Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Bringing Real Research Into Large-Enrollment Biology Labs, Katrina Klugh Stewart, Mathilda Corbett

2026 Scholarly Teaching Conference: Poster Session Papers

Hundreds of WVU students in a large-enrollment introductory biology laboratory course (BIOL 115L) participated in an authentic research experience through the Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE) Project. This national crowdsourced research initiative engages students in generating environmental DNA data to identify potential antibiotic resistance hotspots. For the Fall 2025 semester, we designed a multi-week lab module to implement a cost-effective, scalable version of the PARE model suitable for a course serving approximately 900 students annually.

The three-week sequence integrates core scientific practices, including hypothesis generation, field sampling, DNA extraction, PCR amplification of antibiotic resistance genes, gel electrophoresis, …

Connections Between Mathematics And Chemistry: An Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Curricular Initiative, George Ashline, Bret Findley

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

In this article, we describe an undergraduate curricular initiative involving mathematics and chemistry faculty and students. Supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Program, a program designed to encourage the study of and connections between quantitative fields and life sciences, this interdisciplinary collaboration features undergraduate student research and involves the development of curricular connections between mathematics and chemistry. Through this initiative, we have created activities for calculus courses featuring chemistry applications as well as activities for chemistry courses showcasing mathematical concepts. After the implementation of these curricular enhancements, we gathered student …

From Questions To Action: A Multi-Year Journey Toward Instructional Excellence In Middle School Mathematics, Courtney Baker, Johnna Bolyard, Deborah Crawford, Divya Varier

Journal of Mathematics and Science: Collaborative Explorations

This paper describes the evolution of a research-practice partnership (RPP) designed to understand the impact of data-informed decision making initiatives on supporting ambitious mathematics instruction and how middle-school based mathematics specialists facilitate those initiatives. While school-university partnerships have a history of designing, implementing, and studying instructional improvement efforts, the impact of such efforts on practice is not clear (Cai et al., 2017b; Denner et al., 2019; Henrick et al., 2016). Over the first three years of our partnership, we have collected data from a variety of sources and shared them in ongoing data conversations with a range of district-level collaborators. …

Practicing Professionalism Framework: A Coherent Course Structure Aligned With Effective Practices For Physics Programs (Ep3) Guidelines, Martha-Elizabeth Baylor, Suzanne White Brahmia

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Work

Many physics educators seek to improve their courses but feel constrained by traditional post-secondary structures and norms. Instructors often perceive a false tension between fostering inclusive learning environments and maintaining the rigor central to the discipline. The Effective Practices for Physics Programs (EP3) Guide synthesizes decades of research-based recommendations for improving physics education. However, it offers limited guidance on how to integrate these diverse recommendations into a coherent, course-level approach—a responsibility that falls to individual instructors, whose graduate training prepared them primarily as researchers rather than as educators. This paper begins by motivating and introducing the Practicing Professionalism Framework (PPF), …

Dataset: The Impact Of External Resource Use On The Validity Of Score Interpretation For A Biology Concept Assessment Administered Out-Of-Class, Tiffany J. Burgess, Crystal Uminski, Gia Alicea, Brian A. Couch

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Instructors use concept assessments to gauge student knowledge and guide course improvement. Many instructors experience time and logistical constraints around administering these assessments in class. For this reason, administering concept assessments outside of class can help increase feasibility. While previous studies have cautioned that the use of external resources (e.g., internet, course notes, peers) in the out-of-class setting may inflate assessment scores, the extent to which undergraduate students access various resources when completing concept assessments is unknown. The current study uses two survey question formats to better understand whether students engage with external resources when taking a biology concept assessment …

Dataset: Participation Versus Points: Examining The Impact Of Grading Conditions On Student Resource Use During An Out-Of-Class Biology Concept Assessment, Tiffany J. Burgess, Crystal Uminski, Brian A. Couch

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Instructors use concept assessments to collect diagnostic information regarding student learning and to inform decisions surrounding instructional interventions and course modifications. Administering concept assessments out-of-class helps preserve already limited instructional time, but instructors still must consider whether to apply a lower-stakes (i.e., participation) versus higher-stakes (i.e., correctness) grading scheme. An increase in stakes is likely to prompt additional effort, but it may also increase undesired behaviors and inadvertently prompt external resource use, such as students leveraging their notes, the internet, or their peers. In the present study, we compared student self-reported resource use on a biology concept assessment administered under …

A Large Language Model-Based Academic Advising Assistant For Engineering Technology Students, Murat Kuzlu, Vukica M. Jovanovic, Katherine Smith, Otilia Popescu, Adel El-Shahat, Ryan Cotton, Kayla Marie Seegers, William Austin Henderson

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based solutions, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), have been applied to a variety of domains, such as energy, finance, transportation, healthcare, and education. Among these domains, education has become increasingly popular due to strong interest among educators and students. This study proposes an academic advising assistant system that uses LLMs to help Engineering Technology (ET) students plan their course load based on their educational history, departmental course offerings, and personal constraints, such as their preferred semester course load. The proposed LLM-based academic advising assistant system maintains a database of students' course histories and upcoming course …

Wip: Arduino-Based Pbl To Foster Entrepreneurial Mindset, Nathan Q. Holland, Vukica M. Jovanovic

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

This work-in-progress paper examines a semester-long project-based learning initiative begun in an introductory engineering course during the Fall 2025 semester. The project aims to enhance students' hands-on experience by integrating information literacy, the engineering design process (EDP), and an entrepreneurial mindset (EM) [1]. The objective is to boost student confidence in teamwork, technical problem-solving, and application of skills, preparing them for future courses in their discipline. Students in this introduction to engineering course received an Arduino Uno R3 Controller board kit and additional sensors. They were tasked to develop a device addressing engineering in the medicine challenge of their choosing. …

Challenging Stem Learning Spaces: The Paradigm Of Contemplative Traditions As The Bedrock Of Creativity And Healing, Raaghav Pandya, Christopher Emdin

Publications and Research

As the post-pandemic classroom and pedagogy evolve to remedy oppressive norms, young people’s mental health and alienation has taken front stage (Rahmani & Zitouni, 2022). Traditional STEM learning spaces often teach inquiry as a linear, non-deviated approach to problems about self and nature (Hrisa & Psillos, 2022). Furthermore, because our classrooms often strip students and educators of their inherent creative abilities through constant assessments, improvement scales, and market-driven expectations, classrooms cease to become places of healing (Pandya, 2021). Eastern wisdom traditions and their associated philosophies provide a unique pedagogical lens that emphasizes a deep inquiry into self, empathy, and creativity …

Ancient Wisdom & Its Cultural Relevance: Reimagining Deeper Learning In Science Classrooms Through The Lens Of Yoga And Vedānta, Raaghav Pandya

Publications and Research

Contemporary calls to reconceptualize how science is taught and understood have brought deeper learning to the forefront of education at-large for its emphasis on critical perspectives, creativity, and student-centered inquiry. Yet this paper argues that its prevailing framework remains constrained by Cartesian dualism, a materialist foundation that disassociates the individual from self, other, and nature, and falls short of addressing the mental health, environmental, and cultural challenges facing youth today. To address this limitation, this paper proposes a complementary convergence between deeper learning and the contemplative traditions of Yoga and Vedānta, whose ancient paradigms of self-inquiry, interconnectedness, and well-being offer …

Framing The Gray: A Photovoice Study Of Parents’ Experiences Supporting Elementary Mathematics Learning At Home, Rebekah Ulmer

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

This narrative photovoice study explored how elementary parents understand their role in supporting mathematics at home. The research asked three foundational questions: How do parents of elementary students describe their personal experiences with learning mathematics? How do parents of elementary students describe their experiences with supporting mathematics at home with their children? What factors influence parents' experiences with mathematics? Fourteen parents, eight with experience as educators and six without, participated by sharing photographs in response to five prompts and discussing what those images meant to them. Their stories revealed that, for these families, mathematics isn't neatly divided into “school math” …

Connecting Classroom Physics To Real-World Research: A Citizen Science Approach In Ap Physics 1, Heather M. Landgarten

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Advanced Placement (AP) Physics 1 emphasizes evidence-based reasoning, quantitative modeling, and scientific inquiry. However, secondary science instruction often remains focused on procedural problem solving and standardized assessment rather than authentic scientific practice. This study examined the integration of citizen science projects into an AP Physics 1 curriculum to provide students with authentic research experiences while reinforcing physics concepts during the post-AP examination instructional period.

Using a classroom-based mixed-methods pre–post design, students participated in citizen science activities through publicly available research platforms, including Zooniverse. Students collected and classified authentic scientific data, analyzed real-world datasets, developed research questions, compared observations with theoretical …

An Examination Of The Self-Regulation Strategies Of Students In An Inquiry-Based Learning With Aleks Support Course, Peter Sassman

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore what self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies students use in developmental mathematics classes that use self-described inquiry-based learning (IBL) and ALEKS as homework, as well as their perceptions of this course style. An additional purpose is to discover how instructors implement IBL in their classrooms, including the activities the instructors and students engage in. SRL skills and strategies have been shown to be correlated to academic achievement in mathematics classrooms; however, there is a lack of research on students’ SRL strategies in classes that use both IBL and technological support such as ALEKS. In …

Integrating Design Thinking In A Stem Methods Course, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Design thinking, a problem-solving approach, has been offered as a strategy to address the challenges of growing and complex teaching expectations. In this narrative, I describe an adapted model of design thinking that was implemented in a secondary STEM methods course for teacher candidates in a graduate program. A description of the key activities, including the fundamental role of empathizing, is shared. Design thinking, when implemented by teachers and teacher candidates, allows the teacher to design and improve a lesson or unit based on student feedback and engagement. This is especially important in today's rapidly evolving educational landscape, where educators …

Secondary Teachers' Experiences In International Professional Development For Convergence Research In Stem And Tradition, Rachel Sparks White, Kristie S. Gutierrez, James K. Ferri

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Convergence education promotes learning experiences that integrate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to address complex real-world problems. However, secondary teachers often report limited access to professional development (PD) and curricular resources that support transdisciplinary instruction. This exploratory case study examines how four secondary teachers (three chemistry; one engineering) made sense of a transdisciplinary PD model, Convergence Research in STEM and Tradition (CReST), that leverages cultural heritage artifacts (Renaissance frescoes) as boundary objects to connect chemistry, engineering, world history, and technology. Teachers participated in a four-day immersive PD experience in Firenze (Florence) and Pisa, Italy, that included site-based learning, interaction …

'I Want To Learn Biology And Preserve My Culture' Testing The Efficacy Of A Culturally Relevant And Context Specific Approach, Umar Adam, Musa Adekunle Ayanwale, Hafsat Mustapha, Sakibu Olajide Saibu, Tunde Owolabi, Adekunle Ibrahim Oladejo

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Background

The dominance of Western-inspired teaching methods and instructional materials has contributed to cultural erosion in African schools. In response, increasing attention has been directed toward culturally responsive approaches to decolonising science education. One such approach is the Culturo-Techno-Contextual Approach (CTCA), which enables African students to conceptualize science as culturally embedded knowledge, integrated into their everyday experiences and practically relevant to their lived realities.

Purpose

This study examined the potency of the CTCA in enhancing students' achievement in the biology topic of variation, which is widely regarded as conceptually challenging.

Sample

The study involved 105 Senior Secondary II students from …

Artifact Centered Interdisciplinary Instruction Supports Secondary Student Learning In Chemistry History And Engineering, Rachel Sparks White, Kristie S. Gutierrez, James K. Ferri

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Secondary STEM instruction often remains organized in disciplinary silos, limiting opportunities for students to apply Concepts across domains incoherent, authentic contexts. This mixed methods implementation study examined Convergence Research in STEM and Tradition (CReST), an Artifact centered interdisciplinary curriculum model designed to connect chemistry, world history, and engineering through a shared instructional context. In this implementation, Italian frescoes served as a boundary object anchoring a six-day sequence on mural materials, deterioration, and restoration. The sequence integrated targeted concepts in inorganic chemistry (e.g., the lime cycle and thermal processes), renaissance era historical contacts and the engineering design process within tasks related …

Girls Stem Institute: Impacting Black Girls' Self-Efficacy And Interest In Stem Careers, Crystal Morton, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi, Danka Maric, Vidushi Adlakha, Robin Jackson

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Nationally and globally, STEM serves as a gatekeeper to the labor market and higher education opportunities. Many Black girls find themselves locked out of the gate. Historically and contemporarily, Black girls are seldom viewed as capable or worthy of educational investment and face unique and ongoing challenges in K-12 STEM learning spaces due to their gender and racial identities. Research suggests that informal STEM learning spaces can serve as a counter to Black girls’ experiences in K-12 schools and help enhance Black girls’ self-efficacy and STEM career interests. This study explores the impact of a four-week informal STEM program, employing …

Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions Of Literacy In Stem Classroom Instruction By Implementation Of Project-Based Lessons, Sarah Ferguson, Maryam Enderson, Jamie Colwell

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This study examines how project-based learning (PBL) supports pre-service STEM teachers (PSTs) in understanding and applying disciplinary literacy in classroom instruction. Conducted in a semester-long PBL course at a mid-sized public university, the research explores PSTs’ shifting perceptions of literacy in STEM and the challenges and successes they experience. Using qualitative methods grounded in student voice and case study frameworks, data were collected through focus groups, reflections, and lesson plan analyses. Findings show PSTs initially held narrow views of literacy but developed more nuanced understandings through PBL. Key successes included increased confidence and use of inquiry-based strategies; challenges involved time …

Supporting Teacher Candidates' Conceptions Of Equitable Mathematics Teaching: Using Exposure And Experience In Elementary Mathematics Methods Courses, Amanda Mohammad Mirzaei, Ethan P. Smith

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Elementary mathematics methods courses may provide a lever to help support teacher candidates in their trajectory to becoming equitable mathematics teachers. To support the rising generation of mathematics teachers, mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) must critically analyze approaches to equity within and across teacher preparation programs. This study investigates an elementary mathematics course centering equitable mathematics teaching and learning (EMT), rather than isolating or using it as a supplementary aspect. We consider a framework of the teacher learning trajectory (Turner et al., 2012) where teacher candidates learn initial practices, make connections, and then incorporate these practices into their teaching. We extend …