Education Commons^™

The Influence Of Classroom Management, Administrative Support, Parental Involvement, And Economic Factors On The Retention Of Novice Teachers, Katrina Moody Dwyer

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of selected factors upon the intent of novice teachers to remain in the classroom. Teachers are leaving the profession in numbers that have prompted significant concern among policymakers and administrators. Many qualified college students are not considering the field of education as a potential career (Petty, 2007). Given that attrition rates among teachers are higher in their earliest years within the profession, it is essential to identify factors that contribute to the satisfaction and retention of novice teachers (Stockard & Lehman, 2004).

The primary data for this study were obtained …

Advisor Knowledge Of Disability-Related Needs, Laws, And Accomodation Requirements In Postsecondary Academic Advisement Practices, Rebekah Elizabeth Young

Dissertations

Since the passage of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, enrollment of students with disabilities in higher education has risen. In 2007-2008, approximately 11% of undergraduate students reported having some type of disability (U.S. NCES, 2012). Since disability disclosure is optional for students in higher education, it is possible that reported enrollment figures are underestimates.

Despite increasingly equitable access to postsecondary education and demonstration of the academic capability necessary for gaining collegiate admission, students with disabilities are less likely to remain enrolled and successfully earn a degree than students without disabilities. Efforts to …

Psychosocial Development Of Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder In Higher Education, Kathleen M. Vanderveen

Dissertations

Students, in general, are not graduating from college in percentages above 60% after five years (Chronicle of Higher Education, 2012). According to the National Council on Disability (NCOD, 2007), more students with disabilities are enrolling in higher education every year; but their graduation rates are declining (Getzel, 2008; NCOD, 2007; Orr & Goodman, 2010; Troiano, Liefeld, & Trachtenberg, 2010). Exploring ways to improve the retention and success of students with disabilities in college, leads to the review of psychosocial student development theory, which has guided student support for many years, but has not been widely applied to students with disabilities. …

Summer Credit Recovery And Middle Grade Students, James C. Sharp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the difference in student success by retained students who participate in the Hamblen County (Tennessee) Credit Recovery Program [HCCRP] in the year prior and following their participation. HCCRP is an alternative intervention for students who have been retained in the middle grades of Hamblen County School System. Student success was defined and assessed in the areas of academic proficiency, discipline, and student absenteeism. Student information regarding each area was obtained from the Hamblen County School System, coded, and analyzed through quantitative testing.

This study was guided by 8 research questions and 8 …

Student Retention And First-Year Programs: A Comparison Of Students In Liberal Arts Colleges In The Mountain South, Jeff S. Howard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between the retention rate and 9 firstyear student programs at Liberal Arts Colleges in the Mountain South, a region in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the United States. Nine first-year programs were studied: Summer Bridge Programs, Preterm Orientation, Outdoor Adventure Orientation, Targeted Seminars, Learning Communities, Early Warning/Early Alert Systems, Service Learning, Undergraduate Research, and Assessment. The data for this study were accessed via the college database of The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2013). Chi Square tests were used for analysis to identify associations between first-year student retention and …

Supportive Measures: An Analysis Of The Trio Program - Student Support Services At East Tennessee State University From 2001 – 2004, Christopher N. Strode

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the academic performance of the first-time, full-time, traditional-aged students in the Student Support Services program at East Tennessee State University. This was accomplished by comparing their academic performance with the academic performance of first-time, full-time, traditional-aged non-SSS participants, including students in both the SSS eligible and SSS ineligible study groups. Incoming freshman cohorts from 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 were used to create the 3 distinct study groups. Demographic and performance outcome variables were used for comparison among the 3 groups. The cumulative college GPA, fall-to-fall retention, and 6-year graduation status of …

Engineering Students At Typically Invisible Transition Points: A Focus On Admissions And The Sophomore Year, Elizabeth M. Holloway

Open Access Dissertations

As of 2012, women are approximately 19% of all engineering undergraduate students nationally (American Society for Engineering Education, 2012). Women's representation in engineering has not changed significantly over the last 20 years, despite increased attention, increased funding, and increased programmatic activities intended to encourage more women to become engineers. Research around the world continues to seek identification of the reasons for the underrepresentation of women in engineering. This prior work has focused primarily on two broad areas: recruiting, that is, preparation, socialization, exposure, and experiences prior to college; and retention, that is, experiences in higher education. Retention studies and programmatic …

Contributing Factors To Retention Of Direct Support Professionals In Group Home Settings, Wendi Rhea Foss

Culminating Projects in Special Education

This research investigates the factors that affect job satisfaction and retention of direct support professionals in group home settings. The researcher utilized exit interview surveys from 40 direct support professionals who had resigned from their positions. The researcher examined the results of open-ended survey questions for themes using grounded theory. Major factors affecting job satisfaction and retention were pay, management, and communication. These had both positive and negative effects on job satisfaction as well as retention. The research suggests the company examine these factors to find ways to decrease the negative effects on job satisfaction and turnover. The company should …

Mood Congruency Effect On Academic Content Retention For Emotionally Disturbed High School Students, Lara M. Corkrey

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

The effect of mood on the encoding and recall of memories is crucial to create more affective classroom environments conducive to retention of academic content. The current study hypothesized that emotionally disturbed (ED) students encode less academic content then their peers due to their pervasive negative mood. In three separate conditions, 73 participants were shown a 5 min video clip to either induce a positive or negative mood or to neutralize mood. Subjects were asked to rate their mood before and after the film clip. Finally, participants were instructed to recall as many words as they could from a presented …

High School Principals Who Stay: Stability In A Time Of Change, Patricia Ann Luebke

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the institutional factors, personal characteristics, and work-related relationships of high school principals that led to their longer than usual tenure in their positions. Data were gathered from interviews with ten high school principals who had served in their positions for a range of 8 to 23 years, much longer than many high school principals today.

Four major themes emerged from the data: relationships, balance, fit and change. Within the theme of relationships, relationships with the faculty and staff, district office and superintendent, school board, parents and community, and students were explored. Collaboration and trust were identified …

Puerto Rican Women In Pursuit Of The Ph.D.: A Qualitative Analysis Of Persistence, Cyndia Morales

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the phenomenon of Puerto Rican women who have achieved a Ph.D. degree. The researcher utilized a qualitative research methodology to investigate the social aspects that influenced Puerto Rican women to persist in their doctoral programs. Due to the national pool of potential participants, interviews were conducted with Puerto Rican women using video chat software. The researcher utilizes 5 tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT) as the framework for this study, in an effort to address the varying aspects that contribute to the persistence of Puerto Rican women in graduate study, despite the challenges often cited in the …

A Study To Determine Whether A Relationship Exists Between Attending A Public, Two-Year Community College In The United States With Or Without Campus Housing And The Retention Of First-Year Students, John F. Yaun

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Student retention is a growing and common concern among community college administrators across the United States given the low retention rates at two-year institutions. With little change in the retention rates of first-year students at community colleges, administrators are searching for successful strategies and models within these heterogeneous educational environments to address the costs and consequences associated with low retention rates at two-year institutions.

The purpose of this study was to determine what relationship existed, if any, between attending a public, two-year community college in the United States with or without campus housing and the retention of first-year students. This …

First-Generation Freshman College Students: Factors Impacting Retention For The Subsequent Year, Laura Colson Mclean

Education Dissertations and Projects

Against all odds, first-generation college students continue to enroll in postsecondary schools with aspirations of obtaining a bachelor's degree. Unfortunately, many have not successfully reached their goal, which in turn has affected retention rates of colleges and universities. There are programs that provide academic support and advising to increase retention for first-generation college students. However, there are academic and nonacademic needs of the students that colleges, universities, and public policymakers have neglected to address.

The purpose of this research study was to determine from 168 first-generation college students at 5 participating institutions, what factors impacted their enrollment after their first …

College Freshmen Living Arrangement As A Predictor Of Retention And Persistence To Graduation, Mildred V. Jones

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine if full-time freshmen who live on-campus during their first year of study have higher retention rates and stronger persistence to graduation than those who live off-campus during the first year.

The Relationship Of Undergraduate First-Time-In-College Students' Expectations Of Interactions With Faculty And Four-Year College Degree Completion, Craig N. Story

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Faculty are the academic heart of colleges and universities. They guide learning and facilitate student academic and social integration in the campus community. As described by Tinto, student integration is an important component to success in college. Out-of-class and in-class faculty-student interaction supports student integration and may lead to improved college completion. Students enter college with expectations for what they are about to experience, including expectations for faculty interaction. Smart adapted Holland's vocational choice theory to study college disciplines and found that faculty in six broad categories of disciplines displayed specific environmental and personality traits and interacted differently with students. …

Student Persistence Predictors And Community College Institutional Effectiveness, Jeffery Lee Shelley

All ETDs from UAB

The purpose of this study was to expand the literature on student persistence in community colleges through three research innovations. First, the literature on student persistence in community colleges was expanded by applying theory to the identification and testing of predictors. Second, it was expanded by validating retention prediction equations using independent data to test the generalizability of predictors. Third, it was expanded by determining the extent to which student major potentially mediates retention rates for community colleges. Aggregated student entry characteristic, external environment, and internal campus environment variables were obtained for 127 public community colleges in six states using …

Broadening The Learning Community Experience: An Outdoor Orientation Program's Impact On Engagement, Persistence, And Retention, Christy David Nolan

Wayne State University Dissertations

The Keystone Learning Community was implemented by the Department of Campus Recreation to address retention at the institution. This learning community for incoming freshmen consists of two phases. Phase I is as an outdoor orientation program that includes a three day, two night canoeing and camping experiencer lead by upperclassmen leaders. Faculty and staff from the institution complete every aspect of Phase I with the freshmen. Phase II is class time that concentrates on development of critical thinking and writing skills.

Through surveys and interviews, participants in the Keystone Learning Community reported strong peer, faculty, and upperclassmen engagement initiated by …

The Impact Of Orientation Programming On Student Success Outcomes At A Rural Community College, James M. Davis

Online Theses and Dissertations

Economic and fiscal challenges, increased public scrutiny, and calls for accountability from stakeholders necessitate that community colleges work diligently to improve student success outcomes. Programs, services, and initiatives need to be developed and implemented that will increase student retention. Orientation is an important intervention service that can help new students to acclimate and make a more successful transition to college. There is a need to study programs that increase student success, and new student orientation programs have demonstrated their promise in reducing student attrition. This quantitative study examined a first year new student orientation program at a rural community college …

Using Academic Advising To Increase Motivation And Engagement In First-Year College Students, Lisa Remsing

Wayne State University Dissertations

According to ACT Educational Services (2010), more than one-third of college freshmen will not progress to their sophomore year. Several states, including Michigan, have proposed higher education performance funding models, which directly correlate state funds to student retention and graduation rates (Jesse, 2012). As higher education suffers from diminishing resources, there is a heightened focus to increase retention and graduation rates (Tinto, 2007).

The transition from high school to college can be a traumatic time for adolescents. This age group has unique motivational needs as they adjust to an unfamiliar academic environment (Perry et al., 2005). The first year of …

Special Education Teacher Retention: The Relationship Between Mentoring, Job Satisfaction And The Retention Of Special Education Teachers, Angela Horrison-Collier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The causes of the teacher shortage are complex; however, the retention of special education teachers is a significant contributor to this shortage. Some research has indicated that up to 9.3 % of special education teachers leave the field at the end of their first year of teaching and 7.4 % move to general education yearly. Therefore, school districts face a continuous cycle of recruitment, hiring, and induction. Because of the pivotal value of retention, school districts and site level education leaders must take proactive steps to reduce the retention rate. The research on teacher retention indicates factors such as salary, …

Academic Advising Experiences And Retention Of First-Generation Students At A Public Historically Black College And University In The Southeastern United States, Jarrod Ennis Patterson

All ETDs from UAB

The purpose of this study was to explore the academic advising experiences of first-generation students at a public, historically black college and university (HBCU) in the southeastern United States. A qualitative analysis using a phenomenological multiple case study approach was used to explore the students' academic advising experiences. The theoretical framework for this study consisted of: the Interactionalist Theory of College Student Departure (Tinto, 1987, 2006), the Theory of Involvement (Astin, 1984, 1999), and the Psychological Model for Student Retention (Bean & Eaton, 2000). In their interviews, participants were asked questions from an approved interview protocol. The questions were open-ended …