Thus study was designed to explore how children learn about a scientific-reasoning strategy while engaged in parent-child activity, and specifically to answer two research questions: 1) Can children learn and transfer a scientific reasoning strategy when provided training situated within parent-child activity? and 2) How do parents support young childrens learning and transfer of a scientific reasoning strategy? Thirty parent-child dyads with younger (5- to 6-years-old) and older (7- to 8-years-old) children were recruited to engage in shared scientific-reasoning activities in which they were provided training in the Control of Variables Strategy (CVS): a strategy for designing unconfounded experiments and interpreting the experimental outcome. Families were provided opportunities to apply and transfer their learning of the strategy while exploring materials in two domains in two sessions spaced one month apart. When provided training situated within parent-child activity, 5- to 8-year-old children demonstrated that they could learn to use CVS. Although both older and younger children were able to learn the strategy, age-related differences were detected in childrens transfer abilities. While older children continued to improve in their use of CVS at the second session, younger childrens performance decreased. In answer to Research Question 2, this study illuminated ways that parents and young children engage in scientific activity and build on subsequent related activity. To support childrens engagement, parents varied their support in the design and execution of experiments and they engaged in conversations that supported planning and evaluating activity. Parents reminded children of the strategy and redirected activity to support the generation and evaluation of interpretable evidence. We observed that parents sometimes explicitly reminded children of prior shared activity; these parents were more likely to have children who later became the most reliable users of CVS. Further research is needed, however, to establish causal links between specific types of parent support and patterns of parent-child activity and resultant child learning and transfer.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of short vowels in reading Arabic for skilled Arab adult readers. Previous studies claimed that the presence of short vowels (and diacritics) has a facilitative role in the reading of Arabic. That is, adding short vowels to the consonants facilitates the reading comprehension and reading accuracy of both children and skilled adult Arab readers. Further, those studies claimed that the absence of short vowels (and diacritics) and context makes reading Arabic impossible. But these studies did not manipulate the short vowels and diacritics to the degree that would isolate the short vowels effect. Nor did they take into account the level of reading involved: text, sentence, and word. That is, on a text level, assessing the role of short vowels should take into account the text level in terms of word frequency; on a sentence level, the structure of the sentence- garden-path versus non-garden-path-; and finally, on a word level the type of word, homographic versus nonhomographic. Thus, the study described in the following pages was designed with three tasks to assess the role of short vowels in relation to each level: the text frequency, the garden-path structure, and the homography aspect of the word. In general, the results showed that the presence or absence of short vowels and diacritics in combination do not affect the reading process, comprehension, and accuracy of skilled adult Arab readers. However, only in a word-naming task, the absence of short vowels and context prevented the skilled adult Arab reader from choosing the right form of the heterophonic homographic word. Further, according to the findings, at the absence of short vowels and diacritics in combination, the role of context in Arabic is still limited to the heterophonic homographic words. In sum, the results demonstrated that the only variable that affects the reading process of Adult Arab skilled readers is the word frequency. Justification for such effects and recommendations for pedagogical purposes and future research are suggested.

This dissertation examined the efficacy of using minimally trained college undergraduates to tutor third- through fifth-grade students with reading difficulties. Tutors receiving four hours of training in scripted reading program based on the principles of Direct Instruction and emphasizing explicit instruction in phonological awareness and decoding. Thirty-six students from two elementary schools in a large southeastern city in the United States were selected and randomly assigned to treatment (tutoring) or contrast (non-tutoring) conditions. Treatment students received an average of fourteen and a half hours of tutoring over a twelve-week period. Data indicated that university students with minimal training successfully implemented the scripted tutoring package with experimenter feedback. Although, significant differences were only found for word identification, the treatment students out gained the contrast students on all measures. Effect sizes were moderate to strong. In addition, separate data for regular and special education students indicated statistically significant differences on two measures on two measures of fluency (correct words per minute read) for regular education treatment students over regular education control students. The efficacy of using minimally trained adult tutors to supplement classroom reading instruction for students with reading difficulties is also discussed.

Kindergarten children learn through hands-on interaction with materials. Additionally, the environment contributes to their learning. Therefore, if children are learning about concepts that naturally occur outside, they need to learn these concepts through active exploration, using as many senses as possible. This thesis examines the influence that an outdoor environment may have on children's abilities to comprehend and recall concepts in a science lesson. The sample for this study came from four kindergarten classrooms from a semi-rural school in Louisiana. Three treatment groups received a lesson on trees. The control group was not given a lesson. Two groups participated in the lesson indoors, interacting with either pictures only or pictures and concrete objects. The lessons presented concepts about trees (height, width, roots, leaves, and bark). Children in the fourth group explored each concept as it naturally occurred outdoors in a lesson. Children's initial understanding of concepts and subsequent learning were measured by pre-and post-test drawings. The author found an influence by the outdoor environment on kindergarten children's comprehension and recall of the science concepts. Children taught outdoors demonstrated more accurate understandings of the overall concept of "tree" and of the "leaf" concept.

This dissertation focuses on Lavinia Lloyd Dock's (1858-1956) re-envisioning of nursing and caring as social responsibility and the implications of this conceptualization for democracy. Dock was an American nurse, educator, settlement worker, suffragist, pacifist, social activist, writer, and historian. Her conception of holistic welfare embodied a 'new ideal' of society (Dock 1907, p. 899), a new understanding of democracy, and an expression of citizenship based on social responsibility for the welfare of others. Dock's idea of democracy embraced women's values and ways of being in the world; disputed universal, individual rights; and privileged communal values, collaboration, inclusion, and diversity. Moreover, she envisioned the world as a global democracy beyond national boundaries and other differences which often separate individuals. This study aspires to promote an understanding of an internationalist notion of citizenship and democracy that includes caring, collaboration, social responsibility, pacifism, and the holistic well-being of all individuals. This historiography also explores Dock's relentless social activism for the construction of a 'new ideal' of society and democracy. This study aims to empower nurse educators and practicing nurses to interrogate traditional notions of caring. Inspired by Dock's epistemology, the author proposes a re- conceptualization of nursing curricula as democratic and as embracing caring as social responsibility for the holistic welfare of others. Finally, this dissertation seeks to recuperate Lavinia Dock as a nurse educator, historian, philosopher, writer, feminist, social worker, social activist, and one of many turn of the 20th century progressive women who enhanced the welfare of society and improved American democracy.

This study investigated the effect of music on text recall and involuntary mental rehearsal (din) with students from four college-level Beginning Spanish classes. Two groups heard texts as songs, one group heard the same texts as speech, and one group was the control group. For the text recall variable, a cloze test was administered at the end of each song treatment to determine total words recalled. Students from one of the music groups heard the melody of the song while testing. For the din variable, students were asked to report on the amount of this phenomenon experienced. Data was collected to answer the following questions: (1) Is there a significant increase in text recall when that text is learned through the use of songs?, (2) Is there a significant difference in delayed text recall for students who learned the text with song, as compared to those who learned the text with spoken recordings?, (3) Is there a significant difference in the recall results when one group of students from the song groups hears the melody of the song during the recall test?, and (4) Is there a significant difference in the occurrence of involuntary mental rehearsal after listening to song rather than text? Immediate recall of text showed higher scores for the music class in all three songs. This difference reached significance in Songs 1 and 3. Delayed text recall showed no significant difference between the classes. There was no advantage observed for the group that heard the background melody during testing. Overall results for the din occurrence showed a significant difference between the classes. Students in the classes that heard music reported a higher occurrence of this phenomenon than did those who heard only spoken text. Students of the melody group reported a significantly higher frequency than did students from the text group. These findings suggest that the use of songs in the foreign language classroom may aid memory of text. The results evidenced that the occurrence of the din is increased with music, and therefore may be a more efficient way to stimulate language acquisition.

Based on semiotic, aesthetic response, reader response, and drama in education theories, this phenomenological study seeks to describe the literary experience of text through oral interpretation for middle to high SES, fourth and eighth grade students as compared to Low SES fourth and eighth grade students. Using the research methodology of Moustakas (1994) and data analysis of Teddlie (2000), this study proposes to describe and understand the relation of literary understanding and oral dramatic expression implicit in the descriptive paralinguistic and chronemic patternizations of the oral rendition of text and describe the act of reading as phenomenology. Descriptions of the perceptions and reading experiences of Low Socioeconomic Status (SES) and Middle-High SES dramatic readers was obtained through multiple interviews and recorded readings. Rich descriptions were used as the basis for a reflective structural analysis. Ultimately, the goal was to determine the effect of the voice of interpretation on the perception of the reader and to determine the benefit of dramatization as a tool for comprehension across varied educational and experiential backgrounds. Results reflected an across the board positive correlation between students' perceptions of reading as a significant and meaningful learning experience and students' use of dramatic interpretation through the indices of the voice. For oral dramatic readers, the purpose for reading was the process, not just the product. Dramatic readers see reading as something composed that must be performed. They are able to perform the "story" much like a musical score, backing for patterns, beats, and rhythms. Literacy then is a performing art, by definition a form of aesthetic response that is autobiographical in essence, constructivist in nature, and a highly personal "phenomenon."

This study attempted to determine the accurateness of the representation of the Hispanic culture in childrens books. I interviewed ten people: five non-Hispanic and five Hispanic, and I found that the Hispanic people do not seem to pay as much attention to physical features as non-Hispanic people do. However, they were concerned about the portrayal of the Hispanic culture in traditional ways: the traditional roles of women, the traditional dress, the architecture of the houses and the portrayal of the Hispanic people living in rural areas and being extremely poor. It appears that from the timeline covered by the books, from the 1930s until the present time that the more recent the publication, the more accurate the portrayal of the Hispanic culture becomes. In recent years, we see more books in the literature that portray characters from the Hispanic culture as middle class citizens living in cities rather than people living in rural areas doing agriculture based jobs. The results from this study confirm my own perceptions of the portrayal of the Hispanic culture in childrens books. To support this statement I can refer to Hamel (1993), who explains the notion called initial theory. This means that any researcher can have an initial idea of the perceived social phenomenon. In my specific case, this has come from the years studying and working as a librarian where I have had a wide exposure to books and people from diverse origins. As the participants were going through the books, they were distinguishing more details and becoming more aware of their own perceptions and the details in the books that supported their perceptions. They became more aware of the stereotypes and of the way the culture was represented. An important aspect to point out is that the authors of more recent books like Too Many Tamales, Abuela, or Chato and the Party Animals are authors who have lived in the United States for a long time, so they are setting their stories in this country. This aspect can be absolutely helpful if we consider that these books have been created for use in the United States. Therefore, children and readers in the United States will identify more with the characters and settings. Consequently, they will feel the pride and may wish to continue their traditions. At the same time, children will be able to establish comparisons and differences with other ethnic groups; and other children can learn about the Hispanic culture.

This eight-week descriptive study examined the impact of the incorporation of a Life-Application Learning Methods Program on struggling middle school readers. Two questions were explored: 1) How did incorporating lifeapplication learning into the middle school curriculum impact reading motivation?, and 2) How did incorporating life-application learning in the middle school curriculum impact the reading levels? Participants in the study were eight eighth-grade students considered to be struggling readers Qualitative methods were used for this study utilizing responses from a survey, two inventories, student journals, and researcher observations. Data gathered suggested that students are more likely to become motivated and engaged readers when the subject matter directly relates to their lives and that students are more likely to invest in learning reading skills and strategies in order to pursue information they find relevant. The Life-Application Learning Methods Program incorporated the skills outlined in the lesson plans of regular classroom teacher with current reading materials including, but not limited to, novels, magazines, newspapers, recipes, instruction booklets, job applications, and internet resources. Activities included oral reading, group activities, presentations, research, internet exploration, and creative writing. Results of the descriptive study indicated that struggling readers involved in a Life-Application Learning Instructional Program demonstrated gains in both motivation and reading ability. A reexamination of the study identified the immediate usefulness and personal application as being the significant catalyst for becoming active readers. The findings highlight the students desire to find meaning in their reading assignments. In addition, findings suggest that integrating multiple sources of reading materials invite greater student participation. Implications resulting from these findings could be instrumental in improving student engagement in the classroom. By knowing and understanding what motivates student to learn, educators can provide instruction interesting to the students and in compliance with state mandated curriculum guides.

The main research question of this study was: How do selected high school chemistry students' understandings of the elements, structure, and periodicity of the Periodic Table change as they participate in a unit study consisting of inquiry-based activities emphasizing construction of innovative science graphics? The research question was answered using a multiple case study/mixed model design which employed elements of both qualitative and quantitative methodologies during data collection and analyses. The unit study was conducted over a six-week period with 11th-grade students enrolled in a chemistry class. A purposive sample of six students from the class was selected to participate in interviews and concept map coconstruction (Wandersee & Abrams, 1993) periodically across the study. The progress of the selected students of the case study was compared to the progress of the class as a whole. The students of the case study were also compared to a group of high school chemistry students at a comparative school. The results show that the students from both schools left traditional instruction on the periodic table (lecture and textbook activities) with a very limited understanding of the topic. It also revealed that the inquiry-based, visual approach of the unit study helped students make significant conceptual progress in their understanding of the periodic table. The pictorial periodic table (which features photographs of the elements), used in conjunction with the graphic technique of data mapping, enhanced students understanding of the patterns of the physical properties of the elements on the periodic table. The graphic technique of compound mapping helped students learn reactivity patterns between types and groups of elements on the periodic table. The recreation of the periodic table with element cards created from the pictorial periodic table helped students progress in their understanding of periodicity and its key concepts. The Periodic Table Literacy Rubric (PTLR) proved to be a valuable tool for assessing students conceptual progress, and helped to identify a critical juncture in the learning of periodicity. In addition, the PTLR rubric's historical-conceptual design demonstrates how the history of science can be used to inform today's science teaching.