Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Why Do I Need To Know This? The Use Of Authentic Text To Foster Student Engagement And Provide Relevance For The Major Understandings Of Regents Chemistry, Nicole M. Calzi

Education and Human Development Master's Theses

This project provides a review of the literature that supports instructional strategies for the use of relevant expository text in the science classroom to promote student motivation, reading comprehension, and writing-to-learn. Following the review of the literature thirty carefully selected text passages that encompass specific aspects of the Regents Chemistry curriculum and are relevant to students’ lives are included. Each text passage is aligned with a reading and writing strategy to guide students in extracting information from the text. Further implications of this project, such as the effect using authentic text to provide relevance and foster student engagement, are discussed ...

Spring­11: Pdc In Cs1/2 And A Mobile/Cloud Intermediate Mobile/Cloud Intermediate Software Design Course, Joseph P. Kaylor, Konstantin Läufer, Chandra N. Sekharan, George K. Thiruvathukal

Computer Science: Faculty Publications & Other Works

Recent changes in the environment of Loyola University Chicago’s Department of Computer Science include a better differentiation of our four undergraduate majors, growing interest in computing among science majors, and an increased demand for graduates with mobile and cloud skills. In our continued effort to incorporate parallel and distributed computing topics into the undergraduate curriculum, we are focusing on these three existing courses:

CS1: In response to a request from the physics department, we started to offer a CS1 section aimed at majors in physics and other hard sciences this spring semester. This section includes some material on numerical ...

Helpful Homework In Geometry: A Redesigned Circles Unit, Bethany J. Hooker

Education and Human Development Master's Theses

Homework has been part of the educational system for many decades. During this time, public opinion has varied greatly on its usefulness in the classroom. Much of the more recent research has focused on the idea that homework can be valuable to students when the assignments are meaningful, as opposed to homework that is assigned with little or no purpose. This research was analyzed to find patterns in the various definitions of meaningful homework. It was found that meaningful homework generally contains the following qualities: brevity, choice, defined purpose, real-world connections, hands-on components, rigor through synthesis, the integration of technology ...

Decreasing Math Anxiety Through A Quadratics Unit, Lee C. Hooker

Education and Human Development Master's Theses

Anxiety related to the learning of mathematics is referred to as math anxiety and has been shown to have a negative influence on student performance. Research reveals that math anxiety is something that can be unlearned and informs about the potential causes and treatments of math anxiety in the mathematics classroom. A majority of math anxiety experienced by students has been caused by teachers’ repetitious teaching styles. Research presents various teaching strategies that have helped teachers when working with students who have math anxiety. These strategies include writing, class discussions, cooperative groups, kinesthetic activities, use of manipulatives, and various, frequent ...

Impacting Student Attitudes Toward Mathematics Through Project-Based Learning: A Multiple Intelligence Based Approach, Andre Wade

Annual Celebration of Student Scholarship and Creativity

Reflecting on my first year of teaching, the number one hindrance to my students’ progress in mathematics seemed to be that my students strongly disliked the subject. Therefore in my second year of teaching at a diverse Catholic school in New England, I completed an action research project that implemented project-based learning (PBL) based on Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory into my mathematics classroom. I wanted to to see if the experience would first, impact student attitudes to make students like math more, and second, if PBL would allow students to see mathematics as applicable to the real world. Therefore, this ...

Investigation Of The Effect Of Using Data Collection Technology On Students' Attitudes To Science Instruction , R. Douglas Damery

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to investigate the effect of using of data collection technology on student attitudes towards science instruction. The study was conducted over the course of two years at Madison High School in Adrian, Michigan, primarily in college preparatory physics classes, but also in one college preparatory chemistry class and one environmental science class. A preliminary study was conducted at a Lenawee County Intermediate Schools student summer environmental science day camp. The data collection technology used was a combination of Texas Instruments TI-84 Silver Plus graphing calculators and Vernier LabPro data collection sleds with various probeware ...

Conceptualising Changes To Pre-Service Teachers’ Knowledge Of How To Best Facilitate Learning In Mathematics: A Tpack Inspired Initiative, Frank G. Bate, Lorraine Day, Jean Macnish

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In 2010, the Australian Commonwealth government initiated an $8m project called Teaching Teachers for the Future. The aim of the project was to engage teacher educators in a professional learning network which focused on optimising exemplary use of information and communications technologies in teacher education. By taking part in this network, participants were afforded opportunities to transform their practice through a range of localised initiatives that applied information and communications technologies to the art and science of teaching and learning. One of these initiatives involved re-engineering a university mathematics unit targeted at pre-service teachers. Information and communications technologies were purposefully ...

A Study Of Secondary Science Teacher Efficacy And Level Of Constructivist Instructional Practice Implementation In West Virginia Science Classrooms, Amanda Kristen Knapp

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of use of selected constructivist instructional practices and level of teacher efficacy in West Virginia secondary science classrooms. The study next sought to determine if a relationship existed between level of use of the constructivist practices and teacher efficacy. In addition the study sought to determine if differences existed in level of use of the selected constructivist practices and/or teacher efficacy based on selected demographic variables

The study was a mixed-methods design. First, a researcher-developed survey instrument was used to collect data regarding the level of use of constructivist ...

Interview Of Thomas J. Wurtenberger, Thomas J. Wurtenberger, Charles D. Muzyczek

All Oral Histories

Thomas J. Wurtenberger was born and raised in the Lower Olney (Feltonville) section of Philadelphia in 1935. He was raised primarily by his mother after the death of his father in 1944. Tom attended North Catholic High School where he took business courses. He did not have aspirations to attend college right out of high school. He was encouraged by a former employer to better himself by going to college and earning a degree. One year after graduation Tom enrolled at La Salle College. He chose La Salle because of its reasonable tuition and proximity to home. Originally Tom desired ...

The Effect Of Augmented Reality Treatment On Learning, Cognitive Load, And Spatial Visualization Abilities, Nedim Slijepcevic

Theses and Dissertations--Curriculum and Instruction

This study investigated the effects of Augmented Reality (AR) on learning, cognitive load and spatial abilities. More specifically, it measured learning gains, perceived cognitive load, and the role spatial abilities play with students engaged in an astronomy lesson about lunar phases. Research participants were 182 students from a public university in southeastern United States, and were recruited from psychology research pool. Participants were randomly assigned to two groups: (a) Augmented Reality and Text Astronomy Treatment (ARTAT); and (b) Images and Text Astronomy Treatment (ITAT). Upon entering the experimental classroom, participants were given (a) Paper Folding Test to measure their spatial ...

Social Mathworking: The Effects Of Online Reflection On Algebra I Students' Sense Of Community And Perceived Learning, Patricia Allanson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine if online reflections through social networking affect students' sense of community and levels of perceived conceptual learning in Algebra I courses. Social constructivism, connectivism, and computer-mediated communication in relation to reflective practices form the theoretical and practical framework for the use of Web 2.0 technologies in this investigation. A quasi-experimental nonequivalent control group design was used to examine Algebra I students' sense of community as measured by the Sense of Classroom Community Index, and perceived learning as measured by Perceived Learning Instrument. The sample consisted of 27 Algebra I students at ...

Impact Of Looping On Middle School Science Standardized Achievement Tests, Tammy Barger

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Looping may be defined as a teacher remaining with a group of students for multiple academic years. In this quantitative study, looping was examined as a factor on science achievement. State-wide eighth grade school level 2010 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) data were used. By responding to a mailing, school administrators indicated if 2010 eighth grade students had or had not been looped. The schools' percentage of advanced and proficient Science PSSA data were used to determine if the independent variable had a significant impact on science achievement. The results of the independent t-test analysis suggest that looping does ...

Investigating The Impact Of Interactive Applets On Students’ Understanding Of Parameter Changes To Parent Functions: An Explanatory Mixed Methods Study, Robin R. Mcclaran

Theses and Dissertations--Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education

The technology principle in the Principles and Standards for School Mathematics (NCTM, 2000) states that technology plays an important role in how teachers teach mathematics and in how students learn mathematics. The purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed-methods study was to examine the impact of interactive applets on students’ understanding of parameter changes to parent functions. Students in the treatment classes were found to have statistically significantly higher posttest scores than students in the control classes. Although the data analysis showed a statistically significant difference between classes on procedural understanding, no statistically significant difference was found with regard to conceptual ...

The Effect Of Online Collaborative Learning On Middle School Student Science Literacy And Sense Of Community, Jillian Wendt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examines the effects of online collaborative learning on middle school students' science literacy and sense of community. A quantitative, quasi-experimental pretest/posttest control group design was used. Following IRB approval and district superintendent approval, students at a public middle school in central Virginia completed a pretest consisting of the Misconceptions-Oriented Standards-Based Assessment Resources for Teachers (MOSART) Physical Science assessment and the Classroom Community Scale. Students in the control group received in-class assignments that were completed collaboratively in a face-to-face manner. Students in the experimental group received in-class assignments that were completed online collaboratively through the Edmodo educational platform ...

Gifted Learners And Mathematical Achievement: An Analysis Of Gifted Instructional Models, Lezley Anderson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to examine whether differences exist in the mathematics achievement of fifth grade gifted students based on the instructional delivery model used for mathematics instruction, cluster or collaborative, as defined by the Georgia Department of Education. The content area of mathematics, an area susceptible to underachievement among gifted learners, was investigated using archival data from a sample of 67 participants from rural Southwest Georgia over three academic years. The STAR Math assessment and the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT): Math assessments were used to measure overall mathematics achievement. The subscales on the CRCT were ...

Teaching And Learning Algebra 1 Via An Intelligent Tutor System: Effects On Student Engagement And Achievement, Karen Kerner Lucas

Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigated the implementation and outcomes of blended learning that integrated Apangea Math, an online intelligent tutor system (ITS), with face-to-face instruction for the teaching and learning of Algebra 1. It took place in a Title I urban high school where 75 ninth grade students and their teachers enacted the blended learning program for one semester. Students from the same high school who received face-to-face instruction alone during a previous semester served as a comparison group. Flow theory was proposed as an explanation for why the ITS program was expected to increase student engagement and improve student achievement.

This ...

The Effect Of Metacognitive And Self-Regulatory Strategy Instruction On Impoverished Students' Assessment Achievement In Physics, Jaunine Fouche

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this nonequivalent control group design study was to evaluate the effectiveness of metacognitive and self-regulatory strategy use on the assessment achievement of 215 9th-grade, residential physics students from low socioeconomic status (low-SES) backgrounds. Students from low-SES backgrounds often lack the self-regulatory habits and metacognitive strategies to improve academic performance. In an effort to increase these scores and to increase student self-regulation and metacognition with regard to achievement in physics, this study investigated the use of metacognitive and self-regulatory strategies specifically as they apply to students' use of their own assessment data. Traditionally, student performance data is used ...

Teachers’ Perceptions On The Changes In The Curriculum And Exit Examinations For Biology And Human Biology, Mirko Krüger, Mihye Won, David F. Treagust

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In the age of educational accountability, national and state-wide measures are assumed to secure and improve the educational quality. However, educators often wonder how much a new accountability measure may improve the actual teaching and learning practices when the agents of change (teachers) are not active participants of such educational reform. Nevertheless, in Australia, the National Curriculum is rolling in for the first time for K-10 school education in 2012-13. In Western Australia, the new Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) system with new compulsory exit examination requirements has been implemented recently for Years 11-12. In this study, using the ...

Development Of A Taxonomy For Key Terms In Mathematics Education And Its Use In A Digital Repository, Pedro Gómez Dr., María C. Cañadas Dr.

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Although mathematics education is a young discipline, it has developed rapidly over the last 40 years. During this time, the community of mathematics education researchers, teachers’ trainers, and mathematics teachers has produced a large quantity of literature published in books, journals, and conference proceedings and on Internet, among other sources. Yet there is currently no taxonomy of key terms for the systematic classification of the documents in this discipline. In this article, we present the procedure by which we constructed a taxonomy for Funes, a digital repository of documents in mathematics education. We establish the conceptual framework on which the ...

Is The Two-Kingdom Classification System Still Being Implemented In The Classroom?, Andrea M.K. Bierema

Graduate Student Work at Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

No abstract provided.