Education Commons^™

Which Study Method Works Best? A Comparison Of Soar And Sq3r For Text Learning, Sarah C. Kasson

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

One hundred thirty-eight college students participated in a study comparing the SOAR (Select, Organize, Association, Regulate) and SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review) study systems to each other and to students’ preferred study methods. Though both systems have been researched independently, just one other study has compared these study systems to each other. College students were assigned randomly to one cell of a 2x2 factorial design (method: SOAR or SQ3R; material: supplement or no supplement) or to a preferred-study-method control group. Groups were trained in their respective system (SOAR, SQ3R, or control) and then given materials about educational measurement to …

Incorporating Latent Variable Outcomes In Value-Added Assessment: An Evaluation Of Univariate And Multivariate Measurement Model Structures, Leslie H. Shaw

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to systematically evaluate the degree to which univariate and multivariate measurement model structures were related to value-added model parameters, teacher estimates, and rankings. Most value-added assessment methods use a single test score to estimate teacher effects, but reliance on a single test score assumes that scores are an error-free approximation of the latent construct of academic achievement. The unique contribution of this study was the systematic evaluation of both univariate and multivariate measurement model structures in a particular value-added model to examine the utility of incorporating latent variable approaches within a traditional value-added framework. …

Gaining Insight Into Hispanic Students’ Postsecondary Plans, Neel A. Brown

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

While the growth of the Hispanic population in the United States is outpacing other ethnicities, college enrollment and graduation rates of Hispanic students continue to lag behind other groups. This longitudinal, qualitative case study explored when, how, and why a sample of Hispanic high school seniors at a large high school in North Central Texas made decisions regarding their postsecondary educational and career choices.

The foundation of this research relied on a series of 39 individual interviews with 13 Hispanic high school students over the course of their 2012 senior year. Analysis of the data uncovered themes regarding family influence, …

Development And Initial Validation Of A Measure Of Attributions For Writing Success And Failure, Mingying Zheng

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this study was to develop and provide initial validation of an instrument to measure writing attributional style among college students, the Attributional Style Questionnaire for Writing (ASQ-W). A sample of 133 college students from a Midwestern university participated in the current study. A qualitative and quantitative mixed method study was conducted to report the perceived causes for writing success and failure and examine the internal consistency, discriminant validity, and predictive validity of the measure. Two other surveys— Liking Writing Scale (LWS) and Self-Efficacy for Writing Scale (SEWS)—also were administered to provide preliminary information on validity for the …

The Impact Of Distractor Duration On Spatial Working Memory In Early Childhood, Brian Keiser

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Spatial attention appears to act as a rehearsal mechanism in spatial working memory (Awh, 1999; Awh & Jonides, 2001) as adults have trouble maintaining spatial information in their mind when required to shift their attention to locations unrelated to the to-be-retained location. Futhermore, adults increase intentional directed attention to the to-be remembered location when warned ahead of time that distractors will be present during the memory delay (Awh, 2003). Our initial study looked at the presence of a distractor and its impacts on spatial working memory in children. We found that the distractor did impact three and six year old …

The Relation Between High-Quality Prekindergarten Classroom Environments And Literacy Outcomes For Students Learning English As A Second Language, Allison Q. Osborn

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

U. S. students’ early English literacy skills are critical for their later reading and subsequent school success (e.g., Badian, 2000; Collins, 2010; Molfese et al., 2001; Storch & Whitehurst, 2002). Children’s literacy skills are stronger when they attend high-quality prekindergarten classrooms, especially classrooms with strong instructional supports (Hamre & Pianta, 2005). Moreover, some research has suggested that students who enter school with the weakest skills and with higher risk of academic difficulty (including students who speak English as a second language) benefit the most from high-quality instruction and interactions in early literacy and reading (Connor, Morrison, & Petrella, 2004; Downer …

Comparison Of Maximum Likelihood, Bayesian, Partial Least Squares, And Generalized Structured Component Analysis Methods For Estimation Of Structural Equation Models With Small Samples: An Exploratory Study, Frances L. Chumney

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Structural equation modeling (SEM) is a common analytic approach for dealing with complex systems of information. Despite its power and flexibility (Zhu, Walter, Rosenbaum, Russell, & Raina, 2006), traditional SEM methods require large samples in general, and even larger samples for estimating complex models. For educational researchers, large samples are often difficult and even impossible to obtain.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the performance of traditional (i.e., maximum likelihood) and non-traditional (i.e., Bayesian estimation, partial least squares, generalized structured component analysis) methods of estimation available to modern researchers for estimating structural equation models. Specifically, this research …

The Elephant (Or Donkey) In The Room: Political Ideology And News Comprehension, Matthew T. Mehrhoff

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This paper looks at the influence of ideological schemas on comprehension of news articles. Schema theory pervades psychological explanations for conceptualizing and comprehending the world. While schemas, or mental organizational structures, are essential for comprehending information, they can also be misapplied, leading to a variety of errors in understanding, with particular application in comprehension of political concepts and the news. This paper looks to at how level of congruence between the political ideology of the individual and the tone of a news article affect comprehension levels. Undergraduate students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln took a reading comprehension task for two …

Randomized Trial Of A Broad Preventive Intervention For Mexican American Adolescents, Nancy A. Gonzales, L. E. Dumka, R. E. Millsap, A. Gottschall, D. B. Mcclain, J. J. Wong, M. German, A. M. Mauricio, Lorey A. Wheeler, F. D. Carpentier, S. Y. Kim

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Objective—This randomized trial of a family-focused preventive intervention for Mexican American (MA) adolescents evaluated intervention effects on adolescent substance use, internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and school discipline and grade records in 8th grade, one year after completion of the intervention. The study also examined hypothesized mediators and moderators of intervention effects. Method—Stratified by language of program delivery (English vs. Spanish), the trial included a sample of 516 MA adolescents (50.8% female; M =12.3 years, SD=.54) and at least one caregiver that were randomized to receive a low dosage control group workshop or the 9-week group intervention that included …

Mexican-Origin Youth's Cultural Orientations And Adjustment: Changes From Early To Late Adolescence, Kimberly A. Updegraff, Adriana J. Umana-Taylor, Susan M. Mchale, Lorey A. Wheeler, Norma Perez-Brena

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Drawing from developmental and cultural adaptation perspectives and using a longitudinal design, this study examined: (a) mean-level changes in Mexican-origin adolescents’ cultural orientations and adjustment from early to late adolescence; and (b) bidirectional associations between cultural orientations and adjustment using a cross-lag panel model. Participants included 246 Mexicanorigin, predominantly immigrant families that participated in home interviews and a series of nightly phone calls when target adolescents were 12 years and 18 years of age. Girls exhibited more pronounced declines in traditional gender role attitudes than did boys, and all youth declined in familism values, time spent with family, and involvement …

Bullying, Eve Brank, Lori Hoetger, Katherine Hazen

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The effects of bullying on the bully and the victim can be wide reaching, impacting schoolwork, familial and peer relationships, psychological well-being, and physical health. As such, schools work to implement different intervention and prevention programs. Additionally, a variety of both criminal and civil legal interventions have recently been used to prevent or punish bullying. Most US states have enacted antibullying legislation that prohibits bullying behaviors, but definitional issues that are present in the empirical research are also present in such statutes. For instance, some states focus only on physical forms of bullying or leave definitions entirely up to individual …