma Borrelli

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

English Language Learners face struggles in the classroom that students who only speak English do not encounter. First I will highlight the problems and difficulties English Language students encounter in all aspects of their learning environment, using Ajay Srikanth’s essays on the equity of funding for English Learners. Then, I will propose solutions and strategies to help them based on thorough research and studies by Roselle Chartock in “Strategies and Lessons for Culturally Responsive Teaching : a Primer for k-12.” Chartock also talks about culturally responsive teaching in “Strategies and Lessons for Culturally Responsive Teaching : a Primer for k-12” …

Breaking The Silence: What Isn't Being Said About Grieving Students, Robin Farian

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The focus issue addressed in this Capstone Project is how well teachers are trained to support a student who is grieving. This is an important issue for teachers because a student who is grieving is in a very vulnerable place, and the way a teacher responds can be very beneficial or detrimental to the student. An argument is made that teachers should be better prepared for a situation where a student is struggling with grief. Considerations of the issue should include the perspectives of teachers who have experience teaching grieving students. Three action options emerged from an analysis of the …

Black Fatherhood: A Critical Component For Urban African American Student Success, Cameron Steel

Honor’s College Freeman Research Journal

A multitude of studies express that father involvement has an impact on student achievement and learning outcomes for urban African American students (Palm & Fagan, 2008). Although biological fathers are extremely vital to our community, a biological connection between a parental figure and their student is not essential to these correlational outcomes. The absence of fathers in the urban African American community has had a negative impact on students' self-esteem, academic efficacy, and general livelihood. Realistically, it is not a viable solution to place fathers in homes or force them to stay and remain active participants in their child's K-12 …

The Impact Of Internal Barriers On Technology Use In Rural Schools, Coquesa G. Dotson

College of Education

Technology implementation in rural schools can ensure that students are more prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Therefore, it is important to remove internal barriers to technology implementation. By revealing the current levels of implementation , insight will be provided to rural districts on how to address internal barriers. The purpose of this quantitative, comparative, correlational study was to identify how integrate technology into their instruction influenced their actual practices. Data were collected using a closed-ended online survey using a 7-point Likert scale. Nonparametric measures were taken to analyze data. Comparative data analysis (Kruskal-Wallis Test and Dunn …

The Effectiveness Of Targeted Education On Improving Nurses’ Self-Efficacy In Caring For Psychiatric Patients On Medical Surgical Units, Rachel Shirey

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

Individuals with mental illness are occasionally hospitalized on medical units, specifically medical-surgical units. Nurses working on medical-surgical units may find patients with mental illness more challenging due to the complexity of care they sometimes require. Nurses’ perceived ability to provide quality care for these patients is reduced in comparison to their perceived ability to care for patients without mental illness. Consequently, low self-efficacy can result in the provision of a lower quality of care for this population. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to improve the care that patients with mental illness receive while hospitalized on medical-surgical units. …

An Integrative Review: Best Practices For Educating And Engaging Care Partners Of Patients With New Ostomies, Lauren Flook Brown

Master of Science in Nursing Final Projects

PURPOSE: The purpose of this integrative review was to identify and synthesize the best practices of engagement and education for care partners of patients with new ostomies to support adaptation.

METHODS: Five-stage integrative review process: (1) problem identification, (2) systematic literature search, (3) data evaluation, (4) data analysis, and (5) presentation.

RESULTS: Four themes with sub-themes emerged to understand effective engagement and education of care partners: (1) care partner influences on patient outcomes; (2) care partner needs; (3) barriers to care partner adaptation; and (4) diverse engagement strategies. Each theme and sub-themes related to care partners could not be separated …

Electronic Financial Crimes: The Required Skills, Education And Qualifications For Forensic Accountants To Predict And Prevent, Khaleel Al-Daoud, Yousef Abuorabi, Riyad Darwazeh, Mohammad Yousef Nawaiseh

Information Sciences Letters

The main objective of this study is to explore the essential requirements that are required for accountants to perform their duties as forensic accountants (FAs) from the perspectives of two key stakeholders (professional accountants and lawyers) —including the main skills, level of education, area of specialisation and forensic accounting credentials that FAs should possess to practice forensic accounting services effectively and efficiently. A semi-structured interviews were conducted to the target population who are the user of forensic services. The NVivo software was used to assist the raw data in a systematic method process. The findings identified the master’s degree as …

Stories In Motion: Integrating Creative Dance In A Language Arts Classroom, Amira Akam

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

As learning gaps have widened in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increased need for research-based strategies to improve student academic achievement and engagement. This study explored the integration of creative dance as a form of storytelling in a kindergarten language arts classroom. Students were introduced to an element of dance and used it to create short dance phrases in a unit on retelling. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected using pre/post tests and student interviews measuring students’ engagement and enjoyment. Students involved in this study showed significant growth in their ability to orally retell …

Mission Statements And The Online Presence Of Children's Choruses: A Content Analysis, Emily Dell'orfano

Honors Scholar Theses

The language used in an organization’s mission statement implies the values held by that organization. Common music education values have been top-tier education, musical excellence, and the cultivation of high-achieving, well-rounded individuals. However, during the post-2020 rise in attention to social justice, organizations have either extended or reworded their mission statements to reflect a greater pursuit of equity, inclusion, and accessibility. In recent literature there have been discussions of a conflict between the values of arts organizations, as standards of elite musical excellence is inherently in conflict with community accessibility due to the socioeconomic factors that determine a student’s access …

Teaching Creativity In Standards-Based Classrooms: The Impact Of Personal Creative Writing To Teachers’ Perceptions Of Creativity In The Classroom, Katie Jones

Honors College Theses

Creative writing is rarely highlighted in public classrooms, yet it may be the key to development for both students and teachers. Due to restrictions such as time limitations, personal experience, pressures of testing, and more, teachers find creativity intimidating to teach. The Deep Center in Savannah, GA, a site of the National Writing Project, offers an intensive 10-day program for teachers that encompasses writing, creativity, and community. This qualitative case study utilizes the context of the Deep Center’s Writing Project as a background to analyze participants' perceptions of creativity in their classrooms and their own personal engagement in creative writing. …

The Dialogic Classroom: Holding The Door Open For Hope, Ivon Prefontaine

Journal of Hate Studies

Schools are an essential institution for providing education and direction for children and youth. A key learning is how to engage in civil dialogue intertwined with hope for the future. At the heart of civil dialogue in a classroom are large topics referred to as “public moral [stories] … moral in the sense that [they are] founded on ultimate questions—of life and death, of how persons should be treated, preferred patterns of living” (Fisher, 1994, p. 173). These existential stories and their emergent questions are eloquent and can excite and engage even reluctant participants who otherwise might find themselves concerned …

Reflecting On Movement In The Math Classroom, Zoey Berger

Honors Projects

The purpose of this paper is to determine how reflection on movement effects the learning and connections made by students in the math classroom. Kinesthetic Movement is a learning style that is oftentimes forgotten about and left out of classroom instruction. It can help increase motivation, build deeper connections, and create a more positive disposition towards math for students. Research was conducted in four, eighth grade, pre-algebra classes, with some classes being given the opportunity to reflect more than others. Test scores, journal responses, and interest surveys done by the students are used to show inconclusive results that reflection on …

Music Educators As Worship Leaders: The Impact In Music Ministries Led By Music Educators, Patrick Robert Eckelkamp

Masters Theses

Some of the most competent musicians in local communities are the music educators in local school districts. Since the Bible commands us to play skillfully to God, local music teachers may be an excellent resource for churches. Some churches cannot hire a full-time worship pastor from a seminary or Bible college. In these scenarios, a skilled music teacher looking for additional income and sharing convictions with their church may be a great candidate to fill a vacant worship leader role. Since music teachers primarily study classical and orchestral music, there may be challenges for classically trained music educators leading a …

A Phenomenological Study Of Contexts Of Parent Responsibility For Middle School Student Achievement, Benjamin F. Erskine

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to describe lived experiences of parents of middle school students who are engaged in their children's educational achievement as stakeholders within the overlapping spheres of influence. Eighteen participants were selected from three middle schools in a school district in central Delaware. The central research question is: What lived experiences motivate parents of middle school students to engage in their children's educational achievement as stakeholders within the overlapping spheres of influence? Research sub-questions deal directly with the participants' understanding of the theory guiding this study, Epstein's theory of overlapping spheres of influence, as …

Addressing Bias From Faculty Through Implementing Bias Training, Tori A. Henning

Masters Projects

Research has indicated that college students experience bias from college faculty on a regular bias. However, there is no mandated training for college faculty on the various forms of bias and the impact that it can have on students’ ability to be successful. While bias influences many students, students of color, women, LGBTQ+ students, and students from of different ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds experience bias at greater rates than white students. This project explores how the various forms of bias, the training that college faculty receive, student development theory, and how bias impacts students’ success and their sense of belonging …

The Lived Experiences Of Challenges Faced By Female Stem Degree Holders While In Their Programs: A Phenomenological Study, Rebecca Keeter-Lee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological research study was to describe the challenges female higher education students (FHESs) experience in their science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) degree program. The central research question guiding the study was: How do female higher education STEM research participants describe their lived experiences while in their degree programs? Sub-Question one was, How do female higher education students describe the influence their personal history had on their choice to pursue a higher education STEM degree? Sub-question two was: How do female higher education students in STEM program describe their reality versus their expectation going into …