Education Commons^™

Enhancing Self-Monitoring With Differential Negative Reinforcement Of Alternative Behavior For Increasing Students’ Writing Production, Meghann Torchia

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

Writing is a difficult task for many students who find it aversive, and who attempt to escape the task. Self-monitoring and differential negative reinforcement of alternative behavior (DNRA) are two approaches that have been shown to improve quantity of performance, but no studies were found that combined the two methods to determine whether they are more effective in combination than in isolation. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using DNRA to enhance self-monitoring for increasing writing productivity using a multiple probe, across participants, design. Number of words and number of sentences were measured. For …

Understanding Preservice Teachers' Spatial Reasoning And How It Affects Their Work With Elementary Students, Michelle R. Metzger,

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

Spatial reasoning involves those skills that allow one to mentally picture and manipulate objects which plays a unique role in learning and succeeding in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields (STEM). Despite the urgent need for strong spatial reasoning skills, our current education system spends little time fostering elementary students’ visual and spatial reasoning skills. This is becoming increasingly problematic as the need to become literate in the STEM fields has never been greater.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the spatial reasoning skills that preservice teachers demonstrated and how their spatial reasoning skills were used in …

Least Prompts Approach For Improving Reading Comprehension Of Students With Intellectual Disabilities, Marisa M. Hoins

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

In this study, the researcher employed a least prompts intervention to improve listening comprehension responses for three participants with intellectual disabilities (ID). All participants were required to (a) be diagnosed with a moderate ID or have a medical diagnosis of a disability typically co-occurring with ID (e.g., Downs Syndrome), (b) be in grades one to seven, (c) communicate orally, and (d) have normal hearing and vision. In addition, all participants expressed choices through orally responding yes/no or by pointing to a response board. The researcher used a multiple baseline design across three participants to determine if there was a functional …

Speech-Language Pathologists' Assessment And Treatment Of Dementia: A Mixed Methods Study, Alyssa Mount

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

The intent of this research was to investigate how speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are assessing and treating people with dementia (PWD). To examine this the researcher first completed a literature review to determine prominent evaluation and treatment procedures for dementia. Then the researcher set out to identify whether there was a gap between the external evidence found in the literature and the practice patterns of SLPs, and subsequently attempt to delineate potential reasons for the differences.

Using a mixed-method design, the researcher conducted 10 phone interviews and 114 SLPs participated in an online survey. The researcher engaged in grounded theory coding …

Using Self-Regulation To Predict Preschoolers' Symptomology Of Disruptive Behavior Disorders, Andrew White

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

The use of brief rating forms completed by caregivers to identify children at-risk for developing behavioral disorders is common (Lane et al., 2009). However, identifying a behavioral measure assessing child-level variables (i.e., temperamental traits) which predict later behavioral concerns has potential to improve universal screening practices in the context of a multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) framework. Self-regulation (Rothbart & Bates, 2006) is a trait that is related to externalizing problem behaviors (e.g., Espy et al., 2011), and may be useful as a means to predict young children at risk for developing behavioral disorders. The purpose of this study is …

The Job Interview Self-Presentation Tendencies And Experiences Of Latina Undergraduate Students, Nichole Shada

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

In the United States, self-promotion during a job interview is not just common, it is expected (Paulhus, Westlake, Calvez, & Harms, 2013). Job applicants are encouraged to inform potential employers about the qualifications, strengths, and professional accomplishments that make them the best fit for the job, which requires applicants to engage in self-promotion during the job interview. Literature has begun to suggest that sociocultural factors such as gender or culture may influence an individual’s propensity to engage in modesty as opposed to self-promotion in career-related contexts like the job interview. However, few studies have explored how these sociocultural factors interact …

Examining The Coping Resources Of Polyvictimized Youth And Young Adults, Zachary Robert Myers

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

Bullying represents a significant concern for many youth and young adults in the United States and abroad. However, the growth of technology has allowed for new platforms in which perpetrators can engage in bullying behaviors, such as text and video messaging, social media applications, and online gaming. In addition, research has suggested that the majority of cyberbullied individuals experience co-occurring in-person victimization as well. These trends are concerning, given that findings within both the traditional and cyberbullying literatures place victimized youth at-risk for a host of social and emotional concerns. However, research has yet to fully explore the unique experiences …

The Trail Of Courage: A Mini-Ethnographic Case Study Exploring The Feasibility And Acceptability Of Integrated Equine-Assisted Therapy (Ieat) On Yazidi Adolescent Girl Wellbeing, Kari F. Eller

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

In 2018, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Nadia Murad, a Yazidi woman who captured the attention of the world with her story of survival from the combatant and abusive hands of ISIS. Murad used her voice to speak out against wartime sexual assault and in doing so, has supported the wellbeing of women and girls around the world. A Goodwill Ambassador, her example and work has visibilized their trail of courage and lifted up the importance of work to support their wellbeing. This research, in albeit a very small way, seeks to follow Murad’s path. Though literature abounds …

Student Perceptions Of Bullying Victimization: Associations With Student Engagement And Teacher Support, Allen Garcia

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

Bullying is a serious, complex problem that affects school-aged youth. Years of research on bullying has provided evidence that bullying victimization is linked with adverse outcomes for youth; however, researchers have yet to fully investigate how bullying victimization and maladjustment is associated with student engagement, and whether teacher support is a protective factor for victimized youth. A social-ecological perspective was used to guide the study given that a person’s bullying behaviors are related and interconnected to a network of systems and relationships in their environment.The purpose of the study was to investigate middle school students’ perspectives on bullying victimization (i.e., …

Alcohol Expectancies Among Students In The City Of Pokhara, Nepal, Niran Tamrakar

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

Alcohol plays a vital role in various aspects of Nepalese society. It also presents public health risks. Though adolescents in Nepal are at high risk for negative consequences from alcohol use, there is limited information available on their alcohol behaviors and beliefs. The present study aims to describe alcohol expectancies among a sample of secondary students in Nepal to identify and understand motivations underlying their alcohol-related behaviors. A self-report survey was administered to 591 students from different Englishmedium schools in the city of Pokhara. This study began with the Chinese Adolescent Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire (CAAEQ), then used qualitative methods to …

Evaluation Of The Feasibility Of A Two-Method Measurement Design For The Assessment Of Healthy Physical Activity Behavior In Youth, Amelia A. Miramonti

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

Purpose: Assess the reliability and validity of self- and parent-report survey responses regarding physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviors, and PA self-efficacy and determine if these data can be combined with objective physical activity monitor data to model the latent construct healthy physical activity behavior (HPAB).

Methods: 126 underserved 4^th-5^th grade students participated in a 12-week after-school nutrition, cooking, and physical activity program (WeCook: Fun with Food and Fitness). Participants and parents (n=103) completed surveys pre- and post-program and participants wore PA monitors for one week at PRE and POST. Unidimensionality and internal consistency reliability were …

Using Bayesian Multilevel Models To Control For Multiplicity Among Means, Michael J. Zweifel

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

It is well known that the Type I error rate will exceed α when multiple hypothesis tests are conducted simultaneously. This is known as Type I error inflation. The probability of committing a Type I error grows monotonically as the number as the number of hypothesis being tested increases. A class of methods, known as multiple comparison procedures, has been developed to combat this issue. However, in turn for maintaining the Type I error rate below α, multiple comparison procedures sacrifice power to correctly reject false hypotheses. The loss of power is exacerbated when variance heterogeneity is present.

In …

Blended Learning: Use Of Demonstration Videos In An Undergraduate Food Preparation Lab, Lauren Elizabeth Rathman

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

Technology is rapidly advancing and changing how education is delivered. Blended learning, an emerging teaching style in flipped classrooms, incorporates technology in the form of online supplemental materials accessible to students prior to attending a traditional class. Incorporating technology into the learning process has been proposed as an effective way to meet the educational needs of the iGeneration. This study investigated the effect of online demonstration videos on learning scientific concepts in NUTR 245 Scientific Principles of Food Preparation Lab. The second lab section, (experimental group) received the intervention, online videos, before completing pre-lab quizzes, lab assignments and lab reports, …

Depression Among Chinese Lbc: Understanding Depression In Context Of A Family-Oriented Culture, Lanyan Ding

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

Background: Left-Behind Children (LBC) refers to children who are under 18 and must live separately from at least one of their parents for longer than six months because of parents’ labor migration (Zhou & Duan, 2006). The long-term family separation might greatly impair the family environment and increase the risk of developing depression among LBC. This research examined the relationships among family structure (left-behind status), caregiving, and child depression using archival data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses.

Methods: In Study 1, multilevel regression analyses investigated how contextual factors (family structure …

Cultural Self-Identification Among Extension Educators' And Cultural Competence In Cooperative Extension, Ruddy Y. Benavides

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

As immigration and globalization are increasing, the number of people in our country who speak more than one language is also increasing (Center for Public Education, 2012). These trends are creating needs for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students and families in schools, specifically, the need for culturally responsive pedagogy and culturally competent teachers. In addition to formal educational contexts, non-formal educational contexts such as Cooperative Extension need to adapt to cultural changes as well. The purpose of this study was to explore the personal beliefs and professional experiences of present Extension Educators (EEs), and the techniques they practice in …

The Effects Of Active Learning Technology On Instructors’ Practices And Students’ Engagement And Grades: A Mixed Methods Study, Jeremy C. Van Hof

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

Partly in response to university teachers’ changing pedagogies marked by flipping instruction, lecture capture technologies are evolving into active learning systems. Little published research exists on the effects of active learning technology on either teachers or students. This two-phase sequential explanatory mixed methods study details the effects that active learning systems have on instructor practices and on student grades and engagement. Phase one combined quantitative data collection with instructor interviews. Phase one findings show higher student engagement levels correlate with the use of the active learning system only in the presence of very specific, flipped classroom practices. Phase two, a …

Principals’ Perspectives On The Roles And Skills Of School Psychologists, Jill Mccaslin-Timmons

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

Despite decades of literature on how school psychologists could be utilized to better meet needs in school, the way a school psychologist is used still varies and schools still admit that they have unmet needs. Teachers and administrators ask for more staff to help support student needs while taxpayers want to know why more staff are needed. The purpose of this study was to develop an understanding of principal perspectives on the roles and skills of school psychologists in order to better understand why roles vary, what barriers exist and what can be done to help both school psychologists and …

A Study Of Life Skills From Traditional And Afterschool 4-H Participants, Julia M. Kreikemeier

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

Cooperative Extension has been serving youth and their families for over one hundred years. The total impact of this service has been measured on several occasions by many researchers, most notably in the research of youth development by Dr. Richard Learner; however, his research only took into account those who participated in traditional 4-H clubs. The purpose of this quantitative study was designed to examine which life skills youth participants in traditional and afterschool 4-H programs reported. Quantitative methodology was used to collect post-program survey data of youth participants. Qualitative informal interviews were conducted of Extension Educators and afterschool 4-H …

Parenting Profiles: Using A Person-Centered Approach To Examine Patterns Of Parenting In Early Head Start Parents, Jan Esteraich

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

The current study examined grouping patterns of parenting indicators in a low income-sample, using a person-oriented approach. Data were utilized from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project (EHSREP; 1996-2010). A subset of the data that included parent interviews and video-taped parent-child observations when child was 36 months old, was examined (n=2,121). Four parent behavior indicators and two context indicators were selected to define the profile groupings: parent supportiveness, frequency of shared bookreading, parent-child activities; type of discipline; parent distress and family conflict. These six indicators were examined using latent profile analysis. Four distinct parenting profiles emerged: supportive, engaged …

Perceptions Of Positive Youth Development Experiences Related To Rural Hispanic Youth Academic Success, Jill A. Goedeken

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

Understanding the struggles rural Hispanic youth face academically, learning more about their perceptions of positive youth development experiences relating to their academic success connects the essence of the two experiences. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore rural Hispanic youths’ perceptions of positive youth development experiences as they relate to their academic success. The phenomenological design was chosen to explore the essence of the shared experiences of positive youth development experiences among rural Hispanic youth in the Columbus, Nebraska, community. To understand a possible perceived connection between positive youth development experiences to academic success, 28 Hispanic youth from …

A Qualitative Study Of Nebraska Sixpence Program Directors' Experiences And Perceptions, Katherine E. Hauptman

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

In Nebraska more than one-third of infants and toddlers live in conditions that are not conducive to early learning, putting them at-risk of failing in school and in life. By age four impoverished children are behind their peers by an average of 18 months. Sixpence Early Learning Fund works to ensure that children who are identified as at-risk in Nebraska are given the most optimal beginnings, preparing them for success throughout their lives. Currently, Sixpence is supporting thirteen programs across eleven school districts in Nebraska. Early childhood educators fulfill an important role that deserves increased recognition. Leadership in regards to …

Student And Faculty Perceptions Of Technology’S Usefulness In Community College General Education Courses, William L. Moseley

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

Educational institutions of all levels invest large amounts of time and resources into instructional technology, with the goal of enhancing the educational effectiveness of the learning environment. The decisions made by instructors and institutions regarding the implementation of technology are guided by perceptions of usefulness held by those who are in control. The primary objective of this mixed methods study was to examine the student and faculty perceptions of technology being used in general education courses at a community college. This study builds upon and challenges the assertions of writers such as Prensky (2001a, 2001b) and Tapscott (1998) who claim …

The Process Of General Education Reform From A Faculty Perspective At A Research-Extensive University: A Grounded Theory Approach, Frauke Hachtmann

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

The purpose of this study was to develop a theory for institutional change that explains the process and implementation of “Achievement-Centered Education” (ACE) from the faculty perspective. ACE is a new general education program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a public, doctoral/research-extensive institution. A constant comparative method was used to study the process of change retrospectively after a new, outcomes-based program was developed and implemented. Twenty-nine faculty from eight undergraduate colleges participated in this study through in-depth interviews. This study resulted in a theory of the process and implementation of general education reform at a public, doctoral/research-extensive university from the …

Exploring And Explaining Weight Changes In First Semester Freshmen College Students: Relationship To Enrollment In A Wellness Course And Other Variables Using A Mixed Method Design, Janice L. Jewett

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

The purpose of this study was to examine and explain causes of body weight changes in first-semester freshmen. A mixed method design was used to conduct an experimental component, search for statistical relationships among variables, and explore and further explain the findings related to body weight changes.

The quantitative results revealed that there was no significant difference in change in body weight between the experimental and control group. Major findings in the quantitative analysis were that freshman males are gaining more weight than freshman females during their first semester in college. Drinking contributes to this weight gain. In addition, feeling …

A Study Of Chief Academic Officer Perceptions Of Professional Development In The Emerging Louisiana Community And Technical College System, Barbara Rumohr Jones

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

This qualitative multi-site case study was conducted to investigate current practices, experiences, support, and perceptions as expressed by Chief Academic Officers (CAO) concerning professional development in the seven Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) community colleges. Criterion sampling was used to select the participants for the questionnaire and interview based on their knowledge of and responsibility for professional development. The participants for the questionnaire were the CAOs at the seven LCTCS community colleges. The participants for the interviews were the CAOs, other key personnel identified by the CAOs, and the President of the LCTCS.

Data were collected through the …

Attention Effects On Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions With Contralateral Speech Stimuli, Genaya Kae Timpe

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

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of attending to a speech stimulus on the amplitude of the distortion product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE). The distortion product otoacoustic emission is a measurement of the activity of the inner ear, specifically the outer hair cells in the ear. The activity of the outer hair cells depends upon the auditory nervous system; when it is stimulated, the outer hair cell activity is modified. Normal outer hair cells will create a large DPOAE amplitude. When a stimulus is presented to the opposite ear, the auditory nervous system acts upon the …

The Rediscovery Of Grounded Theory: Strategies For Qualitative Research In Adult Education, Wayne A. Babchuk

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

Grounded theory is becoming an increasingly popular research methodology for use in adult education and other forms of educational inquiry, yet there is currently considerable disagreement among its co-founders concerning the implementation of this approach. Reflective of this ambiguity and to further confuse matters for the potential grounded theorist, educators who have used this methodology in the field often operationalize grounded theory’s procedures and practices according to their own interpretations and contextualiy-specific research needs. Moreover, these analysts often do not thoroughly document the specifics of their research, often failing to provide information concerning the methodological decisions they surely must have …