Bryan, Valerie

Dental school is a four-year, rigorous educational endeavor packed with difficulties and challenges predental students have not experienced during their undergraduate studies. In addition, dental schools demand developing new coping and learning skills to meet the requirements of a student-centered, fast-paced curriculum. In response to these challenges, it is essential to understand and embrace self-directed learning (SDL) skills and attitudes required for predental students to thrive and succeed during their dental journey (Premkumar et al., 2014). Furthermore, SDL is essential in assisting dental students in filtering the information they need to fulfill their learning needs (Siddiqui et al., 2021).
This quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study used an online survey designed by QualtricsXM to evaluate self-directed learning readiness (SDLR) level among predental students at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and whether their SDLR level would differ based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, college/major, and year of study. A convenience sample of 155 FAU predental students completed Fisher et al.’s (2001) 40-item Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale for Nursing Education (SDLRSNE) and seven demographic questions. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted to analyze and answer the six research questions and corresponding hypotheses.
The results showed a positive attitude of FAU predental students toward SDL as total SDLR scores ranged from 119 to 179, with a mean of 151.33. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference in SDLR level among participants based on age, race, and year of study. Contrastingly, there was no statistically significant difference in SDLR level among participants based on sex, ethnicity, and academic major. The college variable was not investigated as all participants were enrolled in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science.

The problem of the current study was the challenges experienced by those living in poverty can be propagated by poor attitudes and lack of empathy among the social service workers tasked with helping them. A key factor in individuals’ attitudes and empathy are their understanding of the experiences of others, as well as an awareness of their personal biases. While poverty simulations can help increase individuals’ awareness of personal biases and difficulties experienced by individuals living in poverty (ILP), little was known about how poverty simulations may influence the perceived social empathy and attitudes of participants who work for local government organizations. Accordingly, the purpose of the current phenomenological study was to examine the perceived effects of a poverty simulation on social service providers working for a local governmental agency tasked with distributing funds to assist ILPs. Specifically, the researcher explored participants’ perceptions of changes in social empathy and attitudes toward ILPs following participation in the Cost of Poverty Experience (COPE) poverty simulation exercise. Data were collected via semi structured interviews with 10 social service providers employed at the study site location, who had completed the COPE poverty simulation within the last 6 years. Data were analyzed following Groenewald’s approach to phenomenological analysis. The themes included: Participation in the COPE simulation influenced participants’ attitudes, participation in the COPE simulation influenced participants’ social empathy, and the system is broken, but participants feel disempowered to change it. The subthemes included: Developed an understanding of system flaws, developed an understanding of struggles faced by ILPs, uncovered personal attitudes/biases, the COPE simulation produced emotional reactions among participants, and the COPE simulation created empathy through simulated experiences of poverty.

The computer industry does not understand how adults learn (Knowles, 1983). A profound statement made nearly 40 years ago. With the advancement of technology and the tremendous growth of online learning, the learning management system (LMS) has become the tool for delivering distance education. E-learning platforms have witnessed exponential uptake by the education and corporate sectors over the past three to five years (Wadhwani & Gankar, 2020). From this author's experience in the field of instructional design and online instruction, all LMSs are just a "database with a different user interface (Price, 2016)". But are there opposing perceptions from the online learner regarding two different systems of learning? With the migration of one LMS to another LMS at a large public state university, can an assumption be measured to determine significant differences between the two LMSs?
This quantitative research aims to answer if there are significant differences in online student perception between two different learning management systems. Using responses to Instructor Evaluation Forms during four academic years (12 semesters), this study determined if a significant difference existed between the perceived quality of two learning management systems. Moreover, this study added to a minimal body of research regarding improving the quality of learning management systems based on the perception of online students.

This study is an informative, phenomenological inquiry, investigating the lived experiences of Black parents and guardians through the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) identification process. Through semi-structured oral interviews, parent questionnaires, and parent journaling, the researcher identified participants’ lived experiences. Data were collected, participant interview responses, parent questionnaires, and parent journal entries were analyzed, a list of significant statements was categorized and grouped into meaning units, and textural, structural, and composite descriptions of the phenomena were identified (Moustakas, 1994). Categories and themes, as well as perceived facilitators and barriers were identified. Review of the literature indicates little research has been conducted in investigating the lived experiences of Black parents through the autism identification process. Recommendations from the study are provided to inform parental training needs and supports, to assist in the facilitation of effective identification, as well as necessary recommendations for how educators and health care professionals can better support Black parents through the ASD identification process.

eLearning continues to be the fasted growing segment of higher education. With this growth, challenges for higher education institutions have arisen. One of these difficulties is preparing students for learning online. A qualitative case study examined what strategies and processes contributed to student success in eLearning at a Florida public college based on the views of eLearning educators, faculty teaching online courses and the students who have taken online courses. The aspects reviewed were: 1. what contributed to student success, 2. what hindered student success, 3. what prepared students for learning online, and 4. what assistance was available for students that face challenges with online courses. The interviews and questionnaire were examined and compared from the perspectives of educators (eLearning staff and faculty teaching online courses), and students taking the courses, and documents reviewed from the site chosen, to show what are the most significant contributors and hindrances to eLearning success for participants at a Florida public state college.
The findings of this study show what helped student success, what hindered student success, what prepared students for eLearning, and what support was available to students while taking an eLearning course from the data collected through the student questionnaire, faculty and staff interviews, and document review. The data supports the finding that student motivation, student time management skills, eLearning course design, and the responsiveness and supportiveness of faculty contribute to the success of the student in eLearning courses. The data supports the finding that what hinders student success is when the student is overwhelmed, distracted, or lacks motivation or time management skills. Additionally, the design of the eLearning course can hinder the student and if there is a lack of faculty communication. The data supports the finding that what prepared students for eLearning was the College’s free eLearning orientation course that explains how to use the Learning Management System and the best practices of learning online. The data supports the finding that the support available to assist students that are enrolled in eLearning is College “Support”, Tutoring (both online and on campus), and their course professor.

This study describes how undergraduate students in their junior and senior year
seeking a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management at a regionally accredited
university perceive their professors’ instructional attributes and behaviors. This
examination concentrated on two critical zones of discernment concerning professors’
instructional practices. Participants were asked what teaching attributes contributed to
their academic success, and teaching attributes did not contribute to their academic
success. The study also sought to identify any obstacles faced by the participating
undergraduate students and their faculty as indicators of how to mitigate such obstacles.
This study included a review of an extensive collection of research on student
perspectives and how those perspectives may reflect on the evaluation of the adequacy of
various teaching techniques and academic practices. This study found that the
instructional attributes that participating students reported that they value include:
agreeableness (concern and regard for students), accommodation (accessibility), and receptiveness to others’ conclusions (support of class inquiries and exchange), yet all
instructors do not exhibit each of these attributes.
This study identified the positive teaching characteristics of professors in one
setting and how these professors interact with their students in a manner that captures
students’ attention and promotes teaching and learning in the classroom. It also suggests
attributes that professors in this setting and discipline may wish to elevate to better
connect with students in the classroom.

The primary goal of this quantitative study was to investigate the connection
between instructor self-concept and prosocial behavior and its impact on student learning;
thus, gaining more knowledge about assessment of instructor fit for online,
undergraduate, business first-year experience (FYE) courses. If an instructor’s selfconcept
is related to the degree of prosocial behavior exhibited, then an instructor with a
higher likelihood of exhibiting prosocial behavior may be a better fit for an online,
undergraduate, business FYE course.
The study failed to reject all null hypotheses, showing no correlations between
faculty self-concept and degree of prosocial behavior exhibited to online business firstyear
students. The results did show a correlation between instructor self-concept (RSCQ
score) and tendency to exhibit prosocial behavior (PTM score), which is outside of the
scope of this study, but informed future research considerations discussed in Chapter 5.

Although temporal issues affecting organizations and leaders have been researched, time orientation (preference for one or more of the present, past, and future time frames) and visioning ability of change agents within organizations remain open for additional investigation. This exploratory survey study compared self-reported time orientation (TO) and visioning ability ratings of administrators and faculty at a community college. The research added to the extant literature by contextualizing the measures of the key constructs and extending the research to a novel setting.
Scores for all three time frames were assessed in contrast to studies that emphasize future orientation. In addition, TO measures were obtained using an instrument constructed specifically for organizations (Fortunato & Furey, 2009). An adapted version of a visioning ability by Thoms and Blasko (1999) was constructed to address a specified time depth (the distant future) and domains relevant to higher education.
Administrators reported significantly higher ratings than faculty on Future TO and visioning ability measures. Future TO scores for faculty were lower in relation to scores on the other two TO scales, but no within-group TO differences were found for administrators. A multiple regression model indicated that Future TO was the best predictor of visioning ability. Faculty teaching in the Associate of Science areas had higher Present TO scores than those teaching in the Associate of Arts programs. TO
and visioning ability did not change as a function of gender, age, culture, and years of experience in higher education.
The interpretation of the findings was limited by the lack of benchmarks that allow for meaningful comparisons across organizations, and by a continued need to establish construct and predictive validity for the key measures. The research has implications for hiring decisions, for staff development, and for temporal profiling in organizations interested in envisioning the distant future.

Research shows that there is a disconnect between student and faculty perceptions
in a range of areas. One area that has not been researched is comparing student and
faculty perceptions regarding desirable and undesirable traits in professors. The purpose
of this mixed methods study was to identify what students perceive are the most and least
desirable qualities in professors, and how those qualities affect their overall college
experience. This study also identified what professors thought students perceive as the
most and least desirable qualities in professors, and how those qualities affect students’
overall college experience. The findings indicate that the largest disparity in perceptions
between students and faculty was faculty perception that students rate them based on
class rigor and assigned grades, which were two of the least important qualities according
to students. The largest similarity that faculty and students agreed upon is that students
desire professors who are knowledgeable, passionate, engaging, and able to connect with students. Both groups also perceive that students do not like professors who are boring
and monotone. In addition, students and professors agree that students perceive
professors as playing an important role in their lives that affect their ability to learn, the
grades they receive, and also impact their overall college experience and trajectory in life.
The two groups differed when describing how professors’ undesirable qualities can
negatively affect students’ emotions and self-confidence.
Faculty and students were in agreement in a variety of areas, but they were
disconnected in several areas as well. This is a problem as we move into the future. Cox
(2009) said, “the traditional college student is no longer the typical college student” (p.
7), especially when it comes to state and community colleges. Professors would benefit
from listening to students instead of assuming that their ratings are untrustworthy and
based on how hard or easy the class was or what grade they received. The researcher
asserts, along with others in the literature, that expertise in content area is no longer good
enough to be an effective educator in higher education. Faculty also need to be experts in
understanding students.

The study was born out of a deep concern that there have been missed
opportunities to apply cultural intelligence to enrich leadership, instruction, and learning.
In particular, direct interaction and observation of students from multicultural
backgrounds have revealed the value in adjusting one’s mindset to creating a more
inclusive learning environment. The purpose of the study was to examine the influence
of cultural intelligence on faculty leadership. The problem addressed was the growing
need for faculty to expand their cultural intelligence to enable them to demonstrate
exemplary leadership in 21st century classrooms.
The study measured the cultural intelligence of faculty using the Cultural
Intelligence Scale (CQS). Faculty members’ leadership was measured using the
Leadership Practices Inventory Self (LPI-Self). This quantitative study used
associational and survey methods to predict scores and explain associations among variables.
Overall, behavioral CQ and cognitive CQ had a greater influence on the following
leadership practices: Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, and Challenge the Process.
For the private university, behavioral CQ had a greater influence on the following
leadership practices: Model the Way and Inspiring a Shared Vision. The public
university did not show preference for any of the five leadership practices. For the state
college, cognitive CQ had a greater influence on all leadership practices, except for
Model the Way.
The results of this study confirmed that cultural intelligence significantly
influenced leadership practices of faculty members. These findings provide important
information for faculty development programs, curriculum development, and hiring
practices. An urgent requirement for advancing teaching and learning in today’s higher
education classrooms is a keen understanding of the underlying values, beliefs, and
perceptions of students. These qualities affect students’ understanding and how they
express themselves in the classroom.
The decision to give instructional leaders leadership training in cultural
intelligence is highly recommended. While faculty members showed preference for
certain leadership practices, their preferences might be incorporated to develop a blended
leadership style that may be more suitable for today’s diverse academic community. The
association found between cultural intelligence and leadership practices confirms the
value of faculty development in cultural intelligence.