Digital Commons Network^™

Global Markets And Inequalities: Changes In The Cuban Society, Melissa Dreffs

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

The relationship that Cuba has with the United States and global markets is shifting. This project will address the changing mindset of Cuban society in regards to the global markets and internal changes that have already drastically affected the island and will continue to do so. The structure of employment in Cuba has changed, allowing the private and self-employed sectors to grow, while attracting fewer and fewer state employees. Additional analysis of the changing economic system in Cuba shows the increase in foreign investment, both by states and private corporations. This increase affects both national sovereignty and the role of …

One In Eight: Deciding To Pursue A College-Going Possible Self In A High-Poverty High School, David B. Naff

Theses and Dissertations

There is considerable research evidence suggesting that low-income, racial minority students value education and aspire for postsecondary educational attainment (Bloom, 2007; Destin & Oyserman, 2009; Wigfield & Eccles, 2002). However, their performance in school often does not align with those values and ambitions, as these students tend to underachieve in comparison with their higher-income, non-minority peers (Reardon, 2011), with particular gaps found in those attending schools of concentrated poverty (Rowan, 2011). This gap between educational ambition and attainment suggests that the experience of living and going to school in a high-poverty context could be related to the motivational processes driving …

Professional Nursing Value Development In Nursing Students Who Participate In International Service Learning, Heather Ferrillo

Nursing Faculty Publications

Background: International Service Learning (ISL) is becoming widely used in nursing education as a means to provide global learning opportunities. Concrete outcomes for these experiences have not been clearly supported in previous research. Determining if ISL experience facilitate the development of Professional Nursing Values (PNV) can support the use of ISL as a viable pedagogy. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to determine if there were a difference in PNV development in students who participate in ISL as part of their clinical experiences compared to those who do not. The hypothesis was that there was a difference in the …

Examining Teacher Experiences: A Qualitative Study On Inclusion In The Elementary Classroom, Jennifer L. Sinclair

Student Work

This qualitative study utilized a semi-structured interview approach to better understand the experiences of general education teachers (n = 8) with the inclusion of special education students in the general education classroom. By gaining information about the experiences that general education teachers have with supports and services for, as well as communication about, inclusion, the study results provide additional information about experiences in order to inform the supports teachers receive to better educate students with and without disabilities. Each semi-structured interview was transcribed and coded for themes. Seven key themes emerged from findings: Acceptance, Time in General Education Classroom, Supports …

English Language Textbooks In Efl Education: Do They Improve Students’ National, International And Target Culture Familiarity?, Reza Abbasian, Reza Biria

Khazar Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate English language textbooks of grade 7, 8 and 9 in theIranian Pedagogical curriculum to see to what extent students are exposed to national, international and target cultural familiar content in their classes. As Gurkan (2012) and Ganjabi (2014) say students who are familiar to cultural content of the target language have better reading comprehension scores than those who lack familiarity to target language cultural content. Since culturally familiar content of language in international and target level increases learners‟ comprehension almost in all skills, textbooks are one of their real manifestations in …

Paying For Attendance: Using Incentives To Combat Chronic Absenteeism, Madeline H. Meth

Faculty Scholarship

Students with poor attendance miss opportunities to learn social and academic skills.' They perform worse on achievement tests. ² They are also less likely to graduate.³ A student who misses school in as early as the first grade is significantly more likely to eventually drop out of high school.⁴ Individuals who drop out see a significant loss in earnings and are more likely to be jobless; women who drop out make about 60% of what female high-school graduates earn, and men who do not graduate lose approximately $9,564 in annual wages. Because high-school dropouts earn less than those …

The Lived Experience In Relation To The Educational Needs Of Nurses Caring For Induced Hypothermia Patients, Marie Regina Hankinson

Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Background: Ongoing educational development is essential to ensure the effectiveness of professional nurses’ learning experiences. Understanding the ways in which workplace learning occurs is fundamental to enabling nurse educators to deliver that knowledge. Induced hypothermia was introduced as a new treatment modality in 2005 and education surrounding the care of the hypothermia patient is lacking in the literature. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to illuminate how nurses learn new knowledge in the clinical setting. Theoretical Framework: The learning theory chosen for this study is the three dimensions of learning by Illeris (2004). Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with …

Evidence-Based Diabetic Discharge Guideline: A Standardized Initiative To Promote Nurses' Adherence, Marjorie V. Scarlett

Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) affects more than 29.1 million Americans. Standardized clinical practice guidelines recommended by regulatory healthcare agencies are the standard of care for diabetic patients and must be adhered to by healthcare professionals providing care. Purpose: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to identify Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization’s, and other professional healthcare organizations’ guidelines for nurses’ knowledge of evidence-based discharge practices; determine level of nurses’ knowledge on evidence-based discharge practice process; develop a quality improvement plan, including development of an evidence-based guideline for diabetic discharge instructions; present …

Secondary Teachers’ Perceptions Of Delaware Bullying Intervention Programs, Tracy Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to measure the attitudes of teachers about bullying within the state of Delaware, to provide steps in reporting bullying incidents, to determine key factors teachers consider important for state bullying intervention programs, to understand teachers’ perceptions of the uniform definition of bullying and their perceptions of the Delaware bullying intervention programs, and to provide insight to the people who work with victims in the state of Delaware to ensure that bullying is being addressed. In 2010, due to several incidents of suicide caused by bullying, a consortium was convened by Family Court Chief Judge Chandlee …

The Impact Of Small Group Intervention Focusing On Operations With Rational Numbers On Students’ Performance In The Florida Algebra I End-Of-Course Examination, Evelyn Dopico

Theses and Dissertations

In Florida, passing the Algebra I end-of-course examination (EOCE) is a graduation requirement. The test measures knowledge of basic algebra. In spring 2015, the Department of Education introduced a different version of the test. For the first two administrations of the new test, the failure rate for 9th-grade students in the state was almost 50%. In contrast, the failure rate for students in the school where this study was implemented exceeded 70%. The purpose of this study was to determine the outcome of small group intervention focusing on operations with rational numbers of high school students’ performance on the Algebra …

Using Geospatial Analysis For High School Environmental Science Education: A Case Study Of The Jane Goodall Institute's Community-Centered Conservation Approach, Madison G. Vorva

Pomona Senior Theses

Given my experiences as a young conservation advocate, I saw a need to teach students the importance of interconnectedness, cultural awareness and systems-thinking skills through a spatial lens. I believe these skills are required for holistic, equitable and sustainable conservation decision-making in local and international contexts. This thesis uses geospatial tools to teach conservation ecology vocabulary and concepts from high school environmental science curriculum in two online resources. The purpose of my lesson plan is to show students how conservationists address complex conservation and land-use challenges using the Jane Goodall Institute’s community-centered conservation approach as a case-study. My hope is …

Knowledge And Behavioral Patterns Of Youth Ice Hockey Parents Regarding Sport Concussion: A Pilot Study, Jeff G. Konin, Delaney Horsley

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: There is an abundance of available concussion education programs for parents of youth ice hockey players. Parents play a vital role in recognizing signs and symptoms of a concussion sustained by a child, and therefore their knowledge and retention of such information is deemed to be very important. The purpose of the pilot survey is identify the general knowledge parents of youth ice hockey players possess regarding concussion. Methods: A survey of a sample of convenience was utilized. Forty-five parents (40 to 49 years of age) of youth ice hockey players were asked to complete a one-page survey to …

Rural Cambodian Women’S Perspectives: An Exploratory Study On Community Ailments, Migration And Opportunity, Robert W. Spires

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

Life in rural Cambodia is difficult, and rural women face issues such as gender-based violence, limited educational opportunities, and pressure to work while maintaining domestic roles. The current exploratory study examines the attitudes of rural Cambodian women (n = 48), framed within in context of migration to Thailand, with particular focus on the areas of community ailments, migration, and educational opportunities. Descriptive statistics indicates the persistence of an unhealthy community, with participants acknowledging the problems of domestic violence, crime, drug use, alcohol use, and depression. The data suggest some improvement in Cambodia, though participants nonetheless recognized working in Thailand as …

Exploring Prenatal Maternal Self-View, Early Home Environment And Toddler Socioemotional Development In First-Time Teen Low Education And Adult High And Low Education Mothers, Bethany Stenger

All ETDs from UAB

Maternal self-perception and children’s early home environment have been linked to a number of areas of child development. This study looked at the influence of both prenatal maternal parenting self-efficacy and personal mastery, coined as the concept maternal self-view (MSV), on children’s 4-month home environment and 1-year socioemotional development. The effect of 4-month home environment, as measured by the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) including the Supplement to the HOME for Impoverished Families (SHIF) and by the Family and Maternal Life History (FMLH), overall and in regards to the presence of television and crowding, on 1-year child …

Nursing Leadership Influence On Evidence-Based Practice Culture And Integration, Natalie Kay Lenhart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Translating research to practice takes 10-20 years or more and evidence-based practice (EBP) integration remains at 10%-20%, despite recommendations requiring EBP-guided decisions. EBP integration has been associated with up to 30% decreases in healthcare system spending, improved quality outcomes, and increased staff satisfaction. Nurse leaders are accountable for EBP enculturation, yet rate quality and safety as the highest priority and EBP as the lowest. This knowledge gap perpetuates low EBP integration rates and hinders EBP enculturation. Asking whether EBP facilitative interventions for nurse leaders increase scores on organizational culture and readiness, beliefs, and EBP use scales addressed the knowledge gap …

Determinants Of Academic Success Of Cambodian American Students, Chanthol Oung

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Cambodian Americans' (CAs) children still exhibit the second lowest rate of academic achievement in the United States, despite the tenets of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 that promote equality in American education. Furthermore, there is a gap in the literature on the relationship between the academic success of Cambodian American students (CASs) and the parents' and the children's factors. Using a structural strain theory of deviance of functionalism theory, this correlational study (a) explored whether education, income, birthplace, and gender of parents and age at immigration and gender of children the determinants of academic success of CASs …

Why Some Religious Accommodations For Mandatory Vaccinations Violate The Establishment Clause, Hillel Y. Levin

Scholarly Works

All states require parents to inoculate their children against deadly diseases prior to enrolling them in public schools, but the vast majority of states also allow parents to opt out on religious grounds. This religious accommodation imposes potentially grave costs on the children of non-vaccinating parents and on those who cannot be immunized. The Establishment Clause prohibits religious accommodations that impose such costs on third parties in some cases, but not in all. This presents a difficult line-drawing problem. The Supreme Court has offered little guidance, and scholars are divided.

This Article addresses the problem of religious accommodations that impose …

One Purpose, Multiple Realities: A Qualitative Study On Parental Involvement In Two Malawian Private Secondary Schools, Josephine Katenga

Dissertations

Problem

Studies of Parental Involvement at the secondary school level have consistently shown to improve student-learning outcomes. Parents who invest money in children’s education want to see their children matriculate to higher education. Unfortunately, many private schools offer poor quality education. Students’ achievement in Malawi secondary schools requires the participation of each stakeholder. The purpose of this study therefore was threefold: to explore the nature of Parental Involvement in children’s education, to determine types of involvement, and to examine parents’ and educators’ attitudes towards Parental Involvement. The study participants came from two Malawian private secondary schools in Africa.

Method

This …

The Utility Of A Theoretical Framework Of A Culture Of Leadership, James E. Wortman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine the utility of a Culture of Leadership Framework for both evaluating and contributing to the formation of a dynamic school culture that infuses leadership up, down, and throughout the membership of the school learning community with students as a central figure. The Culture of Leadership Framework emerged from an extensive review of the literature and includes four distinct dimensions (indicators) that become critical to analyzing the data: Leadership Orientation, Leveraging Leadership, Leadership for Learning, and Leadership Growth. The researcher used a general interpretive process of close reading to develop themes from extant …

Transitioning Beyond Undergraduate Hospitality Education; A Dialogic Analysis Of Final Year Hospitality Students’ Narratives Of Employability, Cat Hine

Other Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business Theses

Employability has become a key consideration for graduates, and society. Increasingly the trajectory of individuals at age 18 involves the completion of an undergraduate level degree qualification. This thesis presents a sociologically grounded study into the dialogic construction of employability in final year hospitality students and recent hospitality graduates. Drawing on a nationwide sample of UK based hospitality graduates, as they transition beyond undergraduate level higher education, a new understanding of the way in which employability is narrated and individuals position themselves within the competitive context surrounding employability, has been uncovered. The study therefore evaluates the way in which employability …

The Validity And Reliability Characteristics Of The M-Back Questionnaire To Assess The Barriers, Attitudes, Confidence, And Knowledge Of Mental Health Staff Regarding Metabolic Health Of Mental Health Service Users, Andrew Watkins, Simon Rosenbaum, Philip B. Ward, Joanna Patching, Elizabeth Denny-Wilson, Jane Stein-Parbury

Nursing Papers and Journal Articles

Background: Addressing the burden of poor physical health and the subsequent gap in life expectancy experienced by people with mental illness is a major priority in mental health services. To equip mental health staff with the competence to deliver evidence-based interventions, targeted staff training regarding metabolic health is required. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of staff training regarding metabolic health, we aimed to develop a succinct measure to determine the barriers, attitudes, confidence, and knowledge of health practitioners through the development and test–retest reliability of the Metabolic-Barriers, Attitudes, Confidence, and Knowledge Questionnaire (M-BACK).

Methods: The M-BACK questionnaire was developed …

Effectiveness And Efficiency Of Training In Digital Healthcare Packages: Training Doctors To Use Digital Medical Record Keeping Software, Nicola Benwell, Kathryn Hird, Nicholas Thomas, Erin Furness, Mark Fear, Greg Sweetman

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Objective: Fiona Stanley Hospital (FSH) is the first hospital in Western Australia to implement a digital medical record (BOSSnet, Core Medical Solutions, Australia). Formal training in the use of the digital medical record is provided to all staff as part of the induction program. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether the current training program facilitates efficient and accurate use of the digital medical record in clinical practice.

Methods: Participants were selected from the cohort of junior doctors employed at FSH in 2015. An e-Learning package of clinically relevant tasks from the digital medical record was created …

Extending Awareness Of Healthcare Ethics At Cabrini Health: Junior Clinicians' Perspectives, Clare O'Callaghan, Julia Trimboli, Xavier Symons, Margaret Staples, Emma Patterson, Natasha Michael

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

As Catholic healthcare organizations form a substantive part of healthcare delivery in the USA and Australia, ethical standards for Catholic health care were developed to guide practice. This study examined junior staff’s understanding of Catholic ethics. Using a qualitative descriptive design, we recruited 22 medical and nursing staff to interviews/focus groups. Though Catholic ethics seldom informed ethical approaches, the principles were acknowledged as being useful to support development of confident and respectful care approaches. Findings provide early insights into challenges faced in considering implementation of ethical codes across both secular and religious healthcare organizations, suggesting that a more creative and …

Cognitive Performance Across The Life Course Of Bolivian Forager-Farmers With Limited Schooling, Michael Gurven, Eric Fuerstenberg, Benjamin C. Trumble, Jonathan Stieglitz, Bret Beheim, Helen Davis, Hillard Kaplan

ESI Publications

Cognitive performance is characterized by at least two distinct life course trajectories. Many cognitive abilities (e.g. “effortful processing” abilities including fluid reasoning, and processing speed) improve throughout early adolescence and start declining in early adulthood, while other abilities (e.g. “crystallized” abilities like vocabulary breadth) improve throughout adult life, remaining robust even at late ages. Although schooling may impact performance and cognitive “reserve”, it has been argued that these age patterns of cognitive performance are human universals. Here we examine age patterns of cognitive performance among Tsimane forager-horticulturalists of Bolivia, and test whether schooling is related to differences in cognitive performance …

Exploring Female Stem Learners' Perceptions Of Masculinity As Presented By Male Instructors Of Technology, Chad Clark

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Men dominate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degree programs and occupations. Even though many individuals are not cognitively aware of how pervasive hegemonic masculinity is in day-to-day life, the ramifications of the concept are real. This study looks to understand how female STEM students perceive the masculinity of their male STEM instructors and what effect that perception might have on their desire to persist in a STEM program of study. This study assumes a power differential exists between teacher and student. The assumption is supported in literature. Additionally, the classroom management hierarchy wherein the teacher controls the direction for …

Interprofessional Collaborative Care Educational Program For Nurses, Lynn Ann Mcewen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Interprofessional collaboration and collaborative patient and family-centered practice is increasingly advocated as a means of improving patient outcomes and the cost effectiveness of health care. The Canadian Interprofessional Health Collaborative and Registered Nurses Association of Ontario identified best practices and competencies required for interprofessional collaboration and collaborative practice. Despite the widespread dissemination of these competencies and best practice guidelines to health professional schools, there remains a gap in nursing practice regarding nursing knowledge about the core competencies required for interprofessional collaboration. The purpose of this project was the planning of an education program for nurses on interprofessional collaboration and collaborative …

Fall Prevention In A Neurological Care Unit, Claudeth Jeffrey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Patient falls are an ongoing concern for health systems in the US and in the setting where this project took place. Inpatient falls affect consumers and health providers because falls often result in patient morbidity and mortality, legal risk, increased length of stay, and increased costs. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the existing fall prevention protocol at the site where this project took place and to make recommendations for an evidenced-based fall prevention protocol. The professional practice model was the conceptual model that guided the exploratory descriptive project. A review of the site's fall prevention policies and …

Teaching Techniques Of Athletic Training Educators During Instruction Of Concussion Assessment Tools, Michelle Lima

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Context: Standards for concussion management in clinical practice are essential to best practices in health care. Even with the heightened awareness of concussion education in medical professionals over the past decade, there have been no studies to date to investigate the educational practices of instructors at CAATE-accredited institutions and how they teach concussion assessment tools. Purpose: To evaluate the educational practices of instructors teaching the course on concussion assessment tools at CAATE-accredited institutions. Design: Mixed-methods, exploratory study. Methods: Nine instructors from CAATE-accredited Athletic Training Education Programs that varied in geographical and division completed a 34-item survey using Qualtrics (2015)©. A …

The Improving Rural Cancer Outcomes Trial: A Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial Of A Complex Intervention To Reduce Time To Diagnosis In Rural Cancer Patients In Western Australia, Jon D. Emery, Victoria Gray, Fiona M. Walter, Shelley Cheetham, Emma J. Croager, Terry Slevin, Christobel Saunders, Timothy Threlfall, Kirsten Auret, Anna K. Nowak, Elizabeth Geelhoed, Max Bulsara, C D'Arcy J. Holman

Health Sciences Papers and Journal Articles

Background: Rural Australians have poorer survival for most common cancers, due partially to later diagnosis. Internationally, several initiatives to improve cancer outcomes have focused on earlier presentation to healthcare and timely diagnosis. We aimed to measure the effect of community- based symptom awareness and general practice-based educational interventions on the time to diagnosis in rural patients presenting with breast, prostate, colorectal or lung cancer in Western Australia.

Methods: 2_2 factorial cluster randomised controlled trial. Community Intervention: cancer symptom awareness campaign tailored for rural Australians. GP intervention: resource card with symptom risk assessment charts and local cancer referral pathways implemented through …

Social Cohesion As A Gateway: Examining France's Efforts In Building Equitable Education Access For Marginalized Immigrants, Cherish Molezion

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis examines the effects of France’s educational social cohesion policies, Zones d’Education Prioritaire (ZEP schools) and L’Agence nationale pour la cohesion sociale et l’égalité des chances (Acsé). I argue that these policies affect access to education for working-class descendants of immigrants; however, France’s republican ideology inhibits the extent to which equitability can be established between working-class descendants of immigrants and the majority population. Though a quantitative and qualitative data analysis, I scrutinize trends in education access and the labor market over the 2000s. Lastly, I make policy recommendations centering around positive discrimination approaches that France should adopt, in …