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Service learning has been proposed as a way to create a meaningful environment for the language acquisition process (Weldon & Trautmann, 2003). As a pedagogical tool for second language acquisition the greatest benefit of utilizing service learning activities is that it creates connections to the target language community and provides authentic experiences for target language use (Long, 2003; Morris, 2001). However, there is no detailed record of how service learning actually impacts language and culture acquisition (Bloom, 2008). This multiple case study describes the ways in which four advanced Spanish learners engaged with service learning and the influence of this activity on their ability to communicate in the target language. Each case provides triangulated descriptions of what actually occurred when students went onsite to engage in service learning activities, what their personal reflections were on the experience, and how they carried this experience back into their classroom and academic work. Qualitative analysis of onsite and in-class observations, face-to-face interviews, electronic journal entries, and reflective written reports revealed the importance of the nature of interactions and language use in service learning for second-language acquisition. Where the service was more academically aligned and offered repeated interactions in the target language, students were more likely to advance their language skills. However, though the service may provide an important community contribution, all service learning did not prove equal in its ability to instruct and align with desired educational outcomes.

The purpose of this case study is to investigate Waldorf pedagogy. In particular, it investigates how assessment of productive language skills, speaking and writing, is carried out at a Waldorf School. To this end, semi-structured interviews were conducted at a compulsory school. One in-depth teacher interview was held and one group interview with four students. Participants were observed in their natural classroom setting on a few occasions. The results indicate that how assessment is carried out depends on the class, situation and the task performed by students. There is a tendency to assess speaking on an individual level or in smaller groups. Findings indicate that personal texts written by students are somewhat more assessed and that communicative ability in general is more valued than accuracy. This study demonstrates that decisions are made when assessing different skills, where the teacher decides on what as well as how to assess. Focus on form/grammar has a role in assessment since distinctions are made between mistakes. Students have an informal yet clear understanding of how they are being assessed. In this Waldorf School we see that different educational techniques were employed by the teacher. For instance, different types of assessment were used. Discrimination of minor errors and those that interfere with communication were part of assessment sometimes. This study also shows that different parts of language were assessed and that the process of learning was given priority and therefore part of assessment.

This dissertation examines backsourcing of corporate IS activities, and why IS outsourcing clients decide to backsource. Information Systems (IS) backsourcing is a business practice in which a company takes back in-house assets, activities, and skills that are part of its IS operations and were previously outsourced to one or more outside information service suppliers. Focusing on economic, strategic and relationship motives, a number of theoretical backsourcing factors is derived from transaction cost theory, agency theory, core competency perspective, IOR theory and marketing channels literature. To identify factors salient in IS backsourcing and to examine the process of backsourcing this dissertation employs exploratory case study methodology. Six outsourcing contracts within three client companies are analyzed. The evidence is collected using semi-structured interviews, archival records and company documents. Results of individual cases are reported and then triangulated to single out the primary backsourcing antecedents. Qualitative comparative analysis is employed to augment the findings. The findings indicate that service quality of the outsourcing arrangement, cost benefit of backsourcing, change in the role of IS, loss of control over the outsourcing arrangement, changes in the management and power of decision makers and other organizations impact backsourcing decisions. Strategic considerations, change in the role of IS and loss of control, dominate backsourcing decision even if costs or service quality suggest otherwise. The executives exert power through their structural position within organization and have a major influence on decisions. Executives' beliefs, prior experience and values impact their perception of backsourcing and play a role in backsourcing decisions. Additionally, the power of other organizations involved in the interorganizational relationships with the client company is important. These organizations use political maneuvering to impose their goals on the client company. While service quality and cost considerations are important deliverables in the outsourcing contract, these factors by itself do not justify the decision to backsource.

The goal of the research study was to explore the cognitive, social, and affective factors that contribute to the development of 8th grade writing skill. The central research question for this study was: How does a collaborative model of teaching writing prepares students for high achievement on Florida Writes? The researcher successfully answered this inquiry by asserting the following supporting questions: How does school culture impact teacher collaboration and student engagement in teaching writing? What is the relationship between engaging in a collaborative model of teaching writing and improvement of writing skill in middle level students? The study determined how and why the writing skill was developed at an urban, rural middle school in a Central Florida School District. The rationale for completing research at Horizon Middle School was to provide an exemplar in the teaching of writing skill, a phenomenon. Horizon Middle School presented a learning community that was entrenched in the same challenging demographics, but distinctly showed a high level of academic achievement in writing. Instead of teaching through a formulaic, test-generated approach, students learned through discovery, personal relationship, and engagement. Not only did 97% of 8th grade students passed the Florida Writes examination, but in the process of preparing for the standardized assessment was an embedded foundation laid for students and their future learning. The review of literature focused on: school culture, models of teaching at the middle level, models of teaching writing at the middle level and the standardization found within the FCAT Writes. Data collection was completed through classroom observations, one-on-one interviews and participation in faculty meetings. Data analysis was completed by addressing each research iv question through the conceptual framework. The study determined that this was a model for developing the writing skill for all middle level students, an exemplar within the field. Suggested uses for the study included the development of future studies focus on successful schools that were challenged by the same demographics and consideration of the partnership that Horizon had with the University of Central Florida as a model for other educational communities to consider.

University education across history and contexts aimed for a myriad of purposes, from the advancement of knowledge to educating citizens and contributing to the social good. With the rise of universities functioning in a market economy, and navigating higher education institutions' public role, some of the university purposes are constantly debated, and often without accounting for the students' perspectives. The purpose of this qualitative multi-case study is to explore the students' perspectives on the purpose of enrolling in a higher education institution and obtaining an engineering higher education degree. Each case is focused on a higher education institution, for a total of four institutions across the U.S. and England. The embedded units of analysis focus on twenty (20) undergraduate chemical engineering students' narratives from the time they enroll in those institutions to the time they graduate to answer the following two main research questions: RQ 1: What are the perspectives of undergraduate engineering students towards the purpose of higher education? RQ 2: How, if at all, do undergraduate engineering students' perspectives of the purpose of higher education change throughout their degree? The Capabilities Approach is used as the main theoretical framing. The framework is concerned with the question of what a person is able to do and be. It also provides a perspective on thinking about the purposes of education in terms of instrumental, intrinsic, and social values. Results show a variety of perspectives and reasons why students pursue an engineering degree, mainly expressed in terms of career-driven purposes and personal-driven purposes. Fulfilling being good at math and science, seeking a job for purposes beyond individualistic reasons, and personal growth were some of the common purposes mentioned by the students. In addition, more students than not maintained a fixed perspective throughout their undergraduate years. This research is set to address the problem of the neglect of the students' voices in the literature and to address the lack of research on longitudinal studies, higher education, and capabilities approach within the engineering education space. / Doctor of Philosophy / University education across history and contexts aimed for a myriad of purposes, from the advancement of knowledge to educating citizens and contributing to the social good. With the rise of universities functioning in a market economy, and navigating the institutions' public role, some of the university purposes are constantly debated, and often without accounting for the students' perspectives. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the students' perspectives on the purpose of enrolling in a higher education institution and obtaining an engineering higher education degree. I focused my study on four institutions across the U.S. and England. Within each institution, I interviewed undergraduate chemical engineering students from the time they started their degree till the time they graduated to answer the following main research question: RQ: What are the perspectives of undergraduate engineering students towards the purpose of higher education? To help position the study, I used the Capabilities Approach framework. The framework is concerned with the question of what a person is able to do and be. It also provides a perspective on thinking about the purposes of education in terms of different values including seeking knowledge for the sake of knowledge and helping in the community. Results show a variety of perspectives and reasons why students pursue an engineering degree. Fulfilling being good at math and science, seeking a job for purposes beyond individual reasons, and personal growth were some of the common purposes. In addition, more students than not maintained a fixed perspective on why they chose to enroll in university throughout their undergraduate years. This research is set to amplify students' voices and add to longitudinal research studies in the engineering education literature space.

Higher education institutions in the United States have come under increased scrutiny due to increasing demands for accountability in the use of public funds and increasing visibility (Altbach, Berdahl, and Gumport, 1999; Trow, 1974). Colleges and universities must continually prove their credibility and legitimacy to their stakeholders, including government officials (Lawrence & Sharma, 2002), donors, students, and sponsors. The proving process may involve engagement in legitimacy-seeking behaviors designed to show efficiency, access, and quality in terms defined mostly by external perceptions. The decision to concentrate organizational resources on activities designed to influence the opinions of external agents has the potential to lead organizations away from their core values and historic missions. The case study that follows documents the restructuring of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) and the drivers that led university administrators to pursue change. The case was developed based on a series of interviews with key informants associated with or affected by the restructuring process. Explanations for the restructuring and the underlying university goal of becoming a top 30 institution, included cost-savings and efficiency via a "fiscal rationalization"; the framing of programs in terms of their entrepreneurialism, innovativeness, and revenue generating capacity; and an emphasis on the economic development benefits of university programs. Even though Virginia Tech administrators were not expressly responding to external demands for restructuring, there was evidence to suggest that a need to construct a more business-like model for university structure and operations had entered the collective conscience of Virginia Tech's leadership. I document the rhetoric and actions that I believe influenced university administrators in their decision to restructure. I also draw attention to administrators' use of language that I believe exemplified the commodification of the university's human and intellectual capital. Theoretically, I believe that the constructs from resource dependency theory and neoinstitutional theory have relevance to the interpretation of this case. Specifically, the construction of legitimacy-seeking behaviors, the imperative to decrease reliance on external organizations (i.e., the state), and the institutionalization of acceptable management behaviors are aligned closely with the propositions of one or both of these theories. The lack of theoretical distinctiveness between these two organizational perspectives indicated a need for further research and limits the ability to anticipate the potential outcomes for Virginia Tech and the broader field of higher education. / Ph. D.

Recent work has shown that many state supported school counseling programs have not developed working statewide program evaluation schemas. This study examined two exemplary examples of state level program evaluation. Mixed-method case studies were created and then analyzed across cases to reveal common themes and best practices. The findings indicated that these cases were able to build statewide evaluation capacity within very different contexts.

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