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Full-Text Articles in Science and Mathematics Education

Empowering Teachers To Become Change Agents Through The Science Education In-Service Teacher Training Project In Zimbabwe, Yovita N. Gwekwerere Dr., Emmanuel Mushayikwa, Viola Manokore Dec 2013

Empowering Teachers To Become Change Agents Through The Science Education In-Service Teacher Training Project In Zimbabwe, Yovita N. Gwekwerere Dr., Emmanuel Mushayikwa, Viola Manokore

Comparative and International Education / Éducation Comparée et Internationale

This paper presents findings from a study of three Zimbabwean science teachers who participated in the Science Education In-service Teacher Training (SEITT) program. At the turn of the century, the SEITT program was designed to develop science and mathematics teachers into expert masters and resource teachers for Zimbabwe’s ten school districts. The study investigated the successes and challenges faced by the three teachers who were in the process of reforming their pedagogical practices as well as writing and using contextualized science curriculum materials to teach secondary science. Data were collected through telephone interviews. The three teachers reported that the SEITT …


The Effect Of Dynamic Software On Prospective Mathematics Teachers’ Perceptions Regarding Information And Communication Technology, Enver Tatar Dec 2013

The Effect Of Dynamic Software On Prospective Mathematics Teachers’ Perceptions Regarding Information And Communication Technology, Enver Tatar

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of dynamic software on prospective mathematics teachers’ perception levels regarding information and communication technology (ICT). The study was conducted with senior prospective teachers studying in a department of secondary mathematics education. The data of the study used both quantitative and qualitative research approaches have been obtained using two different tests, namely “Technology Perception Scale” and “Computer Assisted Mathematics Instruction Perception Scale”. Consequently, it has been observed in the study that learning how to use dynamic software positively affects prospective mathematics teachers’ perception levels in a statistically significant way regarding the …


Determining The Effects Of Pre-College Stem Contexts On Stem Major Choices In 4-Year Postsecondary Institutions Using Multilevel Structural Equation Modeling, Ahlam Lee Oct 2013

Determining The Effects Of Pre-College Stem Contexts On Stem Major Choices In 4-Year Postsecondary Institutions Using Multilevel Structural Equation Modeling, Ahlam Lee

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Many STEM studies have focused on traditional learning contexts, such as math- and science-related learning factors, as pre-college learning predictors for STEM major choices in colleges. Few studies have considered a progressive learning activity embedded within STEM contexts. This study chose computer-based learning activities in K-12 math classrooms, as a major pre-college learning predictor for STEM major choices. Using a nationally represented sample drawn from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002/06, the purpose of this study was two-fold: (a) to investigate the influence of computer-based learning activities in math classrooms on STEM major choices in 4-year postsecondary institutions and (b) …


Teacher, Researcher, And Accountability Discourses: Creating Space For Democratic Science Teaching Practices In Middle Schools, Cory A. Buxton, Shakhnoza Kayumova, Martha Allexsaht-Snider Oct 2013

Teacher, Researcher, And Accountability Discourses: Creating Space For Democratic Science Teaching Practices In Middle Schools, Cory A. Buxton, Shakhnoza Kayumova, Martha Allexsaht-Snider

Democracy and Education

This study explores the role of competing discourses that shape current practices in U.S. schools and how professional development efforts can support teachers and researchers in finding ways to reinsert more democratic processes into their collaborative work. We examine the case of one research and professional development project with the goal of supporting middle school science and ESOL teachers in fostering more meaningful science learning for all their students but especially their English language learners. Using Gee’s notion of big-D discourses and Fairclough’s notion of interdiscursivity, we trace how the Discourse of accountability, the Discourse of science teaching, and the …


The Fitzroy Valley Numeracy Project: Assessment Of Early Changes In Teachers’ Self-Reported Pedagogic Content Knowledge And Classroom Practice, Lorraine Jacob, Andrew Mcconney Sep 2013

The Fitzroy Valley Numeracy Project: Assessment Of Early Changes In Teachers’ Self-Reported Pedagogic Content Knowledge And Classroom Practice, Lorraine Jacob, Andrew Mcconney

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Fitzroy Valley Numeracy Project (FVNP) was designed to improve numeracy outcomes for Indigenous students by developing a systematic, co-ordinated approach to teaching primary school mathematics. In this study, using early project data, we examine FVNP teachers’ self‑reported pedagogic content knowledge and classroom practice from initial and follow up questionnaires, as well as interviews from case study teachers. After the first FVNP year, teachers reported being better able to plan focused mathematics lessons and to monitor student learning. On the other hand, teachers also felt less able to make mathematics explicit to students and their confidence in providing engaging activities …


Cultural Immersion And Mathematics Teacher Education: Explorations In Morocco And South Africa, Kori L.H. Maxwell, Iman C. Chahine Jul 2013

Cultural Immersion And Mathematics Teacher Education: Explorations In Morocco And South Africa, Kori L.H. Maxwell, Iman C. Chahine

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

This article examines the first author's personal experiences as a mathematics educator studying ethnomathematics and indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) through immersion in indigenous cultures. In describing these encounters, we highlight the importance and impact of cultural immersion experiences on educators' perspectives regarding the nature of mathematical knowledge. We argue that cultural immersion not only builds a well-rounded individual, but also provides educators with the necessary tools to maintain relevance in the diverse and constantly evolving landscape that is the classroom. Insights gained from this study have direct implications in our teaching practices as they remind us to be mindful of …


Conceptualising Changes To Pre-Service Teachers’ Knowledge Of How To Best Facilitate Learning In Mathematics: A Tpack Inspired Initiative, Frank G. Bate, Lorraine Day, Jean Macnish May 2013

Conceptualising Changes To Pre-Service Teachers’ Knowledge Of How To Best Facilitate Learning In Mathematics: A Tpack Inspired Initiative, Frank G. Bate, Lorraine Day, Jean Macnish

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In 2010, the Australian Commonwealth government initiated an $8m project called Teaching Teachers for the Future. The aim of the project was to engage teacher educators in a professional learning network which focused on optimising exemplary use of information and communications technologies in teacher education. By taking part in this network, participants were afforded opportunities to transform their practice through a range of localised initiatives that applied information and communications technologies to the art and science of teaching and learning. One of these initiatives involved re-engineering a university mathematics unit targeted at pre-service teachers. Information and communications technologies were purposefully …


Middle Level Mathematics Teachers’ Self-Efficacy Growth Through Professional Development: Differences Based On Mathematical Background, Tara Stevens, Zenaida Aguirre-Munoz, Gary Harris, Raegan Higgins, Xun Liu Apr 2013

Middle Level Mathematics Teachers’ Self-Efficacy Growth Through Professional Development: Differences Based On Mathematical Background, Tara Stevens, Zenaida Aguirre-Munoz, Gary Harris, Raegan Higgins, Xun Liu

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Profile analyses were used to investigate differences in the self-efficacy growth of teachers with more and less mathematics background as the teachers participated in professional development across two summers. Professional development activities were associated with increases in teachers’ self-efficacy; however, without considering mathematics knowledge for teaching, teachers with more math background tended to benefit more than those with less background. Nonetheless, teachers with less math background had higher levels of teacher self-efficacy although this gap was closed by the last measurement. Such considerations are important when designing professional development as teachers may have different needs based on specific characteristics such …


Full Steam Ahead – A Collaborative Colloquium, Hilary Dito Mar 2013

Full Steam Ahead – A Collaborative Colloquium, Hilary Dito

The STEAM Journal

On February 2, 2012, Contra Costa County Office of Education organized its 2nd Annual STEAM Colloquium: Full STEAM Ahead. This forum brought together over 150 educators, business leaders and community members to discuss and share best practices in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) education


Teachers’ Perceptions On The Changes In The Curriculum And Exit Examinations For Biology And Human Biology, Mirko Krüger, Mihye Won, David F. Treagust Mar 2013

Teachers’ Perceptions On The Changes In The Curriculum And Exit Examinations For Biology And Human Biology, Mirko Krüger, Mihye Won, David F. Treagust

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In the age of educational accountability, national and state-wide measures are assumed to secure and improve the educational quality. However, educators often wonder how much a new accountability measure may improve the actual teaching and learning practices when the agents of change (teachers) are not active participants of such educational reform. Nevertheless, in Australia, the National Curriculum is rolling in for the first time for K-10 school education in 2012-13. In Western Australia, the new Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) system with new compulsory exit examination requirements has been implemented recently for Years 11-12. In this study, using the …


Pre-Service Mathematic Teachers’ Knowledge Of Students About The Algebraic Concepts, Dilek Tanisli, Nilüfer Yavuzsoy Kose Feb 2013

Pre-Service Mathematic Teachers’ Knowledge Of Students About The Algebraic Concepts, Dilek Tanisli, Nilüfer Yavuzsoy Kose

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study aims at evaluating pre-service primary school mathematics teachers’ ability to discuss and question thinking processes of students about the concepts of variable, equality and equation, analyzing their ability to predict student difficulties and misconceptions, and in this respect presenting their subject matter knowledge and possible misconceptions on the related topic. The study was conducted with 130 the pre-service teachers in their fourth year studying elementary school mathematics teaching. The data were collected through a questionnaire that consists of open-ended questions and clinical interviews. The data obtained were analyzed qualitatively. The study found that in general the pre-service teachers …


At The Gate Of Discovery, Jan Nordgreen Jan 2013

At The Gate Of Discovery, Jan Nordgreen

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

This is the story of how a mathematical problem was discovered. Although it was never solved, it gave great joy to the discoverer.


Parts Of The Whole: When Variation Is The Goal, Dorothy Wallace Jan 2013

Parts Of The Whole: When Variation Is The Goal, Dorothy Wallace

Numeracy

The goals of higher education are a population of extreme variability in expertise, a diffusion of specialized knowledge across disciplinary boundaries, and production of strong K-12 teachers. Promoting these three goals has implications at all granularities, from the pedagogy of an individual college professor to the incentives and policies that shape systemic change.


Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science Task Force Report: Preface Jan 2013

Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science Task Force Report: Preface

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Teaching About Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science: Toward A More Complete View Of Science Jan 2013

Teaching About Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science: Toward A More Complete View Of Science

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Journal Of Mathematics And Science: Collaborative Explorations Jan 2013

Journal Of Mathematics And Science: Collaborative Explorations

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Scientific Argumentation As A Foundation For The Design Of Inquiry-Based Science Instruction, A. Falk, L. Brodsky Jan 2013

Scientific Argumentation As A Foundation For The Design Of Inquiry-Based Science Instruction, A. Falk, L. Brodsky

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

Despite the attention that inquiry has received in science education research and policy, a coherent means for implementing inquiry in the classroom has been missing [1]. In recent research, scientific argumentation has received increasing attention for its role in science and in science education [2]. In this article, we propose that organizing a unit of instruction around building a scientific argument can bring inquiry practices together in the classroom in a coherent way. We outline a framework for argumentation, focusing on arguments that are central to science—arguments for the best explanation. We then use this framework as the basis for …


Challenging Pre-Service Students' Teaching Perspectives In An Inquiry-Focused Program, J. L. Pecore, A. Shelton Jan 2013

Challenging Pre-Service Students' Teaching Perspectives In An Inquiry-Focused Program, J. L. Pecore, A. Shelton

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

Inquiry teaching based on constructivist learning theory has been an emphasis in pre-service education for over a decade. In general, a developmental teaching perspective supports inquiry-based instruction where teachers view learners as constructors of knowledge and teaching as providing questions, problems, and challenges that form a bridge from the learners' prior knowledge to a new, more sophisticated form of reasoning. Since teaching perspectives influence student learning, teacher effectiveness, and teacher attrition, challenging pre-service teachers to overcome experience-based convictions of a transmission perspective is necessary in teacher education. In this study, we examined the teaching perspectives of secondary, pre-service methods students …


Infusing Problem-Based Learning (Pbl) Into Science Methods Courses Across Virginia, K. R. Thomas, P. L. Horne, S. M. Donnelly, C. T. Berube Jan 2013

Infusing Problem-Based Learning (Pbl) Into Science Methods Courses Across Virginia, K. R. Thomas, P. L. Horne, S. M. Donnelly, C. T. Berube

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

This article outlines the results of a collaborative study of the effects of infusing problem-based learning (PBL) into K-12 science methods courses across four universities in Virginia. Changes in pre-service teachers' attitudes surrounding science teaching were measured before and after completing a science methods course in which they experienced PBL first-hand as participants, and then practiced designing their own PBL units for use in their future classrooms. The results indicate that exposure to PBL enhances pre-service teachers' knowledge of inquiry methods and self-efficacy in teaching science.


Inquiry Teaching: It Is Easier Than You Think!, S. Key, D. Owens Jan 2013

Inquiry Teaching: It Is Easier Than You Think!, S. Key, D. Owens

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

This article is a survey of the literature on inquiry teaching. Many teachers do not participate in inquiry teaching for various reasons. The following are the main reasons: it takes too much time; students do not learn what they need for the state test; and, the teachers do not know how to grade projects and presentations. These reasons sound like rhetoric from long ago, but it is very current. In this article, research is used to show that students who participate in inquiry learning or any type of problem-based education do much better than students who do not have that …


Building A Case For Mathematics Specialist Programs, D. Blount, J. Singleton Jan 2013

Building A Case For Mathematics Specialist Programs, D. Blount, J. Singleton

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Right Triangles Of Gian Francesco Malfatti, J. Boyd Jan 2013

Right Triangles Of Gian Francesco Malfatti, J. Boyd

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Reform Teaching In Mathematics And Science Courses — A Follow-Up Evaluation, G. M. Bass Jr. Jan 2013

Reform Teaching In Mathematics And Science Courses — A Follow-Up Evaluation, G. M. Bass Jr.

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Strong Support For Mathematics Specialists In Virginia, J. Singleton, D. Blount Jan 2013

Strong Support For Mathematics Specialists In Virginia, J. Singleton, D. Blount

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Aims & Scope Jan 2013

Aims & Scope

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Contents Jan 2013

Contents

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Title Page, Coordinating Editor's Remarks Jan 2013

Title Page, Coordinating Editor's Remarks

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


Executive Summary — Teaching About Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science Jan 2013

Executive Summary — Teaching About Scientific Inquiry And The Nature Of Science

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

No abstract provided.


How Does Leadership Matter? Developing And Teaching A Definition Of Hands-On Science, A Prerequisite For Effective Inquiry Teaching, D. R. Sterling Jan 2013

How Does Leadership Matter? Developing And Teaching A Definition Of Hands-On Science, A Prerequisite For Effective Inquiry Teaching, D. R. Sterling

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

This descriptive case study describes leadership skills and planning for setting clear directions by program leaders for a statewide professional development initiative to extend improvement in science teaching and learning. For science teachers and leaders in Virginia, a critical part of setting clear goals that everyone can understand is defining key science terms. One of the four key terms, "hands-on science," is defined here. Materials to develop teachers' understanding of the term for effective implementation of classroom inquiry activities are shared, along with a rubric for evaluation by and for teachers. Understanding of the term "hands-on science" is necessary before …


Understanding Mathematics And Science Advice Networks Of Middle School Teachers, D. White, A. Ruff Jan 2013

Understanding Mathematics And Science Advice Networks Of Middle School Teachers, D. White, A. Ruff

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

We report findings from a research project designed to examine the mathematics and science advice networks of teachers who participated in professional development under the auspices of the NSF-funded Rocky Mountain-Middle School Math and Science Partnership. We provide descriptive statistics of results. Additionally, we reflect on the research process and discuss some of the practical challenges involved.