Digital Commons Network^™

Improving Mathematical Skill: The Perceptions Of Rural Minnesota Mathematics Educators, Michael Haskins

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study is focused on the perceptions of mathematics educators on how to improve mathematical skill in high school students. The main purpose was to describe, recognize, and interpret the lived experience that have allowed educators to achieve the best results for their students. The population for the current study was mathematics educators that were located in a rural Southwest Minnesota city with medium population. These educators were either college educators or middle and high school teachers. The measures that were used to select the participants for the study were that they must hold at least a bachelor's …

Ancient Cultures + High School Algebra = A Diverse Mathematical Approach, Laryssa Byndas

Masters Essays

No abstract provided.

Multipliers Between Model Spaces, Emmanuel Fricain, Andreas Hartmann, William T. Ross

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

In this paper we examine the multipliers from one model space to another.

Limits Of Julia Sets For Sums Of Power Maps And Polynomials, Micah Brame

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Suppose f_{n,c} is a complex-valued mapping of one complex variable given by f_{n,c}(z) = z^n + p(z) + c, where p is a polynomial such that p(0) = 0 and c is a complex parameter such that |c| < 1. We provide necessary and sufficient conditions that the geometric limit, as n approaches infinity, of the set of points that remain bounded under iteration by f_{n,c} is the disk of radius 1 centered at the origin.

“From School Of Crisis To Distinguished”: How One School Continues To Defeat The Odds, Ben Crawford

Theses and Dissertations--Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education

Despite conditions that would work against a small rural school in an impoverish area of rural Kentucky, Fairway Elementary School has managed to excel in its accountability measures. This study used a mixed-methods approach with data collected through interviews and MAP student growth scores in reading and mathematics. Five themes emerged from the qualitative data regarding school success: (1) a well-organized intervention system, (2) a focus on and overall enjoyment of the discipline of mathematics, (3) involvement of parents in school functions, (4) transparency of needs and organization of resources, and (5) an overall school culture that is competitive, impactful, …

Applied Temperament, Geoffrey D. Hershberger

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The following document was created in order to promote intonation consensus in ensembles and to better facilitate learning in educational settings. Non-keyboard instruments provide musicians an opportunity to make nearly infinitesimal adjustments to pitch while performing; this creates difficulties for students and challenges even the most seasoned professionals. Non-keyboard musicians struggle their whole lives to play in tune, and even when one knows exactly where they want to place a pitch, technical difficulties can foul any musician's performance. When performing solo, the musician must choose a tuning system that is suitable for the music being performed, and attempt to realize …

The Encyclopedia Of Neutrosophic Researchers - Vol. 2, Florentin Smarandache

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

This is the second volume of the Encyclopedia of Neutrosophic Researchers, edited from materials offered by the authors who responded to my invitation. The introduction contains a short history of neutrosophics, together with links to the main papers and books. The authors who have published neutrosophic papers, books, or defended neutrosophic master theses or PhD dissertations and are not included in the two ENR volumes, are kindly invited to send their self-presentations or their CVs, a photo, and a list of neutrosophic publications to [email protected] and [email protected] to be part of a third volume.

Florentin Smarandache

The Rsa Cryptosystem, Rodrigo Iglesias

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper intends to present an overview of the RSA cryptosystem. Cryptosystems are mathematical algorithms that disguise information so that only the people for whom the information is intended can read it. The invention of the RSA cryptosystem in 1977 was a significant event in the history of cryptosystems. We will describe in detail how the RSA cryptosystem works and then illustrate the process with a realistic example using fictional characters. In addition, we will discuss how cryptosystems worked prior to the invention of RSA and the advantage of using RSA over any of the previous cryptosystems. This will help …

An Algorithm To Determine All Odd Primitive Abundant Numbers With D Prime Divisors, Jacob Liddy

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

An abundant number is said to be primitive if none of its proper divisors are abundant. Dickson proved that for an arbitrary positive integer d there exists only finitely many odd primitive abundant numbers having exactly d prime divisors. In this paper we describe a fast algorithm that finds all primitive odd numbers with d unique prime divisors. We use this algorithm to find all the number of odd primitive abundant numbers with 6 unique Divisors. We use this algorithm to prove that an odd weird number must have at least 6 prime divisors.

Group Rings, Christopher Wrenn

Masters Essays

No abstract provided.

Mathematical Curves In The High School Classroom, Magdalena Zook

Masters Essays

No abstract provided.

Advanced Enrichment Topics In An Honors Geometry Course, Kayla Woods

Masters Essays

No abstract provided.

Stem And The Local Economy: Do Regions Reap The Benefits Of A Stem-Educated Workforce?, Fran Stewart

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Assessment For Feedback And Achievement Growth For Middle School Math Students, Katie Jo Pemberton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Inconsistent math assessment practices do not accurately represent and communicate student mathematics achievement. Because of inconsistencies in assessment practices, local middle school mathematics teachers in an urban school district in the northwestern United States piloted the use of multiple formative assessments. The purpose of this study was to compare mathematics achievement, growth, and course percentage grades for students who have multiple formative assessment attempts compared to students who are not provided multiple assessment attempts. Theoretical foundations originated from Black and Wiliam, supporting the use of formative assessment for a positive impact on student learning. A quantitative, ex post facto quasi-experimental …

Isolation And Biological Evaluation Of Prenylated Flavonoids From Maclura Pomifera, Yerkebulan Orazbekov, Mohamed A. Ibrahim, Serjan Mombekov, Radhakrishnan Srivedavyasasri, Ubaidilla Datkhayev, Bauyrzhan Makhatov, Narayan D. Chaurasiya, Babu L. Tekwani, Samir A. Ross

Faculty and Student Publications (Open Access)

No abstract provided.

Developing Deaf Students Fraction Skills Requires Understanding Magnitude And Whole Number Division, Keith Mousley, Ronald R. Kelly

Articles

Research has shown that fraction magnitude and whole number division are important precursors to learning and understanding fractions. Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students are consistently challenged with learning fractions from K-12 through college. Sixty DHH college students were tested for both their understanding of magnitude between two fractions and their ability to calculate whole number division. The results showed that both understanding the magnitude between two fractions and whole number division are significantly associated with accurately calculating arithmetic functions of fractions with like denominators and different denominators that required them to add, subtract, multiply, and divide two fractions. Understanding fraction …

Course Portfolio For Math 407 Mathematics For High School Teaching: Refining Conceptual Understanding In A Mathematics Course For Pre-Service Teachers, Alexandra Seceleanu

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

My intention in this portfolio is to present my approach to teaching an upper-level mathematics course for pre-service secondary level mathematics teachers. Several teaching strategies are discussed in the context of designing a coherent approach to this course, which emphasizes the need for conceptual reasoning above all other goals. These strategies are evaluated and assessed in connection to the learning outcomes using samples of student work from the course.

Also presented are samples of course materials that were used to lead students through an organized discussion of the relevant concepts. These materials convey some basic mathematical knowledge and therefore may …

Beyond Teacher Knowledge: Connections Between Content Knowledge, Mindset For Learning, And Teaching In Two-Year College Mathematics Faculty, Lucy Hernandez Michal

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Addressing thousands of students entering unprepared to enroll in college freshman mathematics courses is a challenge two-year college mathematics faculty face every semester. The study addresses this challenge through a mixed methods sequential nested multi-case design to investigate what faculty need, beyond teacher knowledge, to teach mathematics effectively to students. The three-part study measured the mindset learning profile and content knowledge of a sample of mathematics faculty at a two-year college. The quantitative and qualitative data provided references to select four faculty typologies to interview and observe. Interviews reflected faculty perceptions of teaching and learning. Class observations captured images of …

Problem-Solving In An Early Childhood Mathematics Classroom, Lockey Plyler

Theses and Dissertations

Problem-solving occurs when mathematical tasks create opportunities that provide challenges for increasing students' mathematical understanding and development. This research study determined the influence of the launch-explore-summarize/extend problem-solving framework on second-grade student performance of place value tasks. The dissertation in practice measured problem-solving success. This action research study occurred at an elementary school in Columbia, South Carolina. The teacher-researcher determined appropriate problem-solving tasks and assessed students’ academic achievement and critical thinking skills. Following a mixed methods action research design, the researcher analyzed qualitative and quantitative data to determine the significance of the problem-solving framework. The data indicated significant student growth during …

Crime Around The World: Using Mathematical Modeling Techniques To Model Aggregated Worldwide Crime Rates, Kelly M. Steurer

Senior Independent Study Theses

This aim of this study was to determine what affects aggregate crime rates around the world. This thesis used Mathematical Modeling techniques to build generalized linear models for homicide rates and burglary and housebreaking rates using the following predictive factors: economic indicators, education rates, government quality indicators, ethno-linguistic fractionalization, GDP per capita and its growth, drug consumption rates, and age and gender ratios. We used a series of factor selection techniques including linear and stepwise regressions, principal component analysis, and regression analysis to select factors to use to build final models of homicide and burglary and housebreaking.

Logic -> Proof -> Rest, Maxwell Taylor

Senior Independent Study Theses

REST is a common architecture for networked applications. Applications that adhere to the REST constraints enjoy significant scaling advantages over other architectures. But REST is not a panacea for the task of building correct software. Algebraic models of computation, particularly CSP, prove useful to describe the composition of applications using REST. CSP enables us to describe and verify the behavior of RESTful systems. The descriptions of each component can be used independently to verify that a system behaves as expected. This thesis demonstrates and develops CSP methodology to verify the behavior of RESTful applications.

Inclusion Of Blocking Power For A Complete Voting Power Analysis In The Imf, Shiwani Varal

Senior Independent Study Theses

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) calculates the voting power of a country by dividing the total of one member's votes by the total of all members' votes. This method of calculating the power of a state judges power as voting weight. However, voting weights are the total number of votes a country has in an institution, while voting power is the influence a country has on a policy decision. A better approach to calculate this voting power within an institution is by using voting power indices. However, literature only calculates the winning power, while voting power is defined as the …

Sports Analytics With Computer Vision, Colby T. Jeffries

Senior Independent Study Theses

Computer vision in sports analytics is a relatively new development. With multi-million dollar systems like STATS’s SportVu, professional basketball teams are able to collect extremely fine-detailed data better than ever before. This concept can be scaled down to provide similar statistics collection to college and high school basketball teams. Here we investigate the creation of such a system using open-source technologies and less expensive hardware. In addition, using a similar technology, we examine basketball free throws to see whether a shooter’s form has a specific relationship to a shot’s outcome. A system that learns this relationship could be used to …

Introductory Statistics, Barbara Illowsky, Susan Dean

Open Access Textbooks

Introductory Statistics follows scope and sequence requirements of a one-semester introduction to statistics course and is geared toward students majoring in fields other than math or engineering. The text assumes some knowledge of intermediate algebra and focuses on statistics application over theory. Introductory Statistics includes innovative practical applications that make the text relevant and accessible, as well as collaborative exercises, technology integration problems, and statistics labs.

Differences In Spatial Visualization Ability And Vividness Of Spatial Imagery Between People With And Without Aphantasia, Anita Crowder

Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics education researchers have examined the relationship between visualization and mathematics for decades (e.g., Arcavi, 2003; Bishop, 1991; Duval, 1999; Fennema & Tartre, 1985; Presmeg, 1986). Studies have linked spatial visualization ability, such as measured in mental rotation tasks, directly to mathematics self-efficacy (Pajares & Kranzler, 1995; Weckbacher & Okamoto, 2014), which in turn influences mathematics achievement (Casey, Nuttall, & Pezaris, 1997). With the important role that spatial visualization plays in learning mathematics, the recent identification of congenital aphantasia (Zeman, Dewar, & Della Sala, 2015), which is the lack of mental imagery ability, has raised new questions for mathematics education …

Counseling Program Intervention For Improving African American Students’ Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics Dual Enrollment Participation, Sonja L. Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

African Americans are underrepresented at all points in the STEM pipeline from K-12 coursework into professional careers. The reasons for this underrepresentation are varied and reflect a myriad of contributing factors based on early academic experiences, sociocultural influences, and the effects of standardized testing. The three-fold purpose of this study was to implement a counseling program to inform nine African American study participants about the dual enrollment opportunity at their high school, to gain perspective about the factors which shaped their STEM disposition, and to determine the effect of the program on their attitudes about dual enrollment participation. The study …

Lenstra-Hurwitz Cliques In Real Quadratic Fields, Daniel S. Lopez

Master's Theses

Let $K$ be a number field and let $\OO_K$ denote its ring of integers. We can define a graph whose vertices are the elements of $\OO_K$ such that an edge exists between two algebraic integers if their difference is in the units $\OO_K^{\times}$. Lenstra showed that the existence of a sufficiently large clique (complete subgraph) will imply that the ring $\OO_K$ is Euclidean with respect to the field norm. A recent generalization of this work tells us that if we draw more edges in the graph, then a sufficiently large clique will imply the weaker (but still very interesting) conclusion …

Validating A Reduced-Order Model For Synthetic Jet Actuators Using Cfd And Experimental Data, Tim Persoons, Rick Cressall, Aliimohammadi Sajad

Articles

Synthetic jet actuators (SJA) are emerging in various engineering applications, from flow separation and noise control in aviation to thermal management of electronics. A SJA oscillates a flexible membrane inside a cavity connected to a nozzle producing vortices. A complex interaction between the cavity pressure field and the driving electronics can make it difficult to predict performance. A reduced-order model (ROM) has been developed to predict the performance of SJAs. This paper applies this model to a canonical configuration with applications in flow control and electronics cooling, consisting of a single SJA with a rectangular orifice, emanating perpendicular to the …

Assessing Reading And Mathematics Achievement Of Students With Disabilities In A Suburban Middle School, Terri Melissa Toomer

Theses and Dissertations

Co-teaching classrooms consist of general and special education teachers working together to benefit students with disabilities (SWDs). Many parents and teachers believe the content knowledge provided by general educators in the regular education setting, combined with the instructional service delivery model (SDM) expertise of special educators, will result in the greatest academic growth for SWDs. However, it is not known if SWDs served in one SDM progress at a faster rate than SWDs served in another SWD. Therefore, the focus of this study was to compare the reading and mathematics achievement of male and female middle school SDWs in two …

Rethinking The Mathematics Worksheet In Higher Education: Embracing The Application Of Spaced And Interleaved Practice, Deirdre Casey, Clodagh Carroll, Julie Crowley

Irish Journal of Academic Practice

Existing research in cognitive and educational psychology warns against overlearning and promotes spaced and interleaved practice. However, the practice of blocked overlearning is still the standard design of student practice in mathematics in higher education. This is despite the fact that transitioning to spaced interleaved worksheets would require only the resources already in place for traditionally designed blocked worksheets. Consequently, changing to spaced interleaved worksheets provides a straightforward, time-effective way in which higher education mathematics educators can implement evidence-based practice. This paper is a literature review with the intention of making explicit the educational benefits of a worksheet redesign in …