Master of Arts, University of Toledo, 0, English (English as a Second Language)

A great deal of recent scholarship has re-focused on the neglected reading-writing connection, moving from viewing reading and writing as two separate entities to being seen as closely-inter-related skills. This realization has had an effect on some of the ways reading and writing lessons are implemented in classrooms, and on the students in those classrooms. Incorporating reading-writing tasks in the classroom can affect students in different ways when learning a language. This qualitative, exploratory study seeks to find out: (1) what experiences L2 students have had with reading-to-write and writing-to-read tasks; (2) how they perceive the tasks; (3) which tasks they prefer/do not prefer and why; and (4) how students feel the tasks affect their learning. Through interviewing students in advanced class levels of their second language (English or Spanish), the present study has found that most L2 students shared similar experiences and perceptions of the tasks, as well as experiences with how the tasks were implemented in their courses.

Committee: Melinda Reichelt (Committee Chair); Kathleen Thompson-Casado (Committee Member); Barbara Schneider (Committee Member) Subjects: English As A Second Language

Master of Arts, Wittenberg University, 2023, Education

I conducted this study because of increasingly high undesired classroom behaviors paired with insufficient creative written expression amongst students in Ohio Christian School. I was intrigued by the idea that the two could be connected somehow, so I found a writing intervention, “Write-Talks,” that I decided to implement in my classroom to see its potential impact on both student writing and behavior. I used quasi-experimental quantitative research method to complete this action research study. I started my research with a pre-intervention survey in which students evaluated their own creative written expression and self-management behavior tendencies upon the return of parental consent forms. I also collected writing samples from each of the students from before the intervention. Then, I observed the behavior of students who I categorized as reluctant writers. The study concluded with students responding to a post-intervention survey, similar to the first, and with the collection of another writing sample. After analyzing data, I found that the intervention's impact on student creative written expression was generally positive, meaning that students' writing sample scores increased. However, data did not necessarily support that student self-management behavior had been impacted in any significant way. There was one student, though, whose personal data did suggest that the positive impact with this particular student could have been because of the “Write-Talks” intervention. Due to this clear positive impact the intervention had on student writing, my school, district, and others could take these findings into consideration for the future benefit of creative written expression. I am hopeful that continued research could provide insight to a connection between creative written expression and self-management behavior in students.

Committee: Amy McGuffey (Advisor); Cassie Wilson (Committee Member); Erin Hill (Committee Member); Kristin Farley (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Educational Psychology; Educational Theory; Elementary Education

Master of Arts (M.A.), University of Dayton, 2010, English

The primary purpose of this thesis is to explore the effectiveness of first-year composition courses for business students. In order to assess whether first-year composition courses address the skills students need for success in academia and as business majors, two business faculty members at each of three universities in the South are interviewed, comparing their desired skills for college students with the skills actually taught at the same universities through interviews conducted with two First-Year English Composition Faculty at each school. This is a complex area of study for English and Business Faculty, and while many faculty interviewed agreed on the importance of some current FYC objectives, including coherent and clear writing, the study identifies other objectives that must be included and/or reprioritized in future composition syllabi for business students. This paper identifies grammar and Internet citation skills as requiring more emphasis among a plethora of perceptions about writing held by those interviewed.

Committee: Bryan Bardine PhD (Advisor); Betty Youngkin PhD (Committee Member); Andrew Slade PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Administration; Composition

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Medicine: Genetic Counseling

Research is a required component of genetic counseling training. Genetic counselors who graduated from programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling (ACGC) were surveyed to determine their involvement, interest, and perceived ability and skills in research. Almost all of the 175 genetic counselor respondents (99.4%) reported past research involvement, and most (56.7%) indicated interest in conducting more research. However, only 68.6% agreed that they know how to conduct research, while 82.9% agreed that they know how to write a manuscript. Genetic counselors were interested in receiving further research training, mostly in data analysis/statistical computation (56%) and mentorship of genetic counseling students for their thesis or capstone research (41.1%). Survey findings highlight the growth of interest in research among genetic counselors, and the desire to receive more research training. This study suggests the need to strengthen research training opportunities for genetic counselors and trainees, and to support research development and protected time at their workplace.

Committee: Melanie Myers Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Xue Zhang Ph.D. (Committee Member); Carrie Atzinger M.S. C. (Committee Member) Subjects: Genetics

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2018, Journalism (Communication)

The picture of advertising and public relations education that has emerged from this study represents a panorama skills, knowledge, and experience that are taught to students. This study examined questions of program effectiveness through four key areas—a) curriculum model, b) core skills, c) experiential learning, and d) practitioner and educator partnerships—through the perspective of award-winning agencies and university programs. This research found that there is a lack of focus when viewing pedagogy through the lens of the industry needs. From a distance, the picture appears to show harmonious composition between industry needs and education objectives, but closer inspection of the fine details reveal certain imperfections that may affect the appraised value of advertising and public relations education. This issue of misalignment between industry needs and education practice is not new, but one that should be continuously addressed to ensure the success of new graduates as advertising and public relations practitioners. In the context of the preferred curriculum model of advertising and public relations pedagogy, this study found that there is an agreement between practitioners and educators to merge those programs in some fashion, but there was disagreement on the scope of the integration ranging from a limited “hybrid” program to full convergence. An examination of core skills taught in the advertising and public relations curriculum found a misalignment of educational priorities between educators and practitioners. Those differences highlighted the practitioners' prioritization of: a) business writing over creative writing, b) small group communication and teamwork, c) enhanced critical thinking and research skills, d) a strong foundation of business management knowledge, and e) a repertoire of computer software proficiency. For experiential learning, there was noted support for pre-professional organizations and student agencies to supplement classroom (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Michael Sweeney Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Elizabeth Hendrickson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Benjamin Bates Ph.D. (Committee Member); Joseph Phelps Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Curricula; Curriculum Development; Education; Mass Communications; Pedagogy

Master of Fine Arts, University of Akron, 2012, English-Composition

Current scholarship suggests a positive correlation between the use of the graphic novel and its overall effectiveness as a tool within the classroom. It was apparent, however, that there was a gap in the research in terms of using the graphic novel as it applies to helping composition students develop certain writing skills. Therefore, the focus of this thesis is to explore the ways in which the graphic novel can be used inside of the composition classroom to help strengthen first-year students' writing skills. In specific, in-class activities were designed to be used in conjunction with the graphic novel, Maus, to develop analytical skills, strengthen skills for interviewing, and expand descriptive writing skills.

Committee: William Thelin Dr.. (Advisor); Hillary Nunn Dr. (Committee Member); Lance Svehla Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Composition