Associate Degree Level Research Articles

Evaluating a Measure of ‘Social Orientation’ of Chinese Students in Social Work: Developing its Reliability and Validity

This study examines the reliability and validity of a measure of ‘social orientation’ indigenously developed from Chinese students of social work in Hong Kong. By administering two tests with Chinese social work students (n = 293 and n = 304) at associate degree level, the measure achieves strong internal consistency with r>0.75 and test–retest consistency with r>0.63. The instrument also has strong validity by attempting factor analysis of items generated from qualitative data in in‐depth interviews. The development of this indigenous measure of ‘social orientation’ will contribute to an understanding of the authoritarian, relationship and ‘other’ orientation of Chinese social work students. The authors propose that this will be a crucial factor in influencing the response of Chinese students towards different teaching and learning approaches in social work education.

Visual Spatial Representation in Mathematical Problem Solving by Deaf and Hearing Students

This research examined the use of visual-spatial representation by deaf and hearing students while solving mathematical problems. The connection between spatial skills and success in mathematics performance has long been established in the literature. This study examined the distinction between visual-spatial "schematic" representations that encode the spatial relations described in a problem versus visual-spatial "pictorial" representations that encode only the visual appearance of the objects described in a problem. A total of 305 hearing (n = 156) and deaf (n = 149) participants from middle school, high school, and college participated in this study. At all educational levels, the hearing students performed significantly better in solving the mathematical problems compared to their deaf peers. Although the deaf baccalaureate students exhibited the highest performance of all the deaf participants, they only performed as well as the hearing middle school students who were the lowest scoring hearing group. Deaf students remained flat in their performance on the mathematical problem-solving task from middle school through the college associate degree level. The analysis of the students' problem representations showed that the hearing participants utilized visual-spatial schematic representation to a greater extent than did the deaf participants. However, the use of visual-spatial schematic representations was a stronger positive predictor of mathematical problem-solving performance for the deaf students. When deaf students' problem representation focused simply on the visual-spatial pictorial or iconic aspects of the mathematical problems, there was a negative predictive relationship with their problem-solving performance. On two measures of visual-spatial abilities, the hearing students in high school and college performed significantly better than their deaf peers.

Service-Learning Projects: Meeting Community Needs

The University of South Dakota’s (USD) nursing program is an associate degree (ADN) level program. In recent years, learning objectives for the students in the ADN level at USD have been updated to include the National League for Nursing’s position statement, which includes recommendations to design new methods to meet students’ learning needs. This article discusses the evolution of service-learning projects between USD’s nursing program and the community. It will discuss four specific projects in terms of (a) matching the academic needs of the students with community needs, (b) commitment by academia to the community, (c) the impact of service learning on faculty productivity, and (d) the quality of student learning. Finally, some of the challenges of participating in service-learning activities are outlined.

Assessing Knowledge of the Health Sciences through Case‐Study Presentations

In order to measure knowledge of the health sciences at Mercy College of Health Sciences in Des Moines, Iowa, a rubric was generated to validate the following sciences: anatomy, physiology and pharmacology (minimally required scientific courses for all degree programs). Three times during the semester, groups of 2–3 students were given a short clinical scenario in their Physiology course. The students had a two-week time frame to research, prepare and organize their presentations. The student presentations included an explanation of the diagnosis, the scientific understanding of mechanism concerning the etiology, symptoms and treatment of the pathophysiological condition. Since the presentations required a PowerPoint presentation, a minimum of a 5-minute speech and critical thinking, the presentation also facilitated 3 of the 6 Liberal Arts and Sciences departmental objectives (use of technology, effective speaking, and critical thinking). Peers and faculty were able to ask questions and challenge student thought processes. Peers in the class were required to take notes and learn from the presentation through a 10-point quiz assessment that followed the next week in class. The rubric was utilized to grade and assess the students. Each presentation was worth 5 points. Mercy College of Health Sciences had 95% of the students scoring 4 or 5 points. This was established as the benchmark for obtaining scientific knowledge of the health sciences at the associate degree level.

TEACHING RESEARCH IN GERONTOLOGY: TOWARD A CUMULATIVE MODEL

In this article, we consider different approaches to teaching research methods in gerontology across a continuum of educational program levels. Our goal is to offer a conceptual framework and stimulate productive discussion of key issues and challenges in teaching research in gerontology. It is our belief that education in gerontology should include some level of training in research methodologies across all levels of gerontology instruction. Therefore, we have sought to identify those components of research training most appropriate for each level of gerontological education. Thus, basic understanding of research methods is appropriate at the associate's degree level and introductory exposure to basic issues involved in conducting research with elders provides a necessary backdrop to undergraduate programs. More in-depth understanding of gerontological research methods, particularly those involved in applied research, is a component of quality master's level programs. Finally, in-depth knowledge and the ability to apply distinctively gerontological research methods are necessary for conducting advanced original research at the doctoral level.

Introducing Nursing Research at the Associate-Degree Level

Introducing Nursing Research at the Associate-Degree Level

Management education. Needs of nurse administrators in long-term care.

Nurse administrators in long-term care experience relatively short tenure in the management role. Since the majority of nurse administrators in long-term care facilities have initial nursing preparation at the diploma or associate degree level, they do not receive educational preparation in leadership and management in their nursing education programs. There is a need for management education of nurse administrators in rural long-term care facilities, as perceived by chief executive officers and nurse administrators.

Toward an integrative model of professional practice

A review of nursing practice demonstrates repeated attempts to focus on direct professional responsibility to clients, but failure to do so consistently in an effective professional model. The cycles of growth of the profession depict the long-standing subordination of nursing to hospital administration and medicine and suggest that nursing is ready to move into an integrative, collaborative stage of development. A trilevel model of professional practice is proposed, based on differentiated roles for graduate, baccalaureate, and associate degree levels of education. An organizational structure that places nursing clinicians directly responsible to clients would facilitate nursing's response to clients' health concerns whenever and wherever they occur.

Standardized education for nursing

The need for establishing standardized education for nursing is discussed. New health needs, patient demands, and technological advances are causing changes in the health-care system that affect the future of nursing. To meet these changes, the American Nurses' Association (ANA) has proposed that the baccalaureate degree be the entry-level degree for future professional nurses. Currently, many nurses' educational competencies are not matched by the suitable job category. This leads to frustration and problems with underutilization and misutilization of nurses that affects the delivery of health-care services. The ANA has proposed a clearer delineation of nurses into two equally valid categories, each of which will include nurses with a specific educational preparation, to alleviate these problems. The nurse educated at the associate degree (diploma) level will be a member of a nursing team and practice within specific limits. The nurse prepared at the baccalaureate level will have a more comprehensive education to help evaluate and design a patient's treatment plan, perform research, coordinate the work of other health personnel, and attain advanced degrees in specialized clinical areas. To answer many of the objections to its proposal, the ANA has emphasized the need for implementing continuing education programs for all nurses and baccalaureate-degree programs for diploma and associate-degree nurses who want to earn that degree. ANA advocates that such programs give credit for the experience and the on-the-job training that registered nurses have had. Establishing standardized education for nursing is proposed as the best means for the profession to be prepared to meet the demands of the future and for the delivery of better health care.

Differential Educational Aspiration Levels in a Sample of Undergraduate Health Majors

Motive to avoid success (M‐s) describes the inner conflict that high‐achieving females experience when they are confronted with academic success. Little research has been done on M‐s in a predominantly female occupation. Evidence of the trait was detected in a sample of 462 female students at the associate degree and bachelor's degree levels of the medical laboratory profession when they were compared with 118 male peers. An academic variable (high school rank) and two motivational variables (idealized and realistic degree aspiration) were employed. Counseling techniques and recommended areas of future M‐s research are presented.

A model training program for child mental health specialists.

The Child Mental Health Specialist Training Program was established in 1970 at Camarillo State Hospital to train personnel specifically for work with mentally disturbed and delinquent children in a variety of settings. In collaboration with local colleges, the two-year program offers training at the master's-, bachelor's-, and associate-degree levels. Its focus is on clinical experience, supplemented by academic courses taught by staff of the Camarillo Children's Treatment Center. The authors describe the growing need for qualified child-care workers, the concepts underlying the program's structure, and the operation of the program. They emphasize the importance of designing training programs to produce versatile and flexible workers with skills that are adaptable to changing treatment approaches.

The ethics of supervision

Charles S. Levy, DSW, is Professor, Wurzweiler School of Social Work, Yeshiva University, New York, New York. Considerable attention has been paid in the social work literature to the purposes, skills, and processes of supervision. But the subject of ethics in supervision has been virtually neglected. This article discusses some of the reasons for according to ethics in supervision a high priority, particularly because of current conditions in the field. Six conditions that presently exist in so cial work make the formulation and imple mentation of an ethic for supervision in social work more imperative than ever be fore: (1) resources for social work training and education have been reduced or elim inated, (2) social agencies are finding it difficult to raise funds for their programs, (3) what was formerly a tight labor market has become a tight job market, (4) social work education at the bachelor's degree and associate degree levels has increased, (5) agencies are employing greater numbers of paraprofessional personnel, and (6) pro fessional personnel are increasingly de ployed in supervisory positions.