This study examined the notion of respect in the college classroom. While pedagogical researchers had previously studied the phenomenon, each found challenges in defining it. Moreover, communication scholars do not examine respect as a primary pedagogical factor with learning implications. Focus groups provided venues for topic-specific discussion necessary for better understanding the diversity of students' worldviews regarding respect in the college classroom. Grounded theory allowed for searching theoretical relevance of the phenomenon through constant comparison with categorical identification. The most practical contributions of this research identifies as several major notions including, the importance of relationships within the process, student self-esteem, and global-classroom respect. In addition, implications emerged from the data as learning, motivation, and environment. One other practical contribution exists as a respect communication model for the college classroom. Further, examining students' worldviews of respect in the classroom provides benefits for pedagogical scholars, students, and instructors.

The education community agrees that correcting student errors is important for learning. They do not agree on the components that define successful error correcting. Some theories suggest that detailed feedback facilitates adult learning and some suggest that less detail is needed for these learners. Gilbert (1962) applied the scientifically derived methods of Behavior Analysis when designing instruction. This study attempted to develop an efficient error correction procedure for university teachers. Throughout the semester, error correction design efforts between the teachers and the experimenter became more collaborative. While error correction procedures never showed systematic effects on student grades, later versions were viewed more favorably by both teachers and students and were more likely to be implemented accurately. Decreased teacher practice opportunities, due to low student participation, may have decreased the procedure's effectiveness.

The purpose of this study is the development of an educational simulation game for use in college classes. The simulation game is based on selected aspects of the population problem. The panel approved or rejected objectives on the basis of their significance as goals for college students. Twelve objectives were approved by a majority of the panel. Upon completion of the exercise, students should be able to compute population increases, to predict population sizes, and to identify birth and death rates that cause a population to increase, decrease, or remain stable. Students should also be able to describe how the following factors affect population size: cultural and religious beliefs, pressure for economic growth, investments of capital, and financial losses. Students should understand the problems of governing a country with a rapidly growing population as compared to problems in governing a country with slower population growth, and they should recognize how rapid population growth can affect the quality of life. Students should recognize decreased birth rates, increased death rates, and increased economic production as possible solutions to the population problem. Finally, students should personalize the population problem and make commitments in seeking and participating in its solutions.

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Research on the development of K-12 teachers’ beliefs about and approaches to teaching and learning suggests that exposure to professional development programs can lead to the use of conceptual change strategies that engage students as active participants in the learning process rather than on teacher-centered strategies focused on information transfer. However, within the existing literature on the development of teacher beliefs and approaches to teaching and learning there exists a void of information pertaining to the development of community college instructors’ beliefs and approaches. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between pre-tenure community college instructors’ beliefs about teaching and learning, their approaches to the learning process, and the training they receive via a professional development program specifically established to provide training in teaching methods, pedagogy, curriculum, and/ or instruction. Forty community college instructors going through an established three-year tenure process completed a revised version of the Approaches to Teaching Inventory (ATI-R) created by Trigwell and Prosser (1998). Data analysis revealed that there was no difference in the scores of instructors who had participated in the professional development program on teaching and learning and those instructors who had no exposure to courses that focused on teaching and learning. Further, findings suggest that instructors’ participation in the courses is not related to their beliefs or teaching approaches. iii The findings of this study warrant a closer examination of programs designed to provide higher education instructors with training in pedagogy and instruction. Additionally, the findings present an opportunity for professional development programs to improve current practice.

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The purpose of this study was to determine staff attitudes and preferences toward outcomes assessment in Maryland's public, undergraduate institutions. The data were collected in Fall, 1989. Over 400 chief academic officers, division chairs, and faculty from 26 two- and four-year institutions were surveyed. An analysis of the data indicated the following: (1) That four-year faculty and administrators were less positive than two-year staff about the value and feasibility of outcomes assessment. (2) That, although there is not active opposition among either institutions' faculty and staff to the value of assessment, there was considerable lack of knowledge and suspicion of the program. Means of the responses to questions dealing with value were on the positive side of 3.0 on a five-point scale. (3) However, faculty and staff in both types of institutions were even less sanguine about the feasibility of assessment; the means were near or below 3.09 for most groups. (4) There was general agreement about those indicators which should be assessed; in general faculty and administrators agreed that the most important measures were employer satisfaction and transfer success. (5) Staff in both types of institutions did not like "rising-junior examinations" or "graduate earnings." (6) There was overwhelming agreement that results of assessment should be used to improve curricula and instruction. (7) However, only 57 percent though that assessment would improve instruction--supposedly the major reason for its imposition. These results and others suggest that faculty and staff are relatively neutral about the idea of outcomes assessment. One gets the sense when viewing the statistical information derived from 76 questions and from volunteered comments that the major concerns rest with the methods of implementation and use of the data. Much of what faculty and staff would like to have assessed are already measured by many colleges. The data also suggest that faculty need to become actively involved in what is likely to be an expensive program in terms of dollars and time. The study includes a set of recommendations for state and institutional activities to increase faculty involvement and for case study research. / Ed. D.

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