This study investigates the changes in attitudes of graduate students toward introductory statistics. The subjects are graduate students at a Midwestern university; the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics (SATS) was used to measure pre-test and post-test attitudes. Subjects in this study were grouped into three groups: experimental group (group of students who were taking the introductory statistics course), control group 1 (group of students who were required to take the introductory statistics course for their degree but had not already taken it), and control group 2 (group of students who did not need to take an introductory statistics course). The mixed design MANOVA was utilized in this study with grouping by pre-test and post-test. The between-subjects factor was group, gender, and section (with different instructor) and the within-groups factor was time. The main effects and interactive effects were tested in a multivariate sense, and then univariate statistics were used to interpret significant simple effects. This study was conducted to determine the effect of the six dependent variables (affect, cognitive, value, difficulty, interest, and effort) on students' attitudes toward the introductory statistics course. All findings were interpreted at alpha level p<0.05.Analysis of the data revealed significant differences in the attitude factor difficulty among all groups. The male and female attitude change was not significantly different among all groups. However, there were significant differences of attitudes changes between two sections (by different instructors) of students in the experimental group, but there were no significant differences of attitude changes between two sections by time. / Department of Mathematical Sciences

This study was designed to determine the effects of various teacher characteristics on their level of cultural competency as measured by the Cultural Competency Survey. Teacher characteristics of interest were sex, age, years of teaching, grade level currently teaching, and degree level earned.The sample consisted of 2800 teachers, teaching in 82 schools. They ranged in educational experience from student teachers to those with doctoral level degrees and in length of experience in urban schools from just a few months to over 29 years. Of the 2800 teachers requested to complete the survey, 594 were minority teachers. This makes up 20% of the teaching population.The Cultural Competency Survey was adapted with the help of the Indianapolis Public Schools from a paper-and-pencil survey to one that was administered to each and every IPS teacher through the IPS intranet survey capabilities delivered through the IPS Online portal.The data were analyzed using statistical programs from the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS,13.0.1). Significant differences in the dependent variable on the Cultural Competency Survey were explored among the groups of teachers categorized by race/ethnicity, length of service, education, and grade level taught (the independent variable) with a standard split-plot factorial Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) design.Results showed main effects for sex and race with females generally scoring higher than males and African Americans scoring higher than Caucasians. Possible reasons for these findings were discussed and a call for future research was offered. / Department of Educational Leadership

Children enter kindergarten with many experiences and thoughts. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of preschool children concerning their entrance into kindergarten. A comparison of what children perceived and what parents and teachers have done to facilitate the children’s perception of kindergarten was completed. A treatment group of 31 students from a Head Start which provided a visit to the kindergarten classroom that their preschool children would be attending was compared to 29 students from a Title 1 early education program, the control group. The parents and teachers of these students were compared to determine what they had done to prepare these students for kindergarten. The quantitative aspect of the study compared the treatment student pre- and post- responses on the ‘What I Think about Kindergarten –R’ questionnaire to the control group, a Title 1 early education program. This questionnaire was adapted from the ‘What I Think about School’ (1998) used by Ramey, Lanzi, Phillips, & Ramey for the Head Start Public School Early Transition Demonstration Project in 1998. This study was not able to determine any difference in what the students perceived about kindergarten between and within groups. While there was no significant difference in what teachers had done to prepare their students for kindergarten, three individual questions had some difference in what the teachers from Head Start had done when compared to the Title 1 early education program. There was no significant difference in what parents did to prepare their children but differences within three questions on the parent surveys were found. A qualitative methodology was used to investigate what the students’ perceptions of kindergarten were. These perceptions included findings that most children were excited about attending kindergarten but a few anticipated kindergarten with negative feelings. Children also anticipated needing a backpack or lunchbox to attend kindergarten and looked forward to playing in the new school. Because this study was only done between Head Start and a Title 1 early education program, future research is needed to further understand what children think about going to kindergarten. / Department of Elementary Education

Poverty, specifically child poverty, has been an area of great concern impacting the United States for decades (Chen & Corak, 2008; Douglas-Hall & Chau, 2008; Fajth & Holland, 2007; Germany, 2007; Raphael, 2005; Wight, Chau & Aratani, 2010; Wilson, 2010). This paper explores the differing views, experiences and perceptions of poverty through interviews with three impoverished families: one child and mother each located in an (1) urban (2) suburban and (3) rural community. By looking at children and parents living in impoverished homes in diverse neighborhoods I sought to investigate the societal, social, and emotional perceptions and experiences of children and parents living in urban, suburban, and rural poverty. Children between the ages of 6 and 7 years old were interviewed, as were their mothers, utilizing a qualitative, case study methodology. Research found parental themes of overall concern regarding child well-being due to past personal and peer experiences, a fear of the future, and the differences in variations of family, community, and financial support. Child themes included an awareness of the financial burdens of their families, knowledge of crime and violence and perceptions of wealth and home. / Department of Elementary Education

This research analyzes the relationship between company performance and image and whether it has an impact on loyalty. Using a quasi-experimental model based on established research in consumer attitude formation and brand relationship marketing, the thesis rejects the popular notion that individual signals sent by companies affect consumer loyalty directly. Rather, this thesis demonstrates that the effects of image and performance and their impact on consumer attitudes do have an effect on consumer trust and perceived value, which are primary drivers of loyalty. This research suggests that while singular incidents are not enough to alter consumer loyalty, over time the impact of these signals may carry over through trust and value. Meanwhile, marketing managers should focus on activities that foster trust and value as opposed to positive brand image.

In this Bachelor thesis I am going to look at attitudes towards political violence in a small town in Sweden in the 1920s. The town I have picked for this study is Kalmar situated on the east coast of Sweden. This study is a micro historic case study. The specific case is a strike at the city’s water and gas plants for higher salary. To see these attitudes in Kalmar, I have to ask myself these questions: Which are the establishment’s attitudes towards political violence in a small town in Sweden in the 1920’s? How does the working class movement, the work union and the social democratic party’s attitudes look like in a small town in Sweden in the 1920’s? The answer I got is that the establishment had a direct negative attitude towards the political violence at the gas plant in Kalmar. The working class and the unions and Social democratic party had a different attitude. They distanced themselves from the violence, but they showed sympathy for the person who got punished for the violence.

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This study examines the formation and maintenance of young peoples' attitude to Christianity and seeks to ascertain which are the salient factors, or group of factors, involved in such processes. It was stimulated by the apparent gradient of decline in young people's active participation in the life of the Church in many parts of Scotland and by the thought that such decline may be due in some measure to young people's fundamental attitudes to Christianity. The empirical research, which forms the kernel of the study, was undertaken in 1986 among 6,838 secondary school pupils, aged 11 to 17 years, in non-denominational, denominational and independent schools within the Dundee area. Questionnaires relating to attitudes to religion and science were administered by teachers, mainly from Religious Education departments within the schools. The Francis Attitude towards Christianity Scale (ASC 4B) was used in connection with the attitudes to religion items. The data was analysed by means of the SPSSX statistical package. Each section of the study investigates available research literature relevant to the topic considered. Chapter 4 looks in detail at the main variables involved in the formation and maintenance of young people's attitudes to Christianity, viz. Pupils' sex, age, personal Church attendance and Sunday School attendance, parental Church attendance and parental encouragement, social class differences, peer group influence, type of school attended and attitudes to science. The effects of television viewing on young people's perceptions, including their perceptions of religion on television, was also considered. Among the basic conclusions reached by this study are there: - Parental example and encouragement are the most salient elements in the religious socialization of young people. Peer group influence is also shown to be a significant factor in the transmission of young people's attitudes to Christianity. Pupils' Church attendance has considerable influence on their attitudes to Christianity and the continuance of these and their attitudes to science are shown to have special importance for their attitudes to religion. The 13 to 15 year age period merits further and deeper examination. This appears to be a decisive stage in adolescent development, when significant changes occur in young people's perceptions of religion and in their attitudes to Christianity.

The study reported in this thesis investigated individual Library Assistant's perceptions and attitudes towards their work. One objective of the study was to discover if work had meaning to Library Assistants, working in University libraries, other than that of earning a living or money. It was discovered that most Library Assistants perceive that money is more important than the work itself and that library work is not intellectually stimulating or challenging. It was also discovered that their willingness to continue in the same job, after acquiring a lot of money e.g. pools money, was dependent on age and qualification. The thesis is divided into eight chapters. The first chapter provides an introduction in which the Investigator provides background information about work and its meaning. He also explains the general purpose and objectives of the study. Definitions and meanings of some of the key concepts used in the thesis are given. The Investigator takes the view that employment work is an activity in an institutionalised exchange relationship and that it belongs to the formal rather than informal economy. In a narrower sense employment work can be viewed as a way of earning a living and in a broader sense it is a way of self expression, where self image for the employee is sustained by providing opportunities for achievement and recognition. Chapter Two gives an idea about how the literature search was conducted and it provides an extensive literature review of the main topics related to the study. A critical evaluation of some of the research approaches and findings is given. The Investigator argues that the research instruments used by some library and information researchers, borrowed from the social sciences, have sometimes been inflexible and not quite suitable for use in library conditions. The main criticism is that library and information researchers have not developed their own research instruments for the investigation of problems relating to library and information work. Chapter Three provides the methodological approach in which the Investigator discusses his research instrument (CAIn), research procedures and hypotheses to be tested. Six main and five ancillary hypotheses were tested. Chi-Square and reliability tests were carried out in order to test hypotheses and the internal consistency reliability of CAIn. Chapter Four provides first stage data analysis where the perceptions of the Library Assistants are reported and analysed. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used to analyse the data. The observation in this chapter is that most Library Assistants are dissatisfied with their promotional opportunities and pay. Although they are happy with their supervision, they consider that they are often not involved in the main stream decision making processes of the library. Chapter Five contains the hypotheses and reliability test for the research instrument. Some of the results point to the fact that job position, at library assistant level, is independent of length of service. This led to the conclusion that if the University Libraries were not promoting internally they were appointing externally hence the perceived lack of internal mobility. On the other hand, sex and age appeared to have influence on the view people held about work as a means to an end. More men than women viewed work as a means to an end. Where age was concerned the older one got the more significant work became. A general discussion is found in Chapter Six where issues relating to professionalism and its influence upon the Library Assistants' perceptions of their jobs, the work structure, rewards, autonomy and the meaning of work are raised. The Library Assistants perceive that a less hierarchical library structure is preferable to a hierarchical one. There appears to be a belief among these people that the professionalisation of the library occupation was responsible for the hierarchy which now exists. This Investigator argues that a conflict which might develop between the professionals and the non-professionals as a result of unfulfilled aspirations or demands for the professionalisation of librarianship will not help improve the position or status of the Library Assistant. Chapter Seven provides conclusion and summary while Chapter Eight gives some recommendations. It is recommended that further studies should be done in order to investigate in more detail the problem of pay satisfaction and promotion. There is also a need to re-assess the work roles and responsibilities of all library and information workers with a view to redesign jobs. A Three Tier Organisational Structure which emphasises an autonomous work groups approach is recommended.

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