This project researched faculty perceptions of learning spaces and their possible impact on student persistence at two community colleges in Kentucky. The researchers found through literature review, surveys, and interviews that learning spaces that enhanced student engagement and collaboration could positively impact student persistence. The…

The project researched faculty perceptions of learning spaces and their possible impact on student persistence at two community colleges in Kentucky. The researchers found through literature review, surveys, and interviews that learning spaces that enhanced student engagement and collaboration could positively impact student persistence. The…

This study shows that undergraduate students can gratify cognitive, affective, social integrative, and personal integrative needs microblogging via a learning management system discussion tool. Moreover, the researchers find that microblogging about news regarding mass media events and issues via Blackboard heightened engagement, expanded…

This dissertation investigates the topic of scholarship in the Information Systems (IS) discipline through a series of three papers. The papers, presented in Chapters 2, 3, and 4, each delve into a specific chronological period of IS scholarship which are delineated into the past, present, and future. Chapter 2 elucidates the IS discipline's…

For Extension's unbiased, research-based content to be found by people searching the Internet, it needs to be organized in a way conducive to the ranking criteria of a search engine. With proper web design and search engine optimization techniques, Extension's content can be found, recognized, and properly indexed by search engines and…

In academe, the game of how to win friends and influence people is serious business. Administrators and grant makers want proof that a researcher's work has life beyond the library or the lab. But the current system of measuring scholarly influence does not reflect the way many researchers work in an environment driven more and more by the social…

Foreign language films generate language acquisition, international cultural films help with global business interactions, medical videos teach students new medical procedures, and movies based on books encourage reading. Films can be instructional as well as FUN! Yet some of these cinematic materials receive little to no attention, not to mention…

Many people learn about smoking cessation through information on the Internet. Whether people with severe mental illnesses, who have very high rates of smoking, are able to use currently available websites about smoking cessation is unknown. The study reported here assessed whether four smoking cessation websites met usability guidelines and…

As free and low-cost Web analytics tools become more sophisticated, libraries' approach to user analysis can become more nuanced and precise. Tracking appropriate metrics with a well-formulated analytics program can inform design decisions, demonstrate the degree to which those decisions have succeeded, and thereby inform the next iteration in the…

For this study we used institutional web sites to examine the mission statements of 80 higher education institutions for messages about diversity. Of the 80 institutions, 59 (75%) referenced diversity in their mission statements; but only 19% defined diversity in racial or ethnic terms. In addition to mission statements, 52 (or 65%) of the 80…

The Internet has the potential for engaging urban seniors in managing their health. This study examined computer and Internet use among urban seniors and their interest in using the Internet as a health-management tool. Findings indicated that many participants were interested in storing and accessing health-related information using an…

The authors provide a brief review of how economists have dealt with art in their research and more popular writings, and then consider the case that has been made for using art and other visual materials in general education and--in very few cases--to teach economics. A new Web site on Art and Economics is introduced that makes it easier for…

This guiding document outlines five goals and supporting objectives that help advance National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) mission through education: (1) Science-Informed Society; (2) Conservation and Stewardship; (3) Safety and Preparedness; (4) Future Workforce; (5) Organizational Excellence. In this report, NOAA introduces…

In a recent "TPT" article, I wrote about a website called "Cramster" (www.cramster.com), which provides students with solutions to homework problems from many textbooks in math and science. I proposed the following question: Could giving students the answers to their assigned homework problems be an effective way of teaching them physics? This…

Libraries in the United States have worked towards developing more inclusive environments and programs. This inclusiveness should also extend to the online library presence. This article provides results of a web page scan of all Association of Research Libraries (ARL) in the United States to document the visibility of diversity on their pages. A…