Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
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Item Using activity theory to understand effective writing instruction with high poverty middle school students(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2017) Fisher, Heather Marie; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Jayne DowneyConveying thoughts, ideas, and solutions through written words has been, and will continue to be, a crucial way to demonstrate thinking and learning in both the academic and professional worlds. Because of its importance, and our students' struggles, writing's place in education has risen to the forefront, leading to more rigorous writing standards and assessment in correspondence with the English Language Arts Common Core State Standards. Thus, this mixed methods study was designed to analyze Montana's middle school Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) English Language writing scores to understand patterns of proficiency in writing across schools and student demographics (gender and socioeconomic status). In part one of the study, quantitative data were analyzed from the 2015-2016 school year and included scores from 338 schools serving grades 6-8 with a total of 29,091 students. In alignment with current literature, findings suggest that Montana's middle school students' of low socioeconomic status, on average, perform lower than their peers on the writing portion of the standardized test. In part two of the study, qualitative data were gathered from a Montana middle school where students achieved proficiency on the Smarter Balanced Assessment English Language Arts Performance Task, to examine the way writing instruction is approached in the school. Engestrom's Activity Theory (1987) was used as a framework to describe the system of teacher instruction used to improve students' writing. Findings illuminate the complex facets of writing instruction from the lens of Activity Theory and provide practical applications for administrators and teachers in navigating a dynamic learning system.Item Nutrition education of low income families in the expanded food and nutrition education program: a comparison of methods(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1971) Schlepp, Kathleen Mae PhillipsItem Early predictors of obesity and health behaviors : a retrospective analysis of college students(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2013) Crandall, Amanda Kinney; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Wesley LynchExtensive previous research has shown that low socioeconomic status in childhood is predictive of adult obesity. Thus, children growing up in situations with fewer economic resources have a higher risk of adult obesity. The Cumulative Stress Model suggest that the confluence various stressors associated with childhood poverty, results in chronic stress, which, in turn, leads to adult obesity as a result of consumption of high fat and high sugar foods that serves as a coping mechanism. The current study investigated the whether chronic stress during childhood was a better predictor of adult obesity than other proposed models. These included the Food Choice Constraints Model, the Neighborhood Affluence Model, and the Feast and Famine Cycle Model, as well as a model based on health disparities at birth. This study used of a novel retrospective survey to examine the influence of various childhood circumstances on adult body mass index (BMI) among a group of college students including as subgroup oversampled for childhood poverty. Results failed to confirm the predicted relationship between childhood poverty and increased adult BMI or other measures typically associated with BMI, including dietary fat intake, fruit and vegetable intake, and physical activity. The best childhood predictors of adult BMI were low birth weight and father's overweight. SNAP participation was positively associated with increased fruit and vegetable intake, which provides tentative support for the Feast and Famine Cycle Model. This model predicts overeating of all types of foods as food becomes more plentiful. Future research is needed to elucidate those specific aspects of childhood poverty that predict adult obesity. Such data may suggest the most effective approaches to avoiding the life-long negative health consequences of child poverty, including obesity.