6834 research outputs found
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Dying Well : A Classic Grounded Theory Study on Christian Opinions on Death and Dying.
No full textThis thesis reports a classic grounded theory study whose purpose was to learn how followers of the Christian faith tradition in modern, Western society approach the subject of death and dying. The study emphasized discerning what values sustain Christian individuals through death, grief, and loss—as well as how healthcare providers can improve end-of-life care with these findings in mind. Participant interviews were conducted to assess this concept of "dying well," asking "what would you define as a 'good death'" and "what would you define as a 'bad death.'" For a "good death," emergent themes included having closure, saying goodbyes, feeling no pain, and being at peace. For a "bad death," emergent themes included prolonged death, dying alone, being in pain, and feeling fearful. Three lenses arose from these emergent themes as crucial for understanding how individuals within the Christian faith tradition perceive and navigate the concept of "dying well": the importance of Selfhood, the function of Relationships, and the effects of the Manner of Death. Individuals can use these three lenses to assess what is important to them for "dying well," and healthcare providers can use them to improve quality of care by addressing the wellbeing of their patients in these areas
A rhetorical analysis of virtue, religion, and citizenship in classical education texts and their relation to teaching the hero's journey in the classical classroom.
No full textThis thesis analyzes the rhetoric used in foundational classical education texts to communicate virtue in relation to religion and citizenship and examines the hero's journey as an alternative model to communicate virtue. Modern Christian classical education is bolstered by a small number of prominent texts that have come to hold such authority that they function as a classical education canon. Close reading and rhetorical analysis show that most of this literature ties virtue with only Christianity and in turn disregards the ancient Greek classical tie of virtue to citizenship and civil duty. This position leaves the non-religious student unincentivized to act virtuously. The template of the hero's journey, prominent in classical narratives, is proposed as a model that can stand in the gap, exemplifying virtue that is rooted in more than exclusively religion and is thus inclusive of the non-religious modern classical student, incentivizing them to strive after virtue
Accurate, accessible, amiable : gratifications from news media engagement sought by Millennial and Gen Z Americans.
No full textAs legacy media outlets struggle to bring in the eyes, ears and expendable income of emerging generations, research is conflicting on what exactly Millennials and Generation 'Gen' Z want from their news content - if they even want news at all. This study surveys habits and financial behaviors of Millennial and Gen Z content consumers, as well as preferences in news presentation; determining that, while these groups do overwhelmingly report to consume legacy news daily, most are also reluctant to pay for it. Many prefer content with journalistic standards, but these young adults also desire gratifications aligned with entertainment. Overall, educated Millennials and Generation Z desire news content that is journalistically sound, free to access, and enjoyable to consume. This creates dissonance in the consumer's decision of what content to read, watch and listen to
Seeking familiar faces in restricted academic spaces : a single case study exploring how students of color access advanced placement and international baccalaureate programs and experience a sense of community and belonging.
Get PDFSince 2018, no more than 39% of Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) students at Flatland High School (FHS) have been Black or Latinx, while these combined populations represented an average of 66% of the school's annual population. In contrast, White or Asian students constituted up to 55% of AP or IB, but an average of only 32% of the school's population. Researchers have extensively studied racial inequity in advanced coursework, but no current research explores the historical context of FHS and the ongoing inequity within its unique system. This embedded single case design explored what facilitators of or barriers to AP or IB membership academically motivated students of color perceived and how students assessed belonging in the racially disproportionate AP or IB community. The study utilized a semi-structured interview and questionnaire with six high school graduates who took AP or IB classes at FHS. The study answered the following questions: What school influences do academically motivated students of color perceive as facilitating or obstructing their membership in AP or IB programs? How do students of color assess belonging in racially disproportionate AP or IB communities? The participants reflected the demographic categories most often underrepresented in AP and IB classrooms: Black and Latinx students. The study found that students perceived four facilitators of or barriers to AP or IB membership: familial support or influence throughout schooling, academic experience in elementary through 10th grade, knowledge of AP or IB and their autonomy to choose it, and perceptions of the program rigor or community. The study also found that participants perceived community leaders (teachers) and community members (peers) as facilitators of or barriers to developing a deeper sense of community through influence, reinforcement, and shared emotional connection. The findings have implications for the subsequent development of district policies that enable broader access to foundational coursework for AP and IB. The findings also have implications for campus and classroom policies and practices that strengthen students' sense of belonging in AP and IB communities
Theory, implementation, and analysis of rotational eddy current nondestructive testing for carbon fiber reinforced plastic laminates.
No full textEddy current testing (ECT) has become a popular nondestructive testing (NDT) and nondestructive evaluation (NDE) technique for inspecting metallic components. While scientific literature also contains ECT methods for inspecting carbon fiber materials, these techniques have not been widely adopted by industry. Carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) has many material complexities over typical metals, and thus poses challenges for ECT imaging, contributing to ECT's lack of use on CFRP in industry contexts. However, rotational ECT is a relatively unexplored scanning method that capitalizes on the material complexities of CFRP to extract important features during inspection. This thesis demonstrates how rotational ECT uses directional eddy current probes, combined with mechanical rotation, to acquire certain orientational features much faster than traditional imaging methods. The manuscripts contained in this work present several novel methods that exploit the properties of CFRP and ECT to efficiently characterize ply layups, in-plane waviness, and additively manufactured (AM) fiber-filled component properties using a custom built ECT scanning system
Retiring military veterans' transition issues adapting to the civilian lifestyle : a multiple case study.
No full textMilitary service members face an array of challenges once they leave the military and reenter the civilian community as military veterans. The challenges encompassed various aspects, including but not limited to lack of preparation and difficulties in finding adequate employment. These challenges highlight the critical need to explore and examine the effectiveness of the services provided to support their transition. Additionally, transitioning challenges for military veterans may be connected to increased veteran homelessness and suicide rates. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore, understand, and describe the various personal and professional experiences that retired veteran participants faced when transitioning out of the military and reentering the civilian community. Participants included four veterans living in Texas who had retired from the military within the last ten years. I used semi-structured interviews to capture more individualized and in-depth responses to the research questions that guided this study. In addition, I also conducted a focus group interview with all four participants and reviewed the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) curriculum as two other forms of data collection. The data analysis revealed that military veterans encountered many challenges as they transitioned back into the civilian sector. These challenges encompassed various domains, such as financial, emotional, and employment-related difficulties. The findings indicated that additional and enhanced military guidance is crucial to establishing a more comprehensive and well-balanced transition process. It became evident that addressing the identified challenges would facilitate a smoother and more successful veteran transition. The findings of this study emphasize the necessity of providing comprehensive support and resources to address the challenges faced by military veterans during their transition to civilian life. Policymakers and organizations can use these insights to develop tailored programs and interventions encompassing financial education, emotional support, employment assistance, and other crucial support services. By focusing on these areas, it is possible to enhance the transition experience for veterans, mitigate the risks of homelessness and suicide, and ultimately ensure a more prosperous and fulfilling post-military life for those deserving veterans
Assessment literacy in practice : a quantitative study investigating elementary and secondary teachers' approaches to classroom-based assessment at a Virginia school division.
No full textTeachers assess the efficacy of their instructional decisions through the dynamic, complex practice of assessment, but the variety of assessment processes underlines the many facets of teachers' assessment competencies. The development of practical professional learning opportunities that consider the variety of assessment approaches used in K–12 classrooms is limited by the absence of a comprehensive understanding of teachers' assessment literacy (AL). This study investigated how elementary and secondary teachers prioritize their assessment practices within the context of their classroom in one Virginia school division. This study used a quantitative research method to study elementary and secondary teachers' primary use of assessment concerning teaching, learning, and assessment scenarios and their response to differentiating student needs in the context of a school division. Using scenario-based items of the Approaches to Classroom Assessment Inventory (ACAI) developed by DeLuca et al. (2016), I collected information about teachers' approaches to the purpose of classroom assessment and fair assessment practices. The instrument focused on teachers' responses to common assessment scenarios illustrating the challenges teachers confront concerning student assessment performance, planning for student assessment, differentiated assessment, and summative assessment (Deluca et al., 2016). Results from this study revealed a significant difference in secondary teachers' use of assessment of learning techniques versus elementary teachers' use. However, there were no statistically significant differences in elementary and secondary teachers' use of assessment for learning and assessment as learning approaches. This study also revealed that secondary teachers' use of standard, differentiated, and personalized approaches to fair classroom assessment did not differ significantly from that of elementary teachers. Research on teachers' approaches to classroom assessment can tap into a more localized understanding of assessment practice. A teacher's responsibility as an assessor extends beyond their assessment knowledge and abilities, including their beliefs and experiences that impact their classroom practice (Looney et al., 2018). This study recognizes how professional context influences teachers' use of classroom assessment and instructional decision-making
Decision-making processes of teachers that use gamification for student-driven engagement : an exploratory case study.
No full textStudent engagement rates have declined since COVID-19 and many teachers struggle with the effective utilization of technology in their classrooms. Student engagement has been a long-studied topic due to significant correlation with academic achievement and high school completion rates (Zhen et al., 2020). However, when student engagement wanes, the research documents low student performance and issues with truancy (Duncan, 2020; Fisher et al., 2011). Ross (2020) reports that effective technology integration and one-to-one access to a personal computing device, such as a laptop or tablet, has a significant positive impact on student engagement. As student engagement rates continue to decline in classrooms across the United States, student access to one-to-one computer devices is at an all-time high (Duncan, 2020; Toth, 2021). This single case study explored how exemplary teachers identify, plan for, and implement technology-based gamification into required content units of study. I chose a qualitative single-case study design focused on embedded units within a bounded population. I analyzed semi-structured interviews, unit plans, and post-unit reflections collected from four educators identified as high users of technology-based gamified learning. Garden and Rivera's (2021) gamification for student engagement framework provided a conceptual framework for this study. I uncovered three findings. First, teachers create a classroom culture of technology-based gamification when they understand how to identify, plan for, and implement technology-based gamified learning experiences within required content units of study. Second, student engagement increases when teachers implement technology-based gamified learning into required content units of study. Third, learning outcomes are enhanced when teachers implement technology-based gamified learning into required content units of study. The results of this study serve to activate cognitive discourse amongst practitioners in the K–12 and higher education practitioners and expand the existing research on utilizing technology-based gamification to enhance student engagement. The increase in device access combined with technological advancements has created an environment that is ripe for advancement and further exploration. Technology-based gamified learning experiences can be used to engage students and increase academic performance when teachers understand how to identify, plan for, and implement technology-based gamified learning experiences into required content
Exploring hetero-atom derivatization in maltols and flavonols : the effect on reactivity of flavonol dioxygenation.
Get PDFFlavonols are a class of polyphenolic natural products containing a 3-hydroxy pyrone core. They have been found to have several desirable properties such as anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic properties and they act as UV filters in plants. Flavonols display dual excitation-emission manifolds due to their ability to undergo excited state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT). Their photophysical and photochemical properties have aided in their them finding applications as fluorescence probes for various analytes. Bacteria and fungi have evolved to fight the anti-microbial effects of flavonols with the use of metalloenzymes called Quercetin Dioxygenases (QDO) named after the most ubiquitous flavonol, quercetin. In the presence of oxygen, QDOs break down flavonols to a depsidic product along with the evolution of CO; this reaction is called dioxygenation reaction. Model QDOs have been studied to probe flavonol dioxygenation, though of note, all the reported model QDOs are bidentate to the flavonol. In this dissertation, we probe the question of dioxygenation mechanism by functionalizing flavonols and studying the effect of this hetero-atom derivatization on dioxygenation reactivity of free flavonols and metal bound flavonolates. We also explore the effect hetero-atom derivatization has on flavonol and metal-flavonolate nitroxygenation, a reaction analogous to dioxygen wherein O2 is replaced with HNO. Maltol is a natural product that also contains a 3-hydroxy pyrone core. Initially isolated from the bark of larch trees, maltol has found extensive use in the food industry as a food additive as well as in the cosmetics industry as a fragrance material. Maltol acts as a bidentate ligand and several divalent maltolate complexes have found uses in the biomedical field, such as iron mimetics, insulin mimetics, contrasting agents, etc. Thio-containing derivatives have been synthesized and studied by the Farmer Group and the Cohen Group. In this work, we demonstrate the synthesis of stable pyrylium ylides via the alkylation of heteroatom maltol derivatives. These stable pyrylium ylides are susceptible to [5+2] cycloaddition reactions and ring substitutions. We successfully isolate monodentate hetero-maltolate complexes and propose a reaction scheme to access similar monodentate hetero-flavonolate complexes which can then be studied as model QDOs
Associations Between Parental PTSD Cluster Symptoms and Child Behavior.
No full textA parent's mental health has a substantial impact on the child's well-being and behavioral conduct. Parental PTSD, for example, has been associated with elevations in both internalizing and externalizing problems in children. However, it is unclear whether distinct PTSD symptom clusters have unique impacts on the child's internalizing and externalizing outcomes. The objective of this study was to explore whether certain parental PTSD symptom clusters, as defined in the DSM 5-TR, are associated with the occurrence of child internalizing or externalizing behaviors. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using a sample of parents (n = 126) who have substance using adolescents (age 12-18). Consistent with our hypotheses, results found that higher levels of Negative Alterations in Cognitions and Mood was uniquely associated with higher child internalizing behaviors, whereas higher levels of Alterations in Arousal and Reactivity was uniquely associated with higher child externalizing. The other symptom clusters of PTSD did not show significant correlations with either internalizing or externalizing outcomes. These findings may add to existing literature in understanding the impact of specific symptom clusters in parental PTSD on adolescent outcomes. Findings may also have clinical implications for family-based or parenting-based treatments for adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems