Doctor of Philosophy / Curriculum and Instruction Programs / Charles E. Heerman / As the world has changed over the last century, so has the world of work. Today’s knowledge workers have fewer individual repetitive tasks, more autonomy, and more need to work with and through people at every level of an organization (Overtoom, 2000). As a result of the ‘flattening’ of the organizational hierarchy, it is critical that employees at all levels are proficient in soft skills. Recent studies indicate that employers consistently rate these skills as deficient in their incoming hires. Skills such as communication, teamwork, leadership and adaptability are commonly ranked as deficient. Academic leadership education strongly emphasizes this valuable skill set often referred to as soft skills. This study examined the relationship of the soft skills gained to the amount of leadership education completed by Fort Hays State University graduates using the Teamwork Skills Questionnaire (O’Neil, Lee, Wang & Mulkey, 1999). Those who received no leadership education from the FHSU Department of Leadership Studies were compared with those who received a leadership certificate and those who received a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership. The study provided insight into whether academic leadership education enhances graduate’s soft skill development and to assess the impact this has on their perception of teamwork proficiency in the workplace. Results indicate that the leadership certificate does not significantly change soft skill development in graduates’ self-reported perceptions, as compared to students with no leadership coursework. It was found that the bachelor’s degree does make limited significant changes in graduates’ soft skill proficiency as compared with graduates who received the leadership certificate. Multiple significant changes were found in graduates with bachelor’s degrees as compared with graduates who received no leadership coursework. Recommendations to be considered when conducting further research include the use of qualitative methodology, the inclusion of more universities that offer a degree in Organizational Leadership, and the measurement of other skills the leadership coursework may produce but was not reflected in this instrument.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology / Doris J. Carroll / This study investigated the differences in own behavior and perception of peer behavior among undergraduates among gender, age, race/ethnicity and major. The participants were part of a census of undergraduate students at a Midwestern land grant university. There were 2,759 useable responses to a survey using McCabe’s Academic Integrity Scale. The findings found significant differences between age and gender comparisons. Younger women reported the most behavior in academic dishonesty, and older women reported the lowest behavior in academic dishonesty. The race/ethnicity and major comparisons yielded no differences. Finally, the findings suggest the need for further systematic research on academic dishonesty.

Master of Science / Counseling and Student Development / Christy D. Craft / Since residence hall roommates can have a significant effect on the stress level of an individual, it was predicted that living with a roommate experiencing emotional distress could cause added stress due to the support needs of that roommate. For this study, emotional distress is defined as experiencing any of the following symptoms of common mental illness: excessive use of alcohol/drugs; working hard but getting poor grades; test anxiety; excessive tearfulness or crying; feeling misunderstood or mistreated; lost hope that life will improve; unresolved conflicts with others; feeling agitated or restless; having trouble memorizing; difficulty concentrating, focusing, or paying attention; bored or unhappy with life; loss of energy/fatigued; feeling shy or timid; excessive worry; change in nutrition or exercise habits; low self-esteem; difficulty trusting other people; lost interest in activities; changes in sleep patterns; no close personal friends (lonely); poor time management; mood swings; difficulty controlling angry thoughts or actions; anxiety attacks; depressed mood; and/or addiction concerns (Robertson, 2006). A qualitative research study was done where five individuals were interviewed about their experience living with someone who was experiencing emotional distress. The participants’ answers were evaluated and synthesized with prior research material. Further research could be done on this subject by utilizing quantitative research methods at multiple institutions and comparing the results with the institutions’ policies and procedures for staff members. This research could result in a new manner in which to respond to students who are experiencing emotional distress and to their roommates in the residence halls.

Master of Science / Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology / Doris J. Carroll / Diversity in higher education plays an important role in students’ perspectives on their college experiences. For students looking for an institution that has a diverse living and learning environment, it is important that students can find information related to diversity. This report highlighted dimensions of diversity as communicated through mission and diversity statements from institutions in the Big 12 Conference. The Big 12 Conference institutions include Baylor University, Iowa State University, Kansas State University, Oklahoma State University, Texas A&M University, Texas Tech University, University of Colorado – Boulder, University of Kansas – Lawrence, University of Missouri, University of Nebraska, University of Oklahoma, and the University of Texas. The institutions’ mission and/or diversity statements were evaluated using the four dimension of diversity: access and success, climate and intergroup relations, education and scholarship, and institutional viability and vitality. The results of this report alert students, faculty, and staff, as well as the institution, about the aspects of diversity being developed at their institution and in which dimensions they need further development.

Over the course of the second half of the twentieth century, undergraduate degree requirements in the Faculty of Arts (later the Faculty of Arts & Science) at the University of Toronto were comprehensively reviewed and revised seven times. The records of these reviews demonstrate that the curricular changes of the second half of the twentieth century were substantial, reflecting attempts by curricular planners to shape the undergraduate program of study to accommodate broader social, economic, demographic, and epistemological changes. These changes therefore reflect the connections between the University and its local, provincial, and international communities. These substantial changes, however, are balanced by consistent and recurrent patterns in curriculum across this period as curricular planners sought ways to implement sustained curricular goals into a changed institutional environment and a changed curricular framework. Collectively, these reviews demonstrate that the U of T maintained a distinct approach to undergraduate education from the beginning of this period through the end. This approach, referred to here as the “Toronto Scheme,” is characterized by the belief that specialized study can lead to liberal education, and that students should have access to multiple pathways through the degree. This analysis of degree requirements over time has important implications for understanding higher education at the University of Toronto, in Canada, and internationally. Most importantly, this research helps to explain both the strong similarities and significant differences between American curricular structures and those in place at the U of T. Additionally, this study of curriculum provides valuable insight into the role of the U of T’s colleges in undergraduate instruction, further illuminating the effect of this relatively unique institutional structure on the history of the U of T. On a broader scale, the relationship indicated by this history of the curriculum between the U of T and other institutions in Ontario and Canada deepens our understanding of the nature of a Canadian system of or approach to higher education (or lack thereof). As such, the Toronto Scheme informs – and sometimes challenges – many of the assumptions currently made about Ontario, Canadian, and North American higher education.

This research responds to the problem of minority teacher under-representation within North America’s increasingly diverse urban school systems. It weaves together what is known about educational equity, teacher education admission policy, and policy implementation to explore the research question, “How did equity-based admission policy shape candidate diversification in an urban Canadian teacher education program?” The conceptual framework grounds this study within organizational culture and describes how culture both shapes and is shaped by interactions between structure and agency. The conceptual question asks, “How did institutional norms and individual will work to support or constrain equitable candidate diversification?” Data collection occurred during private interviews with members of three organizational groups: Policymakers, policy implementers, and policy beneficiaries. Policymakers were senior administrators with several years’ experience in their respective positions. Policy implementers were admission personnel, ad hoc faculty, and field-based educators. The policy beneficiaries were candidates who self-identified as future French and Physics teachers, and as members of Aboriginal, Disabled, Gendered/Invisible, and Racialized/Visible minorities. Data analysis was an iterative process of applying demographic, thematic, and editorial coding to the interview transcripts. Discussion highlighted several themes that shaped the admission process: External admission policy context, Faculty of Education Equity Policy, admission policy instrumentation, qualification precedence and weighting, academic qualifications, non-academic identity-based and experience-based qualifications, admission policy gaps, and last-minute Policy disclosure. It also addressed admission personnel recruitment, training, and performance during candidate personal information form assessment. Significant findings emerged in the areas of preservice program partnerships, candidate support services, qualification transparency, labeling of identity-based candidate characteristics, and admission personnel training. Research applicability extends to consecutive and concurrent teacher education programs, other tertiary professional licensing programs, and multi-site qualitative research projects. Recommendations for policy and practice target teacher education admission, policy implementation, and equity policy development.

Ce mémoire vise à comprendre les enjeux sociaux qui ont animé le champ social de l’enseignement supérieur à l’étape de la formulation du projet de loi no 38 sur la gouvernance des universités et à mettre en évidence le rôle et l'influence des diverses catégories d'acteurs sociaux impliqués dans ces débats, chacun tentant d’imposer sa définition des enjeux en fonction de ses intérêts, de même que les facteurs explicatifs de cette influence (stratégies, ressources, etc.). Les débats qui ont eu lieu autour du projet de loi à l’étude ont été traité comme étant le produit d’un système d'action, lequel permet de classer ces débats selon une typologie des enjeux, correspondant chacun à trois niveaux de l’action sociale : enjeux fondamentaux, enjeux organisationnels et enjeux politiques. L’analyse des débats font état d’un rapport conflictuel entre les acteurs « externes » à l’université et les acteurs associés à la communauté universitaire dont l’objet est l’organisation et l’exercice du pouvoir entre les acteurs et les instances au sein des établissements universitaires. / This thesis aims to understand the social issues that have animated the social field of higher education at the formulation stage of Bill no. 38 on university governance. Also it aims to highlight the role and influence of various categories of social actors involved in these debates, each trying to impose its definition of issues according to their interests. The debates that took place around the bill are to be treated as the product of an action system, which presents these debates as a typology of issues, each corresponding to three levels of social action: fondamentals issues, organizational issues and political issues. The analysis of the debates indicate a conflictual relationship between the actors 'external' to the university and the actors involved in the academic community whose object is the organization and exercise of power between actors and bodies within academic institutions.

Cette thèse examine le comportement de quatre doyens canadiens dont les facultés sont en situation financière précaire. Dans un contexte d’imputabilité accrue des établissements universitaires et de modification constante aux rapports de pouvoir internes, cette étude présente une importance particulière pour la compréhension de l’exercice réel des fonctions administratives des cadres académiques intermédiaires. La recherche scientifique sur ce sujet attribue aux doyens une contribution vitale au bon fonctionnement des établissements; le doyen en demeure pourtant un des rouages les moins étudiés. La position intermédiaire qu’occupent les doyens les place dans un conflit de rôle évident. Pris entre des rôles et des attentes contradictoires émis par la communauté facultaire, d’une part, et par la direction de l’établissement, d’autre part, ils doivent conjuguer cette ambiguïté avec des responsabilités croissantes en matière de gestion financière, de leadership et d’opérationnalisation des visées stratégiques de l’université. Comprendre la façon dont les doyens arrivent à mobiliser les leviers institutionnels à leur disposition pour résoudre des situations critiques permettra d’améliorer notre compréhension de la complexité de la prise de décision au niveau intermédiaire et notre compréhension globale du fonctionnement des établissements universitaires. La présente étude importe de la théorie culturelle-historique de l’activité (culturalhistorical activity theory, ou CHAT) un modèle d’analyse de l’activité collective en situation de contradictions systémiques. Quatre doyens d’une même université ont été interviewés afin de présenter une situation vécue de difficulté budgétaire, et le processus de résolution qui a suivi. Les données ont été analysées qualitativement afin de décrire les interventions que réalisent les doyens sur les leviers présents dans leurs environnements. Les résultats suggèrent que les participants ont misé sur une maîtrise fine des rouages institutionnels et sur des interventions diversifiées afin de résoudre les contradictions de leurs systèmes d’activité. / The purpose of this doctoral thesis is to study the work of four Canadian deans dealing with precarious financial situations. In a governance context of increasing accountability and ever-shifting power patterns, this study sheds a particularly important light upon the understanding of the real exercise of administrative functions by academic middle managers. Current research on the subject identifies deans as essential to an institution’s smooth operations; yet, it is one of the least understood cogs in the machine. The middle-of-the-ladder position they claim puts deans in an obvious conflict of roles and loyalty. Stuck between contradictory expectations from faculty and administrators, they must deal daily with this ambiguity in addition to increasing financial, leadership and operational responsibilities. To understand how deans use institutional levers and strategies in order to solve complex, contradictory situations is to increase our understanding of the complexity of decision-making in higher education as well as of higher education institutions in general. This study imports concepts and tools from the cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) and suggests an analysis model of collective activity in situations of systemic contradictions. Four deans from the same university were interviewed in order to exhaustively map a critical incident related to budget difficulties, as well as the process through which the situation was resolved. A qualitative analysis of the data allowed for an in-depth description of the tools and institutional levers deans used when confronted with financial difficulties. Results suggest that the participants mobilised a keen mastery of both the rules and their community to develop and implement a wide variety of systemic interventions in order to solve the contradictions in their activity systems.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Kenneth F. Hughey / In academic courses, assessment is used to evaluate the effect of teaching on student learning. Academic advising has been viewed as a form of teaching (Crookston, 1972); therefore, it is necessary to assess the effect of academic advising on student learning. The best practices of assessment of academic achievement involve three key steps: the identification of student learning outcomes (i.e., what is assessed), the development and use of good measures of student learning (i.e., how assessment is conducted), and the use of sound professional judgment to understand the information gathered and to make changes to improve student learning (i.e., how assessment results are used). However, the assessment of academic advising is often minimal, narrow, and inconsistent. Further, when assessment of academic advising is conducted, it is most commonly a survey of student satisfaction of their advising experience (Carlstrom, 2012; Habley, 2004; Macaruso, 2007; Robbins, 2009). The purpose of this study was to learn about the assessment practices in the profession by surveying those who conducted or were responsible for assessment of academic advising. The study found that 80% of participants had identified academic advising student learning outcomes in their situation. The most frequently reported outcome was that students would know degree requirements. A little over half of the participants who identified student learning outcomes assessed the achievement of those outcomes and student surveys were the most frequently reported measure used. Seven percent of participants reported to use three or more measures to assess student learning outcomes. Multiple measures are needed in assessing outcomes to gather comprehensive evidence of outcomes achievement. Sixty percent of participants reported they used assessment information to make decisions regarding improvement of services and student learning. The most frequently reported use of information was making revisions to the advising process/delivery outcomes. The results of the survey indicated that participants viewed advisors’ belief in assessment as important to facilitating assessment of academic advising. They also viewed administrators’ use of information in making decisions and changes to improve advising practices and increase student learning as important.

Master of Science / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Carla Jones / Multiracial identity development has been a topic of study that has slowly begun to grow interest in academia. While it is important to acknowledge the process of multiracial identity development in and of itself, it is also essential to understand how this development is influenced by different ecological factors in higher education, such as when and where a multiracial student may encounter instances of marginalization, as well as instances of mattering. One of the more prominent facets of this ecology is race-oriented student services, which can provide either a space in which multiracial students feel marginalized, or one in which they feel that they matter. This report will examine multiracial identity development and why it is needed in order to better understand multiracial students’ needs, as well as how race-oriented student services affect development and expression of their identity.