This dissertation study explored meaningful experiences contributing to students' identity, capacity, and efficacy development as culturally relevant leaders. In Chapter One, I detailed the importance and relevance of this topic in the field of higher education. Then, I reviewed the literature on college student leadership development; defined…

In this case study, both authors look into their experiences with a student-driven experiential learning initiative in the form of an academic services committee. The committee embodies a developing community of undergraduate students reading the double degrees in government and laws and also aims at promoting the scholarly study of public affairs…

Background: Over the two last decades, the interest in personal and psychosocial youth development has been growing due to its engagement in sport activities. Furthermore, participation in sport has been referenced as a favourable mechanism and context for positive youth development (PYD). However, some studies and researchers continue to question…

Arizona has been on the leading edge of the school choice movement. The Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program was authorized in 2011. Initially, the program allowed parents of students with disabilities to receive 90% of what the state would have spent to educate the child in the public school system. The funds could then be used…

The purpose of this case study was to explore administrator, teacher, and parent perceptions about the resources needed to increase parental involvement. Leveraging three theoretical frameworks of Epstein's overlapping spheres of influence, the Hoover-Dempsey and Sandler model, and Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, this study utilized qualitative…

Informal science activities occurring at various non-traditional learning sites present a pivotal model for involving youths in the science learning process. The dynamic landscape of emerging technologies has prompted the exploration of innovative methodologies to bolster and refine informal science education. However, the expanse of this field…

This paper presents a mathematical model of the dynamic interrelationships between education, creativity and happiness based on both theoretical insights and evidence from recent empirical neurological studies. In this context, the results are conditional on an individual's learning effort and risk-aversion. Specifically, I focus on two main…

Well-being is a balanced way for a disabled child to interact with himself and others and feel comfortable and happy in the activities of his daily life. It also indicates the safety of the mentally disabled child, and that he is free from mental disorders and diseases. This achieves high levels of compatibility, and adaptability to his life…

Although the effectiveness of extracurricular support offers for pupils with developmental learning disorders (DLD) is well documented, little is known about the utilisation of these services. Following the Behavioural Model of Health Care Utilisation, and based on data of a self-developed online survey (N = 225 parents of third and fourth…

Knowledge-making in South African universities is set up and framed in particular ways, with a Euro-centric bias. We argue that many of the contributions that African first year entering students could make to this process of knowledge-making are dis-abled, leading to alienation. In this article, we argue for a different perspective and approach…

The explicit linking of institutional funding to in-curricular industry engagement and graduate employment affirms the strategic importance of enhancing graduate employability in Australia. Key strategies to enhance graduate employability and employment outcomes are work-integrated learning (WIL) (where students engage with industry as part of…

Physical Activity is an important contributor to health, both physical and cognitive. The relationship between physical activity and educational outcomes has been explored in various venues. Little research, however, has interrogated this subject longitudinally, especially for a national sample of Latinx students. To make up that gap, this paper…

The present study tested the learning avoidance model by examining the degree to which learning avoidance in various afterschool settings mediated the negative association between math anxiety and math achievement. Participants consisted of 207 third to sixth graders. Using a path model, findings showed that students' math anxiety was negatively…

Black women undergraduate STEM students at Predominately White Institutions (PWIs) contend with difficult experiences in their academic majors (Charleston et al., 2014; Fletcher et al., 2017; Johnson, 2007; McGee & Bentley, 2017). Black women undergraduate STEM students are battling isolation, microaggressions, chilly climate, and other…

American Christian higher education has undergone a transformation in ideology since its inception in the Colonial Period. Christian service by students was originally attributed to the manifestation of one's love for Christ, but with successive eras, there has been a secular shift in worldview and discourse as well as service motivation from the…