Education Commons^™

Best Practices In Tutoring Services And The Impact Of Required Tutoring On High-Risk Students, Lara Kristin Vance

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the best practices in tutoring high-risk, first-year students. The study was conducted in three phases. First, the study investigated the tutoring practices at two four-year universities with similar admissions standards as Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) but with higher retention rates: Austin Peay State University and the University of Alabama in Huntsville. The qualitative and quantitative results of that phase of the study revealed five best practices.

The second phase of the study focused on the extent to which EKU’s tutoring practices align with the best practices found in phase one. The data revealed that, at least to …

Teacher Perception Of Principal Leadership Practices: Impacting Teachers' Sense Of Self-Efficacy In Rural Appalachia Kentucky, Brandon Lee Hibbard

Online Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if a significant relationship existed between principal leadership practices, as perceived by teachers, and teacher’s sense of self-efficacy. The target population was rural Appalachian teachers that worked for a principal that had been in administration for at least three consecutive years. This study utilized teacher responses from a survey consisting of the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES, Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk-Hoy, 2001) and the Leadership Practice Inventory – observer (LPI, Kouzes & Posner, 2003).

Results from the survey categorized levels of self-efficacy for teachers based on the works of Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk-Hoy …

Effectiveness Of An Emergency Vehicle Operations Course Component, Visual And Perceptual Skills: Analyzing Student Response To Searching, Identifying, Predicting, Deciding, And Executing Skills, Christopher Bradley Millard

Online Theses and Dissertations

As funding for driver education declines according to the National Highway Safety Administration (NHSA) 2013 Traffic Safety Facts, there were 2,345,719 people injured or killed as a result of vehicle crashes. NHTSA reported that there were a total of 118 people killed in 2013 from accidents involving emergency vehicles. The effectiveness of an Emergency Vehicle Operations Course component of visual and perceptual skills can be measured by administering the Driver Performance Test prior to and after student participation. This study examined the population of the students who participated in the TRS 235: Emergency Vehicle Operations Course at Eastern Kentucky University …

Stakeholders' Knowledge Impacting The Academic And Social-Emotional Needs Of Twice-Exceptional Students In Kentucky, Katrina Ann Sexton

Online Theses and Dissertations

Decades worth of studies have documented the role of teacher training in identifying children with exceptional needs. Yet, none have investigated the differences between teacher training, teacher knowledge, and teacher roles in relation to the identification of twice-exceptional (2E) children. There is a need to understand the factors that affect teachers’ knowledge and abilities to identify 2E students, specifically during the early formative years [primary and middle grades] when identification commonly occurs. Supported by the Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory, Autonomous Learner Model (ALM), and Integrated Curriculum Model (ICM), the purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if teacher education …

Assessing The Effectiveness Of Safety Training Provided To Corrections Personnel In Appalachia, Ali K. Al Yammahi

Online Theses and Dissertations

The context of the study was assessment of whether corrections officers in Appalachia are receiving adequate health and safety training who attended health and safety trainings sessions provided by the OSHA Training Institute and Education Center on the campus of Eastern Kentucky University. Participants included in the study were corrections officers who have been working in corrections for a minimum of two years. Participants were required to be working in Appalachian corrections during distribution of the questionnaire. Participants were selected by using convenience and snowball sampling procedures. The questionnaire was sent on 4 separate occasions, 10 of the expected 30 …

The Implications Of The Turnaround Process On A Rural Kentucky High School: Teacher Perspectives, Sonya Edwina Anglin

Online Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a phenomenological study of the effects of the turnaround process on a high school in rural central Kentucky. Data used for this study include interviews with teachers and archival materials such as school reports cards. Across Kentucky some forty-one schools have been identified as "priority schools" or persistently low-performing. As such, each one of them has been required to undergo changes in their daily instructional practices, procedures, and policies. The change process has affected faculty and administration and led to overall school improvement. This study provides a look at how the turnaround process has influenced school improvement …

Faculty Of Color At The Kentucky Community And Technical College System: A Survey Of Ethnic Diversity, Geographic Location, And Personal Perspectives, Linda Karen Ballard

Online Theses and Dissertations

Rural universities and colleges with traditionally homogeneous ethnic and cultural populations have to work especially hard to ensure faculty diversity. Despite efforts to increase the number of faculty of color in Kentucky's statewide system of community colleges, minority representation remains proportionally low, especially on the state's rural college campuses. The purpose of this study was to investigate how faculty of color in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) perceived their work climate and resident communities in order to distinguish if these faculty members were content and therefore more inclined to remain at their jobs and offer the degree …

Graduation Rates Of Career And Technical Education (Cte) Concentrators In Kentucky: A Comparative Study, Seve L. Bennett

Online Theses and Dissertations

This research was driven by the desire to determine if graduation rates of high school students in Kentucky are significantly affected when they decide to concentrate on a Career and Technical Education (CTE) career pathway. To clarify, the research questions that prompted this study seek to find out if 12th grade CTE concentrator students in programs of study at (16) randomly chosen Area Technology Centers (ATCs) across the state had different graduation rates than those 12th grade students not engaged in CTE career pathways in (16) corresponding high schools for the 2012 – 2013 school year. The study also compared …

Graduating Associate Degree Nursing Students: Keeping Students On Track, Marisa Ellen Greer

Online Theses and Dissertations

The national job outlook for registered nurses, according to a News Release for Employment Projections 2012-2022 from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2013), will continue to increase in job growth from 2012 to 2022 by 19.4%. This increase will result in an additional 526,800 registered nursing positions that will be available nationwide by 2022. This qualitative dissertation investigated associate degree nursing students and the strategies they employed to be successful and graduate from their respective nursing program. According to a report entitled The Registered Nurse Population by the US Department of Health and Human Services (2008), associate degree nursing programs …

A Comparison Of School Suspension Rates And Number Of Days Suspended Between African-American And Caucasian Males, Jeffrey D. Herron-Rodgers

Online Theses and Dissertations

Racial discrimination plays a major role in out-of-school suspensions. Research shows that when students are suspended, they are removed from their learning environment, which can lead to poor academic achievement, lower graduation rates, and higher delinquency. The distribution of racial and ethnic minorities that are being suspended or expelled reveal disparities between the groups. Within the United States public school system, racial disparities have been documented over time to show African-American students are suspended from school at higher rates than any other race (Arcia, 2007; Bulter et al, 2012; Rocque, 2010; Skiba et al, 2002; Townsend, 2000).

School systems should …

Impact Of Instructional Coaches On Elementary Mathematical Achievement, Kayla Marie Hibbard

Online Theses and Dissertations

Since the passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, school leaders have sought to improve student abilities in both math and reading. Although both subjects have made improvements in both delivery and assessment over the years, mathematics still troubles the nation as students continuously fall short of local, state and federal goals (Darling-Hammond, 1998, 2005; Franke et al., 2005; Johnson & Johnson, 2002).

Instructional coaches have become a norm for many districts across the U. S. as districts seek to draw knowledge and leadership from mastery level teachers as they help improve everyday teaching and student learning. …

Developmental Education: Resilience And Academic Success In Rural Appalachian Students, Sandy Holbrook

Online Theses and Dissertations

The need for developmental education is ever present in higher education as more students annually enter college underprepared for entry level college coursework. Underpreparedness is a pervasive concern in higher education. Community colleges in particular are the primary means of shepherding developmental education. Academic underpreparedness is just one of the many obstacles students face, however, when endeavoring to obtain a college education. Students often have additional challenges such as those frequently accompanying first-generation college status, rural status, low socioeconomic levels, low levels of self-efficacy, and the lack of resilience which can pose threats to their academic success. Despite these adverse …

An Evaluation Of Educator Perceptions Regarding The Level Of Family Engagement In Appalachian Kentucky Schools With Middle Grade Students, Penelope Ann Jordan

Online Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the perceptions of educators about the level of family engagement occurring in rural Appalachian Kentucky schools with middle grade students. The research contributes to the field of rural family engagement studies by providing baseline metrics of educator perceptions on the current level of family engagement. The sample consisted of 95 educators working in Appalachian Kentucky public school districts with middle grade students. The educators were asked to respond to questions on four dimensions of family engagement. The dimensions of family engagement surveyed were: Communication, Family Support, School Decision-making and Advocacy, and Partnerships. …

An Examination Of Intrinsic Existence Value Towards Wildlife Of Columbus Zoo And Aquariums Tourists: Evaluating The Impact Of Behind The Scenes Programming, Robert Maxwell Lakes

Online Theses and Dissertations

Changes in climate and the corresponding environmental issues are major concerns facing the world today. Human consumption, which is leading the rapid depletion of the earth’s finite resources and causing a dramatic loss of biodiversity, is largely to blame (Pearson, Lowry, Dorrian, & Litchfield, 2014). American zoos and aquariums are positioned to create positive experiential relationships between zoo tourists and animals that have the potential to positively change the zoo tourists’ conservation behaviors. Challenges to changing the conservation behaviors of zoo tourists are many. One particularly important challenge is conservation/environmental education. Zoos and aquariums aim to provide effective and quality …

Intercultural Learning Perspectives Of World Language Educators In Kentucky, Ernest Luke Mcclees

Online Theses and Dissertations

A line has become blurred between intercultural interactions and daily personal interactions. The once long distance for trade, travel and communication is at its’ smallest gap. However, “American graduates have been cited as being culturally deprived and linguistically illiterate, compared to students from other countries” (2013 Kentucky Standard for World Language Proficiency). For educational leaders to improve this current educational inadequacy, it is important to understand teachers’ intercultural beliefs and how they impact their classroom practices. What is not known is the present state of world language teachers’ global competence understanding and what they perceive to be best practices to …

Beliefs And Motivations Of Foreign Language Learners, Noriko Okura

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the Eastern Kentucky University students’ current characteristics, purposes, and expectations for learning Japanese and/or Spanish language. A survey was conducted to collect data on EKU students’ demographics, as well as motivations and foreign language learning beliefs. Two hundred thirty eight students completed the questionnaire that includes a modified version of Horwitz’s (1988) “Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory” (BALLI). Descriptive statistics including means, standard deviations, and frequencies were utilized to analyze the BALLI items. Results indicated that EKU students’ demographics are diverse. Students in Japanese and Spanish language classes differed primarily in their language beliefs related to their …

Factors That Affect Developmental Education In Rural Appalachia, Erin Leigh Reasor

Online Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation depicts the lives of ten students who are enrolled in developmental education courses at a rural community college in Appalachian Mountains. They share their home life, life experiences and struggles faced; however, they want to better themselves and that motivation keeps them going. This study is important study due to the fact little qualitative research has been conducted in the past reflecting the lives of the Appalachian student. Also, this dissertation provides a historical background of developmental education and how it plays an essential role in community colleges. The problem is that students are coming to college unprepared …

Assessing The Impact Of First-Year Experience Courses On Student Success In Community And Technical Colleges, Luv'tesha L. Robertson

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact first-year experience courses have on first-year student performance when enrolled in these courses at public community and technical colleges in Kentucky. The target population for this research study was composed of freshman students participating in the course compared to students not participating in the same course in the same public community and technical colleges across the Bluegrass Region. Roughly 2,000 students were selected from the 2014-2015 fall academic year for this quantitative research study.

This study will aim to determine the effect of a first-year experience course on student performance and outcomes of first-year, at-risk …

An Equity Council And The Struggle To Transform A School District, Grace Tara Rodriguez

Online Theses and Dissertations

Significant efforts at the national, state and local levels have focused on closing achievement gaps between student populations in public schools. Some research suggests that parents and community members can help hold schools accountable for meeting academic and other goals. The Equity Council serves in an advisory role to the Wilson County school board in a district in the southeastern part of the United States. The council monitors equity in the district on several measures, including the hiring of minority educators, student achievement and suspension rates. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand and describe the functioning …

An Evaluation Of The College Readiness Of Graduating English Language Learners In Utah Public Schools., Lizette L. Rogers

Online Theses and Dissertations

The linguistic diversity that began with immigration in the early 20th century continues today. The impact of this growing population is directly affecting the economy and workforce in our nation. This dissertation focused on the college readiness of graduating English language learner (ELL) students in one western mountain state. The variables of gender, language proficiency levels, and free or reduced lunch status were studied, seeking to understand if those variables were independent of ELL students being college ready. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the ACT test scores for 668 English language learner graduates. A Chi-Square test for independence was …

The Association Between Achievement On Kentucky’S College Readiness Assessments And The Intervention Delivery Method Provided To Underprepared Twelfth Grade Mathematics Students, Barbara Darlene Spurlock

Online Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this retrospective quantitative study was to determine if there was an association between achievement on Kentucky’s college readiness assessments and intervention delivery methods: (1) face-to-face tutoring only; (2) online/digital tutoring only; or (3) blended learning tutoring provided to underprepared twelfth grade mathematics students. Data used for this study were provided voluntarily from four Kentucky districts representing six high schools. Descriptive statistics and Chi Square statistical significance research methods were used to determine the association between assessments and intervention instructional delivery models. Bivariate correlations were used to determine a weak correlation between Kentucky’s three college readiness assessments (ACT, …

Transitioning An On-Campus Graduate Nursing Program To A Distance Learning Environment: Do Online Students Perform As Well?, Brandi Stocker

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the academic success rates of online graduate nursing students by comparing them to the on-campus cohort of students prior to the program transitioning online. Analysis was conducted by identifying and comparing final course grades in four required MSN courses. Data was extracted from the university’s BANNER system. Results reveal that both cohorts of course delivery modes yield academically successful MSN students. The study also shows that online students are performing almost nearly as well as the on-campus students in the program once did. Each course is different and yielded different results, but it can be concluded that …

The Effect Of Learning Communities On Freshman Student Retention Rates And Gpa At A Public 4-Year Institution Of Higher Education, Ashley Matthews Sweat

Online Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of GSD 101 Learning Communities (a cohort program for freshmen at Eastern Kentucky University) on the retention and first-year grade point average of first-time, full-time freshmen at the university. The study specifically examined students enrolled in GSD 101Z and ENG 101Z (the learning communities sections) in the Fall 2014 semester versus the students enrolled in the regular GSD 101 and ENG 101 classes during the same semester. A large institutional database was used to identify the students in the study and their demographic differences. Results showed that participation in learning communities did not make a …

Family Preferences For Childcare In Central Kentucky, Sarah Taylor Vanover

Online Theses and Dissertations

Early childhood professionals have established a set list of characteristics that denote a high quality early care and education environment for children under the age of kindergarten, but these may not be the same characteristics that parents consider in the decision-making process. The researcher used survey research to obtain quantitative research data from three hundred and ten participants that live in Central Kentucky and have a child under the age of kindergarten currently in childcare. The participants completed a survey that used a Likert scale from 1 to 4 to rate thirty-six characteristics of childcare programs and were asked to …

The Imperativeness Of The Inclusion Of Multiple Intelligences In Safety Training, Melissa Diers-Sarasin

Online Theses and Dissertations

Many organizations are increasingly becoming aware that effective safety training is a key element in their success. Employers are now forced to face the challenges of holistically evaluating safety programs to ensure their multigenerational workforce comprehends, utilizes, and values the safety training provided to them. These expectations are brought about by regulations and the need to control expenditures directly related to safety training and performance. Now more than ever, it is imperative that multiple intelligences are incorporated into safety education and training programs. This article examines key elements of multiple intelligences, the significance of their incorporation in safety education and …