M.Cur. (Nursing Education) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Ed. (Tertiary Didactics) / The Bureau for University Education at the Rand Afrikaans University spearheaded this empirical study as part of a team research project. The relatively high failure rate of first year students and the negative implications it has for an institute of higher education mnde it essential. The Bureau for University Education makes it its object to establish a better student selection mechanism and therefore this study forms part of a team research project that has attempted to identify cognitive and non cognitive factors that may _~ave an influence on the academic achievements of first year students. This study is purely complimentary to the team research project in that it concentrates on a single non-cognitive factor, namely personality, and its influence on academic achievement. This study tries to determine whether personality tests can be of value as part of the selection process at universities. The test group consisted of first year B.A. (Ed.), B.Bibl. (Ed.), B.Com. (Ed.) and B.Sc. (Ed.) undergraduate students who registered at the Rand Afrikaans University during 1988 and 1989. ·Student's t-test was used as a measuring instrument for the relative extensive B.A. (Ed.) group, while the Mann-Whitney U-test was used for the other three groups. The already available data was processed by means of the BMDP3S computer programme. The findings of this empirical study indicate that personality as a single factor cannot be utilised in the prediction of academic achievement on its own, but combined with other cognitive and non cognitive factors it forms an integral part of the selection mechanism.

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The composition of the population of undergraduate students in the U. S. has changed dramatically in recent years. A number of factors including societal transformations, a changing economy and demographic trends of the past decade have had particular impact. The cohort of students over age 30 is now the fastest growing segment of students who are entering or returning to colleges and universities. At this age the mature student is generally well established in work, community and family. While much of the research has focused on individual student needs, it has failed to investigate family and education interactions among older married reentry students. This is despite the reality that family concerns are often cited as the primary reason a reentry student withdraws from school. In this study, stepwise multiple regression was used to determine the extent to which gender, demographic background, and family issues explain the variance in reentry student perception of reentry student problems. This analysis yielded results which support the thesis that regardless of the student's gender, family problems are the strongest predicator of reentry student problems. Implications from this study may provide invaluable information to counselors, student service professionals, administrators, educators, and other professionals who work with reentry students and their families. This information can help to dispel myths and to aid reentry student and family adjustments. / Master of Science

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This dissertation research focuses on assessing student behavior, academic emotions, and knowledge within a middle school online learning environment, and analyzing potential effects on students’ interests and choices related to decisions about going to college. Using students’ longitudinal data ranging from their middle school, to high school, to postsecondary years, this dissertation uses quantitative methodologies to investigate antecedents to college attendance that occur as early as middle school. The dissertation asks whether student behavior, academic emotions, and learning as early as middle school can be predictive of college attendance years later. This is investigated by developing predictive and structural models of said outcomes, using assessments of learning, emotions and engagement from student interaction data from an online learning environment they used in their middle school curriculum. The same middle school factors are also assessed with self-report measures of course choices, interests in college majors and careers formed when they were in high school. The dissertation then evaluates how student choices and interests in high school can mediate between the educational experiences students have during middle school and their eventual college attendance, to give a fuller illustration of the cognitive and non-cognitive mechanisms that students may experience throughout varied periods in school. Such understanding may provide educators with actionable information about a students’ in-depth experiences and trajectories within the college pipeline.

The purpose of this study was to assess which particular circumstances of HIV antibody testing are most important to Ball State University students when making the decision whether or not to be tested. This study also looked at psychological variables within the individual that may influence one's decision whether or not to be tested. A descriptive correlational study design was used. Subjects were recruited from the psychological science subject pool. These students were enrolled in the Psychology 100 class at Ball State University during the Spring, 1992 Semester. Subjects were also recruited from sororities, fraternities, and business fraternities. A total of 397 subjects (210 males and 187 females) were recruited for the study.Subjects filled out four surveys: an HIV Antibody Testing Inventory, an AIDS Knowledge Survey, the MultiDimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, and the Social Desirability Scale. Results indicated students in this sample preferred going off campus for HIV testing versus on campus. They preferred a medical setting with a medical counselor doing the testing. These subjects did not want peers doing the HIV testing or counseling. The level of AIDS Knowledge subject had did not correlate with their stated likelihood of being tested for HIV. Subjects preferred anonymous testing, but appeared to recognize the benefits of recording basic demographic information. / Institute for Wellness