Educational Methods Commons^™

Assessing The Effectiveness Of A Problem-Based Computer Modelling Module From The Student's Perspective, Garrett Keane, Brian Bowe

Conference papers

The Computer Modelling module delivered to the third year Level 8 Mechanical Engineering students in the Technological University Dublin is marked completely by continual assessment. It was developed using a problem based approach in that the theory of Computer Modelling methods is first explained but is then illustrated by demonstrating its application to the solution of real life problems. It is delivered in a traditional manner for the first six weeks in that the underlying principles and techniques of the finite difference method are covered in lectures and practical assignments are completed in the weekly computer laboratory classes. A problem …

Real Stem: Scientific Research For Rural Georgia High School Students, Deborah M. Walker, Robert L. Mayes, Raushanah Oglesby, Rich Mccombs

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

This is the story of creating a STEM research experience for students through a partnership between research institutes, University Faculty and high school teachers. The story of Real STEM will include a discussion of how the grant work is structured, barriers to implementation and successes that spur us on to continue to bring STEM experiences to rural, southeast Georgia.

Food, Cooking And Nutrition-Engaging A Wide Audience To Explore Inter-Disciplinary Science Topics, Sharmistha Basu-Dutt, Victoria Geisler

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Food and cooking have been a central theme in several courses developed recently at the University of West Georgia. In this presentation, the nature of the content and learning outcomes of these courses will be presented. A unique multi-tiered approach will be offered to show how this theme can be effectively used to engage audiences of all ages and capabilities to use the scientific method. Sample activities will show how to engage the young novice elementary student to explore introductory science concepts in a fun environment and challenge the college science major to design an effective experimental design to answer …

The Power Of Animations In Stem Courses, Adrian Heinz, Xin Xu

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

We demonstrate educational web-based animations to facilitate teaching and learning in STEM courses. These animations were developed by IT students who closely worked with the researchers and faculty. The animations are later used in the classroom to explain specific concepts to students of STEM disciplines such as chemistry, biology and mathematics. The interactive nature of the animations allows students to become active participants of the learning process. In order to measure their value as a teaching and learning tool, pre and post survey data was collected and analyzed.

Successful Use Of Group Assessment Procedures In An Undergraduate Stem Course, Kelly P. Massey

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Assessing content heavy STEM courses using a Group Assessment Procedure (GAP) can assist with cognitive domain objectives by allowing groups to rely on each other in order to recall important content as well as formulate well-rounded explanations using course content during application exercises. Presentation includes ideas on how to implement a successful GAP testing protocol.

Google Chrome: More Than A Browser, Daniel E. Rivera

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Chrome is more than a browser. It’s an operating system in itself, and it’s transforming the educational computing experience. Come learn about Chrome’s features such as data syncing across computers (bookmarks, passwords, settings, etc), and most importantly, Chrome-specific apps. Learn about Chromebooks as well - those powerful, fast, and cheap laptops that are spreading like wildfire.

Teaching And Learning For Intercultural Sensitivity: A Cross-Cultural Examination Of American Domestic Students And Japanese Exchange Students, Yoko Hwang Sakurauchi

Dissertations and Theses

Global student mobility has become a dynamic force in American higher education. Integrating international students into diverse campus environments provides domestic as well as foreign students with enriched learning opportunities. However, a diverse campus climate itself will not make college students interculturally competent. Intentional curricular design is critical for overcoming issues such as resistance and reinforcement of stereotypes, but the research literature is extremely limited on effective pedagogical strategies for cultivating college students' intercultural sensitivity.

This paper explicates a research study to investigate college students' development of intercultural sensitivity through an intentional course design utilizing Kolb's (1984) learning styles cycle …

From The Co-Editors

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Systems Thinking With Biology Models, Joseph Dauer

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

The recent AAAS call to improve undergraduate biology education suggested university instruction should focus on teaching core concepts like matter and energy, evolution, and systems and core competences like quantitative reasoning, modeling and integrating disciplines. My research has focused on how undergraduate biology students organize their knowledge of biological systems and how they reason about the myriad interactions and potential outcomes inherent to these systems. I will report ongoing research into students’ model construction during an introductory biology course and during clinical interviews 2 years after the course. My colleagues and I have found students’ models change dramatically in both …

The Invisible Composition Classroom: The Reciprocity Of Face, Identity, And Politeness, Pennie L. Gray

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the role of face and identity as they arise in a first year composition classroom. Using the illuminating theoretical framework of linguistic politeness theory, new understandings of the social interactions in the composition classroom are unveiled. Specifically, through an analysis of the politeness strategies that students use during the peer review process, it becomes clear that students prefer to temper their critique of others' work rather than openly criticize that work. Additionally, students offer far more positive feedback than their peers' work perhaps merits, minimize the revision work they suggest, and downplay their own authority over each …

Critical Transitions In Faculty Learning: The Teaching Academy Story, Judith Longfield

Centers for Teaching Excellence: Presentations

Parker Palmer speaks of the “privatization of teaching” as one of the factors that prevent faculty from growing “more fully into the demands of the teacher’s craft.” At the same time, new methodologies of teaching and learning are changing the landscape of higher education. Because of privatization, faculty and TA are often unaware of how learning works and continue to rely heavily on lecture. During this interactive session, participants will learn how an eight-week “course” known as the Teaching Academy transformed participants’ attitudes towards learning-centered teaching. By assuming the role of students while learning about teaching using these new methodologies …

Transforming Education Into The 21st Century By Integrating 1:1 Ipads, Kermit E. Belcher

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A capstone submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Education in the College of Education at Morehead State University by Kermit E. Belcher on March 1, 2014.

Effectiveness Of A Poverty Simulation In Second Life®: Changing Nursing Student Attitudes Toward Poor People, Nancy Menzel, Laura Helen Willson, Jessica Doolen

Nursing Faculty Research

Social justice is a fundamental value of the nursing profession, challenging educators to instill this professional value when caring for the poor. This randomized controlled trial examined whether an interactive virtual poverty simulation created in Second Life^® would improve nursing students’ empathy with and attributions for people living in poverty, compared to a self-study module. We created a multi-user virtual environment populated with families and individual avatars that represented the demographics contributing to poverty and vulnerability. Participants (N = 51 baccalaureate nursing students) were randomly assigned to either Intervention or Control groups and completed the modified Attitudes toward …

Graduate Students’ Perceptions Of Written Feedback At A Private University In Pakistan, Lubna Ghazal, Raisa B. Gul, Mehnaz Hanzala, Tansy Jessop, Ambreen Tharani

School of Nursing & Midwifery

Excellence in academic performance at the graduate level requires good command of writing skills. Teachers’ written feedback can help students to develop their writing skills. However, several personal and contextual factors may influence feedback processes and its utilization by students. Therefore, understanding these factors is essential to improve the practice of written feedback. This study aimed to appraise the quality of written feedback in the graduate programmes and to ascertain students’ perceptions about it at a private university in Pakistan. A purposive sample of 15 participants comprised the study. The data were collected through in-depth students’ interviews and the teachers’ …

Sense Of Community In A Blended Technology Integration Course: A Design-Based Research Study, John Buckley Harrison

Theses and Dissertations

This design-based research study explored whether Sense of Community was maintained while flexibility in the course was increased through an adoption of a unique blended learning model. Data collected in this study show a significant drop in the sense of connectedness score from a mean of 50.8 out of 66 to a mean of 39.68 in the first iteration. The score then began to gradually increase, reaching 50.65 in the third iteration. Results indicate that transitioning to a blended learning environment may be a suitable option to increase flexibility while maintaining a Sense of Community in a project-based course. Future …

The Use Of Play In Speech And Occupational Therapy, Jodi Ehrenkranz, Caroline Laferla

Psychology and Child Development

Sensory Processing Disorder and speech impairment affect millions of children in the United States. Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) affects a child’s development leading to difficulties with “detecting, modulating, interpreting, and/or organizing sensory stimuli” (Miller, Nielsen & Schoen, 2012, p.804). Furthermore, these children may find it difficult to self-regulate their behavior. Speech impairment is typically described as speech sound disorders (SSD), which involves a child having difficulties with communicating or correctly producing their native language (Brumbaugh, Smit, Nippold & Marinellie, 2013). Brumbaugh et al. (2013) also found that these children were likely to develop a poor self-image which provides even more …

A Primer On Charter Schools And The Law, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The charter school movement began in 1991, when Minnesota enacted the first law authorizing their creation. To date, 41 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico permit the creation of charter schools, according to the National Charter School Resource Center (n.d.).

Charter schools, public schools of choice, are usually operated as not-for-profit institutions independently or occasionally in conjunction with public organizations, such as colleges and universities. As such, they have generally survived challenges to their constitutionality.

This column provides a primer for education leaders on the legal basics associated with the operations of charter schools. It does not …

The Changing Format For Delivering An Effective Message Using Video And Multimedia In Education, Instruction, And Various Forms Of Communications: A Descriptive Analysis Using Public Relations Theory, Rachael Leigh Burnham

Journalism

ABSTRACT

Given the evolving nature of the forms of mass media in communication, it is imperative to stay up-to-date with the changes that occur in developing platforms of technology, as well as how these advancements are effecting new generations of learners and communicators. Generation Y students have developed a spectrum of learning styles and preferences due to their deep rooted connection to technology that has caused a conflict in learning with traditional, written instruction and communication. No longer do students just want to either read or listen, and video or multimedia platforms can provide them with the resources they may …

Secondary Social Studies Teachers' Experiences Implementing Common Core State Literacy Standards, Krista Webb

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the experiences of secondary social studies teachers who implemented Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in history/social studies, science and technical subjects in social studies courses requiring End of Course Tests at secondary schools in one suburban district in Georgia. Ten teachers of United States history and economics courses participated in this study. Data was collected through questionnaires, reflective online journaling, documents, individual interviews, and focus groups. Analysis was conducted using transcription, thematic coding, textural and structural descriptions, and a composite description of the essence of the …

Learning Styles, Subject Matter, And Effectiveness In Undergraduate Distance Education, Darren Wu

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Are potential relationships among students' learning styles and effectiveness in online education moderated by subject matter for undergraduate students at a private higher education institution? This causal relationship correlational study evaluated the effects of subject matter as a moderating variable between students learning styles and effectiveness of distance education (DE). Students in online English courses and online math courses at a private university located in the southeastern United States completed the Index of Learning Styles (ILS) instrument and an end of course satisfaction survey. Tests for homogeneity determined that the two comparison groups (English and math) were comparable since only …