Digital Commons Network^™

Critical Thinking Skills And Academic Maturity: Emerging Results From A Five-Year Quality Enhancement Plan (Qep) Study, Ian N. Toppin, Shadreck Chitsonga

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

The QEP that was implemented in this study focused on enhancing students’ critical thinking skills. A pretest/ posttest approach was used to assess students’ critical thinking progress in freshman level core English and Math courses. An intervention was performed involving intensive instruction and assignments relating to a set of reasoning strategies such as: analytical, analogical, inductive, deductive, and comparative reasoning, among others. When students performed well on assignments by applying the reasoning strategies, it was assumed that critical thinking occurred. However, pre/ posttest results in these classes were often disappointing, and seemed at times to suggest that freshmen are not …

The Effects Of Cognitive Strategies Paired With Hands-On Or Virtual Manipulatives On Math Instruction For Students With Mathematical Learning Disabilities To Learn Word Problem Solving Skills, Kimberly Plute

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of using cognitive strategies with hands-on manipulatives, and cognitive strategies with virtual manipulatives to enhance problem solving skills of students with Mathematical Learning Disabilities (MLD), as well as their satisfaction with those strategies. Five, 5th graders with MLD participated in the study to learn word problem solving skills in a math class for 80 minutes, 5 days a week for 10 weeks. A single subject research design with ABC phases was used in the study. Results showed each student gained from 3.6 to 5.2 mean points of the weekly quizzes …

An Examination Of Black Male Success In High School Mathematics, David Walters Jr.

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

For a national sample of Black male students, what is the relative impact of instructional technology on 10th and 12th grade math scores? This dissertation employs two waves of the Education Longitudinal Study (2002 & 2004) and multivariate statistical techniques to explore the relative importance of instructional technology (implementation by teachers and training for teachers), student perception of math ability, teacher and school effects, as well as socioeconomic status on high school math scores for this unique population.

Bourdieu’s cultural and social capital, Coleman’s cultural capital and social action, Martin’s equity-based math education, and Gutierrez’s socio-political mathematics will serve as …

Σary, Minnesota State University Moorhead, Mathematics Department

Math Department Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Mathematics Uncovered Through Action Science, William Robertson

Selected Works Temporary Series

In an event-based series of on-site activities with high school students through an Action Science approach, fundamental concepts were explored including the foundations for functions, geometric think and spatial reasoning, the development of mathematical models, as well as techniques for working with spatial figures to understand underlying relationships. The activities in which students participated were designed to teach fundamental mathematics concepts in algebra and geometry in an approach that utilized transformative educational strategies, which helped students move from memorizing facts and content to constructing knowledge in meaningful and useful manners. With an emphasis on a collaborative data collection process, students …

Mathematics Uncovered Through Action Science, William Robertson

Departmental Papers (TE)

In an event-based series of on-site activities with high school students through an Action Science approach, fundamental concepts were explored including the foundations for functions, geometric think and spatial reasoning, the development of mathematical models, as well as techniques for working with spatial figures to understand underlying relationships. The activities in which students participated were designed to teach fundamental mathematics concepts in algebra and geometry in an approach that utilized transformative educational strategies, which helped students move from memorizing facts and content to constructing knowledge in meaningful and useful manners. With an emphasis on a collaborative data collection process, students …

The Relationship Between High-School Mathematics Teachers' Beliefs And Their Practices In Regards To Intellectual Quality, Jonathan L. Brendefur, Michelle B. Carney

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study examines the relationship between mathematics teachers’ beliefs and instructional practices related to learning, pedagogy, and mathematics in regards to components of intellectual quality for eight high-school mathematics teachers. Research has demonstrated that the higher the degree of intellectual quality for instruction is rated the higher student achievement is on standardized assessments. The findings in this study demonstrate a consistent pattern between teachers espoused beliefs and their instructional practices. Even though teachers’ practices changed as they wrote curricular units to be more in line with intellectual quality characteristics, their beliefs stayed consistent over an 18 month period and were …

Origami Terhadap Kecerdasan Spasial Matematika Siswa, Dian Wardhani, Edy Bambang Irawan, Cholis Sa’Dijah

Jurnal Pendidikan: Teori, Penelitian, dan Pengembangan

Origami is an art of folding that originated in Japan. Origami is not only fun, but to accommodate the diversity of learning styles helps children understand math and this is an innovative method for the development of education, culture, and social skills. Origami also encourages interaction and train students in the group student collaboration. The use of origami media can also help the learning process of students in mathematics due to make the students involved in the learning process. Origami to create a form. Forms related to spatial intelligence, spatial intelligence thinking skills while using the pictures and imagine the …

Partitions Of Finite Frames, James Michael Rosado

Theses and Dissertations

An open question stated by Marcus, Spielman, and Srivastava [10] asks "whether one can design an efficient algorithm to find the partitions guaranteed by Corollary 1.5." This corollary states that given a set of vectors in C whose outer products sum to the identity there exists a partition of these vectors such that norms of the outer-product sums of each subset satisfy an inequality bound. Here particular types of vector sets called finite frames are analyzed and constructed to satisfy the inequality described in Corollary 1.5. In this thesis, rigorous proofs and formulations of outer-product norms are utilized to find …

Teaching Critical And Creative Thinking Skills Through Problem-Solving In High School Mathematics Classes, Daniel L. Albert

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

I am a high school mathematics teacher who wants students to develop the thought process that allows them to uncover and use the patterns that are the heart of mathematics. Misconceptions belittle the subject, however, and disrupt the progress of my high school students because it disguises the purpose of studying math. My purpose in joining the Critical and Creative Thinking program at the University of Massachusetts Boston was to learn about the skills and methodologies that assist in the teaching and learning of thinking critically and creatively. This paper shows the progress and evolution of my capstone project—a set …

Mathematics As A Cultural Role Player In School Development: Perspectives From The East And West, Anthony N. Ezeife Dr.

Comparative and International Education / Éducation Comparée et Internationale

In all societies and civilizations, schools are set up primarily to offer and promote socially valued knowledge, experiences, skills, and attitudes geared toward the sustenance and further enrichment of societal norms and goals. Since schools are charged with this weighty responsibility, harnessed and purposeful school development is essential for the achievement of cherished societal goals. Several intertwining factors such as culture, equity, diversity and multiculturalism, etc., contribute to meaningful school development in every society. In the order of hierarchical importance amongst these factors, culture ranks topmost in the list because it (culture) plays a deep and pervasive role in school …

The Effects Of Using The Gomath Program On Teaching Computation Skills For Students With Learning Disabilities, Patricia Virginia Giordano

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects on teaching math computation skills to students with learning disabilities (LD) using the GoMath program and to examine the teachers’ and students’ satisfaction with this program in their teaching and learning. Four, 3rd and 4th graders with LD were taught by one special education teacher in a resource room and participated in learning computation skills for 60 minutes, 5 days per week for 12 weeks, using the Go Math program. A multiple baseline research design with A B phases across students was used to evaluate their performance. The findings indicated …

The Infinity(X)-Equation In Grushin-Type Spaces, Thomas Bieske

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications

We employ Grushin jets which are adapted to the geometry of Grushin-type spaces to obtain the existence-uniqueness of viscosity solutions to the infinity(x)-Laplace equation in Grushin-type spaces. Due to the differences between Euclidean jets and Grushin jets, the Euclidean method of proof is not valid in this environment.

Office Of Stem Education Annual Report 2015-2016, Uno Office Of Stem Education

Student Learning

During 2015-2016 the Office of STEM (OSTEM) Education at UNO has continued to move aggressively forward in undertaking and leading STEM Learning projects, many of which collaborate closely with several other UNO colleges and other formal and informal educational institutions. Also continuing into 2016, OSTEM is steadily transitioning to becoming more of a focused departmental organization, while the UNO STEM Leadership Team takes over more of the campus-wide STEM Priority efforts.

This report describes the TED STEM successes, ongoing efforts and challenges this last year with a direct focus on the TED and COE context, and only lightly touches on …

Strategies For Teaching Developmental Mathematics Students At The College Level, Natalie Lynn Kautz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation was to identify strategies used by effective instructors of developmental mathematics, and to discover the perceptions developmental mathematics students have about these strategies. While there are research projects focusing solely on developmental mathematics achievement, this study fills a need by incorporating views of teaching effectiveness from multiple viewpoints.

In this research project, college-level instructors of developmental mathematics students were recorded on video before, during, and after the teaching of an algebraic concept. Students were given a pre-lesson survey and post-lesson survey to see if there were gains in their learning. Students completed a survey about …

Mindset And Instructional Practices In The Elementary Mathematics Classroom, Charity Hall

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

How is teacher mindset reflected in instructional practices within the elementary mathematics classroom? Drawing from Dr. Carol Dweck’s and Dr. Jo Boaler’s mindset research and N. Webb’s and E. Fennema’s studies of teacher instructional practices, this research focuses on how teacher mindset is tied to interactions with elementary math students. This research also draws from Dr. Jo Boaler’s extensive work with mindset research. Teachers send strong messages to students every day about their students’ ability to achieve and grow. Growth mindset messages tell students they are capable, while fixed mindset messages may hinder a student’s growth. In the interest of …

Stem Community Chairs Progress Updates Spring 2016, Uno Stem Leadership Team

Student Learning

The following is a brief update of the activities and efforts being undertaken by UNO’s Dr. George and Sally Haddix Community Chair of STEM Education as being held by Dr. Neal Grandgenett. The goal of this position is:

Position Goal: To organize, lead and inspire collaborative STEM initiatives at UNO, that cross colleges and disciplines, and that aggressively position UNO to be a true national leader in interdisciplinary STEM programs. (Curriculum, Capacity, Collaboration)

Twelve Best Practices For Mathematics Vocabulary Instruction For K-5 Elementary Students, Shannon Elisa King

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, what are the current best practices for mathematics vocabulary instruction for K-5 elementary students? The motivation for this capstone was the struggle with K-5 students to understand the complex language of mathematics vocabulary. This capstone details the challenges students face in learning mathematics vocabulary, twelve best practices for mathematics vocabulary instruction for K-5 elementary students, and the level of awareness teachers have of these twelve best practices and the level of use of these strategies within their classrooms. Key influence for this capstone was the accreditation process for mathematics at the writer’s …

The Academic And Psychological Effects Of Teaching Students With Learning Disabilities To Solve Problems Using Cognitive And Metacognitive Strategies, Holly Andersen

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research conduced in this study addressed the question: what are the academic and psychological effects of teaching students with learning disabilities to solve word problems using cognitive and metacognitive strategies? During the study, metacognitive and cognitive strategies are employed by a teacher in her middle school math class composed of students with various disabilities. It included using a prescribed method to approach each word problem presented, followed by reflection questions that tracked students’ growth in self-confidence. The researcher documents the exact methods used and utilizes related research literature as a basis for this study. She reflects on the both …

Looking For A (Super)Resolution To An Image Processing Problem, Alleta Maier

Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement

In recent years sparse coding has been employed to efficiently process images. Since recovering sharp images from images corrupted with noise is a well-known ill-posed problem, small perturbations in the image lead to large deviations in the reconstructed image. We look to combine research in superresolution with that of sparse coding for elucidation.

The Development Of Notation In Mathematical Analysis, Alyssa Venezia

Honors Thesis

The field of analysis is a newer subject in mathematics, as it only came into existence in the last 400 years. With a new field comes new notation, and in the era of universalism, analysis becomes key to understanding how centuries of mathematics were unified into a finite set of symbols, precise definitions, and rigorous proofs that would allow for the rapid development of modern mathematics. This paper traces the introduction of subjects and the development of new notations in mathematics from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century that allowed analysis to flourish. In following the development of analysis, we …

Formative Assessment Of Academic Writing With English Learners In An Algebra Class, Robert J. Anderson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

A case study of five English learners examined students’ writing in a co-taught high school math class. The goal of the study was to investigate how two different types of writing activities impacted students’ understanding of mathematical concepts. A writing rubric was used to measure student writing, and the researcher complied in-class tests. The scores on the writing samples were compared to students’ test results to look for trends in the data. Results of the case study were limited in their ability to identify a direct connection with the writing strategies and students’ test results, but the case study revealed …

Sociology-Mathematics Alum: ‘Anti-Money Laundering Is Emerging Field’, Ohio University College Of Arts & Sciences

All Forum Articles

No abstract provided.

Let's Nurture Science, Math Talent, Darren B. Glass

Math Faculty Publications

I recently saw the film The Man Who Knew Infinity, which was released in many American cities this weekend, and was struck by the beautiful telling of an inspirational story. The film, which stars Jeremy Irons and Dev Patel, is a biography of the mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan, who was born in India at the end of the 19th century. [excerpt]

Guiding Sixth Grade Language Development In Mathematical Content Acquisition Through Student Centered Siop Instruction, Leah Callister

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Mathematics is considered a universal language for students. However, now common core standards require students to explain their conceptual understanding through words, numbers, and verbal explanations. Student proficiency in the universal language is impeded when they do not speak the primary language. It is difficult for the teacher to teach both the academic language and mathematical concepts, when the vocabulary is not accessible to all students. Conversely it is difficult for students to follow the pacing of the class while having to translate and gain a conceptual understanding of the subject. The purpose of this study is to increase student …

Eighth Grade Mathematics Intervention: Improving Student Self-Esteem And Content Knowledge Of Targeted Mathematic Skills, Stephanie Hart

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

By eighth grade some students believe they are “not good” and never will be successful at mathematics. Discouraged by poor grades, negative feedback from teachers or demoralized by repeated academic failure, these students disengage from their mathematics classwork. In some cases, mathematics intervention classes are a last chance to get them back on track to qualify for Algebra I in 9^th grade. The purpose of this study is to identify strategies to reengage students by increasing their academic content knowledge in mathematics and boosting their self-esteem and sense of belonging in the school setting. The review of the literature …

Comparing The Effects Of Elementary Music And Visual Arts Lessons On Standardized Mathematics Test Scores, Molly King

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, causal-comparative study was to compare the effect elementary music and visual arts lessons had on third through sixth grade standardized mathematics test scores. Inferential statistics were used to compare the differences between test scores of students who took in-school, elementary, music instruction during the same semester state standardized mathematics tests were administered and those who took in-school, elementary visual arts instruction during the same semester standardized mathematics tests were administered. The students attended seven elementary schools in the same North Alabama school district. The research questions were: (a) Does participation in elementary school music lessons …

The Effects Of Dynamic Graphing Utilities On Student Attitudes And Conceptual Understanding In College Algebra, Ryan Vail Thomas

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this study is to explore and characterize the effects of using a dynamic graphing utility (DGU) on conceptual understanding and attitudes toward mathematics, measured by the responses of college algebra students to an attitude survey and concepts assessment. Two sections of college algebra taught by the primary researcher are included in the study, with one group using the dynamic graphing utility Desmos (www.desmos.com), and the other using the TI-84 (or equivalent) graphing calculator as a control. The Precalculus Concept Assessment (Carlson, Oehrtman, & Engelke, 2010) was used to measure aspects of students’ conceptual understanding of course material, …

Structural-Symbolic Translation Fluency: Reliability, Validity, And Usability, Matt C. Hoskins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Standardized formative mathematics assessments typically fail to capture the depth of current standards and curricula. Consequently, these assessments demonstrate limited utility for informing the instructional implementation choices of teachers. This problem is particularly salient as it relates to the mathematical problem solving process. The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric characteristics of Structural-Symbolic Translation Fluency, a curriculum-based measure (CBM) of mathematical problem solving. The development of the assessment was based on previous research describing the cognitive process of translation (Mayer, 2002) as well as mathematical concept development at the quantitative, structural, and symbolic levels (Dehaene, …

Infinite Color Urn Models., Debleena Thacker Dr.

Doctoral Theses

In recent years, there has been a wide variety of work on random reinforcement models of various kinds. Urn models form an important class of random reinforcement models, with numerous applications in engineering and informatics and bioscience. In recent years there have been several works on different kinds of urn models and their generalizations. For occupancy urn models, where one considers recursive addition of balls into finite or infinite number of boxes, there are some works which introduce models with infinitely many colors, typically represented by the boxes.As observed in [51], the earliest mentions of urn models are in the …