Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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    TOWARDS AN ETHICAL IMPERATIVE: TRACKING THE REPARATIVE GROUNDSWELL IN VIRGINIA’S ACADEMIC LIBRARIES & ARCHIVES
    (2023) Hale, Martha Grace; Marsh, Diana; Library & Information Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This study aims to understand an uptick of interest in reparative information work in the field of library and information science using the lens of Virginia academic libraries (Jaeger et al., 2016; Poole et al., 2021). The researcher used a web based, self-administered survey instrument to sample memory workers in 101 institutions of higher learning from around Virgina in order to gather data on what kinds of restorative and social justice work is taking place in these institutions as well as regional attitudes towards those efforts. The results and discussion form a platform for the lived experience of memory professionals across a range of power differentials and seeks to understand what praxes assist or hinder these efforts.
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    ACADEMIC SPOKEN ENGLISH STRATEGY USE OF NON-NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKING GRADUATE STUDENTS
    (2011) Ma, Rui; Sullivan, Denis F; Oxford, Rebecca L; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Currently there is a lack of investigation into the language learning and language use strategies of non-native English speaking students at the graduate level. Existing literature of the strategy use of the "more successful" language learners are predominantly based on student data at the secondary school or college levels. This dissertation research project will use a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods ("mixed-methods" research) to examine academic English listening and speaking strategy use patterns of non-native English speaking (NNES) graduate students and also to investigate those students' relevant metacognitive thinking and its impact on their strategy use. First, this research project will investigate what kinds of strategies are being employed and how they are being employed to help those students achieve communicative competence in oral academic English. Descriptive statistics based on a large-scale database of questionnaire responses will be provided. Secondly, this project will investigate what factors have significant effects on the strategy use of this particular student group. Statistical tools such as the multiple regressions and path analysis are used to determine the effects of gender, academic fields, regions of origin, degree level, and other factors. Thirdly, this project examines students' metacognitive thinking and how it impacts their strategy use. The guiding theory related to this line of investigation is that students' metacognitive thinking is closely related to their strategy use patterns. Finally, this project also aims to validate a new assessment tool (a questionnaire) for investigating non-native graduate students' academic English listening and speaking strategy use. Results of the study are expected to eventually help build a descriptive model of listening and speaking strategy use of NNES graduate students and will inform learner-centered instructional design and curriculum development. The ultimate benefit will also be to help many NNES graduate students achieve at a much higher level in graduate school because of their improved English listening and speaking skills.
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    THE ROLE OF DEMOGRAPHIC, PRE-COLLEGE, AND INVOLVEMENT FACTORS ON POSTSECONDARY ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS: FINDINGS FROM A NATIONAL STUDY.
    (2009) Thomas, Isaiah Jerome; Komives, Susan R; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This study explored whether factors, such as demographic characteristics, pre-college academic achievement (measured by self-reported high school grade point average), and college involvement have an influence on the postsecondary academic achievement of first-generation college students as measured by self-reported college grade point average. This study addressed first-generation college students who attend a four-year institution. This exploration used Astin's (1970; 1993) inputs-environments-outcomes model as a theoretical framework and utilized multiple regression for statistical analysis. The findings showed that the four blocks in the study explained approximately 12.4% of the variance of postsecondary academic achievement. Specifically, demographic characteristics and pre-college academic achievement explained the majority of the variance of postsecondary academic achievement. This study's findings cautiously offer practical implications for higher education administrators and researchers.