With the fast growth of online education, factors influential to course completion need to be examined. Statistically, this study explored the relationship between five course status factors identified in the literature and the completion of previously incomplete online courses in a course-based approach. The five factors were about the curricular and completion status of an online course with an initially assigned "Incomplete" grade, including credit hours, required assignments, initially submitted assignments, initially earned points, and duration of incomplete status. The extent of coursework completion was measured by the subsequently completed assignments and subsequently earned points. Online courses (n = 933) offered with the 15 different course titles in an online graduate degree program and assigned an "Incomplete" grade in their registration terms between fall 2001 and fall 2005 were used as the units of data analysis. Multiple regression, logistic regression, descriptive statistics analyses, Chi-square tests, and independent t-tests were used for the statistical analysis. The results showed that there were significant differences (a = .05) in the required assignments, initially submitted assignments, initially earned points, and duration of incomplete status between the courses that were completed eventually and those that remained incomplete. According to the statistically significant results, the set of the five course status variables could explain 93.6% of the variance in the completion measured by the subsequently completed assignments and account for 87% of the variance in the completion measured by the subsequently earned points. The statistically significant results also indicated that the set of the five variables could be used to predict the probability of the coursework completion. Regarding the individual variables, the statistically significant results identified the required assignments and initially submitted assignments as the factors contributing to the explanation of the variance in the coursework completion measured by the subsequently completed assignments; the credit hours, required assignments, initially earned points, and duration of incomplete status as the factors contributing to the explanation of the variance in the coursework completion measured by the subsequently earned points. The required assignments and duration of incomplete status were identified as significant predictors of the completion. / Ph. D.

As a national initiative to support retention of engineering students, engineering programs have undergone a surge of revisions to their coursework in recent years, most notably in relation to first-year programs. These program modifications are generally intended to enhance student success in engineering, including both students' achievement and students' motivation to persist in an engineering degree. This study examines motivational constructs as it compares two versions (standard and revised) of an introductory engineering course taught in a general first year engineering program. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine students' course perceptions, students' Expectancy-Value beliefs, and the relationship between perceptions and beliefs in the two versions of an introductory engineering course. Students' perceptions of the class were measured at the course level using the MUSIC model of Academic Motivation, and students' Expectancy-Value beliefs were measured within the engineering domain level using Expectancy-value theory. The dissertation is divided into three stages: In the first stage I provide a quantitative comparison of students' perceptions of the course, from students enrolled in each of the two versions of the course. In the second stage, I describe comparisons of Expectancy-Value engineering-related beliefs between students in each of the two versions of the introductory course, as well as within students in one of the courses. In the third stage, I develop structural models to test the relationship between students' perceptions of the introductory engineering courses and their Expectancy-Value engineering-related beliefs. This study suggests three main outcomes: First, students' perceptions of success and caring are statistically and significantly different between the two versions of the course. Second, students' Expectancy-Value beliefs are discovered to have declined significantly in the standard version of the course, whereas in the revised version of the course, there are no statistically significant differences. Third, the fit indices of the models suggest a good model data-fit providing strong support for the hypothesis that students' perceptions of introductory engineering courses have effect on students' broader motivational beliefs. These outcomes have practical implications for students, instructors, and researchers in first year engineering education. / PHD / The purpose of this dissertation study is to analyze students’ course perceptions and students’ motivation to persist in engineering. Several engineering programs in U.S have recently revised their coursework within first-year programs. One of the goals of these programs is to support students’ engineering-related motivation. In this study, two groups of students were compared in relation to their academic motivation and perceptions of two versions of an introductory engineering course: standard and revised version. This dissertation work also includes an analysis about how students’ perceptions of the courses were related to their engineering-related motivation. Students’ perceptions of the courses were measured using an inventory based on the MUSIC Model of Academic Motivation and students’ engineering-related motivation was measured through a survey based on the Expectancy-Value Theory. The dissertation study was divided into three stages: In the first stage I provide a quantitative comparison of students’ perceptions of the course from students enrolled in each of the two versions of the course. In the second stage, I describe comparisons of engineering-related students’ motivation between students in each of the two versions of the introductory course, as well as within students in each of the courses. In the third stage, I develop statistical models to test the relationship between students’ perceptions of the introductory engineering courses and their engineering-related motivation. This study suggests three main outcomes: First, I found that students’ perceptions of success and caring components are different between the two versions of the course. I also found that students’ engineering-related motivation declined significantly in the standard version of the course, whereas in the revised version of the course, students’ motivation did not change from the beginning to the end of the semester. Finally, I present evidence for the hypothesis that students’ perceptions of introductory engineering courses have effect on students’ engineering-related motivation. In other words, students’ motivation to persist in engineering might be affected by their perceptions of introductory engineering classes.

published_or_final_version / Urban Planning / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

The purpose of this study is to develop a set of behavioral objectives for the Second Year Chemistry Course in Kuwait Secondary Schools. This set of behavioral objectives will help school teachers to choose their activities, teaching methods, questions, and evaluation procedures; it will be useful in the preparation and use of behavioral objectives in their other courses. As a conclusion, the Chemical Education Material Study (CHEMS) appears more beneficial than the traditional chemistry course by its effect on student achievement and the stimulation of the cognitive abilities such as application and analysis processes. The present Kuwaiti chemistry course appears more organized than previous courses and the movement is toward the modern approach. Use of behavioral objectives appears more effective than the use of general objectives (or no objectives) in the area of students' achievements and attitudes, in the area of course content, and organization of complex cognitive processes. Recommendations for improvement of the Kuwaiti chemistry course and for further studies on behavioral objectives are listed.

The purpose of this study was to examine faculty reluctance to providing students with access to course resources via the Internet. The study explored known barriers to the use of technology and the Internet within educational settings and provided opportunity for new barriers to be presented. Personal and professional demographic factors were collected to determine if certain characteristics were identifiable as predictors to web enhancement. An online survey was designed to collect data to address research questions in the study. The survey consisted of 48 questions, including areas for comments and remarks from faculty members. One thousand two (1002) faculty, out of a possible 4,990 responded to the survey. Based on the results, conclusions have been drawn. Female faculty and faculty ranked as assistant, associate, or full professors were most likely to web enhance. Faculty who had taught for between 1 and 15 years at a four-year university, were also more likely to web enhance than other faculty. Faculty in the fields of biology, business administration, communications, computer science, education, English, nursing and psychology appeared most likely to web enhance their courses. Major barriers to enhancement include increased time commitment, concerns regarding faculty work load, lack of person-to-person contact, and difficulty keeping current with technological changes. Recommendations for removing some barriers included the need to recognize and reward innovation, provide incentives to enhance, and establish cultural change within institutions. Meaningful professional development training on enhancement techniques was also recommended, as well as providing release time for enhancement development. Contact standards on campus websites, providing a contact at each institution for research inquiries, and becoming more accessible to the public at large was also needed. Recommendations for further research included completing this study on an institutional basis, and studying the need for ôrevampingö the concept of ôoffice hoursö when used in connection with online courses. In addition, a qualitative study should be conducted on the pros and cons of web enhancement, as well as a time study comparison of students who complete a low level online course then take a higher level on-site course.

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1964 M88

published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation

No description available.

This study was designed to determine the effect upon reading achievement of students who choose an elective course in either life science, creative writing, or accelerated reading in lieu of regular reading classes.

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