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Full-Text Articles in Education

Cross-Disciplinary Learning Index: A Quantitative Measure Of Cross-Disciplinary Learning About Energy, Todd Haskell, Emily Borda, Andrew Boudreaux Jan 2022

Cross-Disciplinary Learning Index: A Quantitative Measure Of Cross-Disciplinary Learning About Energy, Todd Haskell, Emily Borda, Andrew Boudreaux

Physics & Astronomy

The structure of many science programs at the college level assumes that students are able to draw on and integrate ideas from multiple disciplinary contexts. However, most assessment tools focus on learning in the context of a single discipline. We describe the development and validation of an instrument to measure how well students are able to combine energy ideas from different disciplines into a coherent understanding of a phenomenon. The final version of the instrument consists of a pair of multiple-choice online assessments, along with a metric calculated from the assessment scores: the cross disciplinary learning index (CDLI). The items …


Physics Inventory Of Quantitative Literacy: A Tool For Assessing Mathematical Reasoning In Introductory Physics, Suzanne W. Brahmia, Alexis Olsho, Trevor I. Smith, Andrew Boudreaux, Philip Eaton, Charlotte Zimmerman Oct 2021

Physics Inventory Of Quantitative Literacy: A Tool For Assessing Mathematical Reasoning In Introductory Physics, Suzanne W. Brahmia, Alexis Olsho, Trevor I. Smith, Andrew Boudreaux, Philip Eaton, Charlotte Zimmerman

Physics & Astronomy

One desired outcome of introductory physics instruction is that students will develop facility with reasoning quantitatively about physical phenomena. Little research has been done regarding how students develop the algebraic concepts and skills involved in reasoning productively about physics quantities, which is different from either understanding of physics concepts or problem-solving abilities. We introduce the Physics Inventory of Quantitative Literacy (PIQL) as a tool for measuring Quantitative Literacy, a foundation of mathematical reasoning, in the context of introductory physics. We present the development of the PIQL and evidence of its validity for use in calculus-based introductory physics courses. Unlike …


Designing Research-Based Instructional Materials That Leverage Dual-Process Theories Of Reasoning: Insights From Testing One Specific, Theory-Driven Intervention, Mila Kryjevskaia, Mackenzie R. Stetzer, Beth A. Lindsey, Alistair Mcinerny, Paula R. L. Heron, Andrew Boudreaux Dec 2020

Designing Research-Based Instructional Materials That Leverage Dual-Process Theories Of Reasoning: Insights From Testing One Specific, Theory-Driven Intervention, Mila Kryjevskaia, Mackenzie R. Stetzer, Beth A. Lindsey, Alistair Mcinerny, Paula R. L. Heron, Andrew Boudreaux

Physics & Astronomy

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Curriculum Development: Theory into Design.] Research in physics education has contributed substantively to improvements in the learning and teaching of university physics by informing the development of research-based instructional materials for physics courses. Reports on the design of these materials have tended to focus on overall improvements in student performance, while the role of theory in informing the development, refinement, and assessment of the materials is often not clearly articulated. In this article, we illustrate how dual-process theories of reasoning and decision making have guided the ongoing development, testing, and analysis …


Freshmen First Quarter Credit Load Assessment, Richard Bulcroft, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark, Joseph E. Trimble Jan 2008

Freshmen First Quarter Credit Load Assessment, Richard Bulcroft, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark, Joseph E. Trimble

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

Focus group formed to obtain student perceptions of reasons for taking fewer than 15 credits during their first quarter, to explore potential solutions to low credit loads in the first year of college at Western and to ascertain the impacts of taking low vs. high credit loads.


Summerstart Advisors: Credit Load Assessment, Western Washington University. Office Of Survey Research Jan 2008

Summerstart Advisors: Credit Load Assessment, Western Washington University. Office Of Survey Research

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

In Spring 2008 The Office of Survey Research informed former Summerstart Advisors that we had conducted focus groups with freshmen during Winter Quarter to find out why students are not registering for full course loads during their first quarter and first year at Western. As a part of this project, we sent Summerstart advisors a questionnaire which asked them to comment on students’ comments and to provide a context for understanding why not all students take a full 15 credit load in their first quarter. We asked advisors to provide detailed comments about why they think students perceive the process …


Demand For Science Training In Olympic Esd Schools, Carl Simpson, Jessica Hargis Simpson, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark Jan 1997

Demand For Science Training In Olympic Esd Schools, Carl Simpson, Jessica Hargis Simpson, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

INTRODUCTION Between the end of August and November, 1996, the Western Washington University Office of Survey Research conducted a survey of school principals and superintendents' offices in the Olympic ESD. The survey was initiated by Western Washington University Extended Programs with the goal of exploring the kinds of inservice training needed by science teachers in the Olympic ESD. This report presents the findings of our survey.


Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1995-1997 Biennium (January, 1996), Joseph E. Trimble Jan 1996

Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1995-1997 Biennium (January, 1996), Joseph E. Trimble

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

In identifying and organizing its research, program evaluation, and outcomes assessment activities Western Washington University's Office of lnstitutional Assessment and Testing (OIAT) strives to obtain and generate data and information that attempts to provide answers to the following fundamental questions: 1) What do we look like as an institution and how can we improve the quality of the academic and sociocultural climate? 2) What factors contribute to general and specific changes in Western students' attitudes, knowledge, and skills? 3) How can we enrich classroom and instructional experiences to advance and promote effective learning? 4) How successful is each component of …


Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1993-1995 Biennium: November, 1993, Joseph E. Trimble Nov 1993

Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1993-1995 Biennium: November, 1993, Joseph E. Trimble

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

Foreword and Overview The following report is a summary of the status of the projects and activities generated from Western Washington University's Office of lnstitutional Assessment and Testing (OIAT) during the last quarter of the 1991-1993 biennium. A summary of significant activities and outcomes that have occurred since 1989 precedes the plan. The report also contains a list of assessment activities projected to occur during the 1993-1995 biennium; a few of the projects have already been initiated. The projected activities for the 1993-1995 biennium represent a partial list. Other projects will be added during the two-year period that will be …


Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1991-1993 Biennium: Final Report, April 30, 1993, Joseph E. Trimble Apr 1993

Institutional Assessment At Western Washington University For The 1991-1993 Biennium: Final Report, April 30, 1993, Joseph E. Trimble

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

The following report is a final summary of Western Washington University's institutional assessment plan for the 1991-1993 biennium. The projects and activities listed on the separate sheets are completed or are very near completion. In addition, many of the office's activities and projects are on-going and continuous. It should be pointed out that results from some of Western's Office of Institutional Assessment and Testing's (OIAT's) projects stimulated ideas that led to follow-up research and evaluation; therefore, the OIAT continues to expect some of its anticipated findings to lead to additional research which will become pan of the plan in the …