Education Commons^™

Northeast Tennessee Educators’ Perception Of Stem Education Implementation, Kristin Turner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A quantitative nonexperimental survey study was developed to investigate Northeast Tennessee K-8 educators’ perceptions of STEM education. This study was an examination of current perceptions of STEM education. Perceived need, current implementation practices, access to STEM resources, definition of STEM, and the current condition of STEM in Northeast Tennessee were also examined. The participating school districts are located in the Northeast Region of Tennessee: Bristol City Schools, Hamblen County Schools, Johnson City Schools, Johnson County Schools, Kingsport City Schools, Sullivan County Schools, and Washington County Schools. Educational professionals including both administrators and teachers in the elementary and/or middle school setting …

Equal Or Not? An Exploration Of Eighth-Grade Students' Experience Of Algebra, Janice L. Reyes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past two decades, a considerable amount of algebra instruction nationwide has shifted from high school to middle school. In Georgia, all eighth-grade students have been required to take a course that is equivalent to about 80 percent of a traditional Algebra 1 course. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how a selected group of eighth-grade students in a suburban Georgia middle school experience algebra within the eighth grade mathematics curriculum. A qualitative research design was used to investigate students’ perceptions of algebra, the strategies employed by teachers to teach algebra, students’ difficulties with algebra, and …

An Analysis Of Mathematics Interventions: Increased Time-On-Task Compared With Computer-Assisted Mathematics Instruction, James M. Calhoun Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Student achievement is not progressing on mathematics as measured by state, national, and international assessments. Much of the research points to mathematics curriculum and instruction as the root cause of student failure to achieve at levels comparable to other nations. Since mathematics is regarded as a gate keeper to many educational opportunities as well as, eventually, potential job prospects, critics are asking schools to fix the problem.

This research project is a comparison of two different interventions used to improve student performance as tested on the Colorado State Assessment Program (CSAP). The first intervention, increased time-on-task, was used at Freedom …

Effects Of Discussion And Writing On Student Understanding Of Mathematics Concepts, Joseph Roicki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For this action research project, I wanted to examine my practice of teaching mathematics. Specifically, I encouraged students to improve their communication skills during my math class through daily discussion and writing tasks. After establishing a class set of sociomathematical norms, the students solved problems provided by the Every Day Counts: Calendar Math program and used verbal and written formats to describe their problem solving methods and reasons. My study showed the effects of using discussion and writing to help students develop their conceptual understanding of mathematical ideas. Focus was placed on the quality of daily discussions and written tasks …

The Effects Of Science Inquiry In A Fourth Grade Classroom, Stephanie Luke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects that science inquiry would have on fourth grade students' ability to communicate about scientific concepts learned, their perceptions about science and scientists, and my role as a teacher. The study took place in an elementary school setting for twenty weeks. Fourteen fourth grade students participated. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to gather data for the study. Pre and post questionnaires and Draw a Scientist Tests were used, along with observations, field notes, videotaped lessons, and reflections. The data revealed that students' ability to communicate about science concepts improved during …

An Action Research Study Involving Fifth-Grade Students Learning Fractions Through A Situative Perspective With Story Problems, Colleen Allen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to investigate the affects of teaching through a situative perspective with story problems on students' understanding of fraction concepts and operations in my fifth-grade mathematics classroom. Students participated in twelve weeks of instruction. Data was collected in the form of pre and post tests, audiotaped and videotaped recordings of instructional sessions, and student work samples. Data analysis revealed that my students constructed their own knowledge about various fraction concepts and operations because students engaged in discussions, after solving story problems, that developed, extended and restructured their knowledge. One example of this occurred …