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Articles 1 - 18 of 18
Full-Text Articles in Education
Exploring The Path That Has Led To A Fragmented Curriculum, Driven By High Stakes Testing, Sidelining Science, Emily L. Flaherty
Exploring The Path That Has Led To A Fragmented Curriculum, Driven By High Stakes Testing, Sidelining Science, Emily L. Flaherty
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
This paper explores the current state of science instruction in classrooms, particularly concerning the fragmented curriculum resulting from high-stakes testing and the subsequent side-lining of science education. The study examines the historical context, starting with the implementation of standardized tests such as MCAS (Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System) in 1998 and the subsequent impact of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001. These reforms led to a punitive system for underachieving schools and a narrowing of instructional time for subjects other than math and English Language Arts (ELA). The focus on improving test scores resulted in limited time allocated for …
Food And Health: Promoting The Importance Of Maintaining A Healthy Diet To Minimize Disease In Individuals At Greatest Risk, Nadjia Edwards
Food And Health: Promoting The Importance Of Maintaining A Healthy Diet To Minimize Disease In Individuals At Greatest Risk, Nadjia Edwards
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Diets high in calories, saturated fats, sodium, and added sugars can lead to adverse health events such as; heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, stroke, osteoporosis, and certain cancers. Maintaining a healthy diet can help decrease this potential, but those experiencing food insecurity remain at risk as they may have challenges accessing and affording healthier items. Quality may be sacrificed for quantity leading to the purchasing of food that increases these health risks. Initiatives have been developed to address these obstacles, but aren’t widely utilized. This underuse can be due to a lack of emphasis on the importance of …
Art And Science: Utilizing Steam Education To Promote Empathetic Scientific Literacy And Global Citizenship, Ali Orsi Davis
Art And Science: Utilizing Steam Education To Promote Empathetic Scientific Literacy And Global Citizenship, Ali Orsi Davis
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
This research expounds on the history of, hurdles facing, and future goals and possibilities for STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics) education, including how it can create empathetic, scientifically literate global citizens. Reasons for the cultivation of empathy, scientific literacy, and global citizenship in the classroom are numerous; escalating worldwide nationalism, accelerated climate change, and the increased need to address sustainable development and poverty have produced particular urgency for such student development. Science educators today rarely prioritize the “art” in STEAM education, despite a panoply of cognitive benefits including perspective-taking, critical thinking, and increased personal connection to scientific content. Development …
Movin’ Right Along: Developing Creative Methods Of Science Communication In A Modern World, Charity Southworth
Movin’ Right Along: Developing Creative Methods Of Science Communication In A Modern World, Charity Southworth
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
This synthesis proposes ways to use the Internet and artistic endeavors to communicate about science to a wider range of audiences than currently reached by science communicators, even those who already use social media. Science communicators, who control who gets information about science and how, need to be welcoming and inviting to people from all walks of life. My own contributions in this spirit include science-themed jewelry and clothing patterns.
Reflection And Growth In Teaching: Designing And Implementing A High School Biology And Society Course Using Action Research, Bradley J. Kozel
Reflection And Growth In Teaching: Designing And Implementing A High School Biology And Society Course Using Action Research, Bradley J. Kozel
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
The world that we live in is constantly changing and educational systems need to reflect these changes. High stakes testing, stress and anxiety in students, and smartphones in the classroom are all aspects of current schools that move us away from authentic learning. Student choice in education, pursuing answers to real world questions and developing critical and creative thinking skills upends this existing paradigm. To achieve this, teachers must turn to the most important work, which is to know each student and give them agency in their education. Teachers no longer need to occupy the center stage of the classroom …
Teaching Critical And Creative Thinking Skills Through Problem-Solving In High School Mathematics Classes, Daniel L. Albert
Teaching Critical And Creative Thinking Skills Through Problem-Solving In High School Mathematics Classes, Daniel L. Albert
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
I am a high school mathematics teacher who wants students to develop the thought process that allows them to uncover and use the patterns that are the heart of mathematics. Misconceptions belittle the subject, however, and disrupt the progress of my high school students because it disguises the purpose of studying math. My purpose in joining the Critical and Creative Thinking program at the University of Massachusetts Boston was to learn about the skills and methodologies that assist in the teaching and learning of thinking critically and creatively. This paper shows the progress and evolution of my capstone project—a set …
Rationale And Provisional Lesson Plans For Learning High School Science Through Discovering Dialectically And Creatively, Jean Rene
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
A host of studies on students' understanding of science has revealed that persistent topic-specific misconceptions loom over wide groups of learners. However, in the literature, scant consideration is given to high school students' over-arching misconceptions. Those are erroneous conceptions about the nature of science that tend to be resistant even after traditional instruction. Those large-scale misconceptions lay at the frontier of philosophical standpoints and are likely to inhibit students' ability to construct conceptions aligned with accepted scientific views. This synthesis contends that educators can better address high school students' large scale misconceptions at the conjunction of interconnected scientific notions and …
"Got Rocks?" An Inquiry-Based Geology Program For 3rd To 5th Grades In Conjunction With The Museum Of Science, Jennifer D. Todd
"Got Rocks?" An Inquiry-Based Geology Program For 3rd To 5th Grades In Conjunction With The Museum Of Science, Jennifer D. Todd
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
How can the Boston Museum of Science be of help to classroom teachers when planning a field trip? The synthesis presents a set of lesson plans for 3rd to 5th grade science teachers in the Boston area, with an ultimate goal of promoting students’ critical and creative thinking in their classroom units on rocks and minerals. The program was designed especially for those in the New England area because these states are within proximity to take a field trip to the Boston Museum of Science. The institution has many rocks and mineral samples from around the world and in the …
Have Your Π And Eat It Too! Using A Course Website To Facilitate Student-Centered Learning And Improve The Effectiveness Of The High School Mathematics Experience, Jeffrey Bretsch
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recommends that teachers provide their students with opportunities for student-centered learning. This often occurs in the form of discovery learning, hands-on learning, and interdisciplinary learning. These types of learning experiences fall under the umbrella of the educational theory of constructivism. Constructivism, in short, asserts that meaningful learning occurs when students actively construct their own understanding, making connections and drawing their own conclusions in response to genuine experiences. Many educators would agree that this type of learning is the ideal, but is not generally feasible due to the broad nature of the mathematics curriculum …
A Children's Realm: An Experiment Using Life-Sized Manipulatives To Expand Exploring And Learning Opportunities For Children, Robert E. Drake Iii
A Children's Realm: An Experiment Using Life-Sized Manipulatives To Expand Exploring And Learning Opportunities For Children, Robert E. Drake Iii
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
In this synthesis I describe a "Children's Realm" in which middle school children can safely explore and interact with a variety of physical phenomena typically reserved for the adult world, such as building and driving a car. A Children's Realm is an experiment. It is an attempt to not only design, but engineer a unique environment for middle school students to explore and learn. It is based on providing the complex tools I feel children need to do this kind of learning on their own. These complex tools I call Life-Sized Manipulatives or simply LSM. I highlight the importance of …
Geometry In Action: A Curriculum Unit Utilizing Dynamic Geometry Software To Enhance Students’ Comprehension, Cynthia A. Mignini
Geometry In Action: A Curriculum Unit Utilizing Dynamic Geometry Software To Enhance Students’ Comprehension, Cynthia A. Mignini
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
The paper identifies two critical obstacles to student success in a traditional geometry classroom and examines the role dynamic geometry software can play in overcoming these obstacles.
Using Science Misconceptions For Developing Critical Thinking In Learners And Teachers, Neuza M. Defigueredo
Using Science Misconceptions For Developing Critical Thinking In Learners And Teachers, Neuza M. Defigueredo
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Students' poor interest and academic achievement in science as well as their inability to master situations in their everyday life seem to be related to their lack of skills in critical and creative thinking. However, teaching such skills within both primary and secondary curricula is not mandatory. The consensus is much more toward teaching thinking skills through content than as a separate course. In this thesis the conflict between students' prior conceptions about the natural world and scientific concepts is viewed as a resource for teaching thinking skills. A review of the literature on science misconceptions in mechanics suggests that …
Critical Thinking In Elementary Science Instruction Using Portfolios And Cooperative Learning, Lisa A. Hayes
Critical Thinking In Elementary Science Instruction Using Portfolios And Cooperative Learning, Lisa A. Hayes
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Elementary science education often does not reflect the processes used n professional science. Students are instructed in a recipe-oriented way to follow predetermine procedures in order to come to predetermined results. The embedding of critical thinking skills instruction into science curriculum makes it possible for science instruction to more closely resemble professional science. This curriculum development thesis utilizes critical thinking skills and instructional strategies as a basis for embedding critical thinking skills instruction into a series of lessons on the topic of sound. Each lesson includes objectives for science content and thinking skills, a motivational activity, use of portfolios for …
Student Held Misconceptions Regarding Area And Perimeter Of Rectangles, Susan M. Carle
Student Held Misconceptions Regarding Area And Perimeter Of Rectangles, Susan M. Carle
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Students enter the classroom with individual schemas, based on their experiences and ideas, which influence the reception, interpretation, and recollection of new information. Effective teachers must understand the implications of these existing schemas. As an experienced classroom teacher, the author finds students often manipulate and apply new information well in class, only to forget or alter the material a few weeks later;. When misconceptions are woven into schemas, they interfere with reception of information. This thesis examines specific student-held misconceptions about the area and perimeter of rectangles and the process of their identification and eradication. Identification of the misconception is …
Restructuring For Mathematical Power: Techniques For Teaching Thinking In Algebra, Barbara D. Nelson
Restructuring For Mathematical Power: Techniques For Teaching Thinking In Algebra, Barbara D. Nelson
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Recent critiques of mathematics education have resulted in proposals to restructure learning and teaching for mathematical power. The new vision pictures the classroom as a community of learners where mathematics come alive as a useful tool in our technological society. However, many high school mathematics teachers are struggling to understand and implement the fundamental instructional change inherent in the vision. Written from the perspective of a high school teacher for experienced high school mathematics teachers, this thesis attempts to bridge vision and practice. To clarify the vision, current literature on reform in mathematics education is synthesized into a framework of …
"Who Is A Scientist?": Effects Of An Intervention To Change Students' Ideas About Science And Scientists, Lauren A. Foley
"Who Is A Scientist?": Effects Of An Intervention To Change Students' Ideas About Science And Scientists, Lauren A. Foley
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
Advocates for improving science literacy have focused much attention on the negative impressions about science and scientists held by many Americans. The image of scientists as 'nerdy' bespectacled men in laboratories has been related by some researchers to people's lack of interest in pursuing science. This thesis analyzes one component of a program aimed at changing that stereotype. The Science-By-Mail (tm) program at the Museum of Science in Boston was designed to give students a more inclusive image of scientists. Central to the program was the creation of pen-pal relationships between students in grades 4-9 with scientists who did not …
Cooperative Learning On Mathematical Problem Solving: Reflections By A Traditional Teacher And Her Students, Diana Metsisto
Cooperative Learning On Mathematical Problem Solving: Reflections By A Traditional Teacher And Her Students, Diana Metsisto
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
As our society becomes more technologically complex, the educational system preparing our students to become citizens of this society must adapt to met changing demands. Mathematical literacy of the 21st century will require a different model of mathematics education than that which served in the past. This thesis argues for a model of mathematics education which includes as key components: problem solving, question posing, cooperative learning, concrete manipulatives, and teaching for thinking. This new model sets forth guidelines for a facilitative approach to the teaching of mathematics as opposed to the more traditional, authoritative model. This facilitative model is based …
Alternative Concepts Of Geology And Time In Secondary Science Education, Ralph K. Calitri
Alternative Concepts Of Geology And Time In Secondary Science Education, Ralph K. Calitri
Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection
This study examines students’ concepts of time and geologic processes and probes for alternative conceptions in these areas which would be of relevance for science education.