No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Noting that little is known about the effect of early experience on the process of becoming an elementary teacher, this researcher explored the perceptions of 17 preservice teachers. Data produced from structured, open-ended interviews were analyzed using the constant comparative method. Common descriptions of what is (images), what ought to be (constructs), and preservice teachers' means (context maps) of explaining why phenomena exist emerged from the data. The images were (1) Teachers guide, (2) Teachers are there for the children, (3) Teaching is hard work, (4) Teaching is controlled, (5) Students learn by doing, (6) Students are individuals, (7) Students choose to learn, (8) Student teaching is an apprenticeship, (9) Student teachers develop chameleon like qualities, (10) Student teaching is a tug of war, and (11) The curriculum is not balanced. An overall image (metaphor) of the preservice teachers was that they were awkward teenagers. The constructs were (1) The curriculum should be interesting, (2) The curriculum should be better balanced, and (3) The curriculum should be integrated using themes. Context maps were incomplete; it appeared that the preservice teachers' frames of reference were still being formed. Findings suggested that, although the preservice teachers' identities as teachers was solidified, there was a hidden curriculum that the preservice teachers felt but could not explain. Implications were that preservice teachers needed a supportive social environment and time to discuss, analyze, and interpret information received from observations of classroom practice, knowledge presented in pedagogy classes, and their own experiences as students.

ABSTRACT The literature implies a trend towards an increased use of interactive multimedia technologies for instruction. The increased availability of mcxierate cost, good quality, digital audio computer cards and computers with built-in audio capability have enabled trainers and educators to realize the potential of random access audio for computerbased training (CBT) and other multimedia applications. In this study, the researcher investigated the effectiveness of adding digital audio to CBT. The experiment was conducted at the University of Central Florida in the Spring of 1991 with students (N=60) enrolled in the Applications of Technology in Education undergraduate course. After randomly selecting 3 out of 10 intact course sections, students were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. Each treatment group completed a CBT program with identical content and one of the following delivery mcxies: (1) text-only delivery, (2) full text and totally redundant audio delivery, or (3) partial text (bulleted) with full audio delivery. Students in all treatment mcxies were administered a 30-item criterion-based achievement pretest and posttest in multiple-choice format on the subject content of the CBT program. In addition, subjects were administered a modality strength test, and a post-experiment perception questionnaire was completed by all subjects to provide descriptive data. Additional tracked variables included time required to complete the CBT program, number of times a student reviewed (backed up), and number of times a student in an audio treatment selected the "repeat audio" option. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, one-way analyses of variance, chi-square, t-tests, multivariate analyses of variance, and the Least Significant Difference multiple comparison procedure. Major findings of this study were: 1 . There were no significant differences among the three treatment groups in achievement gain. 2. There was a significant cliff erence in the mean completion times across the three treatments, with the text-only version requiring the least time on task. 3. There was no significant relationship between student modality strengths and achievement levels. 4. Student perceptions indicated a high degree of program acceptance across all levels of treatment.

This study links research in hemispheric specialization which supports the concept of left and right hemispheric modes in problem solving with techniques for. teaching composition. Previous studies have not specifically examined who is helped by techniques which are labled as left or right hemispheric in style. The experimental group received composition instruction which emphasized right hemispheric exercises. The control group was given parallel assignments but instruction techniques emphasized left hemispheric techniques. All students were tested for hemispheric mode using the Hemispheric Mode Indicator. The Diederich Scale was used on sample essays to determine pre and posttest writing levels. Two major hypotheses were tested. Stated in the null, the first hypothesis is that there will be no significant difference in amount of writing improvement between writing classes taught emphasizing right hemispheric techniques and those taught emphasizing left hemispheric techniques. The experimental group taught using right hemispheric techniques moved from a pretest mean on the Diederich of 24.61 to a posttest mean of 27.67, a change which is significant at the .001 confidence level. The group taught using left hemispheric techniques moved from a pretest mean on the Diederich of 30.19 to 31. 7 4 which is not significant. The first null hypothesis was rejected. In order to look more closely within the groups to determine if one cognitive style or the other received greater treatment effect, a second hypothesis, stated in the null, is that there will be no significant differences within the two major groups as to the degree of writing improvement when comparing those classified as right hemispheric and those classified as left hemispheric. Only those classified as right hemispheric in the right hemispheric group showed a significant difference (at the .001 confidence level) in their pre and posttest scores, moving from a pretest mean of 24.30 to a posttest mean of 28. 26. The significance of change for the entire group was due to the appropriately paired subgroup. The second null was rejected. The conclusion to be made from this study is that those who are right hemispheric are significantly helped in th~ir writing when taught with techniques that match thier pref erred learning style.

published_or_final_version / Civil Engineering / Master / Master of Science in Engineering

published_or_final_version / Applied Geosciences / Master / Master of Science

Over the last twenty years there has been a dramatic rise in subsidence claims for residential buildings. This has led to growing concern amongst insurance companies and the structural engineers who investigate these cases on their behalf. Their attention has begun to focus more on the engineering management of these cases. A review of the mechanism of subsidence damage to residential buildings and existing subsidence management procedures has shown that existing management procedures are often ad-hoc and uncoordinated, have been criticised for being inadequate, and have lead to solutions which have either been inappropriate or have failed to solve the problem. The review concludes that there is major scope for improving the decision-making process, by ensuring that it is based on a sound technical framework. This thesis describes an innovative approach to the engineering management of subsidence cases based on knowledge-based system (KBS) techniques. The Subsidence CAse Management System (SCAMS) is applicable to the multi-task domain and consists of three main components which address important facets of subsidence management. These are the diagnosis of a subsidence problem, the choice of an appropriate course of investigations, and the specification of effective remedial measures. SCAMS was developed using a KBS building shell- Kappa PC. The data structure adopted was object-oriented and incorporates production rules. The knowledge acquisition was based on multiple sources of knowledge using a variety of techniques. The system implementation was designed to result in a user-friendly system, and incorporates a highly graphical interface. Evaluation of the system was undertaken using test cases from industry. The system proved highly effective in all the tests and, in some cases, achieved more accurate results than the human expert. SCAMS represents a significant advance over existing approaches to the engmeenng management of subsidence cases. It provides many benefits to the construction industry including greater consistency in the evaluation of subsidence damage, improved quality of engineering judgement, reduced repair costs and specific guidance to -engineers for individual cases.

No description available.