Education Commons^™

The National School Lunch Program: Local Implementation Of Federal Reform, Shannon Cagney

Professional Projects

This research study examined the National School Lunch Program and local implementation of federal reform in public and private schools in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. The survey participants were selected by the way of purposeful sampling; interviews were conducted over the telephone; and a 90-minute focus group was held. Major themes from the study consist of the need for well-balanced meals in schools, concern regarding childhood obesity, and barriers of local implementation of federal guidelines. Many advocates expressed their concern regarding the calorie restrictions, specifically to the 850 kcal maximum for physically active students. This study provides insight on how the …

Inspiring The Wonderment: Emotional Intelligence In Higher Education, Kurt H. Gering

Professional Projects

The purpose of this research was to shed insight on the degree to which instructor Emotional Intelligence (EI) may moderate the student/teacher relationship. Interviews were conducted to gather qualitative data on the experience of several students at a private university in the Midwest. The findings suggest that there appears to be a positive relationship between instructor EI and a positive academic experience by the student. Further research on this topic may indicate that institutions may also benefit from incorporating the tracking and evaluating of EI in their faculty body to enhance academic success student.

Number Sense Mediated By Mathematics Self-Concept In Impacting Middle School Mathematics Achievement, Lara K. Geronime

Dissertations (1934 -)

The purpose of the current study was to extend the research on number sense to the middle school level and to simultaneously consider socioemotional elements related to the construct at this developmental stage. Its genesis was initially rooted in an ongoing and dramatic emphasis by U.S. policymakers, researchers, and educators on improving mathematics achievement in order to compete globally in technology and innovation. Despite debates about optimal curriculum and instruction, tremendous support exists for the construct of number sense. However, middle school research examining the phenomena has been limited to intervention protocols targeting specific skillsets and better measurement of its …

Successful Schools For African American Children: A Case Study Of Franklin Elementary School, Staci Lynn Kimmons

Dissertations (1934 -)

The goal of this study was to contribute to a better understanding of what makes a successful school for African American children. Theresa Perry's (2010) Theory of Practice for African American School Achievement provided the framework for my study. Perry states that schools need to have two characteristics for African American students to be successful. First African American students must be members of a community of practice, which normalizes achievement. Second, schools must offer a broad range of supports that allow students to learn, to practice, and to receive reinforcement with regard to the behaviors and practices that are necessary …

Online Education: The Impact Of Economics And Politics On Teacher's Situationally Constrained Choice, Rhianan Elizabeth Smith

Dissertations (1934 -)

Online education has been increasing at an astounding rate, and advocates contend this trend will transform schooling as we know it. The current research has been centered on the student outcomes in online education. However, this myopic focus on outcomes underestimates the broader systemic factors that may be driving the implementation and everyday practices which impact student outcomes.

This study investigates the economic, political, and organizational factors that influence the situationally constrained choices of an online teacher. This study identifies the ways in which higher education budgets, policies, and technological resources impact what teachers do in the classroom while investigating …

An Anti-Bullying Program In Review, Jane M. Vega

Professional Projects

This project will focus on one parochial Catholic elementary (K4-8) school that implemented the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) over four years ago. This qualitative research examines the impact that support or lack of support had on the program outcomes. The study will provide research on the OBPP along with various, alternative anti-bullying programs, efficacy of the anti-bullying program, and review the school community awareness of the OBPP. The research participants are administrators, faculty, staff, parents and community’s members who directly affect the Olweus Bullying Prevention program.

Improving Creativity In Temporary Virtual Teams, Michael A. Zore

Professional Projects

We live in an interconnected world in which physical location has become less of a hindrance to communication, yet newer message transmission media alter not only the process but also the content of creative communication. While temporary virtual teams offer alternatives to solve issues which resist resolution using traditional approaches, virtual team characteristics can limit the ability to create novel and useful solutions. Since creativity is a necessary and significant requirement for success across a wide variety of domains, this poses a serious challenge for those intending to improve organizational creativity through the use of virtual teams and exposes the …

In Preparation For Creating A Servant Leadership Curriculum For Young Adults, David W. Flowers

Professional Projects

The critical essay seeks to establish a foundation for creating a servant leadership curriculum for high school and college students. The essay is divided into six sections. Section one, A Leadership Disconnect, contains a presentation of how our educational systems operate in support of prevailing leadership behaviors in a culture of global economic and social dysfunction. Section two, The Leadership We Have, contains an explanation of how current leadership constructs find their source in an archetypal transactional paradigm of competition and conflict. Section three, Re-thinking the Leadership Lessons Young People Receive, addresses how leadership lessons, messages and practices, in our …

Development Of The Self-Efficacy For Medication Adherence For Buprenorphine (Sema-B) Assessment, Matthew Krug

Dissertations (1934 -)

Each year in the United States, over 4 million people aged 12 or older are treated for substance use disorders, and a growing percentage of those being treated are suffering from opiate addiction. Research suggests that many variables should be considered in a biopsychosocial approach to treating substance use disorders, and especially when treating opiate addiction. Two of the variables that show a strong correlation with positive treatment outcomes are self-efficacy and medication adherence. Buprenorphine is a relatively new medication that has shown significant efficacy is treatment of opiate addiction. Successful treatment also requires appropriate adherence to taking buprenorphine as …

Applying Ajzen's Theory Of Planned Behavior To A Study Of Online Course Adoption In Public Relations Education, Ann Knabe

Dissertations (1934 -)

This study used Icek Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior to research public relations faculty intentions of teaching online. All of the main predictor variables (Subjective Norms, Attitude toward the Act and Perceived Behavioral Control) were statistically significant at varying degrees in predicting intent to teach public relations online. Of the three, Subjective Norms was found to be the strongest predictor of Intention. Collectively, Subjective Norms, Attitude toward the Act and Perceived Behavioral Control explained 49% of the variance in intent to teach a public relations course online. Subsequent tests, however, revealed a poor model fit when the Theory of Planned …

Black Faculty Perceptions Of Classroom Interactions With Students At A Predominantly White Institution, Robyn Clarke Ngwabi

Dissertations (1934 -)

Current research generally reveals the classroom experiences of black professors at predominantly white institutions (PWI) as largely negative, whether or not issues of race are featured prominently in course content. The literature on this overall topic is, however, sparse and no published research study exists involving the use of originally conducted fieldwork observations and interviews. Consequently, this exploratory case study uses an interpretive (qualitative), ethnographic fieldwork research approach to examine a black professor’s perceptions of her interactions with her students during instruction at a PWI. This study yielded eight overarching themes pointing to a generally negative perception of classroom interactions …

The Relationship Between Dispositional Attachment And Caregiving Styles, Values, And Prosocial Personality And Behavior, Robert Scott Dubois

Dissertations (1934 -)

A growing body of descriptive and experimental research evidence and theoretical analysis suggests that attachment security, an inner confidence or sense that one's self and others are reliably available, sensitive, responsive and effect sources of support through difficult times, may prompt compassionate thoughts, feelings, values and behavior consistent with the Golden Rule. The current research contributes to this important body of scientific research by positing, testing, and as appropriate revising a theoretically and empirically meaningful structural model that outlines justifiable direct and indirect paths through which dispositional attachment security, developmentally transmitted in part across and within generations by one's caregivers, …