Scholarship & Research
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Item Science talk and CER writing(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2023) Mobley, Teresa Ellen; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John GravesWill the introduction of science argumentation and academic discourse impact writing scores in science as measured with Claim Evidence Reasoning (CER) writing assessments? This question was investigated by comparing groups of graduate students before and after exposure to techniques for argumentation in the science classroom. Scores of graduate student CER writing assignments from previous semesters were compared to scores of writings from students who had exposure to training and practice. Additionally, scores of participants' students were analyzed for changes after the teacher received some training on classroom discourse. Participants were introduced to meaningful, engaging prompts and techniques. They were asked to bring the techniques back to their own classrooms and asked to report any changes they saw in the writing of their students. Results of graduate student writing showed measurable difference when compared to graduate students from previous semesters without the same training. Data from classrooms showed more evidence-based responses compared to CER writing scores before techniques were used. Graduate students rated their confidence in science writing and teaching writing for science before and after exposure to techniques. Comparing pre- and post- Treatment survey results suggests no statistically significant difference. Data indicates that in the future, the MSSE program may benefit by including techniques in the coursework and that classroom teachers desire more training on techniques. Due to the limited sample size, it is recommended that additional research address the impacts of science discourse on student writing in the science classroom. The investigation showed promise regarding improvements in comfort levels for teachers in use of discourse and writing. Results indicate that an increased repertoire of techniques for teachers may lead to improved student writing skills.Item "I felt like I did not belong": A case study investigation on doctoral students' validation, engagement, and socialization experiences(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2024) Edwards, Melisenda Gilda; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Bryce HughesThis case study examines the role of an academic department in aiding doctoral students' success with a focus on socialization, engagement, and validating experiences. Research has shown that some attrition at the doctoral level can be mitigated by adopting systems similar to those already occurring in undergraduate populations, yet implementation continues to lag. Exploring the effects of programming and support in an academic unit may be the key to leading a campus integration strategy. To investigate this, the study utilized doctoral students within the Department of Education at Montana State University to consider their experiences with an implemented retention method, specifically unique courses geared towards student success. This research aimed to uncover the system's efficacy from the students' perspectives by understanding the students entering post-graduate work and exploring their experiences throughout their journey. The project involved interviews with 25 current and past doctoral students within the Department of Education. Students were selected from all doctoral students admitted by the department over seven years, covering Fall 2014 through Fall 2021. The students who responded self-selected to participate in a semi-structured interview or to complete an open-ended Qualtrics survey. A key finding was that the initiatives were mostly successful and provided validation, community, and social connections, which were aspects surrounding effective student retention. Conversely, the retention initiatives were somewhat problematic when the courses were not taken at the most opportunistic time or were found partially ineffective based on differing student needs. Ultimately, the study underscored the need for programming to support student success through programmatic changes to bridge social, cultural, and academic knowledge gaps, also known as insider knowledge, that some students may be lacking when entering doctoral programs and to address continued socialization, engagement, and experiential validation throughout a doctoral journey.Item Re-conceptualizing graduate student cross-cultural socialization: a novel strength-based perspective(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2022) Brazill, Shihua Chen; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Carrie B. Myers; This is a manuscript style paper that includes co-authored chapters.Much of the existing literature on graduate education comes from a deficit perspective, which is problematic because it blames individual failure on family background, language, or lack of cultural knowledge. Given the pervasive nature of systemic racism, this deficit model is a classic "blame the victim" approach. Instead, my three-article dissertation emphasized the strengths that graduate students bring with them and develop on their journey. The unifying theme is the focus on cross-cultural socialization through a strength-based perspective. Collectively, findings from these studies cohere around this strength-based approach. The three articles employ various epistemological, theoretical, and methodological perspectives to contribute to understanding and supporting graduate students' cross-cultural socialization experiences. Throughout the dissertation, I explored important cross-cultural socialization constructs such as cultural congruity, academic confidence, peer, faculty, and institutional interactions, cultural capital, cultural strengths, and multiple identities. The first article relied on a critical quantitative lens to examine the cultural congruity and academic confidence of AI/AN students. Our results found elevated levels of cultural congruity among those students who reported more favorable peer interactions, but the simultaneous experiences of mentor's cultural support and university environment fit did not reveal such an influence. Students reported greater levels of academic confidence in the presence of mentor's cultural support and university environment fit but not for peer influence. We situated the findings within prior research and identified where universities, peers, and mentors can provide cultural support, inspire academic confidence, and further enhance well-being through honoring the cultural strengths of AI/AN students. The second article was a qualitative study that used narrative inquiry to understand the cross-cultural socialization experiences of three Chinese international doctoral students. My findings suggest that Chinese international doctoral students use various forms of cultural capital (aspirational, linguistic, familial, social, navigational, and resistance) as leverage in their cross- cultural socialization journey. The third research article was another narrative inquiry study that built upon the second study to further understand Chinese international doctoral students' cross- cultural socialization experience. My findings suggested that cultural strengths helped to empower Chinese international doctoral students and develop their personal, social, cultural, and professional identities.Item Doctoral students' different types of help-seeking behavior within the academic mentoring experience(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2022) do Amaral, Barbara Maria; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Bryce HughesDoctoral student attrition is a concerning issue for institutions of higher education and equally impactful on students who want to succeed but are not able to persist. Researchers and educators alike have worked to identify factors that impact student attrition and persistence. This study's framework included the principles of self-determination theory and self-regulation to highlight students' help-seeking behaviors and students' perceptions of the support they received from their chair or mentor. Self-regulation and its many attributes, such as help-seeking, are part of the academic experience that may influence the outcome (help-seeking). The purpose of this correlational study was to explore relationships between academic mentoring, age, and help-seeking behavior among doctoral students who were enrolled in a doctoral program. Participants were 103 doctoral students (53.5% females, 46.5% males) enrolled in PhD, EdD, and DNP programs in a Northwestern, medium-sized, land-grant university. The age of the students varied from 24 to 63 years old. Data were examined by means of correlations and hierarchical regression analyses. The correlational design for this study was inspired by two primary questions: 'Does academic mentoring influence help-seeking behavior in doctoral students?' and 'Does student's age influence help-seeking behavior?' These two questions helped guide the researcher on which statistical techniques to use; in this case bivariate correlations and hierarchical regressions. The results of this correlational study show consistency with previous literature that indicates that chair/mentor relations can produce effects on students' behaviors. The findings suggest that mentors who students perceive to provide technical help and skills needed for research completion, i.e., support in the form of structure, and satisfy the student's need for competence was positively associated with adaptive help-seeking.Item Socialization experiences of STEM international graduate students at American public research universities: a multivariate analysis(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2019) Johnson, Catherine Mary; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Carrie B. MyersSTEM international graduate students encounter unique challenges at American public research universities. One of these challenges relates to the cultural isolation international graduate students face as they traverse American higher education (Lee & Rice, 2007). Factors found influential to international students' persistence include the faculty advisor and advisee relationship (Rice et al., 2009), peer interactions (Rose- Redwood & Rose-Redwood, 2013), and identity formation (Gomes & Tran, 2017; Phelps, 2016). As a multiple regression study, the research questions were designed to determine the extent international graduate students' faculty mentor and peer relationships, cultural congruity, and identity prominence influence intercultural relevancy as parts of the socialization process (Kuh & Love, 2001; Museus & Quaye, 2009). Over a thousand international graduate students from 12 research universities participated in the Graduate Student Experiences survey; an NSF funded Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate project. The final analytical sample (n = 953) was analyzed using ordinary least squares regression. The first set of results indicated that mentor's cultural support, peer interactions, social and professional identity prominence had significant positive effects on international graduate students' cultural integrity in STEM. The second set of models indicated that mentors' cultural support, peer interactions, cultural congruity, social and professional identity prominence were positively associated with levels of international graduate students' connections with cultural representatives. These findings suggest faculty mentor's cultural support, peer interactions, social and professional identity are important for developing intercultural relevancy within international graduate students at American public research universities. More importantly, students' perceptions of intercultural relevancy differ across groups. This study contributes to the research on graduate education in several ways. First this study provides a quantitative look at international graduates' experiences in the U.S. The contribution of this study is the use of data from a nationally administered graduate student experiences survey at 12 institutions that included newly developed measures of intercultural relevancy in STEM, identity prominence, and mentor interaction. Measures of intercultural effort provide another way to interpret graduate student socialization. The empirical findings add to the growing body of literature on graduate education, international students.Item A follow-up of the 1969, 1971, 1973, 1975 and 1977 graduates of the College of Agriculture at Montana State University(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1979) Clayton, Roger BruceItem Study habits of graduate students in education at Montana State College(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1962) Cullen, Joseph T.Item Autonomy, achievement motivation, and affiliation need in never-married female graduate students at Montana State University(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1978) Mainquist, Linda MarieItem Attitudes of physical education graduate students toward the integration of handicapped students into regular classrooms(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 1983) Gilthvedt, Martha Marie