Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Geometric Transformations In Middle School Mathematics Textbooks, Barbara Zorin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study analyzed treatment of geometric transformations in presently available middle grades (6, 7, 8) student mathematics textbooks. Fourteen textbooks from four widely used textbook series were evaluated: two mainline publisher series, Pearson (Prentice Hall) and Glencoe (Math Connects); one National Science Foundation (NSF) funded curriculum project textbook series, Connected Mathematics 2; and one non-NSF funded curriculum project, the University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (UCSMP).

A framework was developed to distinguish the characteristics in the treatment of geometric transformations and to determine the potential opportunity to learn transformation concepts as measured by textbook physical characteristics, lesson narratives, and analysis …

Opportunity To Learn (Otl) And The Alignment Of Upper Division Mathematics Learning Outcomes, Textbooks, And The National Assessment In Belize, Gabriel Cal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study I investigate the degree of alignment among the learning outcomes, textbooks, and the national assessment in Belize. To establish the degree of alignment, Webb‘s Four Cognitive Levels of Depth of Knowledge was used to analyze the levels of cognitive demand for each curriculum. The degree of alignment of the learning outcomes with the test items and textbooks was used to determine the extent to which the textbooks provide students with the opportunity to study the learning outcomes assessed by the national assessment. The opportunity to learn (OTL) measures addressed were the curricular content coverage and types of …

Looking Smart Is Not The Ultimate Goal: An Examination Of A Gifted And Talented Science Program, Kym S. Tan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

At Metropolitan High School (MHS) a gifted and talented science program (GTSP) operates to meet the educational needs of exceptional students. Academic achievement is dependent on many factors including cognitive ability, goal orientation, selfregulation of learning and self-efficacy. Few studies have attempted to investigate the significance of each of these in special populations particularly in the academic field of science. The literature indicates that educational programs should be subject to evaluation, yet such evaluation is not routinely carried out. In a balanced teaching system, components such as curriculum, teaching methods, assessment procedures and classroom environment are aligned so that they …

The Impact Of Student Created Slowmation On The Teaching And Learning Of Primary Science, Jeffrey Brown

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Current research indicates that although innovations in science teaching are having a positive impact on science education in many Australian schools, national and international assessments show that student achievement is not improving (Hackling & Prain, 2008; Thomson, Wernet, Underwood, & Nicholas, 2008). Furthermore, there is little or no increase in the number of students choosing science as a post-compulsory study option or as a career path. There remains a need to further develop innovative teaching methods that promote the development of students‟ scientific literacy, engenders a joy of science learning through student engagement and encourages a desire to pursue further …

Exploring Literacy Across The Curriculum: Writing In The Mathematics Classroom, Sarah E. Heddinger

Honors Program Theses

The purpose of my Honors thesis is to find evidence that writing in mathematics benefits both students and teachers. To research this claim, I viewed how writing takes place in mathematics within a specific elementary classroom. I hoped to view mathematics lessons in which literacy, specifically writing, was involved as an integral part of every lesson.

Maggie And Her Students: Talking And Reasoning In A Reform-Based Mathematics Classroom, Debra Louise Semm Rich

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

In this qualitative case study, I explored how Maggie, the teacher, and her students used language to advance students' conceptual understanding of mathematics in a reform-based mathematics classroom. Specifically I sought to describe how Maggie's reform-based mathematics classroom environment impacted the quantity and quality of mathematical language spoken by her students. Maggie's eighth-grade mathematics classroom was observed during a course of study on data and statistics. Three semi-structured interviews with Maggie, artifacts provided by her, and fourteen 52-minute classroom lessons, supported with field notes, were analyzed.

Environmental themes were revealed as they related to Maggie, her beliefs, goals, knowledge, and …

Determining Students' Working Conceptions Of Evolution Through Formative Assessment Probes, Danielle J. Burras

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Students entering a science classroom bring with them many ideas about science content and the nature of science. Some of those ideas are not congruent with current scientific explanations and can be called working conceptions. Working conceptions have the ability to impact how students respond to new information and whether or not they integrate it into their lives outside of the classroom. Identifying what working conceptions students have prior to instruction allows educators to determine how instruction should be formatted and what concepts may need extra focus. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effectiveness of formative assessment …

Using Novels In The Science Classroom, Hannah Llewellyn Haarhues

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Reading is a key factor in the success of students through their school years as well as their lives. With Americans reading less and falling behind in subjects as they progress through the school system, reading is the subject area that benefits all aspects of their schooling. Studies done from the 1990s on have shown successful reading programs improve standardized test scores of school age students. Trade books in place of textbooks had been explored, but only in middle school or younger. This study uses a survey to explore high school biology students' opinions on reading and science before and …

Barriers That Iowa High School Biology Teachers Face When Teaching Evolution In The Classroom, Joshua Michael Hanna

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

After decades of court cases, decided in favor of evolution being taught, legal decisions where the incorporation of teaching creationist ideas have been found unconstitutional, and recent strategies and attempts that would have teachers give "equal time" to creation-science ideas; there remains a disparity among Iowa's high school biology teachers when teaching evolutionary concepts in the classroom. Taking a look at what is being taught about evolution in Iowa classrooms, this study takes an in-depth look at what Iowa's biology teachers are teaching when educating their students about evolution, where emphasis is being placed and who is putting the most …

How “Struggling” Readers Engage In Literacy Events In Middle School Science: An Analysis Of Interactions In Literacy Events, Kristin Cartwright Palmer

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

This study examined opportunities for participation and learning for "struggling" readers in a sixth grade science classroom. Literacy practices, language differences, activity structures, and the social and cultural identities and associated practices and everyday funds of knowledge of both "struggling" and nonstruggling readers in one sixth grade science classroom were documented and analyzed using a qualitative research design. Over sixteen hours of audio and video recordings as well as numerous student work samples were transcribed and analyzed. Analyses of the classroom interactions and artifacts documented in this study revealed several important affordances available in the context of this classroom related …

Designing And Using Virtual Field Environments To Enhance And Extend Field Experience In Professional Development Programs In Geology For K-12 Teachers, Frank Douglas Granshaw

Dissertations and Theses

Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used to acquaint geoscience novices with some of the observation, data gathering, and problem solving done in actual field situations by geoscientists. VR environments in a variety of forms are used to prepare students for doing geologic fieldwork, as well as to provide proxies for such experience when venturing into the field is not possible. However, despite increased use of VR for these purposes, there is little research on how students learn using these environments, how using them impacts student field experience, or what constitutes effective design in light of emerging theories of geocognition.

To …

Experiences That Influence A Student's Choice On Majoring In Physics, Donya Rae Dobbin

Dissertations

Currently the production of college graduates with science and engineering degrees is insufficient to fill the increasing number of jobs requiring these skills. This study focuses on physics majors with an in-depth examination of student transitions from high school to college. Many different areas of influence could affect a student's decision to major in physics. The first phase of this study addresses all of the potential areas of influence identified from the literature. The goal was to identify common influences that might be used to increase students' interest in majoring in physics. Subjects (N=35) from the first phase were recruited …

An Exploration Of Worldview And Conceptions Of Nature Of Science Among Science Teachers At A Private Christian High School, Kara M. Kits

Dissertations

Both worldview and conceptions of nature of science (NOS) are important components in teaching and learning science. However, few empirical studies have examined the interplay between both of these components for teachers or students. Therefore, this study examines the possible relationship between worldview and conceptions of nature of science for secondary science teachers who currently teach at a Christian school.

Qualitative methodologies developed a rich description of the worldview beliefs and conceptions of NOS for teachers in this study. Eight secondary science teachers employed at a private Christian school participated in the study. A Views of Nature of Science (VNOS) …

An Exploration Into How Physical Activity Data-Recording Devices Could Be Used In Computer-Supported Data Investigations, Victor R. Lee, Maneksha Dumont

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

There is a great potential opportunity to use portable physical activity monitoring devices as data collection tools for educational purposes. Using one such device, we designed and implemented a weeklong workshop with high school students to test the utility of such technology. During that intervention, students performed data investigations of physical activity that culminated in the design and implementation of their own studies. In this paper, we explore some of the mathematical thinking that took place through a series of vignettes of a pair of students engaged in analyzing some of their own activity data. A personal connection to the …

The Impact Of Content Courses On Pre-Service Elementary Teachers’ Mathematical Content Knowledge, Michael Matthews, Janice Rech, Neal Grandgenett

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

In response to research documenting the mathematical deficiencies of pre-service elementary teachers, many teacher preparation programs are requiring mathematical content courses specifically focusing on the mathematics taught at the elementary level. This study considers what impact two such courses (one course focusing on Arithmetic, and the other course focusing on Geometry and Measurement) had on the mathematical content knowledge and attitude towards mathematics by comparing a group of pre-service elementary teachers who took these courses to a group of pre-service elementary teachers who took only a more general mathematics course (such as College Algebra). Results indicated that those teachers who …

Effects Of Single-Sex Classrooms Versus Coeducational Classrooms On Math And Literacy Achievement, Constance Matchell

College of Education Dissertations

This research project was designed to add to the limited available research concerning the effectiveness of single-sex education within a public elementary school setting. Following the first year of implementation of a single-sex classroom pilot program, the effects by gender of classroom grouping (single-sex education versus coeducation) on reading and math achievement were investigated for three consecutive grade levels from second grade through fourth grade.

This research project was designed to add to the limited available research concerning the effectiveness of single-sex education within a public elementary school setting. Following the first year of implementation of a single-sex classroom pilot …

The Cohomology Of Modules Over A Complete Intersection Ring, Jesse Burke

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

We investigate the cohomology of modules over commutative complete intersection rings. The first main result is that if M is an arbitrary module over a complete intersection ring R, and if one even self-extension module of M vanishes then M has finite projective dimension. The second main result gives a new proof of the fact that the support variety of a Cohen-Macaulay module whose completion is indecomposable is projectively connected.

Education Of Mathematically Talented Students In Hungary, Julianna Connelly Stockton

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Hungary is famous for its production of large numbers of highly talented mathematicians and physicists. This study explores the Hungarian system for educating mathematically talented secondary school students with the goal of identifying successful features that may be applicable to education in the United States. Highlights of the Hungarian approach include an emphasis on problem solving, problem posing, detailed explanation or proof for solutions, and development of mathematical creativity through the search for multiple solution paths.

Developing Mathematical Content Knowledge For Teaching Elementary School Mathematics, Eva Thanheiser, Christine A. Browning, Meg Moss, Tad Watanabe, Gina Garza-Kling

Faculty Articles

In this paper the authors present three design principles they use to develop preservice teachers' mathematical content knowledge for teaching in their mathematics content and/or methods courses: (1) building on currently held conceptions, (2) modeling teaching for understanding, (3) focusing on connections between content knowledge and other types of knowledge. The authors share results of individual research projects and teaching approaches focusing on helping preservice elementary teachers develop such knowledge. Specific examples from different content areas (whole number, fractions, angle, and area) are discussed.

Teachers’ Knowledge About The Nature Of Mathematics: A Survey Of Secondary School Teachers In Karachi, Pakistan, Munira Amirali, Anjum Halai

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

This study presents the findings from a study which explored patterns in teachers’ knowledge about the nature of mathematics. A survey questionnaire was developed and distributed to 200 secondary school mathematics teachers teaching in public and private schools in Karachi, Pakistan. Exploratory factor analysis was performed which showed patterns in teachers’ view about the nature of mathematics. The analysis illustrates that teachers hold contradicting views about the nature of mathematics i.e. mathematics, both as discovered as well as invented body of knowledge. Moreover, teachers irrespective of their professional qualification, considered mathematical knowledge as ‘truth’, where mathematical rules can never be …