Current research and theory primarily focuses on identifying holistic challenges of the veteran student demographic and does not focus on challenges specific to female veterans when transitioning into and through college. Additionally, current research and theory does not focus on positive and negative experiences of female veterans within four key areas of academia: courseware, faculty, staff/administration, and student services. As a result, current research and theory do not adequately explain why female veterans may or may not successfully transition into and through college, resulting in a lack of resources available for female veterans, and Higher Education Institutes (HEIs). This phenomenological study investigated lived experiences of female veterans transitioning into and through college by identifying shared experiences within the Adult Transition Theory's Moving In, Moving Through, and Moving Out phases specific to participants' interactions with courseware, faculty, staff/administration, and student services. Nine female veterans participated. Data was collected via pre-interview questionnaires and audio-recorded one-on-one interviews and analyzed using Colaizzi's 7-Step method, yielding 6 emergent themes and 30 cluster themes. Results indicated female veterans utilize strategies such as time management, connecting with their instructors, and support of family to succeed in college. Additional factors important to female veterans when transitioning include options in delivery methods and how well a college understands veteran benefits.

Almost from birth, children are immersed in a technologically rich world yet they often enter preschools that offer little to no use of technology. Preschool learning is tied to more traditional forms of reading and writing; this may be inconsistent with the ways children are learning at home and will learn in elementary school. Despite growing interest in creating learning environments that better mirror the technological experiences of the home, there is a significant gap in current research about how learning is affected in preschool environments designed with multiple forms of technology. This qualitative single case study was designed to explore children's preferred uses of technology for learning in a Montessori preschool. The study was supported by the New London Group's theory of multiliteracies and the model of the Montessori method. Data were collected using pre and post teacher interviews, observations, and student generated video and audio recordings of learning activities. Data were coded to form preliminary categories, and open coding was used to generate themes. The findings revealed that children preferred to use technology to express ideas, to write stories, and to visually document and share their learning experiences with others. When technology was made readily available for learning, children became confident, independent, and responsible users. The inclusion of technology also increased learning and encouraged children to socially interact through new media. Implications for social change include the implementation of learning tools that are more closely aligned with those used in future schooling which may result in higher achievement.

Although successful integration of technology into classrooms has proven beneficial to the learning process, little is yet known about how teachers respond to the introduction of technology and why some choose to use it while others do not. Using Sandoltz' stages of teacher technology adoption as a framework, this multiple case study utilized historical data that captured the experiences of teachers in 2001--2002 to determine the process of teachers' adoption of innovations into existing classroom practices. Participants included a purposive sample of eight 5th- and 6th-grade teachers from 3 schools. Data sources included teacher interviews, classroom observations, and video recordings of classroom practices for each teacher. Analysis included deconstruction by research question to identify patterns and emerging themes. The findings in this study showed that the voluntary nature of participation in technology integration activities contributed to students' success. It also indicated that teachers who received on-going grant support had greater success integrating technology into instructional practices. This study contributes to positive change by providing a tool that can be used by policy makers and staff developers to better improve the adoption of current and future technological innovations where resistance may occur.

Although the development of cyber high schools over the last 10 years has increased, no data are reported in the literature regarding the factors that have contributed to the increased enrollment or student perceptions of success. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to develop a theory describing why students currently enrolled in an online high school program chose an asynchronous setting and their subsequent perceptions of success. Critical pedagogy, as a basis of transformational experiences through education, served as the conceptual framework. An attitudinal survey, provided as a limited data set by the high school, was used to identify preliminary generative themes responding to the research questions. Based on the preliminary themes, student interviews were conducted until data saturation was reached. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative coding method to address the research questions. Interviews and surveys provided the necessary data for triangulation through multiple achievement based comparison groups, enabling cross-checking between theoretical constructs and specific criterion identified during data analysis. Findings suggested these students migrated to an asynchronous high school to address the perceived detrimental effects as identified in one of the four generative themes: traditional classroom setting, inflexible scheduling, needing a more individualized curriculum, or issues related to school culture. Moreover, findings indicated that students' perception of success appear to have increased as a result of their migration to an online setting. The findings from this study may help teachers, guidance counselors, and administrators better advise their students in identifying the best learning environment, enabling students to enhance their own learning and potentially experience an increased perception of success.

Higher education administrators need data on student perceptions to support their decision making regarding mobile learning (m-learning) applications. There is a lack of research addressing students' perceptions of mobile applications for course management systems (CMS). The findings of this study may help administrators understand students' perceptions of a CMS m-learning application, Blackboard Mobile Learn (BML). This m-learning application is available on mobile devices, such as the iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone, Android, and Blackberry smartphones. The purpose of this quantitative survey study was to explore the linear relationship between the independent variables of students' perceptions of usefulness and students' perceptions of ease of use with the dependent variable of the students' intent to use BML. The technology acceptance model (TAM) provided the theoretical framework. The study was a survey-based cross-sectional design in which 98 students from 2 community colleges were polled. The results of multiple regression analyses indicated that students' perceptions of usefulness and students' perceptions of ease of use were both significantly and positively related to students' intent to use BML. The results of t tests for population means where the variances are unknown confirmed the students' intent to use many of the specific functions of BML: Announcements, Information, Contacts, and My Grades. The findings were inconclusive for Discussions, Assignments, and Course Documents. This study is significant in that it provides college administrators and faculty with supportive data, giving students a new educational platform: mobile learning. The key positive social change provided is a CMS m-learning solution for students to be lifelong learners.

Critical thinking is a skill that school systems are trying to develop in their student populations. Numerous studies have been conducted on developing critical thinking skills such as self-regulation, interpretation, and analysis. However, available data on the use of learning management systems (LMS) as a means to develop critical-thinking skills have been opaque. This study examined the perceptions of local stakeholders and the impact of confidence-based assessment (CBA) on secondary students at one high school. The conceptual framework guiding the study represented a synthesis of theoretical perspectives on critical thinking and its development with the current research on the pedagogical foundations of LMS applications. This qualitative case study project was designed to understand the perceptions of teachers, administrators, and content developers regarding the viability of a LMS with CBA embedded to increase students' critical-thinking skills. The research question focused on the use of Moodle, an LMS option, modified to use CBA to measure, improve, and enhance critical thinking skills. Qualitative data from open-ended questionnaires and interviews were gathered from teachers, administrators, and content developers who had taken a CBA within Moodle, and then coded using typological analysis to explore the respondents' perspectives. Since compelling evidence was found that a cost-effective LMS with embedded CBA may provide a positive benefit to students, a project consisting of a detailed program implementation plan was proposed to the school district. If implemented, the program can be replicated by educational institutions, potentially contributing to social change by democratizing access to a testing methodology that increases students' background knowledge while measuring their critical thinking skills.

Assistive technology (AT) is defined as any tool that can help integrate students with severe or multiple disabilities (SMD) into learning activities. As mandated by federal law, AT must be considered for all students with disabilities. Educators, however, do not consistently embrace low and mid tech AT devices in reading and the language arts, thus limiting student engagement in learning activities. The purpose of this study was to explore educators' perceptions of their experiences regarding the acquisition and the use of low and mid tech assistive devices with students with SMD. This study builds on the existing literature base of using AT to increase student participation in literacy activities, thus moving students through Vygotsky's zone of proximal development from limited performance to independent performance. Research questions in this study addressed (a) educators' experiences regarding the use of AT for students with SMD, (b) educators' perceptions of AT use for students with SMD, and (c) strategies educators use to match AT to students with SMD. A qualitative phenomenological research design utilizing interviews with educators and unobtrusive data collection was used to determine the effectiveness of the incorporation of AT devices in learning activities for students with SMD. Results indicate that educators have limited AT use and little or no training. This study indicates the need for formal and informal AT training for educators and contributes to social change by enhancing the literature on academic modifications and adaptations with the use of low and mid tech assistive device interventions. Implications for social change include improving teaching practices for students with SMD.

This qualitative study examined Internet usage by Guatemalan English teachers in the rural, indigenous community of San Lucas Toliman, to improve enrollments and persistence in online teacher professional development programs promoted by the Fundacion Rigoberta Menchu Tum. Woolcock's concepts of bonding, bridging and linking social capital were united with Rogers's theory of perceived attributes to ascertain why only 5 of 34 teachers completed free online coursework. Research questions addressed teacher concerns about using the Internet, teacher satisfaction with Internet resources, and social influences upon Internet usage. The participatory rural appraisal (PRA) method was employed using a culturally-sensitive native speaker to interview 20 teachers selected in a purposive sample. In accordance with PRA analysis procedures, representative interview statements were sorted, prioritized and discussed by a team of 42 community educators to generate findings. Findings indicated that interest in engaging the Internet and receiving specialized introductory support (bridging social capital) in groups (bonding social capital) was high. Findings also indicated that salary level (linking social capital) and family time demands (bonding social capital) were barriers to attending a community technology center or Internet cafe. Findings reinforced the community's support for the design of online coursework leading to salary points and college credits. This study has positive social change implications by demonstrating how organizations can promote community-driven research collaborations to facilitate teacher Internet usage in San Lucas Toliman, and could be replicated in other remote sectors of the developing world.

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 mandates that middle school students be technologically literate by the end of 8th grade, but teachers need more information on how to make this outcome a reality. This qualitative phenomenological study used a constructivist theoretical framework to investigate teachers' descriptions of technological literacy outcomes, instructional practice, and challenges influencing middle school student technological literacy. Twelve teachers at 1 public middle school in a large urban area of Georgia were interviewed. Data were analyzed using the typological method with the inclusion of both inductive and predetermined categories. Teachers described technologically literate middle school students as able to perform basic computer skills and use those skills for research and problem-solving. Teachers' instructional practices included modeling and demonstration, hands-on practice, coaching, collaboration, and frequent assessment to achieve the outcome of student technological literacy. Challenges that can impede teachers' implementation of practices for technological literacy included lack of school support, equipment, time, and effective professional development. Recommendations to overcome challenges include increasing availability of equipment by providing better ways to schedule the computer laboratories and staff to monitor the equipment. Relevant up-to-date staff development and inclusion of technological literacy as a school goal were also suggested. This study may influence social change because it may help teachers improve practices to develop students' technological literacy skills necessary for successful employment in the 21 st century.

Hispanic students are enrolling in community colleges at an increasing rate, and they do not succeed in community college online courses at a rate comparable to Caucasian students. Increasing Hispanic success in online education could potentially enhance their socioeconomic status. Drawing from the theoretical frameworks of andragogy and constructivism, the purpose of this case study was to examine differences between Hispanic and Caucasian students in online learning and identify factors that might contribute to the reported differences in success across Hispanic and Caucasian online students. Research questions contrasted the impact of course design, Internet access, learning preferences, and motivation on successful online learning across Hispanic and Caucasian students. A proportional stratified sample of 324 community college students completed a researcher-developed survey, and 20 participated in semistructured interviews. Data analyses sequentially addressed each research question by integrating tabular and frequency analyses of survey data with themes that emerged from interviews. Regarding course design, Hispanic students, more than Caucasians, preferred group work and visual design elements; whereas, both groups felt that a logical course design was a key factor in accessing information and that regular instructor contact was important. Internet-use comfort levels were similar and positively affected performance for both groups. Reported motivation to enroll in online courses was also similar across groups and included scheduling, convenience, and pace of learning. This study can contribute to social change by clarifying an understanding of specific online learning factors that are critical for academic success among Hispanic students, which can in turn provide a foundation for improved socioeconomic success and equity.