Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Connecting Science With Engineering: Using Inquiry And Design In A Teacher Professional Development Course, Louis S. Nadelson, Patricia Pyke, Janet Callahan, Anne Hay, Joshua Pfiester, Mark A. Emmet

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The engineering design process has evolved over time to be the central and effective framework that engineers use to conduct their work. Logically, K-12 STEM professional development efforts have then attempted to incorporate the design process into their work. There has been little in the STEM literature, though, of the explicit measurement of the growth in design process knowledge. Our study presents findings of significant improvements in knowledge of the design process that resulted over the course of a recent summer STEM institute and professional development program among K-5 teachers.

As more emphasis is placed on integrating STEM into the …

Measurement Of Life Skill Acquisition Of The Idaho First Lego® League State Tournament Participants Ages 9-14, Kristina Lee Luckey

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Youth development programs provide opportunities for children to learn and apply the life skills they are likely to utilize later in life. Therefore, it is critical that steps are taken to evaluate their effectiveness. The direct purpose of this study was to measure life skill outcomes of participants ages 9-14 of the Idaho FIRST LEGO® League program state tournament participants. This mixed method pre-experimental design study incorporated quantitative measurements using a paired samples test and qualitative measures utilizing a single-category design focus group methodology for triangulation purposes. This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the formation …

How Do Mathematicians Make Sense Of Definitions?, Laurie O. Cavey, Margaret T. Kinzel, Thomas A. Kinzel, Kathleen L. Rohrig, Sharon B. Walen

Laurie O. Cavey

It seems clear that students’ activity while working with definitions differs from that of mathematicians. The constructs of concept definition and concept image have served to support analyses of both mathematicians’ and students’ work with definitions (c.f. Edwards & Ward, 2004; Tall & Vinner, 1981). As part of an ongoing study, we chose to look closely at how mathematicians make sense of definitions in hopes of informing the ways in which we interpret students’ activity and support their understanding of definitions. We conducted interviews with mathematicians in an attempt to reveal their process when making sense of definitions. A striking …

A Comparison Of Two Engineering Outreach Programs For Adolescents, Louis S. Nadelson, Janet M. Callahan

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

There is continued growth and development of outreach programs designed to increase pre-college students’ awareness and understanding of engineering as a profession and as a career. These outreach programs vary in format and in the groups targeted for participation but maintain the same fundamental goal of increasing participant knowledge of engineering. Many of these outreach programs also maintain the implicit goal of increasing the participants' knowledge and attitudes toward college. The additional resources and funding that are commonly allocated to support outreach programs frequently involve documenting accountability which motivates evaluation of program impact. Therefore, many outreach events include program evaluation …