Education Commons^™

How Can The 5-E Learning Cycle Model Of Instruction Be Used To Develop A Differentiated Science Unit On Evolution Based On Six Minnesota Evolution Standards?, Monica Christine Digre

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this capstone was, how can the 5-E Learning Cycle Model of Instruction be used to develop a differentiated science unit on evolution based on six Minnesota evolution standards? The capstone documents a middle school life science teacher’s experience developing a curriculum for teaching evolution in a nontraditional way. The author explores the difficulties in teaching evolution with a traditional approach by researching experts in the field of both Evolutionary Biology and secondary science instruction. Through the use of the 5-E Learning Cycle Model of Instruction, the author develops an inquiry-based and hands-on curriculum to teach …

How Can The Relationship Between Climate Change And The Coast Redwood Forest Be Incorporated Into Fifth And Sixth Grade Environmental Education Programs?, Dorea Eve Martin

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The question for this research is: how can the relationship between climate change and the coast redwood forest be incorporated into fifth and sixth grade environmental education programs? Climate change is a real, global problem, and this capstone is intended as a resource for environmental educators to incorporate climate change into their programs. It includes a literature review of scientific research on climate change impacts on coast redwood forests and presents a lesson plan for teaching climate change in the redwood setting. The lesson plan covers basic climate science, dendrochronology, and carbon footprints, and was conducted at Westminster Woods, a …

The Confluence Of Stem Education And Language Learning: Curriculum Integration To Benefit Language Learners, Christian Joseph Engelbret

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The number of elementary STEM schools has risen dramatically in the last decade. The national government has identified goals for preparing learners for the workforce in the STEM areas, while also decreasing the achievement gap between white students and their non-white peers. This research paper seeks to answer three central questions: 1) How can these various STEM disciplines be integrated in an effective and meaningful manner to improve both academic language and content area knowledge of English Learners? 2) What lesson design format best prepares teachers to implement a project-based or integrated curriculum? 3) How can partnerships between higher education …

Investigating Teachers' Content Knowledge And Pedogogical Content Knowledge In A Middle School Physical Science Curriculum On Force And Motion, Daniel Patrick Laverty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teaching is a profession that requires the incorporation of many types of knowledge in order to create effective instructional experiences that promote student learning. Teachers need to blend their knowledge of the content with the methods for delivering that content and an understanding of their students' thinking. With increasing concern in the United States over student achievement in science and mathematics, there is ongoing discussion about which elements of teacher knowledge most directly correlate with effective instruction. How do specific strands of teacher knowledge blend to influence student learning outcomes? This study explores the roles of teacher content knowledge (CK) …

Analysis Of Nominalization In Elementary And Middle School Science Textbooks, Breanna Marie Mueller

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research in this capstone examines the existence and implications of nominalizations through a text analysis of first through fifth grade and middle school science textbooks. This study utilizes various tools based on Systemic Functional Linguistics to determine the quantity and types of nominalizations found in various text levels, to reveal how frequently nominalizations are modified by a prepositional phrase that shows agency or force, to uncover how nominalization might affect the syntax and semantics of a text, and to deduce how nominalization might contribute to lexical density. The author also compares the results to address what nominalizations look like …

Impacting Science Observation Skills Through Drawing Training, Andrew Keith Hale

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research addressed was, how does drawing training impact the observational abilities of students? The list of motivating factors for this capstone includes students exhibiting a lack of ability to sit still and observe details of the world around them as well as exhibiting a lack of ability to design and communicate through drawings used in engineering. The author teaches art and science and has experienced these deficiencies. The author used an in-class project currently in the curriculum as the basis for the research. This project involved observing a reptile habitat as a subject for drawing. Betty Edwards’ book Drawing …

Use Of Inquiry-Based Learning In A Content-Based Physical Science Course For English Language Learners, Otto Joseph Kraus

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this capstone was, how can inquiry-based learning be used in a content-based physical science class for English language learners? The project provides one teacher’s creation of seven lessons that incorporate inquiry-based learning techniques into a content-based physical science course for English language learners. The lessons are intended to concurrently teach state physical science standards and WIDA language standards. The methods and rationale for the lessons are based on the importance of experience to the learning of language (Jackson, 2013; Robinson, 2011), as well as the overlapping pedagogies of inquiry learning and language learning, known as …

Variables In The Introduction Of The Species, Streptocephalus Sealii, Spinytail Fairy Shrimp Into A Local Seasonal Wetland, Jane Anne Porterfield

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this capstone is what factors play a role in the introduction of a wingless aquatic invertebrate to a recently restored mitigation wetland. The motivation for this capstone was the discovery of a fairy shrimp, Streptocephalus sealii in a Rosemount, Minnesota wetland in 2012. This organism was previously recorded from two other sites in Minnesota at least 35 miles from this location. Its appearance in a mitigation wetland generated questions as to whether restoration materials brought in the species or the mitigation created the environment in which the organism could thrive. This study investigates both of …

Presenting Evolution In Public Schools; Is It Indisputable?, Paul Andrew Erdman

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed is, how do 10 public school teachers present the theory of evolution? The motivation of this capstone was my experience with teachers presenting evolution (all life having evolved from a simple single celled organism) to students as indisputable, and the seemingly lack of discussion about any problems with the theory or unanswered questions. A key influence was an older sibling, a mechanical engineer, who often provides scientific answers for me and provided many resources that challenge the so-called indisputability and possibilities of evolution. This study interviewed 10 public school teachers to identify how they present the …

The Effect Of The Mastery Learning Approach On Student Motivation In Middle Level Science, Phillip Jeffrey Hutcheson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed was, How does mastery learning approach affect the motivation of students in a middle level science classroom? The project studied a group of 7th grade students' motivation as they completed a science unit using the mastery learning approach. Data were collected through pre- and post-surveys, observation, and assessment of benchmarks. The collected data showed that students had an increase in motivation after the mastery learning approach. Students' self reported motivation increased. The observed behaviors indicating motivation occurred more frequently. In the assessments, over seventy percent of all students showed mastery of the benchmarks. This paper provides …

Food Waste And Behavior Change Through Project-Based Learning, Patrick Cary Crawford

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to find if food waste behavior can be changed through project-based learning. Food is a valuable resource that is being thrown into landfills; I question how we can change that? After compiling research on food waste, pro-environmental behavioral psychology, and project based learning I have constructed a theoretical framework that can be used to teach behavior change through project-based learning. The following were created to attain this goal: (a) a project unit plan, (b) assessments designed to evaluate students content knowledge on food waste, and (c) assessments designed to evaluate students pro-environmental behavior based on Blake, 1999. …

Assessing High School Science Students’ Abilities To Use Cross Cutting Literacy Skills And Scientific Argumentative Writing Skills In A Mid-Western School District, Ellen M. Karel

Masters Theses

This study sought to determine to what extent a centrally focused initiative concentrated on how to teach students to not just write, but how to think, read, and speak about real world problems in a persuasive manner based on multiple sets of data related to science concepts, increased scientific argumentative writing proficiencies among high school students. A secondary area this study attempted to explore was the correlation between the implemented processes in the initiative and high school students’ scientific argumentative writing proficiencies. The study was conducted in a mid-western high school, population 1,088, with a select group of students in …

Transformative Professional Development: Unraveling The Complexities Of Knowledge, Practice, And Beliefs, Janette Smith

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the impact of a comprehensive professional development project focused on inquiry-based integrated lessons to improve the quality of science instruction for elementary teachers. Eleven teachers from three Northwest school districts participated in this quasi-experimental design study. A focus of the study was to investigate the intricate relationship between four components of a professional development model: the professional development intervention, teacher practice, student outcomes, and teachers’ self-efficacy for science instruction. Five different measures were used both before and after the intervention: The Local Systemic Change Observation Protocol, a content knowledge assessment, a self-efficacy survey, a student content test, …

The Educational Benefits Of Cultural Institutions, Brian Kisida

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A significant portion of the education children receive occurs outside of the traditional classroom and produces outcomes not typically captured by standardized achievement tests. This dissertation is part of an effort to expand the educational venues and outcomes educational researchers rigorously examine. In particular, I present the key results from experimental studies of the effects of school tours to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR., and to the Museum of Discovery in Little Rock, AR.

Chapter 1 focuses on arts exposure and critical thinking outcomes. A problem for the arts’ role in education has been a …

Differentiation In The Classroom Using Chromebooks And Google Applications, Allison Carney

Honors Projects

The purpose of this research was to differentiate using Chromebook and Google technology to improve engagement and grades in the classroom. Chromebooks have been implemented into classrooms all over the country, but the use of Google applications in order to differentiate instruction and assessment is not as prominent in schools. I created four assignments on the Chromebooks that differentiated instruction and assessment based on interest and ability levels. I used a total of six applications and differentiated for forty-four students in a sixth grade math and science classroom. I found that differentiating using Chromebooks and Google applications boosted student engagement, …

The Relationship Between Teacher Collaboration And Teachers' Level Of Knowledge, Implementation, And Confidence Related To Common Core State Standards For Literacy In History/Social Studies, Science And Technical Subject Areas, Talia Shaunte' Lock

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between elements of teacher collaboration and teachers’ level of knowledge, level of implementation, and level of confidence related to CCSS for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subject Areas in grades 6-12. The study included an extensive literature that included an introduction, pertinent literature and research regarding literacy in the 21^st century, CCSS, cross curriculum, teacher collaboration, the role of leadership, and the theoretical framework. The study also included the methodology, research results, the conclusions, recommendations for policymakers and practitioners, and recommendations for further research.

It was discovered …

Adoption, Adaptation, And Abandonment: Appropriation Of Science Education Professional Development Learning, Max L. Longhurst

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Understanding factors that influence teachers to use certain practices from training they receive will help improve learning experiences for students. This study examined how two teachers with the same teacher training experience use learning from that training in their instruction differently. This research attempted to account for multiple factors that influenced teachers learning. Educator’s incorporation of teaching practices can vary from teacher to teacher and from training to training. This variability is understood in terms of their appropriation of new teaching practices into their teaching and delivery of learning. Two teachers were selected as a result of their participation in …

Exit Tickets' Effect On Engagement And Concept Attainment In High School Science, Amy Mastromonaco

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Many high school students struggle to stay engaged in their science class. As a result, student learning often suffers. The purpose of this study was to implement one additional strategy (Exit Tickets) to the teacher’s pedagogy in order to help better engage students and promote student learning. The teacher then evaluated the efficacy of the strategy by: comparing both participant behavioral engagement and assessment results prior to and during/after the implementation of the Exit Tickets. The data was disaggregated to compare students who were typically behaviorally disengaged to those who were consistently behaviorally engaged so as to better determine the …

The Perceived Effectiveness Of Mixed Reality Experiences In A Master Of Arts In Teaching (Mat) Program For Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics Degreed Individuals, Chana Speir

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived effectiveness of mixed reality experiences on resident teachers who successfully completed an undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) degree and were enrolled in a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree program as part of RTP3 at a large research university in Orlando, Florida. The population for this study consisted of those selected to be in the RTP3, which included being in the Masters in the Art of Teaching (MAT) and becoming a middle or high school science, mathematics, or engineering teacher. The resident teachers experienced mixed reality as …

An Examination Of The Relationship Among Iraqi High School Students' Science Achievement And Perceptions Of The Value Of Education, Parent Support, And Peer Support In The United States, Samir F. Al-Mandwee

Wayne State University Dissertations

The objective of this dissertation was to quantitatively study Iraqi students (N=90) who arrived in the U.S.A. in the last 20 years. A non-experimental, descriptive research design was used for this study, which took place in one of three high schools in a large Midwestern suburban school district, during the 2013-2014 academic year. Three factors, including the students' perception of the value of education, the parental support, and the peer support, were examined using the Facilitating Conditions Questionnaire. The three subscales were part of a larger self-administered questionnaire used by McInerney (1997). In addition to the FCQ survey, a student …

Science For Visually Impaired Students And Accessible Technology, Lydia M. Moreland

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Blind and visually impaired students need appropriate methods and accessible technology in order to compete and advance in learning the science concepts. The study investigated the attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge of assistive technology used by science teachers of the visually impaired from a Mid-Atlantic state and how they are incorporated in the classroom. The participant response gives notice to what forms of assistive technology are used in frequency, and the training and comfort level to use the assistive technology. The open responses stated themes of teachers needing more training in visual impairment college programs to use assistive technology to increase …

Parent Involvement Practices Of High Achieving Elementary Science Students, Samara Susan Waller

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study addressed a prevalence of low achievement in science courses in an urban school district in Georgia. National leaders and educators have identified the improvement of science proficiency as critical to the future of American industry. The purpose of this study was to examine parent involvement in this school district and its contribution to the academic achievement of successful science students. Social capital theory guided this study by suggesting that students achieve best when investments are made into their academic and social development. A collective case study qualitative research design was used to interview 9 parent participants at 2 …

The Relationship Between Science Curriculum Aligned To Common Core State Standards And Scientific Literacy, Amber Lee Struthers

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Supporting the development of scientifically literate students is a priority in public school education, and understanding how that development is influenced by the Common Core State Standards is vital to quality science education. However, little quantitative research has been conducted about how the Common Core State Standards impact science education. The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to determine how the alignment of science curriculum and instruction to the Common Core English Language Arts State Standards impacts the development of students' scientific literacy skills. Bybee's framework for scientific literacy provided the theoretical framework. Participants included 7 middle school students in …

An Investigation Of A Culturally Responsive Approach To Science Education In A Summer Program For Marginalized Youth, Brittany A. Garvin

Theses and Dissertations

The demographics of today’s schools are becoming more and more ethnically and linguistically diverse, as culturally diverse students comprise approximately one third of school populations (Ladson-Billings, 2005). However, the educational experiences of students of Color demonstrate a history of marginalization and inequity (Williamson et al., 2007) as far too many students of Color have maintained poor educational achievement outcomes. The effects of such disproportionally high levels of low academic achievement are extensive and can be witnessed across subject content areas, particularly in math, science, and literacy. To improve the academic performance of students who are culturally, racially, ethnically, and linguistically …

The University Of Akron Exercise Science: Pre-Physical Therapy: Past, Present, Future, Jonathan E. Vichosky

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to increase Akron’s knowledge on opinions of the effectiveness of the current Exercise Science: Pre-Physical Therapy Program among its alumni. A cross-sectional retrospective study was done to gain a better understanding of The University of Akron’s opinion of its students on the effectiveness of the current Exercise Science: Pre-Physical Therapy Program. METHODS: A single contact survey was sent via email through Qualtrics to the University of Akron Exercise Science: Pre-Physical Therapy students from this current graduating year (2014-2015) as well as graduates from the past four years. This survey included questions on the …

Teacher Influence On Elementary School Students’ Participation In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics, Courtney Hartman

Honors College Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of elementary school teachers on encouraging students’ interest and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The researcher sought to understand what methods teachers use in their classrooms to encourage students to participate in STEM subjects and programs. This mixed methods study consisted of a questionnaire to collect quantitative data, as well as an interview of selected teachers who participated in the questionnaire to collect qualitative data. The data was analyzed to determine the overall perceptions of teachers regarding the importance of encouraging students to participate in STEM. The qualitative …