Digital Commons Network^™

From Preschool To Prison: How School Resource Officers Produce Criminality, Brenda Vargas Tapia

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Police officers were introduced in the American school system to provide White communities with a sense of safety. However, these police officers are not well trained to provide students with support and instead are trained to deal with situations with force. The implicit bias of police officers criminalizes and punishes Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) students unfairly. School shootings have continued to enforce the idea that officers are needed. However, this notion is untrue. Policing in schools builds a school-to-prison pipeline that is now, in the online schooling era, translating to the Zoom-to-prison pipeline, which reveals that BIPOC …

Lolita In The Contemporary American Classroom: Pedagogical And Learning Approaches, Jasmine Revels

Master’s Theses and Projects

The purpose of this study is to discover effective collegiate-level teaching and learning strategies for Vladimir Nabokov’s 1958 novel Lolita in the midst of the current American political and social climate. Some of the factors of the current political and social climate in the United States thought to have an effect on the teaching of Lolita, and were thus considered for further inquiry, were cancel culture, the Me Too Movement, and trigger warnings. Primary research was collected from college students and English college professors. To obtain this research and the opinions of respondents regarding this topic, a combination of both …

Organizing A Business Law Department Within A Law School, William J. Carney

University of Colorado Law Review Forum

No abstract provided.

Learning Marx In The Podcast Era: A Review Of “Reading ‘Capital’ With Comrades”, Peter Mclaren

Education Faculty Articles and Research

"Karl Marx’s Capital is a book that keeps me going, thinking, organizing, writing, teaching; it’s a book that might even keep me alive. The trenchant analysis, the clarity of the exposition, and most importantly the insights that are crucial to the revolutionary overthrow of capitalism energize me. It’s a book that radically transformed my own life, one that made me move from working toward “social justice” and within “critical pedagogy” to working toward communism and within “revolutionary critical pedagogy,” a praxis I and comrades have been developing for over two decades now. Reading Capital with Comrades, a new Liberation …

Educational Disparities Among Racial And Ethnic Minority Youth In The United States, Lauren Bushnell

Ballard Brief

While the gap in high school completion has narrowed over time. the percentage of Black and Hispanic high school graduates is still significantly less than that of their White counterparts. Throughout the nation, minority students experience disparities in their educational experience that directly impact their long-term learning and success. The most significant contributors to educational disparities amongst the nation's racial and ethnic minorities include poverty, segregation and racial school districting, inadequate language resources for English language learners. bullying. and lack of access to health resources. The consequences of educational disparities among these minorities include continued poverty, decreased college enrollment and …

The Myth Of The Vanishing Race: Interpreting Historical Photographs Of Native Americans, Thomas P. Albritton

History Graduate Projects and Theses

Much of Indigenous peoples’ experience in America has been shaped by white settler colonialism, politics, and imperialism. The master narration and representation for the Indigenous past predominantly have been created by white men (European colonists, historians, and creators of pop culture), resulting in a myth of a vanishing race, the belief of many non-Indigenous people’s that Indigenous cultures, customs, and heritage were vanishing or have disappeared. Specifically, the Edward S. Curtis photograph titled “The Vanishing Race—Navaho,” ca. 1904 continues to be a significant propagator of misconceptions of a vanishing race or a long-forgotten people, even as those cultures, customs, and …

Social-Emotional Learning And Literacy: A Literary Curriculum Designed To Support Children's Self-Awareness Skills, Chelsea Mcconnell

Masters Theses/Capstone Projects

The purpose of this capstone project is to present a curriculum that utilizes children’s books to teach the first competency of social-emotional learning: self-awareness. The curriculum was developed based on the following research question: How can we create a literacy curriculum that utilizes children’s literature to support students’ social-emotional development in the domain of self-awareness? The question was answered after examining Vygotsky’s sociocultural learning theory and research associated with bibliotherapy and text selection, as well as structure developed for bibliotherapy lessons. The curriculum includes sample lessons that support literacy and social-emotional learning instruction with alignment to Ohio’s Social-Emotional Learning and …

Ace Newsletter May 2021, State University Of New York At Cortland

Programs

Access to College Education Program Newsletter May 2021

The Challenges To Mission And Ministry In The Covid-19 Moment In Jesuit Higher Education, Mark Bosco S. J.

Jesuit Higher Education: A Journal

In this Reflection, Father Bosco examines the adaptations and adjustments made at Georgetown University as students, faculty and staff managed with the impact of the coronavirus.

Preserving Safety While Upholding The Integrity Of Medical Education And Practical Skills: The Impact Of Covid-19 On Teaching Human Anatomy, Anna Cowan

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The global pandemic caused by COVID-19 placed constraints on several aspects of normal life, especially those of higher level education. While many programs moved to teaching in a strictly online format, there are some courses in which this structure was not appropriate. This study observed the outcome of the adapted course structure employed at Quillen College of Medicine during their Gross Human Anatomy course. Through a voluntary survey and multiple independent t-tests, it was demonstrated that the students who took the adapted course performed, on average, 2 points lower on each exam than previous classes. Also, this study showed that …

Technology In Accounting: A Qualitative Study Of Undergraduate Preparedness, Alyssa Dingus

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Throughout history, technology has had a major impact on every profession and how certain tasks are performed. In recent years, technology has accelerated at an astonishing rate causing a total shift in the valuable skillsets of young professionals. Accounting is no exception to this shift and, as technology continues to advance, emerging accounting professionals will no longer be expected to enter the workforce only with basic pen-and-paper accounting knowledge. Instead, they will also be expected to possess analytical skills and be prepared to apply and learn the newest technology on the market. However, the traditional accounting curriculum does not focus …

To Read Or Not To Read: Navigating Young Adult Literature In The Classroom In The Age Of Trigger Warnings And Banned Books, Ashley Sell

Honors Projects

Most public school libraries or English classrooms celebrate Banned Books Week during the school year, featuring dozens of Young Adult novels that have been challenged or banned in public schools across the country. However, books aimed towards young readers are typically not optimized for educational use in the classroom. In this project, I will explore the benefits of using Young Adult literature in the classroom, while also investigating the obstacles that one might face in order to do so, i.e. censorship, sensitive subject matter. I also want to summarize and respond to an argument for the retainment of classic literature …

Reopening The Temple School: Reforming Contemporary Education With The Transcendentalists, Richard Evan Miller

English Theses - Archive

A conversation surrounding reform in American education has been in play for two centuries. In 1834, Bronson Alcott’s Temple School challenged traditional modes of education with his conversational approach in the classroom. His methods encouraged students to self-reflect on their relationship to nature, rather than conform to a standardized knowledge system common in public schools. Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, his Transcendentalist contemporary and teaching assistant, published her Record of a School in 1835 to record Alcott’s interactions with students and display to the public the effectiveness of their reformed approach to education. Fast-forward to the current climate in America, and one …

A Proposed Curriculum For Prenatal, Postnatal, And Early Childhood Christian Music Education, Danielle Emily Dixon

Masters Theses

From the prenatal to postnatal/infancy stages, to early childhood and beyond, music plays an integral role in development. This research study aims to detail and describe the benefits of a prenatal, postnatal/infant, and early childhood Christian music education. Employing a mixed-methods and historical research approach, this study seeks to answer the question, in what ways, if any, could a prenatal, postnatal/infant, and early childhood Christian music education be beneficial for developing children and their mothers? By combining the benefits of an early childhood music education with Christian principles, the results of this study will have significance in not only the …

Sixth-Grade Sight-Singing For Low Vision Students: A Course To Enhance Confidence And Music Reading Ability, Jamie Lane Carpenter

Masters Theses

Students enter the private or public-school system with a wide variety of emotional, mental, and physical impairments that impact their confidence, self-esteem, and overall path to their future. One misunderstood and under-represented population of students are those who are not fully blind but fall under the category of low vision. Since the low vision spectrum is wide, students must advocate for themselves according to their unique visual condition. While some students may be nearsighted, others may experience color blindness, tunnel vision, a wide variety of partial blindness in one or both eyes, and more. If educators are not aware of …

Service-Learning: A Translation Of Documents Into Spanish On Behalf Of Learning For All, Aidan Posey

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Learning for ALL (LFA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Omaha, NE. LFA offers resources to adults in the community by offering a variety of classes in literacy, English language, and Adult Basic Education. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, much of the learning at LFA has transitioned to the online learning portal, Burlington English. However, the fact that Burlington English is presented and written in English poses a large barrier to the accessibility of online learning material. Current LFA management utilizes Google Translate to try and translate the steps to log into this platform and while a valuable tool, Google …

The Effects Of A Novel Quarterly Cpr Training Program On Hospital Basic Life Support Providers' Adult And Infant Cpr Skills, Alex Klacman

Nursing Dissertations - Archive

This article-based dissertation consists of two manuscripts related to the effects of a novel quarterly cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training program on hospital basic life support (BLS) providers’ adult and infant CPR skills over time at one hospital in Texas. The first manuscript was a retrospective cohort study of 109 BLS providers enrolled in the training program at the study hospital who completed four quarters of adult CPR skills with audiovisual feedback between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2018. The primary purpose of the study was to examine the effect of the training program on BLS providers’ ability to obtain …

Teachers’ Stress, Anxiety, And Depression: What Are Special Education Teachers Experiencing?, James H. Potter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown that people in the teaching profession have high levels of stress and often report increased levels of symptoms of anxiety and depression. Students’ academic progress may have adverse effects when their teachers have high-stress levels or report mental distress. Those who teach special education often face high levels of stress. However, there is little research considering special education teachers’ job-related health. This study collected data on 598 general and special education teachers in the United States. This study compared the endorsements of both stress and psychopathology between special education and general education teachers. This research found that …

Jr. And Sr. High At-Risk Students Within Poverty: Formation Of The Mentor-Mentee Program In Addressing Their Needs, John J. Noggle

Doctor of Ministry Projects and Theses

In the Spring of 2015, I was driving toward Southwest Arkansas to my new appointment at Stamps First United Methodist Church. As I was driving further south on Highway 71, I began to notice how poverty-stricken South Arkansas was. Towns that were once the commercial service centers to their communities contained empty store buildings and little economic life. It was then that I knew that the majority of children in South Arkansas were At-Risk children in poverty. I felt a call in my Spirit to help those in need by developing a plan of action to help them in meeting …

Optimizing The Use Of Digitization Technologies In Museums, Emma Gunst

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Digital technologies are used mostly for artifact preservation, but they can also be used for educating people about those artifacts in a museum context. This paper investigates the way various age groups react differently to distinct kinds of digitization technology. By using different technologies with certain age groups, adolescents can learn more from the artifacts or objects they are interacting with. This project aims to explore which technologies work with what age group in order to optimize adolescent education and artifact accessibility in museums. Accessibility for this study is defined as a museum making their collections available to a variety …

A Changing Landscape: Teachers' Perceptions Of The Urban Public High School Student Experience, Colleen Wellford Morrison

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Through qualitative interviews, this study examines the perceived role of teachers on the educational experiences and outcomes of students at majority-minority urban public high schools This research is situated in the historical context of unequal resources in education, applies the theories of Bourdieu’s social and cultural capital, and examines teachers’ positionality. Using the life stories narrative approach, teachers discuss how their life experiences and teaching practices are central in developing positive relationships with students. These teacher’s narratives affirm the importance of cultivating positive relationships with students and creating educational environments that foster academic growth and cultural awareness. Furthermore, the narratives …

Development And Evaluation Of A Diabetes Themed Escape Room For Students Completing An Ambulatory Care Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience, Katherine Frances Brown

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Introduction: Escape rooms are a novel form of entertainment that have become increasingly popular in the United States. The idea of an escape room has great potential for educational purposes as well. In professional healthcare schooling, they have been used to supplement what students learn in the classroom. Interactive learning through the use of an escape room has been studied in the setting of pharmacy students completing their third year of traditional didactic learning. As of yet, there is no published literature that analyzes the use of escape rooms in the Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) setting.

Objectives: The primary …

The Principal’S Leadership Impact Utilizing Distributed Leadership Practices That Drive School Improvement, Dr. Holly Grubbs

Education Policy and Leadership Theses and Dissertations

Educational leadership is a major factor in achieving the goals of state and federal policymakers centered on raising student achievement for all students. Before, the focus was on how the principal is managing the school, and now it is about the process, procedures and structures, and systems in place that drive instructional improvement. With the increase of federal legislation, a principal's instructional leadership is measured by student academic achievement (Van Roekel, 2008). The assumption of the federal, state, and local policies is that instructional leadership is evident on the campus to improve schools. Consequently, there is a problem in American …

Diverse Characterization: The Importance Of Inclusive Protagonists And Authors For Adolescents In Diverse Communities, Trista Straube

Masters Theses

Despite continuous efforts to increase comprehension and success for students of diverse backgrounds there is a major underrepresentation of these communities in literary applications. Literary devices within public institutions should celebrate diversity in race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, culture, and physical and mental ability. It is important, in young adult development, that students have literature that reflects similarities in their personal lives. This thesis will serve to prove that literature pursued in public education should be selected based on the relatability of the students enrolled in the institution and inclusivity to the student population. When selecting relatable texts, …

Leaders Of The New School: Exploring The Origins Of Leadership Qualities In First Generation Black Male College Students, Rahjaun J. Gordon

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative study explored the origin of leadership qualities in Black male first generation college student leaders at a Predominately White Institution. The participants were identified as student leaders in various leadership roles on their college campus. The study explores the participants pre-college experience to identify any influences, primarily in their family, peer relationships, and communities to identify how their leadership qualities formed and originated. Analysis of 12 individual interviews highlighted 5 themes: 1) leadership qualities defined and utilized, 2) self-awareness, 3) family influences, 4) mentorship, 5) the importance of exposure. This work has implications for the exploration of the …

Examining The Benefits Of A Sustained Balance And Fall Prevention Programming For Independent Older Adults Living In A Community Setting, Noah Davis

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Falls have been an identified public health and social problem since the 1980’s and now recognized as a global health problem in many of the developed nations. The National Council on Aging and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledge many evidence-based fall prevention programs. However, there are identified concerns to the programs; for example, a lack of sustained programming for older adults in the community setting. The literature review on fall prevention interventions identifies that few programs are sustained after two years, primarily due to a lack of funding and a lack of interest by older adults. However, …

Disparities In Education Resources Within The State Of Arkansas, Hunter Simmons

Mathematical Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Throughout the state of Arkansas, there are grave disparities in education resources apparent in specific school districts and at a state level. The Arkansas Department of Education, formerly titled the State Department of Education, was established in 1931 by Act 169 in the Arkansas General Assembly. Since then, the department has gone under multiple reforms and expansions. From desegregation to the Clinton administration’s improvements in early childhood education, Arkansas has had a tumultuous past in terms of public education and has consistently been ranked in the bottom twentieth percentile of the nation’s school systems. The purpose of this paper is …

Tiny Tusks Internship: Marketing Towards Breastfeeding: How Marketing Can Either Help Or Hinder How Breastfeeding Is Perceived, Hailey Tremmel

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Tiny Tusks Breastfeeding and Infant Support is a program run by faculty and students in the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing program that allows for breastfeeding mothers in attendance at the University of Arkansas sporting events to have a place to pump or provide care to their infant. How marketing towards breastfeeding is portrayed has a huge impact on helping breastfeeding mothers to feel properly educated and supported about the decision to breastfeed. The purpose of this literature review is to demonstrate how marketing tactics can affect the view of breastfeeding, whether that be positive or negative. The results found …

Professional Development Needs Assessment For Environmental Educators, Laura Banister Woods

All Theses

To assess the training needs of environmental educators, a survey was designed and distributed to members of environmental education organizations. This survey included a list of 28 professional competencies representing five overarching areas that was compiled with a team of professionals and practitioners and informed by the North American Association for Environmental Education’s (NAAEE) Guidelines for Excellence (2019). Respondents to the survey were asked to rate each professional competency in terms of 1.) how important they think it is, and 2.) how well prepared they feel to perform it in their current position as an environmental educator. These two scores …

Impact Of Communicative Activities On Improving Students’ Speaking Skills In English As Second Language, Ozlem Guler

International Graduate Program for Educators Master's Projects

This research is conducted to see the impact of communicative activities in students speaking skills in English as second language. And it is reached to a conclusion that communicative activities cause longer student speaking time in class. Moreover, the students mostly state that they learn better through communicative activities. Using language as a tool for communication rather than an aspect to learn will serve better. Language isn’t learnt but acquired such as the mother tongue. That’s why it should be done naturally just like a baby making baby steps to start uttering first words.

Expectedly, singing a memorized song is …