Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

Androgynous Leadership: A Gender Balanced Approach To School Administration, Kristie Morin

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to explore the most desirable personality traits for school administrators, if personality sex-types have changed since 1981, and how school administrators practice androgynous leadership. Twenty-six school administrators completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory survey to discover their personality trait make-up and how often they perceived using 60 personality traits. Eight school administrators participated in a virtual one-on-one interview. The findings from this study concluded that the seven most desirable personality traits for a school administrator are adaptable, compassionate, reliable, conscientious, truthful, sensitive to the needs of others, and willing to take a stand. There …

Evaluating Leadership Development Through Experiential Learning In A Virtual Environment, Paul J. Mckenney

All Theses And Dissertations

The strategic leadership center of a senior military service college collaborated with an elite law school to provide leadership development to senior law school students. The focus was an International Strategic Crisis Negotiation Exercise set in the South China Sea. Due to an unexpected global health pandemic the course was forced online to a virtual environment. The strategic leadership center gathered data from volunteer students and their mentors to determine the impact of the virtual setting. Using four archival datasets, a program evaluation was conducted using a case study methodology to determine the effectiveness of experiential learning through simulation in …

Program Director Support For Adjunct Faculty In The Promotion Of Student Success, Nicholas Anthony Dejosia

All Theses And Dissertations

There is a need for adjunct faculty in community colleges to be supported by administration at the program director level or by those that have experience socializing new adjunct faculty into their departments, to ensure the promotion of student success in the classroom. This qualitative phenomenological study allowed the researcher to interpret the subjective lived experiences of ten educational leaders within a community college to document how they support adjunct faculty members to develop teaching methods to promote student success. The research question posed was, what do program directors and those who have experience socializing new adjunct faculty into their …

American Registry Of Radiologic Technologists Exam Preparation: A Case Study, Sarah E. Harradon

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to investigate the students’ perceptions of preparedness to take the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) certification exam after the completion of a last semester registry preparation course at a small health profession college located in the northeast. In addition to perceptions of preparedness this study explored the effectiveness of the HESI Radiography Exit Exam preparation tool and the relationship between perceptions of preparedness and ARRT exam scores and 1st time pass rates. The problem that initiated this case study was the ARRT exam scores and 1st time pass rates at Radiography Program …

Developing An Assessment Framework For Cultural Responsiveness Through A Japanese Program In A Southeastern University, Yumiko Ono

All Theses And Dissertations

As its paralleled learning goals for students toward an increasingly globalized world, the Japanese program in a state university in North Carolina lists language fluency and cultural responsiveness. In order to evaluate students’ language fluency, the program adopted the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT), however, no evaluation tool for cultural responsiveness was available. Therefore, in this study, the researcher created an assessment framework to evaluate students’ development of cultural responsiveness while they pursue the minor or Interdisciplinary Studies Undergraduate Degree (ISUD) in Japanese Studies.

The assessment was designed to provide answers to the following …

Parent Perception Of The Parent And Placement Team Process, Deborah Perry

All Theses And Dissertations

Special educators face a growing number of legal implications as they strive to meet students’ needs as identified on Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). Once identified as requiring special education services, students have an (IEP) to track their progress on goals and objectives. All IEP meetings require the family’s attendance and feedback as part of the process. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) noted that parent feedback is required in the IEP document. This study collected information about parents’ perceptions of the IEP process. Individual interviews were completed with 13 engaged parents to document their experiences working through the IEP process. …

The Student Placement Decision-Making Process: A Study Of Administrator Considerations, Jonathan Roland Normand

All Theses And Dissertations

A myriad of factors are considered in the out-of-district placement process of special needs students, but there is not a standardized process for weighing these. Little is known about how Maine School Administrators weigh each factor to determine the appropriate placement. This interpretive phenomenological study examined the question: What is the hierarchy of priority of the factors used to determine out-of-district placements by Maine special education administrators?

Six special education administrators representing different geographic areas of the state of Maine were interviewed individually. The researcher utilized a purposive sampling method to recruit from within the targeted population those who have …

Understanding The Importance Of Formative Assessment Programs In Undergraduate Medical Education, Matthew Gentile

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative research study was to investigate the impact and relationship formative assessment in undergraduate medical education has on summative assessment performance. Previous research has investigated the important role formative assessment has on the broad education process (Menéndez, Napa, Moreira, & Zambrano, 2019). This research study examined that role in undergraduate medical education. This research study utilized a preexisting de-identified data set consisting of 332 third-year medical student assessment records from five different cohorts. The initial analyses investigated the differences in summative assessment performance for students who completed a formative assessment program during their third year of …

Knowledge And Access: An Investigation Into Course Material Models At The Collegiate Level, Jonathan David Sadhoo

All Theses And Dissertations

For over 1,000 years, physical textbooks have been the primary course material tool utilized to facilitate knowledge transfer from the instructor to the student population. In current times, multiple barriers to success have emerged for the modern student of higher education, including affordability, accessibility, and quality. In addition, student engagement with the course material can be a critical factor for student achievement. Taylor & Parsons (2011) indicated that student engagement levels in the classroom are linked with overall success in the course. Within higher education, faculty and academic administrators are at the front lines, attempting to reduce and eliminate these …

Soft-Skill Development In Co-Curricular Programs: An Evaluation Of A Community College Student Leadership Program, Michael James Fischer

All Theses And Dissertations

Colleges are vital for the provision of a trained workforce. As of 2017, over 1,100 community colleges were serving about 41% of the undergraduates across the nation. The emphasis on preparing students to enter the labor market has led to colleges developing integrated academic and co-curricular programs. Many professionals in higher education believe that education happens best in a truly integrative learning environment, where both academic and student affairs programs are used to educate the student.

The New Hampshire Community College Student Leadership program was developed to help students gain soft-skills, as identified by the National Association of Colleges and …

Examining The Challenges And Benefits Of Inclusion In Urban Secondary Schools, Jeff James Spaletta

All Theses And Dissertations

American high schools with full-inclusion programs often struggle to offer effective academic instruction to students with disabilities. While academic researchers have conducted studies on inclusion programs, a literature review revealed a dearth of academic studies specific to inclusion programs in secondary schools. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the attitudes of general-education teachers in urban, Title 1 high schools regarding the ability of those teachers to provide effective academic instruction to students with disabilities in schools that offer full-inclusion education. This study was motivated by three research questions: 1) What are the attitudes of teachers working in …

Implementing The Siop Model To Support English Language Learners, Pamela T. Chandler

All Theses And Dissertations

Children who are English as a Foreign Language Learners (EFL) and/or English language learners (ELLs) are missing critical content-specific learning. These students are transitioning into mainstream classrooms, lacking basic literacy foundation skills, including vocabulary, grammar, comprehension, phonology, and meaning, which is preventing them from accessing grade-level content. Teachers who are charged with educating English language learners are not always provided with sufficient professional development that will allow them to meet the students’ needs. ELL students need specific instructional strategies that will address their learning needs as well as language development. The purpose of this study was to examine the implementation …

Students’ Perceptions And Experiences: African American Students In Band And Orchestra Programs, Sharese Pearson-Bush

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to explore how African American students in a South Carolina metropolitan area perceived their experiences in band and orchestra at their middle school. Fifty-one sixth through eighth grade students responded to an inventory that measured students’ predisposition to music, pedagogical preferences, and cultural awareness. Furthermore, seven of the fifty-one students engaged in individual, semistructured interviews that measured students’ personal connection to musical experiences within their culture and communities. This study examined the minimal rate at which African American students participated in music programs through the conceptual lens of African-Centered Pedagogy and Culturally Responsive …

Clinical Preparedness Amongst Recent Dental Hygiene Graduates: A Phenomenological Study, Daniela M. Taranto

All Theses And Dissertations

The focus of this phenomenological study is to evaluate the lived experiences of recent dental hygiene graduates’ as they relate to their curriculum preparation as clinicians. Individual interviews of ten newly graduated hygienists were conducted, consisting of seventeen open-ended questions related to their experience with feeling prepared to enter the workforce specific to their clinical skills, professionalism skills, and critical thinking skills. This study documented the experiences these participants had as they transitioned from master student, to novice clinician specific to their newly acquired skills. A positive perception of preparedness was found directly to their instrumentation, professionalism, and critical thinking …

The Effectiveness Of Read 180 At A Cooperative High School In New England (Chsne), Michael E. Daboul

All Theses And Dissertations

Over the last decade, schools have employed a variety of intervention plans to assist below grade-level achieving students to quickly gain missing skills with the ultimate goal of allowing these students access to proper grade level curriculum. These intervention plans have been directly aligned with educational laws in the US such as the No Child Left Behind Act and the Every Student Achieves Act with very little success. There has been a great deal of research conducted on the most effective and efficient ways to properly diagnose, address, and implement these intervention plans; however there is a lack of literature …

Brain-Targeted Teaching As A Tool To Facilitate Implementing Mind Brain And Education Science Into Community College Pedagogy, Adrienne Seegers

All Theses And Dissertations

Applying findings from mind, brain, and education science (MBES) could improve teaching and learning yet, MBES is not consistently applied in higher education pedagogy. This qualitative study examined the perceptions of community college faculty of the Brain-Targeted Teaching (BTT) framework as a tool to facilitate implementing MBES into pedagogy. Two research questions guided the study: (1) How did community college faculty describe changes to their pedagogy after participating in professional development that presented and modeled the BTT framework? and (2) What was the perception of participants of the value of the BTT framework as a tool to facilitate implementing MBES …

Assessment Of Working Relationships Between Athletic Training Program Faculty And Clinical Preceptors, Kathleen Williams

All Theses And Dissertations

Athletic training degree programs require both clinical and classroom educational content. The educational content of the 2020 Standards, adopted in 2018 by athletic training’s accrediting body, included a requirement for additional skills and a minimum level degree. However, clinical preceptors educated prior to 2018 working in athletic training programs are often not proficient or trained in the new techniques. The change in athletic training educational knowledge has led to a theory–practice gap between athletic training faculty and clinical preceptors working in the field. Athletic training faculty and clinical preceptors need good communication and interpersonal working relationships to bridge the gap …

Educator Perceptions Of Social-Emotional Learning Embedded In Academic Instruction To Improve Student Outcomes, Christopher T. Basta

All Theses And Dissertations

Society, parenting, and public education have changed drastically over the past several decades. As a result, public schools recognize the need to address student social and emotional learning (SEL) in addition to their academic growth. Although there is abundant research into the benefits of SEL and various methods for delivering SEL instruction, there is a dearth of research studying teacher perceptions and understandings of SEL embedded in academic instruction. The purpose of this study was to explore teacher perceptions of social-emotional learning (SEL) during academic instruction. This phenomenological study’s research questions were (a) How do teachers’ past experiences and training …

Barriers And Opportunities For Provision Of Specialized Programming For Rural, Low-Incidence Students, Eric Mcgough

All Theses And Dissertations

The dichotomy between increasing accountability mandates and access to appropriate service provision is particularly evident in consideration of mandates pertaining to students represented in special education, Section 504, students who are English learners, migrant students, and homeless students. For the purposes of this study, these students are represented as the low-incidence student population. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that enhance or facilitate those factors that hinder efficient delivery of services to the low-incidence student populations in a very rural region in New England. Participants in this study were three district administrators, three school social workers, and …

Stop-Out Factors For Nontraditional Students In Online Competency-Based Education Programs, Henry T. James

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the phenomenon of nontraditional students in online competency-based education (CBE) degree programs taking enrollment breaks known as “stop-outs” between college semesters or terms. Online programs and CBE programs have grown at a pace commensurate with the increased enrollment of working adults or other nontraditional college students. At the same time, stop-out and attrition rates for online programs and nontraditional students have been significantly higher than for traditional postsecondary education models. A review of existing literature exposed a gap in understanding the factors related to stop-outs for nontraditional students in online CBE …

A Brain-Based Approach To Educational Pedagogy, Troy M. Kennett

All Theses And Dissertations

Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are underperforming their peers on state assessments. The purpose of this practical action research study is to explore how professional development, focused on brain-based research, informs educators’ pedagogical design for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). By combining brain-based teaching components, background in the neurology of the brain, and various learning theories, educators were provided filters for making educational decisions. Research was conducted at a rural elementary school in New Hampshire that serves 258 students in grades 3–5, with 51 students served through special education services. The researcher provided teachers and paraprofessionals with preintervention …

Promoting A Successful Transition To A Professional Career For Vocal Studies Graduates, David C. Strobbe

All Theses And Dissertations

A successful opera singer must complement their artistic talent with entrepreneurial and business skills (Daniel & Daniel, 2015; Storen, 2014). Therefore, educational institutions must teach their graduate vocal studies students to expand their talent and learn how to market themselves as a product. Little research has been conducted from the perspective of opera singers’ academic experiences in higher educational institutions and how well their institutions prepared them for the transition to the professional world. The purpose of the study was to determine if current core curricula are sufficient or should curriculum development focus on the entrepreneurial and business aspects in …

Student Perceptions Of Mathematical Mindset Influences, Jaclyn S. Vitale

All Theses And Dissertations

This mixed methods study examined the factors and experiences junior level (e.g., 11th grade) public high school students enrolled in a college-prep mathematics course perceived as influencing the development of their mindset associated with mathematics. Current research defines mindset as the set of attitudes and beliefs held by an individual (Dweck, 2008b) and a determining factor in student success (Mosley, 2017). With educators at the study site noticing an increase of fixed mathematical mindsets among students and a lack of student perspective contained within current literature, further investigation and understanding was needed. This study addressed research questions related to student …

Student Leadership Development: Accreditation Considerations For Pharmd Programs, Cyndi Porter Fraser

All Theses And Dissertations

Doctor of Pharmacy professional associations such as the American Association of Pharmacy made a call to increase early leadership development of future generations of pharmacists to better prepare them for future leadership positions. This request for change was based on information related to a shift in demographics, an aging baby boom population, retirement of current leaders, changes in pharmacy practice, and an increase of specialty areas in pharmacy. The Center for the Advancement of Pharmacy Education (CAPE) and Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) recognized this need for improving student leadership development (SLD) by incorporating it into their guidance documentation, …

Competency-Based Education In A Postsecondary Setting: An Analysis Of Leadership Perception, Thomas D. Lescarbeau

All Theses And Dissertations

Competency-based education (CBE) is an initiative that is popular across higher education but has been used with varying results. Much of the literature illustrates efficacy of certain CBE programs and leadership styles during implementation. However, existing research typically includes data from administrators, students, and faculty. This case study of a southern two-year college sought to determine perceptions of leadership during implementation of a large-scale initiative like CBE. Based on previous research and recommendations, business specialists, information technology representatives, and student support service representatives were included for a more holistic understanding. Organizational culture, communication, stakeholder support, and bystander roles were themes …

Assessing Clinical Judgment Utilizing Embedded Patients In A Baccalaureate Nursing Program’S Simulation Laboratory, David K. Wells

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if clinical judgment could be assessed in baccalaureate nursing students during a 15 to 20-minute embedded (live patient) simulation scenario using role play. Graduate nurses are expected to apply critical reasoning and be clinically competent when caring for patients when they enter the nursing profession. The use of simulation scenarios is an approved and effective supplement to the clinical experience of nursing students. This study was conducted due to the sparsity of evidence referencing clinical judgment in live patient simulation scenarios. This study used a convenience sample (n=22) of baccalaureate nursing students …

Their Story: College Persistence Of Hispanic/Latino Students At Predominantly White Institutions, Zwisel M. Gandía

All Theses And Dissertations

This phenomenological qualitative study examined the Hispanic/Latino students’ college experiences at Predominantly White, 4-year institutions in an effort to better understand what these students perceived as contributing factors to their sense of belonging and persistence through their first year. Participants included individuals classified as first-year or second-year college students. Data was collected through individual interviews where personal stories were examined by using the student integration model and theory of mattering and marginality to identify reoccurring themes. Identifying these factors was the key motivating factor in determining success and persistence through their first year. From this study, four emergent themes shed …

Professional Competency Development Utilizing Emotional Intelligence In Medical Programs, Christopher Carlin

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the perceptions of physician assistant faculty about emotional intelligence. The study sought to determine PA educators’ familiarity with EI as a construct and to elicit perceived barriers in implementing EI within PA educational programs. The data were collected from a both a focus group of physician assistant faculty was convened from a university in New England and an online cross-sectional survey of randomized physician assistant faculty throughout the United States. The quantitative portion of the research investigated the perceptions faculty held about emotional intelligence. Additionally, the survey asked participants to …

Nurse Educators’ Experiences With Integrated Learning Intervention Practice Systems And Learning Outcomes, Nikolaos S. Moraros

All Theses And Dissertations

Traditional learning interventions or remediation processes provided to underperforming students are often reactionary and offered too late in a course or program to be effective. These students’ knowledge gaps or learning deficiencies are not adequately addressed to effectively change his or her academic performance or learning outcomes in a timely manner. This descriptive qualitative phenomenological research study explored the lived experiences of a nursing school administrator and nurse educators who used a fully-integrated learning intervention practice system that includes proactive strategic remediation approaches at all levels in a pre-licensure vocational educational nursing program.

Purposeful sampling was used to select six …

Teachers' Perceptions Regarding Reaching Struggling Learners In An Elementary School Mathematics Classroom, Colleen Kelleher

All Theses And Dissertations

Elementary school is a critical educational period during which students develop early mathematics skills and build a foundation for future academic success. The purpose of this study was to document the instructional practices and interventions teachers use to identify and meet the needs of struggling learners in a K-3 mathematics classroom. Specific areas of focus included how K-3 teachers identify areas of need and plan for interventions, the resources they rely on in that process, and their own self-efficacy regarding addressing students’ specific needs. Results from online surveys and semi-structured, one-on-one interviews indicated that teachers identify a range of student …