Education Commons^™

Racial Microaggressions Of Indigenous Undergraduate Students In An Ecuadorian Higher Education Institution, Adriana Cundar Ruano

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although subtle, racial microaggressions have an impact on lives of people who endure hostilities by virtue of their race or ethnicity (Solórzano et al., 2000; Sue et al., 2007). Research on racial discrimination indicates that college campuses can be threatening environments especially for underrepresented students who constantly face elusive hostilities in their interactions with teachers, peers, and administrative (Allen, 2010; Helm, 2013; Nadal et al., 2014, Reid, 2017). The current mixed-methods study examined the most commonly experienced types of microaggressions affecting Indigenous undergraduate students while pursuing a bachelor’s degree in a public higher education institution in Ecuador, as well as …

Children's Creative Processes In Music Composition Through The Orff-Schulwerk Approach, Ashley Viera Espinal

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to explore the creative processes of elementary school students in music composition through the Orff-Schulwerk approach. Twenty-two 5th grade students and a music teacher with all three levels of the Orff-Schulwerk certification participated in the study. There were three main focal points that were investigated within a span of five-weeks: 1) children’s creativity in an Orff-based composition task, 2) children’s perceptions of their creative processes employed during the composition task, and 3) the teacher’s perceptions of teaching/learning music composition through the Orff-Schulwerk approach. Data were generated through observations, field notes, interviews with …

Representations Of A Good Citizen: A Genealogy Of Power And Critical Investigation Of Pictographs, 1937-1942, Joselyn Naranjo

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The study traced selected knowledge that influenced pictographs in social studies textbooks in the United States from 1937 through 1942. The qualitative study analyzed the messages in pictographs produced by Rudolf Modley’s business - Pictorial Statistics, Incorporated. The study interpreted the underlying ideological management within pictographs to present a method of analysis for future research on other visual educational material. Foucault’s (1980; 2003; Shiner, 1982) genealogy of power method addressed the different shifts in power and meaning making involved in communicating sociopolitical messages to the reader through pictographs while ideological management and governmentality informed Hsieh & Shannon’s (2005) directed content …

Investigating Educational Disparities In Belize: A Quantitative Study On The Impact Of Student-Level Sociocultural Factors On Academic Achievement Among High School Seniors Across Belize, Aisha Usher

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The idea that education is a fundamental human right is garnering increased support from the international community. Yet, there are children throughout the world who face impediments to access quality education, while others face no such hardships; this concept is described as “educational inequality” or “educational disparity.”

In Belize – a sparsely populated, English-speaking Caribbean country located in Central America – there have been reports of disparities in educational attainment along gender and ethnic lines; however, there has been little research focused on potential gaps in academic achievement, especially at the secondary level. The purpose of the present study was …

Teachers’ Use Of Standardized Assessments To Monitor Learning And Its Impact On Student Reading Achievement, Eilyn Sanabria

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Reading instruction must be “intentional, systematic, and explicit” and “implemented by a knowledgeable teacher” (Ruetzel & Cooter, 2019, p. 87). The era of accountability has brought standardized assessments to the forefront of reading instruction. However, gaps about assessment-related and instructional practices and their impact on student achievement exist in the literature. The present study aims to provide needed insights on how these practices help or hinder, specifically, historically low-performing students.

Using student achievement and teacher survey data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study: Kindergarten 2011 (ECLS-K), and through the lens of data use theory (Hutchins, 1995; Spillane, 2012), hierarchical multiple …

The Moderating Effects Of Neuroticism And Psychological Contract Incongruence On The Relationship Between Perceived Organizational Support, Perceived Supervisor Support, And Affective Commitment, Gail M. Hansen

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The nonexperimental study (N = 279) investigated the moderating effect of the trait neuroticism and psychological contract incongruence on perceptions about the organization, supervisor, and level of affective commitment. Using Qualtrics, a survey battery was administered to supervisors who had completed leadership training at a single institution of higher education located in southern Florida, USA.

The findings of the present study provided new insights into the neuroticism scale items, suggesting that depression might be a hidden factor in more than half of the population. Another finding demonstrated that few individuals attribute a psychological contract breach to an honest misunderstanding. …

A Proposed Social Cognitive Career Development Model For Adults With Intellectual Disabilities, Amanda M. Giust

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This non-experimental, correlational research tested a hypothesized employment model using the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) for individuals with ID who have completed high school in Miami, Florida, USA. The variables examined in the study were (a) environmental supports and barriers (e.g., family expectations, available community resources) (b) personal attributes (e.g., self-determination), (c) career behavior, and (d) the outcome of employment. Results of the logistic and hierarchical regression models demonstrated that the hypothesized model accounted for 22.3% of the variance in reported employment attainment. In both regression models, the personal attributes variable was statistically significant to employment outcome and the …

Providing Hope For Another Generation: The Effect Of Federal Pre-College Outreach Programs On Disadvantaged Students’ Educational Aspiration, College Preparedness, And College Access, Newsoul Deus

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION

PROVIDING HOPE FOR ANOTHER GENERATION:

THE EFFECT OF FEDERAL PRE-COLLEGE OUTREACH PROGRAMS ON DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS’ EDUCATIONAL ASPIRATION, COLLEGE PREPAREDNESS, AND COLLEGE ACCESS

by

Newsoul Deus

Florida International University, 2020

Miami, Florida

Professor Mido Chang, Major Professor

The United States has long been recognized as the land of opportunity. However, one of the major problems that plague the nation is the disparity in educational opportunities (Pfeffer & Hertel, 2015). It is crucial that all students—regardless of their race/ethnicity, family socioeconomic status, and geographic location—have an equal opportunity to higher education (Baker, Klasik, & Reardon, 2018). Unfortunately, students …

It Takes Two: A Basic Interpretive Study On The Role Of Intercultural Communication On Career Development, Rochelle T. Patten

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Organizations are encountering a more diverse workforce as the world experiences an increase in immigration and globalization. Some of these employees are immigrants from Caribbean islands such as the Bahamas, Barbados, and Jamaica. These employees speak English with an accent different from the American standard and oftentimes find themselves at a disadvantage when seeking career development opportunities. Current studies on intercultural communication tend to examine the Asian, European, and African American accent in relation to education, business, and career development. There are no studies that explore the role of intercultural communication, specifically the English-speaking Caribbean accent, on career development. The …

Measuring The Relationship Between Educational Administrators' And Teacher Leaders' Leadership Styles And School Culture, Kristina K. Garcia

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of my study was to examine the relationship between educational administrators’ and teacher leaders’ leadership styles, and school culture and sought to measure the correlation between the perceived leadership styles of formalized leaders and school culture. The theoretical framework of the study was derived from the Bass and Avolio (1985) Full Range Leadership Model describing the transactional to transformational leadership continuum.

Data for the study were collected using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5X Short Form), a survey containing 45 questions on a Likert type scale. The purpose of the survey is to examine the degree to which leadership …

We're Here, We Exist: An Exploration Of How Second-Generation Afro-Caribbean College Women Make Meaning Of Their Race, Ethnicity, And Gender, Emmanuela P. Stanislaus

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This case study was situated within Florida International University and explored how second-generation Afro-Caribbean college women make meaning of their race, ethnicity, and gender. This dissertation expands the existing scholarship on Black college students who have historically been presented as monolithic. Furthermore, my study illuminates how the race, ethnicity, and gender intersect to complicate the experiences of these women. Additionally, my research highlights how the surrounding community of a college campus impacts second-generation Afro-Caribbean college women’s ideas of belonging.

This study involved two semi-structured interviews with 9 undergraduate college women attending FIU. All women self-identified as second-generation Afro-Caribbean. This two-interview …

From Record Keepers To Decision Makers?: Perspectives Of University Registrars About Their Role In Higher Education, Miguel Sahagun

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of my study was to understand the experiences of university registrars, particularly their perspectives on their professional practice, development, and identity. Empirical research on university registrars is sparse at best. We do not know the real meaning of the position, how university registrars spend their time, and what is meaningful and gratifying about their role. There is not enough information on career paths that that they followed to become a university registrar. The lack of empirical studies about the true meaning of the evolving role is a problem needing study. My dissertation addresses the following singular research question: …

The Initial Development And Validation Of The Youth Gun Violence And Voice Survey: The Classroom Experience, Diana E. Santangelo

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Community violence surrounding children and youth affects a variety of developmental outcomes, including social-emotional, behavioral, physical, and cognitive domains. Adolescents who are exposed to continual community violence can respond with aggression, anxiety, behavioral issues, academic problems, and truancy. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a survey instrument that measures the youth perspective of the classroom experience following the loss of a schoolmate due to homicide by firearm. Youth perspectives challenge normative perspectives and can critique common policies and practices, and such findings can inform instruction and policy.

An exploratory sequential mixed methods research design was used …

Zine-Making As A Pedagogical Practice: A Phenomenographic Study Of Teachers’ Experiences, Diana Levy

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A zine (pronounced zeen) is a short, self-created and self-published booklet filled with a combination of writing, drawing, poetry, collage, and other text and images that create a message. Historically, zines have been associated with an underground, activist or radical literary subculture. Zines embody a breadth of literacies and have the potential to create critical readers, writers, and thinkers; however, minimal scholarly research exists on school zines. The purpose of the current study was to explore the experiences of educators using zine-making in elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. Phenomenographical analysis of nine, in-depth, semi-structured interviews revealed that participants described …

The Effects Of Continuous Video Prompting On Teaching Daily Living Skills To Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Enas Altaf

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade, there has been a trend of the growing prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnoses. Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects behavior, learning, and communication. Many with ASD emit problem behaviors that create challenges for learning in many areas of life, including the acquisition of daily living skills (DLS).

There have been numerous interventions developed to teach individuals with ASD; some interventions are aimed at reducing problem behaviors while others teach different skills, including DLS. Over the past ten years, video-based instruction (VBI) has proven useful to teach individuals with ASD. There are …

A Qualitative Study Of The Fpcu Student Experience And Outcomes After Graduation Within The South Florida Region, Tania Frederic Abouzeide

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to explore why students enroll in for-profit colleges, outline their student experiences and present their post-graduate outcomes of obtaining a degree (i.e., increased salary, career progression, etc.) from an FPCU. With the rise of for-profit colleges, issues arise such as questionable recruiting practices, dismal graduation rates, poor job placements and minimal income increase and high student loan default rates (Deming, Goldin, & Katz, 2013; Heller, 2011; Macqueen, 2011; Yeoman, 2011). The discourse surrounding for-profit colleges at times does not consider the FPCU graduate perspective – those affected most by the FPCU notoriety. In this qualitative study, I …

The Promise And (Im)Possibility Of The Debt-Free Student: A Qualitative Analysis, Michael W. Ward

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While debt is most commonly associated with financial liability, scholars have also started to consider other, non-financial ways debt can manifest. Financial debts require repayment in dollars, while non-financial debts might require ‘repayment’ not in money, but in feeling, conduct, attitude, or sense of obligation, for example. When more than the association of money is considered, it is possible to contemplate the other ways that debt, both financial and non-financial, might work to affect individual decision making across multiple temporalities. Much has been written about the foreclosing aspects of debt theoretically, but little empirical research has been conducted in this …

Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders At A Hispanic Serving Institution: A Qualitative Case Study Of Students’ Experiences, Stephen P. Loynaz

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study focuses on the experiences of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in higher education. It was important to conduct this study because of the rising numbers of students with ASD in higher education and the scant amount of research available about how to best serve them depending on their actual needs, not the perceived needs stated by experts based on research from K-12 student populations, or the perceived needs of these students stated by their parents or other service providers or faculty. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine students from a Hispanic-serving institution in the Southeast United …

The Experiences Of Underrepresented Faculty And Administrators: A Study Of Cultural Taxation, Katrina N. Amie

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cultural taxation is a term used by some to describe the additional work required of faculty of color as representatives of their racial or ethnic groups. Padilla (1994) defines cultural taxation as “situations that are imposed [on faculty]... by the administration.” Many prior studies about cultural taxation focus on the experiences of faculty of color at predominately White institutions and understanding of this phenomenon is heavily aligned with those spaces and circumstances. While much of the literature presents the additional workload for underrepresented faculty as damaging (Hirshfield & Joseph, 2011; Pololi et al., 2010; Hassouneh et al., 2014; Mahoney et …

A Qualitative Study Examining Camaraderie And Conflict Between Female Academic Advisors In One Higher Education Institution, Alexandra C. Lejarza

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Women in higher education face several challenges including visibility, chilly work climates, and barriers to leadership positions. Research on women in academia has focused on faculty and leadership and less on the female staff working service jobs, such as the role of the academic advisor. This interpretive qualitative study uses one-on-one interviews with eight full-time, female academic advisors working in a single, public, 4-year university.

The interviews revealed the experiences of women working in this role, explored their intradepartmental climates, their career aspirations, and the interactions they have with their female coworkers. The objective of the study was to take …

Examining The Effects Of Familial Occupations And Early Stem Experiences On Female Students' Stem Identity And Career Intentions, Susie M. Cohen

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The studies within this collected papers dissertation investigate the effects of familial occupations and early experiences in STEM on female students’ STEM identity and career intentions. The salience of this topic originates from the underrepresentation of women in STEM related occupations within the United States, and the urgent need to develop a diverse STEM workforce that can excel in a global environment.

The studies are guided by a variety of theoretical frameworks including STEM capital, STEM identity, and STEM identity capital. These frameworks provide lenses to examine familial occupations and early STEM experiences as contributors of STEM capital which serve …

Understanding L2 Learners' Writing Needs And Attitudes In Eap Writing Contexts, Renata Pavanelli Pereira

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to conduct a needs analysis in order to identify the real-world writing tasks that diverse English for Academic Purposes (EAP) learners are required to perform in academic contexts. The study initially uncovered the culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds of EAP learners across three Southeastern state colleges. The study then identified the writing tasks that were being completed in an advanced EAP composition course. Furthermore, the study explored the writing needs of EAP learners with a focus on the participants’ experiences and attitudes about the writing tasks they performed in the composition course. Finally, an …

An Examination Of Motivation And Teacher Identity In Minority High School Students Enrolled In A Career And Technical Education Teacher Preparation Program, Elizabeth M. Aguila

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative research describes the measures of motivating factors, through a social learning lens, that empower minority high school students in a CTE program to develop a teacher identity through time in clinical teaching practice. This quasi-experimental study found interactions between student motivation, teacher identity, and student achievement through an early clinical practice intervention used in SCHOOL A ECE 1. A comparison group, SCHOOL B ECE 2, was used to measure any effect of a community of practice framework on these factors. The present study also used a non-teacher education program, SCHOOL A BIO 1 to measure if motivation and …

Elementary School Children's Perspective Of Interactive Activities In English Class In China, Yaqing Yu

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Much research regarding implementation of interactive English activities in Chinese elementary schools has been conducted. Missing, however, are studies from children’s perspectives. To garner an initial look into young Chinese students’ perspectives regarding English learning, a 41-question survey was conducted to investigate their perceptions of interactive activities. Sixty-seven participants (30 boys and 37 girls) between ages nine and twelve were included. Results showed that 88% of these students want interactive activities because they can learn happily, and 79% reported that the interactive activity help improve their test scores. Indeed, most students agreed that interactive activities enhance relationships among students, teachers, …

Teachers In Action: A Phenomenographical Study On Mathematics Teacher Agency, Indira Gil

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teacher agency plays a critical role in determining teachers’ identities and decision-making abilities. It is also key in developing teachers’ sense of purpose, which leads to forming school environments where teachers are happy and thriving. However, teacher agency has not been researched in depth. Exploring teacher agency is essential in understanding how to create spaces where teachers feel comfortable and eager to share their personal skill sets. In this qualitative study, phenomenography was employed to detect and describe variations in mathematics teachers’ experiences of agency. This study investigates teacher agency by analyzing the experiences of 14 mathematics teachers teaching in …