This case study used a mixed method approach to explore the teaching and learning of English as a foreign language through the medium of a new online synchronous programme (CentrEM) at King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. Information was collected using questionnaires (240 students) personal interviews (8 students and 4 teachers) and observations (30 online classes). A case was identified in which technology supported a restricted approach to online English language learning based mainly on grammar, listening, reading, and writing. Female learners were disadvantaged because they were not encouraged to speak in English. The Internet was used mainly as a platform for instruction and to provide access to limited learning materials (mainly the online course book). Most participants expressed optimism for the potential opportunities of e-learning; however, student attendance was relatively low and active participation was limited. Encouraging student participation was a major issue. The teachers used numerous affective strategies to persuade the students to participate; however, technological difficulties intruded at regular intervals, disrupting the flow of communication and preventing the teachers from knowing who was present. Some students were less skilled in computing and English language than others, further disrupting the classes. A traditional teacher-centred face-to-face classroom strategy was adapted for online instruction. The flow of information was mainly from the teacher to the student, with emphasis on low level recall, encouraged by prompts. The students did not engage in deep learning. There were few opportunities for the students to enter into extensive dialogues with the teachers or to be reflective. The teachers did not use feedback adaptively to plan a differentiated approach. The curriculum was not flexible enough take into account the different abilities, learning styles, and preferences of each individual student. Recommendations are provided for learners, teachers, and the institution to help develop the online programme in the future.

This thesis reports on two action research cycles conducted in the English Department of the Higher Language Institute at Tishreen University, Syria. With the problem of global coursebooks that are pre-determined for learners, the aim of this action research was to use supplementary internet materials that could better meet learners‘ personal needs and interests in the context. In the first cycle, the plan was to get learners live access internet materials within the Tishreen Higher Language Institute. However, technical problems were experienced. They necessitated developing appropriate internet methodology for using internet materials in the context. In the second cycle, the internet was accessed via outside computers to bring supplementary materials to the language classroom. Both the appropriateness and the effectiveness of using supplementary internet materials were investigated. Qualitative methods of data collection and analysis were used. The action research process of developing context-appropriate methodology was found to be supportive of learners‘ engagement. Using internet materials appropriately created the conditions for learners‘ behavioural, cognitive, affective, and social engagement with internet materials.

<p> This study examined the role of guilt among Latino first generation college students and their educational journey as they leave their family and community to pursue higher education. For first generation college students, going to college is breaking away from the norm of not going to college, which for many family members who have no college experience, they cannot understand the reason why their loved one is separating themselves from their close nit family and community. This notion of leaving their family and community behind can elicit feelings of guilt for not being physically available due to distance or the demands of being a college student. This study looked at the lived experience of six participants and their feelings of guilt. The conceptual framework used was a combination of Critical Race Theory and Survivor Guilt to fully understand the stories of the six participants. This qualitative study used was a narrative design to fully understand the lived experiences. </p><p> The findings revealed that guilt was caused when the participants put their needs before the needs of their family and attended college. Another significant finding was that for the females in the study, they all stated that guilt was brought on due to the physical distance between them and their families. As for the males who left home to go to college, they felt financially guilty for either causing financial problems at home or not being able to support their family with the bills. This study is intended to bring forth the guilt that Latino first generation college students face from leaving home and how colleges should be aware. This study also address recommendations for policy and practice that can better support Latino first generation college students and their families at home and in a college setting.</p>

<p> The field of student conduct administration (SCA) in higher education has grown more complex. Researchers and practitioners have noted the tension for conduct officers between managing legal and policy compliance focused on the adjudication of cases and serving as restorative justice minded educators oriented towards student growth and learning. As a result, the knowledge required and the skills practiced by conduct officers are broad and varied. An overlooked dimension of SCA is how conduct officer development, especially as it relates to meaning-making, influences their experiences, knowledge, and skills. This study, utilizing a developmental theory known as &ldquo;action logics,&rdquo; explores how conduct officer meaning-making informs their thoughts, actions, and ultimately, how they take on their responsibilities for their institutions and for their students. </p><p> A three-stage analysis of data from two qualitative interviews and a photography exercise was designed to explore the relationship between meaning-making and action logic expression for nine SCAs. In stage one, an analysis of narrative was constructed, coded for meaning-making characteristics, and an action logic hypothesis was formed. In stage two, three methods of triangulation generated additional insights. These included member checking, participant results from the Global Leadership Profile instrument, and an external audit. Finally, a cross-case analysis explored how the action logic expressed was related to meaning-making and specific themes identified from the interviews and literature. </p><p> The findings from these participants suggest the presence of a developmental range rather than a fixed action logic expression influencing the exercise of their responsibilities. Additionally, data analysis suggests that the developmental range is partly a function of organizational role. This first finding is inconsistent with previous research, providing a direction for future research. The study proposes a developmental leadership taxonomy that may be present and accounts for the range of actions logics available that could potentially be integrated into their conduct officer roles. This study has implications for training and practice of conduct officers and other student affairs professionals. The study also offers methodological considerations for research at the intersection of leadership, action logics, meaning-making, and human development.</p>

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

Secondary school students in Nigeria face challenges regarding their oral health. Few researchers have investigated oral health knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors in Nigerian populations. The purpose of this study was to assess the level of oral health knowledge, behaviors, and practices among secondary school students in Enugu State, Nigeria, in relation to their oral health status. The theoretical framework of this study was based on the health belief model. A cross-sectional study was conducted to collect data from 12 secondary schools in Enugu State, using a close-ended questionnaire as well as oral examination (dental caries and periodontal diseases) of the students who attended junior secondary (JSS) I, II, and III classes. A total stratified sample of 671 students was included in the study. Bivariate nonparametric tests and logistic regression were used to analyze the data. According to the results of the study, the levels of dental caries and periodontal diseases were relatively low. However, only one fourth of the students had received professional fluoridation, and almost 50% of the participants had never visited a dentist. Students from a missionary school had lower levels of periodontal diseases than those from public schools, with an odds ratio of 0.612 (95% CI [0.402, 0.934]). Students from JSS III class tended to have a lower level of periodontal diseases than those of JSS I class (OR: 0.567, 95% CI [0.363, 0.886]). The social change implications of this study can be the development and incorporation of oral health promotion programs into the school curriculum. These programs may increase the adoption of preventive oral health strategies by students, such as regular dental attendance, to maintain their good oral health for a life time.

<p> This mixed methods study examined the proactive personalities of cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Survey responses from first- and third-year cadets were analyzed to examine the influence of a cadet&rsquo;s proactive personality on several factors, to include perceived organizational support, leader-member exchange, affective commitment, job performance, job satisfaction, and intention to quit. Findings indicated that cadets&rsquo; proactive personalities significantly predicted their levels of perceived organizational support, the quality of their leader-member exchanges, their emotional commitment to the Academy, their job satisfaction, and their job performance as measured by their Military Performance Average. In addition, social desirability moderated the relationship between the cadets&rsquo; proactive personalities and their intention to quit. Furthermore, experiences and perspectives of cadets were captured using open-ended survey questions which addressed how cadets define proactivity, how cadets engage in proactive behavior, how naturally proactive cadets are perceived, how being proactive is important to leader development, and how being proactive benefitted the cadets. The collective responses contributed to the overall essence of what it means to be proactive at the Academy from the perspectives of cadets. Overall, findings supported the notion that encouraging cadets to be proactive and helping them gain access to being proactive may contribute to their leadership development. As such, the proactive personality construct should be considered as part of the CCLD&rsquo;s (2011) Conceptual Framework for Developing Leaders of Character, specifically within the area of cadets owning their development, the first step in the deliberate process of leader development at the Academy.</p>

<p> College counseling centers have adapted through the years to operate in an environment that has undergone frequent changes since such services were first implemented, over 100 years ago. As counseling centers continue to be faced with an increase in the number of students who need mental health services, as well as a continued increase of fiscal pressures that make providing adequate services difficult, both the students and staff must seek new ways of improving current services. Therefore, the utilization of an appreciative action research inquiry (AARI) involved the engagement of university staff, faculty, and students in developing a task force, which looked at ways to improve the current mental health services based on input obtained from individual interviews with the stakeholders: students, faculty, and staff. A qualitative method of data collection consisted of unstructured individual interviews of the members of the task force, a member-check, and field notes. Utilizing epiphanic data analysis proved best. This AARI project explored collaboratively the strengths and weaknesses of the current mental health services currently offered on campus. The AARI provided opportunities for stakeholders to advocate for improvements to the current mental health services on campus as well as recognize the existing strengths. Identified needed improvements that emerged from the date included increased advertisement of the available services, increased education about the need for mental health services, and the necessity for increased awareness of overall mental health services on campus. </p>

This study utilizes descriptive statistics and regression analysis to evaluate trends in and relationships between tuition price, institutional aid, enrollment, and tuition revenue and their determination of the net revenue generated by colleges and universities. In doing so, it defines how much institutions generate in net revenue utilizing a new metric, net revenue generation rate (NRGR). This allows a new way of thinking about the relationship between the listed tuition price, the investment in aid, and the resultant gain or loss incurred by institutions due to pricing and aiding strategies. Additionally, it explores NRGR in the context of various tuition prices and institutional types over an extended period of time, as no other previous study has done. Publics institutions with higher tuition prices generate higher NRGR's. The opposite is found for private institutions. However as price increases, NRGR decreases. Larger enrollments relate to higher NRGR's, however increases in enrollment negatively influence NRGR for public institutions and positively influence private instituion's NRGR. Baccalaureate, Doctoral, and institutions of higher selectivity produce the largest net revenue per student, yet do so at the lowest NRGR's.This study also introduces the first assessment of marginal NRGR as a means of directly measuring the impact of increasing tuition price on aid and how much institutions make from an increase in tuition. As institutions increase tuition price, institutional aid increases, decreasing the amount of incremental revenue generated from the change in tuition price. This behavior is most clear for private institutions and varies by institutional type.This study also introduces a number of theoretical explanations for pricing and aiding behaviors and their potential effects on the net revenue they generate. This includes a commitment to meeting student financial need as well as attempts to maximize quality and net revenue.Finally, this study provides the first comprehensive use of IPEDS data to address these questions. In doing so, it provides significant gains in the methodology and application of this data set for use in answering questions about tuition price, institutional aid, and net revenue generation across a broad array of institutional types over extended periods of time.

Building on sociological studies regarding college choice and persistence, this qualitative study investigates the college and post college experiences of 15 current students with NFL aspirations and 13 former students who held NFL aspirations, all from Division I Football Bowl Series (FBS) programs. A phenomenological design is implemented to explore participants' lived experiences, and awareness of their educational and occupational options. Deil-Amen and Tevis' (2010) Circumscribed Agency frames this study and provides a lens for examining the college choice and departure process. The role of the student exerting agency as circumscribed by context, habitus, and self-efficacy is emphasized with self-perceptions being essential in the process of enacting individual behavior and decisions. Perna's (2006) conceptual college choice model is made up of four contextual layers and is used to further explain students' college choice behaviors. Findings are consistent with Bowen and Schulman (2001) in that students' college decisions are driven by their athletic pursuits. This study also addresses persistence for this group of students. Tinto's (1993) theory on departure is used as a platform from which to examine commitment and social integration. Traditionally, degree commitment has been measured as strong or which severely limits our understanding of persistence. Findings reveal degree commitment to be fluid and contingent upon perceived occupational options, health status, and year in college. The majority of current students express commitment to degree attainment as a priority. However, further investigation reveals degree commitment to exist without a specific time frame set by students. This adds a time dimension to our understanding of degree commitment. This study further extends Tinto's concept of commitment with evidence of two competing goal commitments: degree and occupational. Decisions to leave college early for the NFL are driven by participants' self-perception of their athletic abilities despite where they are on the team's talent roster. This decision is further shaped by their college community integration consisting of teammates, coaches, and the NFL. Former students who stopped out of college reveal unanticipated challenges with re-entry into college. However, in contemplating a return to complete their bachelor’s degree, stop outs articulate a renewed sense of energy and degree commitment given a change in their occupational trajectory and situated context.