Abstract The Internet has developed rapidly and many mental health websites are available to the public. However¡Athe quality of those websites is usually uneven. In this research, medical professionals, web designers and general users are invited to evaluate the mental health websites in Taiwan. The result indicates that the websites set up by public medical institutions are better than those by private medical institutions and that the websites set up by medical centers are superior to district and local hospitals. In addition, public medical institutions provide better on-line interactive services than private medical institutions, and the development of hygienic education in specific consulting groups is more advanced than that in medical hospitals or clinics. Finally, the web-pages designed by medical centers are better in quality than those by the single-field teaching hospitals affiliated to the Executive Yuan.

In times of heightened environmental consciousness, conservation education programming has proven useful for providing information and promoting natural resource conservation and stewardship. In a study of the 2005 Texas 4-H Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Program (WHEP), a contest teaching youth about the fundamentals of wildlife science and management, I sought to determine if WHEP was successfully reaching its primary goal: promoting conservation by increasing knowledge and skills of youth in the wildlife field. Through a series of facilitator-led interviews with WHEP participants (n = 35) and a combination of internet and on-site surveys (consisting of 35 current participants, 22 control youth, 19 past participants, 25 parents, and 7 coaches obtained from program registration lists), I explored the influence of program participation on wildlife management knowledge, social and leadership skills, attitudes, and understanding of stewardship. I found that WHEP had a significant impact on knowledge of wildlife management techniques and ecological concepts. The program had little influence on attitudes because most youth had positive perceptions of natural resources management prior to program involvement. I also found that past participants of WHEP claimed a significant increase in skills after program participation, but current participants could not determine their own progress. This suggested a longer period of time was needed to gauge self improvement. Parents and coaches claimed the program had a large impact on youth through instilling knowledge and values, but also improving their social, cognitive, and leadership competencies. Adults also discussed issues with participation, including a lack of program expansion and support. From these results, I determined that WHEP was achieving its program goals, but needs to address the issue of expansion because of its low level of operation compared to other 4-H programs in Texas. Suggestions for program growth include targeting youth groups and counties, cross promoting with other conservation programs, and continuing recruitment in currently participating counties.

Zugl.: Marburg, Universiẗat, Diss., 2009.

Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb. 22, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Dissertation advisors: Dr. Joyce Piveral and Dr. Phillip Messner. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

<p> While it is important to recognize the economic background of students and home factors contributing to their achievement, the purpose of this study was to discover what best practices schools were implementing with low socioeconomic students to narrow the achievement gap in communication arts (Darling-Hammond &amp; Richardson, 2009; Gorski, 2013; Snell, 2003). The research design incorporated mixed-methods by employing data collected from surveys, interviews, and secondary data sources. A triangulation of data was used to increase the credibility and validity of the study (Fraenkel et al., 2012; Mills, 2014). For this study, the quantitative data were collected using a survey as well as Missouri Assessment Performance (MAP) scores. The qualitative data were collected through interviews. In addition to increasing the validity of the study, the benefits of using triangulation also included creating varied ways to understand and reveal the results of the study (Fraenkel et al., 2012; Guion, Diehl, &amp; McDonald, 2011; Mills, 2014). The results of this study indicated a blend of research-based best practices can make a positive impact in narrowing the achievement gap in students from low socioeconomic backgrounds in the area of communication arts. The significance of this research is the results provide educators an outline of successful research-based instructional strategies to assist communication arts students.</p>

<p> This qualitative study was designed to investigate the perceptions of participants in the TRIO Student Support Service (SSS) program, a government-funded student retention program for first-generation college students, low-income students, and students with disabilities. There was little research on the perceptions of students who represent the target population in this government-funded program. Tinto&rsquo;s (2012b) model of student departure was used to interpret the findings. The study was guided by three research questions used to investigate possible barriers or benefits to the participants while attending the university, and also asked participants for suggestions to improve the TRIO SSS program. Interviews with first-year TRIO SSS participants at a Midwest university were conducted. The students in this study discussed their experiences; and three themes emerged as issues with which they had to deal: adjustment, integration, and personal growth. These findings mirrored prior research on this target population, all of whom have been found to struggle with academic preparation, study skills, college procedural knowledge, and with wanting to fit into college both socially and academically (Johnson, 2012). The findings in this study are also consistent with the theory of student departure put forth by Tinto (2012b). Program improvement suggestions included, additional social gatherings, increasing the number of advisory meetings, provide a TRIO SSS program-specific orientation meeting, facilitate workshops to address study abroad programs and understanding income taxes. The TRIO SSS program services and staff were perceived by the participants as meeting the participants&rsquo; needs and should continue the practices already in place.</p>

<p> Historically, the state of Missouri has utilized the Performance-Based Teacher Evaluation (PBTE) system developed by Dr. Jerry Valentine from the University of Missouri (Valentine &amp; Harting, 1986). The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 mandated more rigorous accountability standards for state education systems (Moe, 2014). The 2012 revisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provided to Missouri by the U.S. Department of Education relieved the original mandates of the NCLB Act (MODESE, 2015a). However, added were provisions for teacher and administrator accountability which required evaluation of research-based principles of effective instruction (MODESE 2015a). In this study, the researcher reviewed one evaluation system, the Network for Educator Effectiveness (NEE) teacher evaluation system, to determine if a correlation existed between principal evaluation data and student perception data of specific classroom teachers in relation to student performance on state assessments. Of the six research questions included in the case study, the data generated for question three with a bivariate correlate for the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient for the NEE Evaluation Indicator 4.1 principal&rsquo;s evaluation and student survey data for Indicator 4.1 revealed the best line of fit with <i>r</i> = .63. The significance output of <i>p</i> &lt; .01 was the greatest significant correlation of the study. These data indicate both the students and the principal recognize the teacher&rsquo;s level of implementation for Indicator 4.1 (teacher instructional strategies leading to student problem-solving and critical thinking). No other correlates were found to be significant for this study.</p>

<p> This study examined how an Early Head Start and Head Start grantee, the Institute for Human and Social Development (IHSD), implemented the Office of Head Start&rsquo;s research-based Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (PFCE) Framework. This study also evaluated IHSD&rsquo;s performance and determined whether the organization accomplished its set intention of fostering family engagement in support of positive child development and education outcomes. </p><p> This formative, outcome-based program evaluation utilized qualitative and quantitative analysis to evaluate IHSD's systematic implementation of engagement. Parent survey data, interview transcripts, and a review of existing agency data provided a parent-oriented perspective on the IHSD&rsquo;s engagement outcomes relative to the PFCE Framework. </p><p> Participants included parents of children in each of IHSD's five program options during 2012&ndash;2013 or 2013&ndash;2014. They participated by completing either a parent survey (<i>n</i> = 842) or an interview (<i> n</i> = 12) regarding engagement-focused services, focusing on the parents&rsquo; perspectives of the services&rsquo; implementation and outcomes. Results from the surveys and interviews were analyzed with available IHSD data related to family services as well as child outcomes, including gains in social-emotional development and language and literacy development within the Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP). Results indicate that the children made improvement gains within the DRDP domains investigated. Parents surveyed and interviewed identified the program environment as engaging and named the staff&rsquo;s helpfulness as responsible. Among the aspects of the program they were asked to rate, parents identified the strategies of parent training, parent leadership council membership, home activities, home visits, parent meetings, and volunteerism as ideal in meeting their needs. </p><p> In general, IHSD is a high-quality agency providing early childhood education that engages families and grows parent engagement by teaching parents to be their children&rsquo;s advocates and teachers. The results of this study indicate that if IHSD continues to effectively implement strategies and incorporates feedback from these findings, the organization&rsquo;s child development programs will likely continue to excel.</p>