This dissertation examines the affective qualities of non-player character motion in a Virtual Reality (VR) cognitive training game, their impact on players' core affective experiences, game performance, and cognitive training outcomes. How do the movements of game characters in a VR environment affect players' experienced emotions, gameplay…

School counselors face adversity in the urban environment that impacts them personally and professionally, including their career sustainability in the urban field. The focus of this research study was to investigate and analyze the experiences and perceptions of 10 urban professional school counselors. Data were obtained through a generic…

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine factors that may influence diverse class climates and teacher-student relationships (TSRs) with two hundred and five (N=205) elementary school teachers. Participants were asked to respond to surveys regarding their beliefs and perceptions of their emotional and cultural capacities in working…

Understanding the sequential associations between caregiver responsivity and child communication is pivotal for enhancing child outcomes and guiding effective interventions. This dissertation study evaluates the LENA Start™ on caregiver-child communication, focusing on sequential association between caregiver and child communicative behaviors.…

Special education teachers are asked to deliver high-quality instruction with compassion and care (Cipriano et al., 2016). The development of interpersonal characteristics that positively influence the quality of the interaction have been shown to be predictors of success (Callahan, 2019). Despite the critical impact of these soft skills on the…

Children's peer-related social skills in early childhood set the stage for school readiness, social competence, and lifelong well-being. Preschoolers spend most of their classroom time in free choice, offering substantial opportunities for learning experiences that facilitate peer interactions that support social development. Yet, little is known…

The purpose of this study was to examine the predictability of selected academic, demographic, and job-related factors on the job satisfaction of faculty members employed at a Historically Black University. Specifically, this study was concerned with the relationship between academic (tenure status, academic discipline, and professional…

Higher education leaders fail to recognize an employee's job satisfaction is affected by their supervisor's awareness of generational needs, resulting in the problem of decreased employee retention and associated costs. The purpose of this quantitative nonexperimental study was to determine if a supervisor's awareness of generational needs of…

"Many kindergarteners struggle to master the foundational behaviors that enable them to successfully engage in classroom learning" (Cameron, et al., 2012, p 1229). As a school-based occupational therapist, there has been a noticeable rise in concerns from kindergarten teachers regarding the fine motor, visual motor, self-help, and…

Nurturing, responsive relationships between teachers and young children and between children and their peers are critically important predictors of lifelong positive outcomes (Jones et al., 2015; DeLay et al., 2016; Hanish et al., 2016). By prioritizing strategies that promote and sustain these types of relationships with and between children,…

This qualitative case study explored how parents of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) perceive their child's emotional competence and social function related to interactions with their non-disabled peers and church staff in disability ministry inclusion programs in the Southwest. The study was established on the foundation of…

Developmental Delay (DD) is an IDEA classification for young children who fail to meet developmental milestones at typical times. Young children with delays in social or emotional development may show deficits in social skills. Noting the importance of early intervention, identifying effective social skills interventions for children aged 3-5 is…

The Society for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) defines learning analytics as "the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of data about learners and their contexts, for purposes of understanding and optimizing learning and the environments in which it occurs" (SoLAR, n.d.). To fully realize the potential of learning…

This text serves to assist teachers in promoting student ownership of mathematics by synthesizing relevant research into practical classroom strategies across three tiers of student interaction and experience: classwide, peer-to-peer, and individual. Research from across these tiers of student experience is reviewed and synthesized including…

Online education and virtual learning spaces have become increasingly incorporated into the educational landscape. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic closed most institutions in 2020 for in-person learning, online education was growing rapidly. As the world emerged from the pandemic, online education and virtual learning environments of all types…