Popular and news media sources may play a key role in influencing undergraduate choice of major, yet their unique impact has not been investigated. Most research has focused on the influence of unmediated salient referents, such as parents, on students' major choices. Therefore, we developed a scale to examine the role of media professionals and…

The role of any statistics course is to increase the understanding and comprehension of statistical concepts and those goals can be achieved via both theoretical instruction and statistical software training. However, many introductory courses either forego advanced software usage, or leave its use to the student as a peripheral activity. The…

Technology is recognised as playing a part in the changing landscape in higher education; altering delivery modes and providing flexible opportunities for learning. Research into the use of wikis has shown that they provide many opportunities for student learning and the development of twenty-first century skills, however, there has been limited…

Social network sites (SNSs) have become a popular technology in recent years and are currently used in educational environments. Although SNSs have attracted much scholarly attention, students' experiences with and expectations about SNS uses in education have not been deeply explored. This study investigates educational uses of SNSs by analysing…

Studies of young people's experiences of parental influence on their educational choice in different family contexts are lacking. This study explores such experiences among youth in Norway, where educational choice is normatively construed as an autonomous decision. The article draws on data from a survey of 2029 youths that includes open-ended…

The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a relationship between tablet computer use and literacy, and emotional intelligence of prospective English language teachers. The study used a survey approach. In the study, "Prospective Teachers Tablet Computer Use and Literacy Scale" and an adapted and translated version into…

Much research has been conducted on reading levels of elementary school students. Teachers search for learning experiences that lend inclusion to all genders and levels. How does this all lay out for the students? The initial trial of the study looks into the impact and differences of gender and/or reading level on areas such as school enjoyment,…

University entry is a time of great change for students. The extent to which students are able to effectively navigate such change likely has an impact on their success in university. In the current study, we examined this by way of adaptability, the extent to which students' adaptability is associated with their behavioural engagement at…

Objective: This study examined how freshman year substance use prospectively predicted time to college graduation, and whether delayed graduation predicted postponed adoption of adult roles and future substance use. Participants: Participants were part of a longitudinal study that began in 2004. The first analyses focused on freshman year (N =…

Some students do not possess the learning management system (LMS) and basic computer skills needed for success in first-year experience (FYE) courses. The purpose of this quantitative study, based on the Integrative Learning Design Framework and theory of transactional distance, was to identify what basic computer skills and LMS skills are needed…

Data in the United States shows that perceptions of student well-being are low, childhood mental health disorders are rising, and performance on high-stakes tests in reading is stagnant across the early grades. Substantial effort, time, and money have been invested in school improvement policies, high-stakes school climates, and literacy…

In this multiple-case study, the author investigated fully online students' perceptions of and experiences with asynchronous and synchronous writing support options of an institutional writing center and a commercial tutoring service. This dissertation used a multiple-case study design (Merriam, 1998, 2009; Yin, 2009) to ascertain which features…

This dissertation is comprised of three linked studies investigating integrating online feedback practices into traditional classrooms. It focuses on one innovative practice, that of online peer-to-peer feedback, and highlights aspects of the process of developing this practice in each article. Each article relies on separate but connected…

The purpose of this study is to determine which factors influence the achievement of program objectives for Kyrgyz Republic alumni of the U.S. governmentally sponsored UGRAD program. The UGRAD program was designed to provide university students from the former Soviet Union an opportunity to study at an institute of higher education in the United…

The continual rise of student loan debt seems to show the world that students are willing to do whatever it takes to become successful in life. However, when they have completed the requirement for the degree many question if the whole journey was worth it. The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine the potential…