Western Connecticut State University
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CHARACTERISTICS AND CHALLENGES OF HIGH-ACHIEVING SECOND-GENERATION NIGERIAN YOUTHS IN THE UNITED STATES
No full textThis study investigated the characteristics and challenges of high-achieving second- generation Nigerian youths in the United States. An increasing number of youths in America’s schools are from immigrant backgrounds due to the flow of immigration from Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Given the local and national mandates to improve the academic achievement of all children, we cannot afford to leave any group behind.
Although research on immigrant children from Asia and Latin America and their adaptation and schooling has increased in the last two decades, the educational experiences of Black immigrant children from Africa and the Caribbean have been understudied. The scant research on African immigrants lumps all Africans into a homogeneous group despite the different experiences and obvious diversity found within Africa and among African immigrants. Using theoretical triangulation from Educational Anthropology (cultural ecological theory), Sociology (Social capital), and Psychology (social cognitive theory), the researcher examined the role of parents, personal traits, and social contexts on the academic experiences of high-achieving second-generation Nigerian youths.
The study used surveys, in-depth interviews of Nigerian youths and parents (mothers) and a focus group interview of high-achieving second-generation Nigerian youths to explore the academic experiences of high-achieving second-generation Nigerian youths to identify factors that determine their educational outcomes. It is anticipated that the results of this study will contribute to the literature on immigrant, minority, and Black students’ education in the United States.
High-achieving second-generation Nigerian youths credited their parents, extended family, the Nigerian community, and their upbringing for their motivation and academic success. Nigerian parents were actively engaged with the education of their children, both in the traditional realms of school involvement and in the non-traditional school engagement. Although youths faced the challenges of peer teasing, under-preparation for college, and parental pressure, they devised coping strategies through code-switching, reevaluating their definition of academic success, and increasing determination and effort. They also were involved in several extracurricular activities that helped them to create social networks with peers and adults and to break social barriers.Doctor of Education (EdD)Education & Educational Psycholog
Tuskegee Airmen at WestConn
No full text60 min.2 Pilots discuss their childhoods and experiences in WWII -- challenges faced and exploits (1943-1945
George Wheeler (Interview)
No full text57 min 21 sec
Due to his age, the interview went on random tangents, and appears to end abruptly. I had to cut the end because I could not get Mr. Wheeler back on the topic of his experience in WWII.George Wheeler talks about his early life briefly and then to his enlistment with the Army. Trained as a cannoneer in basic training. He was briefly in Scotland and then London, before being shipped to North Africa. He was there for a few months under Patton and then was shipped into Italy. He went through France, before making it 10-15 miles into Germany. The War ended before he made it back. He was wounded multiple times. He also spent some time as an interpreter for Charles de Gaulle
A COMPARISON OF TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE LEADERSHIP STYLES OF MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCIPALS AND INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERS AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF SCHOOL CLIMATE
No full textThe purpose of the research study was to (a) determine how teachers’ perceptions of the leadership styles (transformational, transactional, and passive) of middle school principals and instructional leaders differed; (b) identify the extent to which teachers’ perceptions of the leadership styles (transformational, transactional, and passive) of school leaders (principal and instructional leader) predicted the teacher and principal behavior variables of school climate; and (c) determine the effects of the type of agreement (high-high, high-low, low-high, and low-low) between the school leaders’ (principal and instructional leader) self-perceptions and teachers’ perceptions of the school leaders’ transformational leadership style on the teacher and principal openness behavior variables of school climate. Causal comparative and correlational designs were utilized for the study. The sample population consisted of 7 principals, 7 instructional leaders, and 114 teachers from 7 middle schools in Connecticut. Teachers completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire-5X to assess their perceptions of the leadership styles (transformational, transactional, and passive) of principals and instructional leaders, while principals and instructional leaders completed the self-rater form of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire-5X. In addition, teachers completed the Organizational Climate Description Questionnaire-RM to assess teacher and principal openness behavior variables of school climate. Paired samples t tests, stepwise multiple regression, and multivariate analysis of covariance were performed to analyze the data.
First, results of paired samples t tests indicated that significant differences exist between teachers’ perceptions of the leadership styles of principals and instructional leaders. Next, results of stepwise multiple regressions indicated that (a) the principals’ transformational leadership style predicted the teacher openness behavior variable of school climate and (b) the principals’ transformational leadership style, principals’ transactional leadership styles, instructional leaders’ passive leadership style, and instructional leader’ transformational leadership style predicted the principal openness behavior variable of school climate. Finally, results of multivariate analysis of covariance indicated that the discrepancy between principals’ self-perception of the transformational leadership style and teachers’ perceptions of the principals’ transformational leadership style significantly affected the teacher and principal openness behaviors variables of school climate. However, no significant effect was found when the analysis was conducted with instructional leaders in place of principals.Doctor of Education (EdD)Education & Educational Psycholog
University Astronomy: Instructional Strategies for the Visually Impaired
No full textWhile teaching a spring laboratory course in general university astronomy, I agreed to provide instruction to a student who had been advised against laboratory work in chemistry and biology because of her significant visual impairment. This poster describes our mutual learning experience as we developed tactile concept demonstrations and laboratory exercises. Progress assessment issues and gaps in educational resources will also be discussed
WWII Veteran Interview
No full text35 minute interview with my great uncle Joe Denardo.This interview is an interview done with a veteran who was in the Army Infantry. He fought Peleliu and was also at Guadalcanal. The interview also tells about what basic training was like and what kind of basic training he endured
Celebrating The War We Lost, Stalked by a Cabbie, In Search of The Blue Mosque, Entrance Is Free
No full textThis is a collection of excerpts from my future memoirs. The tales enclosed retell some of my experiences during my stay in Cairo, Egypt from 1996-2001. The four stories that make up this thesis are a look at some of the cultural schisms one is exposed to in a foreign land. These tales will one day become a part of my memoirs as I retell my childhood experiences living in Suriname, Costa Rica, Russia, and Egypt