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One of the major challenges facing special and general classroom teachers stems from the current educational movement towards inclusion, a process that emphasizes providing special education services to students with disabilities within the regular classroom. Studies reviewed indicate that difficulties occur in instituting integrated programs within general classrooms because educators working in inclusive settings lack knowledge of strategies needed to implement such programs effectively. The purposes of this study were to determine whether secondary special and general education teachers working in inclusive settings in Virginia had: (a) a positive attitude towards inclusion and students with disabilities; (b) perceived themselves capable of adapting instruction to students with disabilities; (c) had the resources and support needed; and (d) perceived themselves knowledgeable of pertinent information required for teaching students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Information collected was also designed to identify: (e) whether these special and general educators collaborated in their inclusive classrooms; (f) the type of support received in working with students with disabilities; and (g) areas of needs the two groups of teachers have in working with students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms. A total of 400 questionnaires, consisting of 36 Likert-statements and 19 open-ended items, were mailed to a stratified random sample of 200 special and 200 general classroom teachers working in inclusive settings in Virginia. Out of this total, usable questionnaires were received from 84% (n = 167) of the general education and 62% (n = 124) of the special education teachers, for an overall response rate of 73%. An analysis of data collected, using descriptive statistics, thematic analysis, and analysis of variance, indicated that special educators, compared to general educators: (1) had more positive attitudes towards inclusion and students with disabilities; (2) perceived themselves more capable of adapting instruction to students with disabilities; (3) felt resources and support needed to work with students with disabilities were available; 4) had a greater sense of efficacy when it comes to knowledge required for teaching students with disabilities; and (5) worked more collaboratively in providing assistance to each other regarding students with disabilities. Both groups of special and general educators had a negative attitude towards educating: (6) most students with disabilities (regardless of the level of their disability) in the regular classroom; especially (7) students with behavioral disorders, mental retardation, and multi-disabling conditions. These teachers also felt: (8) students with disabilities lack skills needed to master the regular classroom course content; and that (9) the large teaching load in the regular classroom makes it hard to meet the needs of students educated in inclusive settings effectively. Furthermore, both groups of teachers indicated they: (9) predominantly received support from other teachers and guidance counselors in working with students educated in their inclusive classrooms. Information focusing on areas of needs in working with students with disabilities indicated the two groups of teachers identified different areas of needs. The special educators noted they need: (10) more influence in the placement and decision making process, extra time for collaborating with others, reduced class loads, a clarification of the roles and responsibilities of special and general educators working in inclusive classrooms, and guidelines for meeting the new standards of learning. In contrast, the general educators indicated they require: (11) support from their administrators and parents, more resources and instructional material, assistance in dealing with school administrators who hold all students to equal standards, and training in special education and strategies for working with students with disabilities, behavior management, discipline, and anger management and conflict resolution. Implications this information has for school districts and teacher training institutions are discussed. / Ed. D.

Planning and design of brownfield landscapes are not straight forward due to invisible, potential contamination. The dilemma occurs to designers in dealing with brownfield landscapes, because they are unknowingly able to deliver deceptive information regarding the site safety. If the designers and planners are given the information about factors affecting people's reaction to different characteristics of brownfield landscapes, this would help them to be better prepared for ethical issues. For this study, visual preference survey for neighborhoods along the rail yard in the City of Roanoke was conducted. A dimensional analysis found six brownfield landscape types. First of all, historical landmark and maintained landscape types received the highest ratings regardless of the participants characteristics and backgrounds. These types may be viewed less critically and are thus likely to mask potential harms. Second, scruffy vegetation and modest rundown building types that made up the second preferred group revealed more ambivalent feeling. People were highly flexible in switching between change or preservation options in their thinking, thus it would be easy to lead people to focus on certain aspects according to the designer's purposes. Lastly, the two industrial remnant types were the least preferred group. Participants tend to associate these types with toxic pollutants that are likely to adversely affect the health, thus, it would be important to reassure people regarding safety concerns. The expert interviews with brownfield program managers of many localities (Roanoke, VA; Portland, OR; Toledo, OH; Pheonix, AZ; Lewisville, TX; Arlington, TX; and New Bern, NC) were conducted to determine whether the current approaches are effective and develop recommendations. The interviews found that the effectiveness of program is greatly challenged by normative site assessment required by federal government. While the procedure provides necessary information about site safety, it also attaches a stigma to sites regardless of actual contamination level. Based on the findings, it is recommended to include assessment criteria that reveals reuse potentials of brownfields for balanced approach. The results provide useful information for program managers, planners and designers regarding important factors that should be considered for site prioritization and preparation and presentation of designs for brownfield reuse. / Ph. D.

Mass-customization is a form of consumer-centric business practice, which is a hybrid of customization and mass-production (Gilmore & Pine II, 1997). It is the use of flexible processes and organizational structures to produce individually customized apparel products at the low cost of a standardized mass-production system (Hart, 1995). Very limited academic consumer research has been conducted in the area of apparel mass-customization. The purposes of the study were (a) to investigate consumers' purchase intentions of mass-customized apparel, (b) to examine the relationships among consumer characteristics, perceived usefulness, perceived behavioral control, attitude toward using apparel mass-customization, and purchase intention of mass-customized apparel, and (c) to identify the predictors of the overall purchase intentions and those of the purchase intentions of specific types of mass-customized apparel (i.e., design, fit and personalization mass-customized apparel). A conceptual model was developed, and eight hypotheses were generated to test the proposed relationships among the variables. A questionnaire was developed as the instrument of collecting data. A national sample of 474 male adults was recruited by a market research company. Statistics such as descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and stepwise multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that more than half of the respondents were willing to purchase mass-customized dress shirts. The relationships among consumer characteristics, perceived usefulness, perceived behavioral control, attitude toward using apparel mass-customization, and purchase intention of mass-customized apparel were confirmed, and the predictors of the overall purchase intention and of the purchase intention of specific types of mass-customized apparel were identified. Based on the results, in-depth discussions and related marketing implications were provided. / Ph. D.

This thesis details the development and implementation of an attitude and orbit determining Kalman filter algorithm for a satellite in a Molniya orbit. To apply the Kalman Filter for orbit determination, the equations of motion of the two body problem were propagated using Cowell's formulation. Four types of perturbing forces were added to the propagated model in order to increase the accuracy of the orbit prediction. These four perturbing forces are Earth oblateness, atmospheric drag, lunar gravitational forces and solar radiation pressure. Two cases were studied, the first being the implementation of site track measurements when the satellite was over the ground station. It is shown that large errors, upwards of ninety meters, grow as time from last measurement input increases. The next case studied was continuous measurement inputs from a GPS receiver on board the satellite throughout the orbit. This algorithm greatly decreased the errors seen in the orbit determining algorithm due to the accuracy of the sensor as well as the continuous measurement inputs throughout the orbit. It is shown that the accuracy of the orbit determining Kalman filter also depends on the length of time between each measurement update. The errors decrease as the time between measurement updates decreases. Next the Kalman filter is applied to determine the satellite attitude. The rotational equations of motion are propagated using Cowell's Formulation and numerical integration. To increase the fidelity of the model four disturbing torques are included in the rotational equations of motion model: gravity gradient torque, solar pressure torque, magnetic torque, and aerodynamic torque. Four cases were tested corresponding to four different on board attitude determining sensors: magnetometer, Earth sensor, sun sensor, and star tracker. A controlled altitude path was chosen to test the accuracy of each of these cases and it was shown that the algorithm using star tracker measurements was three hundred times more accurate than that of the magnetometer algorithm. / Master of Science

Making all US citizens technologically literate necessitates investigation into how to achieve this literacy. The Standards for Technological Literacy: Content for the Study of Technology (STL) is intentional about ensuring technological literacy in all students. Instilling this knowledge in elementary students is an emerging field that requires assessment tools that conveys understanding into what student attitudes are about technology and technological concepts. Developing appropriate technology education curriculum that promotes meaningful and integrative learning hinges on a comprehensive and clear understanding of these attitudes. Originally designed for middle school age students, the PATT (Pupils' Attitudes toward Technology) instrument was developed and administered in the Netherlands. In 1988 the PATT- USA instrument, translated from Dutch to English, was given to 10,000 US middle and high school students and was validated for assessing their attitudes toward technology. Due to the age of the instrument, dated technological terminology was updated with language reflective of today utilizing inter-rater analysis. The purpose of this descriptive research examines the viability of using the modified PATT, now the PATT-ELEM, instrument with elementary students in the assessment of their attitude toward technology. / Ed. D.