Education Commons^™

Analysis Of Differential Equations Applications From The Coordination Class Perspective, Omar Antonio Naranjo Mayorga

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years there has been an increasing interest in mathematics teaching and learning at undergraduate level. However, many fields are little explored; differential equations being one of these topics. In this study I use the theoretical framework of Coordination Classes to analyze how undergraduate mechanical engineering students apply their knowledge in the context of system dynamics and what resources and strategies they used; in this subject, students model dynamics systems based on Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs). I applied three tasks in different contexts (Mechanical, Electrical and Fluid Systems) in order to identify what information was relevant for the students, …

Kyozaikenkyu: An In-Depth Look Into Japanese Educators' Daily Planning Practices, Matthew David Melville

Theses and Dissertations

This study is in response to the question about how Japanese educators achieve such a high quality of instruction. Considering the area of lesson study has opened the door to new ideas and concepts that are not well defined and too broad to understand. Kyozaikenkyu is an aspect of lesson study that has been said to be a crucial aspect to successful lesson study. Kyozaikenkyu is done on a daily basis by Japanese educators; however, there is very little written about this process in relevant literature. This study examines what Japanese educators do during their daily kyozaikenkyu, and why …

Using A Language And Literacy Intervention To Increase Autistic Students' Social Interactions With Peers, Ellyn Goerdt

Master's Theses & Capstone Projects

This paper explores the research looking at an intervention done with four preschool students with autism-like tendencies. Two of the students are on the autism spectrum and two students show autism-like tendencies and deficiencies. All four students struggled in social situations and play with their peers. The intervention provided for all four students was a checklist of skills needed to be successful in a social situation; group games, cooperative play and cleaning up. The article review discusses many supports provided and areas of need for young and adolescent students on the autism spectrum. The results of the intervention showed that …

Yoga And Mindfulness In The Inclusion Classroom, Maria Petruzzelli

Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores the effectiveness of implementing mindfulness and yoga techniques in two sections of fourth grade inclusion language arts classes. More specifically, this paper examines the effectiveness of yoga and mindfulness techniques on the frequency of off-task behaviors and academic achievement. It was hypothesized that off-task behaviors would occur less frequently and that academic performance in writing would improve after a yoga and mindfulness intervention was implemented.

Using a pre-post no-control design, thirty-six students, eighteen per class, from a public elementary school in Southern New Jersey participated in this investigation. Baseline and post implementation data were collected using On-Demand …

Leveraging Guided Pathways To Improve Financial Aid Design And Delivery, Maria Luna-Torres, Melet Leafgreen, Lyle Mckinney

Journal of Student Financial Aid

To address low completion rates, postsecondary leaders are championing a “guided pathways” approach that puts students on a prescribed route towards graduation. Designing solutions to address low completion rates is complex; in addition to academic roadblocks, insufficient financial resources coupled with a complicated financial aid system can intensify barriers to completion, especially for students whose continued enrollment is highly dependent on financial aid. Without a comprehensive approach that specifically addresses financial aid funding shortages, students will continue to struggle to complete their programs of study. Opportunities exist to redesign the financial aid system so that the current guided pathways movement …

College Student Debt And Anticipated Repayment Difficulty, Jonathan J. Fox, Suzanne Bartholomae, Jodi C. Letkiewicz, Catherine P. Montalto

Journal of Student Financial Aid

This study analyzes factors associated with anticipated difficulty with repayment of debt accumulated during college using a basic model of credit risk that includes socialization processes influencing college student financial decisions. The empirical analysis uses data from the 2010 Ohio Student Financial Wellness Study. Results provide evidence of male overconfidence in financial decision making, as males are less likely than females to predict repayment difficulties. Socialization process variables, including financial management practices, financial parenting communication, and expected economic returns from education, are strongly associated with anticipated debt repayment difficulty. Inclusion of these process variables in the model results in loss …

Examining The Protective Effect Of Ethnic Identity On Drug Attitudes And Use Among A Diverse Youth Population, Tamika C. B. Zapolski, Sycarah Fisher, Devin E. Banks, Devon J. Hensel, Jessica Barnes-Najor

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

Ethnic identity is an important buffer against drug use among minority youth. However, limited work has examined pathways through which ethnic identity mitigates risk. School-aged youth (N = 34,708; 52 % female) of diverse backgrounds (i.e., African American (n = 5333), Asian (n = 392), Hispanic (n = 662), Multiracial (n = 2129), Native American (n = 474), and White (n = 25718) in grades 4–12 provided data on ethnic identity, drug attitudes, and drug use. After controlling for gender and grade, higher ethnic identity was associated with lower past month drug use …

Elementary Administrators’ Mathematics Supervision & Self-Efficacy Development, Kelly M. Gomez Johnson

Student Work

Mathematics curriculum reform is changing the content and resources in today’s elementary classrooms as well as the culture of mathematics teaching and learning. Administrators face the challenge of leading large-scale curricular change efforts with limited prior knowledge or experiences with reform curricula structures. Administrators, as the bridge between district and building-level initiatives, are in a unique position to impact and drive change. However, they face increasing responsibilities in their demanding roles and draw on their beliefs and leadership abilities to take action. Increased beliefs in their abilities as leaders, known as self-efficacy, guide administrators to commit and persevere during times …

The Classroom Password: An Independent Group Contingency Targeting Academic Engagement And Disruptive Behaviors In High School Classrooms, Kayla E. Bates-Brantley

Master's Theses

The classroom password, an independent class-wide group contingency, was implemented in a high school setting in effort to determine its effects on academically engaged behaviors, disruptive behaviors and passively off-task behaviors. This was done using a reversal design across three classes. The focal point of this study was to determine if the classroom password would increase academic engagement. The classroom password was implemented by having the teacher select a word of the day that was then incorporated into the classes lecture. The students were given the word for the day before the lectures began and were required to code each …

The Efficacy Of An In-Vivo Chaining Procedure Compared To Pov-Vm Chaining Procedure To Teach A Task To Children With Autism, Elaine M. Turner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder which includes symptoms such as repetitive or restricted patterns of behavior, and deficits in social communication (American Psychiatric Association, 2013) and affects approximately 1 in 68 children (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). Children with this disorder face unique challenges when it comes to learning academic and social skills (Gardner & Wolfe, 2013). Chaining is an effective intervention for teaching individuals with disabilities a variety of skills (Cuvo, Leaf, & Borakove, 1978; Horner & Keilitz, 1975; Shrestha, Anderson, & Moore, 2013; Tarbox, Madrid, Aguilar, Jacobo, & Schiff, 2009). Video modeling, where …

International School Director Turnover As Influenced By School Board/Director Relationship, Zakariya Palsha D+Z30:Ae30

Education Dissertations

In recent years, public school superintendents have faced increased demands from rigorous federal and state accountability standards. Yet, researchers have reported that academic improvement does not happen by chance but rather through effective leaders with ample time to implement broad, sustainable reform. The purpose of this study was to examine the self-reported causes of turnover of international school directors, specifically, whether the relationship between the school board and the international school director is linked to length of tenure of the international director. The theoretical framework that addresses superintendent turnover as influenced by internal board dynamics, including school board/superintendent relationship, is …

Maintenance And Generalization Of Preschool Teachers' Use Of Behavior Specific Praise Following In Situ Training, Zachary Charles Labrot

Dissertations

This study tested the efficacy of in situ training via a multiple baseline design across participants for increasing four Head Start teachers’ use of behavior specific praise (BSP) in classroom settings while evaluating concomitant changes in their classes’ behavior. Of further interest was the extent to which Head Start teachers maintained and generalized use of BSP in untrained settings. The results of this study indicate that in situ training was effective for increasing Head Start teachers’ use of BSP above baseline rates and generally maintained above a predetermined criterion (i.e., .5 BSP statements per minute). Data also indicate that Head …

Effects Of A Tiered Intervention Package To Increase Teacher Behavior Specific Praise, Hannah Jeanne Cavell

Dissertations

Disruptive behaviors have been shown to impact academic performance in the classroom. Praise is a commonly prescribed intervention to decrease classroom disruptive behaviors and increase academic engagement. In this study, an intervention package consisting of large-group training, verbal reminders, and visual performance feedback (VPF) combined with contingent preferred rewards was used to target three elementary school teachers’ use of behavior specific praise (BSP) in the classroom during a selected intervention period. Disruptive behaviors as nominated by teacher report were additionally assessed to determine if increased praise would lessen the frequency of class wide disruptive behaviors.

Using a multiple baseline design, …

Evaluation Of A Positive Version Of The Good Behavior Game Utilizing Classdojo Technology In Secondary Classrooms, William Blake Ford

Dissertations

Appropriate and effective classroom management skills are critical in supporting students’ academic, social, and behavior development in schools; however, teachers often cite needing help with classroom management as their greatest need. Given this concern, school psychologists need effective and efficient strategies to offer to teachers and school staff dealing with classwide behavioral difficulties. The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is an empirically supported interdependent group contingency intervention providing explicit classroom management techniques aimed at improving student behavior. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of a positive version of the GBG utilizing ClassDojo technology on classwide academically engaged …

Tootling With A Randomized Independent Group Contingency In A High School Setting, John Dylan Ken Lum

Dissertations

Tootling is a procedure where students report their classmates’ positive and prosocial behavior. The present study examined the effects of tootling on students’ disruptive and academically engaged behavior in three general education high school classrooms. An A-B-A-B withdrawal design was used to assess the effects of the intervention. Students wrote tootles anonymously on paper slips and placed them into a marked container. Unlike previous tootling studies, a randomized independent group contingency procedure was used to reward the students to reduce the number of steps required to implement the intervention. At the end of the class period, teachers randomly drew three …

Caregiver-Child Experiences, Education, And Perceptions Of Children’S Play, Kathryn B. Blankenship

Human Development and Family Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

From early on in their lives, children use play as a way to explore their environment and as a catalyst to begin the process of learning. Children play in a variety of forms-dramatic play, playing with blocks, rough and tumble play, playing with dolls, etc.-that play is involved in nearly every aspect of their lives. It is important to study children’s play, as well as the perceptions of play by important adults in their lives, because it is so deeply entrenched in their development. A survey was created to understand the perceptions of teachers on young children’s play, as well …

From Behind The Lens: Police Officer Perceptions As Body-Worn Cameras Are Introduced Into The New York City Police Department, Kishon C. Hickman Sr.

Education Doctoral

In 2014, the U.S. District Court ordered the New York City Police Department (NYPD) to test the use of body-worn cameras (BWCs) after finding that their stop, question, and frisk practices violated the rights of some minority New Yorkers. The ruling in Floyd v. City of New York (2013) mandated the recording of future interactions to determine if behavior would be influenced. A total of 54 volunteer officers wore a BWC for a 1-year period and were assigned to six precincts, all selected due to the high frequency of stop, question, and frisk reports prepared by patrol officers. This research …

Whom Do I Trust? Measuring Principals’ Trust In Major Stakeholders Correlated To Leadership Behaviors In High Poverty Middle Schools, Liza Ortiz

Education Doctoral

A growing body of research has examined relational trust in schools and its impact on school climate and student achievement. Trust is a complex concept. It has many layers such as benevolence, openness, reliability, competence, and honesty (Hoy & Tschannen-Moran, 1999). Principals who display collegial and supportive behaviors generate a high level of trust whereas principals who display restrictive and directive behaviors generate low levels of trust (Goddard, Tschannen-Moran, & Hoy, 2001). Principals are vital stakeholders in a school community. This is especially true for principals who serve high poverty schools where the challenges are unique and daunting. Despite the …

We Are Family: Exploring Sense Of Community For College Students With And Without Hidden Disabilities, Pamina A. Abkowitz

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this study was to explore the four factors of sense of community and to establish if there is a difference in the sense of community for students with and without hidden disabilities. A quantitative survey was conducted in a cross-sectional format, measuring responses during the spring semester of the academic year at a small, private, liberal arts college in Western New York State with approximately 2,600 undergraduate students. The data revealed that, overall, students experienced all four factors of sense of community: needs, membership, influence, and connection. The results indicate that in the areas of reinforcement of …

Measuring The Impact Of Three Different Co-Teaching Models On Student Test Results In Ninth-Grade Algebra I, Amy Marie Cermele

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this retrospective case analysis was to see if post-exam Algebra I mathematics scores were impacted in any way by the utilization of three different models of co-teaching: “interventionist,” “specialist,” and “departmentalized.” Two years of archival pretest and posttest exam scores from classified and nonclassified student exams were used to determine the overall mean growth for students who were educated in these instructional models. The data revealed that all co-teaching models produced statistically significant results for all students. However, the model that consistently produced statistically significant outcomes was the interventionist model. Recommendations for the selected district are to …

An Analysis Of Factors That Affect African American Women With Mental Illness, Marguerite Brown

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this quantitative study was to analyze data related to factors that affect African American women with significant mental health issues. The 323 participants identified for this research study were formerly homeless, single adults (21 – 61 years of age) who resided in a non-profit operated housing facility in an urban setting of New York that provides mental health supportive housing and services. The archival data was gathered from an electronic data warehouse. The main focus of the data analysis for this research was based upon descriptive statistics used to summarize the reports and provide a clear picture …

The Relationship Between Expressed Creative Problem-Solving Preference And Divergent Thinking Attitudes, Jona A. Wright

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between an individual’s expressed creative problem style and divergent thinking attitudes. The problem-solving preferences were measured by the FourSight Breakthrough Thinking Profile and identified four preferences, Clarifier, Ideator, Developer, and Implementer. Divergent thinking attitudes, preference for ideation, and premature evaluation were measured by the 14 Item Ideation-Evaluation Preference Scale. The multidisciplinary sample was drawn from non-profit, business, education and higher education, specifically a Masters of Business Administration program. Significant relationships were found between the participants (N = 374) who identified with high Ideator and Implementer scores and preference for ideation. …

Environmental Education In The Public Sphere: Comparing Practice With Psychosocial Determinants Of Behavior And Societal Change, Chris A. Bolt

Education Doctoral

Environmental education of the general public is widely practiced by a variety of types of organizations. Dedicated environmental groups, nature centers, zoos, parks, and other entities work on issues ranging from local threats to air, water, and habitat to global problems such as climate change and deforestation. A great deal of those efforts focus largely on providing information and raising awareness. Behavioral research and change models, however, suggest other factors are important in order to effect change on an individual, regional, or societal level. An analysis of environmental education in practice, examining methods and materials in use, showed the degree …

Is Complementary And Alternative Medicine Effective In Reducing Self-Reported Anxiety Symptoms In College Students?, Hollie M. Hall

Education Doctoral

Anxiety is the number one health issue college students seek help for on campus (Grasgreen, 2011). An estimated 62% of college students did not continue their studies due to suffering from anxiety (Lindsey, 2014). Psychotherapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psychotropic medications have been used for many years to treat anxiety. CBT and medication have been found to be effective treatment strategies when individuals are compliant with treatment; however, both strategies require access to a trained professional and can become a financial burden. Therefore, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a potential effective treatment strategy for anxiety, which …

Impact Of The New York State Tax Levy Cap On School Districts’ Financing: A Retrospective And Prospective Analysis, Ann Vaccaro-Teich Cpa

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this quantitative archival case study, utilizing a retrospective analysis and prospective model, was to highlight the consequences of the enactment of the New York State Tax Cap Legislation, Chapter 97 of the Laws of 2011, on the children in New York State. The data were gained from the New York State Education Department for 669 public school districts (excluding the “Big Five” school districts), from the period of 2012-13 through 2016-17, to create a financial forecast model to project the gap in revenues from 2017-18 through 2021-22, based on districts Need/Resource Capacity index. The forecast showed a …

Breast Cancer Disparities In African American Women: Does Race Or Place Matter?, Candice A. Lucas

Education Doctoral

African American women are 42% more likely to die from breast cancer than their White counterparts. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experience of African American, female, survivors of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) to determine if any of the key tenets of the social determinants of health, particularly race and place/social conditions, influenced their screening through treatment decisions or care. Through the interpretive description approach, six interviews were conducted with survivors of TNBC who either worked or resided in one of eight Monroe County zip codes: 14605, 14606, 14608, 14609, 14611, 14613, 14619, and …

Best Practices For Differentiated Learning Among Third Through Fifth Grade Ell Students, Tara J. Macias

Masters Theses

With the increase of second language English learners in U.S. kindergarten through twelfth grade schools and the continued achievement gap between these students and English speaking students, educators and administrators need to develop, implement and support best practices for differentiation among English Language Learners. ELL students are often categorized as special education students while their only barrier to learning is language acquisition. On the other hand, ELL students may have additional learning difficulties that are not identified because there is an assumption that language acquisition is the single challenge to their learning. Educators often engage in whole group instruction with …

Black Lives Matter: A Call To Action For Counseling Psychology Leaders, Candice Hargons, Della Mosley, Jameca Falconer, Reuben Faloughi, Anneliese Singh, Danelle Stevens-Watkins, Kevin Cokley

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

Police brutality and widespread systemic racism represent historical and current sources of trauma in Black communities. Both the Black Lives Matter movement and counseling psychology propose to confront these realities at multiple levels. Black Lives Matter seeks to increase awareness about systemic racism and promote resilience among Black people. Counseling psychology states values of multiculturalism, social justice, and advocacy. Executive leadership in counseling psychology may seek to promote racial justice, yet struggle with how to participate in Black Lives Matter movements and address racial discrimination within larger systems spontaneously and consistently. However, counseling psychology trainees and professionals are actively involved …

A Testimonio Reclaiming Acceptance Of My Esl Experience: Trauma, Tex-Mex And Third Space, Cinthia E. Bernal

Theses and Dissertations

Language is a tool that brings all of us together, yet at the same time it also sets us apart. For many of us, it is important to be bilingual and biliterate, but for others, bilingualism is something that is pulling this country apart. Many people, after all, view Spanish as a powerful language that can harm this country, a language that has motivated people to attempt to make English the only language. Ana Celia Zentella tell us “Latina/os, who also have a long history in the United States and became the largest minority in the nation in 2003, are …

"When Do We Play?": Administrator, Teacher, And Parent Perceptions Of Play In A Catholic Kindergarten Classroom, Aimée Eva Ramirez

LMU Theses and Dissertations

Educational reforms have created a climate of accountability and high academic pressure that has resulted in a pushing down of the curriculum into early childhood education. Once a prominent pedagogical feature, play is disappearing from kindergarten. The following is a doctoral dissertation that studied administrator, teacher, and parent perceptions of play and its role within the kindergarten curriculum at a Catholic elementary school in the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Using a qualitative case study method, the study noted how play was utilized in transitional kindergarten and traditional kindergarten classrooms at the school site. Interviews, classroom observations, and document review of school …