The aim of this thesis was to undertake an evaluation of the United Kingdom Coaching Certification (UKCC) and discuss the implications for current and future designs of the programme. This study extends and expands the research that has previously evaluated coach education programmes by examining the participants’ perceptions of the programme and its impact on their competency. The study draws on Lyle’s (2010) monitoring and evaluation model and examines the relevance, fidelity and effectiveness of the UKCC. The broad research approach was a pre-post methodology utilising multiple methods of data collection and analysis. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed in the form of focus groups, reflective journals and surveys. Four UKCC sports in Scotland were involved in the study and these were rugby, squash, swimming and triathlon. Data was collected at 10 UKCC courses (levels 1-3) and a total of 136 participants were sampled. The study’s main conclusions regarding the relevance, fidelity and effectiveness of the UKCC were as follows. Relevance: At level one the UKCC appeared to play a big part in the participants’ initial development as a coach whereas at level two and three the UKCC played a smaller role in the participants’ development and instead these participants placed importance on their informal learning. The UKCC fulfilled the participants’ expectations however they believed it needed to provide more technical and sport science knowledge, practical coaching experience, and opportunities to learn from others. Fidelity: The importance of informal learning was emphasised by the participants. The participants believed that informal methods, such as learning from others and learning from practical experience, were effective ways to learn. A negative of the UKCC was that it was a rushed learning environment. Effectiveness: The UKCC had a positive impact on the participants’ perceptions of competency as post course competency was significantly higher than pre-course competency. Despite this significant impact, participants still only rated themselves as moderately competent at the end of the course and indicated they needed more technical knowledge and practical experience. Based on these findings, a number of implications were provided for the UKCC. Implications were provided in three areas: the structure of the UKCC, the delivery of the UKCC, and the role of the UKCC within overall coach development.

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<p> This study examined the experiences of first-generation, economically disadvantaged, and disabled students&rsquo; utilization of TRIO Student Support Services and their perceptions related to factors associated with the services. The populace studied were Mexican-Americans, a subgroup of the Latin@ population as it is the fastest growing racial/ethnic minority group in the United States totaling approximately 12.5% of the nation and expected to almost double to 24% by 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). Due to the abundance of Latin@s enrolling at community colleges (Fry, 2002; Tierney, 2005), it is important to do individualized studies on student experiences on their perspective of college interventions as a means to find ways to retain higher numbers of students, leading to higher graduation and transfer rates. </p><p> Using a qualitative, multiple case study approach, the researcher explored a border, rural community college. Social capital was used as the theoretical framework. Six, Mexican-American students served as the participants. The data collection methods were through semi-structured interviews over the course of the summer semester of 2013 at a Hispanic-Serving institution. The expected results were that students&rsquo; perceptions would validate the necessity for programs such as TRIO Student Support Services to serve as a tool for retention and completion at the two-year college or transferring to a university and completing.</p>

<p> Many preschool students enter kindergarten without the oral language and phonetic awareness skills necessary for academic success. Qualitative research is also limited about the instructional practices preschool teachers use to improve the literacy skills of their students. The purpose of this study was to explore how teachers used developmentally appropriate instructional practices to improve the literacy skills of preschool students. The conceptual framework was based on the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky in relation to language development. A multiple case study research design was used. Participants included 6 teachers from 3 different preschool programs in an urban school district in the eastern United States. Data were collected from individual interviews with preschool teachers, observations of literacy instruction in classrooms, and related program documents. For the single case analysis, coding and category construction were used to analyze the interview data, and descriptive statistics were used to analyze the observation data. A content analysis was used to analyze the documents. For the cross case analysis, data were examined across all cases for emerging themes and discrepant data. A key finding was that preschool teachers used developmentally appropriate instruction to improve oral language, phonological awareness, and written expression and supported play through learning centers; however, limited teacher&ndash;child interaction was found in relation to quality of feedback and language modeling. This study contributes to positive social change by providing educators with a deeper understanding of the need to improve the literacy skills of young children.</p>

The problem of the study was to develop valid and reliable evaluation tools for the American Red Cross course "Healthy Pregnancy, Healthy Baby." From a table of specification, a pool of 87 items was developed into two evaluation scales. A thirteen-member jury of experts composed of professionals in prenatal education was used to establish content validity. The jury of experts reviewed the scales twice. The first review, items were subject to both a quantitative and qualitative review. Items were then retained, revised, or eliminated. The jury of experts then reviewed the scales a second time, and items again were subjected to quantitative and qualitative analysis. The second review included the use of the Content-Validity Ratio. All items in the scales that were not statistically significant at p<. 05 were eliminated. The validated evaluation scales made up of 46 items from the 87 originally proposed items were then pilot tested. Fifty-two women were then asked to complete the two evaluation scales one week apart. Upon completion of the pilot study, items were subjected to statistical analysis using test-retest, Cronbach's alpha, and internal constancy. Those items with a low test-test scores and/or internal constancy were then eliminated. The retained knowledge questions were then revised as the questions were subjected to quantitative analysis. / Department of Physiology and Health Science

The study reviews how self-paced training programs were developed by the U.S. Army for Initial Entry Training (IET), and conducted at the various service schools. In early 1975, after a long validation effort, the Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) published guidance to the service schools and training centers to begin self-paced training. Most service schools sought to follow this guidance in one form or another which demanded a job analysis, systematic development, and tryouts on typical soldiers. Through the years 1975-78, the service schools worked diligently to develop, evaluate and implement self-paced instruction in most of the job specialties of the U.S Army. Around 1978, complaints from field units began to find their way to the Department of the Army and TRADOC. The units complained that they were receiving too many unqualified soldiers from the advanced individual training courses. In response to these complaints, an in depth study was conducted at many of the schools and training centers. As a result of this study, in June 1983, the TRADOC Commander of TRADOC directed the service schools to move from their self-pace efforts toward group-pace.Contributing factors that caused the U.S Army to move away from self-paced instruction were: inherent lack of reenforcement training for the students in skills they had learned in basic training (soldierization skills); students entering the U.S. Army had poor reading skills, lack of motivation, and little formal education; there were problems in scheduling students through the school's "pipeline" and on to their first unit of assignment; and a shortage of properly trained developers and instructors.The U.S. Army's decision to introduce self-paced instruction, although not successful, was not wasted time and resources. It laid out a course that has led to group-paced instruction. The victory, called "Desert Storm", has proven the United States has been very successful with its training stratagem and has a well trained military force.This study was prepared as a historiography, and as such, recorded events as they occurred along a time continuum, and analyzed, correlated, and drew conclusions from those events.3 / Department of Educational Leadership

Much of what technical communicators know about language use is based on spoken or written communication; however, newer media complicate those boundaries. Spoken and written language differ primarily in the use of metadiscourse, language that aids interpretation of propositions. While research shows that metadiscourse aids in retention and attitude change in both print and speech, none exists to show whether this is true in a medium like the Internet, which has qualities of both. Technical communicators need this information because they must compose similar messages in several media: advertising, system help, business training, and health education are commonly delivered in multimedia formats, primarily in print and the Internet.Most critical of these messages is health education, in which technical communicators must make treatment accessible to patients at home. Not only does this task require clear communication, but also it requires convincing patients to attend to the information, have positive attitudes about illness or self-care, and remember the information-these are the ingredients needed for learning. With good reason, healthcare providers are investing many resources into Internet health education, but technical communicators lack guidance on effective use of the medium. Research in this area focuses on measuring outcomes of existing programs rather than on systematically identifying what works and why.The present study examined language use (i.e., metadiscourse) and medium (i.e., Internet) in health education about stress management. This study reviews existing research in these areas and posits persuasion and social influence theory as a basis for understanding the persuasive abilities of health educational materials, or the abilities of the materials to convince patients to learn health information, change attitudes about illness and treatment, and change health-related behaviors.To test this theory, 120 students from a Southern university voluntarily read interventions developed to isolate the effects of metadiscourse and media on cognitive processing, attitudes, behavior intentions, and knowledge. Repeated measure multivariate analyses revealed that regardless of metadiscourse or medium, participants' knowledge about stress management increased and was maintained over time; however, favorable attitudes were not maintained over time. Results indicate that peripheral rather than central route persuasion occurred, and, therefore, knowledge gains are likely to be short-term. Suggestions for future research are provided and recommendations for theoretical development are discussed. / Department of English

This study is an examination of what teacher preparation institutions in the Canadian province of Alberta are teaching student teachers about ‘assessment-for-learning’ practices. A large body of research exists to show that assessment-for-learning practices are among the best tools educators have for improving student learning; therefore, it is important that assessment-for-learning practices be taught to prospective teachers. As a school administrator, I had encountered many first-year teachers who seemed to be lacking knowledge and skills in assessment-for-learning practices and I sought to determine whether or not the deficiencies could be traced to inadequate preparation during their undergraduate training. Interviews were conducted with instructors at seven Alberta education faculties on whether and how assessment-for-learning practices were integrated into their teacher education programs. There is some variance in the way courses are organized to teach assessment-for-learning practices to student teachers; some schools having a designated course on assessment, others embedding assessment into other teacher preparation courses. Overall, the findings in this study suggest that Alberta education faculties are providing future teachers with training in assessment-for-learning practices. Further research into other areas of teacher preparation and/or induction would be necessary to determine the reasons for deficiencies in new teacher knowledge of assessment-for-learning practices. This study also includes some recommendations for improving instruction in assessment for learning at Alberta teacher preparation institutions, as well as some suggestions for further study. / vii, 73 leaves ; 29 cm

The study focuses on the service quality of Damelin College in Pietermaritzburg. Damelin College strives to ensure that students extract every promising benefit their courses. Damelin College aims at being a provider of quality, learner -focused education. The various opinions and attitudes of students regarding the service quality at Damelin College is investigated using questionnaires. This study covers the service quality aspects of private tertiary institutions. Data for the study was collected at Damelin College using a random sample of two hundred participants. The service quality of Damelin is discussed in detail as well as the theory of quality dimensions. The significance of service quality for tertiary institutions is a major aspect and all students need to receive the most appropriate form of respect and understanding. The high commercialized fees that students pay needs to be equate to the standard of the education that they receive. In relation to the problem statement, the research objectives are as follows: 1. To measure the impact of the service quality in private tertiary institutions. 2. To undertake an empirical analysis of the linkage between private tertiary institutions. 3. To investigate what aspects contribute to the choice of a private institution in which to study. 4. To determine how service quality influences where to study. Private institutions, who want to gain a competitive edge, may need to begin searching for effective ways to attract, retain and foster strong relationships with students. The service quality dimensions are tangibility, responsiveness, reliability, assurance, empathy, overall service quality and student satisfaction. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.

<p> The purpose of this study was to address two research questions: After parents participated in a brief, language-focused parent-training program: (1) To what extent does the parent-training influence children&rsquo;s vocabulary development and (2) To what extent does the parent-training influence parents&rsquo; role as a language facilitator in regards to their perceptions, strategies and knowledge of language and literacy concepts.</p><p> Pre-and post-parent-training, assessment was conducted and used to measure growth within each participant group. A standardized vocabulary test was administered to the child participants and a parent questionnaire was administered to the parent participants. Data were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results from this study found that parent-training can increase children&rsquo;s vocabulary and parent&rsquo;s perceptions, knowledge and skills pertaining to their role as their child&rsquo;s language facilitator.</p><p> </p>