PhD

dissertationThis grounded theory study investigates adult student persistence at a community college. Student persistence in college is a prerequisite for degree achievement, which correlates with higher earnings and overall better quality of life. Persistence rates remain low for adult students, who combine their college endeavors with responsibilities to families, careers, and communities. However, some adult students do persist despite their life circumstances. Understanding the perspective of persistent adult students contributes to the creation of college systems and policies that support adult student success

Preparing Future Teachers for Diverse Schools in an Online Learning Community: Perceptions and Practice

This study provides an example of one institution\u27s efforts to design coursework that meets the simultaneous challenges of supporting the aims of increasing access to online courses and simultaneously better preparing teachers to work in diverse classrooms. Based on online pre- and post-surveys and monthly open-ended writing prompts administered to students in an introductory teacher preparation course, the study sought to discover students\u27 motivation to select online or blended courses, student perspectives on the benefits and challenges to taking this course online, characteristics of the learning environment that promoted or interfered with students\u27 learning, instructor\u27s perspective of learners\u27 reaction to topics addressing K-12 classroom diversity, and the impact of an online format on students\u27 discussions of issues related to learner diversity. Findings suggest that online courses should include a classroom placement component in which students experience a diverse classroom in order to best prepare students for diverse teaching assignments. Thus, the best online teacher preparation courses maybe those that blend virtual and face-to-face interaction rather than being strictly online

Teacher Candidates\u27 Critical Thinking in an Education Program Committed to Urban Education

The purpose of this research was to investigate critically reflective thinking (CRT) among prospective teachers as they analyzed course readings and field- and school-based experiences that focus on the education of diverse students. We hoped to identify and trace the development of critically reflective thinking as it appeared in participants’ reflections on their experiences. The following thematic question guided this research: At the conclusion of a year-long preservice teacher education course designed to foster critically reflective thinking, what kind of thinking is demonstrated in questionnaire results, small-group computer-mediated discussions, action research, and personal teaching texts? Ideally, this work allows us to help our teacher candidates develop pedagogical approaches that respect and validate the learners in their future classrooms. As a longitudinal embedded multiple case study, our data present a rich qualitative view of the participants’ thinking, offering a more complete picture of the views of teacher candidates as they grapple with the reality of their classroom context at the same time that they develop their teacher selves

Teacher Candidates\u27 Critical Thinking in an Education Program Committed to Urban Education

The purpose of this research was to investigate critically reflective thinking (CRT) among prospective teachers as they analyzed course readings and field- and school-based experiences that focus on the education of diverse students. We hoped to identify and trace the development of critically reflective thinking as it appeared in participants’ reflections on their experiences. The following thematic question guided this research: At the conclusion of a year-long preservice teacher education course designed to foster critically reflective thinking, what kind of thinking is demonstrated in questionnaire results, small-group computer-mediated discussions, action research, and personal teaching texts? Ideally, this work allows us to help our teacher candidates develop pedagogical approaches that respect and validate the learners in their future classrooms. As a longitudinal embedded multiple case study, our data present a rich qualitative view of the participants’ thinking, offering a more complete picture of the views of teacher candidates as they grapple with the reality of their classroom context at the same time that they develop their teacher selves

Stratified analyses refine association between TLR7 rare variants and severe COVID-19

Summary: Despite extensive global research into genetic predisposition for severe COVID-19, knowledge on the role of rare host genetic variants and their relation to other risk factors remains limited. Here, 52 genes with prior etiological evidence were sequenced in 1,772 severe COVID-19 cases and 5,347 population-based controls from Spain/Italy. Rare deleterious TLR7 variants were present in 2.4% of young (<60 years) cases with no reported clinical risk factors (n = 378), compared to 0.24% of controls (odds ratio [OR] = 12.3, p = 1.27 × 10−10). Incorporation of the results of either functional assays or protein modeling led to a pronounced increase in effect size (ORmax = 46.5, p = 1.74 × 10−15). Association signals for the X-chromosomal gene TLR7 were also detected in the female-only subgroup, suggesting the existence of additional mechanisms beyond X-linked recessive inheritance in males. Additionally, supporting evidence was generated for a contribution to severe COVID-19 of the previously implicated genes IFNAR2, IFIH1, and TBK1. Our results refine the genetic contribution of rare TLR7 variants to severe COVID-19 and strengthen evidence for the etiological relevance of genes in the interferon signaling pathway