The relationship of culturally responsive instruction and the reading comprehension and attitude of struggling urban adolescent readers

Culturally responsive instruction refers to the identification of relevant cultural aspects of students' lives and infusion of these into the curriculum. This instructional approach assumes that a culturally appropriate curriculum can potentially motivate, engage, and lead students to higher rates of achievement. This quasi-experimental study (N=44) investigated the relationship of culturally responsive instruction and the reading comprehension and attitude of struggling urban adolescent readers. The study incorporated the use of culturally responsive instruction using culturally relevant literature (CRL), the Bluford Series Novels, as authentic texts of instruction. Participants were seventh grade reading students at a Title I middle school in South Florida. After a baseline period, two different classes were taught for 8 weeks using different methods. One class formed the experimental group ( n=22) and the other class formed the comparison group (n =22). The CRI curriculum for the experimental group embraced the socio-cultural perspective through the use of small discussion groups in which students read and constructed meaning with peers through interaction with the Bluford Series Novels; gave written responses to multiple strategies according to SCRAP - Summarize, Connect, Reflect, Ask Questions, Predict; responded to literal and inferential questions, while at the same time validating their responses through evidence from the text. The Read XL (basal reader) curriculum of the comparison group utilized a traditional form of instruction which incorporated the reading of passages followed by responses to comprehension questions, and teacher-led whole group discussion. The main sources of data were collected from the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests, the Florida Assessments for Instruction in Reading (FAIR), and the Rhody Secondary Reading Attitude Assessment. Statistical analyses were performed using Repeated Measures ANOVAs. Findings from the study revealed that the experimental participants' reading attitudes and FAIR comprehension scores increased when compared to the comparison group. Overall, the results from the study revealed that culturally responsive instruction can potentially foster reading comprehension and a more positive attitude towards reading. However, a replication of this study in other settings with a larger, more randomized sample size and a greater ethnic variation is needed in order to make full generalizations.

The effectiveness of an intelligent tutoring system on the attitude and achievement of developmental mathematics students in a community college

This study examined the effectiveness of intelligent tutoring system instruction, grounded in John Anderson's ACT theory of cognition, on the achievement and attitude of developmental mathematics students in the community college setting. The quasi-experimental research used a pretest-posttest control group design. The dependent variables were problem solving achievement, overall achievement, and attitude towards mathematics. The independent variable was instructional method. Four intact classes and two instructors participated in the study for one semester. Two classes (n = 35) served as experimental groups; they received six lessons with real-world problems using intelligent tutoring system instruction. The other two classes (n = 24) served as control groups; they received six lessons with real-world problems using traditional instruction including graphing calculator support. It was hypothesized that students taught problem solving using the intelligent tutoring system would achieve more on the dependent variables than students taught without the intelligent tutoring system. Posttest mean scores for one teacher produced a significant difference in overall achievement for the experimental group. The same teacher had higher means, not significantly, for the experimental group in problem solving achievement. The study did not indicate a significant difference in attitude mean scores. It was concluded that using an intelligent tutoring system in problem solving instruction may impact student's overall mathematics achievement and problem solving achievement. Other factors must be considered, such as the teacher's classroom experience, the teacher's experience with the intelligent tutoring system, trained technical support, and trained student support; as well as student learning styles, motivation, and overall mathematics ability.

Computer interaction : its effect on attitude and performance in older adults

This study examined the interaction of age, attitude, and performance within the context of an interactive computer testing experience. Subjects were 13 males and 47 females between the ages of 55 and 82, with a minimum of a high school education. Initial attitudes toward computers, as measured by the Cybernetics Attitude Scale (CAS), demonstrated overall equivalence between these older subjects and previously tested younger subjects. Post-intervention scores on the CAS indicated that attitudes toward computers were unaffected by either a "fun" or a "challenging" computer interaction experience. The differential effects of a computerized vs. a paperand- pencil presentation format of a 20-item, multiple choice vocabulary test were examined. Results indicated no significant differences in the performance of subjects in the two conditions, and no interaction effect between attitude and performance. These findings suggest that the attitudes of older adults towards computers do not affect their computerized testing performance, at least for short term testing of verbal abilities. A further implication is that, under the conditions presented here, older subjects appear to be unaffected by mode of testing. The impact of recent advanced in technology on older adults is discussed.

L'intention, l'attitude, la norme subjective et la perception du contrôle chez des adolescents-es espagnols-es en regard de l'utilisation du Double Dutch

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

L'attitude ludique à l'âge adulte : définition conceptuelle et utilisation en ergothérapie

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

L'intention, l'attitude, la norme subjective et la perception du contrôle chez des adolescents-es espagnols-es en regard de l'utilisation du Double Dutch

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

L'attitude ludique à l'âge adulte : définition conceptuelle et utilisation en ergothérapie

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Effects of introspection on meta and structural attitude bases

Introspection is the process by which individuals question their attitudes; either questioning why they hold their attitudes (Why introspection), or how they feel about a particular attitude object (How introspection). Previous research has suggested that Why-introspection induces attitude change, and that Why and How introspection influence attitude-behaviour consistency,persuasion, and other effects. Generally, psychologists have assumed that affective and cognitive attitude bases are the mechanism by which introspection leads to these effects. Leading perspectives originating from these findings suggest that either Why introspection changes the content of cognitive attitude bases (the skewness hypothesis), or increases the salience of cognitive attitude bases (the dominance hypothesis); whereas How introspection may increase the salience of affective attitude bases (another part of the dominance hypothesis). However, direct evidence for these mechanisms is lacking, and the distinction between structural and meta bases has not been considered. Two studies investigated this gap in the existing literature. Both studies measured undergraduate students’ attitudes and attitude bases (both structural and meta, affective and cognitive) before and after engaging in an introspection manipulation (Why introspection / How introspection / control), and after reading a (affective / cognitive) persuasive passage about the attitude object. No evidence was found supporting either the skewness or dominance hypotheses. Furthermore, previous introspection effects were not replicated in the present data. Possible reasons for these null findings are proposed, and several unexpected effects are examined.

Redefining Attitude Importance: The Possible Existence of Associative and Subjective Types of Importance Under a Global Definition

Traditionally, importance has been measured using subjective measures. The present thesis explores the possibility of a second type of importance, designated as “associative importance”. A new measure, the IIAT, was designed to capture the strength of association between an object and the attribute of importance. This thesis then evaluated the validity of the IIAT via an intervention paradigm in 2 studies, and by using the measure to predict a memory outcome in 2 other studies. Subjective measures of importance were also included in these studies and correlations between subjective measures and IIAT results were examined. Across all 4 studies, subjective-objective correlations were weak to modest and non-significant. The intervention studies provided promising evidence that interventions do affect associative importance as measured by the IIAT. The prediction studies provided somewhat mixed, but encouraging evidence that the IIAT may be able to predict memory performance. Notably, subjective measures were not able to predict memory performance at all, whereas the IIAT was able to predict some memory indices. Overall, there is some evidence supporting the existence of an associative importance construct, and that the IIAT provides valid results that are nonetheless different from that of subjective measures of attitude importance.

Welke Constructen Zijn van Invloed op Attitude van Leerkrachten om Samenwerkend Leren in te Zetten als Instructiestrategie?

Lugtenberg, S. (2016)Welke Constructen Zijn van Invloed op Attitude van Leerkrachten om Samenwerkend Leren in te Zetten als Instructiestrategie? Mei, 17, 2016, Heerlen, Nederland: Open Universiteit

A framework for experimental determination of localised vertical pedestrian forces on full-scale structures using wireless attitude and heading reference systems

A major weakness among loading models for pedestrians walking on flexible structures proposed in recent years is the various uncorroborated assumptions made in their development. This applies to spatio-temporal characteristics of pedestrian loading and the nature of multi-object interactions. To alleviate this problem, a framework for the determination of localised pedestrian forces on full-scale structures is presented using a wireless attitude and heading reference systems (AHRS). An AHRS comprises a triad of tri-axial accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers managed by a dedicated data processing unit, allowing motion in three-dimensional space to be reconstructed. A pedestrian loading model based on a single point inertial measurement from an AHRS is derived and shown to perform well against benchmark data collected on an instrumented treadmill. Unlike other models, the current model does not take any predefined form nor does it require any extrapolations as to the timing and amplitude of pedestrian loading. In order to assess correctly the influence of the moving pedestrian on behaviour of a structure, an algorithm for tracking the point of application of pedestrian force is developed based on data from a single AHRS attached to a foot. A set of controlled walking tests with a single pedestrian is conducted on a real footbridge for validation purposes. A remarkably good match between the measured and simulated bridge response is found, indeed confirming applicability of the proposed framework.

Assessing the Knowledge and Attitude Among Somali Men In King County Towards Female Genital Mutilation

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-06

Propiedades psicométricas del Sexuality and the Mental Retardation Attitude Inventory (SMRAI) en estudiantes universitarios de Lima

El objetivo fue analizar las propiedades psicométricas del Sexuality and the Mental Retardation Attitude Inventory (SMRAI) en una muestra de 144 estudiantes universitarios de la carrera de psicología de una universidad privada de Lima Metropolitana, del 2do al 9no ciclo, de los cuales 44 fueron varones (30.6%) y 100 mujeres (69.4%), con edades comprendidas entre 17 y 43 años (M: 21.9). El análisis factorial confirmatorio realizado revela que dicha prueba presenta una estructura de dos factores con índices de ajuste adecuados. Por otro lado, con relación a la confiabilidad del constructo mediante el coeficiente Rho se obtuvo un indicador de .80. Se concluye que la SMRAI cuenta con propiedades psicométricas adecuadas para implementarlo en estudios orientados a conocer más facetas de las actitudes hacia la sexualidad de las personas con discapacidad intelectual.

Étude comparative entre la publicité de type publi-reportage et la publicité écrite conventionnelle : effets sur la crédibilité, l'attitude et la mémoire

Le présent mémoire rapporte les résultats d'une étude sur l'influence de deux types de publicité écrite sur le comportement des individus. Dans un contexte d'évaluation d'un journal. 59 personnes ont été exposées à une publicité conventionnelle d'une automobile ou d'un condominium et à un publi-reportage d'un condominium ou d'une automobile. À la suite de l'exposition, une partie des participants a répondu immédiatement à un questionnaire mesurant le niveau de crédibilité qu'ils accordaient à l'information, leur attitude envers les produits et la quantité de souvenirs qu'il leur était possible de se remémorer. Les autres participants ont complété ce questionnaire après une semaine de délai. Les hypothèses de cette recherche se divisent en trois parties. Premièrement, nous pensons que l'influence sur les variables dépendantes (crédibilité, attitude et mémoires découlant de l'exposition aux publi-reportages sera plus grande que celle engendrée par la publicité conventionnelle (H1, H3 et H5). Deuxièmement. nous pensons que le délai d'une semaine aura un effet positif sur la crédibilité et l'attitude engendrées par les publi-reportages et un effet négatif sur la quantité de souvenirs se rapportant au contenu des publi-reportages (H2a, H4a et H5). Finalement, nous pensons que dans le cas des publicités conventionnelles, le délai n'affectera ni le niveau de crédibilité accordé à l'information, ni l'attitude envers le produit mais entraînera une diminution de la quantité de souvenirs recouvrés (H2b, H4b et H6). Pour le groupe de sujets utilisés lors de cette recherche, les résultats obtenus démontrent que dans certains cas les publi-reportages ont plus d'influence que les publicités écrites conventionnelles sur le comportement des individus. Lorsque la prise de mesure des variables dépendantes est faite après une semaine de délai, le niveau de crédibilité accordé à l'information et l'attitude envers le produit engendrée par les publi-reportages sont plus élevés que ceux découlant de la publicité conventionnelle. La catégorie de produit utilisé et le sexe des participants influencent aussi les variables dépendantes.