- Kindergarten entry age and the effect on student academic achievement
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This study examined the impact of age at school entry on academic achievement in third grade as measured by the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments (PSSA). In addition, the relationship between kindergarten entry age and the need for special education services in third grade was investigated. The sample consisted of 1039 third grade students from five different suburban school districts who took the 2014 PSSA. A three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the data and det...
Angela J Hughes.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Black, Lynanne Committee members: Becky Knickelbein; Joseph Kovaleski; Christoph Maier.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Kindergarten teachers' perceptions of the effect of preschool on academic and social skills
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The purpose of this study was to determine teacher perceptions of the impact of four-year preschool programs on a child's academic and social skills. The population included 800 kindergarten teachers within various districts across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. One hundred sixty-seven kindergarten teachers from various districts responded to the study. This study focused on kindergarten teacher perceptions of preschool on skills related to general readiness, reading, language, writing, ma...
Amy L Larcinese.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Millward, Robert E. Committee members: DeAnna Laverick; Kelli Paquette.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Kindergarten through fourth grade teacher perception of self-efficacy in educating students diagnosed with emotional and/or behavioral disorders
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This study was to examine self-efficacy perceptions of elementary teachers, kindergarten through fourth grade, and determine whether or not teacher self-efficacy perceptions differ related to classification area of district, certification held and experience of working with students with emotional and/or behavioral disorders (E/BD). In addition, this study analyzed if differences in the above three mentioned areas impact the teacher's perception in regards to providing effective classroom man...
Jenifer R Pappasergi.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Kerry-Moran, Kelli Jo Committee members: Joseph Marcoline; Susan Sibert.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- "a land of picture": novelized art and visual literature in cole, cooper, and hawthorne, 1826-1860
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In this study, I use a blended-genre approach to reading canonical literature and art in the United States during the antebellum period. Acknowledging that the mediums of art and literature are both narrative-driven and dependent upon techniques of visualization, I examine works that show marked hybridity of form, identifying artists and writers practiced in synthesizing media and genres to create hybridized texts. I suggest that reframing the aesthetic canon to include a blended-genre paradi...
Ellen Hallstrom Ryan.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Thompson, Todd Committee members: David Downing; Christopher Orchard.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Leadership development among fraternity presidents: can leadership be learned?
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There is an absence of research examining the relationship between the experiences that occurred while holding formal student leadership positions and leadership identity development. This study will investigate if leadership can be learned through the lenses of the leadership experience of men who hold the formal student leadership position of chapter president within their local chapters of their national social fraternal organization. The design of the study is quantitative in nature and...
Joseph Rosenberg.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Piper, David Committee members: Kelli Paquette; Mark Twiest.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Merging professional academic literacies and identities: four case studies of new phds working in composition
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This dissertation is a literacy-and-identity study (Moje & Luke, 2009) of four women who have recently earned PhDs in English with doctoral training in composition, are working in higher education as composition teachers, and are writing for academic publication. Situated theoretically within the social-practice perspective of academic literacies (Lillis & Scott, 2007) and of writer identity as a discoursal construct (Ivanic, 1998), this dissertation uses a case study design (Stake, 1995, 200...
Kathleen Vacek.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Park, Gloria Committee members: Sharon Deckert; Ben Rafoth.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- A mixed method examination of student achievement indicators
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The purpose for this study was to explore the relationship between economic and noneconomic indicators and their influence on student achievement in Pennsylvania. The secondary purpose was to discover perceived barriers to student achievement and provide recommendations from experts about methods to improve student success by overcoming both economic and noneconomic factors. The economic indicators included in this study are basic education funding, district wealth (MV/PI), average daily memb...
Michael E Sable.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Piper, David Committee members: Kelli Jo Kerry-Moran; Joseph Marcoline.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Movie effects on social dominance orientation of undergraduate students
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The purpose of this study is to explore the effects on the social dominance orientation of undergraduates in general liberal education courses of a film traditionally used to teach or complement instruction on diversity and social justice. It aims to fill a noted gap in the media effects, social sciences teaching, and social dominance orientation literatures. As an experimental study, the present research is employing a pre-test/post-test design to measure effects of watching a film on view...
Brian C Johnson.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Muchtar, Nurhaya Committee members: Mark Piwinsky; Zachary Stiegler.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- The phenomenological exploration of user-design among junior undergraduate students majoring in computer science in a medium size liberal arts university when developing a game prototype
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The purpose of this dissertation was to discover the themes of computer science students as they designed their own instructional systems. This was done by exploring the use of User-Design as a method of instruction for college computer science students. Data shows that there is a high attrition rate in college computer science programs. Perhaps, to solve this problem, this new form of instruction could be applied. I investigated to find patterns while the students designed and developed co...
David Tucker.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Piwinsky, Mark J. Committee members: James Lenze; Anna Ortiz.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Presenting a framework and process for designing leadership development programs as sustainable competitive advantages: a case study at hershey entertainment and resorts
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Organizational executives leverage significant resources to build leadership development programs as part of strategic initiatives, but many of these programs still fail. The organizational strategy and leadership fields have made significant advances and have complementary purposes, yet scholars have not synthesized this literature. The need remains to form a pragmatic conceptual framework and process intended to serve as a theoretical foundation for designing leadership development programs...
Travis A Berger.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Anderson, John A. Committee members: Valerie Gunter; J. Mabry.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Principal leadership and its influence on educational outcomes for high need student populations
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As a result of the achievement gaps that exists between high poverty and low poverty student groups, as well as accountability criteria mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act (2001), which requires significant improvements in student achievement for low-income and minority students, school districts must now implement strategies that assist them in obtaining outcomes that demonstrate significant growth in achievement for these students. One strategy considered for improving achievem...
Alyssa Ford-Heywood.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Anderson, John A. Committee members: Jon Landis; J. Mabry; Melissa Swauger.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- A qualitative study of graduate and professional studies students' writing identities: the role of writing centers in constructing identities
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Forming a new identity as a writer in a higher education context is often a difficult process and one that can be particularly difficult for returning students who have been away from school for many years or even decades. This qualitative case study of the perceptions of five Graduate and Professional Studies students examines the ways that adult, nontraditional students face the task of becoming writers and forming a writing identity in a small private liberal arts university context. T...
Kimberley M Holloway.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Rafoth, Bennett A. Committee members: Resa Bizzaro; Gloria Park.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- A quantitative study: the relationship between school-wide instructional practices, teacher beliefs, and growth mindset and value-added student growth in elementary mathematics for grades 3-5
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This study investigated the correlation between instructional practices, teacher beliefs, and teacher mindset on elementary student growth in mathematics. Growth was considered as the Average Growth Index (AGI), a value-added metric derived from the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. The study exclusively focused on Pennsylvania elementary schools responsible for teaching mathematics in Grades 3, 4, and 5 only. Publicly available AGI scores for the 2014-2015 school year were identified...
James W Jones.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Helterbran, Valeri R. Committee members: Kelli Paquette; Edel Reilly.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Recontextualizations of families of linguistic and cultural diversity in educational e-discourse: a discourse analysis of representation, accessibility, and ideological values in parent involvement
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In this mixed methods study, the author examined how messages about families of linguistic and cultural diversity (FLCDs) in the context of parent involvement (PI) e-discourse were recontextualized across the tri-level educational authority structure. Corpus creation and analysis was used to provide quantitative data to direct the subsequent critical discourse analysis. From the analysis of fifteen data sets, the author discovered specific lexical, syntactic, and whole-text discursive element...
Janelle Lynn Newman.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Savova, Lilia P. Committee members: Usree Bhattacharya; Beatrice Fennimore.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Reducing the impact of negative media messages on college students' body satisfaction: examining the effectiveness of a warning message
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Exposure to media portraying objectifying images of male and female models has been shown to have a negative impact on body satisfaction for both men and women. This has been shown to be true for multiple forms of media such as print advertisements and television commercials. To combat this negative impact, Slater, Tiggemann, Firth, and Hawkins (2012) explored the effectiveness of adding a warning label to fake fashion spreads featuring objectifying images of female models. They demonstrated ...
Audra L Wagaman.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Long, Anson Committee members: Derek Hatfield; Laurie Roehrich.
Psy.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- The relationship between nursing students' test-taking motivation and the exit examination score
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A primary objective of nursing students and nursing programs includes first-time success on the NCLEX-RN®. As the nursing shortage continues, it is essential to have qualified nursing graduates pass the NCLEX-RN ®. One approach some nursing programs have chosen to implement regarding augmenting nursing students' probability of success on the NCLEX-RN® includes the administration of an exit examination. This exit examination is tailored to mimic the NCLEX-RN® blueprint; thereby this examinatio...
Lorraine Coalmer.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Chunta, Kristy S. Committee members: Elizabeth Palmer; Susan Poorman.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- The sidekick comes of age: tracing the growth of secondary characters in young adult literature
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Despite their evident usefulness and proliferation, sidekicks have been kicked to the side of literary criticism until recently. Now, thanks to the influence of artifacts like comic books and popular films, the study of sidekicks has begun a resurgence and might finally get the attention it deserves. The influx of multi-dimensional sidekicks has allowed literary history to shift its focus, and has provided a mandate for authors and other creators to promote the sidekick in new and interesting...
Stephen M Zimmerly.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Kuipers, Christopher M. Committee members: Tanya Heflin; Gian Pagnucci.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Source of controversy: newspaper reporters' sourcing practices in coverage of natural gas drilling
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There is often great interest in the way journalists convey information about divisive issues. This phenomenological study is any attempt to understand why and how articles on a controversial topic were constructed, specifically in terms of what sources were used. This investigation into the pre-publication activity of journalists is situated within agenda building theory and is intended to produce a better understanding of the lived experience of sourcing practices of journalists, specifical...
Brandon J Szuminsky.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Stiegler, Zachary Committee members: Mary Leidman; Michele Papakie.
Ph.D. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- A spiritual approach for licensed professional counselors in private practice: treating african-american women's psychological pain
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African-American women's ability to cope with painful life experiences through their spiritual connection with God has been linked to positive life satisfaction and therapeutic results. By embracing this beneficial change agent, counselors can begin to learn how to effectively integrate spirituality and religion into the counseling process. This study aimed to find out what Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) knew about the Christian religion and spirituality and whether they use this...
Callie Marie Scott.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Bieger, George R. Committee members: Claire Dandeneau; Shirley Johnson.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English
- Stress, burnout, and attrition: implications of student performance data on math teacher effectiveness evaluations
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This causal-comparative/quasi-experimental design study examines the impact that high-stakes testing stress related to the inclusion of student standardized testing data in teacher evaluations has on burnout and potential attrition rates among current Pennsylvania math teachers. Participants completed three surveys including: demographic questions, the Educators Test Stress Inventory (ETSI), and the Malasch Burnout Inventory-Educators Survey (MBI-ES). The analysis showed no real difference i...
Becky L Piscitella.
Publisher info.: Dissertation/Thesis.
Advisors: Helterbran, Valeri R. Committee members: Edel Reilly; Mark Twiest.
D.Ed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania 2016.
English