The University of Texas at Tyler
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The Role of Cultural Capital in Improving Advanced Placement Outcomes
Get PDFThis work delves into the potential benefits and criticism of Advanced Placement (AP) courses, with a specific focus on the necessity of cultural capital to address disparities in access and success. The researcher argues that the broad content coverage in AP courses often leads to conventional lecture-based instruction that does not value cultural capital and limits student engagement and outcomes. To rectify this, recommendations are made to incorporate pedagogical approaches like culturally relevant teaching and providing teacher feedback and support that allows for the successful implementation of these practices. Numerous studies indicate that participation in AP courses predicts success in college retention, GPA, and other areas, with the strongest links being for students who earn qualified exam scores of 3 or higher. However, historically marginalized populations, including Black, Hispanic, and low-income students, are less likely to participate in AP courses and less likely to earn qualifying exam scores. By focusing on the development of cultural and social capital among historically marginalized students through teacher behaviors and pedagogy, their chances of earning qualifying exam scores can be improved. This research emphasizes the potential of AP courses to support historically excluded populations in their pursuit of academic and career success, ultimately leading to an enhanced quality of life. This study aimed to address this shift by investigating the relationship between teacher support and feedback, the college-going environment, enrollment, and the percentage of students from low socioeconomic households in 20 comprehensive high schools through multiple regression and Lasso regression techniques. The results highlight that teacher feedback and support exhibited the strongest relationship among the variables considered; however, contrary to existing literature, this correlation was associated with lower qualified AP exam scores. These findings indicate the need for further research to better understand the specific nature of teacher feedback and support that may correlate with an increase in qualified AP exam scores
IMPROVING OUTCOMES FOR OLDER STRUGGLING READERS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION RESOURCE
Get PDFThis research aimed to increase the reading achievement of sixth-grade special education students receiving interventions in a resource setting. This problem of practice was created in response to the theory of change made by a Network Improvement Community (NIC) rooted in the lack of professional development offered by the school district for special education teachers in teaching students foundational reading skills. The research questions used for this study this evaluation were 1) What percent of students made progress in each reporting category (word study, grammar, and comprehension) in the Lexia PowerUp literacy program? 2) To what extent did the teachers feel they implemented the Lexia PowerUp literacy program with fidelity? 3) To what extent did the implementation of Lexia PowerUp literacy increase student performance on the STAAR test? Specifically, what was the percentage increase for approaches and meets grade level? This research project also applied improvement science principles and mixed methods using an embedded experimental design. Throughout this research project, the researcher implemented interventions and evaluated outcomes as part of a plan-do-study-act (PDSA) inquiry cycle. The PDSA cycle was conducted in two phases with pre- and post-measures in addition to collecting quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative data was collected through progress measures in each strand of instruction in the Lexia PowerUp literacy program for each campus and by reviewing the sixth grade State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) data in the areas of approaches, meets, and percent of students who made progress on the reading assessment. Qualitative data was collected by administering a teacher survey to determine the fidelity of implementing the intervention program. Findings indicated that students made progress in all three areas of the intervention program, and there was overall incremental growth on the STAAR reading assessment. Teachers self-reported implementation with fidelity, but there were minimal responses to the survey. Additionally, the school district limited the researcher in accessing available data
Robot Revolution: Impacting Adoption of the Technology
Get PDFThe author examined the value of robotic guidance platforms in spine surgery, and then implemented an improvement project to positively impact internal (Medtronic employee) adoption of the technology. By promoting adoption, robotics will continue to advance the standard of care for spine surgery patients. This paper is to meet fulfillment of requirements for NURS5382 Capstone
Briquetage And Brine: Living And Working At The Classic Maya Salt Works Of Ek Way Nal, Belize
Get PDFSystematic flotation survey and spatial analysis of artifacts at the submerged salt work of Ek Way Nal reveal evidence of a residence, salt kitchens, and additional activities. Ek Way Nal is one of 110 salt works associated with a Late to Terminal Classic (A.D. 600-900) salt industry known as the Paynes Creek Salt Works. Wooden posts that form the walls of 10 buildings are remarkably preserved in a peat bog below the sea floor providing an opportunity to examine surface artifacts in relation to buildings. Numerous salt kitchens have been located at the Paynes Creek Salt Works by evidence of abundant briquetage - pottery associated with boiling brine over fires to make salt. As one of the largest salt works with 10 buildings, there is an opportunity to examine variability in building use. Systematic flotation survey over the site and flagging and mapping individual artifacts and posts provide evidence that the Ek Way Nal salt makers had a residence near the salt kitchens, along with evidence of salting fish for subsistence or surplus household production. The results are compared with ethnographic evidence from Sacapulas and other salt work
Predicting University Campus Parking Demand Using Machine Learning Models
Get PDFParking demand at university campuses has been an issue for decades and is gradually increasing each year. With limited capacity, space, and funds to expand parking facilities, there is a dire need to better understand parking behavior on a university campus so that universities can better utilize the limited resources available. One methodology that has been used by Metropolitan Planning Organizations to predict traveler behavior is known as travel demand modeling, where the most common modeling technique is a four-step procedure that utilizes socioeconomic data to predict current and future traffic volumes in a network (e.g., a city). This study focuses primarily on the trip generation step, and The University of Texas at Tyler campus was used as a case study. First, each parking lot on campus was assigned to a parking demand zone (PDZ) based on its proximity to classroom buildings, and the hourly arrival demand for each PDZ was measured using pneumatic tube counters. The course schedule and floor space utilization data for each building on campus were then extracted as input parameters to predict the parking demand at each PDZ. A linear regression model and two artificial neural network (ANN) frameworks were developed. One ANN model was recommended, as it had an R-squared value of 0.846. From the selected ANN model, an equation has been extracted, which has the potential to be used by course schedulers to modify the course schedule to better mitigate parking demand on campus without the need to develop new parking facilities
Dynamic thermal model development of direct methanol fuel cell
Get PDFDirect methanol fuel cell (DMFC) is fueled with liquid methanol coupled with air to produce power at reasonably lower operational conditions while resulting in by-products of carbon dioxide and water, which is more environmentally friendly. Due to the complexity associated with the performance of direct methanol fuel cell, the application of artificial neural network (ANN) can significantly predict the characteristic performance of the cells. Nevertheless, limited studies have delved into the exploration of artificial neural network in the prediction of the transient characteristics of direct methanol fuel cells. The current study however presents a detailed investigation into the prediction of the dynamic thermal characteristics of a direct methanol fuel cell stack subjected to varying operational environment. Parameters considered in the study as input include methanol concentration, anode as well as cathode inlet flow rates, coupled with current. Outcomes for the artificial neural network models for three varying learning algorithms were ascertained for anode and cathode temperatures, which were forecasted closely by models with higher number of hidden neurons. Such models have coefficients of determination of 0.95 or more and mean square error less than 0.04. Thus, the outcome of the study presents prospects for artificial neural network methods as optimum control approach in direct methanol fuel cell development
Green Tea Supplementation: An Effective Lifestyle Modification for Cholesterol Management
Get PDFHypercholesterolemia is an insidious disease and the leading factor to the deadliest killer in the United States – cardiovascular disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023a). Over 85 million American adults suffer from elevated cholesterol, and treatment can prove challenging and may require multiple modalities outside just pharmaceutical intervention – such as dietary and other lifestyle changes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023b; Goldman, 2023). Green tea – among the most common teas consumed worldwide – exerts a uniquely antihyperlipidemic and cardioprotective effect that suggests its consideration as a potentially-viable nonpharmacological option for hypercholesterolemia (Harvard Health Publishing, 2012; Kosugi, n.d.). Green tea is rich in catechin phytochemicals that inhibit production of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) – considered by most medical professionals as the worst cholesterol for cardiovascular health (Cao et al., 2019; Cui et al., 2020). These excellent qualities in conjunction with relatively miniscule risks of adverse effects make a strong case for implementing the following proposed benchmark project: A 10-week, clinic-based pilot program of green tea supplementation for patients newly-diagnosed with hypercholesterolemia. This project is an investment in the future of the community – it will safely promote the cardiac health of patients whilst nurturing beneficial ties to local businesses
Effects of Chlorhexidine Products on Nosocomial Infections: A Benchmark Study
Get PDFHealthcare associated infections (HAI) are more than a burden as they can result in subsequent complications, prolonged patient stays in the hospital, as well as additional antibiotic treatment. The evidence-based change project will focus on ensuring that patients with any form of a central line who are admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), receive a bath using chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) products once daily as well as the use of antimicrobial intravenous (IV) caps
The Role of Safety Interventions in Decreasing Unplanned Extubations in Pediatrics: A Benchmark Study
Get PDFUnplanned extubation (UE) is the removal of an endotracheal tube from a patient any time before their planned extubation. In layman’s terms it is when a patient loses their airway before they were ready. These events lead to longer hospital stays, cost hospitals thousands of dollars for each case and can cause severe complications for the patient including death. Pediatric patients are a population that are at risk of UEs more so than the general population due to their inability to understand what is going on in the hospital due to their age and development, as well as their ability to metabolize sedation medications faster (Silva et al., 2017). Nurses play a key role in the identification of causes of UEs due to their proximity to the patient because of their place at the bedside (Danielis et al., 2018). Multiple safety interventions or a “safety bundle” play a large role in preventing these events from occurring and has been shown to be an effective way to lower the rate of unplanned extubations (Wu et al., 2022). The PICO question developed is: In patients in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (P), how does instituting a safety bundle protocol (I) compared to no safety bundle protocol (C) affect unplanned extubations (O)
Palliative Care and Quality of Life Improvement: A Benchmark Study
Get PDFThis project provides an overview of the standard and regular implementation of palliative care versus early implementation of palliative care in patients with chronic or terminal illnesses. Palliative care is an essential component of healthcare that focuses on improving the quality of life and providing support to patients through holistic elements to patients and their families facing chronic and terminal illnesses. With evidence-based research, many articles have been published with implementation of early palliative care showing improvement in patient and even caregiver quality of life. This project includes evidence gathered from mixed methods of systematic review of existing literature, randomized controlled trials, and qualitative studies involving a population of patients with a range of serious illnesses requiring palliative care. For this benchmark review, the data compares various factors within research to conclude improvement of patient quality of life