Alien Registration- Mcdonough, Mary (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/23772/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Mcdonough, Mary (Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/23783/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Mcdonough, Mary A. (South Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/20133/thumbnail.jp

Alien Registration- Mcdonough, Mary A. (South Portland, Cumberland County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/20133/thumbnail.jp

The perception of special education administrators on the use of paraprofessionals in the education of students with disabilities

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston UniversitySpecial education paraprofessionals are often employed to support students with disabilities in general education classrooms absent the special education teacher. Little research exists to determine what school administrators think about this practice. The purpose of this study was to learn from special education administrators in Massachusetts about their districts' policies, practices, and perceptions related to the use of paraprofessionals to support students with disabilities in the general education classrooms. An electronic survey sent to 330 district special education administrators to collect this information resulted in a 32% return rate (N = 107). The survey included a combination of multiple choice, dichotomous questions, and options for open responses. Responses to the 27 questions were analyzed individually and compared with all others. Each question was examined for the total number of administrators who answered the question, response totals, percent of responses, and when applicable, the mean and range. The results were discussed as related to key topics discussed in the literature: frequency of use, procurement guidelines, responsibilities, training, supervision, and evaluation; beliefs about meeting mandates of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and No Child Left Behind (NCLB); and administrators' levels of satisfaction with paraprofessional use. Results revealed an increase in paraprofessional use over the past five years as reported by 69.2% of the respondents and half of the administrators considered they were overused. There was considerable variation, however, in reported use of guidelines regarding their use, supervision, and evaluation. While concern about paraprofessional use was reported in the literature (Blacher & Rodriguez, 2007; Causton-Theoharis & Malmgren, 2005; Giangreco, Yuan, et al., 2005), special education administrators who participated in this study revealed a high level of satisfaction with their districts' use of paraprofessionals, as well as their ability to meet the mandates of IDEA and NCLB. The responses of the participating administrators of special education in Massachusetts provide new information to guide those in the field of special education about the perceptions these practitioners hold regarding paraprofessional use and the policies and practices they employ

Optimal indicators of socioeconomic status for health research

Objectives: This paper examines the relationship between various measures of SES and mortality for a representative sample of individuals. ; Methods: Data are from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Sample includes 3,734 individuals aged 45 and above who participated in the 1984 interview. Mortality was tracked between 1984 and 1994 and is related to SES indicators using Cox event-history regression models. ; Results: Wealth has the strongest associations with subsequent mortality, and these associations differ little by age and sex. Other economic measures, especially family-size-adjusted household income, have significant associations with mortality, particularly for nonelderly women. ; Conclusions: By and large, the economic components of SES have associations with mortality that are at least as strong as, and often stronger than, more conventional components (e.g., completed schooling, occupation).Income distribution

The Effects of a Structured and Unstructured Kindergarten Program on the Readiness Scores of Children in Selected Public Schools in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana.

The major purpose of this study was to determine if there was a significant difference in readiness test scores between students who participated in a structured kindergarten program and those who participated in an unstructured program. This investigation also sought to examine the achievement of students relative to certain variables, such as morning and afternoon session, race, sex, preschool attendance, French spoken in the home, place of residence, birth order, and father\u27s years of education. The relationship of variables to test scores was studied in terms of the total population of kindergarten children, as well as in terms of the interaction of program with the above mentioned variables. Randomly assigned kindergarten children in twelve public schools in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana comprised the sample (N = 62+5). Approximately one-half of this sample was assigned to an experimental group (N = 379) which received structured, early reading instruction using Ginn and Company\u27s SWRL Kindergarten Program. The ocher half of the students was assigned to the control group (N = 266) and was instructed in accordance with the traditional kindergarten curriculum as outlined in Lafayette Parish\u27s Kindergarten Curriculum Guide. In the fall, one-half of the total sample (N = 327) was pre-tested with the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts, Form A , following a Solomon Four-Group experimental design of pre-testing and post-testing, in order to determine if any practice eifect resulted from the administration of the pre-test. The entire population was post-tested in May, 1973, using two instruments: the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts, Form B and the Clymer-Barrett Prereading Battery. As an experimental precaution, a replication study was incorporated into the design. Five schools involved in the main study had both experimental and control classes which were drawn randomly from the same kindergarten population. The results from these five schools were analyzed separately and used to corroborate the findings of the main study. The data were subjected to a multi-way classification analysis of covariance using pre-test scores and father\u27s years of education as covariables. The following conclusions were reached. Overall, the Ct^\u27.ctured kindergarten program appeared to be more beneficial than the unstructured program. There were significant differences in favor of the structured program in test scores on both the Boehm post-test and the Clymer-Barrett. In looking at the interactions between the two programs and the variables tested, it appeared that neither the structured nor the unstructured program was more advantageous for morning or afternoon students, boys or girls, rural or urban students, those who attended preschool or those who did not, or those from homes in which French was spoken or those from homes in which it was not. However, the structured program appeared to be more advantageous than the unstructured for older students. From an examination of the data on the relationship of the variables studied to the post-test readiness scores, the following results were indicated. Highly significant and positive relationships were found between readiness scores on both post-tests and the covariables of father’s years of education and pre-test scores. Significance on only one of the post-tests was found for the variables of sex, French spoken in the home, place of residence, and race. Girls scored significantly higher than boys on the Clymer-Barrett; those from non- French speaking homes scored significantly higher than those from French speaking homes on the Clymer-Barrett; and those from urban areas scored higher than those from rural areas on the Boehm post-test. Despite some indications of significance, the number of black students was too limited to make a valid comparison of the effect of race. No significant relationship to readiness scores as measured by either test was found for the variables of session, preschool attendance, or birth order

The effectiveness of three types of practice in word recognition in grades II and III

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Walking for our health: couple-focused interventions to promote physical activity in older adults

More than 50% of U.S. adults do not engage in sufficient physical activity to meet current recommendations, making physical activity change and maintenance a priority for health promotion throughout adulthood. Among married partners, change in physical activity of one partner often is concordant with change of activity of the other. The primary purpose of this study was to examine two couple-focused interventions that capitalize on the co-occurrence of health behavior change within couples to promote physical activity in older adults. In this study, partners (N = 31 couples) participated together in assessment and intervention activities, and were randomized together into one of two couple-focused conditions. In one condition (concurrent), standard goal-setting techniques were extended to a couple-focused design with each partner setting daily step goals and monitoring her or his own progress. In the other condition (combined), partners collaborated to set and monitor shared daily step goals. Physical activity was assessed with accelerometers pre- and post-intervention. Post-intervention, average weekly physical activity increased by 58 min (p \u3c 0.001), and average body mass index (BMI) decreased by 0.50 kg/m2 (p = 0.001), from pre-intervention measures. Similar levels of change in weekly physical activity and in BMI were detected in both intervention groups. Furthermore, participants demonstrated high adherence to the intervention protocol. Results suggest that couple-focused physical activity interventions can be effective in eliciting increases in physical activity among older adults. Further research is needed to uncover interpersonal mechanisms that maximize physical activity promotion and maintenance within couples over time