Biopolitical Implications of the Surveillance, Spectacle, and Performance of AIDS Education in Rural China

This conceptual study explores China’s reaction to the AIDS crisis using a Foucauldian concept of biopolitics in order to theorize the implications of AIDS education in the culture of rural China in terms of the surveillance, spectacle, and discipline of biopolitics.

Playing the Game: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology of Graduate Education Students’ Perceptions of Instructor Power in a Higher Education Classroom

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore students’ experiences with the power of their instructors in a higher education classroom. This study provides a deeper understanding of instructor power from student perspectives to inform teaching practices in the higher education classroom.

Analysis of Haitian Parents’ Perceptions of the Education of Their Children with Disabilities

This study explored Haitian parents’ perceptions of their children with disabilities. Findings revealed parents’ perceptions were guided by two core concepts: coping mechanisms and locus of control. Parental involvement was strongly influenced by values, beliefs, customs, and conceptual knowledge that were closely aligned with culture and acculturation.

Perceptions of character education in a Seventh-day Adventist school

Character education has been viewed by many educators as having significant historical, academic, and social value. Many stakeholders in education argue for character development as a curricular experience. While understanding the degree to which character education is of worth to stakeholders of institutions is important, understanding students, teachers, and administrators perspectives from their lived experiences is likewise significant. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain a deeper understanding of character education within a Biblical framework environment by examining the lived experiences of students, administrators, and teachers of a Seventh-day Adventist School. Phenomenology describes individuals' daily experiences of phenomena, the manner in which these experiences are structured, and focuses analysis on the perspectives of the persons having the experience (Moustakas, 1994). This inquiry was undertaken to answer the question: What are the perceptions of students, teachers, and an administrator toward character education in a Seventh-day Adventist school setting? Ten participants (seven students and three adults) formed the homogeneous purposive sample, and the major data collection tool was semi-structured interviews (Patton, 1990; Seidman, 2006). Three 90-minute open-ended interviews were conducted with each of the participants. Data analysis included a three-phase process of description, reduction and interpretation. The findings from this study revealed that participants perceived that their involvement in the school's character education program decreased the tendency to violence, improved their conduct and ethical sensibility, enhanced their ability to engage in decision-making concerning social relationships and their impact on others, brought to their attention the emerging global awareness of moral deficiency, and fostered incremental progress from practice and recognition of vices to their acquisition of virtues. The findings, therefore, provide a model for teaching character education from a Seventh-day Adventist perspective. The model is also relevant for non-Seventh day Adventists who aspire to teach character education as a means to improving social and moral conditions in schools.

Extending the Boundaries of Hospitality Education

To date, hospitality management educators have struggled to modify generic software or adapt vendor-designed industry systems as a means of bringing hospitality information systems to the classroom. Specially- designed computer-based courseware can enhance learning while extending the boundaries of the traditional hospitality classroom. The author discusses the relevance of this software to the hospitality curriculum.

Life, Social Studies, and the Pursuit of Happiness: Using Classroom-based Multicultural Democratic Education to Challenge Conservative Notions of Civic Education

Bok (2010) argues civic understanding could improve student happiness by improving perceptions of politics and government, but the state of civic education in public schools keeps this from happening. This study argues that this notion of civic education is conservative by exploring Bok’s premises, social studies, and civic education.

Globalization and the public provision of higher education: Empirical evidence from selected countries

This research study was designed to examine the relationship between globalization as measured by the KOF index, its related forces (economic, political, cultural and technological) and the public provision of higher education. This study is important since globalization is increasingly being associated with changes in critical aspects of higher education. The public provision of education was measured by government expenditure and educational outcomes; that is participation, gender equity and attainment. The study utilized a non-experimental quantitative research design. Data collected from secondary sources for 139 selected countries was analyzed. The countries were geographically distributed and included both developed and developing countries. The choice of countries for inclusion in the study was based on data availability. The data, which was sourced from international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Bank, were examined for different time periods using five year averages. The period covered was 1970 to 2009.^ The relationship between globalization and the higher education variables was examined using cross sectional regression analysis while controlling for economic, political and demographic factors. The major findings of the study are as follows. For the two spending models, only one revealed a significant relationship between globalization and education with the R 2 s ranging from .222 to .448 over the period. This relationship was however negative indicating that as globalization increased, spending on higher education declined. However, for the education outcomes models, this relationship was not significant. For the sub-indices of globalization, only the political dimension showed significance as shown in the spending model. Political globalization was significant for six periods with R2 s ranging from .31 to .52.^ The study concluded that the results are mixed for both the spending and outcome models. It also found no robust effects of globalization on government education provision. This finding is not surprising given the existing literature which sees mixed results on the social impact of globalization.^

Assessment of Higher-Education Hospitality Programs

The function of assessment in higher-education hospitality programs is to improve student learning. Although the assessment process is common in higher-education institutions, examples of assessment practices in hospitality programs have not been made available to academic practitioners. This paper describes a method successful at formulating assessment in a hospitality college professional program.

Searching for the Holy Grail of International Education: Feedback from Hospitality Management Study Abroad Participants

This article reports on a study done among hospitality management students who participated in study abroad programs between January 2001 and May 2003. The participants in the study were both incoming students to the US and outgoing students from the US. The study investigates, among other things, why they had decided to study abroad, why they had selected a particular institution, how their home institution compared to the partner institution abroad, and what they perceived to be the benefits and relevance of their international experiences. It was found that respondents were generally very positive about the study abroad experience. Some interesting differences of opinion were found when the perceptions of the incoming students were compared to those of the outgoing students. The results of this study may be of particular interest to hospitality management administrators and faculty who create and administer international exchange programs.

The Corporatization of Higher Education

This essay reviews recent books and articles that examine the politics and economics of the restructuring of public universities in the United States. The author weaves the arguments together to point to several prominent trends: increased corporatization of university governance and increased dependence on the market for resources previously provided by the state, reduction of full-time faculty in favor of instructors and adjuncts, dramatic growth of administrative personnel, and mounting student debt. The history of these developments is explored by examining the roots of the political attacks on the public university.

Curricular perceptions of adult education at National Chun -Chin University, Chia -Yi, Taiwan

This research was conducted in Chia-Yi, Taiwan to study the needs of adult education participants to determine the factors necessary to provide direction for the development of university adult education curriculum and supportive government educational policies. Factors researched were characteristics of the adult learner, theories of adult learning, demands of adult education, and implications of university adult education as the theoretical foundation for the development of specific curriculum development efforts. The study investigated adult learning needs and their relationship with demographic variable. Analyzing the needs of adult education participant and the relative factors through a survey resulted in recommendations for the development of adult education program plans, content of curriculum, and teaching. Research questions were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequencies, chi square, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and post hoc analysis. ^ The study showed that most participants in these adult education activities were under forty, middle class, of above average educational levels, and either living or working in the city. People who were older, of lesser social and economic positions, with lower educational standards, and living/working in the country, did not participate as much in adult education opportunities. Recommendations included that in the planning or setting up of adult education activities, attention be given to all the possible barriers or problems that are likely to occur in people's participation, e.g., motivation, interests, content of courses, teaching methods, willingness of participation, qualification of teachers, time, funds, locations, and so on. It is suggested that the resolution of these problems can significantly increase the participation of adult education. ^

The effects of health education on student health -related behaviors

During their transitional period from childhood to adulthood, adolescents engage in risk-taking behaviors that become public health concerns. It is important for school health education professionals to design instructional programs that focus on adolescents' developmental needs and foster healthier lifestyles. The goal of health education is to help students acquire health skills that are necessary to succeed in school and in life. This is especially important because the increase in teenagers' risky behaviors can affect their health, well being, and eventually the course of their lives. ^ This study examined the effects of health education on health-related behaviors of public high school students. A multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to determine whether the comprehensive approach based on The Jessors' Problem Behavior Theory (PBT) had a greater impact on adolescents' risk-taking behaviors than the traditional approach. After 18 weeks of health instruction using one of these approaches, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was administered to measure the level of subjects' self-reported behaviors in six categories of adolescent risky behaviors: the use of tobacco; the use of alcohol and other drugs; engagement in injurious activities; consumption of unhealthy diet; an inadequate level of participation in physical activities; and engagement in risky sexual activities. ^ The results of this study did not support the hypothesis that using the comprehensive health education approach was more influential than the traditional health education approach in improving students' health-risk behaviors. Further research studies based on bio-psychosocial theories are needed to develop and evaluate methods of instruction and delivery of health skills. ^

The contribution of higher education to economic *development in a globalized environment

Amidst concerns about achieving high levels of technology to remain competitive in the global market without compromising economic development, national economies are experiencing a high demand for human capital. As higher education is assumed to be the main source of human capital, this analysis focused on a more specific and less explored area of the generally accepted idea that higher education contributes to economic growth. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to find whether higher education also contributes to economic development, and whether that contribution is more substantial in a globalized context. ^ Consequently, a multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to support with statistical significance the answer to the research question: Does higher education contributes to economic development in the context of globalization? The information analyzed was obtained from historical data of 91 selected countries, and the period of time of the study was 10 years (1990–2000). Some variables, however, were lagged back 5, 10 or 15 years along a 15-year timeframe (1975–1990). The resulting comparative static model was based on the Cobb-Douglas production function and the Solow model to specify economic growth as a function of physical capital, labor, technology, and productivity. Then, formal education, economic development, and globalization were added to the equation. ^ The findings of this study supported the assumption that the independent contribution of the changes in higher education completion and globalization to changes in economic growth is more substantial than the contribution of their interaction. The results also suggested that changes in higher and secondary education completion contribute much more to changes in economic growth in less developed countries than in their more developed counterparts. ^ As a conclusion, based on the results of this study, I proposed the implementation of public policy in less developed countries to promote and expand adequate secondary and higher education systems with the purpose of helping in the achievement of economic development. I also recommended further research efforts on this topic to emphasize the contribution of education to the economy, mainly in less developed countries. ^

The Effect of Osteoporosis Education on Calcium Intake and Physical Activity in a Group of Community-Dwelling Black Older Adults

The unprecedented increase in the number of older adults is expected to increase the burden of osteoporosis on the individual and society. Blacks have been understudied in osteoporosis prevention education research. Although the risk of osteoporosis is low in this population, its consequences are significant. This study employs a two-group experimental design (experimental and wait-list control groups) to evaluate the effect of an osteoporosis education on two osteoporosis prevention behaviors (OPBs) – calcium intake (CI) and physical activity (PA), in a group of community-dwelling Black older adults, 50 years and older resident in South Florida. A final sample of 110 (mean age 70.15 years), 90% female and 10% male completed a battery of questionnaires at two assessment periods. The experimental group participated in six weekly education program sessions immediately following baseline assessment, and the wait-list control group received the education following end of program assessment by all participants. The weekly educational sessions were conducted in social settings (church or senior center) employing constructs of the Revised Health Belief Model. The sessions focused on improving CI; osteoporosis knowledge (OKT), self-efficacy (SE), health beliefs (HB) and PA. Findings revealed significantly greater increase in reported CI (M = 556 mg, Wilks’ λ = .47, F(1,108)=122.97, p< .001, η2=.53), OKT (p< .001), and SE (p< .001) among participants in the experimental compared to the wait-list control group. There was no significant difference between the two groups for PA and most of the HB subscales. OKT and SE were the best predictors of CI, while perceived barrier was a predominant factor predicting PA. Over the study period, a change in SE was the only variable related to changes in both OPBs. Attrition rate was lower than expected, which can be attributed to the settings utilized for the study. These findings support the importance of utilizing a familiar social setting. These results suggested the effectiveness of a program offered in multiple short sessions among this underserved minority population to improve OKT and SE resulting in a change in OPBs (increase in CI). However, there is need to explore alternative strategies to improve PA in this population group.

Teachers' knowledge, awareness, and pedagogy of global education in secondary schools

Professor Mohammed K. Farouk, Major Professor In 1979, the Florida State Board of Education approved the teaching of global education in the state of Florida. The purpose of this study was to examine the factors that contributed to teachers' global knowledge, global mindedness, and pedagogy in global education. The Hanvey model of teaching from a global perspective was the theoretical framework for the study. A total of 90 secondary teachers from Miami-Dade County Public Schools were randomly selected and placed in three groups: Globally Oriented Social Studies Program (GOSSE), Non-Globally Oriented Social Studies Program (non-GOSSE), and Teachers Who Teach Other Subjects (TWTOS). Seven teachers, two of whom team-taught a class, were selected for classroom observations and interviews. A mixed methods design that combined quantitative and qualitative data was used. ANOVA and Chi square techniques were used to determine whether the factors that contributed to teachers' global knowledge and global mindedness differ among groups. Classroom observations and interviews were conducted to determine whether the instructional strategies differ among the seven selected teachers. The findings of the study show that teachers who were trained in teaching from a global perspective differed in their global knowledge and used more appropriate instructional strategies than teachers who were not trained in teaching global perspectives. There was no significant difference in the combined global knowledge of the non-GOSSE and TWTOS groups when compared with the GOSSE group. There was no significant difference in the combined global knowledge of the GOSSE and non- GOSSE groups when compared with the TWTOS group. There was no significant difference among the teachers in their global mindedness. Observation and interview data indicate that current events, role-playing, simulations, open-ended discussion, debates, and projects were the predominant instructional strategies used by globally trained teachers. Cable networks, Internet, magazines, and newspapers were found to be the dominant tools for teaching global education. This study concluded that teachers who were trained in globally oriented programs had more global knowledge than teachers who were not. It is recommended that teacher education programs should incorporate a global perspective in the preparation of social studies teachers, with particular attention to developing their global attitudes.