Juvenile delinquency in the nation’s cities, suburbs, and rural communities has been considered a longstanding problem with severe implications for not only youth offenders but their families and communities as well. The source of juvenile delinquency has been attributed to a number of factors including the breakdown of the family, antisocial behavior as a result of the child’s environment, and rapid urbanization of America’s cities. No matter the source, the problem of juvenile delinquency has been addressed by a variety of stakeholders including law enforcement agencies, community organizations, and school systems with the purpose of diminishing the problem. The current climate of juvenile justice reform is shifting toward prevention and intervention, rather than complete suppression by way of detainment. According to the theoretical framework applied to this study, a consideration for understanding forms of deviance relates to social controls and the presumption that conformity is not intrinsically accepted, but is the result of internal and external motivations or factors. This research was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the Youth Against Violence (YAV) program, which focused its efforts on reducing juvenile delinquency in the community and assisting youth to meet bond conditions in order to reenroll in traditional public schools. Participants were referred to the YAV program by court order, school referral, or parent/self referral for participation in an 8-week intervention and prevention program to help rehabilitate offenders for the purpose of successful re-entry into the community and completion of their education in public schools. To determine program effectiveness, this study utilized several independent variables including parental involvement, participant demographics, gang membership/affiliation, program curriculum, frequency of contact with law enforcement, family history with law enforcement, and extended family support. These variables were selected to measure participants’ perception of YAV program effectiveness. This mixed method analysis utilized participant surveys, focus groups with former participants, parents of former participants, and interviews with YAV personnel. The research concludes by identifying the significant relationships between the dependent and independent variables revealed in descriptive and correlative statistics. The research also discusses the emergent themes related to program effectiveness that were identified in qualitative analysis. Finally, the research provides recommendations for program practice, juvenile justice policy, and future rehabilitative and reentry research based on the research findings to assist practitioners with the development of prevention and intervention programs that can effectively deter youth from engaging in delinquency.

In 2017, the College of Public Health implemented a “teaching incentive” by which faculty would receive extra pay if the composite score of teaching effectiveness on the student assessment of instruction (SAI) was in the top third for all scores in the college in that same semester, and at least 40% of the students in the class completed the SAI. In the first 4 years, 53 incentives were awarded to 25 different members of the faculty, for a total of $206,772. The college documented an increase in the composite score of teaching effectiveness and in percent of students completing the SAI. Significant increases in the composite score were seen for all faculty (3.47 to 3.59 out of 4.00, p =.02) and for those faculty in the college for the entire period (3.47 to 3.57, p =.0189). Over the 4 years, the percent of classes that had at least a 40% response rate increased for all faculty (41.2% to 55.7%, p =.0447) and for faculty who were in the college for the entire 4 years (39.6% to 51.9%, p =.1373). A teaching incentive that includes a significant salary supplementation appears to be associated with an increase in both student response rates and overall assessment of teaching effectiveness.

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Academic writing programs are one way universities seek to increase the academic achievement of first-year students and decrease attrition. This paper examines data from an evaluation of a first-year academic writing program at Canadian Mennonite University. The original program evaluation was conducted to determine student attitudes toward the program and whether the academic writing lab program increased students’ writing abilities. This thesis goes further by examining relationships between affective outcomes (motivation, self-regulatory ability, perceived writing ability), writing ability, and cumulative grade point average. Data was collected using student surveys and writing samples. The results indicated that academic attainment was positively correlated with: writing ability, motivation, and self-regulation. Motivation and self-regulation, but not perceived writing ability, correlated with actual writing ability. Participation in the Academic Writing Lab did not affect student affective characteristics. However, student writing ability did improve which indicates that even a small program can improve students’ writing skills. / October 2016

Studies have shown that U.S. juvenile recidivism rates range from 50% to 80%, and many risk factors have been associated with adolescent delinquency and recidivism. The purpose of this cross-sectional correlational study was to evaluate the Future Generation mentoring program's effectiveness by examining the relationships between race and gender (independent variables) and youth progress (dependent variable). The Future Generation mentoring program is a pseudonym for the actual program to help protect confidentiality and anonymity of the organization. Juvenile progress was measured by how well a youth met their goals. Youth progress was classified as successful, progressing, or unsuccessful in relation to a juvenile's status. Juveniles who were successful either completed the program or completed at least 75% of their program goals. Juveniles who were progressing made progress towards their goals, but did not complete at least 75% of their goals. Juveniles who received an unsuccessful status did not show adequate progress, those youth did not uphold their responsibility to stay out of trouble. The theoretical framework was rational choice theory. Secondary data were collected from a sample of 49 juveniles enrolled in the Future Generation program. Results of chi-square analyses showed that race was significantly associated with youth progress in the Future Generation mentoring program. No significant association was found between gender and youth progress. Findings may be used to strengthen adolescent deterrence programs and educate stakeholders regarding trends in juvenile delinquency and recidivism rates.

This quantitative study derived from an on-going federal experimental research project targeting Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) receiving services in four program models: control/experimental transitional bilingual education (TBE) and control/experimental structured English immersion (SEI). The purpose of my study was (a) to capture the growth trajectory and rate of oral English acquisition, (b) to investigate the role of oral English development in acquiring English reading skills, and (c) to compare program models in order to identify practices that promote ELLs’ English oral and reading competency at the early elementary level. Structural equation modeling was utilized. Participants consisted of 534 Spanish-speaking ELLs who started at kindergarten and continued through first grade in their respective models. Striking similarities were found among the four instructional models that English oral proficiency improved significantly (p < .05) in a linear fashion over two years. However, the magnitude differed in that the experimental TBE demonstrated a steeper growth (p < .025) than that of the control group that started at the same level. Even though experimental SEI group started at a much lower level in oral English, they progressed at a rate significantly higher (p < .05) than that of the control group. In relation to English reading comprehension, for experimental SEI groups, the initial level of English oral proficiency is of great concern in reading achievement (p < .05). For both TBE groups, effective intervention is desired because the growth of English oral proficiency strongly impacts reading achievement (p < .05), and, in addition, initial level strongly predicts reading comprehension. The intervention was successfully implemented so that students advanced to a substantial amount in academic English oray. It is also evident that first language (L1) instruction did not impede the learning of a second language. On the contrary, for those students receiving a larger proportion of L1 instruction, alterations in program models are needed to nurture English oracy at a faster rate of growth, which in turn facilitates English literacy acquisition. Findings also indicate that without effective English intervention, students placed in control TBE classrooms remain below all the students in oral English proficiency.

Magistro darbe yra suformuluotos Aktyvios darbo rinkos politikos priemonių (profesinio mokymo, viešųjų darbų, įdarbinimo subsidijuojant, įgūdžių įgijimo rėmimo) efektyvumo vertinimo problemos, mažinant nedarbo riziką ir keliant darbo jėgos poreikį, įtakojant darbo rinkos funkcionavimą. Pirmojoje magistro darbo dalyje analizuojamas Aktyvios darbo rinkos politikos priemonių vertinimo metodikos, užimtumo politika ir jos poveikio kryptys Lietuvoje. Teoriniame ir praktiniame lygmenyje analizuojamas nevienareikšmiškas ADRP priemonių poveikio vertinimas jos dalyviams – bedarbiams ir darbdaviams, bei tiriamas socialinis ir ekonominis efektyvumas. Analizė, paremta dalyvių nuomonėmis ir ADRP vykdymo vertinimu patvirtina autoriaus suformuluotą mokslinio tyrimo hipotezę, kadangi ADRP priemonės įtakoja svarbius socialekonominius efektus, padeda mažinti nedarbą ir kaip išaiškėjo atliekant tyrimą, yra naudingos daugumai dalyvių gerinant jų įsidarbinimo galimybes, įgaunant daugiau praktinės patiries bei socialinę ir ekonominę naudą. / This master’s final paper formulates problems of how effective are Active labour market programs (particular interventions include training, public works, employment subsidies, practice acquisition sponsorship), reducing the risk of unemployment and increasing the labour demand, improving functioning of the labour market. In the first part of the work there are analized the ALMPs evaluation methods, the labour market policy and its implementation in Lithuania. The theoretical and practical approach analyse polar evaluation positions of ALMP impact for workers, employers and economical effectivenes. The analysis, based on a thorough evaluations of evidence finds out that ALMP’s have important social, as well as economic effects, as a panacea for reducing unemployment and useful for most of the participants increasing their abilities to work, getting more working experience and social –economical benefit.

The number of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is on the rise, both in the United States and around the world. The Individuals with Disabilities ACT (IDEA 2004) and No Child Left Behind Act (2001) mandate that children with disabilities, including children with ASD, be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). The general education classroom is increasingly identified as the LRE. General education teachers are increasingly responsible for educating students with ASD, often with little or no training on ASD or intervention methods. Few previous studies have explored general education teachers’ experiences and attitude towards inclusion of learners with ASD. This study examines general education teachers’ perceptions of the effectiveness of inclusion in their schools and their experiences teaching in inclusive settings. This study illuminated two areas of interest: first, teachers were supportive of inclusion, and second, teachers identified areas where they felt inclusion policies needed to be improved in order for inclusion practices to be more effective. This paper subsequently analyzes the aforementioned trends and provides recommendations for further study of inclusion of students with ASD in the general education classroom.

>Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Leadership Studies Program. James P. Hopkins, 2013. Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler School of Education. ERIC Descriptors: Undergraduate Study, Student Experience, Program Effectiveness, Program Evaluation, Leadership. This case study reported on the effectiveness of the Jepson School of Leadership Studies program of instruction at the University of Richmond. The research extended and replicates research of a similar nature completed by Brungardt (1997) at Fort Hays State University and Funk (2005) at Kansas State University. The study investigated if the academic programming was an effective change agent were the attitudes, behaviors, or knowledge of the graduating seniors affected, and, if so, how. The study also reviewed which curriculum components pedagogy, course content, or service learning were most effective. This mixed-methods study focused on the perennial question surrounding academically based leadership studies programs are they effective? While effectiveness and causation are the main themes of this research, the study also addressed the utility of mixed-methods research on leadership topics and the need for further research into programs offering leadership studies degrees. The results suggested that students changed by growing in leadership capacity and efficacy through their Jepson School academic experiences. Quantitative instruments reflect growth in leadership behaviors from the sophomore to senior years and an overall satisfaction with the Jepson academic programming. The qualitative instruments added weight and meaning to quantitative results by explaining program impacts and benefits from a student, alumni, and key staff perspective. The results of this study matched the results of previous research and suggested that academic leadership studies programs are effective change agents.