Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

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 In The Environment: A Strategy For Continued Interagency Outdoor Education Programming: Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending November 30, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Reports (PLI Education)

Highlights of the university’s focused efforts during the past three months include the following:

• Two Families in Nature events were held, benefitting approximately 100 people.
• The Nevada Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights was officially launched on October 9, 2010.
• A total of 18 people are finishing capstone projects and homework to complete requirements for the Nevada State Certification in Environmental Education and Interpretation.
• Forever Earth was scheduled for 35 days serving 965 people.
• Discover Mojave Outdoor World events were conducted for 253 people.

Education In The Environment: A Strategy For Continued Interagency Outdoor Education Programming: Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending November 30, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Reports (PLI Education)

Highlights of the university’s focused efforts during the past three months include the following:

• Two Families in Nature events were held, benefitting approximately 100 people.
• The Nevada Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights was officially launched on October 9, 2010.
• A total of 18 people are finishing capstone projects and homework to complete requirements for the Nevada State Certification in Environmental Education and Interpretation.
• Forever Earth was scheduled for 35 days serving 965 people.
• Discover Mojave Outdoor World events were conducted for 253 people.

Teaching Research: Encouraging Discoveries, Francis E. Su

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

What does it take to turn a learner into a discoverer? Or to turn a teacher into a co-adventurer? A handful of experiences—from teaching a middle-school math class to doing research with undergraduates—have changed the way that I would answer these questions. Some of the lessons I’ve learned have surprised me.

Ists, November 2010, Iowa Academy Of Science

ISTS Newsletter

In this issue:

--Notes and News

--Opportunities

Multiple Visions Of Teachers' Understandings Of Mathematics, Ann Kajander, Ralph Mason, Peter Taylor, Edward Doolittle, Tom Boland, Dan Jarvis, Wes Maciejewski

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

In this dialog, the notion of mathematical understanding as might be needed by classroom teachers is critically examined by mathematics educators, mathematicians, and a classroom teacher, based on the outcomes of recent work with expert classroom teachers. Terminology, assumptions and examples are discussed and analysed from a number of points of view. Ultimately, the goal is to construct common ground from which appropriate mathematics courses for future teachers might be developed and taught. The need for common terminology and a unifying framework from which to work becomes apparent as multiple interpretations and visions are discussed.

An Attempt To Get And Keep Women Involved In Physics, Jim Crumley, Kristen Nairn, Lynn Ziegler

MapCores Faculty Publications

In this talk I will briefly review some of the obstacles to the full participation of women in the STEM disciplines. In order to increase the number of women in physics, computer science, and mathematics we have started a cohort-based program with curricular and scholarship components for women in these majors. I will present the results of our program so far and offer some advice based on our experiences.

Bridging The Gap Between The Industrial Environment And The Classroom Via Project-Based Learning, Michael W. Martin

Presentation

Recent engineering education research has concluded that most engineering curricula do not promote attainment of many characteristics desired in practicing engineers. Methods to attain these characteristics include both project-based learning (PBL) and simulation of workplace situations in the educational environment. The presenter will outline the use of both PBL and workplace simulation through the implementation of a semester-long project in a senior-level Data Acquisition course taught out of the Department of Engineering Technology at Northern Michigan University. A typical undergraduate experimental analysis or data acquisition course will review topics including; sensoring, hardware requirements, testing techniques, computer integration, software use, and …

Promoting Stem Education Via The Design And Fabrication Of A Simulated Lunar Vehicle, Henrique Casagrande

Von Braun Symposium Student Posters

No abstract provided.

Ahhhhhhh! Earthquake!, Jarred Green, Eugene Lasarge, Brittany Marcott, Maigan Matthias, Matthew Watts

Von Braun Symposium Student Posters

No abstract provided.

Design And Fabrication Of Hardware To Promote Stem Education And Careers Among Secondary Education Students, Lisa Tunstill

Von Braun Symposium Student Posters

No abstract provided.

Inferring Impulsive-Analytic Disposition From Written Responses, Kien Lim, Miguel Mendoza

Selected Works Temporary Series

Impulsive disposition refers to one’s proclivity to spontaneously proceed with an action that comes to mind without checking its relevance. Analytic disposition refers to one’s proclivity to analyze a problem situation and establishes a goal to guide one’s actions. An instrument, called the likelihood-to-act survey, was developed to measure students’ impulsive-analytic disposition. In this study, we sought to test and refine this instrument by analyzing 92 participants’ written responses to open-ended questions that were adapted from items in the likelihood-to-act survey. We found relatively strong correlations between participants’ disposition scores for written responses and those from the likelihood-to-act survey.

Continuing Discussion Of Mathematical Habits Of Mind, Annie Selden, Kien Lim

Selected Works Temporary Series

The idea of “mathematical habits of mind” has been introduced to emphasize the need to help students think about mathematics “the way mathematicians do.” There seems to be considerable interest among mathematics educators and mathematicians in helping students develop mathematical habits of mind. The objectives of this working group are: (a) to continue the discussion of various views and aspects of mathematical habits of mind begun at PME-NA 31, (b) to explore avenues for research, (c) to encourage research collaborations, and (d) to interest doctoral students in this topic. In the Proceedings of PME-NA 31, we provided an overview of …

Inferring Impulsive-Analytic Disposition From Written Responses, Kien Lim, Miguel Mendoza

Departmental Papers (Math)

Impulsive disposition refers to one’s proclivity to spontaneously proceed with an action that comes to mind without checking its relevance. Analytic disposition refers to one’s proclivity to analyze a problem situation and establishes a goal to guide one’s actions. An instrument, called the likelihood-to-act survey, was developed to measure students’ impulsive-analytic disposition. In this study, we sought to test and refine this instrument by analyzing 92 participants’ written responses to open-ended questions that were adapted from items in the likelihood-to-act survey. We found relatively strong correlations between participants’ disposition scores for written responses and those from the likelihood-to-act survey.

Continuing Discussion Of Mathematical Habits Of Mind, Annie Selden, Kien Lim

Departmental Papers (Math)

The idea of “mathematical habits of mind” has been introduced to emphasize the need to help students think about mathematics “the way mathematicians do.” There seems to be considerable interest among mathematics educators and mathematicians in helping students develop mathematical habits of mind. The objectives of this working group are: (a) to continue the discussion of various views and aspects of mathematical habits of mind begun at PME-NA 31, (b) to explore avenues for research, (c) to encourage research collaborations, and (d) to interest doctoral students in this topic. In the Proceedings of PME-NA 31, we provided an overview of …

Sce 6938 Topics In Science Education, Barbara Spector

Service-Learning Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Impact Of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research In Mathematics And Biology On The Development Of A New Course Integrating Five Stem Disciplines, Lester Caudill, April L. Hill, Kathy Hoke, Ovidiu Z. Lipan

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

Funded by innovative programs at the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Richmond faculty in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computer science teamed up to offer first- and second-year students the opportunity to contribute to vibrant, interdisciplinary research projects. The result was not only good science but also good science that motivated and informed course development. Here, we describe four recent undergraduate research projects involving students and faculty in biology, physics, mathematics, and computer science and how each contributed in significant ways to the conception and implementation of our new Integrated Quantitative Science course, a …

How Different Variants Of Orbit Diagrams Influence Students' Explanations Of The Seasons, Victor R. Lee

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

The cause of the seasons is often associated with a very particular alternative conception: that the Earth’s orbit around the sun is highly elongated and the differences in distance result in variations in temperature. It has been suggested that the standard diagrams used to depict the Earth’s orbit may be in some way responsible for the initial appearance and overall maintenance of this incorrect conceptualization; the elongated shape of the orbit is thought of as a conceptualization cue that invites a fairly predictable way of reasoning. To test if that is indeed the case, six variants of diagrams depicting differently …

Impact Of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research In Mathematics And Biology On The Development Of A New Course Integrating Five Stem Disciplines, Lester Caudill, April L. Hill, Kathy Hoke, Ovidiu Z. Lipan

Biology Faculty Publications

Funded by innovative programs at the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Richmond faculty in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computer science teamed up to offer first- and second-year students the opportunity to contribute to vibrant, interdisciplinary research projects. The result was not only good science but also good science that motivated and informed course development. Here, we describe four recent undergraduate research projects involving students and faculty in biology, physics, mathematics, and computer science and how each contributed in significant ways to the conception and implementation of our new Integrated Quantitative Science course, a …

The Stories They’D Tell: Pre-Service Elementary Teachers Writing Stories To Demonstrate Physical Science Concepts, Jennifer Kreps Frisch

Faculty Articles

Preservice teachers enrolled in a science content-based course wrote stories that could help their future students understand a science concept. First, participants chose their topic and wrote the story with few guidelines to establish a baseline. In the next part, a different set of students were given a choice of three topics (based on force, electricity, and heat misconceptions), and collaborated to write stories with guidance from the instructor. Stories were analyzed for narrative and science units, and test scores examined. Without guidance, many students struggled to find ways to integrate science within a story. With guidance, participants wrote stories …