Theses and Dissertations from UMD
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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
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Item “DOING RESEARCH HELPS!”: NEWCOMER LATINX HIGH SCHOOLERS’ RESEARCH & WRITING CONCEPTIONS(2020) Montoya-Ávila, Angélica; Martin-Beltrán, Melinda; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Drawing on critical pedagogy and sociocultural theories (SCT) of learning and literacy, this dissertation explored the relationship between recently arrived (or newcomer) Latinx immigrant students’ writing conceptions and their involvement in an afterschool program based on participatory action research (PAR). The study had a “two-tiered design” (Brown, 2010). In the first tier, a group of immigrant high schoolers (n = 15) and I worked together, as coresearchers, in PAR projects focused on students’ and teachers’ experiences at a newcomer school. Simultaneously, I conducted a qualitative critical inquiry on the writing conceptions and PAR experiences of four focal, Latinx, newcomer, youth coresearchers. The critical inquiry constituted the second study tier and the primary focus of my dissertation. For my dissertation study, I collected data from participant observation of the program sessions, literacy artifacts, and two rounds of semi-structured interviews with the focal newcomer Latinx high schoolers (NLHSs) and with two teachers who were familiar with the focal students’ writing. I analyzed the collected data inductively and deductively (Creswell, 2014). The study resulted in three main findings. First, the focal youth perceived PAR as an opportunity for conscientization and for challenging dialogue. Second, through the PAR process, the focal youth shifted from conceiving writing as a reproductive activity to view it as a tool for personal and social transformation. Third, the PAR process influenced the youth’s writing conceptions by being youth-centered, offering novel writing opportunities, and promoting dialogic talks. My research findings indicate that NLHSs’ conceptions of writing and research are tied to their learning experiences in their home countries and in the US. Their conceptions are therefore different from those of non-immigrant students. My investigation makes important contributions to educational theory, research, and practice. It demonstrates the effectiveness of employing both SCT and critical pedagogy (as a composite theoretical lens) to examine students’ conceptions of writing and research. It highlights the importance of studying NLHSs’ unique learning experiences and perspectives. It details research-based practices that help immigrant students develop their writing and facilitate their adaptation to a new country.Item Examining the Food-Insecurity Obesity Paradox among Latino Immigrants(2019) Amador, Maria Aileen; Garza, Mary A; King-Marshall, Evelyn C; Public and Community Health; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Obesity is linked to chronic illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers (breast, kidney, and liver). Food insecurity refers to lack of access to nutritious and safe food. Latinos are a rapidly growing population in the US with higher levels of food insecurity than the national average, and higher obesity rates than non-Latino white adults. The “food insecurity-obesity” is a paradoxical relationship seen in rising obesity and correspondingly high food insecurity rates. We examined demographic factors, acculturation, stress, dietary habits, and food access among Latina immigrants to understand this paradox. This sub-analysis (n=128) found that education level (p=0.03) and marital status (p=0.08) were significantly and marginally significantly associated with food security level. Additionally, this analysis helped to better describe a population that lacks research. A better understanding of the “food insecurity-obesity” paradox and related factors will inform future culturally-tailored interventions to address obesity among Latina immigrants.Item Translating Eastern European Identities into the American National Narrative(2006-05-30) Moscaliuc, Mihaela Diana; Ray, Sangeeta; English Language and Literature; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study is two-fold: to examine the absence from current cultural studies on immigration and ethnicity of the Eastern European American as a conceptual entity, and to propose and implement a new methodology of reading immigrant autobiographical narratives that seeks to make transparent the cultural and linguistic processes of translation through which immigrants negotiate their identities in America. Part I provides the methodology and contextual framework I employ in the re-examinations of Mary Antin's The Promised Land (1912) and Eva Hoffman's Lost in Translation (1989). The historical contextualization focuses on two periods that determined conceptual shifts-- the two decades of anti-immigration sentiment that led to the Immigration Acts of 1921 and 1924, and the decades following World War II, when post-Holocaust consciousness opened the door to the institutionalization of a Jewish identity that both encompassed and effaced the Eastern European one at the same time that Cold War politics hindered the development of an Eastern European immigrant space of articulation. A brief analysis of Flannery O'Connor's story "The Displaced Person" (1954) will underscore the dominant culture's difficulty in conceptualizing Eastern European difference and its place in the American national narrative. After arguing for the need that we differentiate between immigrant and ethnic narratives, I introduce the concept of "palimpsestic translation" and develop a critical paradigm that weds translation theory to the genre of immigrant autobiography and to narratives of immigration at large. Parts II and III contribute to the reconceptualization and partial reconstitution of the Eastern European immigrant American space through a close re-examination of Antin's and Hoffman's immigrant narratives as "palimpsestic translations." The two analyses address issues of historicity, literary and historical visibility, and translatability, as they pertain to and illuminate each text. The conclusion briefly assesses the status of Eastern European American studies and outlines the contribution of my proposed reading paradigm to the resuscitation of a critical and theoretical interest in Eastern European American identities. Finally, I situate my study within the larger call for a reconsideration of the relationship between Translation Studies, American and Cultural Studies, and Ethnic Studies.Item "I GO TO SCHOOL TO LEARN": ATTITUDES, STRESSORS, AND SUPPORTS IN THE SCHOOL EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG LATINO IMMIGRANT STUDENTS(2005-08-31) Obara, Elizabeth; Leone, Peter; Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Immigrant children encounter various challenges involved in immigration, as well as cultural and language differences in school. These school experiences can lead to academic challenges, socioemotional difficulties, or special education referral. The present research assumed a developmental-ecological perspective to investigate school experiences and attitudes. This study explored the perceptions of a small group (n = 28) of recently immigrated 1st to 5th grade Latino children as ethnic and linguistic minorities in their schools. This mixed-methods investigation used the School Situation Survey (Helms & Gable, 1989) and a School Attitudes Interview (García Coll, et al., 2005) to explore student perceptions of school, the stress and supports they encounter, and attitudes towards schoolwork, classmates and teachers. Using a Family Background Survey completed by parents, contextual influences on student perceptions were also examined. Students had relatively low levels of stress and stress responses. Principal stressors for these students included teacher and peer interactions. School meal program participation (SES), special education, grade/age and length of residency were found to be significantly related to school stress and stress responses. Analysis did not show ESL instruction or parent variables as having a relationship with school stress, although limited English proficiency influenced students' dependency on friends, communication with teachers, and academic frustration. Students were generally positive about teachers, friends, learning, and school. Older students and students with longer U. S. residency had more negative attitudes towards teachers and school. Interview data revealed 3 themes: Expectations, Priorities: Learning, Behavior, and Performance, and Supportive Relationships. Implications for research, practice, policy and training are discussed, focusing on maintaining young students' positive aspirations, incorporating family support, and school awareness of immigrant students' needs. In hopes of understanding immigrant students' experiences in school and better addressing their needs, this research benefits both the field and practitioners in illustrating the specific viewpoints of young, 1st generation Latino students, and highlighting their strengths and needs in the U.S. school system.Item Immigrant-Native Differentials in Multiple-Earner Strategies and Household Poverty(2004-08-12) Kennedy-Puthoff, Alexa Kjestine; Bianchi, Suzanne M.; Sociology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2001 Supplementary Survey, this thesis addresses poverty at the household level and examines the role of secondary earners in alleviating household poverty. Descriptive analyses assess the extent of poverty among native- and foreign-born households as well as the prevalence of secondary earners in each household. Multivariate analyses follow Jensen's (1991) conceptualization of "amelioration," that is, the ability of secondary earners to raise household income above the poverty line. The analyses highlight the importance of considering household composition in studies of poverty. The central research question posed is: is the ameliorative effect of secondary earners greater in foreign-born than in native-born households? The results suggest that secondary earners are more important in alleviating poverty in low-income foreign-born households than in low-income native-born households (households that are below the poverty threshold on the basis of the primary earner's earnings alone).