Education Commons^™

Take Home Exam (The) As An Assessment Method For Stem Students, Kholoud S. Al-Ajlouni

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Testing in Academia is necessary for both the instructor and the students at the same time. Students build their academic efforts and give them an indication of the skills they mastered during the course. Despite the diversity of the assessment methods, distinguished universities consider ICE as the major assessment method.

ICEs are characterized by limited time,stress imposed on students and reduce unethical behavior of students; however it is not suitable for assessing higher levels of Blooms taxonomy. On the other hand, take-home exam THE is like an open-exam and assignment mix.

From Instructor-Driven Teaching To Student-Focused Learning – A Personal Narrative, Omofolakunmi Elizabeth Olagbemi

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

My approach to teaching for several years was to explain the relevant material to my students, and then follow up with questions to confirm understanding. This is the approach that I was exposed to as a student and so I never questioned it. If my performance in a class was not up to par, then there must have been some deficiencies in preparation on my part. I never stopped to consider that perhaps the employment of a different teaching strategy by the instruction might have helped me obtain a better grade. Of course, this is mere speculation – it may …

Issues And Proposed Solutions To Team Based Assessment In University Physics Labs, Manqoba Q. Hlatshwayo

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Many education experts considers peer-to-peer education as the most effective way for students to learn (Peersdom, 2014). Western Michigan University (WMU) physics laboratories embraces this philosophy and has designed the assessment to be based on the team report. The assumption is that every team member contributed (not necessarily equally) to the work submitted by the team hence every team member should receive the same grade. This is a ubiquitous assessment philosophy in education, and some forms of additional individual assessment in team projects are strongly discouraged (David Boud et al, 1999).

There is no doubt on the effectiveness of peer-to-peer …

How Understanding Your Students Can Impact The Learning Outcomes, Tiba Zaki Abdulhameed

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Efficient communication with students can have great impact on the whole performance of the learning process. It is very important to consider the personal diversity among the students in order to reach to inclusivity in learning and to be able to have good communication with them. When the instructors build good communication with their students, they can encourage positive interactive learning environment.

Students at collage have their own busy life. If the instructor ignores their real life outside the class, many of them will be unable to continue and success. Many professional instructors in STEM field focus on the material …

Designing Effective Strategy For Development Of Homework And Exam To Improve Learning Outcomes, Rabia Emhamed M Al Mamlook

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

There are numerous unique stratagem regarding homework that teachers use in their courses. Through my experience that started when I taught IEE 2622 Statistical Quality Control classes, I discovered that designing homework needs effective strategies. So, I have applied some tools that I learned from the STEM instructional program which helped me develop some of the homework or exams.

The main objectives is to determine how implementing a homework correction strategy effects student achievement in process control chart course as example.

This study will answer some questions as following:

• What are the tools that can help me design homework objectives? …

Through The Learning Glass, Maria Talanda-Fisher

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

For our poster project with the STEM Instructional Program, we made Learning Glass videos to supplement material in Algebra II and Precalculus sections and then assigned a worksheet and survey to gain some understanding of how the students interacted with the videos. In this poster, the results of the worksheet and related survey are provided. In addition, we reflect on what the data and student feedback mean for these types of videos moving forward.

Improving Lab Experience For Students In Phys2080, Khushi Bhatt

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

University Physics II (PHYS 2080) deals with providing hands-on experience with the experiments of electricity and magnetism. It aids students to develop computational thinking in physics through analysis of experimental and theoretical data using python programming language.

In Fall-2019, I taught the newly designed PHYS2080 class for the first time as per the requirements. During Spring-2020, I implemented some subtle changes using the skills that I gained through various teaching training. These changes are described in Methodology section. Data clearly shows improvement that was observed without lowering the expectations or changing the curriculum of the class.

Behind The Learning Glass, Jamie Hallas

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

For our poster project with the STEM Instructional Program, we made Learning Glass videos to supplement material in Algebra II and Precalculus sections and then assigned a worksheet and survey to gain some understanding of how the students interacted with the videos. In this poster, the process of making the videos is discussed and some key takeaways are provided with the hopes of helping others in using these types of videos as a tool for providing instruction.

Incorporating Worksheets To Enhance Active Learning In A Laboratory Course, Zakiya S. Kelley

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Study Goals:

To create worksheets that would aid the students in properly completing the required experiments and challenge them to do more than just follow the instructions. Each week there were often multiple experiments to be completed and pre-made samples to be observed within the class period. By providing the worksheet, I ensured the students completed all tasks and comprehended the covered material before class ended.

Objectives:

• To improve student participation and information retention when completing laboratory experiments in the classroom
• To emphasize key points of the topic being explored

When Students Love Exams (Happy Quiz): Reducing Tension And Increasing Learning Rate, Shadha Tabatabai

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Exams or tests are vital part of teaching and good exams serve 4 goals [1]:

1- Help students organize their academic efforts.

2- Help students by identifying skills or topics that need more attention and mastery.

3- Help instructors recognize students mistakes and misunderstandings of topics so that they can adjust their teaching to address these issues.

4- Used as an indication of whether students are receiving the correct information.

There are many testing strategies, types of tests, and alternative testing modes, which are designed to help both instructors and students in doing a better job [1]. However, with exams …

Beyond The Learning Glass, Man Wing Chan, Ryan Cushman

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

For our poster project with the STEM Instructional Program, we made Learning Glass videos to supplement material in Algebra II and Precalculus sections and then assigned a worksheet and survey to gain some understanding of how the students interacted with the videos. In the midst of this project, we were overwhelmed with the coronavirus pandemic and the need to move our courses to distance learning. In this poster, we reflect on how the lessons of this program proved invaluable in addressing the challenges of distance learning.

The Impact Of In-Class Worksheets On Student Learning, Daniela Hernandez

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Student engagement and knowledge retention are common challenges in college classes, especially in STEM fields. To improve these items, I strive to use active learning techniques to

• encourage students to succeed and help them reach their full potential by engaging them with the material presented.
• increase student’s interest in the subject matter
• create an interactive classroom environment with a sense of community where the students participate in activities that require them to think about and comment on the material presented.
• facilitate independent, critical and creative thinking
• increase student success rates

The purpose of this project is to determine whether the …

Investigating The Potential For Unanticipated Consequences Of Teaching The Tentative Nature Of Science, William W. Cobern, Betty A.J, Adams, Brandy A.S. Pleasants, Andrew P. Bentley, Robert Kagumba

Science Teaching and Learning

If you are reading information supportive of climate science, you may well read that climate science is “settled science.” If you are reading something from a climate science skeptic, you may well read that climate science is “just a theory.” Given that the science education community strongly supports teaching the tentative nature of scientific knowledge, one might think that the skeptic has a legitimate argument. Experts will quickly object that such a deduction is quite wrong, and we agree. Nevertheless, we can’t help but wonder to what extent teaching the tentative nature of scientific knowledge might undermine confidence in science, …

When Interviewing: How Many Is Enough?, William W. Cobern

Mallinson Institute Seminars

Researchers need to know what is an acceptable number for interview work How does one decide the acceptable number of people to interview? Or one might ask what is an acceptable N size for interview work?

Effects Of A Historical Story On Student Understanding Of Nos, Peng Dai

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

Science educators have identified that Nature of Science (NOS) is essential to improve students’ science literacy. Numerous empirical studies suggest that incorporating the history of science (HOS) into class by means of an explicit reflective approach is one way to promote students’ NOS conceptions. In view of these findings, we developed a unit using an interrupted story technique to depict the discovery of the structure of DNA featuring Rosalind Franklin’s neglected role to help students learn both science content and NOS. Our study design compares an experimental group (story used) with a control group (no story used). The SUSSI (a …

Elementary/Middle School Pre-Service Teachers’ Understanding Of Variability And The Use Of Dynamical Statistical Software, Yaomingxin Lu

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

A primary purpose of the study was to examine the effects of using dynamical statistical software (DSS) on prospective teachers’ (PSTs) understanding of statistical concepts, especially variability. Data were collected from PSTs enrolled in a probability and statistics course designed for prospective K-8 teachers. After initial analysis of the data using coding and classification schemes, we found the need to develop a more targeted framework to analyze students’ different levels of understanding. The variability framework (Garfield & Ben-Zvi, 2005) and the Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) taxonomy were then used in combination to develop a revised framework in order …

Effects Of A Historical Story On Student Understanding Of Nos And Mendelian Genetics, Cody T. Williams, David W. Rudge

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

Introduction:

• The nature of science (NOS) is an important part of scientific literacy (AAAS, 2009; Matthews, 1994; Lederman et al., 2014).
• History provides contextualized approach that allows for intertwining NOS and traditional science content (Clough, 2006).
• Stories represent a potential avenue for progress in using history in NOS research.
• Recent framework developed for historical stories in science education (Klassen, 2009).

Conclusions:

• Preliminary results from this study indicate that student participants from the experimental group made significant gains in their understanding of the role of imagination and creativity in science.
• Participants from the experimental group also outperformed the non-intervention group on …

Math Education Matters, October 2016, Western Michigan University

Mathematics News

• Mathematics Education at WMU
• Fulbright Scholarship
• Visiting Student
• Curriculum Internship
• Calculus Initiative
• Research on Children’s Thinking
• News from Graduates
• New Elementary School Math Major
• Upcoming Presentations

The Impact Of A Story-Based Lesson On Student Learning And Attitudes, Janice Marie Fulford

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

Recent work by Stephen Klassen draws attention to specific structural elements that are thought to give stories their explanatory power in the context of physics. In this poster we report results of a study based on Klassen’s pioneering work but in the context of evolution. A mixed-method research study was conducted over two semesters at a Midwest university to determine if a story developed from the history of research on industrial melanism over the course of a three day lesson would result in improved student understanding of the concept of natural selection.

The study involved a direct comparison of two …

Math Education Matters, November 2015, Western Michigan University

Mathematics News

• Dr. Steve Ziebarth, Chair of the Mathematics Department
• MOST Project Professional Development in Chicago
• New Mathematics Education Faculty, Dr. Mariana Levin
• Reflections on the ICUBiT Project
• About WMU and our math education programs
• Students win State and National awards
• News from Recent Graduates
• Upcoming Activities

Preparing Preservice Teachers To Build On Student Thinking, Mary Ochieng, Elizabeth Fraser

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

This study focuses on understanding the practice of building on student thinking and supporting teachers to enact this practice through activities we created and implemented in a secondary mathematics methods course. The activities are related to identifying the mathematical point an instance of student thinking can be used to build towards. During this poster session we will define mathematical point, describe the activities, and share some of the observations from the implementation and discuss our next steps towards supporting pre-service teachers to develop an ability to build on student thinking.

Climate Change Education: The Perspective From Middle School Teachers, Peggy M. Mcneal

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

Climate change education is complicated by the complexity of Earth systems an\d misconceptions. This study reflects the motivations and practices of teachers who are teaching climate change prior to the implementation of Next Generation Science Standards. Data were collected during an online focus group with teachers from across the country,. The focus group revealed dispositions and brought teachers into the conversation. The themes that emerged provide an enhanced understanding of teacher attitudes, behavior, opinions and perceptions.

A Comparative Study Of International Mathematics Curriculum Materials And Standards: Indonesia, Singapore, And The Us Common Core State Standards, Erlina Mariana Rosada Sari Siregar

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

This study compared 2013 Indonesian Curriculum, the 2013 Singapore Syllabus and the 2010 US Common Core State Standard for Mathematics. This study examined benefits and limitations of these documents in organizing the content and expectations for what 9-12 students should be learning and the guidance they give teachers for teaching and learning of probability and statistics. Findings show that all three documents have the same vision but differ in supporting students' level of understanding of statistics and probability content. It is hope the results will inform revision of mathematics standards for teaching of stochastic in Indonesian mathematics education.

The Lifelong Learning Of Science, William W. Cobern

Scientific Literacy and Cultural Studies Project

The lifelong learning of science is actually becoming harder and harder to avoid. We can expect that there will be fewer and fewer adults who are truly uninterested in science and technology. What will happen is that people will periodically be interested and periodically uninterested. The rising impact of science and technology on lifelong learning, with the constant flow of information through the media, Internet and 24 hour news cycle, will make some interest in science some of time unavoidable for most people. Thus, the question is not whether adults will learn science throughout life, but what they will learn. …

Math Education Matters, January 2015, Western Michigan University

Mathematics News

• New NSF grant supports middle school math teachers
• CSMC Third International Conference held
• NSF grant on leveraging MOSTs
• WMU represented on NCTM editorial panels
• Innovation in teaching using new technology
• Upcoming presentations by WMU faculty and students
• Graduate student spotlight About WMU and our math education programs

A Comparison Of Barriers To Teaching And Learning Of Mathematics And Science Across A Three Year Study Of The Misconceptions Management Professional Development, Crystal Stein

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

Science and Mathematics Misconceptions Management (SaM3) is a statewide collaborative effort between the Michigan Mathematics and Science Centers Network and the Michigan Department of Education to provide middle and high school science and mathematics teachers with professional development opportunities.

The research questions include: 1) What are some barriers to teaching and learning mathematics and science? 2) What are the similarities and differences of barriers to teaching and learning mathematics and science in different parts of Michigan?

Answers to these questions will 1) inform stakeholders about the barriers to implementing mathematics and science educational improvement programming, 2) show changes to educational …

To What Extent Is The Established Conceptual Framework Of Animal Behaviour Portrayed In Textbooks?, Andrea M. K. Bierema, Renee S. Schwartz

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

In 1963, Tinbergen revolutionized the study of animal behaviour by revamping the conceptual framework of the discipline. His framework suggests an integration of four questions: causation, ontogeny, survival value, and evolution. The National Research Council Committee on Undergraduate Biology Education to Prepare Research Scientists for the 21st Century (2003) suggests alignment between current research and undergraduate education. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to determine if the conceptual framework used by animal behaviour scientists, as presented in current primary literature, aligns with what students are exposed to in undergraduate biology education. After determining the most commonly listed textbooks from …

An Investigation Of Teacher Response To National Science Curriculum Reforms In Turkey, Ridvan Elmas, Nilay Öztürk, Meltem Irmak, William W. Cobern

Scientific Literacy and Cultural Studies Project

Major science education curriculum reform is taking place in Turkey involving a substantial break with past science curricula. Such reform has significant implications for teachers but to date there has been little research on teacher response to these reforms. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the impact on the teachers who are charged with implementing reforms. Semi-structured interviews with 18 elementary science teachers were conducted and additional observational data was recorded. The interview schedule comprised 23 questions in 9 themes. According to the data analysis, the main problem for teachers is that curriculum reforms involve overly big …

Pedagogy Of Science Teaching Tests: Formative Assessments Of Science Teaching Orientations, William W. Cobern, David Schuster, Betty Adams, Brandy Ann Skjold, Ebru Zeynep Mugaloglu, Amy Bentz, Kelly Sparks

Scientific Literacy and Cultural Studies Project

A critical aspect of teacher education is gaining pedagogical content knowledge of how to teach science for conceptual understanding. Given the time limitations of college methods courses, it is difficult to touch on more than a fraction of the science topics potentially taught across grades K-8, particularly in the context of relevant pedagogies. This research and development work centers on constructing a formative assessment resource to help expose pre-service teachers to a greater number of science topics within teaching episodes using various modes of instruction. To this end, 100 problem-based, science pedagogy assessment items were developed via expert group discussions …

Enseñanza De Las Ciencias Y Contextos Culturales: Un Testimonio De Vida, William W. Cobern, Adela Molina-Andrade, Gonzalo Peñaloza-J.

Scientific Literacy and Cultural Studies Project

William W. Cobern es PhD en Educación en Ciencias, de la Universidad de Colorado Boulder. En la actualidad es profesor en la Western Michigan University. Su trabajo ha girado en torno a la relación entre cultura tradicional y enseñanza-aprendizaje de las ciencias. Por varios años trabajó en Nigeria y desarrolló propuestas de formación de profesores y de programas educativos dirigidos a grupos nómadas. A partir de su experiencia propuso su concepto de “visión del mundo”, que es tanto un marco teórico como metodológico para entender y abordar el vínculo entre ciencia y cultura. Su trabajo ha motivado investigaciones en diferentes …