Education Commons^™

The Inkwell, Armstrong Atlantic State University

The Inkwell

No abstract provided.

What Does Naep Tell Us About Student Achievement In Arkansas?, Sarah B. Kent, Nathan C. Jensen, Gary W. Ritter

Arkansas Education Reports

Recently, policymakers at the Arkansas Department of Education were pleased to release the results of the 2008 Benchmark exams, which indicate more Arkansas students are becoming proficient each year. This is good news for Arkansas, as the Benchmark exam is an Arkansas developed exam used to compare student performance to state standards. Nevertheless, it is also important to take note of how Arkansas students perform compared to students across the nation, which is where the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) plays an important role. The NAEP, also known as “the Nation’s Report Card,” allows student performance to be compared …

Earth And Moon [5th Grade], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… -there are similarities and differences in physical characteristics between the earth and moon -force of gravity keeps planets and moon in orbit -difference between revolution and rotation - the sun has specific features -moon phases.

Animals [2nd Grade], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… • All living things are producers or consumers. • Animals have different external characteristics (structures) that allow their basic needs to be met. • All animals depend upon each other and their environment to survive. o Animals are either carnivore, herbivore, omniivore o Know temperature and rainfall of desert, oceans, woodlands, plains or prairie, rain forest • Animals develop and change over time in different ways such as in: color, size, mass, creating sounds, and movement. • Animals usually grow in a predictable way and usually grow to look like their parents. Possible misunderstandings or confusions: …

Walk This Way (Force And Motion) [6th Grade], Anne Cowell

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

The goal of this unit is for students to understand: An object’s motion is dependent on the forces that are acting or have acted on it. An object’s motion can be pictured in a graph or be determined from a graph. The unit addresses balanced and unbalanced forces, types of forces, speed, and reviews graphing to address the understandings and the district expectations.

Water Cycle [2nd Grade], Anna Bley

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

This unit will help students to discover how the water cycle works and the implications it has on our planet and in our lives. They will conduct a series of experiments and activities to investigate the physical explanations behind each of the processes that make up the water cycle including evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection. They will use their knowledge of the scientific method to plan, predict, conduct, and analyze these investigations to examine how water changes physical state to be recycled on Earth. Additionally, they will relate their knowledge of the properties of physical matter to identify how water …

Maps And Globes [Kindergarten], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… A map is a representation or drawing of a place. A globe is a three dimensional model of the earth. Any place can be depicted on a map. Features of land and water are shown on maps and globes. Maps and globes are smaller representations of places.

Matter [2nd Grade], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… • Everything is made of matter, and all matter occupies space. • Matter is neither created nor destroyed but can change state. • Each type of matter has it’s own specific physical properties.

Natural World [5th Grade], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… • forces change land • the same force can be both destructive and constructive • you can learn the history of the earth by reading things like tree rings and sedimentary layers.

Cells [6th Grade], Roxanne Hammonds

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will be able to identify, illustrate, and describe the main types of cells and their organelles. They will determine the major differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. They will know that all living things are made of cells, and that each part of the cell performs a specific function. They will also recognize the organization of living things from cell to organism. More importantly, students will understand that cells are part of a system. The performance assessment will gauge their knowledge of this by comparing the structures and functions of a cell to those of their own school.

Our World In Space [6th Grade], Courtney Spickelmier

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

All the components of our solar system and universe function as a system. • Gravity is the force that holds our solar system and our universe together. • Our sun and our solar system is one of hundreds of billions in our galaxy and our galaxy is one of hundreds of billions in our universe. • As Technology (including telescopes, satellites, and space travel) expands so does our knowledge of our universe, but our knowledge and technology is limited.

Heredity And The Environment [8th Grade], Dustin Demoin

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

This unit attempts to provide the connections for a four week unit that covers Ecosystems, Genetics, and Stresses (both internal and external). The unit first recaps the information that should have already been covered in 6th and 7th grade with respect to ecosystems. This includes the performance assessment which centers on using their knowledge to reconnect the concepts they already know with the ones they are still struggling to learn. Next, the unit draws connections to genetics, specifically traits and DNA. These are impacted by the ecosystem and human and environmental factors. These factors are focused on last, but are …

Forces And Motion [2nd Grade], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… • All machines are forms or combinations of six simple machines (inclined plane, lever, pulley, screw, wedge, wheel and axle). • Simple machines are tools that make work easier and have greatly affected how we live today.

My Five Senses [Kindergarten], Trinity University, Canyon Ridge Elementary School (San Antonio, Tex.)

Understanding by Design: Complete Collection

Students will understand that… • They have five senses. • Humans utilize their five senses to gather information from their environment.

Blessed Unrest: The Power Of Unreasonable People To Change The World, Stephanie Pace Marshall

Publications & Research

In her keynote address at the 2008 NCSSSMST Professional Conference, Dr. Stephanie Pace Marshall addresses what work can be done with the collective resources of its Consortium members which beg to be shared and connected--and also explores what the source of "...our Blessed Unrest that will give us the courage to become unreasonable advocates for our children and for STEM transformation?"

Examining 4-H Robotics In The Learning Of Science, Engineering And Technology Topics And The Related Student Attitudes, Bradley S. Barker, Gwen Nugent, Neal Grandgenett, Amy Hampton

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Youths’ natural fascination and identification with robots make them an ideal teaching and learning platform. Robots would seem to be excellent hands-on tools to teach science, engineering and technology (SET) concepts. However, while research supports their use to increase interest and motivation, the effectiveness of robots to directly teach science, engineering, and technology concepts is less clear. The purpose of this study was to measure the effectiveness of a 4-H robotics program to support the learning of specific SET concepts and to examine related student attitudes towards science. This study compared the pretest and posttest scores on an assessment of …

2008 Spring Humanities Symposium: Eyes Wide Open: Engaging Technology With Our Humanity, Messiah College

Humanities Symposium

Keynote Address: Dr. Edward Tenner

February 25-29, 2008

We live in an era seemingly dominated by the power of modern science and its associated technologies. This has been both a cause for celebration and anxiety because all the material benefits of modern science and technology have been invariably accompanied with angst and uncertainty about how this affects our experience of being human. Scientific understandings of the world and modern technological advances (in communication, artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, stem cell research, nanotechnology, etc.) are transforming human life, raising new questions about what it means to be human, how we communicate with …

The Assessment Of Mathematics And Science Teacher Quality, Patricia S. Moyer-Packenham, Johnna J. Bolyard, Anastasia Kitsantas, Hana Oh

Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine the types of instruments being used to document mathematics and science teacher quality characteristics in 48 nationally funded mathematics and science education awards. Each of the 48 projects operationalized teacher quality and determined how to assess it. The main research questions examined the instruments awardees used to gather data on mathematics and science teacher quality, and the main characteristics of teachers examined by awardees. Results showed that awardees most frequently used surveys or questionnaires to assess characteristics of mathematics and science teacher quality. The most common teacher characteristics examined by awardees' included …

Pemberton Hydroelectric Power Station: A Teacher Resource, Les Pereira, Phil Gregory, Helen Kuehs, Amanda Draper, Jenny Staker, Rosalie Tomlinson, Christa Pereira

Research outputs pre 2011

This publication provides a resource for teachers of students in years seven to ten. Teachers are able to address a range of outcomes pertinent to the Western Australian curriculum within the context of the Pemberton Hydroelectric Power Station. The resource contains plans for four units of work, one in each of the following Learning Areas: Science, Mathematics, English, and Society and Environment.

A Review Of The Literature On Mathematics And Science Teacher Quality, Johnna J. Bolyard, Patricia S. Moyer-Packenham

Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications

A large body of literature exists that examines teacher quality characteristics and the relationship of indicators of those characteristics to teacher effectiveness. This existing research literature broadly views teacher quality research without illuminating specific areas of teacher quality, such as mathematics and science. In an effort to focus the literature base for researchers and policymakers more narrowly, this review specifically examines teacher quality as it relates to mathematics and science teaching and learning. The review highlights key policy and practitioner perspectives, provides a focused synthesis on current research findings on mathematics and science teacher quality, and suggests areas of research …

Curriculum Reform In Science Education In Pakistan, Nelofer Halai

Book Chapters / Conference Papers

No abstract provided.