Over the past decade, the number of individuals being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder has risen substantially. One byproduct of increased diagnosis is that more and more students with Autism Spectrum Disorder are applying and being accepted to colleges and universities (Graetz & Spampinato, 2008; Jones, 2012; Smith, 2007; Taylor, 2005; Zager, Alpern, McKeon, Maxam, & Mulvey, 2013; Longtin, 2013; Adreon & Durocher, 2007; Zager & Alpern, 2010). Research in the field of Autism and Higher Education is in its infancy, with a dearth of the research focusing on the challenges and struggles that degree-seeking students with ASD face within higher education. In an attempt to combat these challenges, many colleges and universities across the nation have begun to create post-secondary transition programs, but little is known from the perspective of the students participating in these programs (Adreon & Durocher, 2012). In this following study, Q Methodology was used to obtain information from 30 degree-seeking college students with Autism Spectrum Disorder on their best experiences within a higher education transition program.

Abstract Student-athletes are viewed as the epitome of health due to their physical appearance and talent set; however, it is their psychological health that needs significant attention (Etzel, 2006). Psychosocial stressors such as the pressures and demands of being a student and athlete as well as the demands and expectations of the coach have significant impact on the student-athlete’s mental health and well-being (Beauchemin, 2014; Cleary et al., 2011; Lafrenière et al., 2011; Mageau & Vallerand, 2003; Watson, 2005). The purpose of this research is to investigate any correlation between student-athletes’ perceptions of coaching leadership behaviors and the symptoms associated with disorders such as anxiety, depression, suicidality, and substance abuse. The Leadership Scale for Sport (Chelladurai & Saleh, 1980) and the Symptom Assessment Measure instruments are used in this study. An exploratory analysis determined the reliability and construct validity of the instruments. Thirty-three student-athletes from a non-football Division I university engaged in the study, with twenty-eight completing some or all portions of study. All participants are between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four. A linear regression analysis demonstrated no relation between the independent variable, student-athlete perception of coaching leadership behaviors and the dependent variable, symptoms associated with anxiety, depression, suicidal behavior, and substance abuse mental health disorders, (F=.52, p=.49, R2=.061, and Beta coefficient was -0.248). Gender differences is not determined due to the skewed sample consisting of eighty five percent female and fifteen percent male. Though the linear regression analysis indicates no relation between the dependent and independent variable, supplemental contextualization was given to additional questions asked on the Symptoms Assessment Measure. These findings provide evidence that student-athletes perceive that their coach’s leadership behaviors do have influence on their mental health. This reinforces reports that coaches do wield power over their athletes and their influence is related to student-athletes’ psychological well-being (Horn, 2008; Locke et al., 2012; Stebbings et al., 2012).

In this study, the perceptions of 42 teachers—from the Stann Creek District, Belize—regarding the implementation and use of Intercultural Bilingual Education (IBE) as a language preservation tool in their schools were examined. Intercultural Bilingual Education (IBE) is a teaching method that aims at promoting the preservation of indigenous languages by integrating an indigenous language and culture into the academic curriculum, such that students can develop a better appreciation of their history and traditional practices. To examine the perspectives of teachers regarding IBE, Q Methodology was used to examine the research question: What is the range of perspectives teachers hold regarding IBE as a language preservation tool? From participant interviews and responses to an open-ended prompt centered on the research questions, the researcher developed a 40-item Q sample comprising statements that represented distinct perspectives on the use of IBE as a language preservation tool. Forty-two participants then sorted these 40 statements within a forced distribution grid that ranged from “most like my perspective” (+4) to “least like my perspective” (-4). These 42 Q sorts were then correlated; the correlations were then analyzed and rotated using PQ method software. Four factors were extracted from this process and they were converted to factor arrays resembling the same initial forced distribution grid. Based on an interpretation of the holistic configuration of these factor arrays and descriptive comments from participants concerning their sorts, these factors were named as: Strongly Supported IBE (Factor 1), Strongly Opposed but Conflicted about IBE (Factor 2), Cautiously Optimistic about IBE (Factor 3), and Supported IBE for Intergenerational Language Transfer (Factor 4). Implications from this study for administrators of similar programs include the importance of understanding teacher beliefs regarding their preparedness to deliver an IBE curriculum as well as their perceptions regarding the usefulness of such an approach, particularly given the additional instructional time needed to deliver it.

This study explored the impact a professional development program (Online Professor Certificate Program, OPCP) had on teaching online in higher education— specifically, the impact on faculty members’ teaching presence. The conceptual and theoretical model utilized the community of inquiry framework and both critical theory and transformational learning theory. This case study used data from various sources, including questionnaires, content analysis, and interviews. The overall results indicate that the OPCP had some impact on teaching presence, but not as much as anticipated. The study found that faculty who completed the OPCP were more engaged in their online classes than those who had not participated in the OPCP, as measured by the number of discussion posts. No statistically significant difference in teaching presence was found between participants’ retrospective pre- and post-OPCP responses. Participants mentioned mentoring and andragogy as the two most important parts of the OPCP. Educational leaders have an economic interest in this issue, as online enrollments increased significantly over the past decade, and the trend will likely continue. These increased online enrollments have impacted online teaching, creating a growing need for high-quality online teaching. Faculty need professional development programs to help them become more effective online teachers. The professional development programs need to be evaluated for effectiveness beyond the satisfaction level, with a focus on program outcomes.

The foregoing fable casts much doubt on some elements of the instructional process. All children cannot fit in the same shoe size just as all children cannot learn the same things at the same rate, following the same teaching strategies. These individual differences should be taken into consideration. The situation is not at all helped by attaching labels to the students. Children are not cows that we herd from one grade to another, all needing the same nutritional requirements. They should be compared more to various species of plants. Some may be like the cactus which only needs water once a month, and too much water would kill it. Other plants may need watering every day. Likewise, all students are individuals and have many different needs.The problem to be examined here concerns the “gifted feet" which were put into the "red shoes". The word "gifted", in referring to students, seems to imply that these students are all geniuses, and, therefore, the term needs some clarification. For the purpose of this paper, the term "gifted" is broadened to also include the "talented" and/or “highly motivated.” For the sake of simplicity, the term "talented" will be used throughout the rest of this paper, but with the understanding that the other two terms are included in the meaning.

Since there is a need for auxiliary personnel, then, there appears to be a need for a training program for teachers, paid aides, and for volunteers. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to formulate a pre-service, in-service, and on-the-job training program for these personnel at Wesconnett Elementary School.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of using study guides in content areas of the elementary curriculum on the general level of comprehension of third grade pupils in those content areas. It appeared from the search of the literature that study guides had been little used for lower elementary students. More frequent use has been with upper elementary and high school students. A study using third grade subjects seemed to be of value for at least two reasons: one, to fill the gap and two, to discover the benefits that might accrue, or to lend credence to the prevailing idea that study guides are more suitable for upper level students. Social Studies in the third grade curriculum presents the most concentrated effort in content reading, and for this prime reason it was chosen as the area for this study. Also, the text being utilized has a story line which aided in making a more cohesive framework for the study guides. This study attempted to answer the question: What is the effect of using a series of study guides based on a third grad Social Studies text on the general level of comprehension of one experimental class of third grade students over a nine-week period as compared with third grade students in two similarly grouped control classes?

The purpose of this project is to develop a resource of techniques using children's literature which will increase interest in reading for students who have met the minimum standards of reading for their grade level. The completed curriculum is to be used in grades kindergarten through six, with a flexible time limit of thirty to forty-five minutes per day, for fifteen school days.

Motivating students to learn and practice effective communication skills has always been a dilemma for teachers of all grade levels. Video cameras and camcorders are now being used as teaching tools in many schools to not only motivate students to use and practice a variety of skills, but to stimulate their creativity, as well. Loretto Elementary School in Jacksonville, Florida, is developing a program which incorporates student-written video productions into its existing curriculum. Loretta's innovative program is a direct result of a 10-rninute informational video tape production done by graduate student Jane Fleetwood and Continental Cablevision, a local cable television company. This paper describes the step-by-step procedures involved in that production, the business education partnership which exists between the school and the cable company, and the school's plans for making video productions as integral part of its curriculum.

There has been much concern recently about the lack of basic map and globe skills among America's youth. Map and globe skills are a basic tool of social studies used throughout the rest of students' academic, professional and personal lives. These skills incorporate the development of problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. The focus of this project was to develop a map and globe skills curriculum for teaching these skills to sixth-graders in Putnam County, Florida, when they first encounter daily social studies classes. Although curricula have been developed, they do not include all of the objectives necessary to teach sixth-grade Putnam County students who possess different levels of competence. The curriculum incorporates suggestions from the review of related literature. While the curriculum accommodates the average student, it can be adapted to the learning abilities of all students. Because sixth-graders are generally in Piaget's concrete-operational stage of cognitive development and learn best using "hands-on" activities, the suggested lesson plans stress these types of learning experiences.