Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005. / Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center; full text release delayed at author's request until 2008 Sep 8

The problem of this investigation was the development of a systematic method for the evaluation of curricula in baccalaureate nursing programs. The literature in nursing and general education was used to extrapolate theories and concepts for the formulation of a theoretical construct. This construct served as the basis for the evaluation instrument. The major concepts were identified as (1) underlying structure, (2) content of courses within the curriculum, and (3) methods and activities. Elements and components were chosen to clarify and extend the concepts. The literature and experts in nursing were both instrumental in the selection of weights. Based on the findings of the study, the following conclusions are made. (1) A faculty member's ability to use a systematic evaluation instrument does not depend upon years of teaching experience or prior experience as a National League for Nursing visitor. (2) The Evaluation Index appears capable of meeting the criteria for a more systematic method of curriculum evaluation. (3) A theoretical construct appears conducive to theory development as it is directed toward an approach which is more scientific than intuitive. (4) The inclusion of clarifying components within the instrument provides for the evaluative effort to be distributed across the entire curriculum and indicates the scope of the evaluation effort, which apparently contributes to increasing the precision of evaluation. (5) Clarification of concepts and pre-established weights apparently contributed to the differences in the scores assigned by evaluates. (6) Predetermined weights for each element may contribute to more precise evaluation. (7) Limits on the possible value of each element may contribute to more precise curriculum evaluation.

Human patient simulation (HPS) has been used for over 40 years in medical education. A human patient simulator is a life-like, anatomically correct, computer driven mannequin with physiologic responses that mimic real patients. Since the introduction of computerized HPS in 2000, its use by medical and nursing students has grown exponentially. Approximately 500 nursing schools are using human patient simulators in nursing education. Researchers have suggested that using HPS can assist in reducing the gaps between theory and practice by improving critical thinking, decision making and patient outcomes. An increase in recognition of medical errors has dictated the need to improve education by allowing students and clinicians to learn in an environment that permits errors and do not put real patients in danger. However, there is a dearth of research on the benefits, advantages and disadvantages of HPS as well as the learning experiences of students who used HPS in their nursing education. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to describe and analyze the learning experience of baccalaureate nursing students who used HPS during their education. Focus group interviews with HPS students were recorded and transcribed for content analysis in NVIVO, a qualitative analysis software program. The results of the analysis were categorized into four major themes: Structure, Environment, Instructor and Learning. The findings revealed that HPS students felt that structure was critical to optimize learning opportunities. Students wanted to be properly oriented to the environment of the HPS sessions, and they felt that the lack of realism of the simulators did not negatively affect their learning. Students wanted knowledgeable and competent instructors who had good interpersonal communication and interaction skills. Last, students expressed that there were benefits from acting as both the nurse and the observer during HPS. The opportunity to make mistakes without harming a patient and to experience different types of nurse-to-nurse reports were viewed as positive. The findings of the study suggested that further research about student perceptions of HPS learning experiences could provide valuable information for educators and policymakers to improve the implementation of HPS in nursing and medical education.

This thesis presents a case study of how curriculum differentiation operates at Lincoln High School, an urban public school in the Midwestern United States with a highly regarded International Baccalaureate (IB) program. I use a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the systems of beliefs and practices that structure Lincoln's tracking system. Like many American high schools, Lincoln has rejected the traditional practice of assigning all students to overarching curriculum 'tracks' on the basis of their measured aptitude, instead allowing students to choose between courses covering different content at different levels of difficulty in most academic subjects. The school thus offers an excellent opportunity to examine within-school stratification in light of the declining popularity of traditional tracking and the increasing degree to which students control their own coursetaking. Within-school stratification is particularly worthy of continued attention because it qualifies the mythology of the American dream, which holds that schools give students from all backgrounds an opportunity to achieve upward social mobility. I use interviews, observations, and document analysis to explore how curriculum differentiation structures academic and social hierarchies at Lincoln, what teachers and students believe about how to achieve school success and upward mobility, and how Lincoln reconciles its egalitarian ideals with the continued existence of de facto tracking. I argue that Lincoln's approach to curriculum differentiation strikes a tenuous balance between academic excellence and equity for all students. Although student choice dominates the course scheduling process, Lincoln's curriculum still bears many of the hallmarks of tracking: the IB structures a clear academic and social hierarchy of courses, and students tend to follow predictable patterns of coursetaking within each subject, with few opportunities for upward mobility. Nonetheless, teachers and students almost unanimously subscribe to the local achievement ideology, which holds that any student, regardless of prior academic achievement, can and should participate in the IB as long as he or she is willing to work hard. This radical promise of equal opportunity allows participants to characterize Lincoln as a force for equality and social justice. However, the school's continued reliance on sorting its students, even in the face of evidence that tracking reproduces racial and class inequalities, suggests that the achievement ideology serves primarily to legitimate stratification, not to undo it. These findings have important ramifications for research in tracking, detracking, and stratification, and for practice in all schools seeking to negotiate the tension between excellence and equity.

No description available.

The International Baccalaureate (IB) organization promotes distributed leadership as the ideal leadership model for implementation of all of its 4 programs, and researchers have noted that this leadership model in private international schools with multiple IB programs has been vital to school wide success. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how distributed leadership influenced the implementation of the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program (IBMYP) in a public middle school that has been successful in meeting academic goals. Spillane's distributed leadership model served as the basis for identifying the organizational structures, routines, and tools that influenced the implementation of the IBMYP and improvement in students' academic achievement. Data included interviews with 2 administrators, 3 teachers, 2 support staff, and 1 coordinator, and documents collected from participants, a district leader, and the school's website. Data analysis entailed coding to identify emerging patterns and themes. Findings from this study indicated that distributed leadership had a positive influence in the implementation of the IBMYP. Major themes included effective distributed leadership practices of positional and informal leaders; collaboration amongst faculty members; positive relationships between administrators and others; shared academic vision; effective organizational structures, routines, and tools; shared learning; and students' behavioral challenges. Positive social change may come from providing leaders in the IB organization, as well as district leaders, strategies for distributing leadership that were found in this study that may increase successful implementation of the IBMYP in public schools and improvement in student academic achievement.

Syftet med detta arbete är att jämföra International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB), med svenska SP och NV program. Detta görs genom att besvara frågan hur innehållen i matematikkurserna på IB programmet skiljer sig från matematikkurser som ges i de svenska programmen. Inte enbart innehållet i kurserna jämförs utan även timplanen granskas för att undersöka om arbetsbördan i programmen skiljer sig åt. Den lättaste matematikkursen som undervisas i IB programmet, Mathematical Studies är mest lik de svenska Matematik A-C kurserna. Den andra IB kursen, Mathematical Methods täcker framförallt Matematik A-E kurserna medan den tredje kursen, Mathematics Higher Level stämmer bäst överens med Matematik kurserna A-F och Matematik-diskret. För alla IB kurser gäller att de täcker områden som inte tas upp i de svenska programmen. IB kurserna innehåller flera avsnitt och ger en djupare kunskap om ämnet matematik. De undervisas också i ett högre tempo än de motsvarande svenska kurserna. Detta gäller framförallt Mathematical Methods och Mathematics Higher Level.

This research explored variables that influence community college student degree aspirations and students purpose for enrolling and pursuing specific degree types. The study was conducted using secondary data for students pursuing Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, and Bachelor of Applied Science degrees at a single community college. A logistic regression test was used to test graduate and baccalaureate degree aspirations of the entire sample of students and separately by degree type. Significant predictors of degree aspirations included age, gender, credits enrolled in, participation in student groups, academic course planning, receipt of scholarship, and college GPA. In general, community college students had high degree aspirations. Younger students tended to be on the collegiate transfer track and older students tended to want to pursue baccalaureate degrees locally. In addition to having high degree aspirations, a large proportion of students attended the college for occupational purposes and created intermediate and long-term goals related to their academic aspirations. The findings of the research confirm findings of previous studies on college student degree aspirations, and add to the understanding of variables contribute to students' educational goals. Recommendations for practice and future research are presented.

This thesis is written within the field of education. I will be explaining what international students want to learn about in the subject areas of History and English. The question being answered is, “What Do Students Want in English and History Teaching?” The goal was to gain more specific insight into what students want to learn about and how. This paper will use and critique Lev Vygotsky and John Dewey’s theories on education as well as more current research done regarding the needs and wants of students.Several books and many articles regarding education theory and what students want were used to get an insight into current theory. My contribution of evidence to this area is through a questionnaire that was given to middle school students in four different classes in two different grades. The results of this questionnaire showed that students have a great demand for content that covers many different facets of English and many areas and time periods of History. Students had clear ideas of what a good teacher is like. The conclusion of this research is that students see the value in motivating, knowledgeable teachers who vary their lessons. Students want their teachers to be fun and sympathetic to the life of students today.

The focus of this qualitative research was to investigate the motivations, experiences, and constructs of non-traditional adult students who elected to enroll in community college baccalaureate programs. The participants in this investigation were a homogeneous sample of adult students who had priorities other than school, such as employment and families. The research questions which guided the study sought to explore the narratives adult students shared of their reasons for choosing to enroll in a community college baccalaureate degree program, how they described meaning to having access to these new degrees, and what impact the community college baccalaureate had on the decision to return for the bachelor degree. The voices of the students were captured during semi-structured individual interviews. Six central themes emerged from the data gathered: Resiliency vs. Obstacles: Managing Life, Finding Self Through Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivational Factors, The Community College Degree as Key to Economic Stability, Limited Alternatives to Baccalaureate Degree Attainment, Importance of Communality to Adult Students Feelings of Belonging, and Neither Difference nor Disadvantage to Obtaining a Community College Baccalaureate Degree. The study’s results led to recommendations and implications for legislators, higher education faculty and administrators, and admissions and marketing specialists.