Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

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Thomas Jefferson University Faculty Days

Poster presented at 8th annual Faculty Days at Thomas Jefferson University.

Authors, Monitor Your Publications And Their Impact With Scopus And Orcid, Gary E. Kaplan, Mslis, Ahip, Patricia Wynne, Bsn, Rn, Mslis

Thomas Jefferson University Faculty Days

Poster presented at 8th annual Faculty Days at Thomas Jefferson University.

Developing A Challenging Online Doctoral Course Using Backward And Three-Phase Design Models, Jan G. Neal, Steven Hampton

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

Current Practices and Future Trends in Aviation (DAV 735)—one of 19 online courses in the Ph.D. in Aviation program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University—has run five times since 2011. A team of one instructional designer and one professor were responsible for its initial design, development, and ongoing improvement. This continuity provided the opportunity for a longitudinal, descriptive case study reporting on three wicked instructional design challenges: (a) doctoral student body comprised largely of multidisciplinary aviation professionals, (b) no seminal textbook on the course topics, and (c) unforeseen usability problems with Internet technologies. This case analysis has significance because of the lack …

Judging Airline Pilots’ Performance With And Without An Assessment Model: A Comparison Study Of The Scoring Of Raters From Two Different Airlines, David Weber

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

Various models have been suggested to assess the performance of airline pilots. However, the influence of a model on assessors’ scoring remains largely unexplored. The aim of the present study was to contrast the assessments of raters from two airlines, who assessed performance in pairs of the same airline and rank by using or not using an assessment model. The results showed differences between the assessors of the two airlines in terms of their scoring. Implications were drawn in regards to the usage of a model and its influence on pilot performance assessment.

In The Service Of What? A Phenomenological Exploration Of African American High School Students' Self-Efficacy In Service Learning, Charemi A. Jones

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological study explored how African American high school students from a large Midwestern city make meaning of their service learning experiences within the framework of mandated service learning participation required for high school graduation, and how their lived experiences inform their self-efficacy development. Scholars have previously posited, “student voice in service learning projects positively correlated with improved self-concept, political engagement, and tolerance” (Morgan and Streb, 2001). Within this context, voice is synonymous with students’ self- reflection.

One-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted utilizing a pre-printed protocol consisting of open- ended questions designed to elicit authentic responses, allowing the voice of …

Native American College Students: A Group Forgotten, Kristen E. Willmott, Tara Leigh Sands, Melissa Raucci, Stephanie J. Waterman

Journal of Critical Scholarship on Higher Education and Student Affairs

Broadening McClellan’s (2003) study through 2011, the authors utilize qualitative content analysis of over two thousand journal articles, professional association conference programs, and reflective memos, to detail the extent to which Native American college students remain a forgotten group within the literature. The authors’ positionality and Indigenous feminist theory inform the study. The study concludes by exploring the benefits of expanded Native American college student research and the authors propose a research agenda that can guide higher education professionals to better serve the educational needs of this unique group.

The Predictive Accuracy Of Family And Community Demographic Factors On The 2011, 2012, And 2013, Grade 6 Connecticut Mastery Test, Kelly Ann O'Leary

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study used a correlational, explanatory, longitudinal design with quantitative methods to predict the percentage of students who will score at or above Goal. Archival data from Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) Math and Reading scores from 2011, 2012, and 2013 in conjunction with five-year estimates of the U.S. Census data were examined. The study focused on 21 out-of-school demographic variables, grouped by family human capital and community social capital, to predict the percentage of students in Grade 6 who scored at or above Goal, the district level, on the CMT. The study examined 130 school districts in Connecticut who took …

Critical Thinking Skills And Academic Maturity: Emerging Results From A Five-Year Quality Enhancement Plan (Qep) Study, Ian N. Toppin, Shadreck Chitsonga

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

The QEP that was implemented in this study focused on enhancing students’ critical thinking skills. A pretest/ posttest approach was used to assess students’ critical thinking progress in freshman level core English and Math courses. An intervention was performed involving intensive instruction and assignments relating to a set of reasoning strategies such as: analytical, analogical, inductive, deductive, and comparative reasoning, among others. When students performed well on assignments by applying the reasoning strategies, it was assumed that critical thinking occurred. However, pre/ posttest results in these classes were often disappointing, and seemed at times to suggest that freshmen are not …

An Investigation Of The Development Of Pre-Service Teacher Assessment Literacy Through Individualized Tutoring And Peer Debriefing, Dennis Murphy Odo

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

Many pre-service teachers lack deep understanding of assessment concepts and have low self-efficacy for using assessments but pre-service on-campus programs have been shown to support their assessment literacy development. Likewise, individualized tutoring has helped pre-service candidates improve instructional practice and peer debriefing has been found to help push their thinking. However, questions remain regarding the usefulness of these techniques to develop candidates’ assessment literacy. The primary aim of this exploratory qualitative study was to describe pre-service teachers’ perceptions of assessment literacy and the process of their assessment literacy development during a literacy assessment class containing an individualized tutoring component. Five …

How Do Open Educational Resources (Oers) Impact Students? A Qualitative Study At New York City College Of Technology, Cuny, Cailean Cooney

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis reports on findings from a study conducted with students using open educational resources as the primary course material in their Health Psychology course. The study took place at New York City College of Technology (City Tech), of the City University of New York (CUNY), a comprehensive college located in Brooklyn. Students were assigned the OER by their course instructor, who developed it as part of a library funded pilot initiative. Two research instruments were employed to collect qualitative data from students: a survey and one-on-one interviews with a smaller student sample. Both survey and interview items asked students …

The Remedy That's Killing: Cuny, Laguardia, And The Fight For Better Math Policy, Rachel A. Oppenheimer

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Nationwide, there is a crisis in math learning and math achievement at all levels of education. Upwards of 80% of students who enter the City University of New York’s community colleges from New York City’s Department of Education high schools fail to meet college level math proficiencies and as a result, are funneled into the system’s remedial math system. Once placed into pre-college remedial arithmetic, pre-algebra, and elementary algebra courses, students fail at alarming rates and research indicates that students’ failure in remedial math has negative ripple effects on their persistence and degree completion. CUNY is not alone in facing …

Translating Stem Education Research Into Practice, Christine Rosicka

Professional learning for teachers and school leaders

This translational research project from the Centre for Education Policy and Practice sought evidence-based practical applications, programs or interventions that can be implemented in the primary classroom to address STEM learning. A literature search for STEM education interventions in primary years was undertaken in order to identify integrated STEM programs that have had a proven impact on student outcomes. This paper outlines the scope and methodology of the review. It then considers the findings in terms of four key themes and translates them into short messages for teachers. The recent literature on STEM education was found to centre around four …

Applying Active Learning Strategy To The Teaching Of History Within A Multigenerational Community College Classroom, Zachary John Zweigle

Dissertations

Community colleges nationwide struggle with retention and completion of students. The role of two-year institutions is further complicated by the multigenerational diversity of learners. Community college instructors should be prepared to educate students ranging from the traditional-age digital native to a life-long learner 80 or more years in age. Creating a learning environment inclusive of generational learners is central to the mission of the community college. This quantitative study was grounded in two theoretical frameworks. First, Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive learning theory provided an understanding for student learning in the social environment. Second, Schön’s (1973) organizational learning theory provided an …

Victorian Teacher Supply And Demand Report 2012 And 2013, Paul R. Weldon, Chandra Shah, Glenn Rowley

School and system improvement

This report provides forecasts of the supply and demand for teachers in Victoria from 2014 to 2020. The teaching workforce includes all teachers from K to 12. This is the tenth in the series of such reports, the first of which was released in 2001. Unlike previous reports, this one includes a section on Early Childhood and has more extensive analysis of the future demand for teachers in the state.

Building An Evaluation Model Of Academic Advising’S Impact On Progression, Persistence, And Retention Within University Settings, Abhik Roy

Dissertations

Academic advising is at a point in its maturation as a field of study where anecdotal evidence is no longer sufficient to inform the measure of effectiveness. As the area becomes more research-based, advising’s measurable impact should be based on an evaluative framework; no such structure currently exists. In this study, three methods were used to investigate this problem and ultimately to create a model and checklist. Firstly, a descriptive study was used to examine if there is an understanding of what evaluation is within the advising community, one where assessment has been the dominant practice. Secondly, a quasi-experimental design …

The Implementation Of Systematic Promotion And Retention Procedures And Its Impact On District-Wide Practices In Elementary Schools, Roger Anthony Le Blanc

Dissertations

Student retention has been consequential to students through an assortment of disparaging labels derived from the retention process. It served to marginalize the academic status of those students considered for retention through such practices as ability tracking, inferior labeling, and other discriminatory measures, as they moved through their respective academic journeys. And while both research current to the time of this writing and past research continued to be overwhelming in its stance that such policies and procedures were filled with negative unintended consequences, there was still little or no effort to abate such practices (Allensworth, 2004). This research explored whether …

Let Me Lae-Something On You, Or How I Found My Way Back To Education Through Laes, Robert Sean Myers Ii

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

No abstract provided.

The Federal School Improvement Grant: Telling The Story Through Quantitative Outcomes, Gregg B. Dionne

Dissertations

Student success and the mitigation of achievement gaps has been a focus of the federal government since passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. The federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) is the latest in federal policy inducements to address this.

To tell the story of SIG implementation in one Midwestern state, data was collected from two groups of SIG-eligible schools, one group which received SIG funding and the other group which did not. Data was collected over multiple years and included mathematics and reading outcomes as well as graduation, dropout, and attendance rates. Data was obtained for …

A Causal-Comparative Study Of The Affects Of Benchmark Assessments On Middle Grades Science Achievement Scores, Melissa Galloway

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal comparative study was to test the theory of assessment that relates benchmark assessments to the Georgia middle grades science Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) percentages, controlling for schools who do not administer benchmark assessments versus schools who do administer benchmark assessments for all middle school students including those enrolled in Special Education (SPED) and English to Speakers of other Languages (ESOL) programs across the state of Georgia. CRCT pass percentages were collected from fifteen schools that administered benchmark assessments and fifteen schools that did not administer benchmark assessments. The data was collected from The Governor’s …

Predicting High School Gpa Using Hexaco Personality Domains And The Secondary School Admission Test, Jeffrey Durso-Finley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Predictive studies of non-cognitive personality traits and SAT on college GPA are well established, but far less is known about the association between personality traits and comparable secondary school admission tests on secondary school GPA. This study assessed the relationship between the personality domains in the HEXACO: Personality Inventory-Revised (HEXACO: PI-R) inventory and secondary school GPA, while controlling for performance on the Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT). The results of the hierarchical regression analysis demonstrated no association between the HEXACO domains and GPA and a significant association between SSAT and GPA. The use of the personality domains in the HEXACO: …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Exploration Of The Shared Perceptions Of Online Adjunct Faculty In The United States Who Have A High Sense Of Community, Tiffany Ferencz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the experiences of online adjunct faculty who have a high sense of community within their respective university. Sense of community was generally defined as feelings of connectedness within the university community. The theories that guided this study were McMillan and Chavis’ (1986) sense of community theory and Herzberg’s (1968) motivation-hygiene theory. McMillan and Chavis’ sense of community theory suggests a sense of community is a powerful force that influences people. Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory is used as it identifies guiding principles for why people are motivated to work. The central question …

The Effects Of Consistent Observation And Feedback On Teacher Practice And Motivation To Refine Instruction, Scott I. Nasatir

Dissertations

This evaluation of a pilot program investigates the effects consistent observation and feedback had on teacher practice and motivation to refine instruction. An observation-feedback loop was initiated at a high school in a large Midwestern urban school district where teachers received bi-weekly observations and were provided with instantaneous feedback. Current research has shown that teacher evaluation, if utilized appropriately and with fidelity, can be a strong lever to improve instructional practices. While the advantages are vast, few schools and districts alike are also enacting measures to roll out a companion model that has “coaching” attributes embedded to support educators entrenched …

Systematic Implementation Of Full-Day Kindergarten In A Large Suburban School District: A Change Leadership Plan, Brad Edward Carter Mr

Dissertations

The purpose of this change plan document is to provide a rationale and structure for shifting from half- to full-day kindergarten. Patricia Clark’s (2009) synthesis of multiple research studies on full-day kindergarten outlines the reoccurring findings that implementation of full-day kindergarten prevents long term academic struggles for students. Closing the achievement gaps when at its smallest, which is early in the educational career of a student, ensures long term academic, social, and emotional success.

Lecciones De IngléS Para Un Hispanohablante Encarcelado: Caso PráCtico, Mckenzie Brown

World Languages and Cultures

This project attempts to outline my experience teaching English in the San Luis Obispo County Jail as part of a seven-week internship. It will outline various teaching methods that I found useful in one-on-one settings. I will discuss the flexibility required to work within the limitations imposed by the jail, as well as linguistic and cultural obstacles associated with teaching a native Spanish speaker. Lastly, I intend to advocate for the implementation of more jail programs that can be accessed by non-native English speakers.

Although this project's core is founded in seven weeks of ninety-minute instructional sessions, it will also …

Examining The Decisional Ethic Of Textbook Adoption In Christian Schools: A Collective Case Study, Cecil Phillips

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this collective case study is to examine the decisional ethic Christian school administrators employ when evaluating textbooks for adoption in Christian schools. The study affirms the truism that Christian schools ought to be decidedly Christian and focuses upon textbook adoption practices in Christian schools. A multisite, qualitative research design is employed to examine current practice of textbook adoption among a purposive sample of secondary schools within the Southeast region of the Association of Christian Schools International. The research questions address such administrative leadership factors as organizational values and learning objectives, textbook content criteria and features, and the …

A Case Study On The Impact Of Reading Strategies On The Comprehension Of Informational Text For Adolescent Readers, Mary Rock

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study was to understand how students use reading strategies to help them comprehend informational text. Eighteen adolescent, developing readers who participated in a Reading Edge intervention at a suburban junior high school in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania answered interview questions, and 14 students met the criteria to participate in the entire study. Seven adolescents in Grade 9 who did not score proficient on their state tests and seven who scored proficient on the most recent state tests participated in the study. Three research questions developed from the literature guided the study and helped the …

A View Of Parents Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Jennifer Reynolds

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Parents of children with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) encounter many stressors beyond the typical parenting pressures that parents of children without disabilities face. Along with the additional challenges, parents of children with ASD face complex needs that differ from parents of children with other types of disabilities. The purpose of this qualitative study was to consider the needs of parents (N = 10) with children with ASD served in a public school system in North Georgia through the framework of Maslow’s (1943) Theory of Human Motivation. A transcendental phenomenological design was used to provide a voice to parents of children …

Acer 2014-2015 Annual Report, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

ACER Annual Reports

The annual report of the Australian Council for Educational Research 2014-15 includes a spotlight on ACER's work in assessment reform and innovation, digital technologies, understanding the teaching workforce, Indigenous Australians, improving equity, education monitoring, and recognition of success. The report details commissioned research and staff publications.

A Metaevaluation Of The Commission On Fire Accreditation International Accreditation Process, Stacy A. French

Dissertations

Fire and emergency services throughout the country are being required by local governmental authorities to provide efficient and effective services. In 1996, the International City-County Management Association (ICMA) and the International Association of Fire Chief (IAFC) executed a master trust agreement that established the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) to award accreditation to those fire and emergency services that demonstrated efficiency and effectiveness in the services provided. As of this study, no documented research had been published that challenged the current CFAI Accreditation process to ensure the highest level of accountability and usefulness for both the public and fire …

Modeling The Effects Of Student-Centeredness On Student Outcomes, Emily Bonem, Chantal Levesque-Bristol, Angelika Zissimopoulos, David Nelson, Heather Fedesco

IMPACT Presentations

Presented at the 6th International Conference on Self-determination Theory in Victoria, British Colombia, Canada.