"Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS)," a diagnostic reading tool used in the majority of school districts throughout the state of Louisiana, has been identified by many researchers as a reliable and valid tool to identify reading deficiencies in struggling readers (Good, Simmons, & Kame'enui, 2001;…

In 2001, the Louisiana Board of Regents adopted the "Louisiana Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education: 2001" as a signal for new accountability standards in Louisiana institutions of higher education. The purpose of this study was to examine the power of the academic criteria utilized by the "Master Plan" to predict…

This sociolinguistic-variationist investigation sheds light on two little-studied issues concerning Spanish DOM, or variable use of a before animate "direct objects" (DOs), in vernacular language: the complex interaction of co-occurring linguistic (type of verb; definiteness, specificity, grammatical number, topicality, type and…

This dissertation explores the relational worlds of a single child with a significant disability. Previous research on relationships for individuals with significant disabilities has heavily relied on the perceptions of and information from others, rather than the individual with a disability him or herself. This research is an ethnographic…

With the increased accountability of educators comes the responsibility of the entire educational community to find ways in which we can help our students succeed in the classroom. In addition, it is important to discover what it takes to keep those students in school. Many science teachers enter the profession unprepared to handle the regular…

The purpose of this case study, using a qualitative research design, was to examine the process of using literacy assessment portfolios (LAPs) within a cross-categorical special education classroom to investigate whether or not using LAPs would provide distinct information about the literacy development of two students identified with specific…

Given the increasingly complex and fluid nature of organizations today, there is an urgent need to study the role that leadership can play in helping organizations to successfully navigate through difficult and turbulent times. This dissertation investigated the journey of six participants who served as leaders in organizations during periods of…

This qualitative follow-up evaluation explored the long-term impact of a faculty development program on participants who were five years post program. This study focused on 12 faculty members who participated in the University of Missouri's New Faculty Teaching Scholars program. The nine month program focused on creating a culture of teaching…

This study examined the perspectives of parents of children with autism receiving special education services in an upper Midwestern state. This study sought to determine parent perspectives of priorities for the child's IEP, parent perspectives of content of the child's IEP, and parent perspectives of their experiences at the school,…

Given the call for change in medical school curriculum towards a more humanistic approach, it remains clear that there is an urgent need to study the effects of personal development classes on medical students' skill level. Using participants from an ethical influence communications class, this study explored the impact of the use of…

This participant observation research study explored relationships between the role of guided reading and in-school writing of three proficient first-grade literacy learners during the first eight months of the 2007-08 school-year. Portraits of each student as a literacy learner were developed through case studies. Those individual case studies…

Numerous challenges can be associated with pursuing a degree as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). The risk to perspective students and their nurse anesthesia programs may be lessened if success factors for program completion and passing of the national certification examination (NCE) could be identified. The purpose of this ex post…

This was a study of an education doctorate program at a small, private college. It examined the following nine components: theory of leadership for school improvement; candidate recruitment and selection based on leadership; coherent curriculum; use of active learning strategies; knowledgeable faculty; high quality internships; social and…

The Problem: In light of the current political and economic pressure being placed on school districts, it is imperative for school leaders to implement initiatives which will contribute to the school improvement process. Better utilization of administrators and faculty is key to the efficient and effective implementation of school improvement…

This applied research project was developed to examine the social value return of investment (SV-ROI) of a community rehabilitation provider (CRP) in order to identify services that may optimize employment outcomes, better understand the associated factors affecting the employment outcomes and retention, and explore how vocational rehabilitation…