Little research has been done in the area of adult Hispanics' transition to college, a complex and challenging process which marks a critical period in their lives. Research suggests adaptation difficulty may cause them to drop out of school usually before completion of the first terms. There is a lack...
Concern about college and career readiness has been expressed in both the
business and education arenas. Employers are calling for entry-level employees with
basic academic skills and educators are being held accountable for student
achievement in academic areas similar to those required by employers. In this
environment, WorkKeys has emerged...
The purpose of this study was to determine the congruency between the teaching beliefs and the teaching behaviors of adult educators as well as the factors that may affect this congruency. A qualitative study was conducted using seven adult educators. The participants were interviewed, observed, and then interviewed again. The...
This dissertation demonstrates how Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986,
1997) can be successfully applied to Counselor academic advising interventions, in
order to increase students' self-efficacy and self-regulated learning (Zimmerman,
2000) in academic planning as learned outcomes. This was accomplished by (a)
reviewing the academic advising literature and showing the current...
This study examined relationships between pre-tested early literacy skills and post-tested reading achievement in 52 kindergarten and 39 first-grade children. An archival data set was available for statistical analysis. Data analysis was completed in three stages: Participants' entry-level literacy and language scores were compared on two Assessment of Literacy and...
The purpose of this study is to identify factors that support the likelihood of persistence of academically underprepared community college students to 45 college level credits. Factors considered in this research include: (a) race/ethnicity, (b) age, (c) enrollment status, (d) socio-economic status (SES), (e) first quarter GPA, (f) developmental need,...
Latinos are the largest and most rapidly growing ethnic minority in the United States, and they have the highest dropout rates of any major ethnic group in the country (U.S. Department of Labor, 2003). Latinos' educational attainment is consistently lower than that of other students (Gandara, 2008). The majority of...
There is little current research in reading instruction for gifted learners. Children who are identified as gifted in reading are often left to their own devices or provided inadequate reading/literacy instruction (Ries et al., 2004). The purpose of this project was to determine how parents of gifted children and gifted...
The purpose of this study was to compare how elected and appointed board
trustees provide oversight for the community colleges they serve. The rationale for
this study was that little examination of board governance processes at community
colleges had occurred and, as a result, board members may lack the understanding...
The purpose of this study is to determine factors that encourage second
generation Latina/os to obtain a community college education. A critical qualitative
ethnography focused on "Testimonio" was used in conducting this study. The key
findings were formulated around three critical research questions. In relation to each
research question, three...
The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the factors that contributed to the engagement of middle and high school teachers in professional learning with instructional coaches, relative to disciplinary literacy. The study addressed the following question: What factors appear to influence secondary content-area teachers' engagement with instructional coaches,...
Research suggests that a key factor in student persistence and success is the relationships students form with faculty (Chickering & Gamson, 1991; Kuh et al., 2005; Tinto, 1987). While it appears to be intuitive that small classes would promote these instructor/student relationships, research on class size provides conflicting results, with...
The purpose of this study was to investigate three research questions: (1) What are the attitudes and beliefs of the pre-service teachers and teacher educators regarding multicultural education, and how do the teacher educators prepare the pre-service teachers to meet the needs of diverse K-12 students in Taiwan? (2) To...
This qualitative study seeks to gain knowledge about the motives and barriers of rural adult women students and how these factors impact their decision to pursue postsecondary education. As more adult women choose to enter or return to higher education, it is important to examine the factors that influence their...
The purpose of this multi-case study was to describe how library deans and directors at large comprehensive community colleges strategically advocate for and support instructional and technological innovation despite the reality of limited resources and the stress caused by recurring funding crises in higher education. It further sought to examine...
Literature on the evolution of the American higher education system includes a historical and consistent debate over the definition of the higher education mission in the country. Recent debate focuses on mission differentiation between the university and the community college. Acknowledging systemic changes in higher education historically occurred within regions...
The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of faculty-to-faculty mentoring programs on the experiences of both mentors and first-year instructor protégés in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs with an emphasis on practitioner-educators in nursing and in welding-fabrication. The study was undertaken for four reasons: (a) increases...
The 2004 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and No Child Left Behind (NCLB) are two federal mandates which impact general education teachers working with special needs students and diverse learners (second language learners, students from severe poverty, students from different cultures, students who experience occasional emotional needs, and students...
The purpose of this study is to identify promising practices for the transferability of professional/technical coursework taken at a community college to related programs at universities. The main research question sought to identify the salient elements in existing models of transfer. Supporting the main question, sub-questions sought to identify obstacles...
The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of foster alumni in community and technical colleges, with a focus on Washington State, using a qualitative research approach. Foster alumni may be considered a sub-set of first generation students, yet they have needs that extend beyond those of other...
In 2004, the Transition Mathematics Project (TMP), funded by the state of Washington and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, was established to create projects to help high school students gain the necessary skills to become college and work-ready. Aligned to TMP's College Readiness Mathematics Standards, a fourth-year capstone mathematics...
This study explores No Child Left Behind's required timetable for English language learners (ELLs) to reach English language proficiency within five years, as outlined in the Annual Measurable Achievement Outcomes (AMAOs), despite the lack of research evidence to support this as a reasonable expectation. Analysis was conducted on the archived...
An interpretative philosophical framework was applied to a case study to document the particular experiences and perspectives of ten women engineering transfer students
who once attended a community college and are currently enrolled in one of two university
professional engineering programs. This study is important because women still do not...