No description available.

The purpose of this study is the challenges that the teaching of SO subjects faces in the multicultural classroom. These challenges pose a problem in the process of developing students with a foreign background. The aim of this study is to highlight the challenges and opportunities that the teacher faces with students in the multicultural classroom as well as the solutions and strategies that the teacher uses to develop multicultural students. Therefore, empirical material from in-depth interviews was used about how teachers work and challenges and strategies related to this teaching area. I found few studies that address challenges and difficulties for those who have to learn socially relevant subjects in Sweden. The method that has been used is to interview four teachers in two schools. The result of this study shows that teachers use different ways to support the students in their learning of the SO subjects, for example, by using lists of important terms and words, or by using a teacher assistant in the mother tongue. By the teacher supporting the students in the right way, the students can apply new knowledge. Keywords: multicultural classroom, mother tongue and teacher assistant.

No description available.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to identify variables that explain the job satisfaction of assistant principals of secondary schools. If such variables are identified, efforts can be made to eliminate or reduce the effects of those variables which lead to dissatisfaction and enhance those which lead to satisfaction. The participants were 291 respondents to a survey distributed to a systemic sample of 400 assistant principals who were members of the National Association of Secondary School Principals in 1996. Participants completed the short form of the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire and a questionnaire developed by the researcher. Participants' job satisfaction had three measures: extrinsic, intrinsic, and general job satisfaction. The variables believed to explain job satisfaction of assistant principals (age, opportunity for advancement, career aspirations, compensation, feelings of compensation fairness, supervisor relations, and ability utilization) were analyzed through path analysis to determine the effects of the independent variables on the three measures of job satisfaction. Results revealed that assistant principals are only marginally satisfied with their jobs. Assistant principals are not as interested in advancing their careers as reported in prior studies. Assistant principals also feel that their responsibilities are extending beyond the routine maintenance of discipline and attendance programs. Examination of the data revealed that the hypothesized models did not fit the data. Of the variables theorized to explain job satisfaction, age, compensation, and opportunity for advancement were found to have no significant effect on intrinsic, extrinsic, or general job satisfaction. However, supervisor relations was found to have a significant effect on all three measures, as did ability utilization. The other variables in the models either did not have significant effects on the three measures of job satisfaction or were too small to be considered important. Relationships between the independent variables were also examined and reported. None of the hypothesized indirect path effects were large enough to be considered important. After reviewing the results, the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the models did not capture accurate relationships among the variables. However, supervisor relations and ability utilization were found to be moderately related to extrinsic, intrinsic, and general job satisfaction. / Ed. D.

A review of literature on the preparation and training for assistant principals showed that there are gaps in the current support structures in place to encourage them to be effective in their position or prepared to assume other leadership roles (Armstrong, 2009; Barnett et al., 2012; Morgan, 2018). The role of assistant principal is an important area of educational leadership that has historically been underrepresented in the literature, and it is "one of the least researched and least discussed topics in educational leadership" (Weller and Weller, 2002, p. xiii). The researcher adapted the quantitative methodology techniques and survey tool of Inabinett's (2015) study titled, The Nourishment of Assistant Principals: The Effective Development of Future School Principals in Alabama. The researcher focused on assistant principals' beliefs about their preparedness for the principalship and how their real and ideal development compared to one another. Specifically, the study considered the five elements (professional development, mentoring, aspiration, networking, and experiences) from the Assistant Principal Development Framework as being instrumental in preparing assistant principals for the principalship. The purpose of this study was to identify assistant principals' self-reported perceptions regarding their job experiences as defined by the Assistant Principal Development Framework. This study reported assistant principals' perceptions of their ideal development compared across each of the five domains of the Assistant Principal Development Framework. Additionally, this study identified specific professional development that assistant principals perceive they need to become future principals and determined which components of the Assistant Principal Development Framework were currently utilized in their leadership practice. This study sample included assistant principals in one PK-12 school division in Virginia. The research questions guiding this study were: 1) What are the self-reported perceptions of assistant and associate principals' levels of preparedness for the principalship based on their real job experiences? and 2) How do their self-reported perceptions compare to their ideal development across each of the five domains in the Assistant Principal Development Framework? The research method included a researcher-adapted survey titled the Assistant Principal Perceptions Survey. The survey instrument consisted of 63 items: 11 demographic questions, 51 Likert-scale questions, and one open-ended question. Descriptive statistics, including a paired sample t-test, were used to analyze the data and identify findings and implications. Results from this study revealed that assistant principals perceived a difference between their current job experiences and what their ideal experiences should be to prepare them for the principalship. Participants reported the need for readily accessible professional development, opportunities for networking with other administrators, formal mentoring, and more experience in the areas of curriculum and instruction, organizational management, student achievement, and professional and ethical behaviors. Furthermore, the findings provide educational leaders with relevant research and awareness related to assistant principals' perceptions of their preparedness for the principalship. / Doctor of Education / The purpose of this study was to identify assistant principals' self-reported perceptions regarding their real job experiences as defined by the Assistant Principal Development Framework. Additionally, the study also reported assistant principals' perceptions of their ideal development compared across each of the five domains of the Assistant Principal Development Framework as defined by Inabinett (2015). In this quantitative study, a survey research design was used. The study was conducted in one PK-12 public school division in Virginia. The research questions guiding this study were: 1) What are the self-reported perceptions of assistant principals' levels of preparedness for the principalship based on their real job experiences? and 2) How do their self-reported perceptions compare to their ideal development across each of the five domains in the Assistant Principal Development Framework? Results from this study revealed that assistant principals perceived a difference in their current job experiences opposed to what their ideal experiences should be to prepare them for the principalship. Participants reported the need for readily accessible professional development, opportunities for networking with other administrators, formal mentoring, and more experience in the areas of curriculum and instruction, organizational management, student achievement, and professional and ethical behaviors. Recommendations for future studies and implications for practice were provided.

As handheld computers are becoming powerful, portable and wireless, they have recently received considerable attention in education because their multi-functionality and mobility can be used for supporting learning activities in various manner. In spite of the potential in education, handheld computers have several limitations. One of the critical limitations is the small screen size. In an attempt to find factors affecting text readability on the small screen of handheld computers, this study, first, reviewed basic reading process and reading model, previous studies examining potential factors affecting text readability on a small handheld screen. This study investigated the effect of screen orientation and margin on reading performance (reading speed and comprehension) and subjective impressions (ease of reading, mental workload and satisfaction) with a handheld computer. A 2x2 within-subject factorial design was conducted with 16 participants reading texts from a PDA (Compaq iPAQ 3850). The results of this study indicated that neither screen orientation nor margin had a significant influence on objective reading performance and subjective impression. It was found that there were no prevailing preference of screen orientation and margin in reading texts from a handheld computer screen. It was also found that participants had a favorable reading experience with the handheld computers. Based on results of experiments and post-experiment questionnaire, a set of recommendations was developed to improve reading from small screens of handheld computers. / Master of Science

Novice programmers often find learning programming difficult. They suffer from various misconceptions and difficulties in understanding the subject. The overall experience with programming can be negative for many students. They may feel isolated in the programming environment and think that programming is difficult for them. Many schools use automated grading tools to process student work and provide them with early feedback. Web-CAT, an open-source software system that is widely used by many universities, is an example of such an automated grading tool. We have developed a Virtual Teaching Assistant for Web-CAT, called Maria, who can support the students to help alleviate some of the negative emotions towards programming. We have used an animated pedagogical agent as the virtual assistant as certain characteristics of the agent can help with the students' perception about the virtual teaching assistant. Often, students have a fixed mindset about programming. But it is easy to master programming with practice. To promote a growth mindset, Maria also provides feedback recognizing the effort of the student in addition to the performance-oriented feedback of the students' programs. Maria can also provide motivating or encouraging comments to continue working on the assignment to get a good score. Maria can also provide information about the various errors displayed in student feedback. / Master of Science / Beginners often find learning computer programming difficult. They may suffer from various misconceptions and difficulties in understanding the subject. Also, there can be a negative experience surrounding programming for many students. They may feel isolated in the programming environment and think that programming is difficult for them. Many schools use automated software tools to grade student programs and provide them with early feedback. Web-CAT, a software system that is widely used by many universities, is an example of such an automated grading tool. We have developed a Virtual Teaching Assistant to reside within Web-CAT, called Maria, who can support the students to help alleviate some of the negative emotions towards programming. We have used an animated human-like character, known as pedagogical agent, for Maria as it is widely use in pedagogy to help students. Often, students think programming is an innate skill and it is difficult to acquire. But it is easy to master programming with practice. To encourage students to continue working, Maria also provides feedback recognizing the effort that the student has put in towards completing the programming assignment or project. In certain cases, Maria can also provide motivating or encouraging comments to the students to help them continue working on the assignment. Maria can also provide explanation about the various programming errors that students encounter during their submission to Web-CAT.

Many colleges face a lack of academic and emotional support for their computer science students. Previous research into this problem produced Maria, a virtual teaching assistant (TA). This initial version of Maria was able to answer student questions, provide error explanations, and praise students for effort on programming assignments. This research continues work on the Maria project with three design goals: (1) reducing obstacles to use of Maria, (2) allowing Maria to provide better academic support, and (3) allowing Maria to provide better emotional support (with less focus on this goal). Improvements were made to the initial version of Maria, including increasing the number of questions that Maria could answer, allowing Maria to suggest questions for students to ask, and adding longer back-and-forth dialogs between Maria and students. Following this, Maria was deployed to students for an evaluation. The evaluation revealed that certain features were popular (including the longer dialogs and easier access to error explanation) and that Maria was unable to provide relevant answers to many questions asked by students. Using data from the evaluation, more improvements were made to Maria to address some of her shortcomings and build on her popular features. Answers to more questions were added for questions about testing, general knowledge questions, questions about many other topics. Many of these new answers used the popular back-and-forth dialog feature. Additionally, this research discusses a system that could be used to automate the creation of new answers for Maria or any virtual teaching assistant using crowdsourcing. / Master of Science / Many colleges face a lack of academic and emotional support for their computer science students. Previous research into this problem produced Maria, a virtual teaching assistant (TA). This initial version of Maria was able to answer student questions, provide error explanations, and praise students for effort on programming assignments. This research continues work on the Maria project with three design goals: (1) reducing obstacles to use of Maria, (2) allowing Maria to provide better academic support, and (3) allowing Maria to provide better emotional support (with less focus on this goal). Improvements were made to the initial version of Maria, including increasing the number of questions that Maria could answer, allowing Maria to suggest questions for students to ask, and adding longer back-and-forth dialogs between Maria and students. Following this, Maria was deployed to students for an evaluation. The evaluation revealed that certain features were popular (including the longer dialogs and easier access to error explanation) and that Maria was unable to provide relevant answers to many questions asked by students. Using data from the evaluation, more improvements were made to Maria to address some of her shortcomings and build on her popular features. Answers to more questions were added for questions about testing, general knowledge questions, questions about many other topics. Many of these new answers used the popular back-and-forth dialog feature. Additionally, this research discusses a system that could be used to automate the creation of new answers for Maria or any virtual teaching assistant using crowdsourcing.

Yes / Introduction Over the last 2 decades the assistant radiographer practitioner (ARP) role has been introduced into NHS diagnostic imaging departments as a strategy to expand the workforce and create capacity. This skill mix initiative has not been implemented in a standardised way and there is limited knowledge of the current role scope within general radiography (X-Ray). Method An electronic survey of ARPs working within UK diagnostic imaging departments was conducted. Both open and closed questions sought information regarding basic demographic data (age category; gender; geographic region), scope of practice (patient groups; anatomical regions; imaging outside of the diagnostic imaging department), limitations placed on practice, supervision and additional roles. Results A total of 108 responses, including 13 trainees, were received. Most sites employ three or less ARPs in general radiography (n = 43/66; 65.2%), although 11 sites have five (range 1–15). The majority undertake imaging of both adults and children (n = 85/108; 78.7%), although limitations on age were described. Their scope of practice covers a broad anatomical range and included some non-ambulant patients. The level of supervision varied with some sites empowering ARPs to check the referral prior to examination (n = 25) or images post acquisition (n = 32) (both n = 20/66; χ2 = 16.003; 1df; p = 0.000). Conclusion ARPs are helping to maintain capacity in imaging departments but we suggest there is further scope for expansion. The practice described by the post holders suggests that many are working beyond the scope envisaged by the radiography professional body.