JBC Commons (New College of Florida)
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Reading as an Adventure: How Individualization in English Classrooms Uplifts Students
No full textStudents deserve to have classrooms designed with their holistic needs in mind. Teachers should utilize pedagogical research to deliberately design their classrooms in a way that empowers student success. Structuring a classroom with these sentiments in mind reveals the benefits to students that pedagogically and psychologically sound educational activities provide. This thesis attempts to implement the pedagogical approach of active learning by developing a unit that relies on Reading Groups and Socratic Seminars. Reading Groups offer students the unique opportunity to engage with their choice in text; a common barrier for students in finding motivation for class readings. Additionally, Reading Groups offer individualization and differentiation options, as well as a scaffolded approach to developing necessary skills. Along with Reading Groups, students are asked to participate in Socratic Seminars which engage them in intertextual conversation and experience interacting with evidence from unfamiliar sources. Through the lens of four texts, this thesis analyzes how a classroom could run if students read The Hobbit, The Giver, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, and To Kill a Mockingbird, in separate Reading Groups
EYES ON THE BALLPARK: EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VISUAL PURSUIT AND ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
No full textThis study investigates the relationship between visual pursuit and athletic performance in collegiate baseball and softball players. Twelve individuals from NAIA college teams participated in the study. Participants watched video of a pitch being thrown from the batter’s perspective while data on eye movements was collected with eye tracking hardware. These data were then compared with individual in-game performance as indexed by real game statistics. The results suggest a potential positive relationship between visual pursuit and performance. Players who began tracking the ball earlier, who followed it for a longer time, and whose eyes more closely followed the path of the ball demonstrated a higher on-base percentage. These findings highlight the potential of visual tracking to explain and inform sports performance. However, due to the small sample size, the study\u27s findings are limited. Future research with a larger sample size and multiple stimuli is necessary to establish a more direct relationship between visual pursuit and athletic performance
Ringling’s Artist Academy: The Development of a Sequential Museum Education Program for Homeschool Visitors
No full textIn my thesis I developed an educational program plan entitled Ringling’s Art Academy, which delves into the elements of art as a foundation to art making. Inspired by the constructivist theory and approaches currently used in the Ringling Museum’s youth and family programs, I designed the program as a series of sessions that would facilitate sequential learning: learning goals that build on one another through scaffolding methods. This format consists of four weekly sessions that introduce different elements of art over the course of the program, exploring these elements in a historical context, as well as through art-viewing and art-making activities. Constructivist theory strives to encourage meaning making in the museum space through social, conceptual, and experiential learning in informal learning environments. The target audience for the program is homeschooled children and their caregivers. This target demographic for my program applies many nontraditional learning methods inspired by the teachings of Dr. Maria Montessori and Reggio Emilia, which share some of the same principles as constructivist learning methods. These methods encourage learning through play, in environments and with supervisors supporting and encouraging children’s exploration. Through expanding the program structure into a series of scaffolded sessions, I as the museum educator hope to support this kind of playful exploration while bringing attention to the specific learning opportunities planned and facilitated in informal learning
SPILLOVERS AMONG CBDCS, THE STOCK AND BOND MARKETS, AND THE BUSINESS CYCLE
No full textThis research paper introduces the topic of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and its relationship to other key macroeconomic variables. It explores the literature surrounding the nature of CBDCs, their purpose, models, and their global development so far. We then delve into econometric analysis of CBDCs and their spillover effect on the stock and bond market, as well as their relationship with unemployment rate. The research found that CBDCs have a close relationship with bitcoin, where bitcoin can be used to predict Central Bank Digital Currency Attention index (CBDCAI) and Central Bank Digital Currency Uncertainty Index (CBDCUI). The research also discovered that CBDCUI shares a relationship with ten-year and three-month U.S. bond yield, but that possible effects may take longer to realize than with S&P 500, bitcoin, and unemployment rate. The implication of the study CBDCs are not immune to typical business cycle occurrences – therefore raising the question of whether this new class of currency is much ado about nothing. Moreover, CBDCs are less likely to be affected by private crypto currencies than the real economic forces such as unemployment
THE NEXT GENERATION OF BLUE: HEALTH AND AUTONOMY OF YOUNG ADULTS IN A BLUE ZONE REGION
No full textThis thesis focuses on young adult perspectives amidst the data of successful aging and longevity of nonagenarians and centenarians in the world’s five Blue Zones. With lacking data on how the Blue Zone Power 9 principles are affecting young adult lives in Blue Zone regions, this thesis assessed the presence of and usage of the Power 9 principles in the studied young adult population. Chronic disease is also on the rise in several countries, and the imminent threat of disease for many young adults is overbearing. The stress that this worry brings can often lead to heightened cortisol levels in the body, which contributes to inflammation, which has a studied correlation to the be the pathway to several chronic diseases. It was inquired if young adults in regions renowned for healthy aging felt this weighty stress, too, and if they felt they had control over their health. Qualitative interviews were conducted with eleven young adult participants between the ages of 22 and 34 in Uvita, Costa Rica, a coastal town in the Puntarenas Province, one province south of the Guanacaste Province that houses the Nicoya Peninsula, an identified Blue Zone. Their perspectives on the Blue Zone Power 9 principles were recorded and Grounded Theory was used to develop theories about the perceived health and autonomy of the young adult participants. In the Discussion portion, a comparative stance was taken between this new data and the existing Blue Zones research, and analyzed within the framework of the ongoing Blue Zone Projects movement. Several of the same Power 9 lifestyle factors were found to be present amongst young adults in the Blue Zone region, and an “out of sight out of mind” phenomenon made itself known during conversations of prevalence of community sickness in conjunction with fears of acquiring morbid conditions. A generalized sense of contentment with one’s life was reported from all the Costa Rican young adult participants in this study, which firmly parallels the reported sense of satisfaction from the Blue Zone nonagenarians and centenarians
ALONE TIME: HOW MOTIVATION FOR AND QUALITY OF SOLITUDE IMPACT WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE
No full textResearch has found that social isolation, especially in the case of ostracism, can have many negative effects on individuals. However, some factors decrease the extent of the negative effects. One such factor is an individual’s motivation for solitude: the reasons one seeks experiences of solitude and how they use them. Two studies expand solitude research into the workplace setting. The first study used a cross-sectional survey and examined how motivation for solitude related to relationship quality and satisfaction among coworkers, and how the association between ostracism and negative mental health is related to self-determined motivation for solitude. Self-determined motivation for solitude seemed to decrease the strength of the association between ostracism and negative mental health, but was not significantly related to coworker relationship quality or satisfaction. The second study used an experimental design to manipulate how individuals spent time in solitude and measure their success and enjoyment of a subsequent partner task. The experiment could not be completed due to logistical issues, so this thesis instead discusses the hypotheses and how to improve the experiment for the future. Encouraging self-determined motivation for solitude, as well as productive use of solitude, may improve employee well-being
THE GOLDIES THAT GET IT, GET IT: EXPLORING THE ABILITY OF GOLDFISH TO DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN VARIABILITY IN REWARD REDUCTION
No full textThe instrumental learning process, explored through studies on animals like rats and goldfish, investigates how behavior is influenced by consequences. While Thorndike and Skinner laid the groundwork, research has shown differences in responses to changes in reward magnitude between species. Rats have demonstrated the depression effect, a decline in the rate of performance due to a reduction in the size of reward, however, goldfish studies have faced challenges in replicating findings on this effect. The current study aims to investigate whether goldfish exhibit the depression effect in variable magnitude downshifts. The study involved six common freshwater goldfish (Carassius auratus) randomly assigned to three experimental groups, in which all began with 0.3 mL fish paste reward and each group downshifted to 0.15 mL, 0.05 mL, and 0.10 mL. Trials were conducted over 14 non-consecutive days, with the pre-shift phase (i.e., the phase before any shift in reward magnitude) lasting 24 trials and the post-shift phase (i.e., the phase after a shift in reward magnitude) lasting 12 trials. The anticipated depression effect did not occur with the goldfish: Analyses showed no significant sustained decrease in running speeds from pre-shift to post-shift phases for all groups. On the other hand, the running speeds of the fish were more erratic post-shift than pre-shift suggesting that the fish noticed a difference in the reinforcement values. The challenge of obtaining consistent results in goldfish experiments may stem from the ratio between initial reward magnitude and the number of trials, as a small pre-shift reward may not be differentiable from a smaller post-shift reward, and too few trials leads to a weaker association built between the goal behavior and the reward. Suggestions for future research include increasing both the trial number and the initial reward magnitude, as well as considering frustration theory to understand the impact of reward magnitude reduction on animal behavior and learning
YOU CAN’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER: FINDING BEAUTY AS A CHINESE TRANSRACIAL ADOPTEE
No full textIn America, the Chinese transracial adoptee sits in a unique position between two cultures with few opportunities to properly explore that position. As a Chinese transracial adoptee myself, I explore my own cultural identity through my artwork and dissect the many facets of my upbringing that have contributed to my sense of identity. Lack of Asian, and specifically adoptee, representation in the media paired with conflicting expectations of Chinese women in America fuel an ongoing feeling of being an outsider that has informed my work and discussion. Artists like Xu Bing and Rina Banerjee, who similarly work with culturally significant materials, also inspire my artistic process by encouraging me to consider how culture can be synthesized into a visual format. Through interactive and emotionally resonant artist’s books, I encourage the viewer to dive into my headspace and experience the tension that can be felt being stuck between two cultures as they reflect on their own cultural identity. I do this in order to contribute to the underrepresented voices of Chinese transracial adoptees who are often overlooked within the Asian American community
ENRICHING ENVIRONMENTAL RISK COMMUNICATION IN UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES: BUILDING BRIDGES THROUGH CULTURALLY COMPETENT COMMUNICATIONS
No full textThis thesis aims to address the critical gap in environmental risk communication with low-income and minority communities, who disproportionately bear the burden of environmental hazards and the impacts of climate change. Traditional risk communication approaches often fail to reach these marginalized communities effectively, perpetuating disparities in understanding and mitigation response to environmental risks. Through a comprehensive, interdisciplinary literature review encompassing environmental risk, science communication, public health, and outbreak protocols, this study proposes adaptable guidelines for enhancing communication with lowincome and minority communities. This thesis synthesizes best practices and recommendations moving beyond traditional risk communication that aligns with the information deficit model towards a dialogue-centered, cultural model that emphasizes meaningful community engagement and is grounded in the community’s sociocultural contexts. Significant findings highlight the importance of building trust, cultural competency, and community empowerment in risk communication strategies. This thesis provides a foundation for more inclusive and effective environmental risk communication, calling for a shift towards a collaborative approach that integrates community knowledge and perspective, aiming to foster informed decision-making and community resilience
OPEN CIRCLE MEDIA THE COLLABORATIVE CREATION OF A MEDIA PRODUCTION ENTERPRISE
No full textThe basis of this project was the researching, establishing, and conducting of a student-run enterprise specializing in the delivery of multimedia services (IE film, photography, sound) working with real-world clients. Our primary purpose was to immerse ourselves in the professional industry of media production and to learn the nuanced dynamics and hard and soft skills the industry requires, with the intent of utilizing direct experience as a form of self-directed education. Simultaneously, we created a tangible body of work and built a network within our community. We created an enterprise called Open Circle Media, complete with its own website, branding identity, and personalized business cards. Under this name, we worked alongside several professional documentary teams and also retained individual clients who contracted us for a variety of production services. We drafted legal contracts, professionally managed and delivered media files, and sent invoices to clients. We filmed over a hundred hours of video content in professional settings, earned more than five thousand dollars in gross revenue (which was then reinvested into professional camera equipment), and learned invaluable lessons from numerous clients and mentors who we encountered along the way