2015 | IUP Islandora

This narrative dissertation looks at students' writing, and discusses how, after 15 years of teaching, a first year composition teacher felt compelled to change her pedagogy. Having recently lost her nephew to murder and concerned about the anti-social climate in her home, Bermuda, the researcher implemented a pedagogy intended to encourage students' voices and a sense of hope. The researcher's student-centered pedagogy required students to write books about `what they were burning to tell ...
Sharon M Virgil.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Hurlbert, Claude M. Committee members: Gian Pagnucci; Gloria Park.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Social combination: teaching two fa(u)lkners and digital literacy

This dissertation explores the ways to teach the literary works of William Clark Falkner and William Faulkner to ESL (English as a Second Language) students in today's digital environment. William Faulkner's great-grandfather, William Clark Falkner, wrote romantic literary works, and William Faulkner critically uses the motifs of his great-grandfather's works to establish his literary world. Applying Bakhtin's dialogical theory, this study explores how these two authors imagine the social for...
Koichi Fujino.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Sherwood, Kenneth Committee members: Tanya Heflin; Todd Thompson.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Social roles as predicting factors on the effect of gains and losses on treatment outcome

This study aims to extend the current research on secondary gain among chronic pain patients. Previous research identified the concept of secondary gain having evolved from Freudian neurosis and an unfair association with malingering. Current research recognizes a more complete construct that includes secondary gains and losses as well as the gains and losses from tertiary levels. These levels of gains and loss create an overall economy that is theorized to have an effect on the treatment out...
Richard D Kutz Jr.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Roehrich, Laurie Committee members: Mark McGowan; Maureen McHugh.
Psy.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

Sociolinguistic analysis of nigerian pidgin english in nigerian film

This study examines biases against the use of Nigerian Pidgin English in social settings. It also compares the usage between those who speak the preferred Standard English versus those who speak the Nonstandard English, Nigerian Pidgin English by analyzing the conversations between the two parental couples in the "Nollywood" film Wise In-Laws. Also, this study examines the subtle conversational structures that prevent or enable Nigerian Pidgin English speakers from being successful or unsuc...
Olubukola Yetunde Salako.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Savova, Lilia P. Committee members: Gian Pagnucci; Thomas Slater.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Student learning of violence prevention education concepts: a longitudinal analysis

Interpersonal violence is considered to be a major public health concern; education efforts are necessary to involve citizens in reducing violence. This study examined the effectiveness of a violence prevention education program administered at the collegiate level. The program consisted of traditional classroom learning combined with an online learning component using Facebook. The goals of this curriculum were to teach students the warning signs of violence, including those related to gener...
Rachel Posner LeMay.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Berman, Pearl Committee members: Anson Long; Maureen McHugh.
Psy.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

A study of effects of institution-wide 1:1 computing initiatives on university freshman student engagement

It was the intended purpose for this research to explore, using the National Survey of Student Engagement, (NSSE), whether or not 1:1 initiatives have an effect on engagement of university first year students. The findings support previous research demonstrating increased student engagement in a technology-rich environment. Another noteworthy finding proved to be the significant difference of male respondents reporting increased engagement, in comparison with female respondents within the sam...
James R Bosco.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Kerry-Moran, Kelli Jo Committee members: George Bieger; Crystal Machado.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

A study of the associations among homophobia, empathy, and mindfulness

The present study examined whether mindfulness or empathy is a better predictor of homophobia. Mindfulness training has been shown to impart a wide range of physical, emotional, and mental health benefits to practitioners, not the least of which is an increase in empathy. Research has also shown that developing empathy is one of the most effective ways to reduce prejudice. This study hypothesized that mindfulness should be at least as effective as empathy in predicting scores on a homophobia ...
Thomas R Wahlund.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Long, Anson E. Committee members: Beverly Goodwin; John Mills.
Psy.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

Surrounded by crime: this i know, for the internet told me so

This study examined the relationship between members of Generation Y and their usage of the internet for the purposes of being informed about crime; as well as how this would influence their perceptions of possible likelihood of victimization utilizing a pair of scales developed by Crowl (2013). The framework for this examination is that of Gerbner and Gross's (1978) cultivation theory, in which the more time a person spends absorbed in a type of media, the more they will come to rely upon it...
Philip Wagner.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Frenzel, Erika Committee members: Jennifer Gossett; Kathleen Hanrahan; John Lewis.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Talking voice in women's advocacy sites and composition

This study looks at how three feminist non-profits use writing as a vehicle to support women and strengthen their voices. It re-examines the metaphor of "voice" in writing instruction through a lens for feminist advocacy and offers suggestions for writing instruction that are grounded in feminist theory and advocacy. The project points to ways for instructors to give greater consideration to their female students' experiences and material lives amidst writing instruction. The narrative in...
Karen Sorensen-Lang.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Hurlbert, Claude Committee members: Gian Pagnucci; Nancy Welch.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

Teacher acceptance of web-based e-learning technology

As the use of technology and innovation continues to boom, educators have been slow to accept and use new technologies in their classrooms. National and state technology initiatives support the use of technology in teaching practice. Teachers, however, are not using technology as much as expected. Teacher surveys' indicate that educators and their students are not using available technologies as much as initially expected (Clausen, Vilberg, Murry, Meidl, & Sochman, 2011;"Teachers' use of educ...
Adam C Coffman.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Lare, Douglas; Helterbran, Valeri Committee members: Richard Otto.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

Teacher efficacy for secondary general education teachers supporting students with specific learning disabilities (sld) in inclusive classrooms

While a considerable amount of research exists on teacher efficacy, few researchers have explored teacher efficacy at the secondary level in an inclusive classroom. Since teachers face many challenges in the classroom, several variables may exist as to what impacts a general education teacher's efficacy, particularly when working with students with specific learning disabilities (SLD). Using a quantitative methodology involving a cross-sectional design, this exploratory study examined what ...
Laura C Moran.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Anderson, John A. Committee members: John Dellegrotto; Valerie Gunter; J. Mabry.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Teachers' perceptions of the importance of intercultural communicative competence in saudi efl education

In this study, the researcher qualitatively investigates the perceptions of six Saudi EFL teachers on the importance of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in the Saudi EFL educational context. The study's participants were male Ph.D. students in an English Department at a university based on the United States. The focus was to explore the factors that may have contributed to the absence of classroom instruction and materials that aim to develop students' ICC in Saudi EFL education e...
Basim Mohammed Al Hasnan.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Savova, Lilia P. Committee members: Patrick Bizzaro; Michael Williamson.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Technology's impact on the learning experience of at-risk digital natives

This study examines the impact of technology on at-risk digital natives who have transitioned from high school to college, at a regional campus of a Midwestern Pennsylvania University. While the term digital native has become widely used by technology commentators, the author has introduced a new term, "at-risk digital natives," to the world of academia and information communication technology. An "at-risk digital native" is defined as a subset of the digital native generation who is at-ris...
Malaika M Turner.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Leidman, Mary Beth Committee members: Melvin Jenkins; Jay Start.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

"that's classy!": a workshop exploring the influence of social class

Social class is often defined as one's income, occupation status, and education level. This definition fails to examine the culture that is created within each social class background. Class plays an important role in communication style, worldviews, hobbies, rules for interaction, one's access to valued resources, such as education and medical care, and more. Diversity trainings and the research literature have been criticized for ignoring the diversity of social class, and how these differe...
Andrea Denise Poet.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: McHugh, Maureen Committee members: Anson Long; David Myers.
Psy.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English

Today's college student: measuring the effectiveness of financial literacy education and effect on subsequent student debt

This mixed-method study investigates the level of financial literacy in junior and senior-level college students and the effect on subsequent student debt. Two-hundred-fifty-four junior and senior level students at Indiana University of Pennsylvania were surveyed using the Jump$tart Coalition® for Personal Financial Literacy college survey and seven students participated in a focus group session. Analysis of this research determined that level of financial literacy is not an effective pr...
Patricia Curran McCarthy.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Piper, David M. Committee members: Cathy Kaufman; Kelli Paquette.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Transforming educator instructional practice in pennsylvania secondary schools through the addition of teacher-specific student achievement data as a component of teacher evaluation

Supervision through evaluation is effective if it has a positive impact on teacher performance and student achievement (Danielson, 2001; Marzano, Frontier, & Livingston, 2011; Tucker & Stronge, 2005; Wright, Horn, & Sanders, 1997). The purpose of this study was to examine teacher and administrator perceptions of how the addition of student achievement data as a component in teacher evaluation in the Pennsylvania Educator Effectiveness System motivated self-reflection and change in teacher pra...
John W Zesiger.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Helterbran, Valeri Committee members: Joseph Marcoline; Meghan Twiest.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Trapped like a trap in a trap: subversive fiction of the twenties and thirties - dorothy parker's outrage at the failure of advancement toward gender and social equality

Despite the ratification of Nineteenth Amendment, women were still regulated by traditional sexual roles and granted few opportunities. Patriarchal ideology had not changed, and society had made little advancement toward gender and social equality. Females remained confined within institutions of marriage and motherhood while the media reported that women, at last, had everything they wanted, including self-fulfillment and personal freedom. This dissertation examines the fiction of Do...
Claire Louise Englehart.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Slater, Thomas Committee members: Lynne Alvine; Chauna Craig; David Downing.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English

Two techniques for assessing rates of acquisition and retention among the gifted

School psychologists routinely spend their time evaluating students with disabilities, but there is also a need to remember the unique needs of gifted students. Among these is an objective, culturally-fair measure of rates of acquisition and retention, which is one of the criteria which should be investigated when determining whether or not students meet criteria as gifted. These constructs have not been consistently defined, nor have specific means of assessing them been fully validated. ...
Michael T Paff.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Kovaleski, Joseph F. Committee members: Joel Erion; Timothy Runge; Mark Staszkiewicz.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

Understanding the korean culture of assessment and implementation of a performance assessment tool

The present study examined how Korean professors understand the Korean culture of assessment. Grounded on the evaluation of the testing culture, the study also analyzed the underlying ideologies in the Korean testing culture from historical perspectives and investigated the possibility of implementing a writing performance assessment tool as an option for changing the backdrop of the Korean testing culture. The analysis of the findings revealed three underlying ideologies in the Korean cu...
Youn-Kyoung Lee.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Hanauer, David I. Committee members: Sharon Deckert; Gloria Park.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2014.
English

The unsung feminist heroine: jessie redmon fauset- liberator, educator, and female emancipator

During the Harlem Renaissance, art, music, and literature flourished. One woman responsible for the success of many black writers during the period of 1920-1933 was the exceptionally talented Jessie Redmon Fauset. Not only was she an important writer, but an astute scholar as well. This dissertation explores the role of marriage versus female autonomy in Jessie Redmon Fauset's four novels. During the early twentieth century, it was unheard of for black women to aspire to a life where sove...
Michelle Eileen Banks.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Yang, Lingyan Committee members: Melvin Donalson; David Downing; Tanya Heflin.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2015.
English