Education Commons^™

Meta-Didactical Slippages In A Ninth Grade Mathematics Classroom: A Paradox Of Teaching, Nathan J. Wisdom

Georgia Educational Research Association Conference

This paper examines (a) the nature of meta-didactical slippages that occurred in a ninth grade predominantly African American mathematics classroom; and (b) how these meta-didactical slippages affect students’ conceptual understanding on a unit of ninth grade mathematics. A qualitative case study that employed ethnographic techniques of data collection and analysis was conducted. The theory of didactical situations in mathematics (Brousseau, 1997) served as the lens that grounded the interpretation of the data. The study found four themes, which illustrated the nature meta-didactical slippages: (a) over-teaching, (b) situational bypass, (c) language and symbolic representation, and (d) the design of didactical situations.

Exploring Philosophy During A Time Of Reform In Mathematics Education, Kimberly White-Fredette

Georgia Educational Research Association Conference

Current reforms in mathematics education, including the implementation of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, are rooted in a changing vision of school mathematics, one that includes constructivist learning, student-centered pedagogy, and the use of worthwhile tasks. This changing vision challenges not only teachers’ beliefs about mathematics instruction but their philosophies of mathematics as well. This study investigates the processes that four teachers go through as they implement a new task-based mathematics curriculum while exploring their personal philosophies of mathematics. The participants were part of a graduate-level course that examined, through the writings of various modern philosophers of mathematics …

Parting Thoughts - So Much More To Discover, Eric L. Mann

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Prediction Of Time-To-Graduation For Stem Hispanic Undergraduate Students, Gejun Zhu

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

In this thesis, we study the time-to-graduation problem for STEM Hispanic undergraduate students. The response, time-to-graduation, was treated in two different ways: as a binary variable with graduated (by the 6th year) and not-graduated values, and as an ordinal variable with values year-4, year-5, year-6, and not-graduate. Mathematics education plays critical role in students’ timely graduation, especially for STEM students. We used students records data obtained from The University of Texas-Pan American to illustrate how mathematics background factors (including SAT math score, ACT math score, TASP math score) and mathematics performance variables (including mathematics GPA, number of dropped mathematics courses, …

Online Student Discussions In A Blended Learning Classroom: Reconciling Conflicts Between A Flipped Instruction Model And Reform-Based Mathematics, Lewis L. Young

Theses and Dissertations

Two ideas are prevalent in teacher professional development today. Teachers are finding new and innovative ways to incorporate technology into their classroom. The use of video and social media is increasing. One type of pedagogy that has emerged among the blended learning pedagogies is flipped instruction, where students participate in some of the instruction outside of the classroom. Another prevalent idea is the focus on inquiry learning and reform-based mathematics instruction. This pedagogy adheres to the idea that students can use their problem solving skills to understand complex mathematics. This qualitative content analysis outlines how one researcher sought to find …

Validating The Psm6, Jonathan Bostic, Toni Sondergeld

School of Teaching and Learning Faculty Publications

Objective for the presentation is to share results from a validation study examining a sixth-grade problem-solving measure.

A Method For Assessing And Describing The Informal Inferential Reasoning Of Middle School Students, Joshua Michael Goss

Dissertations

Informal Inferential Reasoning (IIR) has emerged in the last decade in the study of statistics education. Developing students’ IIR ability is seen as a way of preparing students for the important topic of Formal Statistical Inference (FSI); however, research is still needed in order to investigate how students transition between informal and formal statistical reasoning. A primary difficulty is that we do not have a way of assessing and describing students’ IIR ability levels. In order to address this, an Assessment of Informal Inferential Reasoning (AIIR) was developed, along with a Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) taxonomy (Biggs & …

The Chinese New Mathematics Curriculum Reform At Two Elementary Schools: Two Cases Compared, Wei Gao

Dissertations - ALL

Based on a four-month fieldwork in two local schools, Pioneer School and Merits School, in China, the study explores how local schools and parents responded to the Chinese New Mathematics Curriculum Reform. The study found that the schools responded to the reform out of school people's practical concerns as well the established school cultures. Meanwhile, schools' implementation decisions were mediated by the interpretation powers of local educational authorities. Merits School arrived at the two-faces strategy to implement the reform. Pioneer School managed to maintain a balance between promoting reform pedagogies and employing examination-oriented approaches. Both schools marginally involved parents in …

Turning Policy Into Practice: A Case Study Examining The Interplay Between Policy, Research, And Program Design In Teacher Education, Ryan Andrew Nivens, Catherine Paolucci

ETSU Faculty Works

Excerpt:This presentation will consider the interplay between policy, international research and the design and development of a new mathematics teacher education program in the Republic of Ireland.

Social Justice In Mathematics Education, Renee Lenise Colquitt

Doctoral Dissertations

Today’s mathematics classrooms are filled with students with different races, ethnicities, abilities, and socioeconomic status environments, and other issues that impact their learning. Students of color, in particular, often score lower than their White counterparts on standardized mathematics tests and are underrepresented in advanced placement mathematics classes. The historically marginalized students will soon be the majority. If careful attention is not paid to this shift in demographics, the United States runs the risk of falling farther behind other countries economically and academically. Since mathematics often serves as a gatekeeper for admittance to postsecondary institutions and many well-paying jobs, the discrepancy …

Spaces For Children's Development Of Structure, Pattern, And Repeated Reasoning, Gabriel T. Matney, Jonathan Bostic

School of Teaching and Learning Faculty Publications

Our goal is to explore the difference of these two SMPs through a task designed for learners of differing abilities and connect the SMP and the mathematics content exhibited through the task engagement.

Supporting Student Justification In Middle School Mathematics Classrooms: Teachers' Work To Create A Context For Justificaiton, Megan Staples

CRME Publications

Justification is an important disciplinary and learning practice. Despite a growing knowledge base regarding how teachers orchestrate mathematical discussions, few analyses have considered the orchestration of specific disciplinary practices such as justification. Using classroom video data from the JAGUAR project, we analyze two instantiations of extensive student justification in seventh-grade classrooms and document each teacher’s pedagogical approach that supported students’ engagement in this practice. We argue that, although there was overlap in their pedagogical repertoires, the teachers created a context for student justification in two unique ways. We document the similarities and differences in their approaches, including the nature of …

Mastery Learning In Calculus I Affects Student Learning, Grade Improvement, And Professor Exhaustion, Judith Puncochar, Don H. Faust

Conference Presentations

Three Calculus I courses were taught under conditions of either traditional teaching, 2/3 mastery, or full mastery to test four hypotheses. Under conditions of mastery learning on exams, students should attain appropriate higher-level mathematical concepts, achieve more learning of higher-level mathematical concepts, learn higher-level mathematical concepts more quickly, and evaluate mastery learning favorably. Support for all hypotheses occurred only in the 2/3 mastery condition. A shift toward higher grades was attributed to grade improvement, not grade inflation, as determined by six mathematicians with blind review of final exam items. Final exams in mastery learning courses were significantly more …

Implementing Common Core State Standards For Mathematics Through Lesson Study, John Thomas Hall

Honors Program Projects

The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) represent the beginning of a new era in American education. For the first time, a majority of states are sharing expectations for student knowledge in mathematics. While standards cannot change education, the means by which these standards are implemented contribute to the mathematical achievement of students. For instance, the CCSSM incorporate separate content and practice standards for students. Content standards are familiar to most educators, but the expectation of developing mathematical skills highlighted in the practice standards will require changes to lesson preparation and teaching.

In an effort to provide pre-service and …

What Is So Negative About Negative Exponents?, Geoffrey D. Dietz

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

While teaching college-level mathematics (from College Algebra to Calculus to Abstract Algebra), I have observed that students are often uncomfortable using negative exponents in calculations. I believe the fault partially lies in the manner in which negative exponents are taught in Algebra 1 or Algebra 2 courses, especially in rigid instructions always to write answers using only positive exponents. After reviewing a sample of algebra texts used in the United States over the last two centuries, it appears that while attitudes toward negative exponents have varied from author to author over time, the current trend is to declare explicitly that …

Assessing U.S. High School Mathematics Students' Dependency On Calculators For Basic Arithmetic Operations Involving Integers From Single-Digit Fact Families, John Jeremy Sneed

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study was designed to investigate the extent to which high school students use calculators to perform basic operations, and how well they actually perform those same operations without using calculators. The investigation involved the testing of math classes of students--male and female, mixed ethnicities--in grades nine through twelve. Students were asked to perform all four basic math operations (add, subtract, multiply, divide) involving integers based on single-digit addition and multiplication fact families with and without calculators. The testing was in two environments--timed and untimed, with students recording their completion times--in order to investigate discrepancies in students' calculator use in …

Review Of Principles To Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success For All, Eric L. Mann

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Proposed Framework For Combining Smart Environment And Heuristic Diagnostic Teaching Principles In Order To Assess Students’ Abilities In Math And Supporting Them During Learning, Ardiana Sula, Evjola Spaho, Leonard Barolli, Rozeta Miho

Jandrisevits Faculty Publications

In this paper, we propose the use of the smart environment based on Internet of Things (IoT), P2P technology and Heuristic Diagnostic Teaching principles for identifying learning abilities in mathematics and creative traits for students that are diagnosed within Autism Spectrum disorder (ASD). Many children with autism are highly interested and motivated by smart devices such as computers and touch screen tablets. These types of assistive technology devices get children with autism to interact, make choices, respond, gain new communication skills and create P2P communication between children, caregivers and therapists. Our proposed system uses JXTA-Overlay platform and SmartBox device to …

Discover Math With Sketchpad Explorer, Helen Crompton

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Review of Geometer's SketchPad.

Raising Teacher Sensitivity To Key Numeracy Competencies In The Early Years, Kelly Norris

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Mathematical competence is a key capability for success in adult life, and yet many students do not achieve functional levels of numeracy during their school lives. Furthermore, many teachers report that they lack the confidence in teaching mathematics that they have for teaching literacy. Research indicates that it is possible to predict which students are likely to have difficulties in mathematics as early as the Pre-Primary year, and interventions can be provided which are effective in minimising such difficulties. The assumption framing this project is that raising teachers’ understanding of and thus sensitivity to markers of the skills most predictive …

Online Resources Platform For Mathematics Education, Marisa Llorens-Salvador, Edmund Nevin

Teaching Fellowships

The aim of this project was to develop and explore the use of a Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) integrating a web-based platform for the study of mathematics as part of an active learning environment. The platform was designed to provide active support to engineering students especially those in their first year of study. Early use of the platform can identify possible areas of weakness and provide the self-learning environment required for students to become more proficient in areas where they are lacking key skills or are finding the concepts difficult to understand. The platform consists of a set …

Rehearsal And Enactment For Teaching In Urban School Settings: A Qualitative Study Investigating The Connections Between A Math Methods Course And Fieldwork, Rajeev Virmani

Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, I studied teacher education reform efforts aimed at improving the preparation of preservice teachers through the use of rehearsals in a math methods class. As many experts in the field of teacher education call for curricula in which preservice teachers learn from and in practice, I investigated a type of pedagogy called rehearsals within a practice-based teacher education setting that may afford preservice teachers with the initial preparation needed to become effective teachers.

In this qualitative study, I examined how three preservice teachers and math methods instructors rehearse the high leverage practice of leading a whole-class discussion. …

Encouraging Literacy And Mathematics Achievement Through Study Of Real Estate, Ryan Andrew Nivens, Lori T. Meier, Karin J. Keith, Erin E. Doran, Edward J. Dwyer

ETSU Faculty Works

The era of high stakes testing often puts pressure on teachers and administrators to deemphasize creative activities not perceived as directly related to improving test scores. Alternatively, the authors propose that using environmental text is essential for encouraging overall learning competencies in general and reading/writing/ and mathematical achievement in particular. The authors propose that using real estate booklets can be helpful in generating learning activities in literacy, social studies, and mathematics. In addition, integrating music and art comfortably accompanies strategies presented. Real estate booklets are colorful, rich in content, and readily available at no expense.