This dissertation serves as a call to geoscientists to share responsibility with K-12 educators for increasing Earth science literacy. When partnerships are created among K-12 educators and geoscientists, the synergy created can promote Earth science literacy in students, teachers, and the broader community. The research described here resulted in…

Teachers are continually confronted with meeting the needs of all students and preparing them to be successful on state end-of-course assessments while changing or evolving to be more of a facilitator of student-centered. Lessons are to be relevant for the students, engaging them so they are active participants in their learning. However, many…

This quantitative study investigated a summer school alternative to early grade retention. Prior existing second grade student achievement data was collected for students who were initially retained at the end of their first grade year over a two year period. All students were offered the opportunity to attend a promotional summer school program.…

This applied dissertation was designed to determine the impact of a technology integration professional development on high school teachers' technology integration and students' use of computers in core content areas. The District invested in technology for all classrooms, as well as 1:1 technology for all secondary students with an expectation…

The Virginia Tech Summer Academy (VTSA) Program, developed by through a collaborative partnership between faculty, administrators and staff concerned by attrition among first year students, was introduced in summer 2012 as a campus initiative to assist first-year college students transition and acclimate to the academic and social systems of the…

With increasing numbers of first-generation college students enrolling in colleges and universities across the US, so too is the need to begin preparing such underrepresented students for graduate school and a career in academia. As a phenomenological case study of student transformation, this dissertation examines the experience of nine…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires schools to show measureable improvement in student achievement in order to demonstrate Adequate Yearly Progress. Although the Georgia Department of Education has documented the short-comings of Georgia's students in mathematics on standardized tests, little research has been done on short-term…

As much as play is researched and discussed by people interested in children and childhood, studies often fail to examine closely the ways that kids accomplish their play. This study sought to answer the question of how children sustain their play interactions. By making use of qualitative methods to collect and analyze data, the play of…

The purpose of this study was to utilize the Goal Attainment Scale (GAS) during the Marshall University Summer Enrichment Program (MUSEP) to determine the effectiveness of individual counseling, group counseling, and a combination of both, on student academic and behavioral goals. Results indicated that no significant differences were found when…

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the transition processes camps undergo when including campers with disabilities into the organized camp from the perspective of key individuals who championed inclusion. Despite research that supports inclusion and knowledge of best inclusive practices, few camps have implemented the inclusion of…

This qualitative case study supplemented by quantitative data was employed to explore the understandings that 13 undergraduate students from a single Dean's Future Scholars (DFS) cohort held concerning the contributions of the six major components of DFS to their persistence into the second semester of their sophomore year of college at the…

The achievement gap between economically disadvantaged students and their traditional counterparts has continued to be a problem in education. Based on cognitive constructivist theory and enrichment theory, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between scores on a high-stakes achievement test and participation in a summer…

Over the past four decades the number of students enrolling in colleges and universities requiring at least one pre-college level course has been about one-third of all students. Underprepared students are as likely to complete their academic goals as their prepared counterparts if they are able to complete their remedial course work. This study…

It is beneficial to any institution of higher education to be able to understand why some students are able to persist to graduation and why some students leave college prematurely. Factors concerning retention and persistence of African American men have been a "hot topic" of discussion in higher education. The purpose of this…

Orientation programs, while unique in their own design and implementation across campuses, offer incoming students the opportunity to become acquainted with the institutional environment. A particularly important element of orientation programs is the component of orientation leaders who serve as peer mentors and guides to incoming students. These…