Education Commons^™

Epistemic Strategies For Solving Two-Dimensional Physics Problems, Mary Elyse Hing-Hickman

Physics Theses & Dissertations

An epistemic strategy is one in which a person takes a piece of knowledge and uses it to create new knowledge. Students in algebra and calculus based physics courses use epistemic strategies to solve physics problems. It is important to map how students use these epistemic strategies to solve physics problems in order to provide insight into the problem solving process.

In this thesis three questions were addressed: (1) What epistemic strategies do students use when solving two-dimensional physics problems that require vector algebra? (2) Do vector preconceptions in kinematics and Newtonian mechanics hinder a student's ability to apply the …

Mathematics In The Age Of Technology: There Is A Place For Technology In The Mathematics Classroom, Helen Crompton

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

In today’s world of ubiquitous computing there are a number of technologies available to K-12 educators for teaching and learning mathematics. However, Koehler and Mishra (2008) have described how teaching and learning with such technologies presents a “wicked problem,” as it can involve a number of variables, independent of each other and contextually bound, that need to be brought together. This article highlights the advantages technology offers for mathematics education and looks at some of the reasons behind the poor uptake, such as teacher beliefs and lack of training. A number of solutions are offered to address these issues, including …

Elementary Teachers' Views Of Environmental Education, Rose M. Hotchkiss

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to examine teachers' views of environmental education (EE) at the elementary level. The study addresses teachers' attitudes toward the EE at the elementary school level and their self-efficacy in teaching EE.

The study's sample consisted of 201 randomly selected kindergarten through fifth grade United States public school teachers. The participants completed an on-line survey with eight percent of the respondents participating in follow up interviews. The questionnaire measured two constructs; Teachers Attitudes Toward EE and Teacher Efficacy in EE. Teachers Attitudes Toward EE had 3 subscales; Advocacy for EE, Stewardship in EE, …

Classroom Manipulative To Engage Students In Mathematical Modeling Of Disease Spread: 1 + 1 = Achoo!, H. Gaff, M. Lyons, G. Watson

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Infectious diseases ranging from the common cold to cholera affect our society physically, emotionally, ecologically, and economically. Yet despite their importance and impact, there remains a lack of effective teaching materials for epidemiology and disease ecology in K-12, undergraduate, and graduate curricula [2]. To address this deficit, we've developed a classroom lesson with three instructional goals: (1) Familiarize students on basic concepts of infectious disease ecology; (2) Introduce students to a classic compartmental model and its applications in epidemiology; (3) Demonstrate the application and importance of mathematical modeling as a tool in biology. The instructional strategy uses a game-based mathematical …