Causal Attributions of Nontraditional Students in a Developmental Mathematics Course at a Two-Year College

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship existed between exam grades and students\u27 causal attributions of their grades in a developmental mathematics course at a community college. Also investigated were differences in causal attributions of grades between Traditional and Nontraditional students. In addition, among Nontraditional students, differences based on gender were examined. The sample consisted of 331 completed questionnaires from 24 sections at a southern community college in the Spring 2010 semester. The instrument used was a self-report questionnaire consisting of four parts: (a) demographic data section; (b) seven questions to determine students\u27 classification; (c) short answer section about students\u27 exam grade, and an attribution for the exam grade; (d) Revised Causal Dimension Scale (CDSII). A Pearson chi-square test was conducted between low-graded and high-graded students to test for a relationship between exam grade and reported attributions. Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was performed between student classifications, based on exam grade and scores on the CDSII to test for any relationships. Multivariate Analysis of Variance was also performed between gender of Nontraditional students and scores on the CDSII. The statistical analysis indicated a difference in reported attributions of low-graded and high-graded students. Low-graded students\u27 reported attributes were spread across the eight categories while high-graded students attributed Internal-Stable-Controllable and Internal-Unstable-Controllable attributes most frequently. This overall trend appeared in all student classifications but Minimally Nontraditional students. Reported attributes for this group were scattered over the eight categories regardless of exam grade. On the CDSII, neither low-graded students nor high-graded students showed significant differences in Locus of Causality or Stability dimensions when distinguished by student classification. For low-graded students, there was a significant difference in the Personal Controllability dimension. For high-graded students, a significant difference appeared in the Personal Controllability dimension and the External Controllability dimension. When compared by gender, low-graded Nontraditional students differed on the CDSII in the Locus of Causality dimension, with females attributing their grade more towards internal traits as compared to males. Among high-graded Nontraditional students, there was no significant difference in any of the dimensions

Grace that goes before : John Wesley\u27s doctrine of prevenient grace and its significance for youth ministry

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/2463/thumbnail.jp

Parental Pressure, Anxiety, and Performance Among Age Group Swimmers

Background/Purpose: Parents introduce children to youth sport and can increase a child’s level of enjoyment in the sport. However, parents can also place too much pressure on the child, which can lead to increased pre-competition anxiety and decreased performance (Bois, Lalanne, & Delforge, 2008; Scanlan & Lewthwaite, 1984). The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among perceived and desired parental pressure, pre-competition state anxiety, subsequent performance, and intention to continue the sport in youth swimmers ages 9-18. Method: A sample of 43 swimmers (17 male, 26 female; M=12.8±2.6 years) on a United States Swimming (USS) sanctioned club team in a mid-sized Southern city participated in this study. These swimmers completed the directive behavior scale of the Parental Involvement in Sport Questionnaire (PISQ) in the days preceding a swim meet. Variables analyzed in the PISQ include perceived pressure, desired pressure and the discrepancy between perceived and desired pressure for each parent. Immediately before the swimmer’s first race of this meet, each athlete completed the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 Modified for Children (CSAI-2C); the swimmer’s performance from this first race was compared to the previous personal best of the athlete to develop a performance time-ratio. After the meet concluded, each swimmer declared his or her intention to continue swimming past this year. Analysis/Results: Bivariate correlations and regressions were run to analyze the questionnaires. Discrepancy of father’s pressure (b=0.277, p=. 021) and self-confidence (b=-.374, p=. 004) were significant predictors of cognitive anxiety in a regression analysis. In separate regression analyses, cognitive anxiety predicted intention to continue (b =-.066, p=. 036); the more cognitive anxiety a swimmer experiences, the less likely that swimmer will intend to continue swimming and age was the only significant predictor of performance (b=.012, p\u3c.001). Conclusions: Results indicate the importance of working with parents to learn appropriate supportive behaviors when interacting with their children in sport settings and working with parents and coaches to develop programs to reduce cognitive anxiety in children participating in sport

Examining Anxiety and Achievement Goal Theory in Physical Activity Settings

In the United States (US), a majority of adults do not meet the recommended guides of physical activity despite the many benefits. One benefit of activity is the reduction of anxiety. Although there is robust evidence demonstrating the anxiolytic effects of physical activity, the mechanism is not fully understood. Some psychological explanations are related to a lack of confidence in one’s ability. Because of this, Achievement Goal Theory (AGT) may be a viable framework to explain the anxiolytic effects of physical activity. The focus of this dissertation is to examine the efficacy of AGT as a mechanism and to explore settings and sources of anxiety that may prevent individuals from being active. The first study employed a correlational design, and the focus was to investigate the relationships among concepts of AGT, perceived competence, competence valuation, and state anxiety and how the interactions among these constructs affect future participation. College students (N=531) enrolled in activity classes completed surveys related to these constructs. Based on the results of this study, AGT is a suitable framework to explain how activity can reduce anxiety. Regarding state anxiety, climate is important to consider, and instructors should create mastery-approach climates to reduce symptoms of anxiety. To increase intentions to participate, competence valuation was the best predictor. The results from this study reveal the importance of promoting an environment that is supportive to one’s needs and to encourage self-referenced goals. The second study used the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) via an electronically delivered questionnaire on a sample of college students (N=122). The focus of this study was to examine physical activity settings that invoke anxiety and to target sources of anxiety within these settings. The settings individuals perceived as anxiety-producing included sport, credit-based classes, and leisure-time activity settings such as workout facilities. The core, underlying source of anxiety in all settings was fragile self-beliefs. The findings from this study confirm AGT as a framework to guide the investigation of the relationship between anxiety in physical activity. These studies demonstrate the importance of creating supportive environments to reduce anxiety and increase future participation in physical activity

State ex rel. Perry v. District Court, 22 St. Rptr. 406, 400 P.2d 648 (Mont. 1965)

State ex rel. Perry v. District Cour

GJR Volume 33 Number 1 Spring 2010

The Georgia Journal of Reading\u27s Spring 2010 issue includes: Message From the Editors by Elizabeth Pendergraft (pg.5) President’s Page by Sallie Averitt Miller (pg. 6) Using Children’s Literature as a Resource Within Middle Grades Social Studies Curriculum by Christine A. Draper (pg. 7) Critical Literacy: From Theory to Practice by Katie Simon Kurumada (pg. 12) Extra! Extra! Read All About It!: Tapping Students’ Popular Culture Interest Through An Elementary School Newspaper by Andrew Huddleston (pg. 16) Can Digital Storytelling Improve Literacy Outcomes for Students with Autism? by Brent Daigle and Margaret-Mary Sulentic Dowell (pg. 25) Project Pen Pal: A Win-Win Service Learning Project for College Students and First Grade Children by Michelle Haney (pg. 35)https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/gjrarchive/1001/thumbnail.jp

Calculus Redesign to Include Recitation Activities and its Effect on Student Success

In an attempt to increase content knowledge and improve overall success rates in Calculus 1, the University of South Alabama piloted a redesign of the course in the Fall 2015 and Spring 2016 semesters.  The main emphasis of the redesign was increasing contact hours from 4 to 5 per week and implementing the use of graduate teaching assistants twice a week for recitation.  After two semesters, an analysis of common exam questions and overall course grades revealed significant improvements in both areas when comparing redesign to traditional sections.  The use of graduate teaching assistants also proved to be more cost efficient to the university.  The initial findings resulted in implemented the redesign model in all Calculus 1 sections.  Future implementations are also discussed

Können Konsequentialisten mit Überdeterminiertheit umgehen? Schwellenwert-Argumente und das Problem kollektiver Handlungen

Da das Leid von Tieren in Massentierhaltung in die Welt kommt, egal ob ein Einzelner aufhört, Fleisch zu konsumieren, ist dieses Leid ‚überdeterminiert‘. Der vorliegende Aufsatz fragt, ob Handlungskonsequenzialisten durch Zuhilfenahme von Schwellenwert-Argumenten dennoch in der Lage sind, den einzelnen Akt etwa eines Hühnchenkaufs moralisch zu verurteilen. Diese Frage kann auf der Grundlage eines neueren Arguments von Shelly Kagan mithilfe spieltheoretischer Überlegungen bejaht werden, sofern man vom realistischen Bild einer möglichen Überdeterminiertheit ausgeht und zudem periodische von singulären Schwellenwerten unterscheidet. Aus diesen Differenzierungen ergibt sich also ein Systematisierungsvorschlag für die Leistungsfähigkeit von Schwellenwert-Argumenten bei Überdeterminiertheit. Since the amount of suffering inflicted on animals through factory farming will not be diminished by a single person’s abstaining from eating meat, this suffering is ‘overdetermined’. The present paper examines whether act consequentialists can nevertheless morally condemn the act of buying a chicken by employing thresh-old arguments. Based on a newer argument by Shelly Kagan and a number of game theoretical considerations, a positive answer to this question can be given if one takes into account the more realistic notion of possible overdetermination and makes a distinction between periodic and singular thresholds. This analysis then yields a proposal for a systematization of the effectiveness of threshold arguments in the case of overdetermination

Examining Minority Youth Swimmers’ versus Non-Swimmers’ Perceptions of Swimming Involvement

Drowning is one of the leading causes of death in youth, especially among minority populations (Gilchrest & Parker, 2014). According to the World Health Organization (2014), every hour of every day approximately 42 people lose their lives to drowning. Additionally, African-Americans are 14 times more likely to drown in a pool than other racial or ethnic group members (Waller & Norwood, 2011). The purpose of this study was to examine survey results between swimming and non-swimming minority youth participants. Forty African American students between the ages of 5-17 from an after-school program completed the Swimming Involvement Survey. Results indicated that swimmers, independent of group or gender, would like to swim more than they currently do. These results can help structure more effective swimming programs targeting minority youth

Comparative Analysis Between Physical Activity Affect and Discrete Emotions in College Students

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate empirical distinctness and overlap between physical activity (PA) affect and emotions as well as potential unique relationships with PA beliefs and behaviors. Specifically, researchers wanted to explore the level of shared variance amongst discrete emotions and affect, which in effect tested the jingle-jangle fallacy that can be present in psychometric evaluation of related constructs. Participants: College students (N=519; Mage= 20.47) enrolled in PA courses at two universities in the Southeastern United States completed questionnaires concerning their PA related emotions, affect, self-efficacy, and self-reported PA. Methods: Confirmatory factor analysis and structural modeling were used to evaluate factor structure and hypothesized relationships. Results: Sound factor analysis was identified with affect related to several emotions, including strong correlations between enjoyment and positive affect, suggesting some construct and measurement intersection. Regression results showed emotions produced stronger relationships with self-efficacy and PA compared to affect. Conclusions: While conceptual overlap did exist, measuring several discrete emotions over the dichotomous affective measure may be more insightful and provide specificity in explaining PA decisions. More research is needed on the use of PA emotions