Recently Completed Dissertations on Community and Junior Colleges

Latinos are being educated in American colleges and universities in greater numbers than ever before. Yet, despite the increases in population growth, Latinos are still falling behind. Little attention has been given to the experiences of Latino males enrolled at the community college. However, research shows that it is the community colleges in which a large portion of the college-going Latino population is enrolled. The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine how community colleges can increase Latino male engagement in the quest to promote their academic persistence. Findings suggest these 12 Latino men are faced with unique circumstances (familial commitment, employment, peers) both on and off campus that impedes their involvement. Institutions of higher education are encouraged to be more supportive by offering opportunities for engagement that are sensitive to lifestyle of these participants in order to maintain their enrollment.     

The Parent Threat Inventory: development, reliability, and validity

OBJECTIVE: The goal was to develop a retrospective inventory of parental threatening behavior to facilitate a better understanding of such behavior's role in the etiology of psychological distress. METHOD: Inventory items were developed based on theory and 135 students' responses to a question eliciting examples of threatening parental behavior. Following item development, two additional student samples (n = 200 and n = 603) completed batteries of self-report measures. Responses were used to eliminate unstable or redundant items from the inventory and to examine the inventory's psychometric properties. RESULTS: Factor analysis of the inventory revealed three factors, accounting for 66.2% of variance; this factor structure is compatible with theory, and consistent across maternal behavior scores, paternal behavior scores, and combined maternal and paternal scores. Cronbach's coefficient alphas indicated acceptable internal consistency; Pearson correlation coefficients indicated acceptable 4-week test-retest reliability. Moderate intercorrelations with two retrospective measures of childhood experiences suggested construct validity. Regression analyses demonstrated the ability of the inventory to predict both anxious and depressive symptomatology and lifetime symptoms of anxiety and depressive disorder. Normative data on combined parent scores, maternal scores, and paternal scores are also presented. CONCLUSIONS: Initial psychometric testing of the Parent Threat Inventory (PTI) suggests it is a reliable and valid tool for investigating the developmental antecedents of adult psychological distress. Further research should focus on addressing two limitations: (1) lack of normative and psychometric data on men and women suffering from clinical disorders, and (2) lack of validation by parental reporting.     

Computer-assisted learning in UK engineering degree programmes: lessons learned from an extensive case study programme

This paper gives a synopsis of an extensive programme of case studies on real uses of computer-assisted learning (CAL) materials within UK engineering degree programmes. The programme was conducted between 2000 and 2003 and followed a questionnaire-based survey looking at CAL use in the UK and in Australia. The synopsis reveals a number of key messages for academic tutors and authors including students' enthusiasm for notes, self-tests and features to aid visualisation. Publishers should also consider pricing and licensing arrangements suited to the individual user. Cet article donne une synthèse exhaustive des études de cas concernant l'utilisation concrète des logiciels d'enseignement assisté par ordinateur (EAO) dans les études d'ingénieur au Royaume Uni. Ces études, conduites entre 2000 et 2003, sont basées sur l'analyse de questionnaires concernant l'utilisation de l'EAO au Royaume Uni et en Australie. La synthèse révèle un certain nombre de points clés destinés au corps enseignant et aux auteurs, dont notamment l'intérêt des étudiants pour les cours papiers, les exercices d'autoévaluation et les éléments d'aide à la visualisation. Les aspects liés aux coû ts et aux droits d'auteurs devraient aussi ûtre pris en compte par les éditeurs, afin de faciliter l'accès aux logiciels par les utilisateurs individuels.     

Action research: a methodology for transformative learning for a professor and his students in an engineering classroom

ABSTRACT

An engineering professor of a first-year thermodynamics course and a PhD student with a focus in engineering education in a large research university in Canada participated in an ethnographic action research study with the intention of increasing active learning in the classroom to enhance student engagement and learning. Unexpected findings included transformative changes to the professor’s epistemology of teaching and learning. Through the action research cycle of planning, implementing, observing, and critically reflecting, modifications were made to the instructional strategies and the learning environment that created a micro engineering community of practice where both students and teaching assistants engaged in deep learning and legitimate peripheral participation on the trajectory to ‘becoming engineers’. Qualitative interview data from the professor, three students, and three teaching assistants are analysed through approaches to learning research and situated learning theory. Engaging in action research had profound repercussions in this case. The authors make the argument for action research as a catalyst for transformative learning required for teachers to engage students in the twenty-first century classroom.     

Ureaplasma urealyticum and large colony mycoplasma colonization in female children and its relationship to sexual contact, age, and race.

In order to determine if Ureaplasma urealyticum (Uu) or large colony mycoplasma (LCM) colonization was related to a history of sexual abuse, the type of sexual contact, an enlarged vaginal introitus transverse diameter (greater than 4 mm), age or race, 452 female children, ages 1-12 years, were evaluated by the Child Sexual Abuse Team at Wake Medical Center in Raleigh, NC. Thirty-six girls were deleted because of inadequate cultures. When controlled for race and age, Uu throat (T), vaginal (V), and rectal (R) colonization and LCM vaginal and rectal colonization were not related to any of the other variables listed above. The enlarged vaginal introital diameter was related to a history of sexual abuse (p less than .001). Uu and LCM vaginal colonization rates were increased in black girls as compared to white girls (p less than .05). Uu V, Uu R, LCM V, and LCM R colonization increased with age. In our study population, Uu and LCM colonization was not a useful marker of sexual contact.     

An Analysis of Peer Feedback Exchanged in Group Supervision

The authors examined the peer feedback exchanged in 2 supervision groups of counselors‐in‐training (CITs). CITs generated 169 statements grouped into 10 clusters representing 5 regions of peer feedback: counselor focus and engagement, insight‐oriented skills, exploratory skills, therapeutic alliance, and intervention activities. Both positive and corrective peer feedback was exchanged on topics ranging from counselor performance skills to case conceptualization.