Education Commons^™

Persistence And Success: A Study Of Cognitive, Social, And Institutional Factors Related To Retention Of Kalamazoo Promise Recipients At Western Michigan University, Michelle Ann Bakerson

Dissertations

The Kalamazoo Promise, a universal scholarship program announced in November 2005 provides four years of tuition and fees at any of Michigan's two- or fouryear public colleges or universities for students who have attended Kalamazoo Public Schools. This investment in the community is being replicated elsewhere across the nation, including Denver and Pittsburgh. The scholarship program lowers the cost of postsecondary education, thereby increasing incentives for high school graduation, college enrollment, and college completion. Of the 307 Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship recipients who have attended Western Michigan University since its inception, 16% have been academically dismissed.

The main objectives of this …

Don't Count Them Out: Transitioning Adolescents' Perceptions Of Issues Impacting Learning In Middle School, Concetta Lucchese

Education Doctoral

The transition from elementary to middle school presents adolescents with challenges that deter them from becoming learning-focused students. In urban settings, transitioning students are often confronted with issues as they enter middle school and attempt to acclimatize to the new environment. This study explored first-hand experiences of transitioning urban middle school seventh graders at the completion of their first year in a middle school setting. The purpose of the study was to describe students' perceptions of the issues negatively impacting their ability to focus on learning. This phenomenological research study was conducted primarily using pre-existing data from seventh grade test …

Library Education And Development Newsletter, Volume 3, Issue 2 (December 2009), Uno Library Science Education

Library Education and Development (L.E.A.D.)

This issue of the Library Education and Development Newsletter features Advice from the Frontlines from Shirley Kroenke, a Student Spotlight of Jeanie Kooima, Announcements, Conferences and Professional Development, and the 2010 Heartland School Library Conference registration form.

A Naturalistic Inquiry Of The Restructuring Of A Middle School: An Nclb Mandate, Susan Ann Moulden

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As the 2013-2014 school year approaches, more and more schools across the United States are finding it problematic to meet the annual measurable objective of 100 percent of the school's population meeting its adequate yearly progress (AYP) target, as prescribed by the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation of 2002. Pursuant to NCLB, schools are required to meet the (defined) academic needs of all demographic populations within the school, and to ensure that all students are on grade level.

The purpose of this study was to explore first-hand the perceptions, insights and strategies comprising the implementation of a major …

Adoption And Integration Of Best Practice Methods In Secondary English Teaching, Gretchen Rumohr-Voskuil

Dissertations

Commencing with a critical examination of the history and rhetorical force of the term "best practice," this dissertation undertakes a qualitative study of three secondary English teachers, considering their adoption and integration of best practice methods. The subjects, represented by urban, suburban and rural secondary schools, were National Writing Project participants identified as "exemplary teachers" by a NWP site director. "Best practice" methods analyzed included the process model for the teaching of writing and literature, student decision-making, and a low-risk writing environment. Factors that were found to influence the adoption of best practice methods included undergraduate and preservice experiences, intern …

Technical Writing For Software Documentation Writers: A Textbook On Process And Product, Elizabeth Warnke

Dissertations, Theses and Capstone Projects (Full IR Collection)

No abstract provided.

Panorama December 2009, Southern Adventist University

Panorama Parent Newsletter

This issue of the Panorama parent newsletter contains tips for academic success, a profile on Dr. Michael Hasel, highlights the Bible Worker's Club, and has pictures from the South East Youth Conference.

Correlates Of Teachers' Job Satisfaction: A Hierarchical Linear Model Study Using 2003-2004 Schools And Staffing Survey, Jeffrey M. Leslie

Dissertations

This study examines the correlates of teachers' job satisfaction. Based on the literature, it proposes that teacher satisfaction is a function of, among others, the following school process variables: (a) school influence, (b) classroom control, (c) student behavior, (d) parental support, (e) staff collegiality, (f) career/working conditions, (g) administrative communication, and (h) administrative support. The research first decomposed the amount of variance attributable to the teacher level and the school level. Since there was a significant amount of variance at the school level, the next step was to determine if and how the above school process variables were associated with …

Understanding The Impact Of The Kalamazoo Promise From The Perspectives Of Parents And Community Group Members, Charles Pearson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to uncover the emerging views of parents and community group stakeholders in regards to The Kalamazoo Promise, and what they believed were the important issues that must be understood by implementers of The Promise in order to provide more effective implementation.

The Kalamazoo Promise is a full-tuition scholarship provided to all eligible graduates of the school district. The qualification criteria are simple, and all graduates attending at least the four years of high school are eligible.

A case study was conducted in one representative school in this midsized, urban district. A multiple-phase approach was …

Role Of Residence Hall Staff In Offering Early Warning Academic Intervention, Jon L. Shaffer

Dissertations

Despite anecdotal evidence that residence hall staff are involved in the intrusive delivery of early warning academic intervention programs, little literature exists that defines these programs or the role of residence life staff in their delivery. Understanding the existence of such programs and the involvement of residence life staff is important in developing collaborative efforts between student and academic affairs aimed at promoting student success.

A national on-line survey of senior housing officers was utilized in this research. Results identified that early warning programs existed at 187 (67.3%) of the 278 responding institutions. Of those, 119 institutions (63.6%) utilized residence …

Richmond Public Schools: Post-Court Mandated School Desegregation (1986-2006), Joshua Cole

Theses and Dissertations

In 1970, cross-town busing was court mandated to enforce school desegregation in Richmond, Virginia. Unitary status was declared in Richmond when cross-town busing ended in 1986. Richmond Public Schools (RPS) no longer operated as a dual school system for blacks and whites after 1986. Class and racial segregation continued to exist in the City of Richmond. RPS remained predominately black and poor. Socio-economic conditions of the city continued to impact the school district. Controversies, mismanagement and low academic achievement stigmatized RPS until state and federal performance measures forced the district to improve. By 2006, RPS was still segregated; however, as …

A Tribute To Fred Meijer On His 90th Birthday From His Improvement Association Colleagues, Delivered In December 2009, Arend D. Lubbers

Presidential Speeches

A Tribute to Fred Meijer on His 90th Birthday From His Improvement Association Colleagues, delivered in December 2009 by Arend D. Lubbers, who served as President of Grand Valley from 1969-2001.

The Implementation Of Interventions And Strategies For Children Who Struggle With Reading Utilizing The Read 180 Program, Rebecca Josephine Haag Guyne

Dissertations

All children can learn if given the opportunity, correct assistance, and appropriate instruction. Finding the learning tools which will enhance and encourage learning is the ultimate way to make certain that all students can and will learn. Many teachers use their gut instinct to determine the interventions and strategies to present in their classroom. Improvement will only occur for teachers and students when best practice or research based interventions and strategies are not only accessible but utilized correctly on a daily basis. Children with reading disabilities find fluency and reading comprehension a challenge. The most effective method reported in the …

A Toddler's Development: Analyzing "One Who Walks Unsteadily", Valerie Sharie Davis

XULAneXUS

On April 19, 2009, for exactly two hours, I observed a twenty-four month old toddler at her home, with parents' consent, to fulfill an assignment for a Normal Language Development course. The assignment was to observe a child ranging between the infancy stages to three years old. After observing the child, students were instructed to complete a language analysis sample on every word or phrase that the child produced. This sample was conducted by writing down what the child said and comparing it to what linguistic and motor development researchers expected from a child at the approximate age level observed. …

Can We Get Nurses To Stay? A Qualitative Study To Evaluate The Effectiveness Of A Formal Mentoring Program In An Acute Care Health System, Eileen M. Willits

Dissertations

This qualitative phenomenological case study was designed to investigate the affect that a formal mentoring program had on job satisfaction including a nurse's intent to stay with their current employer and their intent to stay in the nursing profession. The research was intended to determine whether mentoring programs could be used to help avoid the affect of the upcoming predicted nursing shortage in the acute care hospital.

The findings were based on the results of a sample of twelve nurses who had voluntarily signed up to take part in a formal mentoring program sponsored by the staff development department of …

The Effects Of Motivational Independent Reading Programs On Elementary At-Risk Students’ Reading Skills, Kathleeen J. Trueb

Dissertations

Teaching literacy is a challenging process that incorporates the functional and structural aspects of language with the comprehension of its content. Educators are often unable to successfully identify the appropriate strategies that are best-suited to communicate these distinctive components of literacy to students. Students from backgrounds of low socio-economic status are more likely to face challenges in acquiring literacy due to the cultural exceptions attached to their community and to the lack of resources available to them in the home and in schools that have less funding. The research study seeks to investigate these issues through comparing and contrasting the …

Online And Face-To-Face Classes: A Comparative Analysis Of Teaching Presence And Instructor Satisfaction, David T. Bentz

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Teaching presence is one of three components of the Community of Inquiry Model proposed by Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2000). This study examined teaching presence, as measured by the instructional design and organization, and directed facilitation (Shea, Li, Swan, and Pickett, 2005), in a large undergraduate science course, contrasting two modes of lecture delivery, face-to-face and online video. Confirmatory factor analysis validated the teaching presence instrument, producing factor loadings similar to Shea et al.'s for both online and face-to-face delivery. Analysis of the relationship between instructor satisfaction and teaching presence (instructional design and organization, and directed facilitation) produced a significant …

Determinants Of Resident Assistant Job Satisfaction In Privatized University Housing, Jennifer Lynn Casey

Dissertations

The general purpose of a residence life program is the improvement of the oncampus student experience in hopes of promoting personal growth, development, and education as well as bolstering retention rates and cultivating future alumni relationships. A residence life program can be found on most four year college and university campuses. Many colleges and universities facilitate their own residence life programs in whole or in part. Other colleges and universities outsource their residence life programs, in whole or in part, to what is called a privatized university housing company. The goals of a residence life program, be it facilitated by …

In Quest Of Walter Smith: The Past, Present, And Future Impact Of Visual Art In Adult Education, Meredith Amanda Cole

Dissertations

Walter Smith is a relatively unknown historical figure in the art world, but he is essential to defining adult education's past, present, and future in the area of visual art. His artistic endeavors in America sparked facets of the way art education is practiced today. However, along the way we have lost the tenets of social change which he sought but never accomplished. In chapter one, I introduce the purpose of the research. In chapter two, I explain the position Walter Smith entered when coming to America. I also detail Smith's Herculean social reform efforts for adult education and why …

Principal Efficacy: An Investigation Of School Principals' Sense Of Efficacy And Indicators Of School Effectiveness, Charles Wayne Lovell

Dissertations

At the individual school level, the responsibility for demonstrating school effectiveness lies on the shoulders of the building administrator. In fact, "it is widely accepted that good principals are the cornerstones of good schools and that, without a principal's leadership efforts to raise student achievement, schools cannot succeed" (Tschannen-Moran & Gareis, 2004, p. 573). However, federal, state, and local mandates have increased the pressure on school administrators to demonstrate effectiveness. As a result, the work of school administrators has changed. Furthermore, Fullan (2003) identifies a trend that demonstrates a dramatic decrease in the principal's perceptions of effectiveness, authority, trust, and …

The Relationships Of Learning Style Balance And Learning Dimensions To Self-Directed Learning Propensity Among Adult Learners, Sarah Tullos Hutto

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of learning style characteristics to self-directed learning propensity among adult learners. The learning style characteristics investigated were learning style balance as measured by a scoring method developed by Mainemelis, Boyatzis, and Kolb (2002) and learning style dimensions as measured by the Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI). The Oddi Continuous Learning Instrument (OCLI) was used to measure self-directed learning propensity. A questionnaire was used to collect descriptive information about the participants for age, gender, years of professional work experience, and graduate degree program in the categories of business, education, health, and …

Mathematics Achievement Of Regular Education Students By Placement In Inclusion And Non-Inclusion Classrooms And Their Principals' Perceptions Of Inclusion, Loretta Rodgers Hartfield

Dissertations

This study examined mathematics achievement of fourth and fifth grade students in Mississippi and principals' perceptions of inclusion.

A sample of 462 students from eight separate elementary schools was selected for this study. Fifteen principals completed the Principal and Inclusion Survey regarding inclusion education. Eight of the 15 principals were interviewed with 10 open-ended questions regarding their perceptions of inclusion.

Data were analyzed using an independent two-tailed t test and Pearson product moment correlation. The independent two-tailed / test was used to determine differences in mathematics achievement for fourth and fifth grade students in inclusion classrooms compared to non-inclusion classrooms …

The Relationship Between Leadership Behaviors, Teacher Collaboration, And Student Achievement, Angela Nix Mchenry

Dissertations

Educational administrators face the unprecedented challenge of increasing student achievement for all students. One response to this challenge has been to increase and improve teacher collaboration. This study analyzed the relationship between elementary principals' leadership behaviors, teacher collaboration, and student achievement. The relationship between the variables of teacher age, years of experience, and years working with the current principal were also analyzed using multiple regression.

A random sample of 161 Mississippi elementary teachers in 15 schools were surveyed, using the researcher-designed questionnaire, Leadership for Collaboration. These responses measured the teachers' perception of their elementary principals' leadership behaviors and the level …

The Effect Of The Alabama Mathematics, Science, And Technology Initiative (Amsti) On Middle School Students' Scores In Mathematics And Science, Toni Boyd Ramey

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the application of the Alabama Mathematics, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) program in middle schools reduced the gaps found between students' CRT scores; specifically, did the gaps found in the CRT scores within the respective subgroups race, gender, SES, and special/regular education narrow? The subject areas considered by this study were mathematics and science. Student-level data were collected and examined for longitudinal changes over a three year period in which the AMSTI program was implemented at two participating public middle schools. The dependent variables used were mathematics and science CRT scores …

Teaching Science In Light Of World View: The Effect Of Contextualized Instruction On The Scientific Compatibility Of Religious College Students' World Views, Paula Rae Gossard

Dissertations

Authors of recent science reform documents promote the goal of scientific literacy for all Americans (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1989, 1993). Some students, however, feel apprehensive about learning science due to perceptions that science is antagonistic to their world views (Alters, 2005; Esbenshade, 1993). This study investigated the effect of an introductory science course taught in the context of a Christian, theistic world view on the scientific compatibility of religious college students' world views. For the purposes of this study, students' understanding of the nature of science, affective attitudes toward science, and beliefs regarding creation were used …

Teacher Education Preparation Assessment System And The National Council For Accreditation Of Teacher Education Accreditation, Deborah Lynn Vaughan Stoulig

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the assessment systems of teacher preparation programs have changed since the new NCATE Standards were implemented in 2004, what methods of data collections are being used, and to measure coordinators' perceptions of the assessment systems. An electronic survey was developed by the researcher based upon a review of related literature, the researcher's personal experience, and years of reviewing data collection software. An invitation to the survey was emailed to 631 NCATE Coordinators or equivalent as identified from their institution's website with 221 participants completing the survey for a return rate of …

Predictors And Influences Of Graduation Rates In Mississippi Public Schools, Donna Rebekah Holden Chiasson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine if possible predictors of graduation rates in Mississippi existed. This study included 10 independent variables and one dependent variable. The independent variables consisted of average daily attendance, algebra I scores, teacher salary, socioeconomic status (as expressed in the percentage of students eligible for free and reduced lunch within a school), eighth grade math MCT scores, eighth grade language MCT scores, the number of teachers with advanced degrees, the school's outcome of Adequate Yearly Progress, school size, and principal leadership style.

The dependent variable was graduation rate. A total of 100 schools were …

Impact Of Preschool Education On Reading Achievement Of Kindergarten Through Fifth Grade Students, Melissa Harvey Clark

Dissertations

This study examines the impact of various types of preschool care and education on the reading achievement of children, kindergarten through fifth grade, who participated in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K). The participants in this study are located throughout the United States of America. These students attend public and private schools.

The data for this study were provided by the National Center of Education Statistics (NCES), a division of the U.S. Department of Education. The researcher utilized ECLS-K's Public Use Data File and Electronic Codebook to create an SPSS syntax file in order to determine if …

Exploring The Efficiency And Effectiveness Of Teacher Selection Tools: The Effects On The Total Group With A Focus On The Experience Sub-Groups, Kimberly Joyce Mckinley

Dissertations

As schools struggle to meet federal testing requirements, the importance of having highly effective teachers in every classroom has never been greater, and, given the downward trend in the economy, there are more teaching applicants than ever. School districts would benefit from a streamlined process to interview and select only the most effective and highly-qualified teachers. The researcher’s purpose was to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of a unique and specific teacher selection process which included three Ventures for Excellence screening tools and one innovative instrument designed for this study, the performance rating scale. A collaborative correlational study involving three …

Comparing Indigenous And External Teachers: Beliefs, Origins Of Beliefs, And Expectations, Richard H. Fowler

Dissertations

This phenomenology examines rural economically poor school teachers' beliefs, belief origins, and their expectations of and for their students. Data analysis employed two lenses. The proposed lens examined participants as either indigenous or external utilizing Banks' (2001) cross-cultural teaching experiences. In this study, the indigenous participants experienced childhoods in poor rural towns, while external participants experienced childhoods in urban/suburban areas. A second emergent lens examined participants as experiencing working-class or middle-class childhoods. Findings utilizing lens one were mixed and varied with no definitive pattern. The emergent lens utilizing economic class of participants' childhoods found a number of consistent differences between …