The Effect of Mobile Technology as an Active Student Response System on the Acquisition of U.S. History Content of Secondary Students with Specific Learning Disabilities

Students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) typically learn less history content than their peers without disabilities and show fewer learning gains. Even when they are provided with the same instructional strategies, many students with SLD struggle to grasp complex historical concepts and content area vocabulary. Many strategies involving technology have been used in the past to enhance learning for students with SLD in history classrooms. However, very few studies have explored the effectiveness of emerging mobile technology in K-12 history classrooms. This study investigated the effects of mobile devices (iPads) as an active student response (ASR) system on the acquisition of U.S. history content of middle school students with SLD. An alternating treatments single subject design was used to compare the effects of two interventions. There were two conditions and a series of pretest probesin this study. The conditions were: (a) direct instruction and studying from handwritten notes using the interactive notebook strategy and (b) direct instruction and studying using the Quizlet App on the iPad. There were three dependent variables in this study: (a) percent correct on tests, (b) rate of correct responses per minute, and (c) rate of errors per minute. A comparative analysis suggested that both interventions (studying from interactive notes and studying using Quizlet on the iPad) had varying degrees of effectiveness in increasing the learning gains of students with SLD. In most cases, both interventions were equally effective. During both interventions, all of the participants increased their percentage correct and increased their rate of correct responses. Most of the participants decreased their rate of errors. The results of this study suggest that teachers of students with SLD should consider a post lesson review in the form of mobile devices as an ASR system or studying from handwritten notes paired with existing evidence-based practices to facilitate students’ knowledge in U.S. history. Future research should focus on the use of other interactive applications on various mobile operating platforms, on other social studies subjects, and should explore various testing formats such as oral question-answer and multiple choice.

The effect of mobile technology as an active student response system on the acquisition of U.S. history content of secondary students with specific learning disabilities

Students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) typically learn less history content than their peers without disabilities and show fewer learning gains. Even when they are provided with the same instructional strategies, many students with SLD struggle to grasp complex historical concepts and content area vocabulary. Many strategies involving technology have been used in the past to enhance learning for students with SLD in history classrooms. However, very few studies have explored the effectiveness of emerging mobile technology in K-12 history classrooms. ^ This study investigated the effects of mobile devices (iPads) as an active student response (ASR) system on the acquisition of U.S. history content of middle school students with SLD. An alternating treatments single subject design was used to compare the effects of two interventions. There were two conditions and a series of pretest probesin this study. The conditions were: (a) direct instruction and studying from handwritten notes using the interactive notebook strategy and (b) direct instruction and studying using the Quizlet App on the iPad. There were three dependent variables in this study: (a) percent correct on tests, (b) rate of correct responses per minute, and (c) rate of errors per minute. ^ A comparative analysis suggested that both interventions (studying from interactive notes and studying using Quizlet on the iPad) had varying degrees of effectiveness in increasing the learning gains of students with SLD. In most cases, both interventions were equally effective. During both interventions, all of the participants increased their percentage correct and increased their rate of correct responses. Most of the participants decreased their rate of errors. ^ The results of this study suggest that teachers of students with SLD should consider a post lesson review in the form of mobile devices as an ASR system or studying from handwritten notes paired with existing evidence-based practices to facilitate students’ knowledge in U.S. history. Future research should focus on the use of other interactive applications on various mobile operating platforms, on other social studies subjects, and should explore various testing formats such as oral question-answer and multiple choice. ^

3D TerraFly: Quality of service management for online interactive 3D geographic information system

3D geographic information system (GIS) is data and computation intensive in nature. Internet users are usually equipped with low-end personal computers and network connections of limited bandwidth. Data reduction and performance optimization techniques are of critical importance in quality of service (QoS) management for online 3D GIS. In this research, QoS management issues regarding distributed 3D GIS presentation were studied to develop 3D TerraFly, an interactive 3D GIS that supports high quality online terrain visualization and navigation. ^ To tackle the QoS management challenges, multi-resolution rendering model, adaptive level of detail (LOD) control and mesh simplification algorithms were proposed to effectively reduce the terrain model complexity. The rendering model is adaptively decomposed into sub-regions of up-to-three detail levels according to viewing distance and other dynamic quality measurements. The mesh simplification algorithm was designed as a hybrid algorithm that combines edge straightening and quad-tree compression to reduce the mesh complexity by removing geometrically redundant vertices. The main advantage of this mesh simplification algorithm is that grid mesh can be directly processed in parallel without triangulation overhead. Algorithms facilitating remote accessing and distributed processing of volumetric GIS data, such as data replication, directory service, request scheduling, predictive data retrieving and caching were also proposed. ^ A prototype of the proposed 3D TerraFly implemented in this research demonstrates the effectiveness of our proposed QoS management framework in handling interactive online 3D GIS. The system implementation details and future directions of this research are also addressed in this thesis. ^

Interactive Effects of Morphine on HIV Infection: Role in HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder

HIV epidemic continues to be a severe public health problem and concern within USA and across the globe with about 33 million people infected with HIV. The frequency of drug abuse among HIV infected patients is rapidly increasing and is another major issue since injection drug users are at a greater risk of developing HIV associated neurocognitive dysfunctions compared to non-drug users infected with HIV. Brain is a major target for many of the recreational drugs and HIV. Evidences suggest that opiate drug abuse is a risk factor in HIV infection, neural dysfunction and progression to AIDS. The information available on the role of morphine as a cofactor in the neuropathogenesis of HIV is scanty. This review summarizes the results that help in understanding the role of morphine use in HIV infection and neural dysfunction. Studies show that morphine enhances HIV-1 infection by suppressing IL-8, downregulating chemokines with reciprocal upregulation of HIV coreceptors. Morphine also activates MAPK signaling and downregulates cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB). Better understanding on the role of morphine in HIV infection and mechanisms through which morphine mediates its effects may help in devising novel therapeutic strategies against HIV-1 infection in opiate using HIV-infected population.

The efficacy of an interactive computer system for teaching developmental mathematics to college students

Many students are entering colleges and universities in the United States underprepared in mathematics. National statistics indicate that only approximately one-third of students in developmental mathematics courses pass. When underprepared students repeatedly enroll in courses that do not count toward their degree, it costs them money and delays graduation. This study investigated a possible solution to this problem: Whether using a particular computer assisted learning strategy combined with using mastery learning techniques improved the overall performance of students in a developmental mathematics course. Participants received one of three teaching strategies: (a) group A was taught using traditional instruction with mastery learning supplemented with computer assisted instruction, (b) group B was taught using traditional instruction supplemented with computer assisted instruction in the absence of mastery learning and, (c) group C was taught using traditional instruction without mastery learning or computer assisted instruction. Participants were students in MAT1033, a developmental mathematics course at a large public 4-year college. An analysis of covariance using participants' pretest scores as the covariate tested the null hypothesis that there was no significant difference in the adjusted mean final examination scores among the three groups. Group A participants had significantly higher adjusted mean posttest score than did group C participants. A chi-square test tested the null hypothesis that there were no significant differences in the proportions of students who passed MAT1033 among the treatment groups. It was found that there was a significant difference in the proportion of students who passed among all three groups, with those in group A having the highest pass rate and those in group C the lowest. A discriminant factor analysis revealed that time on task correctly predicted the passing status of 89% of the participants. ^ It was concluded that the most efficacious strategy for teaching developmental mathematics was through the use of mastery learning supplemented by computer-assisted instruction. In addition, it was noted that time on task was a strong predictor of academic success over and above the predictive ability of a measure of previous knowledge of mathematics.^

The response to an ESL population boom in the Beaufort County, South Carolina school system: A case study

The purpose of this case study was to examine the why the English language learners (ELLs) in the Beaufort County, South Carolina school system have been so successful. This school system has recently experienced a boom in its ESL student population, and this population has performed very well on standardized tests. This study used critical theory as its theoretical framework and examined why the students have been successful rather than marginalized in Beaufort County schools. This phenomenon was investigated using semi-structured interviews with the ESOL Coordinator for Beaufort County, 4 ESL-lead teachers, and 6 mainstream teachers.^ Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with Sarah Owen, the Beaufort County ESOL, Gifted and Talented, and World Languages coordinator. Based on the results of her interview, 4 themes emerged that were used for the semi-structured interviews with ESOL and mainstream teachers. The interviews centered on the themes of ESL policy, ESL leadership, and teacher training. The ESL and mainstream teacher interviews also revealed several subthemes that included teacher attitude, why Beaufort County has been successful with the ELLs, and the teachers' recommendations for other schools systems trying to successfully accommodate a large ESL student population in mainstream classrooms. ^ The findings from the teachers' interviews revealed that additional training for the teachers without ESL experience helped them become comfortable instructing ELLs. This training should be conducted by the ESOL teachers for those without ESOL certification or endorsement. As the teachers had more training, they had better attitudes about teaching ESOL students in their classes. Finally, those who utilized the additional ESOL training and ESOL accommodations saw better student achievement in their classes.^ Based on the finding of this study, the researcher proposed a model for other school systems to follow in order to replicate the success of Beaufort County's ELLs. The implications of this study focus on other schools systems and why ELLs are not obtaining the same level of success as those in Beaufort County's schools. Finally, recommendations for further research are provided.^

The Response to an ESL Population Boom in the Beaufort County, South Carolina School System: A Case Study

The purpose of this case study was to examine the why the English language learners (ELLs) in the Beaufort County, South Carolina school system have been so successful. This school system has recently experienced a boom in its ESL student population, and this population has performed very well on standardized tests. This study used critical theory as its theoretical framework and examined why the students have been successful rather than marginalized in Beaufort County schools. This phenomenon was investigated using semi-structured interviews with the ESOL Coordinator for Beaufort County, 4 ESL-lead teachers, and 6 mainstream teachers. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with Sarah Owen, the Beaufort County ESOL, Gifted and Talented, and World Languages coordinator. Based on the results of her interview, 4 themes emerged that were used for the semi-structured interviews with ESOL and mainstream teachers. The interviews centered on the themes of ESL policy, ESL leadership, and teacher training. The ESL and mainstream teacher interviews also revealed several subthemes that included teacher attitude, why Beaufort County has been successful with the ELLs, and the teachers’ recommendations for other schools systems trying to successfully accommodate a large ESL student population in mainstream classrooms. The findings from the teachers’ interviews revealed that additional training for the teachers without ESL experience helped them become comfortable instructing ELLs. This training should be conducted by the ESOL teachers for those without ESOL certification or endorsement. As the teachers had more training, they had better attitudes about teaching ESOL students in their classes. Finally, those who utilized the additional ESOL training and ESOL accommodations saw better student achievement in their classes. Based on the finding of this study, the researcher proposed a model for other school systems to follow in order to replicate the success of Beaufort County’s ELLs. The implications of this study focus on other schools systems and why ELLs are not obtaining the same level of success as those in Beaufort County’s schools. Finally, recommendations for further research are provided.