Inline with the third pillar of the Basel accords, quantitative market risk measurements are investigate and evaluated comparing JP Morgan’s RiskMetrics and Bollerslev’s GARCH with the Peek over Threshold and Block Maxima approaches from the Extreme Value Theory framework. Value-at-Risk and Expected Shortfall (Conditional Value-at-Risk), with 95% and 99% confidence, is predicted for 25 years of the OMXS30. The study finds Bollerslev’s suggested t distribution to be a more appropriate distributional assumption, but no evidence to prefer the GARCH to the RiskMetrics. The more demanding Extreme Value Theory procedures trail behind as they are found wasteful of data and more difficult to backtest and therefore evaluate.

The purpose of this study was to examine the reflective essays of first-year, first-generation college students for evidence of self-directed learning at the conclusion of their first semester at the university. A phenomenological qualitative method was employed and a content analysis rating rubric used to identify and code evidence related to four themes: Self Awareness, Decoding and Pattern Fit, Autonomy/Responsibility, and Academic Success. The study findings indicated that first-year, first-generation college students have the capacity to take ownership of their learning in ways exemplified by self-directed learners. Participants demonstrated deep reflection and metacognition and their essays revealed unexpected student vulnerability as they voiced fears and hopes with a nearly innocent transparency and candor. Study findings also emphasized the importance of a support system that includes coursework designed to facilitate understanding of individual learner characteristics, emphasize strategies to maximize learner efforts that lead to successful outcomes, and empower students to become more self-directed. This study also expands the field of adult education by providing evidence that learner control is a key component of self-direction and is positively correlated to academic success. Ample evidence related to metacognition, self-regulation, and learner control was identified in the essay data.

It is important to identify students at-risk for school non-completion as early as possible. Research has demonstrated that data sources such as teacher nomination and individual demographic characteristics are less accurate identification methods of students who are at-risk for not graduating on-time. Instead, the use of early warning systems (EWS) based upon research validated indicators that reliably identify students who are Off-track, or at-risk for not graduating on-time, has been a promising approach. Questions remain though about the relationship of Off-track Status at an earlier time point to Off-track Status at a later time point as well as the relationship between a variety of individual and school-level predictors and Off-track Status. The purpose of this study was to examine student patterns of Off-track (for graduation) Status at two time points each year from sixth grade through the end of 10th grade as determined by a district-implemented EWS. In addition, this study examined factors that were hypothesized to contribute to students becoming off-track for high school graduation and the earliest time that those factors demonstrated influence on an Off-track Status. Individual (e.g., SES Level, Third-Grade Reading scores, etc.) and school-level predictors (e.g., School Rates of Discipline, School Promoting Power, etc.) of Off-track Status were collected through archival data on a cohort of 4,268 sixth-grade students across 15 middle schools and 13 high schools from the 2007/2008 school-year through the 2011/2012 school-year. Significant relationships between individual-level variables (SES Level, Hispanic racial/ethnic designation, Grade Point Average, Office Discipline Referrals and Previous Off-track Status) were found. Implications for research to practice include a focus on early intervention of Off-track Status students and the inclusion of additional variables in a middle and high school EWS. An additional implication for practice is the local customization of EWS through further analyses of predictor sensitivity and specificity as well as examination of specific school-level contributions to increased numbers of Off-track Status students which would allow for refinement of EWS specific to a given population and provide information on schools that may need additional resources to support students.

Reading aloud to very young children has been described as one of the “most important activities for developing the knowledge required for eventual success in reading” (Bus, van IJzendoorn, & Pelligrini, 1995, p. 19), and it is equally as strong as phonemic awareness as a predictor of reading achievement (Bus et al.). In the dialogue around reading aloud to children, mothers are routinely envisioned as the actors. Indeed, much of the research on families and reading aloud centers on the mother’s role in this process (e.g., Ninio & Bruner, 1978; Phillips & McNaughton, 1990; Reese, Cox, Harte, & McAnally, 2003). Despite a gap in research around fathers’ roles in influencing their children’s general development (Cabrera, Shannon, & Tamis-LeMonda, 2007), some theorists indicate that fathers can play an important role in their linguistic, cognitive, and emotional development (Gadsden, Brooks, & Jackson, 1997; Nord, Brimhall, & West, 1997). An understanding of what fathers contribute to read alouds with texts written in English in general and an examination of how those contributions vary from father to father may enable teachers to recognize and address differences that exist in children’s pre-school experiences and how those differences may be manifested in classrooms. This, then, may prove beneficial to educators who work with families encompassing a variety of demographic and structural characteristics in their efforts to support literacy acquisition. The input provided by fathers in this study varies over a wide spectrum in terms of frequency and style; similarly, the invitations to think abstractly vary across multiple levels. In addition, the familiarity of the book being shared, both in terms of language and content, appears to exert a strong influence on the number of interactions and the invitations to think abstractly during read alouds. The implications of these findings suggest that we should challenge our assumptions regarding the economic and situational factors that result in the labeling of children as academically “at risk.” I outline actions for consideration by parents, educators, and stakeholders who are working with young children and their families to promote language and literacy development. / text

This study sought increase student understanding of nutrition with the use of technology. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using technology, in the form of the legacy cycle, on student understanding of nutrition, with a particular interest in at risk students. Ninth grade students participated in either a legacy cycle lesson or a traditional classroom instruction that taught facts about genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) and the controversy that surrounds GMOs integration into the diet of the world. Analysis of pretest, posttest, and one-week retention test scores showed that there was no significant difference between the two teaching methods, although both were effective at teaching the concepts. This study showed that the legacy cycle could be incorporated in the academic classroom without detriment to student learning. / text

Children who have experienced developmental, social, or economic risks may benefit more from attending high-quality preschool intervention programs than their more advantaged peers; thus, programs that have delivered high-quality experiences may have served as a protective factor for these children to help reduce the achievement gap that has existed at school entry. The overarching purpose of this dissertation was to examine best practice in providing systemic early literacy interventions as a protective factor against school failure for young at-risk children. The three studies comprising this dissertation included analyses of systemic early literacy interventions for young children at risk of reading and school failure due to (a) developmental delays, (b) low socioeconomic status, or (c) English language learner status. Consistent with previous literature, the researcher found that children participating in a responsive early literacy intervention program were better prepared for kindergarten than were non-participating peers. Responsive early literacy interventions were defined as purposeful instruction designed to meet the educational needs of children by implementing an embedded-explicit or balanced approach to teaching. Attendance in high-quality early education programs - especially for children from disadvantaged backgrounds - was linked to lasting effects on indicators related to student achievement.

Abstract Infants with an older sibling diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have a twentyfold increase in risk of developing ASD. Deficits in gesture use are among the first signs of impairment in infants later diagnosed with ASD. Typically, infants develop gestures incidentally in the context of social interactions with their parents. However, infants at risk for ASD may not acquire gestures within these natural interactions. The first purpose of this research was to determine whether infants at high risk for ASD show patterns of communicative and play gestures that are delayed and/or different relative to low-risk infants. The second purpose was to compare mothers of infants at risk for ASD with mothers of infants at low risk for ASD in their use of gestures, gesture strategies, and prompts. Seventeen 15-month-old infant-mother dyads were recruited from a longitudinal study of the emergence of autism symptoms in infants with an older sibling with ASD (high risk for ASD, n = 8; low risk for ASD, n = 9). Infant gestures were examined in three contexts: during clinical assessment, during naturalistic play with their mothers, and by parent report. Maternal gestures and gesture-related behaviours were recorded during the play interaction. Infant and maternal gesture behaviours were later coded from video. High-risk infants showed different patterns of gesture use relative to low-risk infants. In clinic and home contexts, high-risk infants: (a) used gestures that were not directed to a communicative partner more often than low-risk infants, and (b) showed specific deficits in the use of deictic and joint attention gestures. In addition, high-risk infants: (a) demonstrated fewer symbolic play acts at home, and (b) had a smaller inventory of communicative and play gestures by parent report. Mothers of high-risk infants used more play gestures, but were otherwise no different in their gesture behaviours from mothers of low-risk infants. This research demonstrated that, at 15 months of age infants at risk for ASD showed delays and differences in gesture use despite receiving typical gestural input from their mothers. The patterns of these deficits may be important in early identification and could inform intervention practices.

Abstract A basic interpretive qualitative research design (Merriam, 2002) was used to explore the perceptions and observations of volunteer piano teachers providing weekly piano lessons to at-risk youth. Four volunteer piano teachers from two prairie cities who volunteered teaching three twenty-minute piano lessons a week for at least one year in a local school-based program, Heart of the City Piano Program, were interviewed. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings included three themes about the perceived benefits of piano lessons for the students –student self-motivation, student confidence, student sense of accomplishment – as well as three themes about distinguishing characteristics of the piano lessons – student focussed lessons, allowing students to be themselves, and positive role model relationships. Findings are discussed in relation to current research on at-risk youth and music education, and recommendations for further research and implications for practice are included.

Protecting existing habitat for species-at-risk is an important conservation measure; however, many populations occupy highly fragmented habitat patches to the extent that population persistence is unlikely without the creation of new habitat patches. This research examines the potential for clusters of rehabilitated aggregate extraction sites to be used as reintroduction sites for species-at-risk. Using a method combining GIS and metapopulation modeling, I evaluated the success of establishing metapopulations of the Five-Lined Skink, Eumeces fasciatus, in 137 clusters of aggregate extraction sites using three hypothetical recovery scenarios. Patch abundance and patch clustering had a significant negative effect on metapopulation extinction risk. Increasing the quality of a single patch relative to other patches of suitable quality had little effect on extinction risk and patch occupancy. Introducing all individuals into a single patch decreased extinction risk and patch occupancy. Rehabilitated aggregate sites could play a role in the protection of species-at-risk in Ontario.

I investigated whether Neogobius melanostomus, an invader of biodiversity “hot-spots” in Ontario facilitates or inhibits unionid mussel recruitment by serving as a host or as a sink for their parasitic larvae (glochidia). Infestation and metamorphosis rates of four mussel Species at Risk (Epioblasma torulosa rangiana, Epioblasma triquetra, Lampsilis fasciola, and Villosa iris) and one common species (Actinonaias ligamentina) on N. melanostomus were compared to rates on known hosts in the laboratory. All species successfully infested N. melanostomus, but only E. triquetra, V. iris, and A. ligamentina successfully metamorphosed, albeit at low rates. Neogobius melanostomus collected from areas of unionid occurrence in the Grand and Sydenham rivers exhibited body burdens of 39.4% and 5.1%, respectively. Analyses indicate that N. melanostomus serves more as a sink for glochidia than as a host for unionids, thereby limiting recruitment, which is a novel way by which N. melanostomus is affecting native mussel species.