M.S.

M.S.

Master of Science

¹“We deliberate not about ends but about means. For a doctor does not deliberate whether he shall heal, nor an orator whether he should persuade, nor a statesman whether he shall produce law and order nor does anyone else deliberate about his end. 'They assume the end and consider how and by what means it is to be attained; and if it seems to be produced by several means they consider by which it is most easily and best produced, while if it is to be achieved by one only they consider how it will be achieved by this and by what means this will be achieved, til they come to the first cause, which is the order of discovery is last.” Aristotle, Ethics. ²Gaston Bachelard, on Beaudelaire's use of word vast“...brings calm and unity; it opens up unlimited space. It also teaches us to breathe with the air that rests on the horizon, far from the walls of the chimerical prisons that are the cause of our anguish." Poetics of Space. ³ “Exterior spectacle helps intimate grandeur unfold" Poetics of Space. / Master of Architecture

Task of this thesis is the design of a school as a public place fully integrated in a small city. The concerns of the architect are on the one hand to set the school in a harmonious relationship to the other functions of the town. The inner structure of the building reflects this in being a “harmonious part” to the whole environment. On the other hand, determined by the site at the waterfront, the architecture gets its resources from the threshold of land and water. / Master of Architecture

Master of Science

The study was designed to investigate the intervention program, PEP-UP, in the Richmond Public Schools in Richmond, Virginia, and to determine if significant differences occurred in the academic achievement and self-concept of the program participants. Data for the study were obtained from SRA Achievement Test scores of the subjects participating in the study and from questionnaires given the participants. The subjects were 15 classes of PEP-UP students who were retained in the second grade on the basis of test scores, and 15 classes of control students composing the lower level reading groups of the third grade. Permission was granted by the Superintendent of Schools to utilize the test scores from school records and to administer the questionnaires to the subjects. The data were analyzed by use of the analysis of covariance with the signicance level set at .05. Major findings were: (1) There was a significant difference in the reading achievement after seven months of instruction between the experimental and control groups; (2) the mathematics achievement scores were similar for both groups and no significant differences were found; (3) the Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI) did not indicate a significant difference between the groups, even though a slight increase in scores was evident for the PEP-UP students; (4) a significant difference in teachers' ratings did occur between the experimental and control groups. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the problem of early school entry as it affects the criteria of achievement, self-concept, and social maturity. The research design was a comparative associational design. The statistical procedure used was the two-way analysis of variance. The level of statistical significance was noted at .05. The subjects in this study were sixty-two kindergarten children in six schools in the.school system. The six schools were chosen as representative of the racial make-up of the school population. There was stratified random sampling to include children with early and not early birthdates. Race, sex and birthdates were the independent variables. Several instruments were used to measure achievement, social maturity, and self-concept. The Wide Range Achievement Test R-1, Level 1, The Standards of Learning Objectives, and the Metropolitan Reading Test, Level II, were used to measure achievement. The Burks' Behavior Rating Scales, Preschool and Kindergarten edition, were used to measure social maturity, and the Self-Concept and Motivation Inventory Pre-School/Kindergarten Form (SCAMIN) assessed self-concept. The following conclusions were formulated based upon critical analysis of the data. There was a statistically significant difference (p<.05) in achievement and age, race and sex in a few of the variables studied such as the following: 1. the WRAT math across age and race. The not early groups scored higher than the early groups and the white groups scored higher than the black group. 2. the Metropolitan Readiness test and race. The white children scored higher than the black children and the not early children scored higher than the early children. 3. the SOL reading objectives, age and sex. The not early group scored higher than the early group. The white children scored higher than the black children. The girls in the early group scored higher than the boys, and the boys in the not early group scored higher than the girls. 4. the SOL math objectives across age and race. The early groups scored lower than the not early group and the white children scored higher than the black children. There was also a statistically significant difference (p<.05) in poor ego strength and race. The white children had higher ego strength than the black children. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the seven-period day schedule implemented at Abingdon High School and to judge the feasibility of implementing a comparable schedule in all Washington County high schools on a permanent basis. In order to facilitate the evaluation, several areas of inquiry were identified. Questions of interest included: Did the students take advantage of the additional opportunities to take courses? If so, what courses were selected? Did an extended day create problems for students and/or faculty? If so, what kind of problems/concerns were encountered? Was students' performance affected? Did students' behavior change? Did the lengthened school day increase stress or otherwise affect teachers' performance? What about cost? Finally, administrators in the region were asked to comment on the possible impact (advantages and disadvantages) of a seven-period schedule as an addendum to the data collected at the school. Data pertinent to the evaluation of the seven-period day were obtained from various offices at Abingdon High School and the Washington County School Board. Data regarding perceptions of faculty and students were obtained from two 13-question surveys, one given to 76 faculty members with 58 responses and the other given to all students with 977 responses. There were subjective qualities involved in the study such as newness of the seven-period day or change itself. These qualities cannot be measured quantitatively and may have affected the results of the study. Aside from these considerations, no evidence was revealed by the research that would indicate the seven-period day was less effective than the six-period day. The results of the study indicate that students would take additional courses if given the opportunity with no apparent negative effects. The cost of the seven-period day was less on a per course basis than for the six-period day. / Ed. D. / incomplete_metadata

This study was conducted to describe the status and perceived need of wellness and employee assistance programs in the public school systems in Virginia. There were 132 superintendents asked to respond to a mailed survey; 124 responded, for a return rate of 93.93%. The school systems having these programs were grouped by wealth, according to the composite index of the school system, and size, according to the number of teaching positions in the school system. The results of the analysis indicated that there are a variety of wellness programs throughout the state. Wellness and employee assistance programs occur in large and small school systems with teaching staffs ranging from 43 to 8,124. The composite index of school systems having one of these programs ranged from .2016 to 1.000. There was a significant perceived need of these programs as indicated by the positive responses to an open-ended question. Of the 124 school systems responding, 47, or 37.90%, had wellness programs, and 38, or 30.64%, had employee assistance programs. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Objective 20.15 states that by the year 2000, 75% of the workplaces with 50 employees or more should offer a health promotion program. This study established the baseline necessary to measure the growth of these programs in Virginia and will assist personnel directors by providing information about the types of programs that now exist throughout the state. / Ed. D.