This dissertation explores Bai language use in Jianchuan County, China. On the basis of interviews with 42 language users, transcripts of spontaneous conversation and elicited narratives, excerpts from Bai texts in an alphabetic orthography and Chinese characters, and six months of participant observation, I demonstrate how language users'…

Previous research suggests that academic deans follow the human relations and structural perspectives in conflict management (Feltner & Goodsell, 1972). However, the position of an academic dean has been described to have undertones that are more political and social than hierarchical and technical. Hence, the current study evaluated the role of…

As a leader, what can you do when economic turmoil threatens an organization that you have been entrusted to steward? How do you ensure that an organization with deep roots and clear purpose endures during prosperous and challenging times? How can an organization continue to live its mission while operating in an environment that threatens its…

This longitudinal quantitative study compared literacy achievement of students from second through sixth grade based on two organizational systems: graded (traditional) and nongraded (multiage) classrooms. The California Standards Test (CST) scaled and proficiency scores for English-Language Arts (ELA) were used as the study's independent variable…

The central goal of this dissertation is to explore the relative perceptibility of vowel epenthesis in English onset clusters by second language learners whose native language is averse to onset clusters. The dissertation examines how audible vowel epenthesis in different onset clusters is, whether this perceptibility varies from one cluster to…

The purpose of this study was to collect and analyze data from practicing mainstream K-12 teachers currently enrolled in graduate courses at a large, urban, Midwest university regarding four categories of their attitudes toward English language learners: (a) inclusion of ELLs, (b) the second language acquisition process/language and language…

The purpose of this study was to identify the leadership competencies and characteristics that are "preferred" by student affairs administrators, and to compare these preferences across generations to determine if there were any differences. The term "preferred" was used to indicate that the study asked respondents to assign a value or a level of…

The emergence of a new digital landscape coupled with the pervasive nature of digital experiences has fundamentally changed both current and future students in colleges and universities across the world. A new generation of learners has entered college armed with an understanding of technology that prepares them to have a greater control over…

This study examined the capability of computer simulation as a tool for assessing the strategic competency of emergency department nurses as they responded to authentically computer simulated biohazard-exposed patient case studies. Thirty registered nurses from a large, urban hospital completed a series of computer-simulated case studies of…

Small sample equating remains a largely unexplored area of research. This study attempts to fill in some of the research gaps via a large-scale, IRT-based simulation study that evaluates the performance of seven small-sample equating methods under various test characteristic and sampling conditions. The equating methods considered are typically…

The purpose of this study was to investigate factors that contribute to teachers' sense of community within public, urban, elementary schools. Because previous research has touted the benefits of teacher communities within schools (Kruse, 2001; Leana & Pil, 2006; Ware & Kitsantas, 2007) educational leaders are challenged with creating school…

The purpose of this research was to explore the nature, process, and facilitating factors of transformative learning experiences of Korean-American adults in a Korean American immigrant congregation (KAIC). The focus was on discovering how and to what extent, if any, the congregational culture of the KAIC as the learning situation played a role in…

This study explored master's level counselors-in-training perceptions of participation in a cohort model of education. Although the cohort model of education is widely used, research addressing its use in counselor education is scant. Literature regarding the cohort model of education from a variety of higher education programs was reviewed to…

This qualitative study focused on counseling psychology doctoral students' perspectives regarding their practicum training experience in primary care psychology. The four participants included three females and one male. Semi-structured individual and focus group interviews were used to explore participants' experiences. The participants described…

The Crawford County Adult Education Program Evaluation was implemented to gather data that would assist in increasing the number of enrolled students at CCAEC. The data were compiled from state, federal, local extant data, a Community Opinion Survey and focus group interviews. Of the 1,015 Crawford County Residents who were emailed the COS, 213…