Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 30 of 44
Full-Text Articles in Education
A Dber Approach To Writing To Learn, Brian M. Waters
A Dber Approach To Writing To Learn, Brian M. Waters
DBER Speaker Series
Goals for today’s talk
My research shift into DBER
Pilot studies in Scientific Writing and Communication
Research interests
Scientific Writing Help Desk
Conclusions: • Student knowledge and skill in scientific writing improved after taking “Scientific Writing and Communication” • “Writing my drafts” and “Revising my drafts…” were ranked as the most effective activities. This feedback suggests that a full-semester course with multiple drafts, peer review, and revisions is more effective than a workshop or short course without writing practice • Student confidence in the ability to write scientific manuscripts increased after taking this course. This improvement could lead to increased …
Creating And Managing Successful Groups, John Sangster
Creating And Managing Successful Groups, John Sangster
DBER Speaker Series
• Why is group work an essential component of our classes?
• What are the standard practices in forming groups, and what are the outcomes from this practice?
• What does the research say about forming successful groups?
• Case Study: group work in senior-level road design course
Assessing Evolutionary Reasoning Of Introductory Biology Students, Sarah Spier
Assessing Evolutionary Reasoning Of Introductory Biology Students, Sarah Spier
DBER Speaker Series
Question: Does proficiency in natural selection knowledge predict the quality of student reasoning of reproductive potential as a component of fitness?
Hypothesis: Students with higher scores on the Concept Inventory of Natural Selection (CINS) will have more accurate descriptions of reproductive potential as a part of fitness.
Goals: Assess student ability to reason about fitness and selection in a variety of contexts. Assess student reasoning of evolutionary implications of an ecological scenario
Social And Behavioral Science Research Support At Unl, Mindy Anderson-Knott
Social And Behavioral Science Research Support At Unl, Mindy Anderson-Knott
DBER Speaker Series
Mindy Anderson-Knott provides an overview of the various research support offerings at UNL related to the social and behavior sciences. The presentation will explain how the Social and Behavioral Sciences Research Consortium can help researchers with their social and behavior science needs, and will navigate participants through many of the support structures that exist on campus.
Knowing What Students Know: How Question Formats Differ In Their Abilities To Reveal Student Thinking, Brian Couch
Knowing What Students Know: How Question Formats Differ In Their Abilities To Reveal Student Thinking, Brian Couch
DBER Speaker Series
Instructors use assessment ubiquitously throughout undergraduate STEM courses to gauge student understanding of important concepts. The utility of an assessment can be partly judged by the degree to which it can detect the presence of correct and incorrect understandings. We will discuss a series of within-subjects controlled experiments to determine how student responses differ for questions posed in multiple-choice, multiple-true-false, or free-response formats as well as implications of this research for instructional practice.
A Case Study Of The Variables For Women’S Success In Engineering And Computing, Arefeh Mohammadi
A Case Study Of The Variables For Women’S Success In Engineering And Computing, Arefeh Mohammadi
DBER Speaker Series
There is a huge shortage of skilled workforce in the engineering and computing related industries. According to the BLS data women have consistently constituted less than 10% of the workforce in the construction industry, which exemplifies the under representation of women in this field. This qualitative research aims at helping women sustain in engineering workforce, empower them in the choices they make to enter and success in the industry, and look at ways to create a safe and encouraging environment for women to survive and thrive in the workforce. This is believed to be possible through creating platform to educate …
“Thank God I’M Mexican”: Cognitive Racial Reappraisal Strategies Of Latino Engineering Students, Elvira Abrica
“Thank God I’M Mexican”: Cognitive Racial Reappraisal Strategies Of Latino Engineering Students, Elvira Abrica
DBER Speaker Series
Despite the fact that Latinos pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees as often as their peers, Latino degree completion rates lag behind those of other demographic groups. In an effort to better understand Latino persistence in STEM, this qualitative study explored the non-cognitive persistence strategies of Latino men pursuing engineering degrees at two highly selective, four-year institutions. Specifically, this study explored Latino engineering students’ understanding and responses to race and racism, with attention to ways in which understanding and responses differed by immigrant generation. A total of 37 semi-structured interviews were conducted and analyzed. Findings indicate that immigrant …
The Potential Scientist’S Dilemma: How The Masculine Framing Of Science Shapes Friendships And Science Job Aspirations, G. Robin Gauthier, Julia Mcquillan, Patricia Wonch Hill, Amy Spiegel, Judy Diamond
The Potential Scientist’S Dilemma: How The Masculine Framing Of Science Shapes Friendships And Science Job Aspirations, G. Robin Gauthier, Julia Mcquillan, Patricia Wonch Hill, Amy Spiegel, Judy Diamond
DBER Speaker Series
In the United States, girls and boys have similar science achievement, yet fewer girls aspire to science careers than boys. This paradox emerges in middle school, when peers begin to play a stronger role in shaping adolescent identities. We use complete network data on a single middle school and theories of gender, identity, and social distance to explore how friendship patterns might influence this gender and science paradox. Three patterns highlight the social dimensions of gendered science persistence: 1) Boys and girls do not differ in self-perceived science potential and science career aspirations; 2) Consistent with gender-based norms, both middle …
Mini-Symposium: Best Practices For Reu Programs And Unl, Mark A. Griep
Mini-Symposium: Best Practices For Reu Programs And Unl, Mark A. Griep
DBER Speaker Series
If you want to learn how to run an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) program (or to make your REU program run more smoothly), then this is your opportunity to ask questions. The presentation will begin with 5-min talks from five REU program coordinators. These coordinators run a wide range of programs and have experience ranging from 1 year to 12 years. They will mention things such as how many applicants their program receives, how they review those files, an outline of the non-research portion of their summer program, and what sorts of outcomes they collect so they can report …
Self-Regulated Learning In Engineering Labs, Presentacion Rivera
Self-Regulated Learning In Engineering Labs, Presentacion Rivera
DBER Speaker Series
Students’ task interpretation is a critical first step in the process of self-regulated learning and a key determinant in students setting their learning goals and selecting strategies to approach assigned work. Laboratory activities improve students’ conceptual understanding because of the cognitive demand when students integrate laboratory activities and theory. The purpose of this study is to investigate how students’ interpretation of the task assigned during laboratory work may change during the task process, and how it is related to their conceptual understanding. One-hundred and forty-three students enrolled in the course of Electronics participated in this study. Instruments used to measure …
Collegiate Active Learning Calculus Survey (Calcs): Adapting An Instrument And Using Results, Wendy M. Smith
Collegiate Active Learning Calculus Survey (Calcs): Adapting An Instrument And Using Results, Wendy M. Smith
DBER Speaker Series
When we make changes to a course, we want to know if they "worked." There is often a desire to broaden the definition of success beyond student (passing) grades. We know from research that the further students go in mathematics, their attitudes toward and beliefs about mathematics get more and more negative. Thus, if we slow or even reverse that trend, we might then claim success for our reform efforts. Research teams at the University of Colorado Boulder created the CLASS: Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey; this was originally designed for undergraduate physics, then later adapted for use with …
Benefits Of Using R For Dber, Jordan Harshman
Benefits Of Using R For Dber, Jordan Harshman
DBER Speaker Series
When carrying out quantitative discipline based educational research projects, researchers have a variety of choices when it comes to which statistical package s/he chooses to use. In this presentation, I will convey how one programming language, R, has not only provided an abundance of advantages, but has transformed the way I see data analysis. R is a free program with thousands of add-in packages capable of doing a majority of basic and advanced statistical techniques and graphics. By investigating a hypothetical data set through cluster analysis, I will present how 1) defining custom functions efficiently allows for iterative exploratory investigations, …
Clicker Use In Introductory Biology: Impacts On Exam Performance, Joanna K. Hubbard
Clicker Use In Introductory Biology: Impacts On Exam Performance, Joanna K. Hubbard
DBER Speaker Series
In-class response systems, or clickers, are useful formative assessment tools that support learning by providing real-time feedback that can be used to correct misconceptions through peer discussion and instructor guidance. Previous research has shown that peer discussion improves conceptual understanding within a class period. In this study, we asked whether the benefits of peer discussion could be detected on a longer time scale. We asked exam questions that were isomorphic to in-class clicker questions and found students that participated in peer discussion scored higher than students that were not in class for the discussion. We also examined the effect of …
Teaching And Research In Scil 101: Science And Decision-Making For A Complex World, Jenny Dauer
Teaching And Research In Scil 101: Science And Decision-Making For A Complex World, Jenny Dauer
DBER Speaker Series
SCIL 101 “Science and decision-making for a complex world” is the new introductory core class for all of the students in CASNR. The learning objectives are targeted toward developing students’ science literacy skills. The course will be described, as well as findings from on-going science literacy research that investigates indicators of formal and informal decision-making in the course.
Improving Science Student Retention: A Survey Tool To Measure First-Year Students’ Likelihood To Remain At Unl, Mark E. Burbach, Shannon Moncure
Improving Science Student Retention: A Survey Tool To Measure First-Year Students’ Likelihood To Remain At Unl, Mark E. Burbach, Shannon Moncure
DBER Speaker Series
Purpose
•Develop, test, and share a first-year college student retention instrument that can be used to both assess students’ likeliness to remain enrolled at UNL and the effectiveness of courses and instructional methods on student retention.
•Focus on those working most directly with students (i.e. advisors, instructors, etc.), less institutional focus
Spatial Skills & Introductory Computing, Steve Cooper
Spatial Skills & Introductory Computing, Steve Cooper
DBER Speaker Series
Our questions
Is there a correlation between a student's spatial abilities and her ability in programming? Spatial abilities are measured through the R-PSVT, and CS programming ability is measured the 2009 AP CS MC questions
If yes, can we increase programming success through the teaching of spatial skills?
Results
Spatial training seemed to be correlated with better CS gains, and in particular helped Hispanic women and students from low SES backgrounds
Caveats
We measured code reading, but taught code writing
Differing student demographics for the 2 sessions
Small n
Put Away Your Phone And Learn! How Technology Engages Or Disengages Students And… When It Is Good That Your Students Are Confused, Douglas K. Duncan
Put Away Your Phone And Learn! How Technology Engages Or Disengages Students And… When It Is Good That Your Students Are Confused, Douglas K. Duncan
DBER Speaker Series
Some technology increases student learning, some decreases it. I will show evidence of both and discuss what makes the difference. Approximately 70% of college students now text during class, and no faculty member we studied saw even as much as half of the texting that occurred. Is there any viable way to stop this? What should instructors do about the use of laptops in class?
The second part of the talk will address the uses of confusion, presenting interesting data showing the type of confusion that leads to increased student learning. Part of the discussion will be how demos – …
The Scientific Teaching Practices Survey For Undergraduate Stem Courses, Mary F. Durham, Jenny K. Knight, Brian Couch
The Scientific Teaching Practices Survey For Undergraduate Stem Courses, Mary F. Durham, Jenny K. Knight, Brian Couch
DBER Speaker Series
The National Academies Summer Institutes on Undergraduate Education (SI) is a faculty development workshop in which STEM instructors are trained in the Scientific Teaching (ST) pedagogy and encouraged to implement its practices at their home institutions. While participants generally report positive experiences at the SI, it remains unclear how these experiences affect instructors’ teaching practices and associated student outcomes. As part of a larger effort to evaluate the SI, we developed a survey to gauge the frequencies of ST practices that could occur in undergraduate STEM courses. The ST Practices Survey is derived from the observable teaching practices described in …
Using Interactive Engagement Strategies To Enhance Learning In College Science Courses, Bailey Z. Kreager, Leilani Arthurs
Using Interactive Engagement Strategies To Enhance Learning In College Science Courses, Bailey Z. Kreager, Leilani Arthurs
DBER Speaker Series
The number of decreasing science majors in U.S. institutions of higher education is connected to the quality of science instruction (Seymour, 1994; Daempfle, 2003) and resulted in nation-wide efforts to improve the quality of college-level science education (National Committee on Science Education Standards and Assessment et al., 1996; NGSS Lead States, 2013). This talk presents historical trends in the adoption of interactive engagement (IE) strategies in college-level science courses and presents one such IE strategy, lecture tutorials (LTs), in the context of sedimentology and stratigraphy.
To determine historical trends in the adoption of IE strategies, peer-reviewed journal articles accessible via …
Using Just-In-Time Teaching In A Flipped Undergraduate Biological Systems Engineering Course, Jeyamkondan Subbiah
Using Just-In-Time Teaching In A Flipped Undergraduate Biological Systems Engineering Course, Jeyamkondan Subbiah
DBER Speaker Series
This study analyzed the role of the evidence-based instructional practice of Just-in-time (JIT) teaching integrated with the flipped classroom in an undergraduate biological systems engineering course. In the present paper we provide a detailed overview of the course design, development, and implementation of JIT in a flipped approach to instruction by communicating the technologies used, pedagogy employed to integrate online and in-class activities, and the collaboration between the instructional design support and instructor. Based on the results, we provide recommendations for engineering faculty that want to explore the flipped approach to teaching, examples for online learning activities and how to …
A Retrospective On Student Learning And Acceptance Of Evolutionary Science, Lawrence C. Scharmann
A Retrospective On Student Learning And Acceptance Of Evolutionary Science, Lawrence C. Scharmann
DBER Speaker Series
In this presentation, I provide an analysis of my work (1985-present) with non-major biology students and science teacher candidates in developing strategies for teaching and enhancing learning with respect to Evolutionary Science.
Remember Embers: Model-Based Reasoning, Collaborative Teams And Much More!, David Gosselin
Remember Embers: Model-Based Reasoning, Collaborative Teams And Much More!, David Gosselin
DBER Speaker Series
Studies of interdisciplinary research teams indicate that team members struggle to achieve knowledge integration across disciplines. Knowledge integration across disciplines is at the heart of addressing important research challenges, such as impacts of global change, trade-offs between water, food, and energy production, and the need for sustainable cities. The EMBeRS Project is testing a new model for integrating knowledge across disciplines based on cognitive science theories of model-based reasoning. The project will create educational materials to train students to overcome the barriers to integrating knowledge across disciplines.
Issues arise due to the inability of team members to work collaboratively in …
Enriching Student’S Online Homework Experience In Pre-Calculus Courses: Hints And Cognitive Supports, Nathan Wakefield
Enriching Student’S Online Homework Experience In Pre-Calculus Courses: Hints And Cognitive Supports, Nathan Wakefield
DBER Speaker Series
As part of reforming our Pre-Calculus courses we realized that reforms to instruction needed to be accompanied by reforms to the homework. Homework is completed online using an open-source homework system. In this study we investigated and implemented a new means of providing our students more support on missed questions. Utilizing a new WebWorK “hints” feature and leveraging our network of experienced high-school teachers we developed leading questions and helps to prompt student thinking over procedures. Preliminary data shows many students are using these hints and the hints are working as intended. In this presentation I will discuss the development …
Student-Teacher Affect In Stem College Course Transformation, Matthew T. Patton, Leilani Arthurs
Student-Teacher Affect In Stem College Course Transformation, Matthew T. Patton, Leilani Arthurs
DBER Speaker Series
Despite federal efforts to support the propagation of active-learning strategies in introductory college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, instructor adoption of these strategies lags behind the published research that touts their efficacy for students’ learning. Possible reasons for this lag are varied and, herein, we investigate the potential role that students play in STEM instructors’ decisions on whether and how to adopt active-learning strategies. Our study was conducted at a large public university in the Midwest. Grounded in social cognitive theory, we use a mixed methods approach that combines 34 classroom observations, one-onone interviews with students (n=57) and …
Understanding Student Motivation And Strategic Engagement In Computer Science And Stem Courses, Duane F. Shell, Leen-Kiat Soh
Understanding Student Motivation And Strategic Engagement In Computer Science And Stem Courses, Duane F. Shell, Leen-Kiat Soh
DBER Speaker Series
Students’ motivation and strategic engagement have been identified as playing crucial roles in their success in STEM and CS classes. Numerous motivational constructs have been identified including goals, instrumentality of the course, mindsets, emotional/affective reactions, and self-efficacy. These are thought to motivate students’ to achieve and to drive the self-regulation and engagement necessary for student-centered learning. Despite sometimes lengthy histories of research in these constructs and behaviors, there are still many questions about how students are motivated in their courses and how they can become effective self-directed, engaged learners. This talk will discuss research findings from five years of classroom …
International Students In Their Own Country: Motivation Of Vietnamese Graduate Students To Attend Vietnamese-German University, Christina W. Yao
International Students In Their Own Country: Motivation Of Vietnamese Graduate Students To Attend Vietnamese-German University, Christina W. Yao
DBER Speaker Series
Vietnamese German University (VGU), a new engineering and technology university near Ho Chi Minh City, is a collaborative effort between the German and Vietnamese governments. In this study, I highlight the motivation of Vietnamese graduate students for attending a foreign university, in essence becoming international students in their own country. Findings highlight the intersection between the global, national, and local levels of influence in transnational higher education.
Integrating Computational Creativity Exercises Into Classes, Leen-Kiat Soh, Duane F. Shell
Integrating Computational Creativity Exercises Into Classes, Leen-Kiat Soh, Duane F. Shell
DBER Speaker Series
Introduction | Creative Thinking, Computational Thinking
Exercises | Overall Design & Examples
Results | Brief Overview
Logistics | Tips, Support & Feedback
Aim to improve the learning of computational thinking by blending it with creative thinking Creative thinking? • Patterned in a way that tends to lead to creative results • Not limited to the arts • An integral component of human intelligence that can be practiced, encouraged and developed within any context
CREATIVITY THINKING Epstein’s Generativity Theory breaks creative thinking down to four core competencies • Capturing novelty • Challenging established thinking and behavior patterns • Broadening one’s knowledge …
The Mindful Learning Model, David W. Brooks, Guy Trainin, Khalid Sayood
The Mindful Learning Model, David W. Brooks, Guy Trainin, Khalid Sayood
DBER Speaker Series
Earlier we published the Unified Learning Model which speaks to learning based on achieieving the "top slot" in working memory, repetition, and connections. The Mindful Learning Model accounts for more recent understandings of learning, and especially connections to "consciousness." The model has many parts. Inputs to the brain from sensors (eyes, ears) are not so much information about what is perceived but about discrepancies between that perception and one's mental model of the current context. The voices in our heads are after‐the fact reports rather than realtime executives. Working memory is a series of detectable brain events taking place over …
Pre‐Service Teachers’ Use Of Content Knowledge To Inform Formative Assessment Strategies In An Integrated Life Sciences Methods Course, Jaime Sabel, Cory Forbes
Pre‐Service Teachers’ Use Of Content Knowledge To Inform Formative Assessment Strategies In An Integrated Life Sciences Methods Course, Jaime Sabel, Cory Forbes
DBER Speaker Series
Pre‐service elementary teachers should learn essential science concepts, how to apply those concepts to practice in elementary science learning environments, and how to effectively connect students’ ideas to appropriate instructional strategies. In order to effectively engage students in scientific practices and connect students’ ideas about science to appropriate instructional strategies, teachers should learn to engage in high‐leverage instructional practices, such as formative assessment. However, teachers may not understand formative assessment or possess enough science content knowledge to effectively engage in related instructional practices. To address these needs, we developed an innovative course for elementary pre‐service teachers built upon two pillars—life …
Learning Catalytics Workshop, Chad Brassil
Learning Catalytics Workshop, Chad Brassil
DBER Speaker Series
Come and participate in a demonstration using Learning Catalytics in the classroom. Experience how this system takes a step behind clickers, facilitating peer learning and active learning pedagogies in even very large classrooms. Hear about experience of using this system from instructors at UNL. Note, attendees are encouraged to bring a laptop computer, smartphone, or tablet to the workshop and to contact Chad Brassil cbrassil@unl.edu beforehand to set‐up a demonstration Learning Catalytics account.