The purpose of this study was to seek to understand faculty culture at a community college and at a public, regional, comprehensive university. Although public, regional, comprehensive universities and community colleges share a number of characteristics, there are areas where their differences are most apparent, such as student abilities and qualities, faculty credentials, and community orientations, to name a few. While quantitative indicators are readily available by institutional type, there is limited information on the nature of the work of faculty in these institutions or the faculty beliefs about their work. Research on culture in these institutions in particular is also necessary in light of the increasingly complex, economic, technological, and global influences impacting them. In this study, the impact of institutional mission, student abilities and qualities, teaching orientation, and the external pressures related to state, federal government, and national mandates on faculty at community colleges and public, regional, comprehensive universities are analyzed using institutional and neo-institutional theories, as well as culture theory.

The purpose of the research was to determine whether the situational, institutional, dispositional, epistemological, and technological barriers that affect attrition in distance education apply to the business-based distance training arena. Although reports about distance training students indicate that attrition from distance training is a significant issue, the results from this study find that 90 percent of the business professionals who answered this survey that have taken business-based e-learning courses are not discontinuing their e-learning courses. This finding contradicts many published articles. The free-form comments written by the online learners who answered this survey provided some hints as to what may be keeping these business professionals from abandoning their e-learning courses. The respondents to this study acknowledge that interaction with other learners and with course facilitators, chunking of courses and curricula into appropriate sized pieces, technical support, good course design, and incentives to reach course or curriculum completion have kept them online.

This qualitative study explores the academic experiences of single-parent undergraduate students at North Carolina Central University. The world of single parents is one of children, employers and themselves. When the parent adds the role of student, educational demands may be difficult to balance. Family and work responsibilities may interfere with educational attainment. This study suggests that the experiences of single-parent undergraduate students consist of complex roles and responsibilities. Yet, with a solid commitment, a reduction in daily situational barriers, and faculty, staff and family support, these students are capable of attaining educational goals.

A case study analysis was used to investigate the changes in the lives of adult daughters when they became primary caregivers to parents with Alzheimer's disease. This research also explored beliefs, feelings, and perceptions of participants about their role. Based on in-depth and face-to-face interviews with 21 adult daughters and two daughters-in-law, this study argues that although intergenerational caregiving is accepted as a part of membership in families, it is also a source of family disharmony and conflicts. Family nursing is considered a burden based on the length of service. The scope of the changes in the lives of adult daughters/caregivers ranges from living arrangements, family relationships, young children, personal affairs, social activities, employment and economics, health of caregiver to religion. Although caring for AD patients is rigorous, highly stressful, and filled with demanding challenges, the findings of this study show that a majority of adult caregivers would do it all over.

The purpose of this study is to examine pragmatist constructivism as a science education referent for adult learners. Specifically, this study seeks to determine whether George Herbert Mead?s doctrine, which conflates pragmatist learning theory and philosophy of natural science, might facilitate (a) scientific concept acquisition, (b) learning scientific methods, and (c) preparation of learners for careers in science and science-related areas. A philosophical examination of Mead?s doctrine in light of these three criteria has determined that pragmatist constructivism is not a viable science education referent for adult learners. Mead?s pragmatist constructivism does not portray scientific knowledge or scientific methods as they are understood by practicing scientists themselves, that is, according to scientific realism. Thus, employment of Mead?s doctrine does not adequately prepare future practitioners for careers in science-related areas. Mead?s metaphysics does not allow him to commit to the existence of the unobservable objects of science such as molecular cellulose or mosquito-borne malarial parasites. Mead?s anti-realist metaphysics also affects his conception of scientific methods. Because Mead does not commit existentially to the unobservable objects of realist science, Mead?s science does not seek to determine what causal role if any the hypothetical objects that scientists routinely posit while theorizing might play in observable phenomena. Instead, constructivist pragmatism promotes subjective epistemology and instrumental methods. The implication for learning science is that students are encouraged to derive scientific concepts based on a combination of personal experience and personal meaningfulness. Contrary to pragmatist constructivism, however, scientific concepts do not arise inductively from subjective experience driven by consummatory activity. The broader implication of this study for adult education is that the philosophically laden claims of constructivist learning theories need to be identified and assessed independently of any empirical support that these learning theories might enjoy. This in turn calls for educational experiences for graduate students of education that incorporate philosophical understanding such that future educators might be able to recognize and weigh the philosophically laden claims of adult learning theories.

This qualitative study examines the impact of cultural change on the perspectives of business and economic teachers in Kazakhstan, a country that has experienced tremendous change since gaining its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. During this study, eighteen participants completed semi-structured interviews. Data was analyzed using an approach derived from phenomenography. Six changes in society, as well as specific changes in students, were identified as significantly impacting participant?s teaching. Participants stressed that, as a result of the changes taking place, a new world was opening for them and a new model of higher education was emerging in post-Soviet Kazakhstan. While some teachers found a renewed interest in teaching, most found teaching more difficult as a result of cultural change, with some deciding to leave the profession altogether. The study?s participants also shared their understandings of effective teaching, identifying two goals and describing six approaches effective teachers use in teaching. Differences emerged between Soviet and post-Soviet teachers with respect to their commitment to the curriculum, their ability to adapt to changing teaching situations, and the effect of increased economic pressure on them. The study concludes that: (a) participants? normative expectations, or their roles, relationships, and responsibilities were most affected by change; (b) participants? pedagogical procedures were largely determined by how they learned to teach; (c) participants desired and were able to change their pedagogical procedures to adapt to changing contexts; (d) Soviet teachers had more difficulty adapting their teaching practices than their post-Soviet colleagues; (e) the context for teaching constrained teachers in their ability to adapt to cultural changes; and (f) while most beliefs about teaching were rooted in Soviet Kazakhstan, beliefs about teacher?s roles and relationships were changing in response to changes in Kazakhstan.

Success in healthcare education, as defined by timely completion of the academic program, has consequences for individual students, academic institutions, and society. One purpose of this study was to quantify attrition in the physical therapy program at Elon University. The attrition rate in the physical therapy program at Elon University for students admitted between 1998 and 2002 (n = 198) was 10%, including those whose graduation was either delayed or denied. Most causes of attrition were for academic difficulties. This attrition rate is higher than the attrition rate in other physical therapy programs but it is lower than the attrition rates for most nursing and medical programs. The primary purpose of this research was to identify cognitive, collegiate, and demographic predictors of attrition in physical therapy education for students at Elon University. Predictors were chosen based on Tinto?s model of doctoral persistence. Cognitive predictors addressed in this study were undergraduate GPA, Math GRE, and Verbal GRE. The collegiate predictor chosen was undergraduate institution quality as denoted by average SAT score for entering students at the undergraduate institution. Demographic predictors studied included age, race, and gender. The model including all of these predictors was not significant in predicting attrition. However, once those who experienced attrition for personal reasons were deleted from the data set, the model was able to significantly predict attrition (likelihood ratio = 15.876; p = 0.044). Two of the predictor variables, undergraduate GPA (odds ratio = 0.040) and average SAT score for the undergraduate institution (odds ratio = 0.990), were independent, significant predictors of attrition. The admissions committee in the physical therapy program at Elon University should continue to emphasize the cognitive predictors when making admissions decisions. In addition, admissions committee members should begin to consider of the quality of the applicant?s alma mater. These results need to be replicated in other physical therapy programs before the results of this study can be generalized more broadly.

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in leadership behavior change of participants in feedback only (A), feedback and training (B), and feedback, training, and coaching (C) groups. Participants were 101 managers, supervisors, and team leaders from businesses and nonprofit organizations in the United States. Participants received 360-degree feedback twice, based on a 28-item feedback survey. Pre-test and post-test responses were subjected to an exploratory factor analysis, resulting in two factors: relationship (14 items) and task (7 items). Seven items were discarded from further analysis. These were analyzed separately in all statistical tests of difference. There were no significant differences between the change in relationship or task factor scores over time as measured by the interaction effect of group and test, when adjusted for the covariates of time and participant age. For the task factor, tests for effects of slices found highly significant differences in both pre-test and post-test scores. Tests of pre-test scores on the task factor showed a significant difference between the feedback only (A) group and the feedback, training, and coaching (C) group. Tests of post-test scores showed a trend toward a significant difference between the feedback only (A) group and the feedback and training (B) group. Preexisting differences among the training, feedback, and coaching (C) group on the task factor may have accounted for the differences found. Based on prior research, this group may be more at risk for derailment than the other two groups. Further research using exploratory factor analysis to identify the actual factors present in 360-degree feedback is recommended. Tests for differences between pre-tests and post-tests within each of the three groups showed trends that should be replicated in future research. Due to the small sample size of the study, results need to be interpreted with caution.

Research expresses the need for society to develop ways that encourage civic responsibility. As the need to educate and encourage citizens to be more civic-minded increases, higher education, communities and agencies need to learn more meaningful ways to engage constituencies in the process that will result in greater civic responsibility. The purpose of this phenomenological case study was to describe how collaborative experiences influence civic engagement. Utilizing collaborative learning methods, while emphasizing specific learned skills (attributes) within small groups, both youth and adult experiences within the process tended to be enhanced and meaning was found within the experience. Although the study did not set out to develop a model for engaging citizens in decision-making, elements described within participant experiences contributed to developing a civic engagement model that fosters a sense of voice, empowerment, and meaning resulting in the likelihood of enhancing civic responsibility for those involved in the process.

The purpose of this study was to examine novice teachers? (n=7) and expert teachers? (n=7) learning experiences and how these experiences were integrated into the teachers? practices. The participants reflected upon experiences from professional development and their classroom during a semi-structured audiotaped interview. Data were analyzed using concept maps and matrices to distill the multipage interview transcriptions into manageable and comparable elements. Theoretical constructs underlying the analysis drew from expertise and situated learning theories. Comparisons between novice and expert teachers found that the acquisition of the knowledge bases in developing teaching expertise is a nonlinear process and that there are many factors upon which this development is predicated. The knowledge bases that are constructed as a part of developing teaching expertise are not acquired in a certain sequence, after a designated amount of time, nor as a result of particular experiences in a teacher?s practice. While there are distinct differences between novice and expert teachers, the findings indicate that most teachers seek guidance from colleagues rather than from staff development opportunities. Novices and experts both expressed concern regarding lack of time and that student academic diversity demands impact the quality of their job. Novices? concerns included classroom discipline, inability to level lessons for student needs, and insufficient time to observe more experienced teachers. The most significant difference between novices and experts was the directly inverse proportional relationship between experts? abilities to properly level instruction and manage the classroom and the novices? inability to do so.