Digital Commons Network^™

Investigating Correlations Among A Growth-Mindset Intervention, Students’ Math Anxiety, And Students’ Math Self-Efficacy, Anna Grace Chamberlain

Honors Projects

This paper details the methodology, data, and conclusions of a research study investigating the correlations among a growth-mindset intervention, math anxiety, and math self-efficacy. The study found that teaching students about mindset through an intervention approach did not make a significant difference in students’ math anxiety or math self-efficacy. Teacher-centered factors are discussed as having a greater impact on students’ math anxiety and math self-efficacy.

Mathematics Education In The United States Of America, Finland, And Singapore: A Comparative Study, Bethany C. Pomponi

Kean Quest

Education systems around the world must put quality instruction as a priority, even as society constantly changes. Countries have to put a bigger emphasis on the importance of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in their schools as the years have progressed. Those who have a career in the STEM areas are an integral part of sustaining a country’s economy. However, not every country does the best job in teaching STEM effectively and appropriately to students. Although countries around the world teach mathematics, each one has a different approach, as seen with scores from PISA and TIMMS regarding The …

Linking Science And Literacy Through Multimodal Text Sets: Student Perspectives, Heba Abdelnaby, William L. Romine, Delinda Van Garderen, Tracey Milarsky, Ankita Agarwal, Qingli Lei, Cassandra Smith, Amy Lannin, William Folk, Rachel Juergensen

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

We present findings of a mixed methods study examining the perceptions of students’ (with and without disabilities) understanding and engagement with multimodal STEM text sets. Exit slip and survey data were used to identify areas for improvement in the development of the multimodal STEM text sets for middle school students. Data were collected from 434 middle school students, 86 of whom had a disability, from six teachers’ classrooms in Spring 2021. Significant differences in perceptions of understanding of argumentation were reported between students with and without disabilities. However, ratings of the lessons and the quality of learning, as well as …

The History And Significance Of Taxidermy Bird Collections In North America: Bgsu's Own Undervalued Collection And Its Future, Kristin Burnside

Honors Projects

Taxidermy, despite its association with the bizarre and outlandish, has a rich history and culture that helped to define post-Civil War America and its pursuit of knowledge and reconnection with nature. With the widespread publication and availability of how-to guides, natural history collecting and taxidermy became accessible to any individual regardless of age, gender, or class. The hobby required physicality and courage to collect unique and interesting specimens, and intellect and creativity to conserve and display them, all of which inherently connected the avocation with respect. With varying levels of success, hobbyists experimented with different chemicals, such as arsenic, in …

The Importance Of Implementing Literacy Strategies In A Mathematics Classroom, Lauren Tecca, Joanna Weaver, John Chen

Honors Projects

The purpose of this ACTION research study is to explore the influence of literacy on mathematical proficiency levels. The correlation will use the data to formulate some strategies for the classroom in order to increase confidence in both subject areas.

A Preliminary Study Of The Efficacy Of Using A Wrist-Worn Multiparameter Sensor For The Prediction Of Cognitive Flow States In University-Level Students, Josephine Graft, William Romine, Brooklynn Watts, Noah Schroeder, Tawsik Jawad, Tanvi Banerjee

Computer Science and Engineering Faculty Publications

Engagement is enhanced by the ability to access the state of flow during a task, which is described as a full immersion experience. We report two studies on the efficacy of using physiological data collected from a wearable sensor for the automated prediction of flow. Study 1 took a two-level block design where activities were nested within its participants. A total of five participants were asked to complete 12 tasks that aligned with their interests while wearing the Empatica E4 sensor. This yielded 60 total tasks across the five participants. In a second study representing daily use of the device, …

Work It Women!, Megan Day, Brenna Arakelian, Emily King, Natalie Virgil

Spring 2023

“Work it Women!” covers various topics surrounding women in the workplace. The zine begins with a note from the authors, followed by a brief history of women in the workplace. Throughout the entire zine, there are historic facts, examples of successful women in the specific topics presented in the zine, and an overall theme of theme encouragement. The goal with this zine is to educate the reader on what women in the workplace experience, but not to discourage the reader from wanting to be a successful woman.

Technology And The Leading Of Learning: The Use And Effects Of Technology In The Classroom, Eric M. Hannah

IPS/BAS 495 Undergraduate Capstone Projects

In the present research paper, the focus is on exploring the various methods of collecting data through technological means and examining the views of 6th-grade students and teachers on the utilization of technology within the classroom setting. As a researcher without a background in education, this study seeks to understand the transformative influence of technology on contemporary learning, highlighting its positive outcomes for teachers, students, and those participating in remote education. The significant increase in the adoption of technology, particularly during and following the recent pandemic, has prompted schools and educators globally to reassess their instructional approaches, striving to create …

Hospitality And Questions In Classical Christian Education, Lynn Doto

Master of Arts in Classical Studies

Christian parents continue to have few education options suitable for kingdom children. While textbooks and test scores hold prominent consideration for many Christian parents, neither cultivate a love of learning nor human flourishing. Rather, it is the language used in the learning environment that invites or repels engagement and learning. An expository exploration of sentence purposes and the type of sentence most commonly used by Christ to engage His learners reveals the power of the question. Appropriately asked, questions welcome learners to actively participate as well as to attentively listen. It is the workhorse of humility, for the question is …

Critical Workforce Skills For Bachelor-Level Geoscientists: An Analysis Of Geoscience Job Advertisements, G. W. Shafer, K. Viskupic, A. E. Egger

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Understanding the skills bachelor-level geoscientists need to enter the workforce is critical to their success. The goal of this study was to identify the workforce skills that are most requested from a broad range of geoscience employers. We collected 3668 job advertisements for bachelor-level geoscientists and used a case-insensitive, code-matching function in Matlab to determine the skills geoscience employers seek. Written communication (67%), field skills (63%), planning (53%), and driving (51%) were most frequently requested. Field skills and data collection were frequently found together in the ads. Written communication skills were common regardless of occupation. Quantitative skills were requested less …

Covid-19 Lockdown: Impact On College Students’ Lives, Wendy C. Birmingham, Lori L. Wadsworth, Jane H. Lassetter

Faculty Publications

Objective: In light of COVID-19, leaders issued stay-at-home orders, including closure of higher-education schools. Most students left campus, likely impacting their employment and social network. Leaders are making decisions about opening universities and modality of instruction. Understanding students' psychological, physiological, academic, and financial responses to the shut-down and reopening of campuses can help leaders make informed decisions. Participants: 654 students from a large western university enrolled during the pandemic shutdown. Methods: Students were invited via email to complete an online survey. Results: Students reported stress, depression, loneliness, lack of motivation, difficulty focusing on schoolwork, restless sleep, appetite changes, job loss …

Extracting A Body Of Knowledge As A First Step Towards Defining A United Software Engineering Curriculum Guideline, Anton Kiselev

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

In general, the computing field is a rapidly changing environment, and as such, software engineering education must be able to adjust quickly to new needs. Industry adapts to technologies as fast as it can, but the critical issue is a need for recent graduates with the necessary expertise and knowledge of new trends, technologies, and practical experience. The industries that employ graduates of computing degree programs aim to hire those who are familiar with the latest technical traits, tools, and methodologies to meet these needs, and the software engineering curriculum needs to respond quickly to these needs. Still, unfortunately, software …

Centering The Teacher: How An Autonomy-Supportive Environment Impacts Arts Educators’ Sense Of Agency And The Collaborative Culture Of Their Education Networks, Kyle Andrew Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

In this action research study, I adapted statewide systems of support for visual and performing arts educators in an effort to promote a positive sense of professional identity and strengthen the collaborative culture of the support systems. Prior to this study, the educator network met monthly for professional learning sessions planned and facilitated by a leader in a non-teacher role. As an action researcher, I restructured the sessions to create an autonomy-supportive environment to foster educators’ leadership skills and promote authentic collaboration. Study participants had autonomy over the planning, aims, content, and facilitation of the networking sessions. A basic qualitative …

Knowledge, Skills, And Workforce Development: Commentary On Ackerman, Frederick L. Oswald, Karyssa A. Courey, Zihan Liu

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Ackerman (2023) proposed incorporating a more comprehensive range of knowledge and skills into the conceptualization and operationalization of intelligence beyond traditional assessments. In agreeing with and extending this proposition, the current commentary focuses on the specific context of workforce development and highlights three critical considerations: (a) the development of knowledge and skills at different life stages of education and work, (b) the role of social contexts in knowledge and skill acquisition, and (c) quantitative and qualitative approaches to understanding and assessing a broader set of knowledge and skills in light of ongoing changes in the workplace. Overall, we encourage greater …

Teacher Observations As Professional Development Opportunities, Ashton Carrie Padgett

Theses and Dissertations

This research project sought to understand how the complexities and challenges of offering high-quality professional development district-wide impacted teachers’ ability to implement their new learning. The literature posits that to be considered effective, professional development must include six distinct design elements: (1) Data driven, (2) Incorporates active learning utilizing adult learning theory, (3) Supports collaboration, (4) Context-Specific, (5) Feedback-centered, and (6) Supported by principal leadership (Darling Hammond et al., 2017, p. 4). While each of these design elements seems appropriate and rooted in best practices, when planning professional development, the scheduling and unique circumstances of secondary schools makes incorporating these …

Perceptions Of Political Violence, Trisha Patel, Andrew Wachtel, Cameron N. Smith

[Archive] Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

Recently, political violence in the United States has been an increasingly salient public issue. Previous statistical connections have been made between low yearly income, low education, and right-wing political affiliation to a higher acceptance of political violence (Jasko et al., 2022). Using a dataset published through Harvard, this study aims to address the white population and their beliefs regarding current issues. The dataset was previously assembled by researchers studying the connection of people’s faith to political tendencies. Data is currently being analyzed and results will be presented at BURS.

Music As An Instructional Modality To Increase Attending Behavior Of Elementary Students, Zachary Grossman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Audio and audiovisual cues, when used as teaching tools, result in desirable learning outcomes for young learners when compared to visual cues alone (Havy et al., 2017; Kirkham et al., 2019; Sloutsky & Napolitano, 2003). Previous research has demonstrated that music can be an effective delivery method for teaching math in the elementary classrooms (An & Tillman, 2015; An et al., 2014; Azaryahu et al., 2020). However, the effectiveness of music at increasing attending behavior specifically has not been assessed in these studies. This study evaluated the effectiveness of music based instruction on students’ attending behaviors compared to non-music based …

Extending Token Economy Systems For Children With Learning Disabilities And Developmental Disabilities Using Operant Behavioral Economics, Parker Levins

LSU Master's Theses

Token economy systems have been used successfully in various general and special education classrooms. Although effective, educators seldom have a priori information on the performance of their reinforcers within the schedules of reinforcement that comprise the token economy. Most token economies are initially designed based on clinical judgment and respective schedules are typically selected on an arbitrary basis (e.g., token-production Fixed Ratio 1 [FR1], exchange-production FR5). This introduces uncertainty whereby the initial arrangement may be too lax (i.e., work expectations are low for the student) or too strict (i.e., work expectations are high for the student), which both have the …

Natural Disasters And Human Capital: Empirical Evidence From Indonesia, Lei Lv

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In developing countries, natural disasters could destroy physical capital and adversely affect human capital accumulation by disrupting individual decisions. Such decisions play a critical role in determining individuals' human capital accumulation process and have a lifelong effect on their happiness and economic prosperity. To better understand how natural disasters affect human capital in developing countries, this dissertation uses the earthquakes in Indonesia as a natural experiment to study how this earthquake affects health, child marriage, and education. For the first chapter, I study how the 2006 Yogyakarta Earthquake a affects water-related acute disease symptomsin the short and long run. By …

Using Music And Storytelling As Strategies For Conservation Education, Frances Hincks

Honors College Theses

Given the frequently negative effects each person imposes on their environment (e.g., resource consumption, use of private and public land, and waste production), the public needs to be included in conservation messaging to sustain a healthy, functioning planet. People are generally not informed about conservation topics, which creates difficulties in creating a conservation mindset. Moreover, there is a disconnect between conservation research and presenting conservation related topics to the public in a coherent, accessible format. Thus, conservation education messaging strategies need to be evaluated to determine which are most effective. The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness …

Designing A Makerspace, Mackenzie Dinsmoor

Instructional Psychology and Technology Graduate Student Projects

The purpose of this project was to design a makerspace in the McKay School of Education here at Brigham Young University. This project is for pre-service teachers and faculty in the Teacher Education Department primarily in the Elementary Education program.

The purpose of a makerspace is to provide students with the materials and experiences to iteratively design and create. It’s a place for hands-on learning with all the tools for creativity. Makerspaces provide creative ways to encourage students to design, experiment, build and invent as they deeply engage in science, engineering and tinkering. A makerspace is not solely a science …

Moving From Theory To Practice: Examining Teaching Mathematics For Social Justice In An Elementary School Classroom, Krystal Giles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teaching mathematics for social justice is a distinctive approach to mathematics education that seeks to have students use mathematics to navigate their identities, understand their lived experiences, examine inequities, and become agents of change. Current research provides a rich explanation of what teaching mathematics for social justice entails. Still, there is a need for research that studies how to move from theory to practice. The purpose of this research study is to examine the experience of teaching mathematics for social justice within my fifth-grade mathematics classroom for myself and my students, analyze the extent to which students’ ethnic and academic …

Identifying A Clinical Informatics Or Electronic Health Record Expert Witness For Medical Professional Liability Cases, Dean F Sittig, Adam Wright

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The health care field is experiencing widespread electronic health record (EHR) adoption. New medical professional liability (i.e., malpractice) cases will likely involve the review of data extracted from EHRs as well as EHR workflows, audit logs, and even the potential role of the EHR in causing harm.

OBJECTIVES: Reviewing printed versions of a patient's EHRs can be difficult due to differences in printed versus on-screen presentations, redundancies, and the way printouts are often grouped by document or information type rather than chronologically. Simply recreating an accurate timeline often requires experts with training and experience in designing, developing, using, and …

Texas School Social Workers: Who And Where Are They?, George Padilla, Velma D. Menchaca, Astrid Gandaria

Organization and School Leadership Faculty Publications

School social workers have a long history in American education and much research is needed to better understand their role and impact in schools. Texas schools employ one of the highest numbers of school social workers in the country, but there is also little to no research related to their demographics, working conditions, or effectiveness. Only one recent study on Texas school social workers was found in the research literature. This report analyzes Texas state reports, available to the public on the internet or by specific request from the Texas Education Agency, to develop a descriptive and exploratory overview of …

A Collection Of Calculus Lesson Plans: Deriving The 'Why' Behind Derivatives, Kasey Brabec

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The traditional mathematics classroom is led with a focus on procedural understanding, with deep conceptual understanding considered to be unimportant or too difficult to teach within the allotted time. Both levels of understanding are important mathematical competencies, as it is rare for either of them to function well without accessibility to the other. The disparity between conceptual understanding and procedural understanding in the mathematics classroom is no larger than in courses like Calculus. This project is a collection of fifteen lesson plans constructed with an emphasis on conceptual understanding and the connectivity of Calculus. Each lesson plan’s overview contains the …

A Conceptual Exploration Of Anti-Fragility In The Context Of Confucian Heritage Culture Education, Alwyn Lau

Journal of Research Initiatives

It is a common but not unrealistic stereotype of Asian students that educational success is a matter of personal identity and status. As such, achieving distinctions in as many subjects as possible (the popular target of becoming a ‘straight A’ student) is usually a non-negotiable objective nurtured by both parents and educators. Such an obsessive pursuit of academic excellence produces both laudable outcomes (e.g. the tendency of Asian students to outperform their counterparts) as well as dangerous ones (e.g. worrying rates of mental health problems). This theoretical paper hopes to apply the concept of anti-fragility developed by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, …

2023 Champions For Justice 1-27-2023, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Addressing The Poor Science Performance Of Filipino Learners: Beyond Curricular And Instructional Interventions, Marissa O. Calleja, Macario O. Cordell Ii, Jude Michael Teves, Sashimir A. Yap, Unisse Chua Ms., Allan Bernardo

Angelo King Institute for Economic and Business Studies (AKI)

The Philippines performed abysmally in Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 science literacy assessment: only 22% of the 7,233 15-year-old Filipino students who participated in PISA achieved the minimum level of competency (Level 2) in science literacy (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2019). This performance in the science assessment places the Philippines near the bottom of the 79 countries and economies that participated in PISA 2018. In a study that used a machine learning approach, we identified 15 variables that identified the poor-performing students in science literacy. These variables can be grouped into four clusters, namely, metacognitive …

Weaving Together Indigenous And Western Knowledge In Science Education: Reflections And Recommendations, Zoe Higheagle Strong, Landon James Charlo, Francene Watson, Paula Groves Price, Kimberly Christen

Journal of Indigenous Research

The Culturally Responsive Indigenous Science (CRIS) project was a collaborative effort between three Tribal communities in the Pacific Northwest and faculty and students from Washington State University, many of who are Tribal citizens. The project was designed to integrate Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (ITEK) and Western Knowledge into science curricula and professional learning opportunities. At the end of the 5-year grant project, members of the CRIS team (including Tribal and university partners) gathered to reflect on the work accomplished and the lessons learned about the process of integrating ITEK within science education. In this conceptual paper, the authors discuss four …

Advancing Student Achievement With Technology, Alec J Herbst

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis identifies how teachers can manage the safe and responsible use of electronic technology resources in the classroom while influencing students to practice the same behaviors outside of school. A review of the literature using Self Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2012) as a framework focuses on technology-based pedagogy, classroom management, and technology use at home. How effectively teachers manage technology in their classrooms can greatly determine the overall knowledge students retain. Technology can motivate students to engage in learning. Teachers are expected to be leaders in modeling the responsible use of new digital tools that can expand learning …