BACKGROUND:This mixed-methods study examined the effects of relaxation techniques on first-year baccalaureate nursing (BSN) students' academic stress, test anxiety, and intention to stay in the nursing profession. METHOD:To evaluate the effects of using relaxation techniques, 45 students participated in a 6-week relaxation technique intervention and a focus group. A pretest was disseminated the first week of class and a posttest was disseminated at the end of the semester, followed by a focus group interview. RESULTS:The paired-sample t test indicated that students who used relaxation techniques significantly decreased in academic stress and test anxiety. A thematic analysis of the focus group interview indicated relaxation techniques prior to examinations helped to reduce mental and physical stress and fear of failure and increased the likelihood of their intention to stay in the nursing profession. CONCLUSION:Institutional learning experiences that reduce students' academic stress and test anxiety can include relaxation techniques. [J Nurs Educ. 2019;58(9):534-537.].

This study assesses the differences between teacher retention rate and human resource (HR) managers' hiring practices, self-efficacy. Their use of social media websites (Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter) for hiring was evaluated. Turnover of teachers with fewer than 5 years of experience was gathered from New York State Education Department (NYSED) database. New York State schools were separated by high and low teacher retention rates. A Likert Scale Survey with one open ended question was sent to school districts HR managers. An independent sample t test was used to determine the differences between high and low teacher retention rates. A content analysis is presented using the responses to the open-ended question. Findings indicated that less than half of the HR managers used social media in the hiring process. No significant differences between teacher retention rates, HR managers' practices, and HR self-efficacy was found.

This study examines the relationships among Education, Income, and Life Satisfaction. The study also seeks to learn whether Unemployment can be a mediator of these relationships. For this study, database collected by the Quality of Government Institute was used. The database contains 194 countries' records on the topic and its variables collected in 2012. Correlation to test relationship, and partial correlation to test the relationship among the variables while controlling for unemployment was used. It was found that income strongly relates to life satisfaction, and years of schooling relates weakly to life satisfaction. Years of schooling, however, strongly relates to GDP per capita. Contrary to previous studies, it was found that unemployment was not a mediator of the relationship among Education, Income, and Life Satisfaction but shows slight indication that it can be a mediator between higher education and life satisfaction. It was advised that governments put more effort into education as well as future research on enhancing the quality and efficacy of education.

The researchers used structural equation modeling (SEM) to create a model predicting fourth-grade student achievement in math by exploring the relationships among: student, household, school, and teacher factors. Public data from the New York State Education Department (NYSED) 2012–13 school report card data, NYSED fiscal reporting system, Census 2010 School District Demographics System, and 2011 Civil Right Data Collection were used from 1,263 schools in New York excluding New York City. Variables were chosen using this convenient sample and supported by our conceptual rationale. The model predicted fourth-grade math achievement with 67 percent of effect size. Household factors had strong predictive, while school attendance rate had medium predictive value for student achievement.

The researchers used structural equation modeling (SEM) to create a model to predict fourth-grade student achievement in English Language Arts (ELA) by exploring the relationships among: student, household, school, and teacher factors. Public data from the New York State Education Department (NYSED) 2012–13 school report card data, NYSED fiscal reporting system, Census 2010 School District Demographics System, and 2011 Civil Right Data Collection were used from 1,263 schools in New York excluding New York City. Variables were chosen using this convenient sample and supported by our conceptual rationale.

This study was conducted to determine if there was a mean difference between employee levels of happiness (Happy and Non Happy) and their perceptions on their Organization’s Culture, Job Embeddedness and Continuance Commitment with their jobs in faith-based higher education institutions. Fifty-nine administrators, leaders and workers responded to the Organizational Leadership Assessment (OLA) survey. From this survey, and after factor analysis, we found three major variables: Organizational Culture, Job Embeddedness, and Continuance Commitment. A significant difference was found between happy an non happy employees’ views on the variables, Organizational Culture and Job Embeddedness. However, no statistical significance was found between being happy at work and not being happy at work in regard to Continuance Commitment. This study will contribute to the body of knowledge concerning the theory of happiness by meeting the need for additional empirical research in employee subjective well-being and job satisfaction in higher education.

In this paper, we examined how simulated physics class management predicted the percentage of students who achieved a grade point average of B or better as reported by teachers in secondary school physics classes. We conducted this study with the eighty-two secondary school physics teachers who were members of the American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA), and used physics educational technology (Ph. T) simulations in their physics classes from 2013 to 2014 in New York schools. We used the linear regression analysis to determine the relationship between simulated secondary school physics class management and student academic achievement of grade point average (GPA) of B or better. Classroom management was significantly related to the percentage of students who achieved a grade point average of B or better, F(7.166) = 12.50, p < .001, indicating that class management accounts for 12.5 percent of the variance of the percentage of students who achieved a grade point average of B or better. To improve their students’ academic achievement, teachers should focus on the use of simulations to manage secondary school physics classes.

The study compared the gender of principals and gender of teachers in relationship to two servant leadership characteristics, altruistic calling and the team learning experience. The major findings of the study showed a significant difference between teachers’ experiences in team learning and principal gender. The participants, 162 teachers from fifteen schools in New York State, responded to a 36-item servant leadership survey instrument about their principals. A two-way ANOVA was used to study the interaction between gender and the factors of altruistic calling and team learning experiences.

This study explored the perceptions of teacher-student relationships and personal student safety differences between Caucasian and African-American middle school students. The research was conducted using a survey in a suburban middle class school on Long Island, New York. Twenty-eight of 176 Caucasian students were chosen through random sampling to contrast with the 15 AfricanAmerican students who participated in this study. An independent sample T-test was used. It showed a significant difference between African-American and Caucasian students in teacher-student relationships (p=.05) and approaching significance on personal safety significance (p<.10). Caucasian students in the sample tended to feel safer in their school, and the Caucasian students showed better student-teacher relationships than the African-American students.

This study measures the influence of an ethics course on the academic integrity of second-year college students enrolled in an aviation program in the United States and their beliefs about following Federal Aviation Regulations standards. Academic integrity is defined by three variables: beliefs about not cheating, beliefs about exhibiting moral behavior, and beliefs about following a code of conduct. Normalized gains, bivariate correlations, and independent samples t-test procedures indicated significant differences in academic integrity between aviation students who took an ethics course and students who did not take an ethics course. The gain in reported moral behavior was found not to be significant. The results of the study imply that offering ethics courses to aviation students promotes their academic integrity. Future studies about other factors that influence the academic integrity of aviation students in college are recommended.

This study compares a sample of approximately 44 first year college students in 2005 and 2015 on Long Island, New York, in their technology preparedness and self-directed instruction. The researchers used a survey instrument including demographic information focused upon students’ preparation for classroom technology in high school and college. First, the study compared the extent to which students use self-directed instruction relative to proficiency in technology in 2005 and 2015. Second, the study examined the technology preparedness in high schools and colleges. Third, the study compared the difference in technology preparedness in high school and college between students in 2005 and 2015. The 21st century high school and college student tends to favor a more independent, autonomous learning style that makes them more assertive information seekers and shapes how they approach learning in the classroom (Carlson, 2005). Over a decade since then-President of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Charles Vest, first made all courses available for free use online, the educational world has changed drastically. (Sheu, Lee, Bonk & Kou, 2013). Currently, students are increasingly utilizing online environments for their learning needs as they not only seek professional growth and development, but also to pursue their learning interests (Bonk, Miyoung, Kou, Xu & Sheu, 2014). Open educational resources, (OER), open courseware (OCW), massive open online courses (MOOCs), hybrid (or blended courses), and flipped (or inverted) classrooms offer selfdirected learners the technologies to be able to acquire a skill or study an endless array of topics. Other educators, however, feel that by incorporating greater autonomy in learning, the higher education system will suffer and that although students may be digital natives, they do not necessarily understand how their use of technology affects their literacy or habits of learning (Barnes, Marateo & Ferris, 2007; Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005). Therefore, as society seems to be shifting towards a more free and open educational platform, advances in self-directed learning technology are disruptive forces to the traditional higher education environment, forcing learning institutions to embrace these trends for their future success. Purpose of the Study The purpose of this study is to compare the extent to which first-year college students in 2005 and 2015 use self-directed instruction relative to proficiency in technology on Long Island, New York. Data for this study was drawn from the initial study of Perceptions of Recent High School Graduates on Educational Technology Preparedness for College (Brachio, 2005). In this study, Brachio defined educational technology competency through the following concepts: Spreadsheet, General Computer Use, Advanced Word Processing, Share Information, Power Point Presentations, Basic Word Processing, and Ethical Use of Computers. The 2015 study adds the additional concept of Social Media, and examines the difference in which high schools and colleges prepare first-year college students for proficiency in technology. Lastly, the study compares the difference in technology preparedness in high school and college between students in 2005 and 2015. Theoretical Framework In today's fast-paced world, students can access information anywhere and anytime thanks to mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. The attitudes and perceptions of digital learners towards the use of computer technology is essential to better understanding the relationship between technology preparedness and self-directed learning. First, it is necessary to define what self-directed learning entails. Knowles (1989) defined self-directed learning as a "process in which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help from others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating goals, identifying human and material resources, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes" (pg. 18). According to standards developed by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), students should be able to demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning by demonstrating a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. This included a student-centered learning model as an essential condition for planning, teaching, and assessment based on the needs and abilities of students (www.iste.org). 19 F ll, 2015 Jornal or Leership nd Insuction In 2000, Ben-Jacob, Levin, and Ben-Jacob believed that the student of the new millennium would be more academically independent, self-motivated, and better able than their educational predecessors. The authors also opined that the typical student would be technologically astute and prepared to tap into the vast potential for technologically assisted learning. Now in 2015, with the evolution of OER, OCW, and MOOCs, today's student must effectively manage the endless array of learning resources available; often with little or no guidance (Sheu et al., 2013). High School Level Perspectives Kahveci (2010) investigated high school students' motivation to use technology for learning comparing varying personal characteristics such as gender, grade level, content area of interest, and previous experience in using technology for learning. The study suggested that students in grades 9-12 had a positive attitude towards the use of technology for their learning and recommended that educators should integrate technological components to foster student learning and motivation to learn. In a similar study conducted in 2014 by Demir, Yasar, Sert and Yurdugul, the researchers examined Turkish students' self-directed learning attitudes towards computers in either a public middle or secondary school. They found that as students adopted computers more, they used them more often for self-directed learning. This learning typically occurred outside of schools and was related to computer self-efficacy through e-learning environments. In a 2009 teacher survey of technology conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics, 78 percent of high school teachers reported using independent learning as the most effective means for preparing them for educational technology in the classroom. The following year, in a Speak Up 2010 survey of K-12 students, parents, and educators regarding the role of technology for learning, while 74 percent of high school teachers, 72 percent of high school principals, and 62 percent of parents of high school aged children said that they felt their school was "doing a good job using technology to enhance learning and/or student achievement,” only 47 percent of high school students agreed (www.tomorrow.org/ speakup, pg. 15). College Level Perspectives In a 2014 MIT study by Bonk et al., the researchers surveyed the learning preferences, motivations, achievements, obstacles, and possibilities for life change of self-directed online learners. The results of their survey revealed that nearly 85 percent of students used selfdirected online learning to learn a new skill or competency whereas 70 percent used self-directed online learning for self-improvement or curiosity. The most common reason for such self-directed learning included intrinsic motivation with lack of time being the most significant obstacle for using the resource. Identifying second year college students' attitudes and self-efficacy towards m-learning (mobile and smartphones, tablets), Yang (2012) identified that the students' computer self-efficacy and attitudes were core factors which affected the success of m-learning in the classroom. The Educator's Perspective Although most educators would generally agree that 21 century competencies demand fundamental changes in how student learning will occur, there seems to be a divide in teacher preparedness as well as perceptions of how classrooms should change in order to better prepare young people to be educated for careers that do not yet exist. Newby, Stepich, Lehman and Russell (2000) stated that due to learner-centered instruction allowing students to engage with various sources of potential information to gain insights into a problem, the teacher's role would "shift to one of guide and facilitator who assists learners in achieving their learning goals" (pg. 7). Christensen, Horn and Johnson (2008) believed that by acting as learning coaches and tutors, teachers would spend more of their time assisting students individually, helping students find the learning approach that makes the most sense for them. This decentralized view of teaching learning was not to be viewed as an abandonment of instructional responsibility, but rather as an embracing of the core skills and capacities that students needed to be successful (Zmuda, 2009). Li (2007) reported limited participation from students when schools made technology initiatives. Instead, his findings reported that many teachers did not share the same beliefs about technology due to a fear of being replaced by computers. Some teachers had even described reluctance to structure technology-enhanced learning projects with students whom they felt were more technologically savvy than they were since they did not grow up with using the Internet as much as today's learners (Greenhow, Walker & Kim, 2009). However, in order to take advantage of a technology-supported learning environment, good teaching and learning required an awareness of students' level of understanding, dynamic adjustment of delivery and content, and the active engagement of students in their learning (Lv, 2014). Mehaffy (2012) recommended hybrid courses (blending a traditional course with face-to-face and online instruction) and flipped classrooms (content is delivered as homework with class time reserved for collaboration, discussion, and addressing misperceptions) as an entry point for teachers to see the power of an Int