Education Commons^™

Usable Math: Open Online Tutor For Elementary Math Learners, Teachers And Families, Sharon Edwards, Robert W. Maloy, Sai Gattupalli

College of Education Faculty Presentations Series

Introducing Usable Math

• Free & Accessible: An OER platform tailored for elementary kids, educators, caregivers and families.
• Interactive Problem Solving: Engages students in grades 3-6 in math problem solving and design thinking.
• Four Virtual Coaches: Estella Explainer, Chef Math Bear, How-to-Hound & Visual Vicuna offer diverse problem-solving strategies through words, images, animations, and more.
• Encouragement & Motivation: After every problem a feedback slide builds children’s learning and confidence while fostering curiosity about maths.
• Multiple Modes of Learning: 17 modules explore essential math concepts and 3 new modules integrate storytelling, history, and science learning.

Elementary Students Designing Math Learning Slideshows With Nocode Nocost Programming Tools, Sharon Edwards, Robert W. Maloy, Sai Gattupalli

College of Education Faculty Presentations Series

Introducing Usable Math

• Free & Accessible: An OER platform tailored for elementary kids, educators, caregivers and families.
• Interactive Problem Solving: Engages students in grades 3-6 in math problem solving and design thinking.
• Four Virtual Coaches: Estella Explainer, Chef Math Bear, How-to-Hound & Visual Vicuna offer diverse problem-solving strategies through words, images, animations, and more.
• Encouragement & Motivation: After every problem a feedback slide builds children’s learning and confidence while fostering curiosity about maths.
• Multiple Modes of Learning: 17 modules explore essential math concepts and 3 new modules integrate storytelling, history, and science learning.

Comparing Teacher-Written And Ai-Generated Math Problem Solving Strategies For Elementary School Students: Implications For Classroom Learning, Sai Gattupalli, Robert W. Maloy, Sharon Edwards

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

Teachers and teacher educators are actively exploring the ways to use Generative AI tools like ChatGPT-4 in elementary math education. In this paper, we compare teacher-written and AI-generated hints and strategies for solving fourth grade math word problems as part of an open online math tutor called Usable Math. When given the perspectives of a 10-year math teacher and four virtual coaches (Estella Explainer, Chef Math Bear, How-to Hound, and Visual Vicuna), ChatGPT-4 provides text-heavy, largely procedural problem solving strategies. Teacher-written hints offer more ways to differentiate learning for students through the use of shorter, more child-accessible language; visual and …

Prompt Literacy: A Pivotal Educational Skill In The Age Of Ai, Sai Gattupalli, Robert W. Maloy, Sharon A. Edwards

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

Prompt literacy signifies a major leap in education, offering a potent tool to interact with generative AI systems. As an emerging necessity in the 21st century and beyond, it encompasses the formulation, interpretation, and analysis of AI prompts. Poised to be foundational for all future generations, this discourse brings to light its emergence in parallel with generative AI and its transformative role in pedagogical contexts for the coming decades and beyond.

Developing Usable Math Online Tutor For Elementary Math Learners With Nocode Tools, Robert W. Maloy, Sai Gattupalli, Sharon A. Edwards

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

Usable Math, an online OER math tutor, leverages the functions of NoCode tools including Google Slides and Carrd to provide interactive math word problem solving for teachers and students in grades 3-6. The goal is to support elementary learners in developing mathematical reasoning and computation skills through engaging math problem practice, hints and motivational cues. By developing Usable Math and making it available and accessible, we demonstrate to teachers practical ways they can use NoCode tools to support elementary students in acquiring knowledge and skills as math problem solvers.

The Creative Thinking & Learning Studio: A Catalyst For Steam-Based Adult Learning, Sai Gattupalli, Peggy Martalock

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

This experience report examines the transformative impact of the Creative Thinking & Learning Studio at the Greenfield Community College, a vibrant hub fostering STEAM education and the Reggio Emilia philosophy of learning and teaching. This case study illustrates how interdisciplinary collaboration and practical engagement in a hands-on environment revolutionize traditional educational practices, shaping innovative, critical thinkers.

Theories And Practices Of Emotion, Movement, And Embodiment In Mathematical Learning, Will Lee, Sai Gattupalli

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

• Physical movements, emotion, and embodiment are fundamental to mathematical learning.
• Problem: Lack of study in collaborative embodiment.
• Identified applications of embodiment using virtual reality. An exploratory analysis of a set of videos for an embodied mathematical game was conducted.

Prompt Literacy For Stem Educators. Enhance Your Teaching And Learning With Generative Ai, Sai Gattupalli, Robert W. Maloy, Sharon Edwards, Alexandra Gearty

College of Education Working Papers and Reports Series

Understanding Prompt Literacy and Its Role in STEM Education

● Workshop focuses on prompt literacy, a pivotal skill for educators in the digital age.

● Discuss fundamentals of prompt crafting, interpret and critique AI prompts

● Hands-on activities for prompt crafting, using CAST model

● Workshop participant backgrounds include:

• Edtech, speech-language, GenEd, Special Ed, Inclusion, AP Language, English, Business, World Languages, STEM Education, and more, across various grade levels

Plants, Pipettes And Pcr, Elizabeth Vierling

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Plants are amazing organisms that provide us with food, building materials, the pleasure of gardens, as well as providing the foundation of critical world ecosystems. Although they may look like they are just stuck in one place and doing not more than growing, they have many, many complex ways in which they respond to the environment. The goal of this STEM Ed session will be to discuss ways that plants can respond to the environment with hands on exercises and exploration of possible classroom activities. Participants will engage in state-of-the art methods of testing plant DNA composition using the polymerase …

Spring 2022 Superhydrophobic Materials, T. Leo Liu

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Many natural surfaces, such as lotus leaves and a water strider’s leg, have shown striking water repellency so that they remain clean and dry even in “dirty” habitats. Such water repellency is called superhydrophobicity, which has stimulated lots of science and engineering imagination for self-cleaning windows, never dirty clothes, drag-reduction swimming suits, etc. In this workshop, we will use superhydrophobicity as a model to guide an integrative teaching and learning experience through hands-on experiments, critical thinking, basic science, as well as a lecture on state-of-the-art research discoveries. The objectives of this workshop are to (1) stimulate student curiosity and imagination …

Spring 2022 Saturday Seminars Agenda, Shubha Tewari

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

Birds In An Ecological Web, Jeff Podos

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

One great way to learn about nature and biology is to study birds. There are many species of birds, both resident and migratory, and they all have their own habits, colors, songs, and ways of life. The popularity of birdwatching has skyrocketed in the US, especially during the pandemic. This seminar will describe one way to look at birds, and to learn about their ecology, evolution, and diversity. We start by focusing on birds’ feeding habits and food preferences. Many birds have to eat and forage constantly, in order to stay alive and to feed their offspring. From this starting …

Development Of A Certification Exam To Assess Undergraduate Students' Proficiency In Biochemistry And Molecular Biology Core Concepts, Quira Zeidan, Jennifer Loertscher, Adele J. Wolfson, John T. Tansey, Erika G. Offerdahl, Peter J. Kennelly, Daniel R. Dries, Victoria Del Gaizo Moore, Diane M. Dean, Ludmila Tyler

Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Department Faculty Publication Series

With support from the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB), a community of biochemistry and molecular biology (BMB) scientist-educators has developed and administered an assessment instrument designed to evaluate student competence across four core concept and skill areas fundamental to BMB. The four areas encompass energy and metabolism; information storage and transfer; macromolecular structure, function, and assembly; and skills including analytical and quantitative reasoning. First offered in 2014, the exam has now been administered to nearly 4000 students in ASBMB-accredited programs at more than 70 colleges and universities. Here, we describe the development and continued maturation of the …

Agenda, Shubha Tewari

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Abstracts for six Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars.

Bubble Lab Exercise, Peter Beltramo

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

The cell membrane is a ubiquitous component in mammalian cells which control many vital biological functions. It consists of a phospholipid bilayer with embedded protein molecules which serve to transport molecules between the interior and exterior of the cell. Understanding what makes cell membranes so important and how they function requires concepts from physics, chemistry, and of course biology, but it is difficult to learn and conceptualize the structure and function of membranes due to their nanoscopic size and dynamic nature which can’t be properly appreciated in a static textbook. This activity draws analogies between the chemistry and structure of …

Agenda, Revised, Shubha Tewari

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Materials from the seminars. The agenda was revised to include online sessions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Modeling Epidemics, An Introduction, Shubha Tewari

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

• Group discussion of videos watched – Mainly focus on 3Blue1Brown videos

• Discussion of known facts about Covid-19/SARS-CoV-2

• Joint look at news articles and websites – Discussion of exponential growth

• Introduction to SIR (Susceptible-Infected-Recovered) model

• Excel demonstration of SIR model

• Other models: SEIR, others

• Modeling using python (time-permitting)

2019 Patterns Around Us Handout, Benjamin Davidovitch, Narayanan Menon, Wayne Kermenski, Jennifer Welborn

Patterns Around Us

This is a FREE two-day program designed for Middle and High School General Science, Biology, Physics, Technology/Engineering teachers. It is funded by the National Science Foundation.Space is limited, so apply soon! Some limited funding is available for overnight stay.

“Science may be described as the attempt to give good accounts of the patterns in nature. The result of scientific investigation is an understanding of natural processes.... Overall, the key criterion of science is that it provides a clear, rational, and succinct account of a pattern in nature....” Massachusetts State Frameworks for Science and Technology.

Participants will explore the processes of …

Descriptions, Morton Sternheim

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

Accessible Science: The Natural History Of The Connecticut River Valley, Fred Venne

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Many students take an Earth science or geology course to fulfill a requirement, knowing little to nothing about the field. Like all sciences, geology can appear to have ready answers unconnected to other areas of human endeavor, such as art, religion or philosophy. An interdisciplinary approach to teaching can ameliorate this perception for students who are intimidated by the subject and deepen understanding for those who are already excited about geology. We will examine two strategies designed to support the nature of science while scaffolding student learning in geology: research based digital resources use and museum of natural history visits. …

Engagement And Positive Psychology For Stem Learning And Beyond, Mark Tuominen, Lori Tuominen

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

Positive psychology is the study of how people flourish. A considerable amount of recent scientific research is now showing how the basic tenets of positive psychology used in schools can boost engagement, learning and wellbeing for students and teachers. These principles apply to any type of learning, including STEM courses. The concepts and practices of positive psychology effectively serve as affective multipliers, enhancing learning success and personal wellbeing. This seminar will introduce a sampler plate of ideas and activities from their course for first-year UMass students, entitled “Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness, Creativity, and Accomplishment.”

18 Years Of Science And Engineer Saturday Seminars, Chris Emery, Morton Sternheim

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

The Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars (SESS) are in their eighteenth year of presenting engaging science and engineering half day seminars to STEM teachers. Offered for five Saturdays once or twice a year, there have been 140 sessions altogether. The average attendance is 30 or so middle and high school teachers. Each teaches about 100 students, so the potential impact is impressive.

Seminar Descriptions, Morton Sternheim

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

Investigating Patterns Using Analyzing Digital Images (Adi) Software, Jennifer Welborn, Wayne Kermenski

Patterns Around Us

The mean and variation of a population are easily seen by graphing the number of individuals that have a trait of a given value. In this experiment, we will investigate color variation found in a mealworm population using ADI.

In this investigation, we will use digital images and ADI to measure the increased surface area created by villi located in the small intestines.

Wrinkling Of A Floating Sheet, Narayanan Menon

Patterns Around Us

The objective of today’s work will be to generate wrinkle patterns on very thin polymer films using the forces generated by the surface tension of a water drop. You’ll do a few sizes of water drop and we’ll give you a couple of thicknesses of film. Digital images of the pattern will allow us to make observations of the number and size of the wrinkles generated. We will try to develop an understanding of the dependence of the pattern on the materials used and the forces applied

Branching In Nature, Jennifer Welborn, Wayne Kermenski

Patterns Around Us

No abstract provided.

Wrinkling In Nature, Jennifer Welborn, Wayne Kermenski

Patterns Around Us

This lab experience is separated into four investigative segments:

1. Human saliva and enzymes

2. Osmosis and Dialysis Tubing

3. Analyzing dry and imbibed weights of wrinkled and smooth pea seeds

4. Putting it All Together, What makes Wrinkled Peas?

A Brief Introduction To Stemtec, Morton Sternheim

STEMTEC

No abstract provided.

Environmental Implications Of Nanotechnology, Boris Lau, Joann Mariie Rodríguez

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

Wood Studio Workshop, Peggi Clouston, Rommel L Cordova‐Fiori

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.