Scholarship & Research
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Item The effect of peer ratings on nonprofit contributions: evidence from charity navigator(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2024) Pela, Tavio Aleksandrs; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Andrew HillNonprofit rating organizations publish third-party assessments of nonprofit organizations for current and prospective donors. Using charity-level yearly financial and ratings data for organizations rated by Charity Navigator, a prominent nonprofit rating organization, I employ a regression discontinuity design to investigate whether a charity's total contributions are impacted by changes in the ratings of its competitors. I find a negative relationship between current-period peer rating and current-period contributions, which is consistent with peer ratings being used to inform donation decisions between comparable organizations. However, difficulty substantiating a key identifying assumption of the RDD raises doubts that these findings identify a causal relationship.Item Effectiveness of trauma nurse practitioner-led patient-centered discharge plan: a quality improvement project(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Nursing, 2023) Stricker, Lisa Genevieve; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Alice RunningTrauma Nurse Practitioners (TNPs) in Trauma Centers have been shown to expand the multidisciplinary team approach in caring for that patient population. TNPs create opportunities for increased patient throughput, decreased length of hospital stay, increased staff support for TNP collaboration, and the development of a comprehensive, detailed, patient-centered discharge plan. To evaluate peer-reviewed evidence-based articles assessing the impact of TNPs in developing a patient-focused, detailed discharge plan, a review of current literature (2007-2022) was completed by searching CINAHL, Google Scholar, PubMed, and Web of Science using mesh terms "trauma nurse practitioner," "trauma," "staff satisfaction," "throughput times," and "patient-centered plan of care." Thirty-nine articles were found and, of those, 28 are included in this review. Evidence supports the TNP's role in developing patient-focused discharge plans leading to increases in communication, increased focus on planning for unmet needs, efficiency in rounding, and decreases in length of stay. These changes result in increased satisfaction from physicians and nursing staff related to the TNP-centered role in discharge plan development. TNPs can be a valuable addition to trauma services as they coordinate the development of a comprehensive, individualized plan of care for patients throughout the hospital stay, allowing for a successful transition of care.Item Classroom climate in a rural school context: reflection, modification, and improvement in the science classroom(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2018) Kessler, Aaron William; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisWhen the tardy bell rings and the door closes behind the last student, a very peculiar thing happens. In an age that promotes complete and total connectivity, classrooms are very often being ran in isolation. Only during passing periods or time outside of the teacher/students class periods do conversations regarding student behavior, best practices and classroom climate take place amongst the teachers. This study was an attempt to modify this common occurrence and challenge teachers to learn from their peers during the most critical part of the school day, the time teachers and students were interacting during class time. Instructors observed their own students in different settings, commonly exhibiting different strengths and weaknesses academically, socially and behaviorally. Observing teachers learned from other teacher's good instructional strategies as well as learned from watching poor teaching strategies. Professional conversations regarding what happened during each aspect of the class period were held. Teachers collaboratively identified what works and what needs to be modified to work better. The results of the surveys that were given to the participating teachers indicated that for the first time in many of their careers, they feel that they had an honest assessment of their classroom climate as well as new strategies and teaching methods that could transform their teaching.Item The effects of technical writing strategies on student writing and scientific comprehension(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Hutson, Ruth Lehmann; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.For this research project, two writing strategies, Self-directed Inquiry (SDI) and Calibrated Peer Review (CPR), were evaluated to determine which strategy would be most effective in improving students' technical writing and science comprehension. Students from a small rural high school in Northeast Kansas (N=49) were evaluated. Class sizes ranged from three to sixteen. The data collection techniques included individual interviews, student surveys, Classroom Assessment Techniques (CAT) assessments, a teacher reflection journal, student writing samples assessed with both a Content and Ideas Rubric and Curriculum Based Measurement (CBM), and comparison of pre-test and post-test scores. For one week, students learned through traditional classroom teaching methods in a comparison unit delivering content about Yellowstone National Park. It was followed by six weeks of implementing SDI, in which students learned about the biology, geology, and chemistry of the thermal features of Yellowstone National Park. Finally, for two weeks, students studied about the models scientists use to explain a primordial Earth using CPR. Results revealed that CPR was very effective in increasing students scientific comprehension based on normalized gain. Responses from student surveys indicated that they enjoyed using this approach to technical writing. Results were inconclusive regarding the effectiveness of the SDI approach to technical writing. There was no significant increase in student comprehension based on normalized gain when SDI was compared to the comparison group. In addition, student surveys indicated that they did not prefer this method to other technical writing approaches. More study is needed to determine how to best implement SDI in a high school science classroom.Item The effects of face-to-face and online peer feedback on business students' perceptions of quality and effectiveness(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2015) Shaw, Michael; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Arthur W. BangertDeficiencies existed in recent research studies examining the use of peer feedback in business-communication writing courses--both face-to-face and online. The purpose of this research study was to provide current educators with a better understanding of the benefits, as well as the limitations, of using formative peer feedback as a strategy to improve collaborative student learning and course-objective outcomes among students in business-writing courses at Montana State University. This mixed-methods, quasi-experimental study was designed to investigate business-communication students' perceptions of using formative peer feedback to assist them with their assignments in both face-to-face and online learning environments. Three classes of students enrolled in an introductory business-communication writing course engaged in both online and face-to-face peer feedback conditions for two class assignments. Other data sources included a 2008 Lizzio and Wilson questionnaire to assess participants' perceptions of their feedback experience in face-to-face and online feedback conditions, course grades, and individual as well as group interviews. The data analysis process used multiple methodologies to integrate, analyze, and interpret findings. Analysis of data consisted of analyzing online surveys, and individual and focus-group questionnaires resulted in the coding of student response statements. From online surveys, questionnaires, audiotaped interviews, and instructor observations, response data categories were initialized and synthesized into associated themes for further analysis. Results for both the positive and negative message show that, overall, students "agreed" that the feedback was developmental in that it helped them to improve, and was encouraging and fair. However, students overall disagreed with statements related to inconsistency of feedback, difficulty reading marker's comments, difficulty understanding feedback, and unknown grading expectations. Students' interview comments further suggested that, through the online process, it was difficult to fully understand marker's comments related to certain aspects of the assignments. Future research should continue to examine the use of online peer feedback as an assessment formative method. Furthermore, it is suggested that such research first focus on effective protocols that simplify the peer-to-peer feedback process so that students view the online feedback procedure as a fair and equitable form of assessment.Item A study of professional learning community components and Montana class 'AA' high schools(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Education, Health & Human Development, 2003) Reisig, Douglas WalterItem Does peer review improve lab report quality in high school science students?(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2011) Acker, Melanie S.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.My students are, for the most part, potentially very good writers. However, when I get these students, their lab report writing skills are quite limited, and therefore, are very poor. Focus for doing labs thus far in their science career has been how well they can perform the lab from verbal instructions not written instructions. The students have a difficult time reading and understanding what the protocol wants them to do, and they have an even more difficult time explaining what they performed during the lab activity in a lab report. This project investigated how well the students discussed their course of action after performing the lab activity in a written report. The students were given written lab protocols and were expected to follow the procedure and make observations along the way. The labs were all completed in one 45 minute class period. The students were then given one day in class to work on their lab report following the lab report rubric (Appendix A). Data collection for this project not only included lab report writing, but what the students' comfort levels were in different elements of the lab, how well they reviewed their own work, how well they reviewed other peer's work, and how they felt about the whole lab report writing process throughout the year. Several teachers were also asked to evaluate how well these particular students processed and followed directions in their classrooms as well. The resulted indicated that by implementing a peer review session into the lab report writing process the report score significantly improved. The students who struggled at the beginning of the process were now completing quality lab reports in half the time and the peer review rubrics were being scored with the highest marks. Because of these positive outcomes, I know that peer review is an integral part of the learning process to produce quality lab reports and I will continue to conduct this practice in my classroom in years to come.Item Developing an evidenced-based peer review policy(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Nursing, 2010) Marty, Claire Lund; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Elizabeth S. KinionA peer review process was encouraged by a National Veterans Health Administration internal review team as a way to assess quality of care and documentation and also promote improvements in nursing care, collegiality, and job satisfaction. The first step in the development of a peer review process was a literature review and policy development. A Peer Review Committee was formed and used evidence to develop a policy that was used to develop a peer review process. The committee used an effective group change model to educate and acquire the acceptance of the Rocky Mountain Region Home Telehealth team regarding peer review. The policy received approval and the process was piloted by the Peer Review Committee.