Education Commons^™

Efl Teachers’ Preparation And Beliefs In Niger, Peter Wiens, Bong Gee Jang, Katrina Liu, Billa Anassour, April Smith

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

Niger is a French-speaking country with a history of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in its middle and high schools. The teachers providing instruction in these programs have been trained in different ways including university-based programs, out of country programs, or no training at all. This study sought to examine the beliefs of Nigerien EFL teachers and analyze the relationship between their beliefs and their training. All EFL teachers in Niger were surveyed to understand their beliefs related to teaching. We found that training was related to teacher beliefs. As Niger determines how best to allocate its limited …

Higher Education Reform: A Time For Action, The Lincy Institute

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

The Lincy Institute has been at the forefront of research and analysis on higher education governance reform in Nevada. Following numerous statewide studies, The Lincy Institute has produced reports and policy briefs recommending significant structural changes to the State’s higher education landscape. To provide future generations of students with quality education and training in our 21st-century economy, researchers summarized findings and presented model legislation to improve the quality of education offered by Nevada’s eight institutions of higher learning. All Nevadans should demand an honest and transparent discussion of higher education reform. The 2019 legislative session will be a time for …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2018, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge. The senior design competition helps focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on …

The Growing Need For Diverse Teachers In The Mountain West, Michael Hansen, Diana Quintero

Brookings Mountain West Publications

This policy brief examines the racial and ethnic diversity of the public teacher workforce in five Mountain West states, drawing on survey data from 1993 to 2016. We find increases in student diversity are generally outpacing teacher diversity in the region, though important differences in teacher-student parity and access to nonwhite teachers across states are also evident. In addition, we demonstrate the recruitment and retention of nonwhite teachers in these states lag considerably behind the rest of the U.S. This brief concludes with recommendations to help Mountain West states and districts promote greater racial and ethnic diversity among their teacher …

Research Mentoring And Scientist Identity: Insights From Undergraduates And Their Mentors, Rachael D. Robnett, Paul A. Nelson, Eileen L. Zurbriggen, Faye J. Crosby, Martin M. Chemers

Psychology Faculty Research

Background Mentored research apprenticeships are a common feature of academic outreach programs that aim to promote diversity in science fields. The current study tests for links between three forms of mentoring (instrumental, socioemotional, and negative) and the degree to which undergraduates psychologically identify with science. Participants were 66 undergraduate-mentor dyads who worked together in a research apprenticeship. The undergraduate sample was predominantly composed of women, first-generation college students, and members of ethnic groups that are historically underrepresented in science. Results Findings illustrated that undergraduates who reported receiving more instrumental and socioemotional mentoring were higher in scientist identity. Further, mentors who …

Evaluation Of Innovative Medical School Facilities And Consultant Recommendations, Tripp Umbach

Lincy Institute Reports and Briefs

In August 2018, The Lincy Institute1 retained Tripp Umbach2 to provide consultation to evaluate and identify best practices for medical school facilities and development models as the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) and the community embarks on the development of a home for the UNLV School of Medicine. To complete this assignment, Tripp Umbach completed a comprehensive process involving secondary data analysis and actively sought and received input from stakeholders including leadership at The Lincy Institute, UNLV School of Medicine, previous Tripp Umbach clients, leading design professionals with experience developing medical schools, and potential donors to the proposed project. …

Giving Matters: Donors Making A Difference, Unlv Foundation

Giving Matters

No abstract provided.

Police Blotter, Unlv Department Of Police Services

Police Blotter

No abstract provided.

Changes In Beliefs Towards Children, Personality, And Future Social Studies Teachers: An Analysis Of Survey Data, Peter D. Wiens

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

For many years, teacher education has focused on the centrality of the learner in the educational process. This study examined how preservice teachers’ beliefs regarding children changed over the course of a teacher education program. It also examined the role of personality indicators in that change. Preservice social studies teachers were administered surveys in each year of a teacher education program to assess participants’ beliefs towards children and their personality type. Participants’ beliefs about children became more child-centered and personality type was a predictor of these beliefs.

Perceived Walkability, Social Capital, And Self-Reported Physical Activity In Las Vegas College Students, Melissa Bartshe, Courtney Coughenour, Jennifer Pharr

Public Health Faculty Publications

College students are an understudied, vulnerable population, whose inactivity rates exceed those reported by U.S. adults. Walkability in sprawling cities, such as Las Vegas, is challenged due to automobile-oriented development. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between perceived neighborhood walkability, social capital, and meeting physical activity recommendations among University of Nevada-Las Vegas college students. Of the 410 participants, 42.2% met physical activity recommendations, 77.1% were female, 37.3% were white, and 79.5% owned a vehicle. Logistic regression showed that social capital (odds ratio (OR) = 1.25, p = 0.04) and gender... (see full text for full abstract

Education, Not Restriction, Is Key To Reducing Harm From Offshore Gambling, Sally Gainsbury, Alex Blaszczynski, Brett Abarbanel

College of Hospitality Faculty Research

Australian internet gambling policies have been refined and prohibitions on illegal gambling sites clarified in recent years. These offshore sites not only pose potential harm to consumers in the form of fraudulent and deceptive dealings, but also have long-term consequences through reducing the tax dollars generated by the licensed market. Our research takes a closer look at why gamblers use offshore sites, and the implications of this for policymaking.

Police Blotter, Unlv Department Of Police Services

Police Blotter

No abstract provided.

Testing Future Teachers: A Quantitative Exploration Of Factors Impacting The Information Literacy Of Teacher Education Students, Samantha Godbey

Library Faculty Publications

This study assesses the information literacy skills of a sample of undergraduate teacher education students, as measured by the iSkills assessment, and aims to determine student demographic and academic characteristics that may predict success on this assessment. The study repeats the methodology of a study of first-year students at the same institution two years before in order to provide insight into the information literacy proficiency of future teachers. Using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, transfer credits were found to be a statistically significant predictor of higher iSkills performance. Results are also discussed in the context of the recent adoption of the …

Assessment Of A Peer Mentoring Program To Build Capacity For Course Development And Delivery, Steven J. Burian, Mercedes Ward, Sajjad Ahmad, David Lawrence Stevenson, Tariq Banuri, Muhammad Aslam Chaudhry, Rasool Bux Mahar, Jeffery D. Ullman

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

Building capacity in higher education in under-developed countries is critical for meeting many of the local development objectives. There have been numerous approaches to improve the abilities of professors to develop and deliver courses. Structured independent learning using published resources (e.g., books, online), workshops, seminars, and mentoring are among the most common. This paper describes a peer mentoring program to build capacity of professors in Pakistan teaching water resources and environmental engineering courses. The program is delivered remotely using an online learning management system, Canvas. The peer mentoring is conducted at weekly intervals with the structured learning facilitated through Canvas. …

Understanding Teacher Turnover In Two Charter Schools: Principal Dispositions And Practices, Dana L. Bickmore, Margaret Mary Sulentic Dowell

Educational Psychology, Leadership, and Higher Education Faculty Research

US charter schools experience higher rates of teacher turnover than traditional public schools. The purpose of this study was to examine charter principals’ professional dispositions and practices that might contribute to teacher turnover. Specifically we asked – How do charter school principal professional dispositions and practices affect school working conditions and impact teacher commitment to remain or leave a charter schools? The study design was an embedded three-year case study of principal leadership in two charter schools. Data sources included principal and teacher interviews, school observations, and artifacts. Themes were derived from two constant comparative analyses, one of principal dispositions, …

Fighting Bullying Through Lgbtqia+ Inclusive Education, Amanda Melilli

Library Faculty Presentations

No abstract provided.

How Middle Level Science Teachers Visualize And Translate Motion, Scale, And Geometric Space Of The Earth-Moon-Sun System With Their Students, Jennifer Wilhelm, Merryn Cole, Cheryl Cohen, Rebecca Lindell

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

We examined teachers’ spatial-scientific reasoning and the alternative conceptions they held regarding Earth-space content. While participating in a professional development (PD) workshop, teachers engaged in an integrated mathematics and science project-based unit designed to foster spatial reasoning and improve lunar-related conceptual understanding. The Purdue Spatial Visualization Test-Rotation (PSVT-Rot) and the Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) were used to assess understanding. We found the teachers held similar alternative conceptions as their students. Moreover, we discovered that teachers had limited understanding of the Earth-Moon-Sun scale, motions, and geometric configurations. To determine how teachers’ spatial-scientific confidence and ability translated to their classroom practice, …

Spatial Thinking In Astronomy Education Research, Merryn Cole, Cheryl Cohen, Jennifer Wilhelm, Rebecca Lindell

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

Multiple studies show that spatial thinking skills contribute to students’ performance in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. The study of astronomy is no different with the understanding of many astronomical phenomena requiring spatial thinking skills. This paper describes traditional and contemporary approaches to characterizing and measuring spatial thinking skills and suggests how they inform research in astronomy education. It summarizes previous literature in astronomy education research and categorizes the research approaches of astronomy education peer-reviewed journal articles and conference proceedings that explicitly consider the role of spatial thinking. Additionally, it recommends directions and curricular approaches for astronomy education research …

Upward Mobility In The American Mountain West, Richard Reeves

Brookings Mountain West Publications

Upward economic and social mobility is an intrinsic element of American society. Data from the Equality of Opportunity Project (EOP) demonstrates that upward mobility is a critical issue for our nation’s metros. An analysis of Mountain West metros and the performances of colleges and universities in this region reveal how the differing economic, demographic, and social characteristics affect mobility. This brief explores upward mobility rates, measures of diversity, levels of domestic and foreign migration, and students’ family household income and their eventual individual incomes. The comparison of postsecondary institutions in Mountain West metros serves as a microcosm to better understand …

Five Years Of Video-Based Assessment Data: Lessons From A Teacher Education Program, Peter D. Wiens, Matthew D. Gromlich

Teaching and Learning Faculty Research

Teacher education programs are under considerable pressure to evaluate their effectiveness in training new teachers. Over the last several decades there have been repeated calls for more systematic research on preservice teacher preparation programs. One institution has heeded this call, using the Video Assessment of Interactions and Learning (VAIL: Jamil, Sabol, Hamre, & Pianta, 2015) to annually assess teacher noticing of teacher student interactions in preservice teachers. While there was no significant difference in first-test and last-test VAIL scores, VAIL scores were shown to be related to final college GPA. Additionally, there was a difference in student effort on the …

Interinstitutional Student Success, Chelsea Heinbach, Brittany P. Fiedler, Rosan Mitola

Library Faculty Presentations

Transfer students make up 37.2% of college students in the United States (NSCRC 2015), but often aren’t considered in our design of instruction and outreach programs. They quickly blend in with the rest of the campus upon arrival, potentially causing libraries to fail in serving them appropriately. What services and resources do transfer students need? What knowledge and experiences are they bringing to the university? How can libraries collaborate with on- and off-campus partners?

In Fall 2017 and Spring 2018, we surveyed and interviewed transfer students at various points in their academic career. We focused on gaining an understanding of …

The 2017 Session Of The Nevada Legislature And The Failure Of Higher Education Reform, David Damore, William E. Brown, Jr., Robert E. Lang

Lincy Institute Reports and Briefs

Executive Summary

This report analyzes 11 bills introduced during the 79th Session of the Nevada Legislature that proposed to reorganize, reform, and realign various aspects of the state’s higher education system. The analysis reveals the following:

Despite bipartisan support for higher education reform, nearly all of the reform bills failed, including two bills vetoed by Governor Brian Sandoval.

The failure to enact meaningful reform stands in contrast to the implementation of bills appropriating more resources for higher education.

Opposition to reform legislation was strongest among those most invested in legitimizing and perpetuating current arrangements.

The report also considers the institutional …

When Interests Collide: The Politics Of Republican Governors In An Era Of Unified Republican Federal Control, Molly Reynolds

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

This lecture will focus on three key questions. First, what are policy areas where the political interests of states, especially Republican-led ones, may clash with the political interests of national Republicans? Second, where have we already observed these conflicts and what are the results? And third, what are the implications of 2018 state elections for the relationship between Republican-led states and national Republicans?

Giving Matters: Donors Making A Difference, Unlv Foundation

Giving Matters

No abstract provided.

Police Blotter, Unlv Department Of Police Services

Police Blotter

No abstract provided.

A Multi-Method Investigation Of Literacy And Language Practices In Mexican Early Childhood Programs, Laura M. Justice, Gloria Yeomans-Maldonado, Jorge Gonzalez, Alain Bengochea, Anita Mccormick

Educational & Clinical Studies Faculty Research

This study was designed to examine the literacy and language development processes and practices used in Mexican preschools. Participants were 18 early childhood teachers from three schools selected to represent the range of available programming. Research methods included focus groups, teacher questionnaires, and classroom observations. Results suggested that classrooms mostly had narrative books with few other genres, and that displaying the alphabet and children’s names were common practices. Teachers indicated a strong reliance on bottom-up instructional approaches and direct skill instruction. These findings contribute to our understanding of preschool literacy and language practices of Spanish-speaking children living in Mexico.

Lose The Lecture: Gamble On Peer-To-Peer Learning, Brittany P. Fiedler, Chelsea Heinbach, Mark Lenker

Library Faculty Presentations

How do you facilitate meaningful engagement in a single class period? We used a low-stakes strategy that makes students comfortable presenting new material in 75 minutes. This peer-to-peer activity is a high-energy alternative to lecture. We broke the class up into teams and gave them unique learning challenges. Once completed, they presented this new information to the class using a free cloud-based design software (Canva). We will share examples of prompts we used, the work students developed, and best practices for implementation. Each participant will leave with ideas for using our activity in their own instructional context.

An Analysis On English Comprehension, Samuel Black, Jerry Rylance, Matthew Sielaff, Aaron Gorman

Math 365 Class Projects

Books and Buddies is a program run by Spread the Word Nevada (StWN) designed to help students who struggle with reading. As part of the program, students are given pre and post tests which measure comprehension, accuracy, and words correct per minute (WCPM).

A data set was provided that included students' scores on the pre and post test, as well as some general demographic information. A Python program was created to perform linear regressions on subsets of the data, measured on the three attributes listed above. The data was also divided into various categories for the sake of the regressions. …

Clark County Population Vs. Unlv Student Enrollment, Gregory Goronson, John Inductivo, Joseph Copanas

Math 365 Class Projects

Year after year new high school graduates seek higher education. How does an institution like UNLV prepare for newcomers? More specifically, how will they implement such numbers into resources for incoming and returning students, also taking into account the growing population of Clark County.

Unlv Financial Aid Forecasting, Austin-Ryan Abendanio, Cheyenne D'Cruz, Julie Jeon, Michelle Trinchera

Math 365 Class Projects

With an increasing population of students enrolling into UNLV each year, it is important to be able to predict the financial aid funding for future years. We were able to predict how many students would apply for aid and whether or not they would receive any, or enough need-based financial aid, from the years 2019-2023.