Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are the fastest-growing group of children with special education needs. ASD affects individuals from all walks of life, regardless of race, ethnicity, educational levels of family members, or socio-economic backgrounds. People on the autism spectrum have difficulty communicating and establishing socio-emotional connections with other human beings, making teaching those with ASD challenging for their human teachers.Most research in the field of autism has focused on the clinical aspects of the condition and on the individuals who are on the spectrum. However, research into the perception of the teachers charged with educating ASD students is more limited. In addition, while a wide range of technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and social robots, have been used in various forms to assist with teaching ASD students, research into teacher perceptions with respect to the use of these technologies is also limited. The purpose of this study was to examine teacher perceptions of the use of a social robot as a teaching assistant to help them educate students on the autism spectrum. Furthermore, due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, this study was conducted under unprecedented circumstances, when all schools throughout the United States were closed, and all teaching was conducted online using video conferencing technologies. Teachers from an autism specialist school in northern California were asked to use a social robot as a teaching assistant with a selection of ASD students during their online Zoom-based video conference teaching sessions. Data were gathered through observations of these sessions and through teacher interviews and a focus group. This study was conducted using the persuasive technologies conceptual framework. This framework was enhanced to include the teacher as a new persuasive influencer. The findings from this study revealed that ASD teachers found the social robot to be a useful tool to use as a teaching assistant. In particular, teachers found the use of a social robot teaching assistant offered a new approach to teaching and new ways to communicate with and engage their ASD students. Overall, students responded well to instructions and feedback given by the robot. However, student reactions ranged from neutral to very engaged, based upon the complexity of the task the student was undertaking and their general interest in technologically related topics. Importantly, no student reacted negatively to the inclusion of the robot. This report highlights a variety of operational challenges that the teachers experience in integrating the robot into their teaching practices and identifies a range of future research opportunities.

No description available.

No description available.

ABSTRACT Trust is a central component in leadership and has been shown to be associated with employee commitment, motivation and performance. The phenomenon has been investigated at the organisational level and there have been previous studies of trust within the manager/subordinate relationship. However, research in this area within the South African environment has been limited. The present research investigates the trust displayed by employees in relation to their immediate managers and explores this relationship from a gender perspective. As women are still not well represented at management level and as perceptions of male and female managers tend to differ, the purpose of this study is to determine whether perceptions of male and female managers differ in terms of trust. The aims of the study are to assess whether there are differences with regard to the trust that employees place in managers of differing gender, as well as to assess whether there are differences in the trust displayed by employees of differing gender. The methodology of the study is based on analysis of questionnaires distributed within a large company in the retail environment. The instrument used is a Trust measure developed by Daniel McAllister (1995). Initial analyses were undertaken to establish Cronbach Alphas on both sub-scales of the Trust measure. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted to establish whether responses to the questionnaire loaded on the same subscales identified in the original McAllister study. The main analyses were then carried out using t-tests and Analysis of Covariance, in order to control for a number of potentially confounding variables in the study. The results indicate that males and females display an equal propensity to trust. In addition, male and female managers are viewed no differently in terms of trustworthiness. There are also no significant trust differences when same gender relationships were compared to cross gender relationships between managers and employees. However, manager age and the length of time that the employee knows a manager were found to be significant covariates.

Research has established a link between parental psychopathology, perceptions of parents, and child outcomes. Separately, negative perceptions of a parent and parental psychopathology are associated with negative outcomes. However, a stronger relationship may exist when these factors are combined. Current research indicates that children tend to view a parent with psychopathology more negatively and consequently are at a greater risk for psychopathology. Less research examines the outcomes of children who hold positive perceptions of a parent with psychopathology, as well as the effects of perceptions of parents on emerging adults. The current study tested a model where perceptions of parents moderated the relationship between parental psychopathology and emerging adult psychopathology. Results indicated that holding positive perceptions of a parent with internalizing problems puts an emerging adult at a greater risk for internalizing problems, whereas the effect of parental psychopathology and perceptions of parents on emerging adult externalizing problems was unclear.

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine whether a significant correlation exists between a locally-elected supervisor’s perceptions about their local community college and their education level and the level of local tax support provided to the community college in their area. There were 3 research hypotheses established. A self-developed survey was used to gather supervisor perceptions in the following areas: 1) community college courses, programs, and workforce training services, 2) job attainment of students after attending the local community college, and 3) how well the local community college manages its resources. Additional information was gathered for inclusion in the research analysis in the areas of a supervisors’ educational level and the last time a supervisor visited the campus of the local community college. The study showed that, of the 5 predictor variables analyzed, only 1 was statistically significant. A supervisor’s perception on how well a community college does in promoting the courses, programs, and workforce training services has a statistically significant relationship to the amount of millage supported by that supervisor for allocation to the local community college. The remaining predictor variables of job attainment of students after attending the local community college, how well the local community college manages its current resources, a supervisor’s education level, and the last visit a supervisor made to the local community college all showed not to be statically significant in predicting the financial level at which a supervisor may support the local community college.

The study investigated the faculty perception of quality in online courses. The areas considered were media richness, interaction, synchronism, self-efficacy, online teaching experience, and education level. Participants included members of three online Yahoo groups that were designed for online faculty members. There were 510 total members surveyed with 203 respondents for a response rate of 39.8%. The study was conducted during the spring semester of 2009. Of the six research questions four were supported. Media richness, interaction, and self-efficacy were related to perceived quality. Media richness explained a total of 7.9% of the variability in faculty ratings of perceived online course quality. The results for interaction indicate that a relationship was not found between interactions with students in general and perceived quality of the online course by faculty, however, a significant relationship was found between several of the individual interaction items and the quality items. The self-efficacy variable explained 30.6% of the variability in faculty ratings of perceived quality. Online teaching experience was related to perceived quality when controlling for course variables. Synchronism and faculty education level were not related to perceived quality. Conclusions based on the findings indicated that to increase faculty perception, course developers should focus on building classes with rich learning environments, creating feelings of perceived quality, and fostering commitment to the classroom. Courses that have media rich content convey the message to the student better than courses without the inclusion of such content. Interaction is the cornerstone of online learning so multiple modes of interaction are necessary in online courses. Having self-efficacy allow the faculty to accomplish their goal, handle unexpected events, find solutions to problems, and handle whatever might occur in the respective courses. Allowing faculty members to upload media rich information for future courses could add value to the course. Selecting a Learning Management System that allows for a highly interactive classroom is important to faculty members. Future research studies should evaluate the capabilities of additional constructs as determinants of perceived quality from the faculty perspective.

Research studies show that there is a skills gap in American society today. This research study examined employability perceptions of community college students at a rural community college in Mississippi. Students were asked to complete an online survey that questioned the degree of importance placed on several employability skills, as well as their self-perceived competence levels at performing those skills. Likert-scale response set type questions were used to provide responses on importance and competence levels. After sending the survey invitation, 100 usable surveys were returned and analyzed for this research study. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney procedures, and Spearman Rho correlations. As an overall group students rated each of the employability skills as being important. Likewise, as a group, students indicated that they at least possessed all of the skills listed in the survey. The study found that no statistically significant difference existed between the two groups (academic and career technical) on skills perceived to be of greatest importance in today’s workplace. As it relates to competence levels, the study found that career technical students reported a higher competence level with two of the skills: problem solving and project management. Finally the study found that significant positive relationships existed between academic and career technical students regarding their competence at performing the skills and those employability skills perceived to be of greatest importance.

The demand for Community College Baccalaureate (CCB) degrees is rising due to increasing costs of educational obtainment resulting in decreased access. Also, universities are not always accessible geographically or academically to many students. Many students are limited in time and financial resources, and have family and job responsibilities, limiting their ability to relocate to a university. The focus of this study was to explore the perceptions of students regarding the need for the CCB, the effectiveness of the CCB, reasons why students would choose the CCB, and the fields of CCB degrees students would choose. Specifically, this study compared the results among student survey respondents based on their primary campus attended, age, gender, race/ethnicity, number of dependents, and employment status as well as their need for the CCB. All full-time and part-time students from a rural community college in Northeast Mississippi were asked to participate in the survey. Approximately 30% of respondents indicated that their only realistic option to obtain a bachelor’s degree would be through their local community college. A majority of respondents perceived the CCB to be effective. And, respondents indicated that the factors that influenced their choice of the CCB were cost, location, work responsibilities, family responsibilities, admiration for current school, and familiarity for current school. The specific degree fields that respondents indicated they would choose if they were to obtain a CCB, from greatest interest to least, were: health professions, business, education, public administration/social work, “other”, liberal arts and sciences, and psychology. When testing the differences in perception of effectiveness of the CCB between demographic groups, the CCB was perceived to be more effective by respondents who were older, had 1 dependent or 5 or more dependents, and who saw the CCB as their only option. When testing the differences in perceptions of reasons to choose the CCB, respondents who were older indicated more reasons for choosing the CCB.

No description available.