Education Commons^™

Using A Wiki To Teach College Level Academic Writing, Dawn Moore

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Teaching writing by employing the tools made available by Web 2.0 technology allows students to meet the changing educational requirements for writing with technology. This paper argues that the wiki is a facile tool for teaching academic writing at the college level. It theoretically and pedagogically situates the wiki in a threedimensional rhetorical context. This paper also demonstrates how and why the wiki functions as a collaborative writing tool adhering to a socially constructed view of knowledge. As a constructive hypertext, wikis can be used to teach, clarify, reinforce, and deepen many fundamental writing skills. This paper reviews the body …

Mental Health Services And Alternative Schools, Chasity D. Johnson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

With the number of children being placed into alternative school settings growing, it is of interest to know if mental health services are a beneficial addition to the traditional alternative programs. To research this issue, case studies of 48 children who had attended an alternative school were assessed. Participants included 48 students, half of whom had received only alternative school services while the other half had received alternative school services in addition to mental health services during their alternative school placement. Findings show no significant correlation between the hours of mental health services received and any of the following variables: …

Transition From High School To College : The Experiences Of Girls In Rural West Virginia, Leanne Arbor Olson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

A degree in higher education is increasingly important in our competitive economic environment, but a 30% gap exists between high-income and low-income students attending college (Bloom, 2005; Corrigan & Hartle, 2007). Rural and urban schools contend with issues of poverty and educational resources, while suburban schools work with "ample resources and stable populations" (Truscott & Truscott, 2005, p. 245). The purpose of this study was to better understand the enabling and constraining factors of five girls from rural, West Virginia as they transitioned from high school to college. Collaborative enthographic case study allowed the five students to be involved in …

Girls' Secondary Education In Uganda: Assessing Policy Within The Women's Empowerment Framework, Shelley Jones

Institute for Educational Development, East Africa

This paper makes the case that policies, such as the National Strategy for Girls' Education in Uganda (NSGE), intended to achieve gender equity in education for girls in developing countries, have limited relevance to, and impact on girls' actual educational experiences. Recent considerations of girls' education acknowledge that gender equity within education is more than access to schooling; it entails the cultivation of capabilities necessary for girls to participate fully, actively and equally in all aspects of their societies. Drawing on a longitudinal, ethnographic policy research case study with 15 Ugandan schoolgirls in rural Masaka District, Uganda, from August 2004 …

The Effects Of Bilingual Instruction On The English Emergent Literacy Skills Of Spanish-Speaking Preschool Children, Zoila Tazi

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Numerous studies have shown that early childhood education (ECE) contributes to educational attainment particularly for poor children. Nationally, ECE has gained considerable backing as a viable intervention to propel achievement. As ECE comes to the fore, census figures indicate that Latinos are the fastest growing minority in the United States. Latinos have persistently experienced greater rates of poverty and other risk factors that adversely affect educational attainment.

Multiple risk factors as well as a "cultural mismatch" with a school system poised to educate white, middle-class, English-speaking students, raise alarm for the educational trajectories of Latino children just entering schools. Racism …

Education Policy And The Mathematics Curriculum In New York City Middle Schools, 1958 To 2002, Joseph Valley

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study investigates how mathematics education policy and curriculum in New York City changed over the period from 1958 through 2002. It looks at the events leading up to the 퉌new math era, the back to basics movement, and the Standards movement initiated by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) in 1989. Since this period is bounded by two important pieces of legislation, the National Defense Education Act (NDEA),1958, and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) 2001 an assessment of the arguments for and against the federal intervention in education is essential.

The research methodology used for …

Stakeholders' Roles In Prioritizing Technical And Vocational Education And Training In Postconflict Liberia, Edward S. Forh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Postconflict governments and counterparts have collaborated to provide skills training to communities as a critical postconflict development strategy. In these undertakings, the role of community members remains largely undefined. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to understand the perceptions held by rural community members regarding the role they played in influencing government's policy priority for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as a local human development strategy in postconflict Liberia. The conceptual framework was based on human capital theory and concepts of motivation and achievement. Fourteen participants were purposefully selected for the study. Data were collected …

The Effectiveness Of Response To Intervention To Improve High School Students' Reading Skills, Ann-Marie Popwell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

High School students in a local school district were having reading-related difficulties in certain subject areas and were at risk of failing high school courses. Success in reading is important because students must read the content within the End of Course Test in core content subjects, and their success on this test determines their eligibility for high school graduation. The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of a Response to Intervention (RTI) reading class designed to improve reading skills for at-risk high school students. The constructivist learning theory was the theoretical framework for this study. The research …

Impact Of The Study Island Program On Students' Reading Comprehension, Rodney L. Gernert

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School administrators at the research site, which is a public school district, had been under pressure to improve low reading state scores of Grade 11 students as measured by Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests. A web-based reading software called Study Island was integrated into the literacy curriculum for students to increase their reading proficiency and pass PSSA state tests. The research problem was that the integration of Study Island had not been evaluated and students were not meeting adequate yearly progress (AYP). The purpose of this study was to provide research-based evidence on whether Study Island helped students …

Effect Of Political Skill On Perception Of Organizational Politics And Work Withdrawal Among Community College Employees, David John Ross

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Community college student support services are an important aspect of success among community college students. Theoretical and empirical models of organizational politics and withdrawal guided the expectation that community college employees who perceive their organizations as political may withdrawal from their organization, diminishing the services delivered to students at the institution. A multisite cross-sectional survey design was utilized to gather quantitative data via Survey Monkey from national professional organizations. Two-hundred seventeen usable surveys from community college administrators (executive, mid-level managers, and administrators) were gathered. Data were analyzed via correlation and regression models to examine if political skill reduced or moderated …

Rural Retiree Volunteer Motivations For Nonfamily-Based Intergenerational Communication, Jennifer Jm. Salisbury

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Several decades of research document a growing communication gap between older adults and younger generations, with retirees limiting the information they share with younger generations. This limitation is often due to older adults' low self-efficacy and technology as a communication distraction, a trend which has resulted in the loss of intellectual capital for younger generations. The purpose of the study was to understand and increase knowledge transfer between retirees and unrelated younger people in a rural Canadian community. Communication theory of identity and social cognitive theory provided the research frameworks. The research questions examined what knowledge retirees could pass down, …

Leadership Styles And Nursing Satisfaction Rates, Wilma Lee Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this project was to translate evidence-based literature into policy and practice guidelines in order to improve leadership standards and skills among nurse managers and improve patient outcomes and the quality of care. Guided by the American Nurses Credentialing Center Magnet Model and Lewin's change theory, which sets the framework for creating exceptional nursing leaders, a literature search was conducted from studies ranging from 2010 to 2012 from several databases. Inclusion criteria were based on the presence of one or more leadership styles discussed in the articles and the impact of leadership style on nursing satisfaction. A total …

Authentic Instruction And Achievement Of Fifth Grade Charter School Students, Novea Mcintosh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students' performance on standardized tests continues to dominate the discourse in the educational arena as it reflects student growth and teacher performance. The low performance index scores of 5th grade students at 2 elementary charter schools in urban southwestern Ohio has been a major concern of the school district. Guided by social constructivism, the purpose of this research study was to identify curricular practices that influence student academic achievement. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 4 reading teachers and 2 administrators; curriculum maps, tests scores, and lesson plan documents were also reviewed. Interview, test score, and lesson plan documents were analyzed …

Relationship Of Teacher Training Levels To Teacher Referrals For Twice Exceptional Students, Robin A. Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although previous studies have acknowledged the role of teacher training in working with children with special needs, none have investigated the relationship between teacher training and referrals. There is a need to understand the factors that affect K-12 classroom teachers' referrals of twice exceptional (2E) students into gifted programs. Supported by the optimal stimulation theory, the purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there is a relationship between teacher training and 2E student referrals. The survey method was used to collect data from 102 K-12 teachers in the Ohio school district on their teaching credentials, ranging from no …

Standardized Professional Development Content Validation For Educators, Sara J. Sharp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Educators in a low socioeconomic urban school district have been concerned with the quality of professional development (PD) training provided by the district. This issue affects students, parents, and teachers. Guided by the educational philosophy of inquiry and community, which hold that empowering teachers with validated PD could improve teacher pedagogy and perhaps academic outcomes, this project study examined (a) what benefits a standardized professional development content validation program for the 21st century can provide and, (b) what standardized professional development content validation for the 21st century looks like. A sequential exploratory mixed-methods design was used on a purposive sample …

Improving Community College Faculty Effectiveness Through Technology-Based Learning Communities, David Mark Peter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

College faculty members are often inadequately prepared to use technology in their classrooms. They often learn technology without institutional support, and without understanding technology's impact on student learning. As a result of these shortcomings, the use of technology in the college classroom is often not systematic or focused on improving learning. This study used a conceptual framework based on Wenger's learning community or community of practice idea. This study examined a Midwestern university where faculty made only limited use of classroom technology and did not demonstrate contemporary approaches to student learning. The study set out to determine the impact of …

Service-Learning And Jesuit Pedagogy: A Critical Analysis, Nichol Elizabeth Hooker

Dissertations

Service-learning and Jesuit pedagogy have each been the subject of numerous studies and journal articles, particularly throughout the last 40 years. The purpose of this study was to connect these two bodies of research and identify fundamental characteristics that must be present in order for service-learning to conform to Jesuit pedagogy. This study includes an analysis of the core documents of Jesuit education, an examination of research pertaining to service-learning, and a review of literature related to identity development, reflection, social justice, and cultural immersion. The result is a framework of five characteristics (social justice, solidarity, service, reflection, and academic …

Leading With Love: The Confluence Of Spirituality And Leadership In College Students, Eileen Patricia Doherty

Dissertations

This study explored the relationship between spirituality and leadership in college students, creating a conceptual framework for student spiritual leadership. Based in the prior work of leadership theory, college student leadership development, faith development, spiritual leadership, spirituality in higher education, and the environment of faith-based institutions, this research built upon previous research to create a framework for future study.

Using a case study method that considered a specific context, fourth-year students at a mid-size Catholic institution were interviewed, along with faculty and staff who offered observations of the students. While these students are a small sample of the college student …

An Exploratory Study Of The Curricular Integration Of Ethics In Executive Mba Programs, Jaime M. Franco

Dissertations

An Exploratory Study of the Curricular Integration of Ethics in Executive MBA Programs

News headlines of corporate scandals have unleashed a contentious debate of whether or not graduate management education has contributed to corporate collapses and the resultant financial crisis. In particular, questions abound as to the willingness of Executive MBA program (EMBA) administrators and faculty to integrate ethics into the curriculum.

A sizable amount of research has been conducted and published on the curricular integration of ethics in graduate management education. Unfortunately, very little is known about the curricular integration of ethics in EMBA programs. Over time, the number …

To Advance A Race: A Historical Analysis Of The Intersection Of Personal Belief, Industrial Philanthropy And Black Liberal Arts Higher Education In Fayette Mckenzie's Presidency At Fisk University, 1915-1925, Christopher Nicholson

Dissertations

This dissertation used archival and historical methods to examine Fayette Avery McKenzie's tenure as President at Fisk University from 1915-1925. Specifically, this project investigates the influence McKenzie's work with Native Americans, industrial philanthropy, and American culture of the period played in McKenzie's administration. The research seeks to provide a more complete narrative of McKenzie's administration that is absent from current scholarship, and examine how McKenzie's work at Fisk helped advance Black liberal arts higher education. Analysis of McKenzie's personal papers and other primary and secondary sources provide a strong scholarly basis to examine his administration from multiple perspectives. Through an …

What Books Don't Tell You: Teacher-Eye-View Of Universal Design For Learning And The Implementation Process, Marylou Hatley

Dissertations

This study examines teacher perceptions of universal design for learning (UDL) and the systemic changes that might occur during implementation. The study compares differences in teacher perceptions based upon implementation year. Classroom observations, interviews, and survey of teachers and administrators from one Midwestern school district provide data for this study. Results of this study show that overall teachers feel positive about implementing UDL. Teachers experience both successes and obstacles during the implementation of UDL. Teachers have differing views of what UDL is supposed to look like in the classroom and many teachers are unsure of how to apply UDL into …

The Relationship Between Transformational Leadership And The Emotional And Social Competence Of The School Leader, David Saxe

Dissertations

Sustainable school reform efforts are needed to move schools closer toward the ideals of equity, justice and success for every student. The success or failure of a school and its students often hinges on the effectiveness of leadership. Research reveals that transformational school leaders become effective change agents by developing a shared vision for the school, building consensus around key priorities, holding high expectations, providing support, modeling appropriate values and building collaborative cultures and shared leadership. The purpose of this study is to examine the predictive relationship between the emotional and social competence and transformational leadership behaviors of school principals. …

Customer Relationship Marketing By Destination Marketing Organizations Does It Lead To Favorable Behavioral Intentions To Meeting Planners?, Jumyong Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In convention market, one of the fastest growing sectors in hospitality industry, meeting planners play an important role to select a destination for their event. Therefore, a good relationship with them can be a competitive advantage for a convention destination considering a fierce competition among the destinations. The objective of this study is to develop an empirically valid relationship marketing (RM) model that would verify the antecedents, mediators, and consequence of the relationship between the destination marketing organization (DMO) and meeting planners. This study found three antecedents (i.e., customer orientation, familiarity, and reputation) of the RM mediating constructs that consist …

The Synergies Between Tourism Expansion And Development An Analysis Of Economic Growth, Poverty And Human Development In Ecuador, Manuel Antonio Rivera

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation attempts to answer the question of what has been the effect of tourism expansion and development in Ecuador. We attempt to analyze, both theoretically and empirically, the relationship between tourism and development. There have been an enormous number of studies explaining how tourism can affect the various dimensions of development. However, no research has been undertaken to simultaneously empirically examine the impact that changes in tourism expansion has on poverty, human development, and economic growth. To this end, we propose a cointergation methodology with an error correction model to estimate the impact of tourism expansion on poverty, human …

The Effect Of Two Reading Programs On First Grade Students' Reading Fluency, Christy Stewart Bowling

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School districts struggle to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in reading in first grade. Nine percent of first grade students at the study site were not meeting state performance standards in the area of language arts. Specifically in the area of fluency, 38% of first grade students were not achieving AYP. Because of the close connection between oral fluency and early reading achievement, first grade students need to be more fluent to attain state standards. Based on LaBerge and Samuels theory of automaticity within reading fluency, the purpose of this study was to identify the impact of the Scholastic Guided …

Use Of Professional Development To Improve Attitudes Of General Educators Towards Inclusion, Ginger Dodge-Quick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study involved the inclusion of special needs students in the general education classroom as required by law. The problem centered on general educators' perceptions of their abilities to meet the education needs of included students and their lack of training in special education issues. Research questions studied perceptions general educators had regarding inclusion and whether professional development addressed those concerns, and improved their perception of inclusion. The Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) was the conceptual framework utilized throughout the sequential mixed-methods case study. Quantitative data of teachers' concerns were determined using the Survey of Concerns Questionnaire from the CBAM …

Female Students' Experiences In An Old Testament Bible Course At A Christian University, Janet K. Puls

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Previous research has shown that 80% of college students have reported they are interested in spirituality. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of female students while studying Old Testament scriptures as part of their required liberal arts curriculum and to describe how their experiences affected their lives, spiritually or in other ways. While there is a small but growing body of survey data about students' interest in spirituality, a gap exists regarding how or in what ways required biblical curriculum affects students spiritually at Christian liberal arts universities. Fowler's faith stages, Gibson's model for spiritual …

Responses Of Successful Latina Students To Academic Challenges Of Prerequisite Nursing Courses, Julie Wiggins Nadeau

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nursing schools struggle to prepare enough nurses to meet the health care needs of a diverse and aging population in the United States. Many students do not complete their degrees, contributing to the problem. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore and describe how successful Latina students experience and respond to the academic challenges of prerequisite nursing courses. The nursing shortage; healthcare needs of Hispanic patients; student outcomes; self-efficacy, achievement goal orientation, and academic help-seeking; and Hispanic cultural values framed the study. Using semistructured private interviews, the researcher explored the lived experiences of 6 successful Latina students when …

Professional Development For K--12 Charter School Teachers In Jersey City: Effects On Student Achievement, Davidson Okere

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Continuous workforce training programs are important for business productivity. Traditional professional development practices (those that make teachers passive consumers of knowledge) may no longer satisfy the need for teachers' professional growth and for student achievement as measured by test scores. The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental study was to consider the importance of professional development and collegiality (teacher collaboration) on student achievement. This study was based on Piaget's constructivism. The research question asked whether teachers thought collegial professional development and management's support helped teachers improve student achievement based upon the type of professional development (PD) employed at their schools. The …

The Impact Of Technology On The Development Of Expertise And Teacher Beliefs, Diane Robinson Penland

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although successful integration of technology into classrooms has proven beneficial to the learning process, little is yet known about how teachers respond to the introduction of technology and why some choose to use it while others do not. Using Sandoltz' stages of teacher technology adoption as a framework, this multiple case study utilized historical data that captured the experiences of teachers in 2001--2002 to determine the process of teachers' adoption of innovations into existing classroom practices. Participants included a purposive sample of eight 5th- and 6th-grade teachers from 3 schools. Data sources included teacher interviews, classroom observations, and video recordings …