Education Commons^™

Deliberate Use Of Creative Problem Solving In Art Making, Rebecca Dame-Seidler

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project explores the productivity of the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) tools in the visual art making process. The project offered the opportunity for high school student volunteer’s to participate in an after school program called Creative Art Group Experience (CAGE). Volunteers learned and made use of CPS tools to guide their art making. The project researched the effectiveness of using CPS tools in art making documenting volunteer progress and feedback. As an art educator, I had the opportunity to evaluate the impact of using CPS tools with the art-making process. The results of CAGE will benefit how CPS tools …

South Mississippi High School Seniors’ Perceptions Of Civic Duties And Responsibilities, Chelsea L. Lewis

Honors Theses

Former United States Representative Lee Hamilton once explained what it takes to be a citizen of the United Stated. He stated, “Citizenship requires both knowledge about government and the ability to be involved in governance. It means knowing how to identify and inform oneself about issues, explore and evaluate possible solutions, and then act to resolve problems. It demands that you know how to interact respectfully with others. And it asks that you accept responsibility for meeting your community’s and the nation’s challenges.” (Hamilton, 1) This quote comes from a well-known civics program used in American high schools today called …

The Accidental College Student, Phyliss Dubinsky Shey

Masters Theses

This narrative study began as a retrospective of an in-depth interview study with a young woman who navigated the move from a large, suburban school system in the mid-Atlantic region before the fifth grade to a small, isolated rural school in Southern Appalachia in the 1990s. She graduated from the only high school serving the county in which she lived. Over the course of two formal interviews, hundreds of informal conversations for more than ten years, and particularly through writing this analysis (Goodall, 2000), I realized that even though there were vast differences between our ages, cultural backgrounds, and current …

Experiences Of Suburban And Rural High School Principals Who Have Attained Longevity In The Position: A Qualitative Study, Peggy A. Mathis

Dissertations

Today’s school leaders face many challenges. There is a renewed need to look at principal’s job satisfaction and longevity given recent trends in burnout, increased accountability, and a shortage of qualified candidates. There are conflicting demands on high school principals’ time and capacity. These leaders still have the traditional responsibilities of ensuring a safe environment, managing a budget, and maintaining discipline. Higher expectations for student success have brought with them an increase in school program expectations (DiPaola & Tschannen-Moran, 2003).

The job of the principal has changed throughout the years (DiPaola & Tschannen-Moran, 2003; White-Smith & White, 2009). The shift …

Attending High School Algebra I: In Search Of Well-Managed, Engaging, Culturally Relevant, And Caring Classrooms, Cassandra Dunn Gannett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The inequities in learning between the rich and the poor have become pervasive in United States. This is evidenced by the high school graduation rates, college attendance percentages, and employment statistics. Upon another wave of reform, the Common Core State Standards in mathematics are currently being adopted in hopes of increasing learning for all students, with a focus on college and career readiness. This study is intent on finding ways to remedy the inequities in mathematics between the high income and low income schools by focusing on one of the great glass ceilings to high school graduation and beyond, high …

Characterizing And Supporting Change In Algebra Students' Representational Fluency In A Cas/Paper-And-Pencil Environment, Nicole L. Fonger

Dissertations

Representational fluency (RF) includes an ability to interpret, create, move within and among, and connect tool-based representations of mathematical objects. Taken as an indicator of conceptual understanding, there is a need to better support school algebra students’ RF in learning environments that utilize both computer algebra systems (CAS) and paper-and-pencil. The purpose of this research was to: (a) characterize change in ninth-grade algebra students’ RF in solving problems involving linear equations, and (b) determine conditions of a CAS and paper-and-pencil learning environment in which those students changed their RF.

Change in RF was measured by comparing results from initial to …

Black Students' Perspectives On Academic Success, Melanie-Anne P. Atkins

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis investigates the academic achievement of Black high school students. It employs a theoretical framework of social constructivism grounded in anti-racism to conduct five case studies of achieving black Canadian high school students to examine how these students managed to achieve in the midst of a system that predicts their failure. I asked three questions: (1) What factors do achieving black Canadian high school students identify as being helpful to their academic achievement? (2) How do these students perceive their racial identities? (3) What is the significance of these students’ racial identity at school? I found that these students …

A Qualitative Analysis Of High School Students' Experiences In The Latinos In Action Program, Johann Paul Simonds

Theses and Dissertations

This research was a qualitative program evaluation of students' perceptions of Latinos in Action (LIA), a peer-mentoring program that seeks to improve high school Latino graduation rates and college admittance. The study was conducted with college students who participated in the program in high school. LIA graduates were interviewed to determine what major factors influenced and supported them in their academic decisions. Additional data included an interview with the program director, results from the High School Survey of Student Engagement (HSSSE), and a video of one of the interviewees. The researcher explored students' experiences in the LIA program with the …

Science Self-Efficacy And School Transitions: Elementary School To Middle School And Middle School To High School, Brandi Lue Lofgran

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the science self-efficacy beliefs of students before and after transitions from elementary to middle school and middle school to high school. The purpose was to explore whether those beliefs changed with grade level, gender, and ethnicity. Data were collected through a modified Self-Efficacy Questionnaire for Children (Muris, 2001), which was adapted to focus on science self-efficacy. Multiple ordinary least squares regression was used to analyze the data. All grade levels showed a clear decline in science self-efficacy after sixth grade with females, Hispanic students, and ninth graders showing the greatest decline in science self-efficacy.

Computer-Based Sex Education For High School Students, Ashley Jones

Evidence-Based Practice Project Reports

Adolescents are four times more likely than other age groups to contract chlamydia or gonorrhea. In the USA, young people between 15 to 24 years of age acquire almost half of all newly diagnosed sexually transmitted infections (STI) a year. The purpose of this computer-based sex education EBP project was to increase student knowledge regarding transmission, disease process, and treatment for STIs, as well as to reduce high risk sexual behaviors. The evidence-based practice model for change and the Modeling, Role-Modeling nursing theory guided this project. Computer-based sex education is supported in research. Articles critiqued, utilizing Melnyk and Fineout-Overholt (2011) …

Exploring The Nature Of High School Student Engagement With Science And Technology As An Outcome Of Participation In Science Journalism, Jennifer M.G. Hope

Dissertations

In a mixed-methods study of high school student participants in the National Science Foundation-funded Science Literacy through Science Journalism (SciJourn) project, the new Youth Engagement with Science & Technology (YEST) Survey and classroom case studies were used to determine program impact on participant engagement with science and technology as well as describe the experience of SciJourn students. Student engagement with science and technology is considered as a construct made up of three components: student action, interest, and identification. Analysis of quasi-experimental administration of the (YEST) Survey resulted in rejection of the hypotheses that SciJourn high school student participants would exhibit …

School Facility Design: Are We Asking The Right People?, Dale C. Jerome

Ed.D. Dissertations

Realizing the need for changes in the design of new school facilities, architects and educators must reach beyond the norms of past designs. This mixed-methods study was conducted at four recently completed high schools. Questionnaires were utilized in the initial phase of research to identify statistically significant differences between the perceptions of teachers and students regarding the physical design characteristics of their learning environment. Structured interview sessions were then conducted with teachers, principals, and architects, to understand their perceptions regarding the involvement of students in the design and planning process of school facilities, and indicated the importance of providing a …

Fortifying The Pipeline: An Exploratory Study Of High School Factors Impacting The Information Literacy Of First-Year College Students, Jennifer L. Fabbi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Information literacy—the ability "to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information” (American Library Association [ALA], 1989, para. 3)—has been widely and increasingly cited as an essential competency for college success, for the workplace, and for life (Bruce, 1997; Eisenberg, 2008; Fitzgerald, 2004; Johnston & Webber, 2003; National Leadership Council for Liberal Education and America’s Promise, 2007; Obama, 2009; Rader, 2002). Information literacy best practice and standards state that students optimally develop this skill set through immersion in the research process—often and over time—and this proposition is also supported in …

The Impact Of Extracurricular Activities On Student Achievement At The High School Level, Steven Wesley Craft

Dissertations

The pressure applied on public schools to increase test scores and student achievement are reaching the highest levels ever seen in the United States. School systems are trying to find ways to increase student achievement while dealing with severe budget cuts. Many school systems are exploring the possibility of decreasing or suspending funding for extracurricular activities. This study explored the relationship between student achievement and participation in extracurricular activities. The study focused on the impact that participation in extracurricular activities had grade point average, absentee rate, SAT scores, and success on the Georgia High School Graduation Test. In order to …

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Implications For School Systems And School Personnel, Carmen Y. Ward

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT A crucial issue facing our educational system is the changing family structure, particularly the increase in the number of children being raised by their grandparents. Many of these children live in a situation that places them at risk academically. Thus, it is vital that the educational system consider identifying the special needs of these children to provide supports. This study aimed to identify support services that middle school and high school grandparents perceived they needed from school systems and school personnel to ensure the educational success of their grandchildren. I developed a survey based on concerns and issues that …

The Effect Of The Engineering Design Process On The Critical Thinking Skills Of High School Students, Heather Ure

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the research reported here was to determine the impact learning the engineering design process (EDP) would have on the critical thinking skills of high school physics students. An EDP unit was conducted with 5 classes of high school physics students in grades 10-12 over 1 month. The EDP unit's curriculum allowed for the gradual release of responsibility as students became more familiar with the EDP and more consistent in using it. The six steps used in this EDP unit were Ask, Imagine, Plan, Create, Test, and Improve. The Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal was given as a pre- …

The Relationship Between Reading Coaches' Utilization Of Data Technology And Teacher Development, Cherie Allen Behrens

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of technology in assisting educators to use student data in well-devised ways to enhance the instruction received by students is gaining headway and the support of federal dollars across the nation. Since research has not provided insight as to whether or not reading coaches are using data technology tools with teachers, this mixed methods study sought to examine what behavioral intentions reading coaches have in using data technology tools with teachers, what variables may influence their behavioral intentions, and what trends may emerge in their views about using technology data tools with teachers. A mixed methods approach was …

The Effects Of Teacher And Student Satisfaction On Student Achievement, Sean Mcwherter

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation was designed to examine factors contributing to both teacher and student satisfaction and to determine if a relationship existed between the satisfaction levels and student achievement. The contributing factors identified in this study consisted of items that could be influenced or controlled in the school environment. Maslow's (1943) hierarchy of needs was used to help identify factors that could contribute to teacher and student satisfaction.

The subjects for this quantitative study came from a rural high school in the southern part of the United States. The participants in this study were analyzed according to their level of curricular …

The Impact Of Using A Computer Algebra System In High School Calculus On High Performing Students' Conceptual And Procedural Understanding, Zyad Bawatneh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recently, there has been an increasing interest in high school mathematics education, especially in the teaching and learning of calculus. For example, studies conducted by Bressoud (2010); Judson and Nishimori (2005); Koh and Divaharan (2011); and St. Jarre (2008) all looked at how to improve the understanding of calculus students and what roles the educator must take to ensure that their students are successful. The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a significant difference between instruction using computer algebra system (CAS) compared to instruction using the graphing calculator in high school calculus on students’ conceptual and …

Talking Circles For Adolescent Girls In An Urban High School: A Restorative Practices Program For Building Friendships And Developing Emotional Literacy Skills, Martha Ann Schumacher

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

TALKING CIRCLES FOR ADOLESCENT GIRLS

IN AN URBAN HIGH SCHOOL: A RESTORATIVE PRACTCES' PROGRAM FOR BUILDING FRIENDHIPS AND DEVELOPING

EMOTIONAL LITERACY SKILLS

by

MARTHA ANN SCHUMACHER

DECEMBER 2012

ADVISOR: Dr. Loraleigh Keashly

MAJOR: Communication

DEGREE: Doctor of Philosophy

Restorative Practices and Restorative Justice programs in schools are a new and emerging field. Meeting in Circles to build community, resolve conflict, and learn interactively are core components of these programs. This ethnographic study, which took place February 2010 to December 2011, evaluates 12 small, out-of-classroom Talking Circles for 60 adolescent girls as part of a Restorative Practices program in an …