School Psychology Commons^™

A Case Study Exploring The Transition To Middle School From The Perspective Of Students, Kelly A. Rappa

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The transition to middle school is often associated with negative effects on academic achievement, motivation, self-esteem, and psychological well-being. Educators at a Grade 6 through 8 middle school in the northeastern United States observed students struggle with the adjustment to middle school. Research suggests that developmentally responsive schools can significantly reduce the potential negative impact of middle school adjustment. Drawing upon developmental theories from the works of individuals such as Piaget, Erikson, and Maslow, the purpose of this single-case study was to capture the opinions, thoughts, and perceptions of the students transitioning into middle school to better understand how they …

Evolution And Development Of Reasoning And Argumentation: Commentary On Mercier (2011), David Moshman

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

For anyone who loves a strong major thesis—and I do—Mercier’s “Reasoning serves argumentation in children” [this issue] obliges right from the title. And for anyone who loves a carefully structured defense of a provocative perspective—and who does not?—Mercier’s article continues to fill the bill.

The “argumentative theory of reasoning” maintains that “reasoning is a fundamentally social ability” that “has evolved to serve argumentive ends: finding and evaluating arguments in a dialogic context.” There appear to be two distinguishable theses here: first, reasoning serves argumentive ends; second, reasoning has evolved. In their moderate versions, each thesis is true and useful; their …

Psychometric Properties Of Diagnostic Assessment Instrumentsfor Autism Spectrum Disorders In A Community Sample Aged 2 Through 17 Years, Sheryl Lozowski-Sullivan

Dissertations

Recent estimates of the incidence and prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) indicate substantial increases over the past 20 years (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009; Fombonne, 2009; Matson & Kozlowski, 2011; Schreibman & Koegel, 2005; Wing & Porter, 2002), in part because of the availability of significantly improved diagnostic assessment instruments (Lord & Corsello, 2005; Schreibman, 2005). In highly structured research settings, some of these diagnostic instruments correlate well with each other; however, few studies have examined the relation between these diagnostic tools in traditional clinical practice (Mazefsky & Oswald, 2006; South et al, 2002). This study examined …

The Effects Of Yellow Rectangular Rapid-Flashing Beacons (Rrfbs) Onmotorists' Yielding, Exit Lane Encroachment And Conflicts At Fire Station Exits, Erick K. Marmolejo

Dissertations

The purpose of the current study was to explore the extent to which yellow rectangular rapid-flashing beacons (RRFBs) affected motorists' yielding, exit-lane encroachment and conflicts at fire station exits. This study explored the use of RRFBs attached to sign prompts that alerted motorists to the presence of exiting emergency vehicles. These signs were activated only during an exit event. It was hypothesized that motorists would increase their frequency of safe and legal yielding in the presence of the RRFB intervention when compared to the absence of contextually activated RRFB units. This study was conducted in a midwestern town in front …

Examination Of Anxiety And Substance Use Symptoms In Trauma Exposed Versus Environmentally Stressed College Students, Theresa M. Souza

Dissertations

Anxiety is a common problem among the college population, which rarely occurs in isolation. Oftentimes, an individual abuses substances in an attempt to eliminate the short term affect of these conditions. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), is the most persistent and severe type of anxiety disorder. It has been a long-standing belief within the psychological community that in order for PTSD to develop, the individual must first experience a traumatic event which meets certain criteria and must evidence a definable emotional response during the event. A recent study found PTSD in individuals who had not experienced the type of trauma …

The Experiences Of Married International Graduate Students And Their Accompanying Non-Student Spouses In The Us Culture: A Qualitative Study, Adriana Yellig

Dissertations

Many studies document the experiences of single international students in the U.S. culture. However, little is known about the experiences of married international students, their marital relationships, and the experiences of their accompanying nonstudent spouses in the U.S. culture.

This qualitative phenomenological study focused on the experiences of married international graduate students and their accompanying spouses in the U.S. culture. Additionally, the study explored the impact of cultural influences on the participants' marital relationships, as well as the impact of marriage on their adjustment to the culture.

The study included twenty participants (ten couples) from a range of countries, most …

Teacher Expectations Of Children With Mental Illness In The Schools, Jamie Lee Satterly Roig

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Within an experimental vignette design, 224 certified teachers participated in this online study by completing a researcher created rating scale that assessed expectations for a child described in a randomly assigned vignette; a child without mental illness, a child identified with an emotional behavioral disorder, and a child identified as returning from acute psychiatric care. Results from the current study revealed reliable scales; learning, cooperation, self-control, and teacher self-efficacy. Findings indicated teachers reported significantly different expectations for children identified with mental illness in comparison to typical children in the areas of self-control and cooperation; specifically, teachers reported lower expectations for …

Evaluation Of School Social Workers' Time Spent In Direct And Indirect Practices, Kris Brummund

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore District 77 school social workers’ time distribution of direct and indirect services. Time spent in these services for school social workers is not well researched or documented.

Contextual Risk, Maternal Negative Emotionality, And The Negative Emotion Dysregulation Of Preschool Children From Economically Disadvantaged Families, Eleanor D. Brown, Brian P. Ackerman

Psychology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Teacher Beliefs Regarding Grade Retention In An Urban Elementary School, Toni Gilmore Hook

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to determine if exposure to a research-based presentation on grade retention, including the academic, socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes, would yield a change in teacher beliefs regarding retention as an intervention strategy. Teachers from a small urban school district were asked to complete a presurvey, view a research-based online presentation on grade retention and complete a postsurvey. Results from this research revealed that teachers' beliefs regarding grade retention significantly changed after viewing a research-based online presentation on topic. Results also indicated that, not only was there a change of overall participants, but there was a …

The Relationship Of Teacher Perceptions Of Principal Support Styles And Teachers' Own Attitudes About The Use Of Support Styles With Children, Michael Simcha Lax

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

This study assessed the role that principal modeling has on influencing teachers’ classroom styles and behaviors. Teachers differ in the degree to which they employ autonomy supporting or controlling behaviors. The degree to which teachers demonstrate autonomy supportive behaviors has a direct effect on the level of autonomous motivation demonstrated by students. This is because students are more likely to develop self-determined motivation in a social environment which provides support for autonomy (Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier and Ryan, 1991). Higher levels of student autonomy is associated with a lower school drop out rate (Vallerand, 1997) and higher levels of academic achievement …

Exploration Of The Effects Of Direct And Indirect Exposure To War On The Educational Performance Of Refugee Children, Paulinus C. Nwoga

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

In the past decade, African continent have experienced multiple armed conflicts which have sparked a rapid exodus of refugees seeking asylum (temporary protection) in the United State and other Western countries. In recent years, United State has become the preferred country for Africans who seek temporary protection due to wars and other conflicts in their homeland. This study is an attempt to document degree of adjustment difficulties experienced by refugee children upon acceptance by host country and enrolled into the schools. To further understand the adjustment processes of the refugee children, an archival data from Community Outreach Agency that provides …

Stereotype Threat And Minority Students' Academic Achievement, Clédicianne Dorvil

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

This action oriented research project presents a manualized program that can be used in the school setting to remediate stereotype threat. A meta-analytic review was conducted in order to identify evidenced-based interventions that intervened on stereotype threat effects. The findings from the meta-analysis were utilized to create the manual for the Study Skills Group. A pilot study was conducted with middle and high-school aged individuals to evaluate the efficacy of the program. Pre and post program evaluation forms were utilized to monitor change during the course of the program. The Study Skills Group manual received positive ratings for the session …

School Psychologists' Knowledge And Self-Perceived Competency In Identifying, Assessing, And Treating Childhood Anxiety Disorders In The School Setting, Jaime Moldovan

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Anxiety disorders are highly prevalent in the school setting but highly under-recognized, compared with the more outward behavioral disorders. Because of the many negative consequences of anxiety going unnoticed in children, school psychologists should be able to identify, assess, and treat children with anxiety in the school setting. This study utilized survey research to explore whether or not school psychologists felt knowledgeable and competent in identifying, assessing, and treating anxiety disorders in the school setting. Specifically, it explored whether or not there was a relationship between years of experience and levels of degree on knowledge and competence with identifying, assessing, …

The Role Of Esl Teacher Support In Facilitating School Adjustment In English Language Learners, Mary Sharp-Ross

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Immigrant students are the fastest growing sector of the US school population.These students are English Language Learners (ELLs) who enter our schools with a constellation of social-emotional risk factors that predispose them to psychological disorders, as well as undermine their learning and educational outcomes. English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESL) teacher support is indicated to be a primary protective factor for ELLs facing the pervasive task of acculturation to a new society and school culture. This study surveyed 200 ESL teachers in Pennsylvania in order to gather information regarding their beliefs about the social-emotional and acculturation needs of their …

The Implications Of Executive Function And Prototypical Student Performance In Middle School, Sabrina Anne Hartman

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Over the course of the past 25 years, “executive functions” have been investigated more and more frequently in relation to cognitive functioning across the lifespan. Within that time frame, researchers have examined various changes that are specific to the adolescent brain. The research has begun to elucidate the relationship between executive functioning and the developmental period of adolescence. Previous studies have examined the utility of using specific rating scales as a means to assess executive functioning across the lifespan, with most of these utilizing scale level analyses. Given the lack of specificity regarding what elements exactly comprise “executive functioning,” the …

A Study Of The Relationship Between Elementary School Students' Performance On Progress Monitoring Measures Of Oral Reading Fluency And Reading Comprehension To The Pennsylvania System Of School Assessment, Elana E. Weinstein

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

National education legislation has mandated school district accountability for demonstrating student reading progress. As a result, Response to Intervention models promote benchmark assessments to identify at-risk students and promote proficiency on state assessments. The current study examined third and fourth grade students’ Response to Intervention data and standardized assessments from a suburban school district to determine if Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) and reading comprehension benchmark assessments (4Sight assessments) have utility in predicting performance on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). Results from the current study expanded prior research by analyzing individual benchmark assessments with yearly state assessments. Analyses identified …

Adolescents Are Young Adults, Not Immature Brains, David Moshman

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

When G. Stanley Hall (1904) wrote the first book on adolescence at the turn of the 20th century, he was describing a new cultural phenomenon that had emerged in the United States and other industrializing societies during the late 19th century. There had always been children, whether or not we theorized about them, but there had not always been adolescents.

Of course, there have always been teenagers in the mathematical sense of persons who have reached the age of 13 years but not yet 20 years (and in the linguistic sense that these are the ‘‘teen’’ years in our counting …

A Randomized Trial Examining The Effects Of Parent Engagement On Early Language And Literacy: The Getting Ready Intervention, Susan M. Sheridan, Lisa Knoche, Kevin A. Kupzyk, Carolyn P. Edwards, Christine A. Marvin

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Language and literacy skills established during early childhood are critical for later school success. Parental engagement with children has been linked to a number of adaptive characteristics in preschoolers including language and literacy development, and family-school collaboration is an important contributor to school readiness. This study reports the results of a randomized trial of a parent engagement intervention designed to facilitate school readiness among disadvantaged preschool children, with a particular focus on language and literacy development. Participants included 217 children, 211 parents, and 29 Head Start teachers in 21 schools. Statistically significant differences in favor of the treatment group were …

The Complex Nature Of Asperger’S Syndrome: Assessing Knowledge And Perceptions Of School Psychologists, Kelly L. Herman

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The complex nature of Asperger’s Syndrome (AS) often results in difficulty effectively meeting the needs of individuals with this disorder. Despite advancements in research and increasing focus on this disorder, limited awareness and understanding often result in difficulty identifying and, therefore, adequately supporting individuals with AS. Inadequate or faulty treatment further results from inappropriate diagnosis or failure to recognize psychiatric disorders likely to coexist with AS. This paper provides a literature review of AS and problems resulting from limited awareness, failure to identify or diagnose the disorder, failure to recognize common comorbid conditions, and failure to provide the appropriate supports …

Comparing First Generation And Non-First Generation African-American Students At Predominately White Institutions, Leatrice Renee Brooks

Dissertations

The comparative experiences of first generation and non-first generation Black students at predominately White institutions were examined to gain information about the predictors and relationships between adjustment (including academic and personal-emotional) coping (4 styles), race-related stress, and racial identity development (6 levels). Results from a simultaneous multiple regression revealed a significant positive adjustment profile that included being non-first generation, low disengagement coping, problem-oriented coping, and low pre-encounter self-hatred racial identity development. The standardized coefficients for the first canonical analyses indicated significant relationships between pre-encounter self-hatred and low personal-emotional adjustment; and for the second, low disengagement coping and personal-emotional adjustment. For …

The Effects Of Implementing Restorative Justice In An In-School Suspension Program, Nikki Brown-Kersey

Dissertations

The purpose of the proposed study was to assess the effects of implementing an in-school suspension program with a Restorative Justice component on office referrals, suspensions and grade point averages. The combination of Restorative Justice and inschool suspension as an alternative to out-of-school suspension warrants empirical evaluation. According to recent research, neither Restorative Justice nor in-school suspension alone have enough empirical evidence to support their success and continued use in schools in isolation. The positive aspects of each combined may produce a more successful alternative to suspension. A group design procedure was used to assess if significant changes in the …

The Claremont Autism Center, Alex E. Mitchell Mr.

CMC Senior Theses

The Claremont Autism Center is a 23 minute documentary on the strengths and benefits the Center brings to Claremont McKenna students, as well as children and families from the Inland Empire that deal with Autism on a daily basis.

A Theory Of Mental Credit, Jason Soll

CMC Senior Theses

Many philosophical subjects attempt to analyze the basis of human welfare. Theories of desert, distribution of property, and happiness tend to dominate philosophical discourse. Mental credit, which is the mental acquisition of credit for one’s accomplishments and the satisfaction one derives from this credit, is absent from this discourse despite its underlying role in the way people think about their lives. Mental credit is an eternal cognitive good that deserves thoughtful attention and pious decisions for implementation. The following theory of mental credit seeks to serve as a unifying theory for the mental calculations that guide life’s most imperative decisions, …

Parent Perceptions Of Preadolescent Giftedness And Self Concept, Letitia Pickel

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Parent perceptions of preadolescent giftedness with regard to the social-emotional development and self-concept of their children were investigated for this study. This study utilized a qualitative approach through information provided by the parents of 21 preadolescent children, with IQ‘s of 110 and above, who participate in a suburban school districts gifted and talented / enrichment program. Interviews were conducted with each parent and included 7 open-ended questions that were intended to elicit personal views regarding their child‘s social-emotional development and self-concept. Information from these interviews, incorporated with the background and demographic questionnaire were examined for potential themes and patterns with …

Group Dynamics, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Engagement-elevating activities used in a course such as group dynamics fall into two broad categories: topic-focused short-term activities and problem-focused, longer-term projects. Topic-focused activities are, in most cases, deliberate applications of a concept or process in a group-based experience and are typically tied to the content of the course in a direct way. For example, when students study group decision-making they may meet in small groups to make a series of decisions. Afterwards, they examine their group’s decisions, and gauge for themselves the extent to which their group reacted as theory and research would suggest. Problem-focused projects, in contrast, ask …

A Proposed Theoretical Model Of Literacy Learning Using Multisensory Structured Language Instruction (Msli), Judith E. Rusinko

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Multisensory Structured Language Instruction has been used for decades by clinicians and practitioners as an intervention for teaching students with dyslexia. Multisensory Structured Language Instruction uses the integration of multiple senses (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic/tactile) simultaneously to teach literacy. Although the anecdotal evidence for Multisensory Structured Language Instruction is strong, there is a lack of empirical evidence to support its effectiveness. In addition, Multisensory Structured Language Instruction includes the foundational skills recommended by the National Reading Panel (2000), but the use of multiple senses to teach these skills has not been thoroughly studied. This theoretical dissertation focused on one element …

School Uniforms, Nicole Waytenick Reuter

Graduate Research Papers

The need for education reform is evident in public schools across the nation. Researchers, school officials, parents, and teachers have been looking at different ways to promote a better learning environment that will allow students to feel safe, equal, and free to express themselves in different ways within the classroom. In recent years, many of these same people have contended that implementing school uniform policies within schools is the way to create that kind of learning environment.

Within this paper, a closer look at the issues surrounding school uniform policies will be examined. Both sides of the issues will be …

Adapting To Change: An Exploration Of Students' Transition Experiences In A Senior College In Western Australia, Linda Rogerson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research sought to explore the experiences of students during their transition to a senior college. The senior college was established in response to the amendments to education policy in Western Australia that made it compulsory for students to remain in full-time education, training or employment until the age of 17 years (Department of Education and Training, 2008). Senior colleges were established to teach Years 11 and 12 exclusively, to promote a school environment that suited the maturity of senior students. Students attending senior colleges experience an additional transition during their senior school years and, as previous research has shown, …

Using A Performance Consistency Model To Explain Variations In Test-Retest Performance, James S. Whitaker

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Subtest-level interpretation of intelligence tests is necessary for understanding the relationship between cognitive deficiencies and academic problems and for designing interventions based on assessment results. However, the practice of subtest interpretation continues to be discouraged by those who claim that subtests have poor reliability and thus minimal interpretative power. This perception of subtest instability may be the result of misguided conceptions of reliability and not actual properties of subtests. With this in mind, the present study sought to determine the extent to which a neuropsychologically based performance model fit WISC-IV subtest test-retest data and offered an alternate means of understanding …