Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-07, Section: A, page: 2494. Adviser: Stanley Ikenberry. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 212-224) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

<p> The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experience of undergraduate students who use online social networks such as Facebook while serving in paraprofessional roles on campus. The researcher conducted a qualitative study to address a primary research question: What is the interplay between college students&rsquo; participation in online social networks and campus-based paraprofessional roles? The study identified themes that can be used to understand this student experience. These themes contribute to the growing theoretical understanding of how online social networks and paraprofessional roles impact the college student experience.</p><p> A semi-structured interview protocol was devised in light of pertinent literature in the areas of college students in paraprofessional roles, peer mentoring, and computer-mediated relationships. Eleven resident assistants at a large, public research university in Central Pennsylvania agreed to participate in semi-structured interviews to discuss their experiences. They were asked to describe their involvements as resident assistants and users of Facebook. Participants discussed how they understood how their employment as resident assistants and their use of Facebook influenced each other, and their overall experience in their paraprofessional roles.</p><p> Through data analysis, three themes emerged: Facebook functionality and use, relationships, and discretion. Participants spoke of dynamic and complex experiences in their roles that were amplified by Facebook. The researcher proposed a Model for Online Social Network Mediated Role Conflict that describes tensions that represent the experience of paraprofessional staff members who use online social networks. Implications for practice and recommendations for additional research are provided.</p>

<p> This case study examined co-curricular portfolios and transcripts at two institutions to investigate the use of co-curricular portfolios, how they are developed, how institutions utilize them, and how they shape student learning. This research contributed to the literature by documenting evidence of student learning, describing how students and institutions utilize these programs, and providing in-depth comparative analyses of two cases. Five assessment frameworks and the conceptual framework of Preparation for Future Learning were used to analyze the data gathered. </p><p> Twenty-four students, four administrators, and one faculty member participated in interviews on two campuses where co-curricular involvement is documented by portfolios or transcripts. The findings indicated evidence of intrinsic student gains in the areas of self-awareness, pride and self-confidence, and transfer of learning; as well as extrinsic benefits including enhanced remembering and marketability. In addition, findings related to institutional perspectives described design and practice recommendations, practicality benefits, and challenges in implementing these programs.</p><p>

<p> Researchers are learning how to prevent the projected United States shortage of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professionals by retaining more undergraduates in STEM majors. Specifically, since undergraduates generally want to give back to their communities, they experience heightened science career motivation once they "fit" their communal goals with their views of science careers. However, testing the quality of fit is challenging because individuals differ in communal goals and views of science. For the present study, therefore, a person-centered analytical approach was used to identify groups of STEM undergraduates defined by combinations of communal goal endorsement and perceived communal goal affordances. Four groups were identified: Low Incongruent, Moderately Low Incongruent, Average Congruent, and Moderately High Incongruent. Results showed that undergraduates were optimally motivated when both communal goal endorsement and perceived communal goal affordances were moderately high and incongruent. Results also showed that gender and cultural identity could predict group membership.</p><p>

<p> Research indicates that the trend of students with disabilities choosing to attend college is continually increasing. However, research also suggests that this population may be ill prepared to meet the increased academic demands and level of independence needed at the college level. Research in the field indicates that high schools may not be engaging in practices that are aligned with the transition-planning mandates of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004). The current study explored the extent to which high schools are compliant with IDEIA (2004), and are engaging in best practices in transition planning for college-bound students. Results showed that students who had transition plans with a greater level of compliance and college-specific best practices had higher grade point averages. These results have implications for stakeholders at the secondary level in assessing quality of transition planning to promote positive outcomes for students with disabilities pursuing postsecondary education.</p><p>

<p> This study was born out of a concern that U.S. community colleges were currently using or considering using noncognitive variables for academic placement without an understanding of how students would react to these scales in a high-stakes setting. While the use of noncognitive variables for placement often stems from a desire to overcome the myriad of limitations of content-based placement tests, the researcher was concerned that noncognitive variables had the potential to become an <i>extension</i> of the problems caused by the test. </p><p> This study was guided by two research questions: How does the high-stakes nature of academic placement impact student responses on noncognitive scales? How does the context, demand, characteristics, and framing of the noncognitive variables impact stereotype threat, if at all? The researcher performed a random control trial of incoming community college students to determine how they might react to questions about noncognitive variables. One group was told their responses would be used for placement, and the other was told that their responses would be used to improve instruction. </p><p> The major findings suggest that initial framing played a role in participant responses and lowered responses on some noncognitive variables, but that the act of having taken a placement test was also a moderator of student behavior and whether or not students believed the initial framing. Stereotype threat susceptibility appeared to have a statistically significant relationship with some participants&rsquo; responses on some noncognitive scales, and there was evidence that initial framing was not related. Finally, while participants were generally honest, those who did change their answers did so in a manner that was inconsistent, more so when given high stakes framing.</p><p>

<p> This study explored students&rsquo; perceptions of developing cohort cohesiveness while progressing through a doctoral level interprofessional health administration program. Drawing upon Tuckman and Jenson&rsquo;s Theory of Group Development (1977), this study specifically emphasized the group development process and its inherent relationship to achieve cohesion within a group. To better understand this process, an in-depth qualitative research design, using semi-structured interviews, was implemented to illustrate the experiences of an interprofessional group of students enrolled in a distance learning program that utilized a closed cohort model. Emerging from the data was the core category of shared experiences, supported by main categories of collegiate unity, required interactions, group maturation, and interprofessional appreciation. The significance of interaction between students and faculty emerged as fundamental and inseparable to students&rsquo; achievement of cohort cohesion. The data suggest the value of group development within these types of programs as well as how cohesive groups enhance the learning experience and contribute to student success. Results of this study have implications for the promotion of educational programs to foster group development within distance learning cohorts. Attention should be given to a broad base of understanding by faculty of the development of cohort cohesion and the value of cohesion in higher-level education. Findings from this study support the notion of faculty involvement in cohort cohesion and the importance of helping students make connections as a group.</p><p>

<p> The enrollment, retention, and graduation rates for African American, Latino, Native American, and segments of Asian and Pacific Islander men in higher education are disproportionately lower than women from all racial groups and White men. A significant body of research substantiates the concern by institutions on the opportunity gap for men of color in higher education. Despite the research and concerted efforts by institutions, this opportunity gap continues to affect the educational and overall college experience of men of color. Through qualitative interviews employing a photo elicitation protocol and a conceptual framework based on validation theory, Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Anti-Deficit Perspectives, this study examines the social, cultural, and institutional factors that shape this population&rsquo;s experience in higher education. This research will examine the strengths and assets that men of color identify as supporting their success in college. This study will also examine how institutional resources and practices informed by an anti-deficit framework can effectively improve the experiences of men of color in school.</p><p>

<p> Recently, the issue of campus sexual violence and the term Title IX have become commonplace with the majority of college-aged individuals within the United States. This time of increased regulation began as a crescendo with the U.S. Department of Education and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Dear Colleague letter of April 2011, which was enhanced by the reform of the Campus SaVE and VAWA Acts and the 2014 Question and Answers guidance documents. This guidance resulted in a significant increase in the number of institutions under federal investigation of alleged violations of Title IX by the OCR, with an increasing number of students also engaging in formal litigation with their institutions. </p><p> This qualitative study set out to better understand the impact of addressing campus sexual violence and sexual harassment, public scrutiny, and a U.S. Department of Education and OCR investigation of an alleged violation of Title IX on 19 student conduct administrators or Title IX coordinators who were responsible for administering, enforcing, and reporting incidents associated with Title IX at 11 Association of American Universities (AAU) institutions. Additionally, this study sought to give a voice to a U.S. higher education professional staff population that is often silent, either because of federal regulations or due to the social stigma associated with their work. Eight main impacts were identified: (a) lack of clear guidance, (b) shifts in institutional organization structure and staffing, (c) legalization of the student conduct processes, (d) staff feeling on trial, (e) greater public scrutiny, (f) changes in relationships with students, (g) personal impacts, and (h) shifts in career ambitions. Overall, the process of addressing and responding to campus sexual violence and sexual harassment of student conduct administrators and Title IX coordinators has fundamentally changed. </p><p> Ultimately, this study demonstrated how the practitioners who deal most directly with campus sexual violence and sexual harassment experienced both positive and negative impacts in regard to addressing and responding to campus sexual violence and sexual harassment in this ongoing period of heightened U.S. federal regulation, guidance, and public scrutiny.</p><p>

<p> While aggregated data demonstrates a high degree of educational attainment among Asian Americans as a whole, disaggregated data reveals a striking disparity among Cambodian Americans. Postsecondary education experiences of Cambodian Americans are often overlooked, in part due to a pervasive model minority stereotype. This qualitative study explored factors contributing to challenges and successes of 12 Cambodian Americans who successfully earned a bachelor&rsquo;s degree from a California institution. Four themes emerged from this study: Family&mdash;two camps, Cambodian invisibility, major challenges and barriers, and internal and external resources for success. Findings revealed how pervasive stereotypes, family perceptions, language barriers, and other commitments influenced the college experience while highlighting the role that internal drive, peers, and institutional support had on their success. This study adds to limited research on the experiences of Cambodian Americans in higher education and offers recommendations for policy, practice, and future research.</p><p>