Nurturing Young Students' Writing Knowledge, Self-Regulation, Attitudes, and Self-Efficacy: The Effects of Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of implementing the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) model of instruction (Graham & Harris, 2005; Harris & Graham, 1996) on the writing skills and writing self-regulation, attitudes, self-efficacy, and knowledge of 6 first grade students. A multiple-baseline design across participants with multiple probes (Kazdin, 2010) was used to test the effectiveness of the SRSD instructional intervention. Each participant was taught an SRSD story writing strategy as well as self-regulation strategies. All students wrote stories in response to picture prompts during the baseline, instruction, independent performance, and maintenance phases. Stories were assessed for essential story components, length, and overall quality. All participants also completed a writing attitude scale, a writing self-efficacy scale, and participated in brief interviews during the baseline and independent performance phases. Results indicated that SRSD can be beneficial for average first grade writers. Participants wrote stories that contained more essential components, were longer, and of better quality after SRSD instruction. Participants also showed some improvement in writing self-efficacy from pre- to post-instruction. All of the students maintained positive writing attitudes throughout the study.

Strategies and Precise Vocabulary Knowledge: Exploring the Relationships Among Mathematics Vocabulary, Problem Solving, and Confidence

In this action research study I focused on my eighth grade pre-algebra students’ abilities to attack problems with enthusiasm and self confidence whether they completely understand the concepts or not. I wanted to teach them specific strategies and introduce and use precise vocabulary as a part of the problem solving process in hopes that I would see students’ confidence improve as they worked with mathematics. I used non-routine problems and concept-related open-ended problems to teach and model problem solving strategies. I introduced and practiced communication with specific and precise vocabulary with the goal of increasing student confidence and lowering student anxiety when they were faced with mathematics problem solving. I discovered that although students were working more willingly on problem solving and more inclined to attempt word problems using the strategies introduced in class, they were still reluctant to use specific vocabulary as they communicated to solve problems. As a result of this research, my style of teaching problem solving will evolve so that I focus more specifically on strategies and use precise vocabulary. I will spend more time introducing strategies and necessary vocabulary at the beginning of the year and continue to focus on strategies and process in order to lower my students’ anxiety and thus increase their self confidence when it comes to doing mathematics, especially problem solving.

How Student Self-Assessment Influences Mastery Of Objectives

In this action research study of my classroom of 7th grade students, enrolled in Pre- Algebra (an 8th grade course), I investigated: rate of homework completion when not taken as part of the academic grade, cognizant self-assessment and its affect on mastery of objectives, and use of self-assessment to guide instruction and re-teaching of classroom objectives. I learned that without sufficient accountability homework completion rates drop with time. Similarly, students can be overconfident in their abilities but unmoved when their summative reports do not match their initial perceived formative benchmarks. Finally, due in part to our society’s reactive nature; students find it more practical to play catch-up rather than staying caught up. As a result of this research, I plan to create, with the help of the students, an accountability statute to help students stay caught up with their understanding of the objectives, as well as allow additional time and energy spent by both student and teacher to react in a timely manner to complete student knowledge within a day or two rather than a week or two later.

Food Handling Practices, Knowledge and Beliefs of Families with Young Children Based on the Health Belief Model

Objective: To determine current food handling practices, knowledge and beliefs of primary food handlers with children 10 years old and the relationship between these components. Design: Surveys were developed based on FightBac!™ concepts and the Health Belief Model (HBM) construct. Participants: The majority of participants (n= 503) were females (67%), Caucasians (80%), aged between 30 to 49 years old (83%), had one or two children (83%), prepared meals all or most of the time (76%) and consumed meals away from home three times or less per week (66%). Analysis: Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient (rho) (p<0.05 and one-tail) and Chi-square were used to examine frequency and correlations. Results: Few participants reached the food safety objectives of Healthy People 2010 for safe food handling practices (79%). Mixed results were reported for perceived susceptibility. Only half of the participants (53-54%) reported high perceived severity for their children if they contracted food borne illness. Most participants were confident of their food handling practices for their children (91%) and would change their food handling practices if they or their family members previously experienced food poisoning (79%). Participants’ reasons for high self-efficacy were learning from their family and independently acquiring knowledge and skills from the media, internet or job. The three main barriers to safe food handling were insufficient time, lots of distractions and lack of control of the food handling practices of other people in the household. Participants preferred to use food safety information that is easy to understand, has scientific facts, causes feelings of health-threat and has lots of pictures or visuals. Participants demonstrate high levels of knowledge in certain areas of the FightBac!TM concepts but lacked knowledge in other areas. Knowledge and cues to action were most supportive of the HBM construct, while perceived susceptibility was least supportive of the HBM construct. Conclusion: Most participants demonstrate many areas to improve in their food handling practices, knowledge and beliefs. Adviser: Julie A. Albrecht

Nebraska Adolescents' HIV/Aids Attitudes, Knowledge and Related Practices: 1989

This Prevention Center Paper (No. 22) describes the HIV/AIDS related knowledge, attitudes and practices of a random sample of 1240 Nebraska adolescents in grades 9-12. The data were gathered in 1989. Data were gathered by staff of Health Education, Inc., a Nebraska-based nonprofit research and development corporation, as part of a contract with the Nebraska Department of Education. The Nebraska Department of Education has a major HIV /AIDS cooperative agreement with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. Schools were selected at random from each of the six classifications of Nebraska schools established by the Nebraska Department of Education. Two to three classrooms for each grade 9-12 were then randomly selected within each sampled school. All students in the classes on the day of the survey voluntarily completed CDC's HIV / AIDS adolescent survey. All responses were anonymous. Classroom teachers and school administrators 'were not involved in the data collection in any way. A data collection protocol was followed to ensure validity in this self-report survey. This report is divided into four parts: Part 1 deals with students' acceptance of HIV/AIDS instruction and of people with HIV / AIDS. Part 2 describes students' access to HIV / AIDS information: Part 3 is about students ' knowledge of HIV / AIDS, and Part 4 discusses Nebraska adolescents' practices that increase the risk of HIV/AIDS.