Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Increasing Awareness Of Inclusive Stem Education Through A College-Level Student Research Group, Sami Kahn, Tiffany Agyarko, Grace Lanouette, Sean Lee, Courteney Wiredu

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The underrepresentation of persons with disabilities in STEM reflects not only a moral failing in society’s commitment to equity but also a practical dilemma as science benefits from the contributions of people with diverse perspectives. While teacher education programs attempt to address equity at the K-12 level, societal biases and misconceptions about who is “able” in science present persistent barriers for people with disabilities throughout the STEM pipeline, in higher education, employment, and beyond. How can we ensure that students with disabilities will encounter professors, employers, coworkers, and peers who are supportive of their efforts in STEM? To address this …

Teaching And Assessing College Stem Courses Online During Covid-19: Evidence-Based Strategies And Recommendations, Santanu De, Georgina Arguello

FDLA Journal

Since the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, most schools, colleges, and universities worldwide underwent a paradigm shift by transitioning to digital teaching and learning modalities. This phenomenon was essential to mitigate the contagion; however, the academic institutions needed to quickly come up with ways to ensure that the quality and rigor of education were maintained, especially the active and experiential learning required by undergraduate and graduate courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This paper highlights key approaches reported or proposed to effectively conduct college-level, in-person STEM courses online owing to the pandemic. These would range from synchronous versus asynchronous pedagogies …

Understanding Differences In Underrepresented Minorities And First-Generation Student Perceptions In The Introductory Biology Classroom, Jacob Jantzer, Thomas W. Kirkman, Katherine L. Furniss

Biology Faculty Publications

We used quantitative methods to better understand the perceptions of students in an introductory biology course (Biology 101) at a small, liberal arts college (SLAC) that is also a primarily white institution (PWI). In pre/post surveys, we asked students questions related to their attitudes and beliefs about their professor, classmates, and Biology 101. We were especially interested in the responses and outcomes of underrepresented minorities (URM) and first-generation (FG) students. Our findings suggest URM and FG students have a decreased sense of belonging and increased perceptions of exclusion and differential treatment due to race. These findings can explain, in part, …

A Causal Comparative Study Of Stem Persistence Between Supported And Non-Supported Stem Interested Students, Elizabeth Bernardi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many students who enter a STEM track in college move out of that track before graduation (National Science Foundation, 2018). The purpose of this study was to assess whether there was a difference in STEM-related major persistence for population proportions of students actively involved in the Science Scholars program and those who were STEM-interested but not program participants. This program oriented students to the STEM program, facilitated engagement with peers and faculty, exposed students to research opportunities, and filled in potential learning gaps (Gibson et al., 2019).

The questions guiding the current research included:

Q1. Was there a statistically significant …

Mathematicians’ Beliefs, Instruction, And Students’ Beliefs: How Related Are They?, Rachel Rupnow

Faculty Peer-Reviewed Publications

It is generally accepted that teachers’ beliefs impact their instructional choices, but characterizations of that relationship are limited in college settings. Furthermore, examinations of instructor beliefs, instruction, and student beliefs together in one setting are rarely described. Based on interviews with two Abstract Algebra instructors, classroom video from three units of instruction, and survey and interview data from students in the classes, this paper examines instructors’ stated beliefs, ways these beliefs manifested in their teaching, and students’ beliefs across the course. Both instructors made curricular choices clearly aligned with their stated views of the nature of mathematics, learning, and teaching. …

Peer-Led Team Learning In Mathematics: An Effort To Address Diversity And Inclusion Through Learning And Leadership, Janet Liou-Mark, Melanie L. Villatoro, Ariane Masuda, Malika Ikramova, Farjana Shati, Julia Rivera, Victor Lee

Publications and Research

The Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) model has shown to be an effective instructional method to support females, underrepresented minorities, and first-generation students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The collaborative problem-solving setting, led by a peer leader, fosters learning that engages all the students. There are six critical components that are vital to the PLTL model: 1) The PLTL Workshop is integral to the course; 2) Faculty is actively involved; 3) Peer Leaders are well trained; 4) The PLTL Workshop modules are challenging; 5) PLTL workshops are allocated time and space; and 6) There is institutional support. City Tech …

Placing Value On Environmental Literacy: A Case Study Of Biology Faculty Experiences, Ilene Sigrid Eberly

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to explore how contingent biology instructors place value on environmental literacy in their instruction and the instructional strategies used to foster their student's environmental literacy. This study also investigated the contextual experiences of contingent instructors influencing the value they place on environmental literacy. Participants included 11 faculty teaching introductory biology courses from two public universities in the Northeast. Our analysis focused on triangulation of participants semi-structured interviews, instructor-generated artifacts, and field notes from classroom observations, interviews, and artifacts. Findings revealed contingent biology instructors understand the importance of placing value on environmental literacy in …

Supporting Students With An Autism Spectrum Disorder In Engineering: K-12 And Beyond, Jennifer L. Kouo, Alexis Hahn, Sarah Morton, Jay Gregorio

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Individuals with disabilities, including individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. With the importance of STEM skills in future employment and other disciplines, effective instructional strategies must be identified to enhance early and sustained access to STEM for students with ASD. However, the literature identifying effective STEM-specific supports and practices for this population of students is sparse and regarding engineering, there are no empirical studies that focus on teaching engineering skills to students with ASD. Therefore, the article aims to provide an overview of the available literature on the perspectives …

The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program: A Case Study Of The Use Of Forgivable Loans In Recruiting Future Stem Teachers, Katie N. Smith

Journal of Student Financial Aid

In 2018-2019, North Carolina implemented a loan forgiveness program to recruit talented postsecondary students into teaching majors in needed subject areas. This qualitative case study analyzes the influence of the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program (NCTFP) on 10 student participants’ college, major, and career plans in STEM education to understand how loan incentives shaped student interest in teaching careers in STEM subjects. Findings reveal that forgivable loan funding influenced college choice among those choosing institutions at the time of NCTFP acceptance. While the NCTFP was most appealing to participants who already planned to become STEM educators, there is also evidence …

Human-Computer Interaction Research And Education--Crossing Boundaries Between Academic Research And Industry Practices, Yasushi Akiyama

Interface: An International Interdisciplinary Studies Journal

In this paper, I will discuss my own experience and approaches to enhancing students' learning in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) classes by adopting an interdisciplinary approach that integrates academic research and industry practice. Due to the inherent interdisciplinarity of HCI, and to foster a set of "soft" skills known in Interdisciplinary Studies as the "cognitive toolkit," I invite expertise from the other departments at my university as well as industry professionals to give lectures, facilitate workshops, and oversee projects. These collaborations have produced several insights and have had a positive impact on the participants.

How Mathematicians Assign Homework Problems In Abstract Algebra Courses, Rachel Rupnow, Meredith Hegg, Timothy Fukawa-Connelly, Estrella Johnson, Keith Weber

Faculty Peer-Reviewed Publications

While many aspects of the teaching and learning of advanced mathematics have been explored, the role, construction, and values of homework have been virtually ignored. This report draws on task-based interviews with six mathematicians to explore the relationship between an instructor’s learning goals and factors considered when selecting homework problems. All participants viewed homework as critical to student learning, and the majority of the participants’ claims focused on either the mathematics or how the problem would help students learn; no instructor gave primacy to evaluative reasons for homework. We highlight six themes used by participants to evaluate and select items …

Undergraduate Research In A Fully Online Engineering Program: Building The Framework Of Support, Emily Faulconer, Robert Deters, Brent Terwilliger

Publications

Undergraduate engineering programs often face low persistence and retention.

• Females and ethnic minorities are underrepresented and show lower persistence
• Certain minorities may be less likely to enroll in online programs
• Lower persistence and retention in online students across disciplines

Undergraduate research may increase persistence and retention.

• Online students likely underrepresented due to access limitations

Reinvigorating A Technical Countering Weapons Of Mass Destruction Distance Learning Graduate Certificate Program, James C. Petrosky, Gaiven Varshney, Jeremy Slagley, Sara Shaghaghi

Faculty Publications

Current Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) demands can be divided broadly into policy and science. The science of chemical, biological, and radiological/nuclear weapons informs the limits of development, production, employment, operation, detection, risk characterization, human and material protection, and medical intervention. In short, the science of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) should precede and inform the development of policy. It is to this end that the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) CWMD program was re-established, providing a technical educational option for practitioners to understand the science behind a very technically challenging subject.

Making Scientific And Technical Materials Pervasively Accessible, Jason J.G. White

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

In this paper, the question is explored of what policies, standards and practices are desirable to ensure that hardware, software and publications in the sciences and associated disciplines are created from the outset to be accessible to people with disabilities. Insight into this question can be obtained by considering the unique accessibility challenges that these materials pose, including complexities of notation, language, and graphical representation.

Having analyzed what sets this problem apart from broader issues of accessibility, the advantages and limitations of current international standards are reviewed, and contemporary developments in standards and policies are considered from a strategic perspective. …

The Perceptions Of Teachers Of Students With Visual Impairments On Students With Visual Impairments And Graphing: How To Teach, Ashley N. Nashleanas Ph.D.

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Many gaps exist in what is known around teaching students with visual impairments (SVI) about how to use graphs (Rosenblum et al., 2018; Rosenblum & Herzberg, 2015; Zebehazy & Wilton, 2014a;2014b;2014c). When teachers first experience a student with a visual impairment, some of the questions that come to mind are: How can I be sure this student understands what I am saying about these graphs I show on the board? Will this student be able to keep up? The study herein, based on findings from Author (2018), serves as a guide for teachers to consider in the case that SVI …

On The Socialization Of Transfer Physics Majors Enrolled Within Upper-Division Physics Courses At Transfer Receiving Institutions: Qualitative Research, Patrick Lee Chestnut

Theses and Dissertations

A host of individual and institutional sociocultural factors mediate transfer physics students' socialization experiences at 4-year transfer receiving institutions. The purpose of this study is to understand how sociocultural factors mediate transfer physics students' socialization while participating in upper-division physics coursework at a 4-year public transfer-receiving university. This study, rooted in sociocultural constructivism, aimed to shape discussion of seven transfer physics students, six regular admit physics students, and a physics course instructor's experiences connected to physics studies that emerged from qualitative data. These data included student and faculty surveys, interviews, and classroom observations. Several key findings emerged. First, a multitude …

Student Perceptions Of Authoring A Publication Stemming From A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (Cure), Ashley N. Turner, Anil K. Challa, Katelyn M. Cooper

Research, Publications & Creative Work

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) engage students in authentic research experiences in a course format and can sometimes result in the publication of that research. However, little is known about student-author perceptions of CURE publications. In this study, we examined how students perceive they benefit from authoring a CURE publication and what they believe is required for authorship of a manuscript in a peer-reviewed journal. All 16 students who were enrolled in a molecular genetics CURE during their first year of college participated in semistructured interviews during their fourth year. At the time of the interviews, students had been authors …

Experiences Of Undergraduates And Graduate Teaching Assistants In Biology Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences, Emma Crystal Goodwin

Dissertations and Theses

Evidence of positive student outcomes from course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) has sparked implementation of CUREs in introductory biology laboratory courses, as one approach to boosting student engagement in research. In a CURE, students collaborate with other students and instructors on a research project, where they conduct novel scientific research that has relevance to a local or scientific community. However, previous research rarely considers that graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) often teach introductory labs. The classroom role of GTAs expands in a CURE--they no longer need to simply teach a lab class, but also to serve as research mentors. GTAs, who …

Advances In Global Education And Research: Volume 4, Waynne B. James, Cihan Cobanoglu, Muhittin Cavusoglu

University of South Florida (USF) M3 Publishing

This is the fourth volume of the Advances in Global Education and Research Book Series. This volume has the following parts:

• Part 1: Adult Education
• Part 2: Curriculum and Instruction Development
• Part 3: Educational Technology
• Part 4: Education in Other Specialties
• Part 5: English as a Second Language
• Part 6: Global Competence
• Part 7: Higher Education and Educational Leadership
• Part 8: Inclusive Education
• Part 9: International Education
• Part 10: PreK-12
• Part 11: Research Methods in Education

ISBN: 978-1-955833-04-2

Adult Education

• Teaching for knowledge transfer: Best practices from a graduate-level educational psychology distance learning program
  • Bobby Hoffman
• A study on the …

Investigating The Relationship Between Departmental Support Structures, Self-Efficacy And Intention To Persist: An Examination Of Students' Experience In 19 Physics Graduate Programs Across The United States, Diana Sachmpazidi

Dissertations

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) graduate programs experience consistently high attrition rates. Moreover, persistent disparities exist in racial and gender representation. Women and People of Color are significantly underrepresented and have higher attrition rates than men and white and Asian American students. To date, little work is done to understand graduate student attrition or persistence. There is also a lack of information regarding the causes of demographic disparities in attrition. Most past studies in this context have focused on students' attributes, undergraduate preparation, and mentoring relationships. Moreover, student self-efficacy is a contributing factor for undergraduate student retention. Yet, there …

The Math Games Seminar: A Mathematical Learning Community, Anthony Delegge, Ellen Ziliak

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Learning communities can be an effective means of engaging university students across disciplines. Games have always been a source of both enjoyment and interesting mathematics. Based on our own interest in games, and the deep, strategic discussions we found ourselves having with students when we played games with them, we decided to design a learning community around the mathematics of games. We hoped in particular that such a community could be a great pathway to introducing mathematical thinking to students not majoring in mathematics, and that they would gain a greater appreciation for our field. In this paper, we describe …

Comparing Effectiveness And Perceived Characteristics Of Active Learning Methods In Undergraduate Biology Education, Linda R. Pesciotta

Dissertations - ALL

Although many undergraduates begin college as STEM majors, attrition rates from the field are high and numerous reports suggest that evidence-based teaching methods are critical for retention. Despite educators' research and near consensus that active learning is more effective than lecture, there are many types of active learning and the literature indicates their effects are not equivalent. The purpose of the current study was to directly compare different kinds of active learning by assessing their correlation with student performance (including learning gains) and understanding students' perceptions of them (including whether they contained Merrill's five principles of instruction and/or met three …

Runge-Kutta 4 (And Other Numerical Methods For Odes), Adam E. Parker

Differential Equations

No abstract provided.

Connected Design Rationale: A Model For Measuring Design Learning Using Epistemic Network Analysis, Golnaz Arastoopour Irgens

Publications

Virtual learning environments have the potential to support students’ development of design skills in engineering education. However, few approaches exist for modeling and measuring design learning as it emerges in authentic practices, which often includes collaboration. This study merges learning sciences research with engineering design education to develop an approach for modeling and measuring design thinking. I propose a connected design rationale model which identifies relationships among design moves and rationale. Results from a qualitative examination of how professional engineers make connections among moves and rationales were used as the foundation to examine students in virtual internships. Using digital collaborative …

Contributors

Early College Folio

Contributors to issue 1 of Early College Folio

Table Of Contents

Early College Folio

Table of Contents | Issue 1 | Early College Folio

Math And Politics, David Price

Early College Folio

This lesson plan, crafted during the Bard Early College Fellowship, details a unit in which students develop their own voting systems and compare them to voting methods and other social choice procedures actually used throughout society. It reinforces the idea that many mathematical notions are human constructs, with strengths and weaknesses, rather than ideas that exist completely outside of human experience.

Early College Pedagogy: An Introduction To The Bard Early College Fellowship, Ligaya Franklin

Early College Folio

The author introduces the Bard Early College Fellowship, an opportunity for faculty from the network of Bard Early Colleges to craft a lesson series which centers Bardian pedagogical methods and student success. The author also highlights five projects that emerged from past fellows, also published in this issue.

Initiatives To Find The "Lost Einsteins" Through The Integration Of Independent Scientific Research Projects In Early College, Maria Agapito, Mini Jayaprakash, Tiffany Morris, Carla Stephens

Early College Folio

This exploratory study examines the effects of incorporating Independent Scientific Research Projects (ISRP) into early college biology curriculum. The authors present their findings, which are steeped in the goal of increasing minority students’ interest in STEM careers, by analyzing student engagement in classrooms with and without ISRP integration.

Qualitative Analysis Of Corequisite Instruction In A Quantitative Reasoning Course, Zachary Beamer

Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges

In corequisite models of instruction, marginally prepared students are placed directly into college-level coursework, taught with a paired support course. Initial research suggests that such models yield significant improvements in the number of students passing credit-level mathematics when compared to previous models of prerequisite remediation. The present study employs qualitative methods to investigate methods of instruction at one community colleges to understand how instructors identify and respond to student needs. It concludes with recommendations for practice and highlights advantages of small format corequisite classes taught by the same instructor.