The purposes of the study were:1) To collect and share information on the perceptions of graduates regarding the academic, professional, and social experiences of students in the doctoral program in Educational Administration and Supervision at Ball State University, 1987-2002, relative to their professional preparation and career goals;2) To profile the demographic characteristics of respondents whose experiences are described and reported in this study: Gender, age, ethnicity, date of admission, enrollment status, date of graduation, professional occupation during and after doctoral study, financial situation, and sources of financial support during doctoral study.3) To draw conclusions and make recommendations, based on the data, on how students' personal motivation and professional preparation, career goals, academic training, institutional, and social support blend together to enrich the experiences of doctoral students in Educational Administration and Supervision at Ball State University.The population for this study consisted of 111 graduates (72 males and 39 females) of the doctoral program in Educational Administration and Supervision, Department of Educational Leadership, Teachers College, Ball State University, 19872002. A list and addresses of doctoral graduates of the program were obtained from the Graduate School Office. The addresses were verified by the Ball State University Alumni Office. A packet of questionnaires was mailed successfully to 106 graduates. Seventy-nine completed surveys (76 percent) were returned. Of the 79 respondents 52 were male, and 27 were female. The data were subsequently tabulated, analyzed, summarized, and reported in narrative form. Findings and conclusions suggest that:1. The doctoral program in Educational Administration and Supervision at BallState University adequately prepared graduates to contribute meaningfully tothe scholarship and professional demands of the discipline;2. The curricula of the doctoral program allow for rich and diverse career optionsto graduates;3. Improvement should be made in the doctoral program in EducationalAdministration and Supervision at Ball State University to include:a. Practical application experiences through structured internship,mentoring, and peer interaction;b. Greater efforts at job search and placement assistance;c. The effective management of technology to serve the growing numberof part-time students; andd. A systematic departmental database to keep track of graduates of the program. / Department of Educational Leadership

This study examined the motivational orientations of 166 graduate students enrolled in distance education courses at a state university. Data were collected utilizing Boshier’s Education Participation Scale A-Form and analyses were completed for overall results, by gender and age, by academic program and by preferred method of distance course delivery. Additional analyses were performed comparing responses from the distance education students and 42 traditional students. The results of the study showed that professional advancement was the overwhelming motivational orientation for participation in education by these graduate students. The second highest rated motivation was reported as cognitive interest, and the motivational orientations rated as least influential were social contact and social stimulation. There were no differences resulting from gender, but the age group 22-30 rated cognitive interest and social contact as more influential than students in the age 31-44 age group and professional advancement significantly higher than in the 45-59 age group. Also, participants in the age group 45-59 rated social stimulation significantly higher than students aged 31-44. Students from academic programs in education, nursing and business were the principal respondents, and there were no significant differences found in their motivational orientations. However, the education students scored the motivational orientations, social contact and social stimulation, significantly lower than participants from the group, other, which consisted of students from nine different fields of study. Other findings revealed no differences in motivational orientations by students’ expressed preferred method of distance education delivery. Lastly, results showed that traditional students rated social contact, communication improvement, and educational preparation as more influential than distance education students. Findings from this study suggest that graduate students in both distance and traditional graduate programs participate in education primarily for professional and cognitive reasons. In addition, analyses revealed that differences in the seven motivational orientations were impacted by age, academic program, and student type. / Department of Educational Studies

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to develop a clearer understanding of how involvement with the Association of Graduate Education Students (AGES) at the University of Victoria effects students' experiences of graduate school. Participants included graduate students who belonged to the AGES committee between 2001 and 2005 and faculty members who interacted with those members and supported program initiatives. Faculty participants were purposefully selected following the student interviews as important influences on the development of AGES. AGES records, including meeting minutes and a growth plan were accessed during the research. Key findings included the effect of short-term leadership on the development of the organizing committee; the important role that faculty members played in the health of a student organization, and the importance of social events when you leave your career cloak behind to become a full-time graduate student.

In the field of L2 (second language) writing, a great number of studies have been done to explore learners’ writing processes and writing strategies since the last three decades. However, the relationship between learners’ strategy use and writing performance is still not clear-cut, and researchers still debate about whether L1 (first language) writing processes and strategies are similar to or different from L2 writing processes and strategies. To explore these controversial issues, this study has examined the L1 and L2 academic writing processes of 35 Chinese ESL (English-as-a-second-language) learners by using concurrent think-aloud protocols and retrospective interviews. In line with previous strategy studies, the findings of present study also revealed that learners selected, used, and evaluated a wide range of writing strategies (i.e., approach, rhetorical, communication, cognitive, metacognitive, affective, and social strategies) in both L1 and L2 tasks. Moreover, the results of qualitative and quantitative analyses indicated that the overall pattern of strategy use by learners was similar between L1 and L2. Specifically, learners tended to transfer their approach, rhetorical, communication, and cognitive strategies across languages. As for the correlations between writing strategies and writing scores, statistical tests did not detect any significant relationships between learners’ strategy use and their writing performance in either the L1 writing task or the L2 writing task. One main implication suggested by the present study is that learners should not only be encouraged to reflect on their L2 writing performance and strategy use, but also be provided with the opportunities to reconsider and reflect on how they usually approach and process L1 writing tasks. / Graduate

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Murdoch University, 2002. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Social Sciences, Humanities and Education. Bibliography: leaves 451-483.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Pittsburgh, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 160-176).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2007. / Title from title screen (site viewed May 20, 2008). PDF text: iii, 150 p. ; 617 K. UMI publication number: AAT 3284033. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-06, Section: A, page: 2418. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 170-181).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-06, Section: A, page: 2362. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 262-279).