Doctor of Education , University of Dayton, 2022, Educational Leadership

The purpose of this study is to address the lack of student engagement at Northeast High school by addressing the following research questions: (1) What are the current student engagement levels at Northeast High School? (2) How can the level of student engagement at Northeast High School be improved? For this study, student engagement consists of Appleton et al.'s (2008) four subtypes of student engagement: academic engagement, behavioral engagement, cognitive engagement, and affective engagement. Northeast High School has experienced a myriad of challenges that are affecting student engagement, such as the school's chronic absenteeism, lack of academic achievement, and increased discipline infractions. The proposed study employed the Check & Connect conceptual framework, which is informed by the theoretical frameworks of Resilience Theory, Cognitive-Behavioral Theory, Systems Theory, and Intrinsic Motivation Theory (Anderson et al., 2004; Christenson et. al., 2012). This study employed an action research design that used a mixed-method approach and examined several quantitative, qualitative, and phenomenological data sources. The study administered the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) to measure student engagement. The study also collected artifacts such as student attendance records, report cards, discipline records, and stakeholder interviews to look deeper into the student engagement results of the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI). I collected quantitative data for this study from 500 students in the ninth through twelfth grades at Northeast High School. I collected qualitative data for this study by focusing on a purposive homogeneous non-probability sample of 10 students. I used descriptive analysis to calculate the levels of student engagement at Northeast High School. Once I determined the student engagement levels, I designed the Cougar Time Initiative to address and improve the student engagement levels at Northeast High School through fostering g (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: James Olive (Committee Chair); Karen Thomas (Committee Member); Rochonda Nenonene (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Education Finance; Education History; Education Philosophy; Education Policy; Educational Evaluation; Educational Leadership; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Educational Tests and Measurements; Educational Theory; Elementary Education; Secondary Education

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership Studies, Xavier University, 2022, Leadership Studies and Human Resource Development

To address the lack of literature on burnout among leaders, this study extended the research of Baranick and Eby (2015) by studying burnout in behavior scientist practitioners by assessing psychological flexibility and the possible mediating effect of work engagement on burnout and possible moderating effect of work-life balance on work engagement. Participants completed four, self-report surveys to assess the psychological flexibility, work-life balance, work engagement, and burnout of behavior scientist. The study confirmed the previously identified negative relationships between burnout and both psychological flexibility and work engagement exists among behavior scientists. The proposed mediation of work engagement between psychological flexibility and burnout was found to be statistically significant, but the mediation model explained less variance than considering engagement alone as a predictor of burnout. The proposed moderation of work-life balance on engagement was not significant. The results of this study could spur investigations to better understand what has been called a crisis of burnout in the field. Since the correlations among psychological flexibility, work engagement and burnout were found to be independently significant, there is justification for conducting further study to determine whether efforts to increase psychological flexibility and work engagement separately could decrease burnout among behavior scientists.

Committee: Gail F. Latta Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Katrina Wyche Ed.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Psychology; Behavioral Sciences

PHD, Kent State University, 2022, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of expert modeling videos on nursing students' simulation competency. Students in the course Nursing of Adults were provided with a nursing process video in the prebriefing period of their scheduled simulation on Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). The experimental group (n = 22) viewed an expert modeling video, while the control group (n = 22) viewed a video discussion. Immediately following the simulation, students participated in a debriefing. Student simulation outcomes were measured by the Creighton Competency Evaluation Instrument (CCEI). Prior to students debriefing session with simulation and clinical faculty, students individually completed a Video Enjoyment Survey to assess their enjoyment of the video interventions. The results found that students in the experimental group performed significantly better in the CHF simulation when evaluated by the CCEI (p=0.001). Evaluation of four domains found a significant difference between control and experimental in the domains of Communication (p = 0.009) and Patient Safety (p = 0.002). Descriptive trends identified that the experimental group performed one or more levels higher in 11 of the 17 domain behaviors. While no statistically significant differences were found between groups on the Video Enjoyment Survey, when analyzed by factor, the experimental group had a statistically significant difference in the factor of engagement (p = 0.005). This study identified that expert modeling videos may be used in nursing education to improve students' overall simulation competencies and engagement in learning. This contributes to the body of literature on how nursing educators can use expert modeling videos to improve students' clinical competency.

Committee: Richard E. Ferdig (Advisor); Richard E. Ferdig (Committee Chair); Enrico Gandolfi (Other); Marilyn Nibling (Committee Member); Jiahui Wang (Committee Co-Chair) Subjects: Education; Nursing

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2021, Health Education

Background The purpose of this two-part descriptive study was to evaluate an online training course designed to introduce direct care workers to the Tovertafel, a multi-sensory technology device, and provide information about how to facilitate interactive game sessions with older adults who have dementia. While direct care staff are often an integral part of multi-sensory interventions, a review of previous studies indicates that staff training is often under-reported in the literature. Ensuring that direct care workers are comfortable with new practices or technology is crucial to their success, as they are usually the staff who implement new programs. Research suggests that staff members who have been trained using consistent methods are more likely to understand the intended activities and results, which increases the success of the program. Methods In Part One of the study an interactive online training course was created using constructs of the New World Kirkpatrick Model (NWKM). A convenience sampling of undergraduate students enrolled in academic programs offered by the College of Health and Human Services at a midwestern university were invited to participate in the training and complete an online survey. Additionally, students enrolled in three recreation therapy courses at the same university were assigned to complete the activities. Following course completion, an online survey obtained ratings of engagement (i.e., aesthetics, ease of use, novelty, and involvement), relevance, and knowledge/skills gained from the training. In Part Two of the study, undergraduate recreation therapy students were invited to practice using the Tovertafel games and provide input on their experiences. A survey was created using constructs of Social Cognitive Theory to measure perceptions of behavioral capability, self-efficacy, expected outcomes and reinforcing attitudes. Results In Part One, 72 undergraduate students participated in the online training course and subseque (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Victoria Steiner PhD (Committee Chair); Barbara Saltzman PhD (Committee Member); Kimberly McBride PhD (Committee Member); Jennifer Kinney PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Behaviorial Sciences; Cognitive Therapy; Educational Evaluation; Educational Technology; Educational Theory; Gerontology; Health Care; Health Education; Public Health; Public Health Education

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2020, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: School Psychology

An ABAB design was used to analyze the effects of positive peer reporting plus a randomized dependent group contingency (PPR + GC). This intervention package was implemented across three classrooms in an alternative school setting for students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The dependent group contingency component of the intervention package consisted of the teacher randomly choosing a student to watch throughout the 45-min class period to determine if that student was following classroom rules. If so, the entire class earned a random reward at the end of class. The other component of the intervention package included two opportunities, one at the start and one at the end of class for students to engage in positive reporting sessions. These opportunities allowed for students to have increased chances to practice sharing positive social statements. In addition to evaluating student engagement, off-task, and disruptive behavior, effects on positive and negative statements between students were also assessed. Results indicated an increase in engagement and decrease in off-task and disruptive behavior while the intervention was implemented. Peer statements were ultimately minimal throughout all classrooms and phases. However, social validity data indicated that teachers found the intervention package to be easy to include in their daily routine and stated they would continue using this intervention package in the future. Teachers reported that the PPR component was their favorite part of the intervention as they thought it was the most needed for students in their class. This study adds to the current body of literature related to effective intervention strategies for students with EBD as a successful demonstration of combining PPR + GC to improve engagement and reduce disruptive behavior in the classroom setting.

Committee: Renee Hawkins Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Tai Collins Ph.D. (Committee Member); Laura Nabors Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

PHD, Kent State University, 2020, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between gender, students' self-efficacy, students' effort to complete required class preparation, participation in in-class group activities, and academic performance in a technical college non-major physics flipped classroom course. A path model was proposed to hypothesize the relationship among the predictors of students' academic performance in the physics flipped classroom course. The sample consisted of college students enrolled in four sections of the non-major physics flipped classroom courses at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC). The data collection process took place during two semesters (Fall 2018 and Spring 2019). During the third week of each semester, participants completed an online survey consisting of three main sections: demographic information, self-efficacy toward learning physics, and self-efficacy toward collaborative learning. Students' behavioral engagement was measured by examining both completion of class preparation and participation in in-class group activities, and academic performance was measured using the sum three exam scores. All four of the class sections were designed by the same instructors using the same design format during both semesters. The path analysis revealed that self-efficacy toward learning physics and participation in in-class group activities had significant direct effects on academic performance (β = 0.46, and β = 0.51, respectively).

Committee: Bradley Morris (Advisor); Karrie Godwin (Committee Member); Christopher Was (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Psychology