Presents a metacritical examination of published essays by three professional critics of Richard Avedon's photographic exhibition, "In the American West," to determine how critics describe art work. Concludes that more comparative research is needed to bridge the gap between professional art criticism and that taught in schools. (KM)

Environmental factors may have an important influence on children's physical activity, yet children's perspectives of their home and neighborhood environments have not been widely assessed. The aim of this study was to investigate children's perceptions of their environments, and to examine associations between these perceptions and objectively…

A questionnaire was distributed to 486 two- and four-year colleges and universities with an enrollment of at least 1,000 students in order to determine the extent to which campus media service units were providing nonprint media services to their students and faculty. Administration, distribution services, maintenance services, video production…

This study used reflexive photography to examine the perceptions of college freshmen at the University of Southern Indiana. A random sample of 10 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking freshmen completed an initial interview and background questionnaire and were given a 27-exposure disposable camera to take pictures that would illustrate their…

Quality is seen as a primitive characteristic of media, but one that can be manipulated in various ways. Since media vary in their "relating power," that is, their ability to involve students, standards of quality also may vary in the ways certain production technique parameters, such as lighting, sound, and exposure, are manipulated. Some media,…

While problem-based learning (PBL) has been found to be effective with gifted and average students (Hmelo-Silver, 2004), little is known about its impact on students with special needs. This study examines the perceptions of middle-school students with mild, moderate, and severe disabilities and of their teachers regarding the value of…

In this study 10 first-year African American students (five men and five women) took photographs that illustrated their perceptions of the predominantly white research university they attended and discussed their pictures in subsequent individual and focus group interviews. Two theoretical frameworks provided the structure for the analysis:…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 21 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the black press of Tennessee from 1865 to 1980; (2) news values and decision making; (3) news coverage of the Indiana State Assembly; (4) an information theory…

McCosh Even Start, a federally funded family-literacy project located in a Chicago school, used older donated Apple computers, video technology, and photography to develop literacy and also to evaluate parents' and children's literacy progress. Older and newer technologies were successfully combined. (MLH)

South African women in informal settlements lack access to education and employment opportunities, making them vulnerable to exploitation and poverty. A collaborative narrative inquiry was undertaken to compile the life histories of 16 women, identifying their participation in community building. The process combined popular education and feminist…

In a study of college students' experiences at a public, four-year comprehensive university, 10 students took photographs representative of their impressions of the university and discussed the underlying themes of the photographs in focus-group interviews. Several primary themes emerged, including perceptions about the physical environment,…

In this project, we used photo-interviews as a method to investigate the hopes and fears of urban adolescent girls who actively participated in their community organization. The photo-interviews were featured in a collaborative, creative arts program involving urban adolescent girls from a community organization and college students enrolled in a…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 18 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the status, function, and perceived needs of journalism in the high schools of West Virginia; (2) environmental pollution news coverage; (3) a critical history…

Discusses research on learner control, pacing, and sequence, and describes a study of undergraduates that was conducted to determine the effects of learner versus program control of pacing and sequence in an interactive video lesson on photography. Results are analyzed, and suggestions for further research are given. (38 references) (LRW)

Background: Studies in adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) document abnormalities in both memory and face-emotion processing. The current study used a novel face-memory task to test the hypothesis that adolescent MDD is associated with a deficit in memory for face-emotions. The study also examines the relationship between parental MDD and…