This study examined the effects of a computer-mediated intervention on "at-risk" preschool students' receptive vocabulary development, computer-literacy skills, and enthusiasm for leaning. Twenty-two preschool-aged children attending an urban primary public school and participating in government subsidized school lunch program participated in the study. A pretest/posttest control-group design and case-study participant observations were used for data collection. Students were assigned to one of two treatment groups. Eleven preschool students with pretest School Readiness Composite (SRC) standard scores of 80, or below, on the Bracken Basic Concept Scale-Revised (BBCS-R), were assigned to the intervention group. Eleven pre-school students matched by age level and teacher comprised the comparison group. The intervention group received computer-mediated instruction while the comparison group received classroom teacher instruction. The first research question examined the effect of the intervention on students' receptive vocabulary analyzing groups' pretest and posttest BBCS-R School Readiness Composite mean scores. Combined analysis of a Two-Factor Repeated Measures and a Posttest only ANCOVA revealed that computer-mediated instruction was as effective as classroom teacher instruction in helping "at-risk" students acquire readiness receptive vocabulary. The second research question examined the effect of the intervention on "at-risk" student's computer-literacy skills analyzing participants pretest and posttest mean scores on the …

Each year, institutions of higher education devote valuable financial and personnel resources in the hope of enhancing student recruitment and matriculation. The purpose of this study was to examine the demographic characteristics, the factors that influenced students’ decisions to apply for admission to a university, their educational intentions, and their reasons for not enrolling after they had been admitted. The subjects of the study were first-time freshmen accepted for admission to a mid-size, public, southwestern university who did not enroll for the fall 1997 semester. Statistically significant differences were found when comparing no-shows and enrolled students by gender, ethnicity, age, ACT/SAT score, and distance of their hometown from the university. There were more female no-shows, and more males enrolled than females; a greater percentage of no-shows reported the distance of their hometown to be more than 200 miles; and the mean test score for no-shows was higher. Factors important in the college selection process found to be statistically significant among the groups were: a greater percentage of Minorities than Caucasians reported the importance of the financial aid award or a scholarship offer; students living within 100 miles of the campus reported the proximity of the university as important, advice received …

Recent studies reveal that a considerable number of U.S. community college leaders will be retiring in the next several years. The concern is that with the large turnover, history, culture, and important lessons of leadership will be lost. The current research on the lives of presidents, their career paths, and experiences in community college leadership centers on approaches to the study of leadership at the macro level. Limited research exists in the published literature that reports and analyzes the development of individuals as community college leaders at the micro level. This results in a gap regarding understanding leadership development and strategies to prepare leaders. This study addresses this gap by providing a critical description of the leadership development of one individual who became a community college chancellor and who the literature on the community context indicates contributed to the local and national context for community colleges. Biography is gaining prominence as a legitimate and viable tool in the study of leadership. Few biographical studies currently exist which focus on leadership development in context at the micro level. This dissertation is a biographical, qualitative study of the leadership path and legacy of R. Jan LeCroy, a community college leader. The study …

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a breastfeeding education program on breastfeeding initiation rates, breastfeeding knowledge, and attitude towards breastfeeding among teenage mothers at an urban school for pregnant and parenting teens. Breastfeeding initiation rose from 35.7% in the control group to 85.2% in the treatment group. The mean score on the Breastfeeding Knowledge Subscale was significantly higher for the treatment group but not the control group. There was not a significant increase in mean scores on the Breastfeeding Attitude Subscale. Participants who initiated breastfeeding scored also had a significant increase in scores from pretest to posttest on the Breastfeeding Knowledge Subscale, while participants who did not initiate breastfeeding did not.

Counselor education programs are charged with the responsibility to train students to be effective counselors. Despite relative consistency in academic and clinical experiences, some students are less effective than others. It was the intent of this research to investigate possible relationships which may exist between students' background and experiences and their levels of demonstrated counselor effectiveness as measured by the Counselor Rating Form - Short Version (CRF-S) and the Supervisor Rated-Counselor Interaction Analysis (SR-CIA). It was hypothesized that counselor effectiveness would be negatively correlated with prior teaching experience and level of religious participation. Data was collected using a demographic survey from masters level counseling students participating in their practicum semester. Counseling tapes from each of the participants were collected towards the end of the semester. These tapes were then rated by doctoral students using the CRF-S and the SR-CIA. The total sample size was 28. Regression analysis was used to investigate the hypotheses. Three models were constructed. The dependent variables used were scores from the CRF-S, the SR-CIA and a third comprised of a normalized composite of CRF-S and SR-CIA termed COMPOSITE. Each model used, as the independent variables, years of teaching experience, and hours of religious participation. Results from …

The purpose of the project was to examine the relationship between the social development of preschool children and parenting styles. Preschool social development was accessed by the use of sociometry. Parenting styles of mothers and fathers were determined by a questionnaire. The parenting styles and the sociometric status of the children were analyzed to determine a relationship using the chi-square analysis. The analysis indicated that there was no significant relationship between parenting styles and the sociometric status of preschool children. It is recommended that more research be done in the fields of parenting styles and sociometry.

Throughout the United States, colleges and universities are faced with an increasing need for financial funding, while at the same time resources continue to diminish. With the limitations of available funds, community colleges must exhibit efficiencies in the operations of their institutions. External interests, such as governing boards and legislatures, require demonstration of efficient financial management. This evidence is then used to make decisions concerning future financial support for the community college. This study determined if community college chief executive officers use financial performance indicators as provided by the State Auditor's Office and if the chief executive officers of the community colleges value the compilation and the distribution of the financial performance indicators. In the selected colleges, many of the chief executive officers depend on their chief financial officer for understanding and application of financial performance indicators. The performance indicators distributed by the Auditor's Office captured only a snapshot of the college's performance, and failed to fully describe the whole college performance or specific financial events captured by the indicators. Though the indicators had flaws, either through incorrect data or lack of explanation, the CEOs did value their compilation because they provided a means for ‘getting the community college story' …

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between attachment and emotion understanding in preschoolers. Data was collected from 16 preschool children and their mothers recruited from a private learning center in a downtown metropolitan area. Attachment was measured by use of the Attachment Q-sort, 3.0 (Waters, 1995), while emotion understanding was assessed through use of Denham's (1986) affective perspective-taking task and interviews of children concerning naturally occurring emotions and emotion causes (Fabes et al., 1991). Results included a significant correlation (p < .05) between secure attachment and preschooler's ability to decipher the cause of another's emotion; however, a significant correlation was not found between secure attachment and preschooler's perspective-taking ability or ability to name other's emotions. Thus, conclusions about the impact of attachment upon emotion understanding were mixed, and more research on the subject was implicated.

Power and effect size analysis are important methods in the psychological sciences. It is well known that classical statistical tests are not robust with respect to power and type II error. However, relatively little attention has been paid in the psychological literature to the effect that non-normality and outliers have on the power of a given statistical test (Wilcox, 1998). Robust measures of location exist that provide much more powerful tests of statistical hypotheses, but their usefulness in power estimation for sample size selection, with real data, is largely unknown. Furthermore, practical approaches to power planning (Cohen, 1988) usually focus on normal theory settings and in general do not make available nonparametric approaches to power and effect size estimation. Beran (1986) proved that it is possible to nonparametrically estimate power for a given statistical test using bootstrap methods (Efron, 1993). However, this method is not widely known or utilized in data analysis settings. This research study examined the practical importance of combining robust measures of location with nonparametric power analysis. Simulation and analysis of real world data sets are used. The present study found that: 1) bootstrap confidence intervals using Mestimators gave shorter confidence intervals than the normal theory counterpart …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of Prince George's Community College faculty knowledge of the legal issues, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, and recent court decisions, related to the provision of classroom accommodations for students with disabilities at the postsecondary level. The focus of the study was to determine if a difference existed between the knowledge of full-time and part-time faculty. Part-time faculty comprise over 50 % of the instructional staffs at most community colleges and are considered an integral part of their institutions, yet they are offered little opportunity for professional development. The variables of gender, department affiliation, teaching at more than one institution, number of years of teaching experience, number of students taught with a disability, and number of individuals known with a disability also were reviewed. Data were collected through a questionnaire distributed to 158 faculty members at the college. Twenty-nine packets were returned as undeliverable. Of the 129 deliverable packets, 57 were returned for a response rate of 44.2%. Results from the analysis of data indicated that faculty have very limited knowledge of the legal issues concerning students with disabilities. Only 26.9% …

This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of a filial/play therapy training model with high school juniors and seniors enrolled in a Peer Assistance and Leadership program (PALs). Filial/play therapy is an intervention that focuses on strengthening and enhancing adult-child relationships. The high students are trained to be a therapeutic change agent for primary school children identified as having adjustment difficulties by utilizing basic child-centered play therapy skills in weekly play sessions with young children. Specifically, this study is designed to determine the effectiveness of filial therapy in increasing: 1) the high school students' observed empathic behavior with young children, 2) the high school students' observed attitude of acceptance toward young children, 3) the high school students' observed ability to allow self-direction in young children, and 4) the high school students' observed level of involvement with young children. The experimental group, consisting of 16 volunteer high school students enrolled in a PALs class for high school credit, received a total of 24 weeks of filial/play therapy didactic training, application, and supervision for the playtimes they conducted with pre-kindergarten/kindergarten students identified with adjustment difficulties. The comparison group consisted of 15 volunteer high school students enrolled in a PALs class for …

Differences in self-reported depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and coping were evaluated in two groups of pediatric oncology patients: newly diagnosed (less than six months post-diagnosis) (n=5) and patients on cancer treatment for seven months or longer (n=5). Participants (6 males, 4 females, ages 7-17 years) completed the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC), and the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventory (CFSEI-2); nine of the ten participants discussed in a semi-structured interview their personal experiences and feelings about having cancer. Although the newly diagnosed group had a higher mean score on the CDI than the 7 months or greater group, the difference was not significant (p = .054). The newly diagnosed group also had higher mean state and trait anxiety scores on the STAIC, indicating higher anxiety levels, and a slightly lower CFSEI-2 mean score, indicating slightly lower self-esteem than the 7 months or greater group, but differences were not at a statistically significant level (p>.05).

The primary purpose of this study was to use some of the action methods of playback theatre to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge through the experience of building community. The impact of action methods on group dynamics and the relationship among methods, individual perceptions, and the acquisition of knowledge were analyzed. The researcher suggested that playback theatre action methods provided a climate in which groups can improve the quality of their interactions. The Hill Interaction Matrix (HIM) formed the basis for the study's analysis of interactions. Since the researcher concluded there were significantly more interactions coded in the "power quadrant" after training, the researcher assumed that playback theatre action methods are a catalyst for keeping the focus on persons in the group, encouraging risk-taking behaviors, and producing constructive feedback between members. Based on session summaries, individual interviews, and an analysis of the Group Environment Scale (GES), the training group became more cohesive, became more expressive, promoted independence, encouraged self-discovery, and adapted in innovative ways. The experience of an interconnected community created a space where positive growth could occur. The researcher concluded that the process of community building is intricately connected with a person's ability to make meaning out of experiences. …

This study assessed alumni of the College and University Teaching Program at the University of North Texas and how they perceived the training they received. Three hundred sixty alumni holding a college and university teaching degree were surveyed. One hundred forty-two usable questionnaires were returned. A response rate of 39.4 % was achieved. A survey instrument was used to gather alumni perceptions of learning experiences, academics, and professional benefits as a result of earning a doctorate in the major of college and university teaching at the University of North Texas. Alumni were asked their perceptions on the following: 1) the quality of graduate professional education in college and university teaching degree program, 2) whether they thought the goals and objectives of the program were met, and 3) their recommendations regarding the college and university teaching degree program. It is the overall opinion of the alumni that the quality of the graduate education in college and university teaching degree program was high. The majority of alumni indicated that the program should be reinstated and continued and if the program was still available they would recommend it to others.

This study was designed to measure the effectiveness of accreditation standards (specifically, CACREP Standards for counselor education programs) on the development of counseling skills. A measure of counseling skill (The Counselor Rating Form-Short Version) was used to measure the counseling skills of counselor trainees from various masters programs. These students were enrolled in a doctoral program in counselor education and were taking their first semester practicum. A T-Test of Independent Means revealed that the student counselors from CACREP accredited masters programs scored significantly higher on the CRF-S than did students from non CACREP accredited programs. These students generally had higher levels of counseling skill as judged by this measure. Given the convenience of the sample and its size, results must be analyzed carefully. These results do, however, seem to suggest the necessity of further study. There are several conclusions that may be reasonably drawn from these results. The emphasis that the CACREP Standards place on the supervised experience may account for the difference in skill levels between the two groups. Prior research and student self-report support this theory. The fact that these requirements are daunting to unaccredited programs suggests a gap in experiential learning between the two groups.

Parents' perceptions of their child's behavior may differ for mothers and fathers. Differences in parental perception may also be apparent in cases of special needs adoptive families with high demands of their child for time, interventions and attention. This paper examines the differences in mother-child and father-child interactions, child behavior as reported by mothers, and fathers and changes in both after participation in an intervention program. Results suggest notable differences between mothers' and fathers' parent-child interaction scores and reports of child behavior. In addition, interaction scores and behavior reports showed some correlations. Finally, there seemed to be notable differences in the trends for the Child Behavior Checklist compared to the two attachment measures (Randolph Attachment Disorder Questionnaire and Beech Brook Attachment Disorder Checklist). Several possible explanations for mother and father differences are discussed.

Counselor education program faculties evaluate applicants to masters and doctoral level programs using criteria that the faculties hope will predict the applicant's potential for academic success and then effectiveness as a counselor, counselor educator, or researcher. Choosing admission criteria to assess this level of potential in an applicant is quite a task. Those counselor education programs that are accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) have the benefit of the admission guidelines provided by CACREP standards for accreditation. These guidelines give only basic, general direction to programs regarding their admission criteria but each individual program determines their own criteria for admission. The purpose of this study was to discover any recognizable trends in admission policy criteria, in terms of specific criteria used to evaluate and select students from the applicant pool, for CACREP accredited masters and doctoral programs. This study also sought to discover any recognizable trends in admission policy criteria, in terms of a specific number of criteria used to evaluate and select students for CACREP accredited master and doctoral counselor education programs. This qualitative study investigated 178 masters level CACREP accredited counselor education programs and 45 doctoral CACREP accredited counselor education programs. …

The propose of this study was to determine the effectiveness and appropriateness of the integrated holistic method for teaching grammatical structure, cultural norms and behavior, writing and listening skills to beginning German language students. The study examined a sample of undergraduate students who were enrolled in the introductory college level German offered at the Collin County Community College, Spring Creek Campus in Plano, Texas. A total of 24 students participated in this study. This study utilized a pre- and posttest group to measure the instructional effectiveness of the integrated holistic teaching method. Structural grammar, cultural norms and behavior, writing, and listening skills were used as dependent variables. The holistic integrated teaching method were measured at the end of the course as independent variables. Individual pre- and posttests were used for each of the dependent variables. The higher posttest mean scores indicated significant improvement in student learning level in four major language skills such as structural grammar, cultural norms and behavior, writing, and listening through the holistic integrated teaching method.

Given today's hurried pace of change in higher education and its institutions, it is imperative for the higher education research community to reflect on its current composition and resulting ability to understand and respond to the breadth and rapidity of that change. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to identify selected social and academic characteristics of the primary contributors (authors, editorial board members, and editors) to The Review of Higher Education, to categorize institutional affiliations of contributors via the Carnegie Classification System and to synthesize the data in a historical and sociological perspective. The contributions to The Review's articles, editorial board positions, and editorships in its first 25 years have predominantly been from male members of the higher education professoriate affiliated with and receiving doctoral degrees from major research universities ranked highest in the Carnegie Classification System. Trends toward greater gender and disciplinary representation, especially among author contributors, began to appear by the mid-point (1990s) of the study period.

The purpose of this study was to explore the use of EEG biofeedback in a school setting to assist students who had attentional challenges. The equipment for implementing biofeedback was relatively inexpensive and was easily integrated into the school setting. Twenty students ranging in age from 7 to 17 were recruited for this study. Data was used from 14 subjects, 12 males (2 Hispanic, 1 African American, and 10 Caucasian) and 2 females (1 Hispanic, 1 Caucasian.) The subject pool was reduced due to non-compliance or the students. moving from the school district. Significant effect size was obtained in the treatment group in areas pertaining to visual perception and motor coordination. However, significant effect sizes in other areas were obtained when the control group scores worsened. The inclusion of student subjects who, perhaps, did not meet stringent criterion of attention deficit may have skewed the results. The small number of students in the study may have hindered accurate measures of statistical significance. Conversely, the information obtained from this study may offer insight to school districts in providing their students an alternate/adjunct to psychopharmacological medication and a non- invasive method of helping students with psycho-social challenges.

This study was designed to determine how institutions accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) meet the practicum requirements set forth in CACREP's 2001 standards. Practicum is a vital part of the matriculation process of counselors in training. This clinical based course allows students to practice the skills they have learned in previous, more didactic based courses. Trainees can stretch skills, all under the watch of a counselor supervisor with greater experience. Although CACREP instructs all accredited counseling programs to have such a course in place, the standards are not specific. Schools are often interpreting the standards in a multitude of ways, presumably to successfully meet the standards while still serving the student as well as the clientele who seek out mental health assistance (Pitts, 1992a). The purpose of this study was to determine what measures CACREP accredited institutions enact to meet the clinical practicum standards. The difference between this study and prior research that has addressed the practicum requirement is that the instrument used in this study specifically addressed every CACREP practicum standard, including technology, diversity, and concerns with supervision and meeting the direct client contact hour requirement. The results of the …

The relationships between sociometric status and selected performance variables for counselors in training were investigated. Gender differences in sociometric status were also investigated. Research participants were master's level counseling students. The point-biserial correlation coefficient was used to determine the relationship between sociometric status and grades. The SPSS 13.0 crosstabulation procedure was used to examine gender differences in sociometric status. The results indicated a moderate relationship between sociometric status and grades earned in a group counseling course. A small to negligible relationship between sociometric status and pre-practicum and practicum grades was found. No gender difference in sociometric status was found. The study provides some support for the use of sociometric measurements in predicting group counseling performance, but more research is needed.

This study explored public safety programs in publicly controlled American community colleges. The need for accurate and complete information in an era of homeland security and defense is paramount as government, education, the private sector, and the citizenry interact to ensure a safer nation. The general purposes of this study were to compile current descriptive information on public safety programs and curricula in America's publicly controlled community colleges, and to identify problems and prospects inherent in the administration of these programs. Information is critical as community colleges continue to struggle with decreased funding and seek alternative sources of revenue. Community colleges represent a tremendous network for course delivery, such as homeland security training, but struggle to obtain the attention or the funding from the federal government. A review of pertinent literature provided the foundation of a 100-item survey questionnaire that was mailed to a random sample of 200 public safety administrators at American community colleges. The study also included a review of archival data to further describe the programs. Of the 200 instruments sent, 97 (48.5%) were completed, returned, and useable. From the literature, the survey results, and the archival data, a comprehensive list of community colleges with public safety …

This study investigated what constitutes a moral development program in Buddhist temple preschools in Thailand. The researcher employed three qualitative methods: structured, in-depth interviews, observations of teachers' instruction, and document analysis of curriculum guides. Four Buddhist temple preschools were selected as the sites. Participants for interview included three abbots and one head nun, four principals, and twelve teachers. Participants for observations included four teachers of third year classes in each preschool. The study concentrated on four research questions: (a) what are the elements of the character education curriculum? (b) How do teachers teach moral development concepts and skills? (c) What are the teachers' perceptions of the moral development of third year preschoolers? (d) How do teachers assess their pupils' moral development? Key findings for the research questions were: character education was not a subject in the National Preschool Curriculum which was implemented in the Buddhist temple preschools. Core morality was integrated into every topic. The moral behaviors emphasized in the curriculum and the lesson plans included discipline, mindfulness, kindness, helpfulness, patience, honesty, respect, thriftiness, and politeness. The Buddhist concept of the process of moral development includes character education and meditation. The preschoolers were trained to pay respect to teachers and …