Posts

Discuss how you intend to construct the items, cognizant of the basic principles of item pool construction, the necessity of SMEs, the unidimensionality or multidimensional of the construct, etc.

Instructions
For this task, complete the readings for this assignment, and then write a paper in which you complete the following:

Write an introduction that examines the construct, its conceptual definition/s, and related concepts.
Review the literature and the existing tools that measure the construct.
Provide justification for your original scale.
Discuss how you intend to construct the items, cognizant of the basic principles of item pool construction, the necessity of SMEs, the unidimensionality or multidimensional of the construct, etc.
Write at least 20 sample items that represent the construct you are planning to measure. You may construct negatively-worded items, but indicate these in a chart or table. If the construct you choose has two or more dimensions under it, write sample items indicating which items fall under which dimension. (See for example, the Life Position Scale that contained four dimensions I’m OK etc. at first, but after factor analysis the dimensions reduced to two—I and You.)
Argue for a specific method of running an item analysis procedure.
Argue for at least two specific methods of establishing your scale’s validity (Choose at least one method for construct validity, and another method for criterion-related validity. In criterion validation, it is not enough to simply write that you are planning to employ the method. Be sure to specify the variable(s) you will correlate your scale with.

Self esteem is the construct that you would develop a scale in this task. I would want you to do a research on this construct. There are many scales already available measuring self esteem. How will your scale be different from the existing ones? Also what are the new directions in self esteem research? Also think about the reliability methods that you can use for the test you will construct in this task.
Scale Construction Proposal
Your proposal is similar to a research proposal that expresses intent to perform a scientific investigation. However, unlike a research proposal that first establishes the existence of a gap in the knowledge and proceeds to argue for a relationship between or among variables, the scale construction proposal is just a scaled-down manuscript that discusses your intention to construct a psychological scale.
Nevertheless, it should contain an introduction that discusses the construct of interest and a review of the existing tools created to measure it. It should also be ideal to explain why you intend to construct an original scale that measures your chosen construct or why the existing tools do not satisfy the purpose of your dissertation. What follows this should include specific methods that you will employ to construct the items, to weed out bad items and retain good ones, to establish item reliability and consistency, and a proposal to establish the scale’s validity. In establishing validity, you must be specific in the methods that you will employ and the variables that you will correlate with your chosen construct. Also, be specific in the variables that you expect to correlate highly with your construct and those that should yield weak correlations with it (as what you will expect in a Multi-trait, Multi-method matrix, page 287 in Kline).

Your assignment should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course by providing new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards.

Compare and contrast the articles by examining the main claims (most important pieces of evidence) and determine which article makes the strongest argument on a common theme and why.

Follow instructions including the attached instructions.

You will write a 4+ full page analysis essay that exams the arguments, main claims and themes of the following articles: “The Allegory of the Cave” and “New Superstitions for Old.” The essay should be entirely your opinion and should accomplish one of the following:

Compare and contrast the articles by examining the main claims (most important pieces of evidence) and determine which article makes the strongest argument on a common theme and why. This must be a thorough look at the main claims/evidence. Each body paragraph should contain at least one main claim or piece of evidence from each article for analysis.
Construct your own argument on the shared theme of these articles. Your essay should put your own twist on the importance of abandoning old traditions or leaving your own personal (or community) cave in order to grow as a human being. Your argument should be supported by what you believe to be the strongest, most illuminating claims (pieces of evidence) from each article.
Your essay should follow the paragraph-by-paragraph guidelines provided below. How well you accomplish the tasks below will determine your grade.

What type of local, state planning would you focus on to protect your city from an unconventional attack on the public transit system?

DHS was established shortly after 9/11. It brings together 22 different agencies to protect the United States “to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards.

Imagine you were placed in charge of the disaster planning office for a major U.S. city (e.g., Chicago, Atlanta). What type of local, state planning would you focus on to protect your city from an unconventional attack on the public transit system?
Suppose an ISIS cell attacks a hospital (e.g., Walter Reed at Bethesda or A Veteran’s Administration hospital or St Jude’s Children’s Hospital). What federal resources would be available to prevent, respond, and recover?

In 500-750 words, describe the components necessary to create an effective professional identity and explain why professional networks are essential for professional development.

In 500-750 words, describe the components necessary to create an effective professional identity and explain why professional networks are essential for professional development.

Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a grading rubric. Instructors will be using the rubric to grade the assignment; therefore, students should review the rubric prior to the beginning of the assignment to become familiar with the assignment criteria and expectations for successful completion of the assignment.

Research, outline, discuss, and evaluate the best practices for collective bargaining strategies; Research, outline, discuss, and evaluate the arguments against and for collective bargaining.

You are the president of the Local Union 312 Chapter. As the president of the union, you are the chief spokesperson and representative of the Local Union 312 to management. Next month, you will start the collective bargaining process with management to get your union members greater wages and benefits and better and safer working conditions. Write a 3–5-page research paper using APA style outlining the collective bargaining process, including the following:

Define and discuss what collective bargaining is.
Research, outline, and discuss all of the steps of the collective bargaining process.
Research, outline, discuss, and evaluate the best practices for collective bargaining strategies.
Research, outline, discuss, and evaluate the arguments against and for collective bargaining.
Use correct APA style, grammar, sentences, and punctuation.
Support your research paper with at least 4 different scholarly sources, such as research journals, research studies, and government or accredited educational institutions’ Web sites.

What are some examples of social policies that affect services to clients in various fields of social work practice?

Answer 3 out of the following 5 questions:

Policy Practice: Social workers understand that public policies affect the types of social benefits available to the general public, and they acknowledge the need for policy practice. What are some examples of social policies that affect services to clients in various fields of social work practice?

Human Rights and Justice: Social work is aptly described as society’s conscience. How do social workers advocate for human rights and promote social, economic, and environmental justice?

Intervention: Social workers view the personal troubles of individuals within the societal context of larger social issues. From an ecosystem perspective, why is it important for social workers to select interventions that include both individual treatment and social reforms?

Ethical and Professional Behavior: The common base of professional values, knowledge, and skills is shared by all social workers and unifies the profession. What personal values might interfere with your professional obligation to allow social work values to guide practice?

Policy Practice: Social services are typically classified as either public or private. What are the benefits of a social service delivery infrastructure that is built on both public and private services?

Describe the nature of government contracting, authority, responsibilities, and legal considerations including certain sections of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).

Assignment 1: Small-Business Opportunities With the Navy

Due Week 3 and worth 200 points

Imagine that you are the owner of a small floor refinishing business that provides a specialty coating product for ceramic tile and marble floors. There is no other local flooring business that provides this service. Having recently received a patent on your product, you are ready to expand your business by competing for Navy contracts at the local base, which is located a few miles away. The services you want to sell are the specialty coating, the application of the coating, and a regular maintenance schedule. Your company consists of you, one office assistant, and two production employees.

Note: You will be referencing this business throughout all three assignments for this course. Please use “First Name, Last Name, Inc.” as the name of your company throughout these assignments.

Write a 3-4 page paper in which you do the following:

  1. Develop your company’s acquisition and planning strategy for obtaining a contract.
  2. Analyze the manner in which utilizing SmartPay or a similar program in electronic contracting will assist your company and the Navy. Provide a rationale for your response.
  3. Go to the Strayer University Online Library to locate at least 3 quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other related websites do not qualify as academic resources. Reference: https://smartpay.gsa.gov/content/about-gsa-smartpay

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

  • This course requires use of new Student Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different from other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details.
  • Be typed, double-spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with 1-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow SWS or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
  • Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.
  • Break your paper into sections with titles and subtitles representative of the rubric questions and fully answer the questions.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are as follows:

  • Describe the nature of government contracting, authority, responsibilities, and legal considerations including certain sections of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).
  • Explain the government acquisition process using sealed bidding, negotiations, and alternative contracting methods.
  • Write clearly and concisely about federal acquisition and contract management using proper writing mechanics.

Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic/organization of the paper, and language and writing skills. Click here to access the rubric for this assignment.

 

Clearly identify and describe in detail a professional practice use of the theories/concepts presented in the article.

Using the ‘Week 4 | Part 4’ section of your Academic Success and Professional Development Plan Template presented in the Resources, conduct an analysis of the elements of the research article you identified. Be sure to include the following:
Clearly identify the topic of interest you have selected.
Provide an accurate and complete APA formatted citation of the article you selected, along with link or search details.
Clearly identify and describe in detail a professional practice use of the theories/concepts presented in the article.
Provide a clear and accurate analysis of the article using the Research Analysis Matrix section of the template.
Write a 1-paragraph justification that clearly and accurately explains in detail whether you would recommend the use of this article to inform professional practice. Note: You can use the CARP method as presented in the Resources for this week on evaluating resources.
Write a 2- to 3-paragraph summary that you will add to your Academic Success and Professional Development Plan that includes the following:
Clearly and accurately describe in detail your approach to identifying and analyzing peer-reviewed research.
Clearly identify and accurately describe in detail at least two strategies that you would use that you found to be effective in finding peer-reviewed research.
Provide a complete, detailed, and specific synthesis of at least one resource you intend to use in the future to find peer-reviewed research.
Integrate at least one outside resource and 2-3 course specific resources to fully support your summary.

What does a ‘personal encounter’ mean? Write about a face-to-face contact between the student and a police officer.

The paper will be about a personal encounter of the student (or someone known by the student) with a law enforcement officer; e.g., a traffic stop which either did or did not result in a ticket. Students will:

• Express critical thinking about the human dimensions of their encounter.

• Analyze police operational styles.

• Demonstrate an applied understanding of the literature on police personality.
(a) What does a ‘personal encounter’ mean? It means that the student will write about a face-to-face contact between the student and a police officer. There must have been words and police business exchanged between the student and the officer for it to qualify as an ‘encounter’. A traffic stop is just one example, but the student is free to use any experience with a police officer that goes beyond mere greetings such as “How’s it going today, officer?” Other examples include, but are not limited to:

• Being a suspect/witness in a crime and/or asked questions and/or interrogated by police.

• Being a victim of a crime and/or asked questions by the police (unless the experience is too personal)

• Any situation where the student had to go to police headquarters (to fill out forms for example)

• Any time a student heard an officer give a guest lecture or speech (other than DARE)

• Asking directions from an officer while on a trip.

• Talking to a police recruiter or officer about employment possibilities.

(b) What if I have never had a police encounter? The assignment allows the student to use someone known to the student who has had a police encounter. It is unlikely, however, that the student has never had any kind of contact, and it is preferred that the student use their own contact. What the student cannot do is go out and arrange a first-time police contact or interview any officer just for the purposes of the assignment. If the student comes from a police family, do not write any of your family members (too close to the subject matter).
(c) When should this encounter have occurred? I prefer the students’ earliest memory, but if you talk about when you were an infant and you your mother told you to “Look at the poleeze man!” you’re probably going back too far. On the other hand, if you choose a recent encounter involving a matter that has yet to be settled in court, you’re probably too close to the situation to write an objective paper. Choose an encounter between your earliest memory and most recent memory, or your most memorable experience.

(d) What does ‘write down my facts and feelings’ mean? The paper will be 5-6 pages long and divided into the following sections, which you should use to plan the organization of the paper. Use section headings.

• Facts and feelings

• Human dimensions of the encounter

• Police operational style

• Police personality

Demonstrate advanced knowledge of strategies for communication and collaboration with other professionals, parents/carers and support personnel.

Professional Practice of Teaching

Weighting Percentage: 60%

Addresses learning outcome(s):

  • Critically evaluate sources of professional learning;
  • Demonstrate advanced knowledge of strategies for communication and collaboration with other professionals, parents/carers and support personnel; and
  • Demonstrate advanced knowledge of the relationship between professional learning and improved student learning.

Task description:

Writing and reflecting on case studies is a useful way to enhance our professional practice and identity. Through exploration of the authentic experiences of self and others, we consider the critical elements of personal professional practice for teaching.

Choose an episode that occurred within a classroom context, either from your professional placements or your time at school, that highlights a professional practice issue of interest. Create the narrative of what happened in this incident (500-700 words).

Analyze the incident in terms of policies, effective teaching practice, professional learning etc, making judgments about effective practice and student well being and / or student learning. Include some recommendations. Eg. How could the policy be changed? How could the school / teacher better interpret and enact the policy? What kind of professional learning would be of benefit here? (up to 1500 words)

Offer a self-reflexive analysis. How has consideration and analysis of this incident enabled you to enhance your knowledge and ideas about professional practice, either through reinforcement or marking the grounds for change. (up to 1000 words)

Scholarly references and connections to the course material are required to underpin the commentary.

Marking Criteria:

Students will be assessed on their demonstrated ability to:

  • Discuss and relate issues to professional learning such as ethical practice, professional teaching standards, teacher conduct (10%)
  • Critically analyze professional issues and relate to policy and personal practice. These include engaging/working with parents/carers, supporting student needs and participation, seeking and applying feedback on teaching, seeking and improving teacher’s professional knowledge and practice (25%)
  • Understand the nature of reflexive processes to improve student well being and / or learning a, professional communication and professional development (35%)
  • Apply strategies for communication and collaboration to enhance student well being and / or learning (20%)
  • Write with clarity and purpose and adhere to standard academic conventions* (10%)