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Full-Text Articles in Education
A Menu About Me: A Next Generation Science Standards Aligned 9-12 Life Science Curriculum Adapted For Students With Limited Or Interrupted Formal Education, Madeline Carras
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
In order to face the challenges of a rapidly changing world, it is imperative that thinkers with diverse backgrounds and perspectives are supported in the development of their scientific skills and voice. However, very few, if any, high school life science curricular resources are available that are specifically adapted with the assets and needs of students with limited or interrupted formal education (SLIFE) in mind. The widely adopted Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are uniquely designed to center the learner’s authentic thought process and pre-existing funds of knowledge–a framework which also happens to be aligned with the strengths of SLIFE …
Developing An Outdoor Learning Area And Guidebook For The Elementary Grades, Jordyn Kern
Developing An Outdoor Learning Area And Guidebook For The Elementary Grades, Jordyn Kern
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that outdoor education has major benefits for school-age children (Yildirim & Akamca, 2017). These benefits include increased academic success, better social-emotional development, better physical development, and better mental and physical health (Suttie, 2018). The guidebook designed for this project focuses on how to increase those five things in children across the country. The goal of the guidebook is to increase outdoor education within classrooms throughout the United States and eventually, the world. The guidebook is geared towards elementary school teachers but can be adapted to fit any grade, time frame, and experience level of the teacher. The …
Growing Environmentally Literate Youth, Kimberly Harding
Growing Environmentally Literate Youth, Kimberly Harding
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has demonstrated that the importance of producing environmentally literate youth is becoming a priority around the world Producing environmentally literate youth through E-STEM Garden-based learning practices will not only allow our students to become environmentally literate but also capable, aware, citizens with the 21st Century skills necessary to tackle today and tomorrow’s problems. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using garden-based STEM practices to increase young students' environmental literacy. The project involved using the Next Generation Science standards, the learning goals of the proposed Michigan Environmental Literacy Plan, as well as the American Society for Engineering Education’s …
Utilizing A Culturally Relevant Ecology Curriculum To Help Students See Intersections Between Their Scientific And Cultural Identities, Emma Singer
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The purpose of this capstone was to create a two-week long ecology unit for high school biology students rooted in culturally relevant practices. The project sought to answer the question “How can utilizing a culturally relevant ecology curriculum help students see intersections between their scientific and cultural identities?” Data shows that people of color and women are underrepresented within the sciences. Disengagement and lack of interest in the sciences begins in middle and high school, suggesting students feel the material is irrelevant or disconnected from their lives. To address this gap, this project utilized a culturally relevant lens to create …
How Music Can Be Integrated Into Life Science Teaching In A Way That Enhances Scientific And Musical Learning In Middle School, Erin Hustad
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that students who learn interdisciplinary content lessons in school have a better understanding of the interconnectedness of the world they are entering. This paper, and the resultant project, focus on the interconnectedness of science and the arts, eventually ecology and music, in order to teach students both scientific and musical concepts. The project was created using backwards design, in order to ensure students have long term learning outcomes that center both science and music. Students first experience the scientific process and reflect on the similarities between scientific inquiry and artistic processes. Students then explore ecosystems and music …
No “Pobrecito Student”: Translanguaging High-School Science For Academic Language Development, Agustina Borre
No “Pobrecito Student”: Translanguaging High-School Science For Academic Language Development, Agustina Borre
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research questions addressed in this study were: what are the impacts of translanguaging on academic language development? And what are the challenges and successes in implementing translanguaging in highly culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms? Thus, the topics explored in the literature review range from research on academic language development and the teaching and learning of science in high school and the struggles and challenges English Language Learners (ELLs) face when learning then different content areas. The literature review also reveals some of the findings emerging from the implementation of translanguaging in bi/multilingual classrooms. This study involved a cohort of …
Inquiry-Based Astronomy Curriculum For The Online Setting That Is Culturally Sustaining And Equity-Centered, Sophie Morris
Inquiry-Based Astronomy Curriculum For The Online Setting That Is Culturally Sustaining And Equity-Centered, Sophie Morris
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The guiding question for my capstone project was: how can inquiry-based astronomy curriculum that is culturally sustaining and differentiated be effectively adapted to the online setting with student equity as a prime consideration? The curriculum designed for this project focuses on integrating CAST’s Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework into online lessons. Lessons also increase engagement by incorporating inquiry and culturally sustaining content. The curriculum is intended to be used in the online setting as a high school astronomy elective, but lessons could also be used in regular classrooms or environmental learning centers. A key takeaway of the project is …
Observing The Impact Of Environmental Science Exploration And Discovery On The Social-Emotional Learning Of 2nd Grade Students, Laura Sammis
Observing The Impact Of Environmental Science Exploration And Discovery On The Social-Emotional Learning Of 2nd Grade Students, Laura Sammis
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The guiding question in this study was, how do outdoor science exploration and discovery impact the social-emotional learning of 2nd grade students. This study documents the author’s development, facilitation and analysis of a 3-week science unit that included an increase of time spent outdoors. This study was conducted in an observational and descriptive qualitative manner that used the researcher’s real-time observations, reflections and student surveys. The author utilized research literature to develop meaning and understanding of the concepts to support the importance of the study. The author describes the study in terms of successes and limitations. The study concludes that …
Death Education In Environmental Education: Making Meaning From Children's Eco-Grief, Gabrielle Loisel
Death Education In Environmental Education: Making Meaning From Children's Eco-Grief, Gabrielle Loisel
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Eco-grief, the feeling of sadness, loss, or bereavement caused by environmental degradation and destruction, is an increasingly widespread phenomenon as ecological issues such as climate change are widely acknowledged. Children, with their limited agency, are vulnerable to feelings of helplessness and may develop maladaptive coping mechanisms, while educators often struggle to discuss environmental topics that prompt negative emotions. Drawing on best practices from the field of death education, this project examines ways of making meaning and outlines a new set of best practices for environmental educators to assuage students' eco-grief as well as their own, answering the question of: How …
How Can Teachers Utilize A Curriculum To Expand Students’ Knowledge Of Waste Management And Change Their Waste Reduction Behaviors?, Alexis Craig
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that environmental education is an important tool to develop students’ knowledge of the environment and foster more environmentally friendly behaviors (Braun et. al., 2018). Lack of education in waste management and waste reduction fields has led to confusion on where waste goes, what can be recycled, and how students’ can change their behaviors to reduce their waste footprint. This paper investigates waste management in the United States and North Dakota, and how it can be implemented into an environmental education curriculum. The curriculum designed for this project uses this information and these environmental education and behavior change …
Implementing The Next Generation Science And Engine, Aliex Friend
Implementing The Next Generation Science And Engine, Aliex Friend
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone project aims to answer the research question, How can teachers best implement the Next Generation Science and Engineering Practices to facilitate engaging and effective science instruction in an 8th grade classroom? This project was influenced by the shift in science teaching brought on by the 2019 Minnesota Science Standards. As an eighth grade science teacher in Minnesota, I wanted to learn more about the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and how they relate to the 2019 Minnesota Science Standards. My research in this capstone project focuses on best practices for implementation of the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices …
Increasing Ocean Environment Awareness In Land-Locked Middle School Students, Krista Espelien
Increasing Ocean Environment Awareness In Land-Locked Middle School Students, Krista Espelien
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Abstract The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has defined ocean literacy as an “understanding of the ocean’s influence on you — and your influence on the ocean” (NOAA, 2013). Students are future decision-makers and engaging them in ocean literacy is vital as they will continue to be confronted with climate change throughout their lives. This capstone project addresses the question: How can experiential education on the topic of coral reef restoration increase the investment of land-locked, middle school students in marine conservation? This document identifies how ocean literacy and marine science topics are poorly represented in school curricula despite …
Incorporating Interactive Outdoor Learning Into Everyday Curricula, Haley Doty
Incorporating Interactive Outdoor Learning Into Everyday Curricula, Haley Doty
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
As the state of our environment continues to worsen, it is important now more than ever that students become environmentally literate. Defined as an individual’s knowledge, attitude towards, and engagement with the environment, environmental literacy works to decrease environmental issues (Artun & Özsevgec, 2018). Although high school environmental science courses act as an introduction to environmental issues, they often lack experiences within the environment itself. Seeking to answer the research question: how can educational materials be used to integrate interactive, outdoor experiences into everyday classroom curricula, a unit of curriculum was developed for high school students enrolled in environmental science. …
Best Practices In Science Education And Next Generation Science Standards: A Review Of Systems Thinking, Inquiry-Based Learning And Culturally Sustainable Practices, Kyle Koyle
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Public School science educators are given the task to teach students dynamic, interpretable material based on grade level as well as national and state standards. Science is at the forefront of many jobs and future economic stability and also encompasses a wide range of disciplinary topics. Having educators use the best resources in curriculum development and teaching methodology is crucial to successfully empowering future scientific research and understanding. The Whole Ecosystems in Balance (WEB), A Natural Resource Curriculum, originally created in 1995, was used to support science teaching efforts in Eastern Oregon. In order to continue its relevance, the curriculum …
Sustainable Agriculture Curriculum For 9th-12th Graders, Michaela Gallup
Sustainable Agriculture Curriculum For 9th-12th Graders, Michaela Gallup
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
According to the research conducted by Ziska, L. H. climate change and the agricultural industry’s fates are tightly tied. As the effects of climate change continue to worsen, food production will become more challenging. Inorder to help address these issues, this curriculum will introduce student to the causes of climate change, how climate change and agriculture impact each other, evaluate agricultural technologies that could help diminish the effects of climate change, and finally have students propose solutions to agricultural and climate related issues in their communities. The pedagogical practices used in this curriculum is a combination of traditional teaching styles, …
Availability Of Diverse Books For Early Elementary Students, Lili Weisman
Availability Of Diverse Books For Early Elementary Students, Lili Weisman
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Today students are more diverse than ever. They come from all different backgrounds. Many students are multicultural. Because of this, teachers and educators must have diverse books available to students. Diverse books allow students to gain self-confidence (Gomez-Najarro, 2020) and give them a new perspective on how others live their lives (Harper & Brand, 2010). However, when choosing diverse books, it is significant that the culture depicted in the book is accurate and not based on stereotypes and generalizations. Stereotypes and generalizations do not give the reader an accurate perspective and can be harmful (Harper & Brand, 2010). When looking …
Long-Term Effects When Educating Elementary Students On Waste Reduction In Minnesota, Madeline Hoensheid
Long-Term Effects When Educating Elementary Students On Waste Reduction In Minnesota, Madeline Hoensheid
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Recycling is a part of many people's everyday lives but it is often an action that many did not receive formal education regarding. Recycling provides a simple way to reduce waste and reduce dependence on virgin resources. However, this lack of education leads to much confusion about the items that can be recycled. The literature review revealed the many benefits of recycling and education about reducing waste at an elementary age. The literature review informed the educational guide about waste and waste reduction for elementary students. The purpose of the guide is to answer the question, How can curriculum support …
A Capstone Project Concerning Social Justice In Secondary Science Education, Jacob Skerletts
A Capstone Project Concerning Social Justice In Secondary Science Education, Jacob Skerletts
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Minnesota began collecting and analyzing the graduation rates of different student demographics starting in 2012. This has led to the exposure of the Achievement Gap, in which students of color graduate from high school at an alarmingly low rate compared to white students. Minnesota ranks nationally at the bottom for the graduation rates of students of color. This Capstone Project had the driving question of, How can secondary science teachers bring Social Justice into the classroom in order to help close the Achievement Gap? The literature reviewed showed that effectively using Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and Disaggregate Pedagogy can increase intellectual …
Finding Fit In The Science Classroom: Applying Self-Determination Theory To Twice-Exceptional Students, John Burrell
Finding Fit In The Science Classroom: Applying Self-Determination Theory To Twice-Exceptional Students, John Burrell
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
In line with self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan, 2000; Ryan and Deci, 2017), this thesis explored how practices employed in a classroom between November 2020 through January 2021 affected satisfaction of students’ basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Thirteen twice-exceptional students (gifted and learning disabled) between grades 4-10 participated in this mixed-methods study at an independent school in the upper midwest. Additionally, four of the thirteen students were selected as case studies to be interviewed and observed throughout the study period. This study explored how the implementation of needs-supportive practices, along with COVID-19 mitigation strategies (including distance-learning), affected …
Minnesota School Forest Program: An Evaluation And Exploration Of Implementations, Madisson Weier
Minnesota School Forest Program: An Evaluation And Exploration Of Implementations, Madisson Weier
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The purpose of this study was to examine the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources School Forest Program through answering the following questions: what are the strengths and limitations of the School Forest Program; What are the impacts of individual teacher objectives on the utilization and implementation of the School Forest Program? These questions were investigated using data collected from a survey sent to School Forest Coordinators as well as a data request to the Department of Natural Resources. This study found that participants in the School Forest Program feel that their School Forests add many positive benefits to their classrooms …
Culturally Responsive Teaching In Science Classrooms, Julia Bender
Culturally Responsive Teaching In Science Classrooms, Julia Bender
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Our educational system is producing a generation of dependent learners. Whether because of a lack of confidence or a lack of skills, these scholars often don’t know where to start when tackling complex problems. Inequitable educational experiences have caused these challenges to disproportionately impact students of color. Education scholars, including Geneva Gay, Gloria Ladson-Billings, and Zaretta Hammond, have completed extensive research on how culturally responsive teaching can be used as a strategy to address these inequities. This project takes on a specific focus and works to address the following question: How can science teachers use culturally responsive teaching to help …
Call To Climate Action: Leveraging Living Collections To Inspire Pro-Environmental Behavior In Virtual Informal Science Education Programs, Meghan Carter
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
With high visitation rates, Informal Science Learning Centers (ISLCs) have the opportunity to use their broad reach and trusted relationship with the community to initiate critical conversations around urgent global challenges, like climate change. This is especially true for engaging adolescent audiences, like high school students, that are acutely aware of the threat of climate change and the lifelong impact it could have on their physical and mental health (Sanson, Van Hoorn, & Burke, 2019). While the complex and inherently negative nature of the problem can make climate change communication difficult, research suggests the use of living collections, like live …
Implementing Outdoor Education Curriculum: The Benefits Of, Barriers To, And Materials Required For Successful Outdoor Education, Jacob Hradsky
Implementing Outdoor Education Curriculum: The Benefits Of, Barriers To, And Materials Required For Successful Outdoor Education, Jacob Hradsky
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Examining research shows that outdoor education has a number of benefits for students. These benefits range from academic to social emotional to physical (Fagerstam and Blom, 2012; Mygind, 2007; Pretty et al., 2009). Research also shows that many teachers report a variety of barriers to successful outdoor education implementation (Ernst, 2007; Powers, 2004), and that teachers need to understand how to use outdoor spaces to teach effectively (Eick, 2012; House, 2008). As a result, outdoor education is not being implemented widely by teachers and the benefits that come with the outdoor exposure are not being utilized. This project seeks to …
Culturally Sustaining Indigenous Education Within Agricultural Education Curriculum, Emily Trout
Culturally Sustaining Indigenous Education Within Agricultural Education Curriculum, Emily Trout
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
When Agricultural Education was founded in 1917 from the Smith-Hughes Act, it was not inclusive to all students. Agricultural education and the National FFA Organization have excluded people based on their race, gender, and religion in the past. Though steps are being made today to right the wrongs of the past, there is still progress to be made. One group that has been left out and excluded from the agricultural education archives, are Indigenous students. Indigenous students face many challenges within the school system that stem directly from the intergenerational trauma that the westernized educational system has created. This capstone …
Mitigating Climate Change: Understanding How Teachers Integrate Social Justice Themes In Environmental Education, Gregory Simons,
Mitigating Climate Change: Understanding How Teachers Integrate Social Justice Themes In Environmental Education, Gregory Simons,
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
Climate change is an increasingly severe global issue with devastating repercussions for marginalized, poor, and vulnerable people. As a result, environmental education has evolved over the years to build upon outdoor nature study and ecological concepts to incorporate fundamental principles of social and environmental justices while addressing climate change. This qualitative research study employed both an online survey and semi-structured interviews to address two research questions grounded in the environmental justice movement to determine how social justice intersects with pressing global issues commonly found in environmental science curriculum. First, how do environmental science educators integrate social justice themes in their …
Inquiry-Based Learning And Higher-Order Thinking Skills In High School Science, Rebekah Scheiller
Inquiry-Based Learning And Higher-Order Thinking Skills In High School Science, Rebekah Scheiller
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that the use of inquiry-based learning in the classroom will deepen students' learning, teach them valuable skills including problem solving skills, and puts students in control of their own learning. Traditionally, in a science classroom a lecture based strategy is used, but much research has been done to prove that inquiry-based learning engages students to a fuller entext, students retain and understand more content, and lets students explore topics related to their life and the world around them. Inquiry-based learning is designed to teach students essential skills that will help them succeed inside and outside of the …
The Benefits Of Racial Representation In The Middle School Science Classroom, Samantha Karnes
The Benefits Of Racial Representation In The Middle School Science Classroom, Samantha Karnes
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has made evident the importance of representation within the classroom, not only for students of color but also for white students. For the means of this project, representation refers to racial representation. There are many methods of increasing representation, such as ensuring staff reflect school demographics and planning more inclusive lessons. An effective method to bring representation into the classroom is by modifying the curriculum that is taught. The curriculum designed for this project is a three-week-long unit developed for the middle school science classroom. This unit is designed to challenge students’ preconceived notions of the scientific community. This …
Impact Of Modeling Practices On Middle School Science Students, Anna Caspar
Impact Of Modeling Practices On Middle School Science Students, Anna Caspar
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The objective of this extended literature review was to answer the question: What is the impact of modeling practices on understanding phenomena and engaging all students in a meaningful science curriculum and pedagogy in the secondary science classroom? Through research of current literature this paper summarizes how the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) uses modeling to create an engaging and inclusive learning environment for all students. The literature suggests modeling is an effective practice to promote student self-efficacy, motivation, and engagement to help students from diverse backgrounds find success and feel as though they can do science. However, the implementation …
Increasing Student Creativity And Connection To Nature Through Equitable Nature-Based Experiences During Middle School Distance Learning, Benjamin Olofson
Increasing Student Creativity And Connection To Nature Through Equitable Nature-Based Experiences During Middle School Distance Learning, Benjamin Olofson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This paper seeks to answer the question: How can middle school teachers increase student creativity and connection to nature through equitable nature-based experiences during distance learning? This paper reviews the history of nature based learning (NBL) and exploratory learning, and examines the positive outcomes of these practices. These benefits include increased engagement and interest in normally uninterested students (Dettweiler et al., 2015; Truong et al., 2016), improved grades (Camassao & Jagannathan, 2018), and reduced disruptive episodes and dropouts among “at risk” students (Ruiz-Gallardo et al., 2013 as cited in Kuo et al., 2019). Although many research studies have shown positive …
Does The Mathematics Level Affect Student Success In High School Physics?, Kassandra Surma
Does The Mathematics Level Affect Student Success In High School Physics?, Kassandra Surma
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this study was: does the mathematics class level affect student success in high school physics? Topics explored in the literature review include the context of science course sequencing, the history of physics education in the United States, the disconnect between mathematics and physics in education, the mindsets of parents, students, and teachers about mathematics and science curriculum, and educational policies that affect state standards for curriculum, and graduation. Participants’ previous mathematics class level and success in their high school physics course were studied to find any correlation. To accomplish this, participants’ previous mathematics course and …