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This dissertation is a two-part study comparing U.S. and Chinese teachers' beliefs and noticing patterns. The overarching question for this study is: "How does culture influence what mathematics teachers believe and notice?" This project seeks to investigate this central assumption: there are distinctly "Western" and "East Asian" pedagogical features that inform what teachers believe and notice about teaching and learning. Paper one seeks to clarify the role of cultural stereotypes in shaping teachers' personal beliefs and perceptions of their culture's beliefs on teaching and learning. In Paper two, group differences between U.S. and Chinese teachers' beliefs and noticing are analyzed with respect to these stereotypical pedagogical features (SPFs). This project combines two research areas, cross-cultural comparisons of teachers' beliefs and cross-cultural studies of teacher noticing, to present a distinction of the pedagogical features that seem to underlie Western and East Asian teachers' practices. This dissertation takes a unique approach to assessing teachers' pedagogical beliefs. Across both studies, teachers' personal beliefs are assessed separately from their cultural beliefs. Further, the concept of "cultural beliefs" is defined as an individual's "perception" of the shared values held by most members of a cultural group, as well as social structures such as the relationship between parents and children or the relationship between teachers and students (Leung, 2006). Findings of these studies indicate that the cultural distinctions between "Western" and "Eastern" are becoming blurred as East Asian educators, such as the Chinese participants in this study, take up more "Western" pedagogical theories and practices. Chinese teachers' personable beliefs indicate a definite shift towards "Western"-oriented features such as child-centeredness, process-orientation, and intrinsic motivation, even as they perceive China's cultural orientation as being more "Eastern" (Study One). But a closer examination of Chinese teachers' perceptions of a student-centered lesson compared to a teacher-directed lesson tells a different story: teachers' interpretations and responses continue to both impart and reflect stereotypically "Eastern" features (Study Two). At first blush, these findings seem to reinforce the claim that Chinese teachers are more likely to notice "Eastern" features because of cultural preferences for teacher-directed instruction. In contrast to previous claims, however, this dissertation argues that certain "Eastern" features--such as "abstract representation," "subject matter knowledge," and "highly-structured lessons"-- are conducive for supporting student-centered noticing, particularly in addressing students' mathematical thinking. The significance of these findings is discussed in terms of finding a balanced perspective that draws upon the strengths of "Western" and "East Asian" paradigms to develop a more holistic model of teacher practice. This perspective is discussed in terms of how it may inform cross-cultural approaches to developing student-centered noticing skills, and future research in teacher noticing and beliefs. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Economists have long recognized the importance of human capital in economic growth. In this series of papers, I study how various institutions of human capital formation affected economic development in a variety of contexts prior to 1900. These include both formal institutions of human capital formation such as universities and informal institutions such as apprenticeships. The first chapter examines the role of European universities during the late Middle Ages and early modern eras, starting with the creation of the University of Bologna in the late 12th century. These "formal" institutions of human capital focused on the teaching of law and supplied the civil service and justice systems of their home cities with trained legists. I find that cities which hosted universities had faster population growth than similar cities without universities, suggesting that universities were associated with higher levels of economic development. The second chapter contrasts the formal university with an informal human capital institution - the English apprenticeship. Though England was the cradle of Europe's industrialization, it had far fewer universities per capita than peer nations on the continent. However, it had a well-developed system of apprenticeship which some scholars have theorized was the main means of human capital incubation and transmission during the Industrial Revolution. English cities with more apprenticeships during the 18th century tended to have a greater degree of labor force specialization in the mid-19th century. The final chapter examines the role of the land-grant college system, which was established in the mid-19th century in the United States. In addition to their primary role of providing postsecondary education to students, these institutions added a second channel for the creation of human capital: research to boost the productivity of the nation's farms. American counties more firmly embedded within the land-grant college network tended to have a better-educated populace and a more specialized labor force; however, counties more exposed to land-grant colleges saw no improvements in agricultural productivity. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Over the past three decades, researchers have studied doctoral research training programs using large scale surveys making visible trends in numbers of and kinds of research courses required, or using focused qualitative methods to gain rich, textured accounts of graduate school experiences. Both kinds of studies fail to capture the local, situated practices and processes, actions and interactions that this dissertation will show embody what counts as doctoral research training. This dissertation is comprised of theoretically driven, empirically grounded examinations of what counts as Doctoral Research Training from multiple angles of analyses, across multiple levels of program and within individual student take-up within a community. Analyses are grounded in university program documents, course catalogues, course syllabi, interviews with faculty and doctoral students, and student work. Implications are drawn for doctoral training program development, as well as for further research on research extensive doctoral training programs. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This study reports the evolving teacher identities of 12 South/East Asian teachers during their study in the United States. Grounded in poststructuralist views of identities, the study employed narrative analysis to capture the complexities of teacher identity construction. Narrative data were collected through in-depth individual interviews, focus groups, and analysis of relevant documents. Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach, and Zilber's (1998) categorical content analysis served as an analytical framework for analyzing the situated meanings of the 12 teachers' identity construction. The result indicated that teacher identities of the 12 participants were situated and multiple. While the main aim of pursuing degrees (MAs or PhDs) in the United States was to enhance their professional identities, participants negotiated their teacher identities alongside other multiple identities as learners, mothers, and multicompetence English user (MEU) teachers, among others. After participated in the US academic communities, the narrative data illustrate that the participants' teacher identities shifted. The shifting process was in particular as a result of the readings and discussion on critical pedagogies in the graduate programs. The results also showed that although most participants experienced shifts in their identities, they seemed to negotiate their identities on the basis of core or dominant identities. This is evident in the narratives of Mika, Nesiani, and Sakura when discussing their classroom participation patterns. All of them indicated that their cultural gender identities, which expect women to be silent, as the reason for the difficulty of being active learners. For these 3 participants, identities seemed to be a "sense of self-hood attached to a physical body" (Young, 2008, p. 9). Thus, the attempts to be more active and critical, like US learners, might come across as denying their true senses of self. As a result of this study, I come to believe that teacher education programs need to be a site for identity reconstruction and reflection. As pointed out by Salvatori (1996), pedagogy is most effective when teachers engage in reflexive activities that involve theorizing, applying ideas to practice, and evaluating results in light of specific institutional contexts and student populations. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This study presents a conceptual and evidentiary study pertaining to the micro and macro level factors influencing the achievement gap among migrant children from a cross-national standpoint. First, this study provides the most systematic investigation of the immigrant educational paradox theory, which asserts that on average, immigrants' educational outcomes tend to exceed those of non-immigrants. This study examined the validity of the immigrant educational paradox theory cross-nationally for three content areas (mathematics, science, and reading), across the different types of tests, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015 and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016, across fourth and eighth grades. As immigration is a rapidly-growing global phenomenon, this study ranked countries based on first and second generation immigrants' achievement. Thus, the findings revealed that in some traditional immigration countries, the immigrant educational paradox was discovered, including New Zealand, Australia, England, and Singapore. Further, the immigrant educational paradox was revealed with a high magnitude in all content areas and across both grades in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries including The United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Oman. Overall, the findings indicate that the immigrant educational paradox is a very heterogeneous phenomenon and varies by country, grade, and type of content assessed. Younger students show a larger immigrant achievement gap when compared to eighth graders where the widest gap was in science. The second paper of this dissertation presents a conceptual and evidentiary study about the micro and macro level factors influencing the achievement gap among migrant children from a cross-national standpoint. This research study was able to include micro and macro level variables using TIMSS 2015 grade four to measure first and second generation immigrants' math and science achievement. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was chosen as it estimated assuming that students are nested within schools. HLM control for nesting effects and their standard errors are more accurate than other tools. It underscores that the migrant experience is a heterogenous and multilayered phenomenon. The major predictors for migrant children's performance socio-economic status (SES) and language proficiency, however, their experiences vary based on the host country type. This study draws out policy recommendations for educational systems and school leaders to impact malleable variables in schools and develop more effective mechanisms to reduce educational inequalities among migrant children.Finally, the third study was to compare and contrast student, teacher, and school factors that are associated with mathematics achievement gap in Saudi Arabia and the United States. Using grade four data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015, this study adds a new variable which is student bullying to examine its association with math achievement in both countries. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was chosen as it estimated assuming that students are nested within schools. It was found that immigrants' performance varied in both countries favoring immigrants in Saudi Arabia yet the opposite is true for the USA. It was found that the gender gap remained visible favoring boys in the USA and favoring girls in Saudi Arabia after controlling for relevant variables. Further, our findings suggest that being a victim of school bullying has a considerable negative effect on student performance in both countries. Hence, school composition and emphasis on academic success seems to be a relevant factor in explaining student performance in both countries. However, the two countries' results differed in the association between students' background, teacher, and school factors. Implications from this study suggest that the bullying and students' gender gap in math achievement are significant issues. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The term 'voice' has been a pivotal metaphor in the fields of composition studies and applied linguistics, and it still has a strong implicit and/or explicit presence in the U.S. classroom. This critical case study examines 6 Saudi graduate student writers' voices in various U.S. universities. Data were collected by analyzing texts of students' papers and in-depth interviews with each participant. Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as an overarching framework and analytical tool, this study examines the voices of Saudi students as they resist and/or perpetuate dominant ideologies both in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia when writing in their L2 in the US and eventually in their home context. Thereby, the voicing and/or silencing shift they experienced in L2 writing, especially in US universities, engenders vital questions of identity, power, and ideology. This study is, thus, key for reforming the educational language policies and sociopolitical situations that shape and/or constrain these voices. The study of these voices is particularly intriguing as such writers--myself included--come from an authoritative educational system (i.e., banking system) and often collective communities. Findings of this study reflect how institutionalized powers, ideologies, and practices are vital factors, which have significant and complex effects on L2 writers' voices. Writerly voice in almost all cases was found to be multiple and, for most participants, conflicting across situations and genres. In particular, writers in this study exhibited complex, juxtaposing voices shaped by their identities and their professional background and resisted the pedagogical practices in their home context. Through the course of their academic journey, participants of this study (re)constructed and negotiated agentive identities to ideologically become proactive members of their U.S. academic communities. These representative acts of their voices and discursive practices they inhabited were constrained and limited by some larger institutional factors. The implications of this study suggest a need for a theory of silencing and a pedagogy of voice in both ESL and EFL contexts. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This three-paper dissertation addresses issues of equity and identity in STEM education through three studies conducted with teachers in two emerging STEM schools in the Midwest United States (U.S.), graduates of a girls STEM school in Egypt, and the teachers of a STEM school in Egypt. The studies comprising this dissertation utilized case study as a research design to explore the issues of equity and identity in STEM education. Participants in each study were selected using criterion purposeful sampling. Though these studies were not intended to be comparative, the results of the three studies reveal context-based results with several global assumptions regarding nature of STEM education and the pertinent issues of equity and identity. In the three studies STEM education is viewed as having a transformative power for both teachers as providing an opportunity for change at the professional level; and for female students providing an equitable learning environment for girls aspiring to pursue STEM fields. The evolving nature of the STEM teacher identity was evident across all cases. The American teachers conceptualize STEM as providing valuable tool for better learning opportunities for students based on integrated curriculum and with emphasis on equity and inclusion. Egyptian teachers viewed STEM from two lenses: as a pedagogical tool to facilitate learning complex concepts, and a system level reform initiative to reform the existing failing education system in the country and prepare students for the labor market. Characteristics of STEM teachers were uniform across the three studies; flexibility, collaboration and open to change. The challenges for teachers' identity development in the Egyptian experience are mostly related to lack of resources and bureaucracy while in the U.S. case they are more connected with professional development and time needed for more practice. While the studies making up this dissertation denote the centrality of the context regarding STEM design and implementation, they still have implications for STEM education as a global reform initiative. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Changes in the U.S. economy have made the attainment of a higher education credential more important than ever to ensure self-sufficiency. Therefore, it is critical that the child welfare, K-12, and higher education systems encourage and support the postsecondary educational aspirations of court wards. When the state makes the decision to remove a child from his/her biological home, it bears the responsibility to provide the educational guidance as well as assistance otherwise provided by families during the transition from high school to college. This dissertation explores the educational outcomes of older youth in care by first looking at the perceptions of high school aged foster youth in identifying the barriers and pathways they face in graduating from high school and accessing college and then will investigate persistence in post-secondary education for a sample of foster care alumni who are enrolled at a four-year college. The first study investigates the barriers and pathways high school and college-aged foster care youth face in completing high school and in transitioning from high school to college using action research strategies, which are based on an empowerment theoretical framework. The second study follows a cohort of students who were able to successfully enroll in a four-year university and tracks persistence in their post-secondary education program using two logistic regression models. The final study takes a look at the same cohort of university enrolled students, but tracks time varying indicators including persistence to graduation and academic achievement of the students throughout their post-secondary journey through the use of discrete time hazard models. Paper two aims to address whether having a placement history in the foster care system predicts dropping out, controlling for gender and race. Paper three examines the issue of college persistence by using an event history analysis to model relative risk of graduation from college over time. Study three also includes an additional time varying covariate, academic performance (GPA), and examines whether academic achievement predicts time to graduation. Although each paper is independent, they are connected by the common theme of college access and persistence of young people who have aged out of the foster care system. The benefit to the author of the three-paper method is that the task of submitting the findings of the study for publication is eased as the dissertation contains three stand-alone articles. A drawback for the reader of the three-paper method is that there is redundancy in reading the same sections in each paper. The reader is encouraged to keep in mind that some information may be redundant when read as a whole document. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world. Among those incarcerated are juveniles. However, the higher the education obtained, the less likely it is that those previously incarcerated will reoffend. Legislation such as No Child Left Behind and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act set the structure and expectations for the education of incarcerated youth. These expectations include the assessment of these youth. This research was conducted at a high security facility in Georgia that houses 150 incarcerated males aged 14 to 18. This study incorporated a quantitative, single subject design methodology to compare Tests of Adult Basic Education (TABE) scores of students who had taken the TABE on both computer and paper-based mediums. Even though the computer scores were slightly higher than the paper scores, "t" tests revealed no significant difference in paper-based and computer-based assessment of incarcerated youth. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Since 1980, the number of people in the United States who speak a language other than English at home has increased by 140% (United States Census Bureau, 2010). Therefore a greater percentage of students now are multilingual. Throughout the world, multilingualism is considered the norm and monolingualism is the exception (Auer & Wei, 2008). In the United States, however, policies regarding instruction in schools are still influenced by monolingual ideology that carries expectations and assumptions of assimilation, loss of mother tongues, and defined hierarchical structures. As classroom populations become socially, ethnically, racially, and linguistically more diverse, it is increasingly important for teachers to have an understanding of how to address diversity in schools and for educators to understand how language use and the teachers' role in the classroom impacts learning. This paper explored the existing language beliefs and linguistic knowledge of preservice teachers as they prepare to enter linguistically and culturally diverse classrooms. The increasing prominence of cross-cultural interactions creates a necessity for teachers to develop intercultural competence. Employing a conceptual framework of intercultural communicative competence theory, this qualitative study investigated experiences and knowledge in linguistics that influence teacher speech acts. Research in fields of applied linguistics such as psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, sociolinguistics, and educational linguistics revealed basic language knowledge that teachers need before they enter diverse classrooms including knowledge of language acquisition, phonology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, culture, instruction language, and how the brain processes language. The literature from these fields was used to create an instrument that included a demographics questionnaire, beliefs survey, linguistic knowledge assessment, and interview questions. Twenty-three preservice teachers participated in the study to describe their language beliefs and knowledge. Many of the findings in this study reflected key-findings in the literature; however, this study also found several significant findings that extend existing research. The results revealed significant impacts of 1) individual experiences with culture and linguistic contact, 2) the language used in classrooms, specifically languages other than Standard English and the deep and surface structure of language, 3) linguistic knowledge, specifically phonology, 4) meta-cognitive behavior and reflection, and 5) differences between monolingual and multilingual preservice teachers. The data also indicated that the majority of preservice teachers were concerned about preparedness in teaching in diverse classrooms. Implications for teachers working in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms and for teacher preparation programs are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This paper presents the results of a study that examined the effects of using an action research process to explore science teachers' views on science literacy as well as improve collaboration among department members. Data were collected by documenting the action research process and interviewing teachers at a suburban K-12 school in Southern California. Findings suggest that teachers' views of science literacy vary more by context than by individual, and that collaboration seems to be useful in expanding teachers' beliefs about science literacy. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Little is known about child disciplinary practices in Jamaican American families. Literature on child discipline in Jamaica and other Caribbean nations has mainly focused on physical discipline, and no empirical studies have investigated the types of discipline used in the Jamaican American community. The purpose of this study was to describe current child disciplinary practices in Jamaican American families. A total of 311 primarily first-generation Jamaican American parents from New York City completed the 54-item Jamaican Child Discipline Survey, designed for this study, either online or in paper-pencil format. The main foci of the study included the use of child discipline techniques taken from the Jamaican Survey of Living Conditions for children ages 5 to 11 years and 12 to 18 years for both home and school-related infractions; parental goals for parenting; strictness ratings of child discipline strategies; differences between mothers and fathers; and perceived differences between parenting practices in Jamaica and the United States. Results revealed that Jamaican American parents use a wide variety of child discipline techniques, with frequency of use varying by parent gender and age of child. Reasoning and removing privileges were used most frequently for both age groups. Top parenting goals were developing a relationship with God and achieving a good education. Parents tended to use the techniques they rated more strictly more often. Mothers more often were the primary parent and used quarreling/shouting more frequently. Most respondents perceived the United States as different and less strict compared to Jamaica in regard to parenting practices. Significant associations were found among parents' level of education, age, time in the United States, and the frequency of use of child discipline techniques. Major themes from optional open-ended comments included: (a) the role of the church and Bible as integral to child discipline, (b) the importance of maintaining open communication with children, and (c) child discipline and training begins at an early age. Cultural influences related to Jamaicans living and parenting in the United States are addressed. Implications for mental health, family and school counseling, and counselor education are discussed. Recommendations for future research are offered. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of a learning environment using an Electronic Health Record (EHR) on undergraduate nursing students' behavioral intention (BI) to use an EHR. BI is defined by Davis (1989) in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the degree to which a person has formulated conscious plans to perform or not perform some specified future behavior. BI is determined by measuring the perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) of a particular technology or information system. The study employed 56 undergraduate nursing students, both juniors and seniors, from three (3) accredited Schools of Nursing in a survey research approach that uses a cross-sectional between-subjects design. One-on-one interviews also were used to document undergraduate nursing students' perceived behavioral intention of an EHR in the learning environment on clinical rotations and on practice. Participants were recruited using sampling procedures during the fall 2010 and spring 2011 semesters. They were either enrolled at (1) Schools of Nursing that bring an authentic EHR experience into the curricula in order to teach nursing practice or; (2) a School of Nursing that uses a paper-based approach to teach nursing practice. In both environments students also had experience with an EHR on clinical rotations. Participants were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire that has items to assess the perceived usefulness (PU) and the perceived ease of use (PEOU) of an EHR. They were also given the option to participate in a follow-up interview. During the interview, they were asked to share their perceptions of their behavioral intention to use an EHR on their clinical rotations and in practice. The mean scores for all the survey responses and the mean score for individual items on the questionnaire and their standard deviations were consistent across both learning models. The data did not predict behavioral intention for either factor PU or PEOU. There was a significant difference between the BI to use an EHR between junior and senior students' educated in a learning environment using an EHR with senior students reporting a higher BI score. Regarding the interviews, there was a reported impact to PU and PEOU for the majority of the participants interviewed. In general, participants reported a positive impact on their behavioral intention to use an EHR. All participants agreed that there was value in having an Electronic Health Record (EHR) to teach nursing practice integrated within the school curricula (classroom, skills lab, and simulation lab). The conclusions of this study can be offered as suggestions for improving the education of nursing students in the United States. Based on the results and the findings presented in this study, faculty members at schools of nursing should consider implementing an EHR in the classroom, skills lab, and simulation lab in order to positively impact students' behavioral intention to use an EHR. Additionally, EHR implementation in the classroom, skills lab, or simulation lab will likely lead to an increase in understanding of the technology and how it relates to nursing practice, an increase in knowledge and skill set, an increase in competence, an increase in comfort level with technology, a decrease in stress and anxiety when using an EHR on clinical rotation, and will ultimately serve to better prepare nursing students for nursing practice. Limitations of this study and recommendations for future research are also shared. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Algebra is a branch in mathematics and taking Algebra in middle school is often a gateway to advanced courses in high school. The problem is that the United States and Lebanon had low scores in Algebra in the 2007 Trends in Mathematics and Sciences Study (TIMSS), an international assessment administered to 4th and 8th graders every 4 years. On the 2007 TIMSS, Lebanon's average score in Algebra was 465, a lower score than the United States' average of 501. This paper attempted to determine if there were differences in the level of perceived preparedness between teachers in Lebanon and teachers in the United States, in teaching 8th graders the 4 Algebra content areas in mathematics, identified in the 2007 TIMSS assessment, while controlling for the teachers years of teaching experience. Using data from the 2007 TIMSS, multivariate analyses of covariance (MANCOVA) 4 x 2 was performed to determine if there are differences in the level of perceived preparedness between teachers in Lebanon and teachers in the United States, in teaching 8th graders the 4 Algebra content areas in mathematics. Results of the MANCOVA indicated that there were significant differences in at least 1 of the content areas. Further research is recommended, including having a clear definition of teacher preparedness and teacher sample for teachers who taught the representative sample of students. This study has implications to educational leaders and policy makers in mathematics. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This study contributes to the discussion around the value of a college degree and associated career advantages by considering how postsecondary education contributes to the attainment of the most powerful and prestigious positions in the American corporate world. Guided by a conceptual framework informed by status attainment, power elite, and upper echelon theories, I examined the backgrounds of almost 4,000 top-level Fortune 500 business executives in 2010. The data, including socio-demographics, postsecondary degrees, various undergraduate accomplishments, and company characteristics, were collected from a variety of secondary sources. A series of analyses, inspired by the work of Useem and Karabel (1986), compared executives who were senior managers or outside directors of one company to even more powerful executives. This latter group, referred to as the "corporate elite," were operationalized as CEOs, outside directors of multiple companies, or leaders in major business associations. I found a bachelor's degree to be almost universally held and few significant differences emerged distinguishing the most powerful executives from others in terms of their bachelor's degree source. Focusing more closely on undergraduate academic and extracurricular accomplishments, however, indicated that the corporate elite were more likely to be involved in certain activities. Also, I observed differences in the levels of graduate degree attainment and graduate degree sources. Possessing an MBA degree from a top business school or, to a lesser extent from a lower ranked business school, were each positively associated with membership in the business elite. For law school graduates, the likelihood of holding a top position of corporate power was less consistent than that of MBAs. Ultimately, this paper adds to our understanding of how postsecondary education might shape a small and understudied population that is a high status occupational class, the top management team responsible for major corporate decisions, and a powerful inner circle positioned to define national business interests and influence policy. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The current study adds to the literature--and addresses several identified limitations--about the relationship between therapist trainees' personality traits and their preference for a particular theoretical orientation(s). Therapist trainees (N = 197) in a Clinical Psy.D program at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology completed a paper and pencil survey assessing their theoretical predilections, as operationalized by the Counselor Theoretical Position Scale (CTPS)--a measure assessing epistemological factors common across psychological theories--and their personality styles, as defined by the Holland Personality Mosaic (HPM), a commonly available assessment of career personality based on the pioneering work of John Holland. The data was analyzed using Pearson's r correlation and three out of five hypotheses were supported. Namely, students in the sample were predominantly Social types as predicted, and high Artistic scores were correlated with the Intuitive and Subjective dimensions of the CTPS, respectively. Discussion offers a possible rationale for this pattern of results, including the lack of support for two hypotheses. Strengths and weaknesses of the research design are offered, as well as implications for future research and professional practice. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

An increased emphasis on the use of technology and the focus on "multiliteracies" in the classroom has great implications for both teachers and students regarding the expectation that all students will become skilled and critical users of computers and other technology for literacy-related tasks. Students who are braille readers use assistive technology not only to engage in literacy tasks (such as creating print documents) but also to access the general curriculum. For all of its acknowledged importance, there is little research on the ways that technology has changed the reading and writing practices of students who use braille, nor is there much research on how assistive technology is learned by students with visual impairments. A mixed methods study was conducted to investigate current use of paper braille and assistive technology among students aged 16-22 who read braille, and the students' attitudes toward braille and technology as tools for classroom learning in high school and college. The first phase of the study consisted of 12 semi-structured interviews of students around the United States. These interviews were coded for themes, and quotes from the interviews were used to create a Likert-scale survey. In the second phase of the study, 77 students participated in the survey, indicating their agreement or disagreement with the statements on the survey. Survey data were analyzed for frequencies and percentages of responses, and relationships between variables such as grade level, age, primary medium, and other factors were explored. Results of the study indicated the changing nature of how students use various tools and select approaches to completing their class work, and the importance for students of being able to make choices regarding tools and strategies. Implications for teacher preparation and suggestions for future research are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of this paper is to examine a single study participant and overall graduation rates as they relate to both the general education and special education population. As more federal requirements are defined, especially the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, along with individual state requirements, the overall graduation rate of both of these education populations need to examined and addressed. This qualitative case study will explore and define the lived experience of one, former, special education student with an identified specific learning disability. The former high school student was at one time making progress toward meeting all graduation requirements. Interviews with the participant, as well as information received from the student's family member and school personnel, who worked with the student, were recorded, transcribed, analyzed, and coded to develop an understanding of what led this student to leave school before earning a high school diploma. While results may not be able to be generalized to all similar situations, this study identified the reasons: that led this student to make the decision to drop out of high school, the family and school roles, and what might have helped this student persist in graduating. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The problem addressed in this qualitative case study focused on the limited amount of scholarly research addressing the use of information and communication technology in U.S. motor carrier operations. The trucking industry is part of the service sector which contributes approximately 67.8 percent to the gross domestic product of the United States. Most scholarly research addressing increases in motor carrier productivity due to information and communication technology was dated or was focused geographically. Researchers did not address opportunities offered by the sharing of information and communication technology. The purpose of the qualitative case study was to explore usage of information and communication technology in the U.S. motor carrier industry on a national basis. The study was aimed at analyzing information and communication technology usage and identifying factors affecting the adoption of information and communication technology. The study described in this paper attempted to fill the research void through a qualitative case study investigation. Qualitative research models were applied to using multiple sources of information to collect specific data to build knowledge within the area of study. A three phase qualitative case study was utilized in this study. During each phase an iterative inductive analysis of U.S. Census data, surveys, and semi-structured interviews of U.S. Motor Carriers was used to determine technology categories and subcategories. Data triangulation was used to link the use of different technologies discovered in each phase. A qualitative thematic analysis was accomplished at the end of phase three to determine emerging trends. Phase one research results revealed that use of technology increased as technology costs decreased and technology capability increased. Phase two research results revealed cell phones, on-board computers, satellite communication, and transponders were the predominate technologies used by U.S. motor carriers from 1987 to today. Phase three results revealed that emerging business strategies linked to information communication technologies are driven by the need to increase motor carrier operational efficiencies, decrease operational expenses while improving revenues and to strategically position that motor carrier for the future. Improved communications and automated information technologies can bring newer business strategies improving operational efficiencies. To stay competitive, motor carrier operations managers will need to invest in information and communication technology. Further research involving the use of technology for efficient distribution of multiple products to multiple destinations should be considered. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

It is generally believed that Business to Business (B2B) e-commerce has a great impact on business performance improvement. Considerable research also shows that another dependent variable, B2B e-commerce success, can be a good overall measure of B2B systems. This paper investigated and examined the impact of several factors, which are either internal or external to the firm on B2B performance improvement and B2B e-commerce success. It is suggested that the various factors affect B2B success through business performance improvement. A research model was developed to test and evaluate these factors. A survey instrument was developed to examine the relationships between these factors and business performance. Survey data was collected online from 143 companies in the U.S.A. and Taiwan where their B2B e-commerce systems were operational for more than 1 year. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique was used to assess the measurement and the structural model. Analyses and results of the pooled survey data suggest that the following factors are significant in the B2B e-commerce environments: (a) alignment of business and e-commerce strategy has a positive impact on business performance, (b) strong relationships between the trading partners have a positive influence on business performance, and (c) B2B e-commerce success is significantly influenced by business performance improvements. Thus, firms that seek to implement successful B2B systems should focus on business performance improvements. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

National culture is being challenged as societies evolve from their homogeneous origins. The theoretical base of this study uses two cultural dimensions, individualism-collectivism (Hofstede, 2001) and high-and low-context cultures (Hall, 1976), to unpack the effects of national culture on social network sites (SNSs). This study explores cultural differences in SNS usage patterns employing multiple methods, a paper-and-pencil survey and a content analysis of SNS profiles of survey respondents. The final analyses include a survey with 602 SNS users (361 college students in the United States and 241 college students in Korea) and a content analysis of 151 online profiles (58 Facebook and 93 Cyworld profiles). The survey findings revealed that SNS relationship patterns replicated those of face-to-face, while reflecting users' cultural orientations. In the survey findings, members of collectivistic cultures maintained SNS relationships more tightly and narrowly. While indicating such closed SNS relationships, they also exhibited lower levels of amount of self-disclosure, higher levels of intimate and vulnerable self-disclosure, and a greater willingness of privacy sharing than members of individualistic cultures. More visually anonymous online profiles also led to their closed SNS relationships by requiring random visitors, including old friends, to attain supplementary information to identify the user. As interdependent entities, members of collectivistic cultures paid more attention to self-presentation behaviors than members of individualistic cultures. The effect of individuals' cultural attitudes on SNS usage was mostly reconfirmed in the comparison by nationality while providing evidence of the effect of national culture. In the findings of the content analysis, Cyworld users from high-context cultures adopted more indirect communication styles that represent high-context cultures than Facebook users who adopted more direct communication styles that represent low-context cultures. The evident influence of national cultures on SNSs suggests revisiting the cultural dimensions, individualism-collectivism and high-and low-context cultures, to explore how they may explain patterns specific to particular cultures. The findings also suggest that international versions of SNS services that may be developed with the assumption of homogenous global populations of users need to be designed with the consideration of how culture influences use and shapes SNS behaviors. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

School resource officers (SROs) are police officers responsible for the daily task of keeping schools safe. The extent to which this goal is achieved depends in part on how SROs identify, assess, and respond to student threats of violence. This task is complicated by the lack of knowledge regarding the most effective ways of handling a threat so that violence is avoided. The purposes of this research were to analyze the decision-making processes of SROs and to identify both best practices and impediments in handling student threats. Street-level bureaucracy theory was the conceptual lens used for the study, because it is a practical framework for analyzing how SROs use discretion in making decisions. This qualitative case study used criterion sampling to select SROs from middle schools and high schools in one county in a western U.S. state. All evidence that contained text was coded, analyzed to identify themes and patterns, and subjected to data triangulation, external auditing, pattern matching, and member checking. Insights from examination of artifacts and non-text documents were compared with themes and patterns derived from the interviews. Best practice strategies identified included building relationships with students to learn about threats; identifying potentially violent students and proactively intervening; and using responses like the youth court that imposed consequences, such as community service or writing a research paper that did not hurt students' academic futures or impose financial burdens. The findings will help SROs make better decisions when confronted with student threats of violence and allow them to create safer learning environments for all students. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Despite implementation of electronic medical record (EMR) systems in the United States and other countries, there is no organizational development model that addresses medical professionals' attitudes toward technology adoption in a learning organization. The purpose of this study was to assess whether a model would change those attitudes toward use of an EMR system. The research questions examined whether EMR experience, age, job role, years in specialization, and learning culture influence technology adoption. Organizational learning, sociocultural model, fifth discipline model, and the Dimensions of Learning Organization Questionnaire[R] model theories were used to guide the study. The research methodology was a mixed-method electronic and paper survey. The unit of analysis was 1576 medical professionals at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center. After data collection, the resulting information was analyzed using correlation analysis, two-sample t tests, and analysis of variance. A significant positive correlation was found between technology adoption and learning culture. A clear recommendation is that executive management planning to implement an EMR should focus on human factors, group relations, and learning cultures, in order to reduce barriers for those most likely to adopt it. EMR should enhance positive social change by accelerating the diffusion of complete, accurate, and timely medical knowledge that will benefit not only the organization but the patient. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of this study is to expand the literature on mortuary science accreditation site visit teams. This study used a mixed methodology design to examine: (1) who serves on the American Board of Funeral Service Education accreditation external site visit teams; (2) reasons for involvement in accreditation; (3) perceptions of important site visit resources; and (4) team members' perceptions of training. Three paper pencil instruments were used for data collection: (1) a modified form of the Participation Reasons Scale (Grotelueschen, 1985); (2) the Information Preference Scale (Bauer, 1986); and (3) a demographic data sheet. These data were supplemented by phone and electronic interviews. Subjects for the study consisted of all 39 external mortuary science evaluators who participated in accreditation site visits during the time period of 1999 to 2007. The total response rate was 100%. The findings showed: (1) team members were mostly white males, 61-70 age range, coming from the Southeast and Central parts of the United States indicating there is not sufficient geographical diversity across team roles to ensure representation of the schools and funeral home stakeholders; (2) importance for involvement of the site team members overall is for collegial learning and interaction with some variance within roles; (3) perceptions of importance of resources for the site team visit varied with higher education educators preferring on-site documents and self-study report, mortuary science educators preferring on-site documents and practitioners preferring interviews with site personnel; and (4) training is limited and inconsistent for site team members. Based on these findings, recommendations include: (1) more definitive recruitment and training for potential site team members as well as continuing education for current site team members; and (2) development of dissemination methods that encourage and reflect return of information to the team visitors' own geographic area, and their home school program. Future research and practice should examine the role of different sources of information and how best to portray the data. Overall, more research is needed to further knowledge of mortuary science accreditation as very little exists in the field of accreditation and evaluation. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

While there are many options available for studying English as a second language (ESL), students and instructors may not be aware of which learning strategy would be most effective. To help them make informed choices about their education, this study compared traditional classroom methods with online technological methods for studying ESL at accredited universities in the United States, using a survey conducted with 332 international students. The quantitative data, collected through either a paper or online questionnaire, included demographic information, an exam of English language fluency, experience with the chosen ESL education method, comfort level with the English language, and motivation for studying ESL. The results of this study indicated that the most effective strategy for learning ESL was influenced by the individual participant's number of languages spoken, age, gender, and highest level of education. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of this study was to determine whether and how short-term study abroad programs transform college students' perspectives. The study examined attitudes about host country and international outlook, as well as intellectual, social and personal understandings. Short-term programs were defined as programs of less than a semester or a quarter in duration. Thirty-four research questions were developed to determine the influence of these programs on subsequent academic choices, career, personal and social development, host country knowledge and attitudes and global perspectives. Data was collected from 111 alumni of five-week summer programs in China, France, Italy and Spain, between one and five years after program participation, using Internet and paper surveys. Qualitative data was collected from twelve alumni, as well as the faculty directors of each program, via interviews. Results indicated that the programs had some influence on academic choices and career development, but more influence on personal and social development. Areas most influenced included self-confidence, self-awareness, maturity and receptivity to conflicting opinions and attitudes, as well as the complexity of international outlook. Adjustment stress upon return was found to have more influence on attitude change than stress experienced while in the host country. The type of housing provided to students was not shown to have a significant impact on attitude change about the host country, or on global perspectives. While not anticipated and not controlled for, it is of interest that the students' identity as Americans abroad, in light of U.S. government policies post 9/11, were generally considered the biggest challenge by the alumni. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

This dissertation problematizes the "state dossier system" (SDS): the production and accumulation of personal information on citizen subjects exceeding the reasonable bounds of risk management. SDS--comprising interconnecting subsystems of records and identification--damage individual autonomy and self-determination, impacting not only human rights, but also the viability of the social system. The research, a hybrid of case-study and cross-national comparison, was guided in part by a theoretical model of four primary SDS driving forces: technology, political economy, law and public sentiment. Data sources included government documents, academic texts, investigative journalism, NGO reports and industry white papers. The primary analytical instrument was the juxtaposition of two individual cases: the U.S. and China. Research found that constraints on the extent of the U.S. SDS today may not be significantly different from China's, a system undergoing significant change amidst growing public interest in privacy and anonymity. Much activity within the U.S., such as the practice of suspicious activity reporting, is taking place outside the domain of federal privacy laws, while ID systems appear to advance and expand despite clear public opposition. Momentum for increasingly comprehensive SDS appears to be growing, in part because the harms may not be immediately evident to the data subjects. The future of SDS globally will depend on an informed and active public; law and policy will need to adjust to better regulate the production and storage of personal information. To that end, the dissertation offers a general model and linguistic toolkit for the further analysis of SDS. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Catholic education in the United States is currently facing a period of unprecedented change. An intensifying array of challenges are confronting Catholic schools, and dioceses around the country are scrambling to develop strategies to answer these challenges. In many dioceses, these challenges have forced a radical rethinking of the way schools are governed. Parish-led schools, the dominant model of school governance for centuries, are being reformed or abandoned in favor of alternate governance systems. As dioceses have moved away from parish leadership for schools, the roles of the school leadership have been changed. This paper examines how the centralization of Catholic school administration affects the mission of the school pastor and principal. To assist in this analysis, the Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs has been selected to be the subject of a qualitative case study. By examining how governance changes in Colorado Springs have affected the mission of school leadership, this study strives to serve as a source of information for other dioceses facing similar transitions. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]