Education Commons^™

The Rebel Leader: A Sequential Explanatory Mixed Methods Analysis Of Rebel Superintendents In Suburban Public Schools, Christopher Leigh Finch

Dissertations

The term rebel is virtually nonexistent in academic literature within the field of educational leadership and maintains a generally negative connotation. This research is intended to cast the term in a new light and allow for conceptualization of the word as a positive descriptor for educational leaders. This study explored the impact and efficacy of rebel superintendents within suburban K-12 public school districts. Following a sequential explanatory mixed method design, participant selection was conducted using the Kirton Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI) as a quantitative participant selection tool. Nine superintendents were identified using the KAI and interviewed. Three superintendents were identified as …

An Investigation Of Chinese Graduate Student Understanding Of Academic Integrity In U'S Higher Education, James E. Hammerschmidt

Dissertations

Recent studies suggest that plagiarism in U.S. higher education may be more of an issue among Chinese graduate students. When Chinese graduate students are accused of plagiarizing an implicit assumption often exists that poor language skills or lack of integrity may be the cause. The failure to consider cross-cultural issues in learning may have led to these views. An examination of previous learning experiences in the Chinese graduate student's home country was needed in order to obtain a deeper understanding of how culture enters into their understanding of academic dishonesty. This study seeks to a.) explore the understanding and meaning …

Addressing The Issue Of Meta-Analysis Multiplicity In Education And Psychology, Joshua R. Polanin

Dissertations

The concept of multiplicity, conducting multiple statistical significance tests in one study, has pervaded primary research over the last 7 decades (Hochberg & Tamhane, 1987). This continued discussion was due to the fact that multiplicity increases the probability of committing a Type 1 error (i.e., deriving a false conclusion). Little attention has been paid, unfortunately, to multiplicity in meta-analysis (Tendal, Nuesch, Higgins, Juni, & Gotzsche, 2011) and calls have been made for meta-analysis methodologists to address this critical issue (Bender et al., 2008). As such, the purpose and significance of this project was to answer these calls by formally quantifying …

Examining Predictive Validity And Rates Of Growth In Curriculum-Based Measurement With English Language Learners In The Intermediate Grades, Ella Farmer

Dissertations

In the current educational climate, school districts and states are being held accountable for the progress of all students. Students who speak another language at home and have limited English proficiency, known as English Language Learners (ELLs), continue to underperform when compared to English proficient peers. The purpose of the study was to determine whether a brief, standardized reading fluency probe (R-CBM) is an effective tool for measuring growth over time and identifying students at risk of failure of a state standards test, considering ELL status. Archival data was used with a sample of 1,056 students in fourth through sixth …

An Event History Analysis On The Effects Of Academic Integration Factors On Degree Completion Of Low-Income Underrepresented Minority Students, Lisa Marie Metzger-Mugg

Dissertations

Disparities in educational outcomes still exist for low-income and underrepresented students. Community colleges are an important entry point for student groups that have faced the most significant barriers to success. Community colleges account for almost half of all undergraduate enrollments in the United States and also enroll a higher proportion of low-income and minority students (American Association of Community Colleges, 2012; Aud, Hussar, Johnson, Kena, & Roth, 2012). The purpose of this study was to examine the timing of academic integration factors that contribute to degree completion of low income, underrepresented minority community college students over the course of seven …

A Case Study Of A Mixed Methods Study Engaged In Integrated Data Analysis, Daniela Marie Schiazza

Dissertations

The nascent field of mixed methods research has yet to develop a cohesive framework of guidelines and procedures for mixed methods data analysis (Greene, 2008). To support the field's development of analytical frameworks, this case study reflects on the development and implementation of a mixed methods study engaged in integrated data analysis. The purpose of this study is to describe how inquiry and methodological components influence integrated data analysis decisions, and to describe the processes and outcomes of engaging in integrated data analysis. The sample for this case study is a mixed methods study that was developed within the context …

Consumer Engagement In Travel-Related Social Media, Xu Li

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The term of "consumer engagement" is extensively used in the digital era. It is believed that engaged consumers play an important role in products/services referral and recommendation, new product/service development and experience/value co-creation. Although the notion of consumer engagement sounds compelling, it is not fully developed in theory. Different interpretations coexist, resulting in confusion and misuse of the concept. This study attempts to define consumer engagement and develop a conceptual framework of consumer engagement, addressing antecedents of consumer engagement in online context. Moreover, some situational and social media usage-related factors are incorporated into the framework. A set of propositions are …

An Exploratory Study Of Customer Vulnerability: A Cross-Segment Approach, Taryn Aiello

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore the concept of customer vulnerability across varying service industries. While the concept of customer vulnerability has been debated in business, marketing, sociology, and psychology scholarly literature, there has been little research conducted that specifically investigates consumers’ perceptions of vulnerability during the service exchange. Specific to this research, customer vulnerability is defined as experiences in which consumers participate in a service exchange with a firm during a time of individual or shared medical, physical, emotional, or spiritual necessity, whether the vulnerability is experienced during the course of the transaction or whether consumers arrive …

Making Higher Education More Affordable, One Course Reading At A Time: Academic Libraries As Key Advocates For Open Access Textbooks And Educational Resources, Karen Okamoto

Publications and Research

Open access textbooks (OATs) and educational resources (OERs) are being lauded as a viable alternative to costly print textbooks. Some academic libraries are joining the OER movement by creating guides to open repositories. Others are promoting OATs and OERs, reviewing them, and even helping to create them. This article analyzes how academic libraries are currently engaged in open access textbook and OER initiatives. By drawing on examples of library initiatives across the United States, the author illustrates how libraries are facilitating the adoption and implementation of these affordable resources.

Stage As Street: Representation At The Juncture Of The Arts And Justice, E. Gabriel Dattatreyan, Daniel L. Stageman

Publications and Research

Arts educators working with court-involved youth face a set of complex and imbricated challenges. First, how do we gain the interest of the young people we would have participate in what we imagine are col-laborative and mutually generative projects? Second, how do we mediate representational tensions when the project is not solely therapeutic but has a broader public pedagogical purpose—to disrupt the simplistic and pathologizing discourses of poverty and violence that so often capture young men and women of color in the United States? (Bourgois, 2002; Noguera, 2008). Third, and not least, how do we navigate the institutional settings where …

Alchemy And Inquiry: Reflections On An Inside-Out Research Roundtable, Sarah Allred, Angela Bryant, Simone Weil Davis, Kurt Fowler, Phil Goodman, Jim Nolan, Lori Pompa, Barbara Sherr Roswell, Daniel L. Stageman

Publications and Research

In 2008, The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program convened a Research Committee to (1) facilitate a collective, critical, and professional consciousness about social justice, crime, and incarceration through the exploration of the Inside-Out program pedagogy, impact, and effectiveness; (2) develop and encourage proposals for various types of research that focus on The Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program; and (3) establish ethical guidelines for inquiry that would meet and exceed the federal human subjects guidelines in research practices. In fall 2012, Research Committee members Sarah Allred, Angela Bryant, Phil Goodman, Kurt Fowler, Jim Nolan, Lori Pompa, and Dan Stageman joined with Simone Davis …

Acute Coronary Syndromes: Current Treatment Guidelines And Updates, Bernard Lau, Michael Lee, Thien Tran, Laura Tsu

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

This home-study CPE activity has been developed to educate pharmacists on acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and its medical management.

Variceal Bleeding From Cirrhosis: A Clinical Review Of Causes And Pharmacotherapy Options, Hillary Aphaisuwan, Ibrahim Lala, Laura Tsu

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

This home-study CPE activity has been developed to educate pharmacists on the prevention and treatment of hemorrhagic esophageal varices resulting from cirrhosis.

Letter From The Editor, Christina Belcher

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

I have been contemplating my Sunday church service, where the meditation was based on finding peace even in times of productivity, from Philippians 4:6-9. As our academic calendars change gear and progress to a difference pace, giving us space for more peace that may allow more meditative reading, I invite you to join with me in reading our Summer Issue 8(2) of the ICCTE journal. Already, we are receiving and processing manuscripts for our Fall Issue. God has been good to us.

Exposing The Roots Of Low Self-Efficacy For Math: A Multi-Case Study Of Students In An Urban Middle School, Joshua Emmett, Daniel Hall, Corey Mckenna

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

This multi-case study of historically low-performing 7th grade students in a math class at an urban middle school employed a theoretical framework based upon Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory to discover the causes of low self-efficacy for math. The study utilized a cross-case analysis of four students who demonstrated varying degrees of self-efficacy. To serve students similarly situated, Christian teachers need to know what these students are experiencing and an understanding of the causes of low self-efficacy can inform their professional practice. Christian teacher educators can also benefit from understanding the context into which teachers of such students will serve so …

Servant Leadership: Making A Difference In University Tesl Programs, Sarah Tahtinen-Pacheco

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

Teaching English as a Second Language is a broad field with programs designed to teach students from all languages and cultures around the world. Currently, the field is facing an urgent need for qualified teachers and leaders due to increasingly high numbers of immigrants and refugees. To meet this challenge, universities must have a plan for adequately preparing teachers to work with the growing population of non-native English learners.

Creating these programs require an understanding of ways to support English learners academically, linguistically, and culturally as they transition into English speaking schools. Based on the need for support, this article …

Late Registration And Student Success In On-Campus And Online Classes, Patrick Tompkins

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The study examined the effect of late registration into on-campus and online classes upon student performance when accounting for completion of a college success skills course and the demographic factors of sex, race/ethnicity, age, and full-time/part-time enrollment status. The data source was 2010-2013 ex post facto data from 23 colleges in a large community college system in the southeastern United States. The statistical method of binary logistic regression was applied to the data. The regression models failed to yield strong predictions of the association between registration timing and student success. Coupled with previous studies, this study demonstrated that the presumed …

Practice Makes Perfect? A Retrospective Look At A Community Of Practice, Ramirose Ilene Attebury, Robert Perret, Jeremy Kenyon, Deborah Green

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Communities of practice have been touted in the organizational literature as an effective form of professional development in the workplace. When the University of Idaho Library faculty created one in the fall of 2008, they hoped the group would enhance new librarians’ understanding of publication requirements and research methods. Although the community seemed healthy during its first year, problems arose in subsequent years that led to its decline. Seeking to understand the nature of this decline, the authors conducted a survey and initiated a focus group discussion of former members. Analysis of data led the authors to identify three themes …

Development Of A Taxonomy For Key Terms In Mathematics Education And Its Use In A Digital Repository, Pedro Gómez, María C. Cañadas Dr.

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Although mathematics education is a young discipline, it has developed rapidly over the last 40 years. During this time, the community of mathematics education researchers, teachers’ trainers, and mathematics teachers has produced a large quantity of literature published in books, journals, and conference proceedings and on Internet, among other sources. Yet there is currently no taxonomy of key terms for the systematic classification of the documents in this discipline. In this article, we present the procedure by which we constructed a taxonomy for Funes, a digital repository of documents in mathematics education. We establish the conceptual framework on which the …

Cataloging And Classification Skills Of Library And Information Science Practitioners In Their Workplaces: A Case Analysis, David A. Cabonero, Russell B. Dolendo

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Information resources are useless when access is not provided. This fundamental function is within the concept of cataloging. Thus, cataloging is an essential process that provides access to all acquired information resources of the library for it allows people to find information needed for their personal and professional growth and development. It also provides access points to information resources in a way that users will be able to find the need information or resources.

With this, the study determined the cataloging and classification skills of library and information science graduates which is centered on assessing the cataloging and classification skills …

A Survey Of Literacy Instruction In Public Preschool Programs In Iowa, Anne Marie Berthelsen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This paper focuses on the importance of emergent literacy instruction with preschool populations. Emergent literacy refers to the early developmental stages of reading in preschool children and focuses on strengthening pre-reading skills. This paper describes best practice for survey development as well as recommended changes to the methodology of a previous study. The paper also describes changes made to improve the previous emergent literacy survey and concludes with a discussion of how the results of the survey could be used to improve emergent literacy instruction for preschool children.

School Wide Positive Behavioral And Intervention Supports : The Effectiveness Of Tier 1 Strategies, Gregory James Halsor

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This literature review critically examines the effectiveness of Tier 1 Positive Behavioral and Intervention Supports (SWPBIS). Managing problem behavior in the school setting has been a major focus of educators, with the goal of lowering classroom disruptions and increasing the effectiveness of learning.

Over the years, school wide behavior management programs have not been consistent or widespread leading educators to identify disruptive behavior as a primary concern in their classrooms. SWPBIS emphasizes the integration of measurable outcomes, data-based decision making, and evidence based interventions. Research on the implementation of SWPBIS in schools has displayed positive effects related to decreasing the …

Leading Through Change: A Study Of The Role Of Central Office Leadership In The Process Of Secondary Change, Dirk A. Halupnik

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to more fully understand the actions of district level leaders in a major change effort and their effects on the change process. Furthermore this study aimed to provide additional information about the factors that school district central office administrators confront when making the decision to add another high school and the actions taken by these administrators to lead the district through this process so that other school districts and leaders may learn from this. The methodology for this study was a qualitative case study approach in which central office leaders in a district that …

Providing Academic Access To Individuals With Significant Disabilties [Sic], Lindsey Jill Frandsen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Academic access to the general education curriculum for individuals with significant disabilities poses many challenges for educators. With the implementation of the Essential Elements in the summer of 2013, educators will have a new instructional framework for providing access to their students. Within this thesis I have explored the challenges educators face in regards to facilitating academic access for students with significant support needs through the use of focus group interviews, and provide a literature review demonstrating where schools have been in regards to providing access, and where they are headed.

Mental Illness And Schools: An Examination Of How Schools Are Providing Supports And Services To Students With Mental Health Concerns, Nikki Leigh King

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This purpose of this study was to explore the educational experiences of an individual entitled to services through the labels of an intellectual disability and a mental health concern. The study employed qualitative methodologies and methods, through the use of a life/oral history, which allowed the researcher to interview the participant to gain a deeper understanding of the school experiences pertaining to a student with a mental health concern. The study concluded that authentic and individualized supports and services are needed as well as promoting meaningful relationships. Study considerations and future studies are discussed at the end.

Accountability And Quality In Higher Education: A Case Study, Trudy Abadie-Mendia

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to gain a deep and rich understanding of the accountability process at a regional comprehensive university in the Southeast United States. Specifically, the present study sought to answer the following question: How is a regional comprehensive university in the Southeast United States substantiating the quality of undergraduate professional programs and the success of graduates. The study utilized a qualitative research methodology, specifically a descriptive embedded case study design. A total of 16 interviews were conducted with participants representing the program level, college level, and administrative level. Three subunits of investigation provided the program …

Perceptions Of Secondary Intensive Reading Teachers Regardingthe Implementation Of Florida's Reading Policy, Rebekah R. Shively

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research was designed to explore the perceptions of secondary reading teachers regarding their experiences while they implemented Florida’s secondary intensive reading policy. The purpose of this research was to obtain feedback on the policy implementation process for continuous improvement in future policy implementation. This research was qualitatively designed and conducted with three focus groups consisting of secondary intensive reading teachers from three Florida counties respectively, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns.

The bounding theoretical and conceptual frames of this study were founded in political systems theory and shared leadership. The data from this study were compiled from three focus groups …

Postsecondary Mathematics Placement Processes: A Case Study At A Regional University, Debora Jean Simonson

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the study was to explore the effectiveness of the mathematics placement process for incoming freshman at a public university. Effectiveness is defined as the percentage of students who successfully complete the mathematics course they were placed into, Precalculus, College Algebra, or Intensive College Algebra. The specific university in this research study was the University of North Florida (UNF). The placement process at UNF included students’ ACT, SAT, or FCPT scores, their mathematics placement exam scores (MPE), and whether or not students followed the placement recommendation (FPR). Students’ ACT, SAT, or FCPT scores were grouped into a …

The Effects Of An Intervention That Includes In-Class Coaching On Preschool Teachers And Children, Amber K. Oliveira

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The impact of high quality early learning experiences on a child's development is profound. Teacher quality has been deemed an important predictor of classroom quality, but currently teachers in Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) in the state of Florida are required to meet minimal training requirements. The purpose of this study was to examine an intervention including in-class coaching as a means of professional development to better prepare preschool teachers. The present study included and examination of the changes in environmental quality, child outcomes, and teacher perceptions after the intervention. Scores obtained were compared before and after the intervention. A two-tailed t-test …

Student Sucess And Retention : Critical Factors For Success In The Online Environment, Melanie Clark

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

This study was designed to determine the relationship between identified student characteristics and readiness factors and measures of success in selected online courses as defined by final course grades. This study focused on two sets of variables. The first was regarding the relationship of student demographic and educational background factors such as age, gender, academic placement, educational level, enrollment status, grade point average, withdrawal history, and previous online course experience to success in online courses. The second was regarding the relationship of learning readiness factors of personal attributes, learning style, life factors, technical competency, technical knowledge, and reading rate …