Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Review Of Mathematical Imagining: A Routine For Secondary Classrooms By Christof Weber, Geoff Krall

Colorado Mathematics Teacher

This book review of Christof Weber's Mathematical Imagining yields insight into the routine of mathematical imagining and offers practitioners advice on how to incorporate the routine in the classroom. A brief summary of the book is provided, followed by commentary on potential benefits of mathematical imagining, connection to other research, and suggestions for accommodating for emergent bilingual students. Readers are encouraged to follow up with a reading of the original book.

Critical Connections Between Numeracy And Mathematics: Supplementary Materials, Dave Tout

Student learning processes

This publication contains three professional development activities targeted at teachers of mathematics. The activities for both groups and individuals focus on the challenge of word problems in maths and connecting maths to the real world. Also included are references, materials and resources related to the issue of the connections between numeracy and mathematics.

Letting Go, Kevin Junod

Colorado Mathematics Teacher

Change perspectives and methods to make mathematics instruction more problem based.

Tasks That Promote Problem Solving, Wendy Ward Hoffer

Colorado Mathematics Teacher

What makes a rich, juicy task that can deeply engage learners in thinking and understanding important mathematical ideas? I have found that a great task offers varied entry points, is open-ended, and invites multiple representations.

Success With Tasks That Promote Problem Solving, Joanie Funderburk

Colorado Mathematics Teacher

I provide resources and suggestions for teachers to find or adapt tasks to promote students' reasoning and problem solving.

From The Editor's Desk, Sandie Gilliam

Colorado Mathematics Teacher

In Principles to Actions (PtA), NCTM suggests that there is too much focus on learning procedures without any connection to meaning, understanding, or the applications that require these procedures. I share my vision to address this challenge.

Exploring The Neural Mechanisms Of Physics Learning, Jessica E. Bartley

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a series of neuroimaging investigations and achievements that strive to deepen and broaden our understanding of human problem solving and physics learning. Neuroscience conceives of dynamic relationships between behavior, experience, and brain structure and function, but how neural changes enable human learning across classroom instruction remains an open question. At the same time, physics is a challenging area of study in which introductory students regularly struggle to achieve success across university instruction. Research and initiatives in neuroeducation promise a new understanding into the interactions between biology and education, including the neural mechanisms of learning and development. These …

Effective Teaching For Place Value Understanding: A Case Study Of A Literacy-Integrated Math Curriculum Module, Young Rae Kim, Mi Sun Park

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

A lesson sequence for place value was developed as an early intervention for kindergarteners. The sequence begins with a children’s picture book involving language familiar to children and continues with hands-on activities for children to make connections between and within multiple representations of place value. Through engaging in the literacy-integrated math curriculum module, kindergartners deepened their understanding of place value and the base-ten number system, as they were consistently engaged in problem solving and mathematical discourse triggered by their own mathematical thinking, as well as purposeful questions prompted by the teacher.

The Utility Of Storytelling Strategies In The Biology Classroom, Elizabeth Csikar, Jill E. Stefaniak

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Conveying scientific information with high intrinsic cognitive load to students is a challenge. Often, students do not have the existing schema to incorporate the information in a comprehensive manner. One method that has shown promise is storytelling. Storytelling has been successfully used to convey public health information to non-experts. Therefore, it was of interest to determine whether storytelling could be used in the classroom to present information with high intrinsic load to students in a meaningful manner. This study used a post-test only quasi-experimental study design to explore the utility of storytelling as an instructional strategy in anatomy and physiology …

The Effects Of Integrating Lego Robotics Into A Mathematics Curriculum To Promote The Development Of Proportional Reasoning, Shelli L. Casler-Failing

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This mixed methods, action research case study sought to investigate the effects of incorporating LEGO robotics into a seventh grade mathematics curriculum focused on the development of proportional reasoning through the lens of Social Constructivist Theory. Quantitative data was collected via pre- and post-tests from the mathematics class of six students. Qualitative data was collected from each of the students as they worked in groups of two to complete purposefully designed investigations, activities, from whole class discussions, and student artifacts. In addition, four students were purposefully chosen to participate as embedded case studies. The quantitative analysis showed development of proportional …

Using A Repeated Measures Anova Design To Analyze The Effect Writing In Mathematics Has On The Mathematics Achievement Of Third Grade English Language Learners And English Speakers, Zoe A. Morales

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The gap that exists between English language learners and English speaking students’ achievement in mathematics continues to grow. Moreover, students are now required to show evidence of their mathematics knowledge through writing in standardized assessments and class assignments.

The purpose of this study was to analyze students’ writing in mathematics and the metacognitive behaviors they portrayed through their writing as they solved mathematics problems. The instruments included a pretest, two biweekly tests, and a posttest. The writing instruction encompassed students learning to solve problems by using Polya’s four phases of problem solving which was completed in 12 sessions over a …

Rich Problem Solving Tasks, Valorie L. Zonnefeld

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

No abstract provided.

A Primer For Mathematical Modeling, Marla A. Sole

Publications and Research

With the implementation of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recommendations and the adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, modeling has moved to the forefront of K-12 education. Modeling activities not only reinforce purposeful problem-solving skills, they also connect the mathematics students learn in school with the mathematics they will use outside of school. Instructors have found mathematical modeling difficult to teach. To successfully incorporate modeling activities I believe that curricular changes should be accompanied by professional development for curriculum developers, classroom teachers, and higher education professionals. This article serves as an introduction to modeling by …

Preparing Middle Grades Teachers To Use Drawn Models For Developing Arithmetic With Rational Numbers, Andrew Izsak, Erik Jacobson

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019)

We will report on-going efforts to design a research-based content and methods course for future middle grades teachers focused on numbers and operations. A main theme of the course is to solve problems using drawn models and to develop general numeric methods. Attendees will work on activities used in the course that elicit difficulties future teachers experience with this content.

Down The Rabbit Hole: A Look At Integrating Classic Literature Into A Secondary Mathematics Curriculum, Adam E. Sokol

Adam E Sokol

The importance of mathematics and reading is paramount to the advancement of civilization. Research has shown that mathematics and reading, along with writing, have a strong correlation. The new Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in mathematics stress the importance of applying mathematical concepts to other subjects and real life. Interestingly, the mathematics and English curriculums have some objectives in common. Classic literature provides a unique context for mathematical concepts to be applied. Using classic literature to teach mathematics could allow students to engage in mathematics and literature more deeply. Example lessons and worksheets supported by research allow teachers to another …