Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Editorial: Invention Education And Stem: Perspectives And Possibilities, Joanna K. Garner, Shiri D. Gandhi, Adam V. Maltese

Center for Educational Partnerships Publications

[Introduction] Generating solutions for society's complex problems requires a diverse workforce dedicated to technological and social innovation, and sustained efforts toward invention: the process of creating new, novel, and useful products to overcome challenges that affect quality of life and productivity (Couch et al. 2019). Historically, opportunities for K-12 students to develop inventive acumen have been rare and inequitably distributed, partly because educators were expected to provide such experiences without the support of professional development, curricular materials, and instructional examples. These issues have become the focus of an emergent field called Invention Education (IvE). IvE uses trans-disciplinary, equity-oriented …

Extending A Pretrained Language Model (Bert) Using An Ontological Perspective To Classify Students' Scientific Expertise Level From Written Responses, Heqiao Wang, Kevin C. Haudek, Amanda D. Manzanares, Chelsie L. Romulo, Emily A. Royse, Caterina B. Azzarello

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

The complex and interdisciplinary nature of scientific concepts presents formidable challenges for students in developing their knowledge-in-use skills. The utilization of computerized analysis for evaluating students' contextualized constructed responses offers a potential avenue for educators to develop personalized and scalable interventions, thus supporting the current teaching and learning of science. While prior research in artificial intelligence has demonstrated the effectiveness of algorithms, including Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT), in tasks like automated classifications of constructed responses, these efforts have predominantly leaned towards text-level features, often overlooking the exploration of conceptual ideas embedded in students' responses from a cognitive perspective. …

การจัดการเรียนรู้เคมีโดยใช้การออกแบบเชิงวิศวกรรมเพื่อพัฒนาการคิดเชิงระบบ และเจตคติต่อวิชาเคมีของนักเรียนมัธยมศึกษาตอนปลาย, ศุภธิดา ลุลอบ

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

การวิจัยครั้งนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อ (1) เปรียบเทียบความสามารถด้านการคิดเชิงระบบของผู้เรียนก่อนและหลังได้รับการจัดการเรียนรู้โดยการออกแบบเชิงวิศวกรรมเคมี และ (2) ศึกษาเจตคติต่อวิชาเคมีของผู้เรียนหลังการจัดการเรียนรู้ดังกล่าว กลุ่มเป้าหมายเป็นผู้เรียนชายระดับชั้นมัธยมศึกษาปีที่ 5-6 ที่ลงทะเบียนเรียนในรายวิชาเลือกเฉพาะทางเคมีอุตสาหกรรม จำนวน 25 คน จากโรงเรียนขนาดใหญ่พิเศษแห่งหนึ่ง เครื่องมือวิจัยประกอบด้วย แผนการจัดการเรียนรู้โดยการออกแบบเชิงวิศวกรรมเคมี แบบทดสอบวัดความสามารถด้านการคิดเชิงระบบจำนวน 15 ข้อ และแบบวัดเจตคติต่อวิชาเคมีที่ผ่านการตรวจสอบคุณภาพซ้ำ การเก็บข้อมูลใช้การทดสอบก่อนและหลังเรียน และวิเคราะห์ข้อมูลด้วยค่าเฉลี่ย ส่วนเบี่ยงเบนมาตรฐาน สถิติทดสอบทีแบบกลุ่มสัมพันธ์ (Paired sample t-test) และสถิติทดสอบอันดับเครื่องหมายของวิลคอกซัน (Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test) ผลการวิจัยพบว่า คะแนนความสามารถด้านการคิดเชิงระบบหลังเรียนเฉลี่ยร้อยละ 59.63 สูงกว่าก่อนเรียนที่เฉลี่ยร้อยละ 30.00 อย่างมีนัยสำคัญทางสถิติที่ระดับ .05 (t = -27.13, p< .001) และมีคะแนนเฉลี ่ยหลังเรียนสูงกว่าก่อนเรียนในทุกองค์ประกอบ โดยเฉพาะด้านพฤติกรรม ของระบบ มีพัฒนาการมากที ่สุด นอกจากนี ้ พบว่าเจตคติต่อวิชาเคมีหลังเรียนอยู ่ในระดับสูง โดยเฉพาะด้านประโยชน์ของเคมีต่ออาชีพในอนาคตซึ่งสูงกว่าเกณฑ์อย่างมีนัยส าคัญทางสถิติ แสดง ให้เห็นว่าการจัดการเรียนรู้โดยการออกแบบเชิงวิศวกรรมเคมีมีประสิทธิผลในการส่งเสริมทั้ง ความสามารถด้านการคิดเชิงระบบและเจตคติต่อวิชาเคมีของผู้เรียน

Using Abandoned Model Systems And Historical Literature To Teach Modern Concepts And Techniques In Cell Biology, Leocadia V. Paliulis, Gunar Fabig, Sandra Stein, Silke Tulok, Anja Nobst, Chukwuebuka William Okafornta, Thomas Kurth, Thomas Müller-Reichert

Faculty Journal Articles

The cell biology literature of the 19th and early-to-mid 20th centuries is full of the seminal works that were critical for the development of our current understanding of biology but were done using model systems that are no longer commonly used. We argue that these historical papers are ideal for the development of course-based research experiences, both because the background work is conceptually and technically straightforward, and because the study of the abandoned systems stopped prior to the availability of modern techniques. These abandoned systems offer outstanding opportunities for teaching modern light and electron microscopy techniques, thus providing students with …

Incorporating And Aligning An Ngss Phenomena-Based Approach In Science And The Impacts On Student Learning, Mallory A. Hoffman

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Next Generation Science Standards represent a significant shift in how science has traditionally been taught. They incorporate the three dimensions of disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices, and crosscutting concepts. The Next Generation Science Standards continue to shift the science classroom from a teacher-centered to a student-centered approach, giving students more choice over their learning. Adopting this approach can also be more inclusive and support all students by allowing them to bring their experiences into the classroom. A phenomena-based approach supports this by putting students in charge of investigating, which can foster student agency through their learning. However, …

Representation In Engineering-Focused Children's Literature: A Critical Content Analysis, Angela Eckhoff

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Children’s picturebooks have long been understood as a powerful medium for exploring aspects of children’s lives, experiences, and identities serving as mirrors which allow children to see themselves reflected, as windows through which they can gain insight into the experiences of others, and as sliding glass doors when children are connected to the story and characters in meaningful ways. Utilizing a critical content analytic approach, this research examined the identity markers and engineering practices found in contemporary children’s picturebooks with an engineering focus. The analysis yielded key themes that highlight the ways children can interact and connect to the characters …

Perceptions Of Stem Education And Artificial Intelligence: A Twitter (X) Sentiment Analysis, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi, Yoseph Mamo, Jinhee Kim, Helen Crompton, Matthew Mcconnell

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Background, context, and purpose of the study: Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly prevalent in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, holding promising potential for supporting the design and implementation of quality STEM education. However, there is a lack of data-based research studying the diverse perceptions of AI in STEM education as conveyed on social media, the factors that influence those perceptions, or the change in those perceptions over time among public audiences. Results, the main findings: The purpose of this study was to examine public perceptions of AI in STEM education by analyzing X posts (Tweets) between 04/28/2020 …

Teaching To Whom And With Whom: The Role Of Context In Developing Preservice Teachers' Self-Efficacy For Teaching Engineering And Coding Via Robotics, Jennifer Kidd, Kristie Gutierrez, Min Jung Lee, Danielle Rhemer, Pilar Pazos, Krishna Kaipa, Stacie Ringleb, Orlando Ayala

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Due to mandates for the inclusion of engineering and computer science standards for K-6 schools nationwide, there is a need to understand how teacher educators can help develop preservice teachers’ (PSTs’) teaching self-efficacy in these areas. To provide experience teaching and learning engineering and coding, PSTs in an instructional technology course were partnered with undergraduate engineering students in an electromechanical systems course to teach robotics lessons to fifth graders (10–11 year olds) over Zoom. A multi-case study approach explored teaching self-efficacy development for three preservice teachers during their robotics project experiences using multiple data sources, including surveys, reflections, interviews, and …

Teacher Moves For Building A Mathematical Modeling Classroom Community, Ayse Ozturk

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This study investigates the role of teacher talk moves in cultivating a mathematical modeling classroom community. From the models and modeling perspective, it explores how specific teacher talk moves promote student participation in modeling phases and the exchange of ideas with other students. Through a four-week after-school program involving eight secondary students, data were collected from small-group and whole-class discussions. The findings reveal that teacher talk moves can be categorized into three core types: eliciting students’ ideas, introducing key terms and ideas used in mathematical modeling, and encouraging students to take a position during discussions. These moves are shown to …

Rural Families' At-Home Stem Tinkering Stimulates Creativity, Self-Expression, And Social-Emotional Engagement, Kristie S. Gutierrez, Kylie J. Swanson, Margaret R. Blanchard

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Introduction: Informal STEM learning experiences include visits to museums, zoos, and aquariums as well as experiments and other activities performed at home. Family involvement in these experiences has been linked to increased student interest and participation in STEM fields; yet, scant research has been conducted on at-home STEM.

Methods: This descriptive case study investigated the tinkering experiences of nine rural middle school students and their families who participated in a series of interactive, at-home activities. The overarching research question was, in what ways do families engage in at-home STEM interventions? Data analyses of at-home audio recordings were guided by the …

Teaching Engineering To Enhance Beginning Elementary Preservice Teachers' Engineering-Related Knowledge And Beliefs, Jennifer Kidd, Danielle Rhemer, Kristie Gutierrez, Stacie I. Ringleb, Krishnanand Kaipa, Orlando Ayala, Pilar Pazos, Francisco Cima, Isaac Kumi

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Background

Teacher educators have begun exploring the most effective ways to prepare preservice teachers (PSTs) to engage elementary students in engineering design. However, this remains challenging as PSTs continue to report a lack of exposure to engineering during their K-12 school experiences. This study investigates the engineering-related knowledge and beliefs of PSTs in their first education course, collaborating in small teams to lead elementary students in engineering design challenges. We explored two different iterations to understand how the structure of the teaching experiences contributed to PST outcomes as a first step in identifying helpful approaches. In spring 2022, PSTs collaborated …

Scholarly Inquiry And Practice In Mathematics Teacher Education Through Intimate Scholarship, Signe E. Kastberg, Elizabeth Suazo-Flores, Melva Grant, Olive Chapman

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Historically scholarly inquiry and practice in mathematics education has responded to societal values and questions. Drawing from the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education’s description of mathematics teacher educator (MTE) work as in solidarity with and alongside mathematics teachers, we turn to mathematics teacher education research as a series of paradigm shifts. MTEs committed to supporting teachers and transferring knowledge attempted to influence mathematics teachers’ work by exploring and understanding teachers’ behaviors. MTEs have also used insider’s perspectives to report the particular of MTEs’ work by describing it beyond behavior and knowledge. These scholars fulfill the call for theoretical eclecticism …

Exploring Physics Teacher Identity: Pathways Toward Equitable Instruction Among Teachers, Clausell Mathis, Jomo Mutegi, Turhan Carroll, Maya Patel, Andrea Wooley

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Physics teacher identity encompasses teachers' beliefs and views toward being a physics teacher. Physics teacher identity is influenced by teachers' perspectives on physics teaching and learning. Previous studies on teacher identity in general suggest that the construct is complex and malleable. Studies further suggest that it influences instructional methods, student engagement, and classroom environment. However, within physics education, there has yet to be an examination of how physics teacher identity influences "equitable" teaching approaches. This qualitative study sought to identify various dimensions of physics teacher identity and its implications for physics education research. We interviewed secondary and postsecondary physics teachers …

Dataset For "The Role Of Metacognition And Confidence In Quantitative Reasoning In College Biology Courses", Joseph Dauer, Anum Khushal, Brian A. Couch, Robert L. Mayes, Kent Rittschof

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Quantitative modelling is a fundamental skill for biology students with performance determined by a host of cognitive and metacognitive resources and requiring instructors to integrate key quantitative dimensions into teaching biology. Using an assessment of quantitative modelling in biology, we explored biology students’ (n = 930 higher education students) modelling practices (i.e., abilities to create, test, revise), metacognition about the nature of models and confidence in their capabilities to model. Students performed best on items related to understanding variables used in models and performed more poorly on items related to interpreting, creating, and using models to understand biological phenomena. …

Nebraska Summary #1293: Fendt 618 Vario, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data. EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES Purpose The purpose of …

A Critical Approach To Analyzing And Addressing Worldview-Based Cultural Conflict Between Indigenous Peoples And Western Science In Education And Research, Deborah H. Williams

Sabbatical Projects

Intercultural conflict exists in science education and research, I argue as a result of differences between the Western scientific worldview and the Indigenous worldview. Native Americans are the most underrepresented group in STEM, and this has been the case, in my personal experience for over two decades. Western science is not universal or acultural, Indigenous peoples have their own ways of knowing founded on different philosophical assumptions and recognizing metaphysical phenomena and explanations that are rejected by Western science and the positivist/post-positivist paradigm. Through the power of colonial privilege, scientists, science departments, and science disciplines have been able to erect …

Program And Proceedings: Nebraska Academy Of Sciences 1880–2025, 145th Anniversary Year, One Hundred-Thirty-Fifth Annual Meeting

Nebraska Academy of Sciences: Programs and Proceedings

Program

Aeronautics and Space Science

Biological and Medical Sciences

Biology

Chemistry

Earth Sciences

Science Education

Anthropology

Applied Science and Technology

Physics and Engineering

Forensic Sciences

Ecology, Sustainability, and Environmental Science

Maiben Lecture: Mary Ann Vinton, "State of the Academy"

Friends of Science Awards: David Crouse and Daniel Sitzman

Using Children's Picture Books To Teach Mathematical And Numeracy Concepts: An Exploration Of The Aesthetic Value Of Mathematics For Preservice Teachers’ Dispositions, Mellie Green, Lorraine Gaunt, Georgina M. Barton

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Evidence suggests that preservice teachers tend to have negative dispositions towards the teaching of mathematics and/or numeracy. In response, this paper describes the work of three experienced teacher educators using high-quality children’s picture books to teach mathematical and/or numeracy concepts as well as foregrounding the aesthetic value of mathematics. The purpose of this type of reading is to support and improve preservice teacher dispositions towards mathematics and/or numeracy with children’s picture books. Using metalogue as methodology, the researchers discussed mathematical and/or numeracy concepts and explored the aesthetic value of mathematics within selected picture books. They used the Australian Curriculum’s General …

Training Module And Assessment Strategy For Light Microscopy Skills Training In A Research Environment, Kristopher E. Kubow, Joseph A. Harsh

Faculty Scholarship

Training in specialized techniques and instrumentation is an important component of undergraduate and graduate education. While such training can occur in formal lab courses, it also occurs as students engage in research. Although training in a research lab setting is typically informal, implementing evidence-based practices from the classroom would be beneficial, particularly for learning complex techniques and instruments, for example, light microscopy. Using advanced microscopes for research is more complicated than using teaching microscopes in a course. In addition, microscopes are easy to misuse because they will generally always produce an image even if that image is suboptimal, misleading, or …

Belonging: Data Reasoning, About Ourselves And Others, Eva Thanheiser, Molly Robinson, Simon Byeonguk Han, Amanda Sugimoto, Courtney Koestler, Mathew Felton-Koestler

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Using Watson’s belonging framework and GAISE II data reasoning, this lesson invites students to collect, analyze, and represent personal data. In doing so, they see themselves and their peers reflected in the work, reinforcing their value as active participants in both mathematical thinking and the classroom community.