Digital Commons Network^™

Women Not Welcome: A Study Of Gender Inequality And Leadership In Stem, Stephanie Eikermann

M.A. in Leadership Studies: Capstone Project Papers

Despite societal advancements in gender equality within the workplace, the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields continue to be male-dominated today. Not only is there a disparity between women and men in these workplaces, women have been made to feel unwelcome in the STEM industries by the masculinized culture that characterizes these companies and organizations. This masculinized culture brings negative gender ideologies about the female gender which includes stereotypes that doubt the competence and abilities of women. When this masculinized culture is threatened by the presence of women, male employees have the tendency to respond emotionally in ways that alienate …

The Impact Of 1:1 Technology Initiatives On Lesson Planning, Michael Amick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Districts across the country are quickly moving toward a 1:1 student to laptop ratio. Where computer labs or carts were once the norm, many districts are now purchasing all students a laptop to start the year. This movement is occurring at a rapid pace, despite a growing body of research that shows that increased technology does not automatically lead to achievement gains. The teacher plays a vital role in student outcomes, with or without technology. In particular, the manner in which teachers plan lessons is significant to classroom outcomes. This is evident in that the Charlotte Danielson Framework for Teaching …

When Humanity Meets Technology: Contemplating Neil Postman's Critique Of Advertising, Yingwen Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project aims to contemplate Postman’s critique of advertising and offer insights to understand Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) in today’s mediated environment. As an essential component of IMC, the history of advertising demonstrates and documents that the medium of communication has an extensive influence on IMC practices. The concern about how communication media affect human perception, understanding, and behavior, resides within the central claim of the study of media ecology. Thus, this project investigates IMC through the lens of Postman’s media ecology perspectives, and argues that Postman’s prescient ideas provide both hope and constructive insights. Moreover, Postman’s thermostatic perspective, rooted …

The Postman Always Rings Twice: Neil Postman's Views On Education Are Relevant Again In The 21st Century Classroom, Jennifer Spiegel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The public education system in America has long been criticized for its inability to prepare students for success as adults. While some engage in a narrative of blame, others ask what can be done to solve this problem. This dissertation examines a narrative crisis in the 21^stcentury classroom through the lens of Neil Postman, a 20^thcentury media ecologist whose fears about television may finally be realized with the advent of the personal digital device and its impact on the educational sphere. First the past narratives that guided the American school system will be traced from colonial …

The Media, A Polarized America & Adr Tools To Enhance Understanding Of Perspectives, Ginsey Varghese Kramarczyk

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article will survey: (1) the intended role of the media in a democracy; (2) the current polarized political climate in the United States; (3) the challenges facing the twenty-first century with the growth of technology, cable news, and online platforms; (4) the media's role in perpetuating conflict; and (5) propose that media professionals use Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) tools and processes to increase the public’s understanding of differing perspectives in our conflict-laden political discourse.

Reimagining First-Year Experience: Strategies For Supporting The Success Of The 21st Century Community College Student, Jennifer A. Puniello

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

Across the nation, higher education institutions are assessing and redesigning their first-year experience as efforts to retain students. Community colleges, especially, are piloting and implementing evidence-based practices that have proven to be successful at four-year institutions. Bristol Community College, located in southeastern Massachusetts, is among one of these community colleges. While the research presented in this Capstone does not address non-cognitive issues, as critical as they are to understanding student attrition, this Capstone, backed by primary research and empirical data, focuses on curricular and co-curricular pedagogy imperative to the success of first-year community college students. Using Bristol as a subject, …

Time Lords & Timelines Panel, Sharon Bradley, Rachel S. Evans, David Rutland

Presentations

From self-guided online embeds to immersive live displays, timelines can serve many purposes and tell powerful stories. In this panel three members of UGA's Law Library shared how they bring history to life, engage students, and preserve the scholarly and institutional milestones of the Law School with timelines by enhancing guide and repository collections, complimenting physical item displays and interacting with patrons at special events using multimedia. A variety of tools for creating digital timelines and gathering content were discussed including our four favorite applications: Prezi, TimeToast, Tiki-Toki, and Piktochart. Comparisons were given based on cost, technical limitations, collaborative potential, …

Every Data Point Counts: Political Elections In The Age Of Digital Analytics, Julian Kehle, Samir Naimi

Honors Thesis

Synthesizing the investigative research and cautionary messages from experts in the fields of technology, political science, and behavioral science, this project explores the ways in which digital analytics has begun to influence the American political arena. Historically, political parties have constructed systems to target voters and win elections. However, rapid changes in the field of technology (such as big data, artificial intelligence, and the prevalence of social media) threaten to undermine the integrity of elections themselves. Future political campaigns will utilize profiling to micro-target individuals in order to manipulate and persuade them with hyper-personalized political content. Most dangerously, the average …

Game On, Theresa Loong

Theses and Dissertations

Game On is a 25-minute documentary about game designer Brenda Romero, a successful woman in a male-dominated industry. Brenda, whose career spans over thirty-five pioneering years, has contributed to almost fifty game titles, developing innovative video and board games. How is her life a game space?

Effectiveness Of Technology In An English Grammar And Punctuation Course, Deborah Brandon

Dissertations

As enrollment in online courses continues to climb, technology also continues to advance to provide students with course designs that promote optimal learning environments. New communication tools continually evolve that help improve learning outcomes in online course designs. The lack of physical class meetings in online classes necessitates a comprehensive focus on course design to optimize learning, including a focus on communication and collaboration opportunities.

Much of the available current research regarding the outcomes of increased online learning investigates the effectiveness of this learning format primarily in the fields of healthcare, foreign language, and the study of English grammar as …

Learning From Jesus’ Wife: What Does Forgery Have To Do With The Digital Humanities?, James F. Mcgrath

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

McGrath’s chapter on the so-called Gospel of Jesus’ Wife sets aside as settled the question of the papyrus’ authenticity, and explores instead what we can learn about the Digital Humanities and scholarly interaction in a digital era from the way the discussions and investigations of that work unfolded, and how issues that arose were handled. As news of purported new finds can spread around the globe instantaneously facilitated by current technology and social media, how can academics utilize similar technology to evaluate authenticity, but even more importantly, inform the broader public about the importance of provenance, and the need for …

Digital Disruption: The New York Times Asia-Pacific Writing Competition 2018, New York Times

Student Publications

This is a yearly writing competition organised by International New York Times (NYT). This year’s topic is “Digital Disruption” and SMU’s social sciences student Victoria Ivory Birrell was the winner in the University category. See her essay:

Ignore the Fluff, Technology hasn’t failed us and here’s why

Digital Colonialism: The 21st Century Scramble For Africa Through The Extraction And Control Of User Data And The Limitations Of Data Protection Laws, Danielle Coleman

Michigan Journal of Race and Law

As Western technology companies increasingly rely on user data globally, extensive data protection laws and regulations emerged to ensure ethical use of that data. These same protections, however, do not exist uniformly in the resource-rich, infrastructure-poor African countries, where Western tech seeks to establish its presence. These conditions provide an ideal landscape for digital colonialism.

Digital colonialism refers to a modern-day “Scramble for Africa” where largescale tech companies extract, analyze, and own user data for profit and market influence with nominal benefit to the data source. Under the guise of altruism, large scale tech companies can use their power and …

Advanced Statistics In Arkansas Sports Reporting, Andrew Lee Epperson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to analyze how Arkansas’ sports journalists are adapting to the recent surge in available advanced statistics that are being used by certain national news organizations. Using in-depth qualitative research that includes in-depth interviews with a number of individuals in the print, broadcast, and athletics side of sports coverage, we discover how journalists and coaches use these next-generation analytics, what they fundamentally mean for the evolution of each respective path, and why so few Arkansas reporters and writers use them at the time of this paper’s defense. We see how budgets and deadlines restrict the use of these …

Believe In Creativity, Iecha Samantha Bermudez

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

The purpose of Believe in Creativity is to provide an afterschool program implementing skills used in creativity to help develop leaders of tomorrow and removing the negative persona other generations have on today’s youth. Some may argue that the advancement of technology benefits the youth because it is a form of entertainment, resources are accessible, and they have different forms of travel. Others believe that the advancement of technology is not beneficial because it causes the youths to be antisocial, aggressive, and non-creative. Though the advancement of technology has both pros and cons in the lives of the youth, I …

Teachers' Perceptions And Practices On Using Educational Technology As An Instructional Tool In The Classroom, Amanda Lee Resendez

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the rapid expansion of educational technologies in primary schools, recent research has shown that many teachers are not taking full advantage of these new tools. This study was designed to address the problem of the lack of effective technology integration in the classroom, particularly in grades third thru fifth at two school districts in the Rio Grande Valley. The purpose of this study was to examine primary teachers' perceptions of implementing technology in the classroom. Framed by Koehler and Mishra's technological pedagogical content knowledge model (TPACK), the study was guided by research questions that involved teachers' perceptions of the …

Evaluation Of A Wearable Activity Schedule For Promoting Independent Play In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Basak Topcuoglu

Theses and Dissertations

Activity schedules are an antecedent intervention in which a series of visual cues, presented typically in booklets or binders, function as prompts for steps in a behavior chain (e.g., classroom routine, playing hide and seek). Although activity schedules are useful in getting individuals to manage their own behaviors, their typical presentation format can be cumbersome and stigmatizing for children placed in general education classrooms, placing additional barriers for independence and inclusion across environments for these children. Some researchers have used electronic devices such as tablets to display activity schedules, and although more socially acceptable, these are still cumbersome for young …

Teachers' Attitudes And Perceptions On Bring Your Own Device Programs In The Secondary Classroom, Michelle Marie Cavazos

Theses and Dissertations

Cavazos, Michelle M., Teachers' Attitudes and Perceptions on Bring Your Own Device Programs in the Secondary Classroom. Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), March 2019, 105 pp., 3 tables, 4 figures. The purpose of this research is to investigate teacher attitudes and perceptions of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) on learning in the secondary classroom. The study was completed as a qualitative narrative inquiry. The study took place in a high school that has had BYOD policies in place since the beginning of the establishment of the campus. The manuscript brings forward the themes and reflections that represent teacher attitudes and perceptions …

Using Technology To Enhance Instruction And Learning In The Music Classroom, Erin Wash

Masters Theses

Technology integration is a rapidly growing trend in the field of education today. This study investigates various ways of integrating technology to enhance instruction and learning in the music classroom. In order for technology to be effectively integrated in the music classroom, music educators must not only be aware of the technology available but must also remain informed of the most effective ways of implementing technology into instruction and learning. The scope of this study examines the use of two specific resources, SmartMusic and Teoria, and their effectiveness in teaching and learning sight-singing, ear-training, and rhythm reading, notation, and performance …

The Ethics Of Using Cloud-Based Services And Products, Darla Jackson, Kenton S. Brice

Other Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Technology For The 21st Century Workforce: A Case Study Of A Rural East Tennessee Workforce Community, Kim Bolton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to assess technology use, on-the-job technology training, education levels, and salary ranges of employees in low-, middle-, and high- skill jobs in a rural county in East Tennessee to create an example of a small town workforce. For this study, technology included computers, robotics, and mobile technology. A survey determined the technology used, training provided, salaries, and job skill levels based on education obtained and required by major employers. The study identified the level of jobs requiring more technology skills and salaries or training related to these job skill levels. Participants included 336 persons …

Disperse And Connect: Impacts Of Communication And Transportation Technologies On Group Connectivity, Timothy Geary

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Communication and transportation technologies have swiftly advanced our ability to connect across time and space. This project explores how these advancements have impacted the African Diaspora and the connection through music. We explore the evolution of both communication and transportation technologies and note points of contact between the diaspora group.

Technology In Education, Hannah Greenelsh

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This paper will examine how technology is useful in education and should be integrated into curriculum. The participants for the Capstone Project included 23 fifth-grade students in a public middle school on the Central Coast of California. This project focused on using a web-based art program called Canva to create infographics based on students’ knowledge and study of Ancient Egypt. The students also commented on their peers’ work on a blog page the researcher created. The researcher found that students had difficulty using a new application. They were also less creative than the researcher expected, which could be due to …

Regulating The Gdpr: Perspectives From The United Kingdom, Hannah Mccausland

Seattle University Law Review

Hannah McCausland leads the international group at the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO’s International Engagement functions as the gateway to other data protection and privacy authorities on international matters. She’s involved in the work of the EU European Data Protection Board advising the commissioner and the deputy commissioner on international positioning of the ICO, and she has played a key role over the past six years in the ICO’s strategy on navigating the EU’s data protection framework. Hannah has also played a major role at the global level and advancing the practical tools that data protection and privacy …

Non-Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Programs And Products Liability: How New Ai Products Challenge Existing Liability Models And Pose New Financial Burdens, Greg Swanson

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment argues that the unique relationship between manufacturers, consumers, and their reinforcement learning AI systems challenges existing products liability law models. These traditional models inform how to identify and apportion liability between manufacturers and consumers while exposing litigants to low-dollar tort remedies with inherently high-dollar litigation costs.11 Rather than waiting for AI autonomy, the political and legal communities should be proactive and generate a liability model that recognizes how new AI programs have already redefined the relationship between manufacturer, consumer, and product while challenging the legal and financial burden of prospective consumer-plaintiffs and manufacturer-defendants.

Integrating Technology Into The Literacy Curriculum Within A First Grade Classroom, Christina M. Hargrove

Theses and Dissertations

Technology is ingrained in almost every part of our culture, affecting the way we live, work, play, and learn. Most careers in this day and age require professionals to be proficient in the new literacies of 21st-century technologies. Thus, it only makes sense that technology be used in classrooms with even our youngest learners to help prepare our students to be successful in their futures. This research explores what happens when technology is integrated into the literacy curriculum within a first grade classroom. To this end, technology was integrated into a multitude of literacy lessons and classroom routines. Results revealed …

Evaluating The Undergraduate Marketing Curriculum: Utilizing A Swot-Based Approach To Identify And Incorporate Meaningful Digital Skills, Concepts, & Competencies, Kayla Noel Sapkota

Theses and Dissertations

Marketing professionals commonly use technology for communications, advertising, and data collection and analysis. Entry-level marketers who can harness the power of digital tools will be favorably situated to meet the challenges of today’s digitally-based world of work. This qualitative study investigated the undergraduate marketing curriculum with a focus on preparing students for careers in digital marketing. The two, main research questions are as follows: (1) how well are colleges and universities preparing students for technology-based marketing jobs upon graduation, and (2) what knowledge/skills do employers seek when hiring employees for technology based marketing jobs? Data were collected from four sources, …

Reimagining Social Media In Npd Practice: Successes, Trials & Tribulations, Dennis P. Doherty

General Submissions: Presentations (Oral and Poster)

Social media can be used throughout NPD practice. Come learn strategies to leverage social media across NPD roles along with facilitators and barriers to success.

Skills Of Using Internet And Computer Communication Network Among Library Professionals Working In Selected Arts And Science Colleges: Affiliated To Bharathidasan University, Mercy Angeline X

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

We live in a computer-centric Information Age. The number of computers in-use including in libraries is growing rapidly. Computer literacy, which is the ability to operate a computer system for performing personal and job-related tasks like using web browsers and search engines on the internet to retrieve needed information and communicate with the others, is considered as a fundament part of today's library professionals skills. Library managers prefer professionals and librarians who are computer literate because they are more productive and efficient at work than those who are not computer literate. The paper seeks to investigate the use of Internet …

Google Ads: A Strategic Audit, Jessee Zhang

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Google began as an internet search product, allowing users to find relevant sites based on a search query. Over the past several decades, Google has become an extremely large and profitable business though online digital advertisements. While Google has a diverse product mix, the overwhelming majority of its revenue is generated through ads. This strategic audit first looks at the current external environment, looking at the political, economic, social, and technological changes and opportunities relevant to the industry. Then, it looks at the current competitive environment and shows the profitability of the business because of the large barrier to entry. …