Assessing Individual Student Progress: Meeting Multiple Accreditation Standards and Professional Gatekeeping Responsibilities

Counselor education departments are often required to meet multiple accreditation standards that include assessment of individual student learning. Additionally, faculty in counselor education departments are responsible for acting as professional gatekeepers. The authors propose a model for assessment of individual student potential at the time of program admission. In addition, a comprehensive assessment process applied as students make the transition into clinical fieldwork is described

Service quality in convention management: What is the value of the meeting concierge?

The meetings and convention market represents one of the fastest growing segments of the tourism industry. Due to increased convention business and growing competition, an emphasis on service quality within convention services has recently become more pronounced. However, little research regarding convention services or the quality of service provided has been undertaken to illustrate or investigate this growing trend; In the early 1990s the position of meeting concierge was created as a way of increasing customer service quality for corporate meeting planners. This position was intended to provide additional personalized assistance to meeting planners while on-site since convention service managers are not always easily accessible. Over the past ten to fifteen years the meeting concierge position has grown exponentially in scope of job description and frequency. Many high-end luxury hotels and resorts such as the Ritz Carlton and Hyatt are using this position extensively throughout their properties as a method of demonstrating their commitment to a high level of customer service to their convention clients. Due to the limited literature about convention services and the meeting concierge in particular, this empirical study is designed to provide new data regarding the convention industry. At present the majority of literature on the subject has been overwhelmingly anecdotal or through trade press sources; The significance of this study was to demonstrate to convention service directors the importance of the meeting concierge. As of yet, there has been no hard evidence to suggest whether or not employing a meeting concierge is worth the cost for convention service departments. The data collected in this research project helped to quantify the impact the meeting concierge position has on convention clients. This new found information will aid convention service directors in determining their staffing needs and whether it is advantageous for them to include a meeting concierge position on their team. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Student attitudes toward group discussions

Student attitudes toward active learning techniques, such as group discussion, are often negative. The purpose of this study was to determine if an intervention informing students of the usefulness of group discussions affects their attitudes on group discussions. Students were randomly assigned to view a video and answer an essay question either on the value of group discussions (treatment) or on how group discussions were graded (control). Students in the treatment indicated group discussions as more useful as students in the control. Importantly, there were no differences in attitudes prior to the intervention. In addition, students reported their perceptions of the value (benefits) and costs (disadvantages) of group discussions in open-ended items. Findings are informative for pedagogical practice as well as designing future interventions

Improving Student Attitudes toward Discussion Boards Using a Brief Motivational Intervention

Discussion boards are tools to afford student interaction and engagement in online courses, but students often have negative attitudes toward discussion boards. The purpose of this study was to determine whether an intervention informing students of the usefulness of online discussion boards affected their attitudes toward discussion boards. The instructor randomly assigned students (N = 65) to view a video and answer an essay question on either the benefits of discussion boards (treatment) or how discussion boards were graded (control). Students in the treatment condition indicated discussion boards as being more useful than did students in the control condition, p = .04, Cohen’s d = .53, but there were no reliable differences in terms of how inherently interesting and enjoyable discussion boards were, p = .07, Cohen’s d = .44. Additionally, students reported their perceptions of the value (benefits) and costs (disadvantages) of discussion boards in open-ended items. There were no effects of the intervention on student grades on the discussion boards or exams (p = .87, Cohen’s d = .02 and p = .88, Cohen’s d = .08), but perceived utility and intrinsic value of discussion boards correlated with exam grades (r = .26, p = .04 and r = .33, p = .01). Overall, the study provides an effective intervention for improving student attitudes toward discussion boards

All About Cod (Grade 2/Lower Primary)

Designed for use in the second grade classroom, this activity will help students learn to summarize data in a table and a bar graph, practice addition and subtraction in the context of a word problem (story), and solve word problems involving money

“Green Hoops” a Hit, or Miss? An Examination of Eco-Sustainability of NBA Arenas as an Attendance Motivator for Fans

This paper examines the relationships between 252 NBA fans in the Southwest region of the United States, their attitudes and feelings towards eco-sustainable travel practices, and environmental protection initiatives of NBA arenas. While tourists may indicate they are environmentally-conscious in their personal lives, research scrutinizing the extent to which these habits are applied during travel will be valuable to businesses seeking to identify themselves as eco-sustainable. Furthermore, this study will help to ascertain whether tourists seek out environmentally-friendly hotels and restaurants, or whether these entities are viewed as simply a convenience while traveling

All About Cod (Grades 3-5/Upper Primary)

Lesson plan All About Cod for Grades 3-5. Aligned with TN Math Standards and includes individual plans for Grades 3, 4, and 5

Converting Assessment of Traditional Classroom Assignments to the e-Learning Environment

While assessment in an e-classroom continues to develop, with a myriad of advantages and disadvantages, it must be explored to provide assistance to e-instructors so that students receive optimal feedback. Assessment is no longer the periodic formal process of exams and graded activities, which may or may not be discussed with the class; it is now in the context of a one-on-one relationship with the e-instructor and each student in the online course (Meyen, Aust, & Issacson, 2002)

Gender Differences In Academic Ethics With Recommendations For Curricular Change

An extensive study has been performed on the importance of building ethical principles into secondary school and college curricula.  In published surveys, females are almost universally found to be more ethical, but experience tells us females lag behind males in their ability to maintain and act upon their convictions in the workplace.  We examined these issues by administering a survey on academic ethics to an undergraduate business school population, focusing heavily on gender differences. Careful analysis of survey results using one-way ANOVA, the Tukey-Kramer procedure, and two-way ANOVA procedures provided an understanding of differences in ethical beliefs and ethical behaviors based on gender and other demographic characterizations.  Predictive analysis was completed using logistic regression and discrete choice modeling to determine the likelihood of ethical behavior in the future and evolution of ethical beliefs.  The accumulated results of the analyses were used to guide the authors in the development of a strong and pervasive ethics-based curriculum for secondary schools and universities.  We have combined elements of classroom instruction, technology, active learning, games and extracurricular activities to embed ethical concepts and particularly encourage strength in convictions across the entire curricula. 

Modeling E-Textbook Tools or Encouraging Reading from Paper: What are the Effects on Medium Choice and Textbook Use?

E-textbooks have become more popular with college students, but there are concerns that reading is not as effective from screens as paper. In addition, students may not take advantage of tools afforded by e-textbooks. The purpose of this study was to determine if encouraging students to read from paper or modeling e-textbook tools would be better for students in terms of reading and using their textbooks. Two instructors randomly assigned students (N = 144) to view a video and answer an essay question about either the benefits of reading from paper, how to use etextbook tools, or general information about open educational resources (control). Findings indicated that students told about the benefits of reading from paper were not more likely to read the textbook from paper. Students also generally used both paper and e-textbooks in a similar manner, except students in the e-textbook tools condition reported more notetaking while reading than students in the paper condition. Finally, student medium preference for studying did not change based on condition. Findings from this study provide guidance for how instructors should advise students on reading their course textbooks