The Effect of Anxiety on the Measurement of Reading Fluency and Comprehension

The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between anxiety and performance on measures of reading fluency and reading comprehension in fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students. The study found that there is a significant negative correlation between social anxiety and reading comprehension but no significant correlation between social anxiety and reading fluency. These findings further demonstrate the distinction between the cognitive processes that underlie reading fluency and reading comprehension. The results also align with the tenets of Processing Efficiency Theory in that more complex tasks that significantly tax working memory (like reading comprehension) are more likely affected by anxiety than those tasks that do not rely as heavily on working memory (such as reading fluency)

EVALUATION AND ADJUSTMENT OF USDA WASDE COTTON FORECASTS

The dynamic and volatile nature of agricultural markets causes individuals to rely on forecasts in their decision-making. WASDE cotton forecasts are shown to be especially volatile as cotton is one of the most trade dependent commodities in the world. Therefore, its evaluation requires us to look beyond U.S. WASDE categories and evaluate forecasts for China and the World. This study will use data from monthly WASDE balance sheets for upland cotton for the U.S, China and World over 1985/1986 through 2008/2009 including unpublished price forecasts. The results of this study will provide information that can be used to improve the accuracy of USDA cotton forecasts. The proposed study will fill the gap in knowledge of the level of supply and demand forecast uncertainty and its contribution to price forecast errors by 1) evaluating all weak-form forecast optimality conditions for the U.S., China and World balance sheet categories for cotton, including trends in forecast accuracy; 2) investigating whether errors in forecasts are correlated with the U.S., China and World balance sheet categories, and 3) identifying a statistical correction of systematic errors in independent variables of the U.S. cotton price model

The Role of the School Psychologist in K-12 Online and Blended Learning Environments

With the appropriate preparation and training, school psychologists are uniquely suited to provide support within the K-12 online learning environment for students, teachers, administrators, and families. The preparation and training needs at the level of graduate training and professional development are highlighted. Specific emphasis is placed on the adaptation of the school psychologist’s functions in the areas of consultation, intervention, assessment, and counseling. Additionally, the development of better credentialing models for interstate service delivery and the need for empirical research related to school safety are discussed

Crisis Events in K-12 Online Learning: Educator Perceptions and Preparedness

Although K–12 online learning institutions may be protected from certain school safety concerns (i.e., physical violence on a student or a teacher), physical distance does not offer protection from all potential crises that may impact individual students or the online school environment. The current survey research explored educators’ perceptions of and preparedness for the following crisis frequencies in the online learning environment: suspected child/adolescent neglect, suspected child/adolescent abuse, suspected student suicidal ideation, suspected student homicidal ideation, unexpected death of a student, unexpected death of a teacher, emotional aftermath of natural disasters, and emotional aftermath of terrorist incidents. Across the sample, the crisis events were noted as occurring at least one to two times per year by some participants. Even more striking, 80–95% of participants noted having no training for recognizing the warning signs of the various crisis events in online content, and at least 1 in 4 participants in every category indicated that they felt somewhat unprepared or very unprepared to respond based on their school’s current crisis plan

Job Satisfaction in School Psychology Graduate Preparation: A Pilot Study

This pilot study investigated the status of job satisfaction among school psychology faculty with the hope of gaining insight in to factors that may encourage doctoral-level graduates to pursue jobs in academia. A second purpose of the study was to discover areas of improvement in job satisfaction to support current faculty members in continuing in their chosen careers. Finally, the study sought to establish the reliability of a job satisfaction instrument for use in larger-scale studies. A total of 94 school psychology faculty members in specialist-level and/or doctoral-level National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)-approved programs completed an author-designed survey. The 34-item survey was clustered into the following categories: Compensation, Role/Function, Personal Fulfillment, Colleagues, Graduate Candidates, and Administrative Support/Resources. At an item level, participants reported overall satisfaction with their jobs and satisfaction in most areas of their employment. Exploratory analyses revealed only a few significant differences in individual item satisfaction. Specifically, participants ranked as Full Professor reported significantly higher satisfaction with the tenure and research expectations than those participants who identified themselves as Assistant Professors. Additionally, participants indicated job satisfaction in four out of six categories. Cronbach’s alpha for the overall instrument was .92 with the current sample

Place of God in the life of man

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/2061/thumbnail.jp

The Continuing Professional Development of School Psychologists in Georgia: A Comparison to National Practices and Preferences

The current study investigated Georgia school psychologists’ continuing professional development (CPD) practices and preferences for comparison to a national study of school psychology professional development by Armistead, Castillo, Curtis, Chappel, and Cunningham (2013). Utilizing the same instrument as Armistead et al., a survey was emailed to 442 members of the Georgia Association of School Psychologists (GASP). Ninety-five surveys were completed at a 21.5% response rate. Both Georgia school psychologists and national school psychologists reported receiving a median of approximately 40 hours of professional development in the previous year. Georgia school psychologists differed from the national sample with a higher percentage expressing satisfaction with the amount of professional development provided by their state professional association, with lower personal costs associated with CPD, and with greater participation in online professional development opportunities

What Can we Learn from our Mistakes? Evaluating the Benefits of Correcting Inefficiencies in USDA Cotton Forecasts.

This study investigated the magnitude of forecast improvements resulting from correction of inefficiencies in USDA cotton forecasts over 1999/00 to 2008/09 marketing years. The aspects of forecast performance included in this study were 1) bias and trends in bias, 2) correlation between forecast error and forecast level, 3) autocorrelation in forecast errors, 4) correlation in forecast revisions. Overall the results of this study demonstrated that some corrections of forecast inefficiencies, such as correction of correlation of error with forecast levels and correlation of error with previous year’s error resulted in consistent improvement of USDA cotton forecasts, while correction for correlation in forecast revisions did not benefit the forecasts. Correction for bias yielded mixed results likely because USDA has already been applying those corrections to some of the categories and thus our analysis resulted in over-correcting. The framework developed in this study can be used by USDA and other agencies to monitor and improve the performance of their forecasts.Commodity, Forecast evaluation, Fixed-event forecasts, Government forecasting, Forecast improvement, Agribusiness, Demand and Price Analysis, E37, E3, Q13,

High risk drinking concerns across college campuses and a look at JMU programming

The purpose of this project is to take a deeper look at excessive alcohol use in the college setting and to review prevention and support programs and services available for this population in reducing the likelihood of ongoing high risk drinking. This project contains a literature review of emerging adulthood and their developmental tasks, the impact of alcohol on an emerging adult’s brain and gender differences that may impact attitudes and decisions about alcohol. In conclusion, this project includes implications for counselors who may want to work in a college setting and provide substance abuse counseling

New Era Begins: Mental Health Law Reform in Virginia

Amidst calls for mental health reform and a sense of urgency stemming from the tragic events at Virginia Tech, the 2008 session of the Virginia General Assembly convened. The legislative reaction was overwhelming: Legislators introduced a vast array of bills relating to mental health. By the end of the session, the General Assembly enacted the most sweeping revisions to Virginia\u27s mental health laws since the 1970s