The goal of this work is to provide instructors with detailed information about their classes at each assignment during the term. The information is both on an individual level and at the aggregate level. We used the large number of grades, which are available online these days, along with data-mining techniques to build our models. This enabled…

The increasingly integrated presence of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on university campuses in recent decades has prompted calls for a better understanding of how students use ICTs in higher education, including the transition to college. While research indicates that students with higher self-efficacy are more likely to…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact that perceived administrative support and stress had on special education teachers' self-efficacy. A survey was used to gather quantitative data from 244 special education teachers in Central California's Tulare and Fresno counties. Using correlation and regression analysis, this study…

The work described here represents an effort to understand and influence visual attention while solving physics problems containing a diagram. Our visual system is guided by two types of processes--top-down and bottom-up. The top-down processes are internal and determined by ones prior knowledge and goals. The bottom-up processes are external and…

This study examined the predictive relationship between adult literacy students' reading assessments in four component sub-skills (phonological decoding, vocabulary, fluency, and spelling) and their gains in reading comprehension from pretest to posttest. Additionally, the adult literacy instructors' content knowledge in reading…

This dissertation examined the part athletics and resiliency played in degree completion of African American males. Specifically, it investigated three at-risk African American males and the dynamics of athletic participation and resiliency in their degree completion. In view of the fact that many African American students begin their higher…

This phenomenological study explored Black male law enforcement officers' perspectives of how racial profiling shaped their decisions to explore and commit to a law enforcement career. Criterion and snow ball sampling was used to obtain the 17 participants for this study. Super's (1990) archway model was used as the theoretical…

In the United States, foster care is provided to children to avert maltreatment and abuse of children in distressed families by providing a temporary home or a foster home. Courts with jurisdiction over families have been charged by Congress to find appropriate homes when necessary circumstances occur. In fiscal year 2009, there were 423,773…

This qualitative case study explored how U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) students decided whether or not to attend graduate school. The focus was on how U.S. Army students made their decision. The purpose of the study was to illuminate the issues related to this decision in adult development, adult learning, career decision…

This study examined the relationships between undergraduate students' social class background and variables theorized to affect students' social integration in higher education, including students' perception of campus climate, frequency of faculty interactions, frequency of involvement in campus activities, and sense of belonging.…

Although the National Association for Gifted Children states that gifted and talented students from prekindergarten through high school require a differentiated curriculum in all subject areas to maximize their abilities, few gifted programs focus on developing the abilities of high school students in the domain of social studies. Further, the few…

This dissertation examined the relationship between educational resources and student achievement in Illinois public schools. Illinois school districts were compared by type, size, and location. This study built on the premise that disparities exist in educational resources because of the state's reliance on property taxes to fund education.…

The purpose of this study is to determine the degree to which activities within an undergraduate teacher education course in classroom assessment prepared preservice teachers for engaging parents in their children's education. Research indicates that few preservice teachers enter their first classrooms prepared, specifically in the areas of…

Cognitive diagnosis models (see, e.g., Rupp, Templin, & Henson, 2010) have received increasing attention within educational and psychological measurement. The popularity of these models may be largely due to their perceived ability to provide useful information concerning both examinees (classifying them according to their attribute profiles)…

Although the Gender Achievement Gap is closing in mathematics, the "interest gap" in pursuing STEM fields is not. Mathematics education research has discussed constructivist, student-centered and inclusive methods of teaching that have been found to encourage students that have underachieved and been underrepresented in STEM fields. One…