Education Commons^™

Learning To Teach Mathematics With Reasoning And Sense Making, Amy L. Nebesniak

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study uses teacher research to examine teacher learning in the context of instructional coaching. The author, a mathematics instructional coach, engaged in an intense three-week coaching relationship with a high school Algebra teacher. A detailed description of the teaching and learning of quadratics that took place during this research provide information about what and how a teacher learns to teach mathematics with reasoning and sense making. Mapping the terrain of quadratics deepened the teacher’s understanding of the mathematical content and encouraged him to adapt his textbook in order to build mathematical reasoning. Through the coaching process, the teacher also …

Learning Effects Of Examples Applied To College Algebra Student Interests, Carrie A. Campbell

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This mixed-methods investigation studied the learning effects of example problems based on college algebra student interests. The study spanned two semesters and included three groups of students. The first group was presented with algebraic procedural examples and assessments without context. The second group was presented with algebraic class examples in contexts related to student majors and hobbies, but assessments without context. The third group was presented with class examples in contexts related to student majors and hobbies and also assessments with context.

Learning growth as measured by performance scores on examinations was analyzed quantitatively. Student comments regarding learning progress were …

Exploring The Complexities Of Learning Motivation In Pre-Service Teacher Education Students: A Grounded Theory Approach, Kristin K. Grosskopf

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This qualitative, grounded-theory study investigated learning motivation differences among three achievement groupings of undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Education and Human Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Nine students participated in in-depth interviews that explored their reasons for pursuing their degree, their learning experiences in a university setting, their perceptions about meaningful learning experiences, and the nature of factors that both enhance and challenge their learning motivation. Participant responses conveyed strategies and conditions that were coded and analyzed, and a theoretical model was developed describing causal conditions that underlie students’ motivation to learn, phenomena that arose from those …