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\u3ci\u3eMindful Marcelo\u3c/i\u3e: The Process of Writing and Illustrating a Culturally-Specific Children\u27s Book for Early Psychoeducation
Get PDFSocio-emotional learning (SEL) is imperative for young children to learn prosocial skills and how to identify and regulate their emotions. Most children begin to develop these skills in early childhood and depend on caregivers and teachers to model them. However, caregiver and teacher biases related to child gender and race can limit equitable access to high-quality SEL, placing male students of color at higher risk for maladaptive coping strategies. To address this gap, this thesis documents the creation of a culturally sensitive children\u27s book focused on SEL concepts for young Latino boys. Throughout this thesis, I documented the process of writing and illustrating a book for young Latino boys that focuses on SEL concepts. The completed book was read to 5-6-year-old students at a preschool. Preliminary observations suggest that the book effectively engaged children and facilitated discussions on emotion regulation, indicating its potential as a psychoeducational tool. Further research is recommended to refine its design and assess its impact on SEL outcomes, specifically in home environments
From Lockdown to Learning: Understanding Motivation Shifts in High School Students Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic
Get PDFThe COVID-19 pandemic induced profound disruptions to the educational landscape, significantly impacting high school students\u27 motivation to learn. This thesis explores how these disruptions affected students\u27 intrinsic and extrinsic motivations through the lenses of three motivational theories: Self-Determination Theory, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and Expectancy-Value Theory. By examining changes in the learning environment, social connections, and mental health before, during, and after the pandemic, this study identifies key factors that shaped changes in students\u27 academic engagement. The shift to online learning during the pandemic, combined with social isolation and increased mental health challenges, diminished students\u27 intrinsic motivation and weakened their sense of competence and relatedness. Post-lockdown, students faced ongoing challenges in re-establishing social connections and emotional well-being, further hindering their motivation. The findings suggest that rebuilding student motivation requires an intentional focus on fostering belonging, purpose, and resilience, particularly in response to the lasting effects of the pandemic. This thesis highlights the importance of prioritizing mental health, teacher-student relationships, and student-centered learning environments in educational recovery efforts
The Impact of Emotions on Informal Learning Experiences in the Workplace
Get PDFThis study investigates the role of emotion--specifically valence and arousal--on informal learning experiences in the workplace. As remote and flexible work environments grow, informal learning has become the dominant method through which employees acquire new skills. Drawing on theories such as Cognitive Load Theory and Ego Depletion Theory, this research explores how emotions influence cognitive processes critical to learning, such as attention, memory, and self-regulation. Prior literature suggests that both positive and negative affect (valence) impact learning outcomes, but the specific influence of emotional intensity (arousal) in informal learning remains underexplored. Using a longitudinal survey method, ten employees at Portland State University’s Learning Center completed 79 surveys spaced three days per week over four weeks, reporting on their emotional states and self-efficacy in relation to informal learning experiences. Results showed that participants generally reported high levels of success and self-efficacy, particularly when positive, high-arousal emotions (e.g., interested, active, strong) were present. Conversely, intense negative emotions (e.g., anxious, irritable, guilty) were significantly correlated with lower perceived learning success and self-efficacy, in support of the hypotheses. These findings highlight the importance of managing affective states to optimize informal learning outcomes. While limited by a small, homogenous sample and reliance on self-reported data, this study provides a foundation for future research and practical strategies for organizations aiming to support learning and development in emotionally complex work environments
A Comprehensive Literature Review of Gender Differences in Perception and Response to Stress
Get PDFIt is well established that psychological stress, whether acute, chronic, or recurring, creates an imbalance in the body’s ability to regulate itself, leading to the potential for long-term disease. This paper looks at the possibility that women (anyone who identifies as a woman) experience more general mental stress than men (anyone who identifies as a man) due to women experiencing unique stressors under a patriarchal society. Men and women live different lives in modern society due to differing societal expectations and biological processes for women (menstruation, pregnancy, menopause). These extra feelings of stress may be tied to traditional gender roles that encourage women to conform to lifestyles that place additional caregiving burdens on women specifically. This paper examines a variety of research that looks at gender differences in stress appraisal and coping, as well as the possible stress impact of gender roles.
In this review, differences in stressors, stress appraisal, and coping strategies between men and women will be discussed with the goal of identifying prevention and treatment strategies to reduce the burden of gendered stress and stress in general for both women and men. There is a need for further research into the causal relationship between gender and stress differences, as well as research on how to provide better psychological care for patients depending on these results. This paper aims to draw attention to the need for possible differences in psychological treatment for men and women, in order to better address male and female perception differences in stress. The purpose of this literature review is to conduct a cross-disciplinary examination of the impact of patriarchally determined gender roles on the well-being of women and those who identify as female, including insights from psychology, sociology, and biology
Identity, Bodies, and Time: Analysis of Transgender Education Curricula in K Through 12 Grades
Get PDFThe author analyzes lesson plans that focus on education around gender and transgender subjects--sourced from Sexual Orientation and Gender Institute (SOGI) 123 and Advocates for Youth (AFY)--and puts them in conversation with key literature on transgender education. What surfaces from their interaction are clear strong areas that support transgender education and gaps that fail transgender students
At Home in Horror: Women and Body Horror
Get PDFWhile most discussion around the subgenre of body horror focuses on its birthplace of film, the richest iterations come from women writing body horror fiction to explain the experience of womanhood. As body horror focuses on fear of painful or absurd mishap with the body. Women experience pain or absurdity in their own bodies every day with processes like menstruation, pregnancy, puberty, and heightened chances of becoming a victim of sexual assault. Furthermore, women experience society\u27s forceful shaming and fear about natural processes of the body and experiences such as anger and sexual desire. Using this idea as a framework, how can we describe how body horror in literature uniquely encapsulates women\u27s experiences with their bodies and societal oppression? Why do we construct society to make people feel horrified at the female body, including women themselves? How can we deconstruct this narrative and take back our bodies so they are not objects to be feared, but beautiful beings that contain the very unshameful necessities of life
Oregon State Rank Assessment for Siskiyou Iris (Iris bracteata)
Get PDFOregon state conservation status assessment for Siskiyou iris (Iris bracteata) using NatureServe methodology, 2025
Indigenous Language Revitalization: The Klamath and Cherokee Tribes
Get PDFIn recent decades, there have been initiatives to revitalize Indigenous languages all across the globe. This paper explores the efforts of two Native American tribes to revitalize their Indigenous languages in the face of historical and ongoing colonial pressures. Models for language revitalization necessarily differ based on an Indigenous group’s specific historical, cultural, and even geographical contexts, which makes the development of standardized models for Indigenous Language Revitalization challenging. This literature review will examine how the Cherokee Nation and the Klamath Tribes are implementing language revitalization on a tribal level in ways that address each tribe’s unique historical successes and challenges in revitalizing their cultures. Both tribes are utilizing a combination of traditional and modern methods to reclaim their languages and cultural identities. This literature review will delve into the historical context of language loss, particularly through colonial practices like boarding schools. I am to highlight the critical role of language in reviving Indigenous knowledge systems and cultural values. I will also address the importance of language as a tool for cultural resilience and tribal sovereignty in a modern context. The goal of this thesis is to emphasize the vital role of language in sustaining Indigenous cultures and identities, and the ongoing importance of community-led, culturally embedded language revitalization efforts
Oregon State Rank Assessment for Clackamas Iris (Iris tenuis)
Get PDFOregon state conservation status assessment for Clackamas iris (Iris tenuis) using NatureServe methodology, 2025
Graph Regularized Sparse L2,1 Semi-Nonnegative Matrix Factorization for Data Reduction
Get PDFNon-negative Matrix Factorization (NMF) is an effective algorithm for multivariate data analysis, including applications to feature selection, pattern recognition, and computer vision. Its variant, Semi-Nonnegative Matrix Factorization (SNF), extends the ability of NMF to render parts-based data representations to include mixed-sign data. Graph Regularized SNF builds upon this paradigm by adding a graph regularization term to preserve the local geometrical structure of the data space. Despite their successes, SNF-related algorithms to date still suffer from instability caused by the Frobenius norm due to the effects of outliers and noise. In this paper, we present a new L2,1 SNF algorithm that utilizes the noise-insensitive L2,1 norm. We provide monotonic convergence analysis of the L2,1 SNF algorithm. In addition, we conduct numerical experiments on three benchmark mixed-sign datasets as well as several randomized mixed-sign matrices to demonstrate the performance superiority of L2,1 SNF over conventional SNF algorithms under the influence of Gaussian noise at different levels