As the largest youth development organization in the United States, 4-H may be uniquely positioned to meet the needs of rural LGBTQ youth. 4-H has undergone a significant shift towards increasing access, equity, and belonging for youth over the last ten years. However, there is a specific need for research that considers the unique experiences of…

As the need for a STEM-literate workforce grows, educators must prepare to develop STEM-literate thinkers. American educators must modernize teaching practices and utilize the best research-based STEM pedagogy. STEM education can no longer be a novelty or supplement to classroom instruction, and this is especially true in elementary classrooms.…

Background: Holocaust memory and learning processes have become increasingly mediatised as a result of rapid technological advances. There is, however, little information available regarding how people learn about this topic informally through social media. Objectives: This paper explores how adult learners develop their learning ecologies by…

Research examining the administration, evaluation, and continued implementation of technology-based nutrition education interventions for low-income populations is lacking. This dissertation evaluated the implementation of Food eTalk, a statewide online, self-paced nutrition education program. Implementation occurred in various community- and…

In this investigation, we examine the contribution of intrinsic content density (ICD) to measures of expository text processing. In Studies 1 and 2, the factor structure of select text density metrics was examined and refined using two text samples (Ns = 150) randomly selected from an expository text corpus. Scores on the ICD measure based on the…

The purpose of this design and development case study is to provide an in-depth account of the needs analysis (through surveys and interviews), design, development and formative evaluation of the Citizen Science Cancer Curriculum (CSCC). The curriculum was developed as an online, self-paced educational program distributed as an Open Educational…

Writing and identity development are enhanced when students have opportunities to discuss and write about their lives and concerns. This qualitative study explored sites of possibility for reflective, dialogic pedagogy within middle and high school writing instruction. The context for the study were three rural school districts that were…

Quality of life (QoL) is an essential measure when assessing health interventions. Most early interventions for preschool children on the spectrum evaluate the effects on autism symptoms. However, researchers increasingly believe that good interventions should also improve the QoL of these children. Domains of QoL among preschool children on the…

Teachers have been called upon to be more entrepreneurial in their approaches to change. However, the universities in which preservice teachers learn and the schools in which teachers practice tend to emphasize standards, accountability, and risk-management, while traditional entrepreneurial conceptions of innovation tend to promote risk-taking…

Following the brutal murder of George Floyd by police office Derek Chauvin in summer 2020, interest in so-called "diversity" initiatives in schools of music across the U.S. and Canada has exploded. In this article, I put forward Derrick Bell's (1995) principle of interest convergence--a key tenet of critical race theory (CRT)-- in order…

Compared to the social communication domain, considerably less is known about the cause, development, and impact of restricted, repetitive behaviors interests and activities in children with autism spectrum disorder, including possible sex differences. This study examined sex differences in clinically identified (Autism Diagnostic Observation…

Previous research found repetitive and restricted behaviors (RRBs) were less predictive of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in females, indicating the diagnostic construct may not adequately describe RRB presentations in females. This mixed-methods study investigated the female presentation of RRBs, namely restricted interests, in a clinic sample of…

Educators and policy makers often lack the ability to work together to address issues facing schools. For this multiple case study, three educators who advocate regularly at the local, state, and national levels were asked by the researcher to offer advice for influencing legislative change. The findings suggest that educators interested in…

To understand divergent and remarkable lives lived, we examined the accomplishments, family dynamics, life orientation, psychological well-being, and definition of a meaningful life among two exceptional groups at age 50: Top Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics (STEM) doctoral students (270 males, 255 females, originally surveyed…

This sequential mixed methods study applies a recently published model of integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teacher identity to analyze teacher artifacts from a graduate STEM education course for in-service teachers (n = 23). This model captures the complexity of integrating STEM in elementary classrooms as an…