Education Commons^™

Children's Book On Pragmatics, Emily Conners

Senior Honors Projects

Pragmatics of communication is the use of social language skills when communicating with others. These skills are important in learning how to appropriately communicate and in building relationships. This is one area of communication that children can have difficulties with when they are developing language skills.

This children’s book focuses on one pragmatic skill learned during development, using language to request permission, with the goal of teaching children aged two to five about its importance. I used my background knowledge in pragmatics and child development to write a story about a boy named Jacob that struggles to ask his Grandpa …

Assessing Perceptions Of Disability Knowledge Of Campus Police At Inclusive Universities, Hannah Shultz

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to analyze the perception of knowledge of campus police on intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), including autism, in inclusive college programs. A survey was sent to both campus police and representatives of 50 inclusive higher education programs across the United States. These questions involved perceptions of campus police knowledge, training, and the safety of students with I/DD.

Teachers’ Unions And School Choice: A Binary Regression Analysis On The Impact Teachers’ Unions Have On State-Level School Choice Legislation, Robert Jackson Hester

Undergraduate Honors Theses

School choice dominated discourses within educational policy in the last year; some have even described 2021 as “the year of school choice.” School choice allows public education funds to follow students to the schools or services that best fit their needs. This is often summarized by its advocates as “funding students over systems.” Generally, school choice allows market forces to influence education by providing more competition in the education market. Teachers’ unions have fought against school choice measures for years, but what impact do they have? This undergraduate thesis compares 49 states to determine if the proportion of public school …

Collaborative Teaching And Inclusion In Northeast, Tn, Sherianne Pigeon

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Abstract

Collaborative teaching is a commonly used, research-based method to support inclusion of students with disabilities in the general education classroom. However, there is a lack of research describing current teachers’ experiences with and perceptions of collaborative teaching and inclusion. Results from a survey disseminated to teachers in Northeast TN school systems revealed that 64.3% of respondents have either never co-taught a class or have co-taught only one or two classes. Additionally, respondents agree that collaborative teaching is beneficial to support inclusion, enhance delivery of instruction, improve teacher relations and improve classroom management. However, teachers expressed collaborative teaching is more …

Understanding The Needs Of Residents In Sevier County To Plan Impactful Programs, Kari Ure, Lendel K. Narine, Mckay Erickson

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

USU Extension provides evidence-based community education in response to community needs. A needs assessment was conducted in Sevier County UT in 2021 to determine critical needs of residents. The results of the assessment will guide Extension programming in Sevier County.

From The Editor, Sean Schat

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

This Spring issue is a fascinating mix of manuscripts, all serendipitously related to ways Christian educators can lead, influence, and develop leadership capacity. The issue opens with Patrick Otto’s call for Christian intellectualism. Belcher and Pebesma describe a study of technology teaching and learning for preservice teacher educators. Cavner and Bryant explore ways to plan integrated lessons for deep learning and life change. Farris and Purper share their experiences developing partnerships with public organizations in their local community. The issue concludes with two book reviews focusing on leadership in schools, one related to supporting students with special educational needs, the …

Community Schools: Effectiveness Of Addressing Barriers To Education In Suburban Communities, Tiffany Patterson

Honors Theses

Over the years, the once thought of as stable suburban community has seen a significant increase in poverty and homelessness which has impacted students in similar ways as it has students in urban area schools and has resulted in the implementation of community school programs. According to Pew Research Center in 2020, there were 37.2 million people living in poverty, 16.2 million live in the suburbs, 15.1 million reside in urban communities – and collectively 11.6 million are minors. Community school programs have grown in popularity as an intervention in urban communities to address challenges that students have encountered which …

Creating A Classroom Culture, Molly Cahill

Honors Theses

Throughout my academic and creative life I have been in many different kinds of classrooms each possessing different values and practices. The art classroom for me was a place of exploration and play, arguably its chief and most important purpose. My thesis seeks to explore how art teachers can foster a creative classroom culture in which students are pursuing some form of expression and how art educators can engage with their students on an equal level and create together. I will also explore how the teacher as a practicing artist can further support and supplement this classroom culture. My thesis …

Perceptions Of Teachers & Parents On Creativity In Schools: A Business Solution To Support Student Creativity Through Adult Training, Keriann Armusewicz

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Using research on the perceptions of creativity from parents and teachers, a business proposal is developed to support student creativity in schools through adult training. Perceptions of creativity vary greatly for teachers and are more consistent for parents. One possibility for this is that there is much more research about teacher perceptions than parent perceptions for this topic. One consistent finding across both populations is that when an adult has higher self-efficacy for creativity they are better able to identify and support creativity in others. Thus, a business plan has been developed to increase personal creativity in teachers and parents …

Fostering Creativity In Education Including Natural Environments: A Course On Creativity For Children In Colombia, Tatiana Ortiz-Pradilla

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project is a contribution to the field of creativity and education. The project aimed to connect the research-based knowledge on how natural environments enhance creativity and put it in the service of creativity education for children. The main objective was to design a prototype of a course outline of a continuing education course on creativity that leverages the knowledge of the connection between creativity and natural environments for children between 7 and 12 years old in Medellín, Colombia, South America.

Annual Report Of The Nominating Committee For The Academic Year 2021-2022, University Of Northern Iowa. Faculty Senate.

Documents - Faculty Senate

University Nominating Committee report including committee memberships, produced by the Faculty Senate of the University of Northern Iowa.

2022-May-01-Meet Joshua Trimm, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

When Joshua Trimm crossed the commencement stage at East Tennessee State University less than a month ago, the person who once thought a graduate degree may not be for him conquered those fears. In June, Joshua will begin a new job at one of the largest employers in the Appalachian Highlands – Eastman Chemical Company. 

 

Joshua is from Kingsport. He attended Northeast State Community College for two years and earned an associate degree in web design. A self-described “non-traditional student” who began his collegiate journey seven years ago, Joshua said time allowed him to learn the real value of higher …

Using The Edtpa As A Model For Teacher Research And Reflective Practice: An Honors Thesis, Eva Jaeger

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Teacher research engages educators in inquiry to enhance their practice, initiate evidence-based change in their classroom and become more reflective practitioners in order to best support the learning of their students’ individual strengths and needs. The edTPA is a national teaching performance assessment that determines teachers’ effective practices as they are on the cusp of entering the educational profession. Aspiring teachers must demonstrate that they are prepared to enter the educational profession with the skills and knowledge needed to help each of their individual students learn. The edTPA was completed and submitted during the high school student teaching clinical experience, …

Parents And The Evolving Math Curriculum: Supporting One's Student In Elementary Mathematics, Kailyn Heather Scobie

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The current-day mathematics curriculum is evidently different from the traditional means of teaching math. Due to this, there exist disparities between a child’s math education and their parent or guardian’s math education. This thesis will present firsthand evidence on how these disparities affect a parent’s perception of current-day curriculum, the extent to which parents can support their child in their learning of mathematics at home, and will strive to attend to the needs of both the parents or guardians as well as students in supporting the learning of these new concepts and strategies. With this, the research question asks: What …

Design For A Spectrum, Brooke Warden

Interior Design Undergraduate Honors Theses

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a growing disorder across the world. ASD affects around 1 in every 68 children in the United States (Block, 2018). This disorder results in significant social, intellectual, and behavioral changes within a child, and create challenges for a child with ASD to learn and develop like children without ASD. No two cases of ASD are alike which is why it is called a spectrum disorder. This adds an extra challenge to designing spaces for children with ASD to inhabit and thrive. These children frequently suffer from sensory processing deficits in which they have a hard …

Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences Professional Development Opportunities And Their Impact On Perceptions Of Career Preparedness, Jessica L. Wesson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A student’s undergraduate education is an imperative part of developing career skills that will prepare them to transition from academia to the professional world. Experience outside of the classroom and course material taught in a formal class experience are both important. Their experiences and classes, in college, allow them to develop skills and increase their chances of being successful in the workplace (Suvedi et al., 2016).

Chickering’s Seven Vectors of Student Development were used to help explain the process of student development. A quantitative survey was sent to DBCALFS faculty, staff, and administrators, and a different quantitative survey was sent …

No Such Thing As A New “Normal”: The Future Of Teaching In A Pandemic World, Victoria Benard

Honors College Theses

Due to the many changes wrought on our society by the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers in high schools have had to dramatically alter their methods of teaching in order to comply with new rules and regulations. These guidelines, deemed safe by the CDC, have completely upended traditional high school classrooms and left teachers scrambling to effectively teach their content and assess student learning. The purpose of this research is to determine the successes and/or failures of high school teachers’ teaching strategies that have undergone dramatic adaptations amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. One goal of this research is to produce a concise understanding …

The Lead, May 2022, Lindenwood University

The Lead

The Lead is an electronic newsletter produced by the Lindenwood College of Education & Human Services.

An Examination Of Academic Growth In Middle School Students Receiving Tier 3 Instruction And Teacher Perceptions Regarding Mindset, Stephanie M. Opela

Dissertations

Existing research on the implementation of RTI and growth mindset practices at the secondary level was sparse, despite the literature on the challenges facing the middle school structure and best practices for adolescent learners. This quantitative study added to the body of research by examining components of each effort in an urban school district. The researcher compared the academic growth of middle school students who received Tier 3 instructional support in reading or math to the academic growth of students who did not receive Tier 3 support. The data revealed no significant difference between the growth of the two groups. …

An Historical Study Of Student Outcomes For School Improvement Grant Recipient Turnaround High Schools In The State Of Missouri With Emphasis On Ninth Grade Achievement, Attendance, Discipline, And Graduation Rates, Juanita Chambers

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the implementation of the School Improvement Grant using the Turnaround Model to improve student academics, by looking at attendance, and drop out and graduation rates on ninth-grade achievement in Missouri. In the United States, within our urban schools, high school drop-out has been a serious, national crisis, which effects the graduation rate. Dropping out of high school has many unfavorable results that have negative effects on the economy, such as employment, crime, personal earnings, and health, such as in the lack of insurance. Students exhibit problems before they enter high school. Thus, …

Literacy Instructional Coaching In The Realm Of Writing: An Examination Of Writing Coaching Practices In Grades K-6, Jadelyn Abbott

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Due to the lack of focus on writing in teacher preparation programs and in-service professional development, teachers often feel unprepared to teach writing. One way to mitigate these feelings is through the use of literacy instructional coaches. Literacy instructional coaches are specialists who collaborate with teachers to help them develop specific skills, knowledge, and dispositions related to literacy instructional practices and students’ literacy performance. Existing research indicates that teachers who receive instructional coaching are more likely to use research-based practices, however, research on writing coaching is minimal. This three-study dissertation explores how literacy coaches are supporting and influencing teachers in …

Normalization Of Virtual Home Visiting In Idaho, Ashtin Glodt

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Background

Home visiting pairs expectant parents and those with young children with an early childhood professional who builds a long-term relationship with each family by regularly meeting with them in their homes and providing knowledge and skills that supports both parent and child health and well-being. In spring 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, home visitors had to quickly transition from exclusively in-person services to virtual services, which created new challenges and opportunities.

Aim

To explore (1) the degree to which virtual home visiting practice has been normalized, as defined by Normalization Process Theory, by home visitors in Idaho, (2) …

A Study Of Leadership Behaviors In Esports Contexts, Joseph C. Tucker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Soft skills, leadership in particular, are highly sought-after traits for businesses when searching for new employees. Using games as a tool to teach soft skills is fairly well documented. One way that games can do this is by creating a space where learners can practice these skills. Esports in particular seem to be an already existing space where modern, dynamic types of leadership are already practiced. In order to determine if this was indeed the case, I interviewed people who were involved in different levels of esports about the ways they behaved while playing esports. I found that in order …

Disparities In Response, Motivations, And Self-Efficacy To Entrepreneurially Minded Learning Within Underrepresented Students' Groups, Kaitlin Hall

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Systemic racism in the United States is embedded within the policies that have created oppression for certain groups. Women, people of color, and those from low-income families have less access to entrepreneurial knowledge due to the education gap. It has been determined that less than 20 percent of US patents entail a female inventor. Black and Hispanic college graduates also lack this access as fewer than half as many individuals hold patents. Ensuring that these populations are educated in inventor knowledge can facilitate greater inclusion. The historical Brown vs the Board of Education intended to end unequal public schooling. It …

Testicular Torsion Education: Improving Awareness Among Boys And Their Caregivers Regarding The Urgency Of Evaluating Scrotal Pain, Abby Taylor

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Introduction: Testicular torsion is a urologic emergency that requires prompt medical evaluation and surgical intervention. The length of time from onset of the torsion to evaluation in the emergency department is often delayed due to lack of knowledge of the urgency of the situation amongst boys and their caregivers. We hypothesize that an animated educational video will increase awareness of the condition and prompt urgent evaluation in the emergency department.

Methods: A 5-minute animated educational video was created following a boy, Danny, as he develops testicular torsion. Four population groups: boys, parents, school nurses, and pediatricians, completed group-specific pre- and …

Examining Best Practices For Urban Secondary School English As A New Language Teachers After The Passing Of The Commissioner’S Regulations Subpart 154.2 In New York State To Improve English Language Learner Students’ Academic Performance And Graduation Outcomes, Susanna Brown Cook

Education Doctoral

This purpose of this study was to examine the ways Commissioner’s Regulation Subpart 154.2 (CR Subpart 154.2) directly influenced seven seasoned secondary school English as a new language (ENL) teachers and their English language learner (ELL) students. Specifically, this study explored how the ENL teachers changed their pedagogy, instructional practices, and role as advocates since the implementation of CR Subpart 154.2. Utilizing Freire’s banking concept of education as a theoretical lens, the research was conducted using a qualitative descriptive methodology and semi-structured interviews. Findings were coded and interpreted to reveal the ENL teachers’ experiences with curricular changes prior to and …

Cracking The Glass Ceiling Code: A Phenomenological Study Of Executive Women Leaders In The North American Alcohol Industry, Terry Steele

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this study was to explore and understand the lived experiences of women who have ascended to executive leadership positions in the North American alcohol industry. Several data collection methods were utilized to strengthen the credibility of this phenomenological, qualitative study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted as the primary source of data collection to capture the lived experiences of executive women across the three segments of beer, wine, and spirits within the North American alcohol industry. A demographic survey, field notes, journal entries, and content analysis were used to triangulate the data. Five themes emerged from the analysis, which …

Will Millennials Be The Next Generation Of Virtual Team Members And E-Leaders: A Hypothesis Testing Study, Eduard C. Visagie

Education Doctoral

This study (a) identifies the characteristics and competencies of effective virtual teams, e- leaders, and the millennial generation, and (b) surveyed members of organizations located in the United States to evaluate if these American workers ascribe the research- based characteristics and competencies of effective virtual team members and e-leaders to professionals of the ever-growing millennial generation. This quantitative non- experimental comparative design study surveyed 1,050 Amazon Mechanical Turk (Mturk) workers who were (a) at least 26 years old; (b) employed or retired; (c) spoke or fully understood the English language; (d) lived and worked in the United States; and (e) …

African American Males And College Staff: Perception Of The Factors Identified For Student Retention In Community Colleges, Emmalean Pringle Overby

Education Doctoral

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to identify the social, institutional, and academic factors African American males and community college staff perceive are required for student retention. Spencer’s functionalism theory framed the study. Spencer argued that as the various organs work together in keeping the human body healthy, so can the multiple departments of an organization work together to care for the needs of its member citizens. The prism of the functionalism theory is that departments working cohesively and cooperatively within an organization better the social, institutional, and economic outcomes of the citizens. A total of five African …

Employee Resource Groups' Impact On African American And Hispanic Women Of Color, Cynetra Ferguson

Education Doctoral

This hermeneutic phenomenological study examined the efficacy of employee resource groups (ERGs) on African American and Hispanic women of color in their career trajectories up the corporate ladder. This study included 11 women of African American, Hispanic, and Latin American descent who were members of ERGs for 5 or more years. Three research questions were posed: (a) What do participants of ERGs believe are their benefits to themselves and their organization? (b) How can minority ERGs facilitate professional development and educational sessions? (c) What does the successful implementation of ERGs mean, more broadly, to the communities in which members live …