Digital Commons Network^™

Pre-Service Elementary Teachers' Science Content Knowledge And Confidence: Teaching Science Methods With Metacognitive Awareness Activities, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi, Erika Wise

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Few elementary teachers are confident in teaching science or in their science knowledge. This study sought to address this concern by investigating the impact of a science methods course on confidence and science knowledge for pre-service elementary teachers (PSETs). In this study, 23 participants enrolled in a teacher education program at a Midwest US university participated in a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design. The participants engaged in course content, including metacognitive awareness activities, for a full semester and qualitatively described their confidence within the pre-post assessment survey. Results were analyzed using an independent samples t-test, mean content assessment scores, and paired samples …

Girls Stem Institute: Impacting Black Girls' Self-Efficacy And Interest In Stem Careers, Crystal Morton, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi, Danka Maric, Vidushi Adlakha, Robin Jackson

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Nationally and globally, STEM serves as a gatekeeper to the labor market and higher education opportunities. Many Black girls find themselves locked out of the gate. Historically and contemporarily, Black girls are seldom viewed as capable or worthy of educational investment and face unique and ongoing challenges in K-12 STEM learning spaces due to their gender and racial identities. Research suggests that informal STEM learning spaces can serve as a counter to Black girls’ experiences in K-12 schools and help enhance Black girls’ self-efficacy and STEM career interests. This study explores the impact of a four-week informal STEM program, employing …

Lessons Learned Using Participatory Research To Develop Physical Education Resources And Recommendations For Blind Students, M. Ally Keene, Nina Marranca, Julia Lagrand, Andrews Mead-Colegrove, Angela Eckhoff, Justin Haegele

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Using a participatory action research (PAR) methodology, the purpose of this manuscript was to describe the experiences of co-constructing resources and recommendations for physical education (PE) teachers, with blind individuals as research partners, aimed at enhancing PE for blind students. Four blind young adults served as research partners within the project. The project consisted of 15 meetings over 19 weeks and two stages, and took place entirely on Zoom. Stage one consisted of four meetings and focused on exploring the needs of the partners and their experiences and opinions related to improving PE for future blind students. Stage two consisted …

Anti-Domestic Violence In China: Re-Accessing The Public Value Of Individual Experience, Xiaoran Tang

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

In December 2019, Kim Lee, a symbolic figure in China’s anti-domestic violence (ADV) movement, publicly stated on the Chinese social media platform Weibo that she forgave her ex-husband Li Yang, sparking widespread controversy.

Drawing on Joan W. Scott’s method of examining experience, this study analyzes Kim’s case within the broader historical development of China’s ADV movement. It traces how Kim’s personal experiences and public images were continuously constructed, interpreted, and reshaped across different stages of the movement. This study finds that Kim’s experiences became public knowledge through the social, legal, and institutional processes that framed her as a domestic violence …

Reward-Based Gamification: Evaluating Game Mechanics That Promote The Implementation Of Personal Device Security Measures, Leah Lynne Branstetter

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Many everyday computer users lack the cybersecurity knowledge and motivation necessary to secure their personal devices. To better understand these barriers, we conducted an initial study with nine participants who were asked to complete simple laptop security tasks, such as reviewing firewall settings. We found two primary challenges: participants were unfamiliar with basic security features, and many expressed low motivation to engage in security practices even after learning about them. To address the motivational barrier, we developed a beginner-friendly cybersecurity game designed to reward users for completing real device security tasks. We compared this reward-based game to a version of …

Lens: Llm-Enabled Narrative Synthesis For Mental Health By Aligning Multimodal Sensing With Language Models, Wenxuan Xu

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Multimodal health sensing offers rich behavioral signals for assessing mental health, yet translating these numerical time-series measurements into natural language remains challenging. Current LLMs cannot natively ingest long-duration sensor streams, and paired sensor–text datasets are scarce. To address these challenges, we introduce LENS, a framework that aligns multimodal sensing data with language models to generate clinically grounded mental-health narratives. LENS first constructs a large-scale dataset by transforming Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) responses related to depression and anxiety symptoms into natural-language descriptions, yielding over 100,000 sensor–text QA pairs from 258 participants. To enable native time-series integration, we train a patch-level encoder …

From Physical Correlation To Emotional Connection: The Role Of Passive Haptics On Empathy In Virtual Reality, Jemely Robles

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Virtual reality is increasingly explored as a tool for cultivating empathy, and haptic feedback as a tool for enhancing immersion. This paper investigates the effects of combining the two.  Fifty-two participants experienced a custom-built VR scene in which a character was shown packing up a room. Participants were assigned to either a haptic condition, receiving passive haptic feedback corresponding to the character's actions, or a non-haptic control condition that did not receive any haptic input. Trait empathy was measured beforehand, and state empathy and engagement were measured after the experience. Thematic analysis was conducted on post-study interviews, and headset recordings …

An Experimental Investigation On The Influence Of Emotion On Craving And Alcohol Consumption Among Women, Melissa C. Rothstein

Open Access Dissertations

A burgeoning literature suggests that alcohol use, rates of binge drinking, rates of alcohol use disorder, and experiences of alcohol-related consequences are increasing among women in comparison to men (Adams et al., 2022; Baraona et al., 1991; Peltier et al., 2019; White, 2020). As such, alcohol use among women is a growing public health concern, but historically, most existing research, including interventions, has focused on men (Agabio et al., 2017; Holzhauer et al., 2020; Maxwell et al., 2022; Verplaetse et al., 2021; White, 2020). Although there is a large literature on the role of negative emotion in alcohol use (Austin …

Languages Of Marginalization: Educational Inequality And Identity Formation Among Rohingya Refugees In Bangladesh, Md Khalid Rahman

Sustainability and Social Justice

This research paper investigates how language-of-instruction policies shape educational inequality and identity formation among Rohingya refugee children living in protracted displacement in Cox’ Bazar, Bangladesh. Analyzed from a human right–based framework, the study examines whether existing educational policies align with international legal standards on the right to education, including the UDHR, ICESCR, Child Convention and SDG 4. While these frameworks guarantee non-discriminatory and inclusive access to education, the reality in Cox’s Bazar reveals a persistent gap between normative commitments and policy implementation. Moreover, the study explores how the exclusion of both the host language (Bangla) and the native Rohingya language …

Participation, Danielle M. Pillet-Shore

Faculty Publications

What does it take to participate in direct, naturally occurring social interaction? Conversation analytic (CA) studies reveal that “participation”—who participates, when, and how—is dynamic and locally, multimodally achieved by the people involved. Particularly in social situations when people are concurrently accessible to one another’s naked senses (Goffman, 1964), co-participation is enabled and performed through embodied and vocal resources including talk, gaze, facial displays, body orientation/posture, proximity, and gestures (e.g., M. H. Goodwin, 1999; C. Goodwin & M. H. Goodwin, 2005; Pillet-Shore, 2010; Sidnell, 2009). Using a multimodal CA lens, this chapter illuminates how “participation” is achieved in real-time, naturally occurring …

Silencing As Blackening, I. Bennett Capers

Faculty Scholarship

We are so accustomed to seeing defendants sit silently at criminal trials while their lawyers speak that we hardly question it. Or we tell ourselves this silence is for their own protection, part of their privilege against self-incrimination and the rules we have created for their own benefit. But what if we've gotten everything wrong? What if encouraging defendants to remain silent does not inure to their benefit at all, but to the State's? And what if this silencing is tied to race? "Silencing as Blackening" tells a fuller story about silent defendants. One, that this silence is rarely voluntary, …

Using A Multimedia Icu Diary To Support Patient Recovery And Enhance Family Engagement In The Medical Intensive Care Unit Primary, Eliza Palow

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

The purpose of this project was to design and implement a multimedia ICU diary incorporating QR-coded educational tools to support patient and family engagement, improve understanding of the ICU environment, and enhance emotional orientation and recovery during and after hospitalization.

My Autobiography Of Listening: A Worksheet, David Keck

C. Listening for One’s Own Voice

This 1-page worksheet provides a framework for exploring the ways in which a person's experiences shape their listening habits and capacities. It helps users answer the question, "How did I come to listen this way?"

Stressing Over Something? Three Qustions That Can Help, Matteo Moreno Madrid

C. Listening for One’s Own Voice

A 2-page review of 3 good questions we can ask to help us deal with stress. Because stress affects listening, especially how we process our own ideas, developing useful strategies for stress is critical for good listening habits.

Listening In Lectures Self-Assessment, David Keck

A. Listening in Class and in Professional Settings

A handout designed to help students assess -- and ultimately improve -- their listening habits in the classroom. Sections include Preparing for Class; Mindset; Relationship with the Instructor; Relationship with Fellow Students; During Class; and After Class.

Why Writing By Hand Beats Typing, Matteo Moreno Madrid

A. Listening in Class and in Professional Settings

Effective listening in class and other professional settings depends on the strategies chosen for taking notes. This review of several discussions presents the case for choosing writing by hand over typing.

Teachers' Perceptions Of Proactive And Reactive Behavior Management Strategies, Anna Wilzbach

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to expand the praise literature by examining K-12 teachers’ preferences for proactive behavior management strategies (e.g., praise, acknowledgement, rewards). In addition, teachers’ opinions on the efficacy of proactive strategies were assessed to see if efficacy of strategies decreased as grade level increased. Teacher opinions of efficacy and preferences for proactive strategies and reprimand were collected through the Teacher Praise and Reprimand Preference Survey (TPRPS). A total of 93 teachers from rural and suburban school districts completed the TPRPS survey. Results indicated as grade level increased, teachers found praise less effective for managing student appropriate …

The Role Of International Student Office Directors In Facilitating The Transitional Adjustment Of International Students In U.S Higher Education, Agnes Afi Yigah

Masters Theses

This qualitative study explored how International Student Office Directors facilitate the transitional adjustment of international students in U.S. higher education institutions. Guided by Schlossberg’s Transition Theory (1981) and Schlossberg’s Mattering and Marginality Theory (1989), this study examined the challenges international students face, the support strategies implemented by International Student Office Directors, and the institutional factors influencing student adjustment and well-being. International students experience challenges related to housing and logistical adjustment, financial and immigration-related stressors, academic system adjustment and self-advocacy, and social integration and emotional adjustment. Proactive and holistic support approaches, including pre-arrival communication, orientation programs, academic support, emotional support, and …

“If He Did It, I Can Do It, Too. I Can Change My Life Around”: The Social Model Of Recovery Within The Context Of Recovery Homes Accepting Residents Prescribed Medications For Opioid Use Disorder, Jodie M Dewey, Kathryn R Gallardo, Meenakshi S Subbaraman, Amy A Mericle

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: This paper provides an in-depth examination of examines four recovery residences, that serve individuals prescribed medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD). The study has two primary aims: first, to deepen understanding of how recovery residences adopt and operationalize Social Model of Recovery principles; and second, to identify gaps in staff integration of residents receiving MOUD-gaps that may either support or undermine the integrity of the social model within these settings.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with 17 residents receiving MOUD living in four participating recovery homes. The interviews were conducted between August 2022 and January 2024 using a semi-structured …

Pregnancy And Breastfeeding Are Associated With Less Later-Life Cognitive Decline In A Longitudinal, Prospective Cohort, Molly M Fox, Jennifer E Bramen, Dayoon Kwon, Mark A Espeland, Yijia Sun, Li Zhang, Aladdin H Shadyab, Ramon Casanova, Joann E Manson, Marcus Y Chang, Verna R Porter, Leslie V Farland, Qian Xiao, Robert A Wild, Prabha Siddarth, Carolyn J Crandall

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: The brains of female mammals evolved to undergo structural and functional changes during pregnancy and lactation, equipping them for motherhood. However, long-term cognitive health implications of these adaptations in women are poorly understood.

Methods: In the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Memory Study (WHIMS; n = 7427) and WHI Study of Cognitive Aging (WHISCA; n = 2304), postmenopausal women completed reproductive history interviews, annual global cognitive assessment from mean age 70 for up to 13 years, and multi-domain cognitive testing for up to 8 years.

Results: Each additional month pregnant was associated with higher scores of global cognition. Each additional …

Adapting A Smartphone-Based Auricular Point Acupressure Self-Management Program For Rural Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: Qualitative Study, Jungkyung Min, Peiyin Hung, Jane N Bolin, Rupsikha Bora, Sarah Pace, Patricia Pitones, Hulin Wu, Jennifer Kawi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Chronic musculoskeletal pain is more prevalent in rural areas where access to pain interventions, including complementary approaches like Auricular Point Acupressure (APA), remains limited. APA is a non-invasive, needle-free approach, and its smartphone-based self-management delivery model has not been optimized for rural contexts.

Objectives: To explore the perspectives of rural partners on adapting a smartphone-based Auricular Point Acupressure-Self-Management (APA-SM) program to better meet rural needs. Study objectives were to: (1) refine the APA-SM program for rural adults, (2) identify implementation barriers, (3) understand practice workflows and engagement, and (4) identify strategies to integrate the APA-SM program into rural pain …

Religious Radio Broadcasting In Ukraine In The Context Of Digital Mediatisation And Social Transformation, Oleh Sokolovskyi, Olena Yurchuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The study carries out a religious studies analysis of contemporary forms of spiritual communication implemented through audio and digital media platforms. The work highlights the particular features of organizing religious broadcasting under conditions of transformation of the information space, when traditional models of transmitting doctrine become integrated into new technological formats. Mechanisms of the formation of religious identity, ways of maintaining spiritual continuity, and strategies of interaction between religious institutions and their audiences are examined. An analysis is conducted of the structures that ensure access to spiritual content, including forms of catechetical communication, mentoring practices, and models of pastoral support …

Who Can We Trust When They Are Watching? Lessons From Communist Surveillance For Today's Hybrid And Authoritarian Realities: An Interview Series, Katharina Kunter

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article explores the intersection of trust, surveillance, and political instrumentalization in authoritarian and hybrid warfare contexts, drawing on interviews with four contemporary witnesses from the Cold War era: Paul Mojzes, Laurens Hogebrink, Renate Ellmenreich, and Markus Meckel. Their experiences—spanning communist surveillance in the GDR, ecumenical diplomacy, and Western peace activism—reveal enduring challenges for churches, activists, and scholars engaging with partners in authoritarian regimes.

An Interdisciplinary Approach To Understanding The Social Ministry Of The Orthodox Church Of Ukraine In The Context Of Christian Theology And Socio-Humanitarian Sciences, Rostyslav Didukh

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article presents a comprehensive interdisciplinary scientific and theological analysis of the social ministry of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) in the context of Christian theology and socio-humanitarian disciplines. Modern approaches of Orthodox theology to the social mission of Christianity ensure the integrity of the development of the human and society. The need to ensure the coherence of theological concepts of the Orthodox Church social teaching with the existing church and parish life, church educational mission, theological education, and social work is emphasized. Special attention is paid to the interdisciplinary connections of Orthodox theology, religious studies, psychology, pedagogy and …

Italian Missionary Activities In Georgia: Historical Legacy And Modern Inter-Religious Dialogue, Zaza Tsotniashvili

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the historical development, cultural contributions, and contemporary significance of Italian missionary activities in Georgia spanning seven centuries, from medieval Catholic presence through the traumatic Soviet period to the post-independence revival. Drawing upon Georgian, Italian, and Vatican archival sources, including the manuscripts of Arcangelo Lamberti, Cristoforo de Castelli, and Michel Tamarati, the study provides comprehensive analysis of Italian Catholic missionaries' multifaceted engagement with Georgian society. The research demonstrates that Italian missionaries, particularly members of the Theatine, Capuchin, and Augustinian orders, played roles extending far beyond religious evangelization, functioning as diplomatic intermediaries, medical practitioners, linguistic documentarians, ethnographic observers, and …

Occupational Identity & Career Preparation, Leah Shea Simpkins, Karen R. Puckett

Pedagogicon Conference Proceedings

Regardless of the profession, having occupational identity is highly important. Students are in need of preparing themselves for their future careers whilst in college. Having a career portfolio is a great tool for students to have upon graduation which showcases their occupational identities regarding future career preparedness.

Using Market Research To Teach Durable Skills, Zachary Miller, Justin R. Dodd

Pedagogicon Conference Proceedings

This paper is a case study on the use of a market research assignment to develop durable skills that directly transfer to professional environments. By engaging students in the development of a personal financial budget, the assignment provides a practical context for applying quantitative reasoning and critical thinking.

Exploring Faculty And Student Experiences With Languages: Building Durable Skills Through Multilingual Engagement, Ali Yaylali, Cui Zhang, Sara Rico-Godoy

Pedagogicon Conference Proceedings

This creative activity focuses on students’ and multilingual faculty members' real-life experiences navigating linguistic and cultural diversity. The informal dialogue across multiple undergraduate courses in a third space strengthens student learning by enhancing multiple durable skills such as intercultural communication, career readiness, and the understanding of different cultural backgrounds.

Durable Skill Development Through Creative Audio Projects: Student Podcasting, Meg Gravil, Jeff Reed

Pedagogicon Conference Proceedings

Students in two classes, one face-to-face and one asynchronous online, created podcasts to meet course objectives while engaging in durable skill development. Creating podcasts enabled students to navigate cultural, developmental, and familial differences through discussion with others. Student feedback on podcasting as a course assessment was reflective and positive.

Harnessing Ai For Medical Education: A Faculty Development Series For Pre-Clinical And Clinical Educators, April Hatcher, Tama The

Pedagogicon Conference Proceedings

This manuscript describes a faculty development series designed to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into medical education. Faculty participants discussed practical applications of AI, student perspectives on their use of AI, and innovative collaborative projects with local faculty. This short series was scaffolded as an introduction to AI for medical educators.