Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) is an education term used to define students enrolled in public schools whose language and culture do not match the dominant culture. Assessing CLD students has been an ongoing challenge in school psychology for decades. Significant disproportionality includes CLD populations, special education…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a program evaluation case study on the impact of standards-based grading in a North Carolina school district. The implementation procedures and end products of grading reform were assessed using the CIPP model. Data from teacher questionnaires, principal implementation checklists, interviews, and…

Improving instructor and student satisfaction with training in a global semiconductor company was the focus of this dissertation in practice. This study followed the Performance Improvement/Human Performance Technology (HPT) model as the overarching framework (Van Tiem et al., 2012). Fifty students and four instructors participated in this…

Developing models, using mathematics, and constructing explanations are three practices essential for science inquiry learning according to education reform efforts, such as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States, 2013). However, students struggle with these intersecting practices, especially when developing and interpreting…

This dissertation aimed to advance the field of biology education in several ways. First, we aimed to demonstrate if, and to what extent, student-generated conceptual models can be used on summative assessments to accurately assess student understanding of gene expression. Next, we described patterns of changes students make to conceptual models…

Since the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act required classifications of students' performance levels, test scores have been used to measure students' achievement; in particular, test scores are used to determine whether students reach a proficiency level in the state assessment. Accordingly, school districts have started using benchmark assessments…

As educational accountability pressures and science teacher attrition rates within American public-school systems continue to rise, so does the need for improved reform-based professional development (PD) opportunities that allow science educators to challenge their pedagogical beliefs and teaching practices. This qualitative case study explores…

Response processes are an important component of validity to support the use and interpretation of test scores. Response processes information can provide insight into how students engage with assessment tasks and the type of errors made when solving items, as well as allow for the study of cognitive properties in items that may be associated with…

Over the past four decades, special education has become prominent in many public and private schools. This quantitative non-experimental study aims to compare the impact of the pullout model versus the inclusion model on students with learning disability scores on their Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) in…

This study, aimed at supporting the work of assessing college students' spiritual formation in Christian higher education, looked at relevant empirical studies from psychology of religion and higher education student development. The review of the literature allowed the researcher to identify findings about college students' religiousness and…

This study was designed to examine the lack of ongoing evidence-based preparation models used by co-teachers to plan lessons and assessments for students with special needs within inclusive classroom environments. Co-planning is especially important when general and special education teachers are working together to support students with…

This dissertation presents various machine learning applications for predicting different cognitive states of students while they are using a vocabulary tutoring system, DSCoVAR. We conduct four studies, each of which includes a comprehensive analysis of behavioral and linguistic data and provides data-driven evidence for designing personalized…

When a new student comes to play an educational game, how can we determine what content to give them such that they learn as much as possible? When a frustrated customer calls in to a helpline, how can we determine what to say to best assist them? When an ill patient comes in to the clinic, how do we determine what tests to run and treatments to…

This qualitative phenomenological case study is designed to investigate the learning outcomes, lived experiences, and perceptions of eight post-secondary teachers participating in a sketch-based infographic development training program. This research is designed to assess the viability of infographics as a learning and assessment strategy,…

The Spellings Commission (U.S. Secretary of Education Commission on the Future of Higher Education) notes that there are far too many college graduates entering the workforce without the initial employment skills and predispositions needed in a current global economy. Specify measurements of relevant learning within community colleges is therefore…