Education Commons^™

A Teachable Unit On Soft Corals With Instructional Method Variances, Emily Breech

Honors Projects

The soft coral Sinularia flexibilis contains an aqueous alcohol extract that has shown antineoplastic activity against lymphocytic leukemia (Weinheimer and Matson, 1977). It also has other biological properties that work as antimicrobials, anti-inflammatory agents, and cytotoxicity activities (Kamel and Slattery, 2005). There is much research on the effects of flow rate on growth and morphology (Khalesi, Beeftink, & Wijffels, 2007) and the effects of light-dependency on growth rate (Khalesi, Beeftink, & Wijffels, 2009). The purpose of this student project was to further research on S. flexibilis, as well as incorporate that research into evaluating the effects of lecture-based teaching …

Using Dr. Howard Gardner's Theory Of Multiple Intelligences To Connect 4th-8th Grade Students To Nature, Brent Anderson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Research has demonstrated that early and frequent exposure to nature and the outdoors has a range of physical, mental, emotional, social, and educational benefits. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using Dr. Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences to connect 4th -8 th grade students to nature, in order to harness the benefits of nature exposure and increase student’s environmental-literacy. Multiple intelligences have been implemented in a number of formal classroom settings for decades, but research on how they have been used in the environmental and outdoor education fields is limited. The project involved creating a diverse curriculum …

Integrating The Nature Of Science Into The International Baccalaureate Chemistry Curriculum: Lesson Plans And Resources For Educators, Greta Wanless Stacy

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

This paper outlines the need for, and the creation of, ten lesson plans designed to teach the nature of science in an integrated fashion in the IB chemistry curriculum. The nature of science is necessary not just to prepare students to answer experimental questions on the IB exam, but also to answer new questions about chemistry and science throughout their lives. Simply using an inquiry approach is insufficient to teach the nature of science; it must be explicitly taught with varying degrees of contextualization to maximize student learning. Like all content areas, the nature of science should be taught in …

Can Creating An Activity Guide On Soil Health Improve Environmental Awareness And Foster Agricultural Sustainability, Lee Vannyhuis

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The research question in this project was, can creating an activity guide on soil health improve environmental awareness and foster agricultural sustainability? This capstone discusses how healthy soils are important for sustaining agricultural productivity with shrinking farmland and a rising human population. It discusses how soils play a vital role in maintaining a healthy environment. This capstone also shows evidence that experiential learning using activity guides is an effective way of teaching environmental issues. The project developed with the capstone is called Soil Health Activity Guide: Black is the new Green. It was was modeled after the widely used environmental …

How Can Water Quality Awareness Be Increased In A Small But Rapidly Increasing City Of New Braunfels, Texas?, Zackary Eugene Martine

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The purpose of this curriculum development Capstone was to create a series of lessons to focus on how to further educate children that live in a pristine water quality environment. The curriculum focused exercises and examples provide increased awareness and education focusing on improving water quality examples on how to keep water quality from degrading during the explosive population growth of the surrounding region. The overall goal is to show how increased growth can lead to potential water quality decreases over time. There are several hands-on lessons that show examples of the ecology of the region and how all things …

Teaching The Language Of A Lab Report: A Guide For Science Teachers, Lori A. Ward

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Academic language in the register of science is often challenging for students to compose, and their science teachers may struggle to support their language development. This project explores the question, what are the language structures science teachers must teach for secondary students to be able to write successful science lab reports? In this paper I report the strong link between language and knowledge in science. Students must develop strong language skills in science not only to communicate scientific ideas but also to gain understanding of scientific concepts. Supporting the development of language in the register of science is a challenging …

Experience Of The Neophyte Science Teachers: Through Their Eyes, David Thornton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A variety of lenses were used to examine the world of the novice science teacher. A degree of agency was provided by looking through the eyes of the beginning teacher. Previous studies focused on researcher or program’s orientation, the successes of various educator preparation programs, or were limited in scope to elementary teachers of science. This study was conducted to better understand and appreciate the high school novice science teacher’s view of science, teaching, and teaching science in the today’s contextual setting. Experiences encountered during the initial year of teaching high school science and as perceived by teachers without previous …

How Can Education Improve The Recycling Behaviors And Attitudes Of Middle School Students, Sara Flanagan

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This research project adapted and implemented curriculum into a middle school science classroom to gauge the effect of the curriculum on the students’ behaviors and attitudes. The focus of the curriculum was on waste management and recycling. Students participated in surveys both before and after the curriculum. Their responses were compared to others in the school who did not go through the curriculum. There are not many updated curriculums available however, through this study it was concluded that education can impact the recycling behaviors and attitudes through curriculum in a positive way that makes students connect their actions to the …

Developing A Teacher Guidebook To Increase Outdoor Education In Schools, Patrick Schuette

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

An outdoor education guidebook was developed to help teachers start outdoor education courses, increase student engagement, and develop intrapersonal and interpersonal skills in students. Outdoor education is about much more than learning content information in a classroom; it is the class and teaching mindset which rekindles students’ passion for learning and discovery. Outdoor education best practice consists of place-based learning where students learn physical and mental skills with the outcome of success being directly related to those skills. Outdoor education will look different depending on location because it is influenced by local environmental, students, resources, and culture. The outdoor education …

Curriculum Development And Analysis To Encourage Positive Environmental Attitudes In High School Students, Matthew Johnston

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This capstone project used a qualitative research design to explore the research question, how do students who are participating in a course on ecology and resource conservation, describe their understanding of ecology and conservation? The capstone researcher designed a student centered curriculum that used project based learning and outdoor experiences in an elective science course. A major goal of the course was to engage high school students in environmental education and shift students’ attitude to be more positive toward the environment. To measure students’ attitudes, the New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) (Anderson, 2012) survey was completed at the start and end …

How Can We Use The Lake Superior Watershed To Connect To Anishinaabe Youth And Inspire Them To Continue As Stewards Of The Land?, Heidi Lynn Ojibway

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Anishinaabe youth have historically experienced difficulty adjusting to mainstream education. Their graduation rates are the lowest in the country (Camera, 2015). By developing curriculum that is culturally relevant and rebuilds connections to the land educators can work towards closing the education gap. The curriculum in this capstone project uses the Lake Superior Watershed, environmental education practices, and American Indian Learner Outcomes to meet state standards. By using culturally relevant materials to connect to Anishinaabe youth it is expected that they will feel invested in the curriculum. They will build stronger community ties which in turn results in stewardship. The curriculum …

What Is The Impact Of Effective Questioning And Critical, Relevant Conversations On Sixth Grade Science Students’ Agentic Engagement?, Corrie L. Christensen

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question in this project was, “What is the impact of effective questioning and critical, relevant conversations on sixth grade science students’ agentic engagement?” It documents a teacher’s investigation into the impact of two isolated components, effective questioning and relevant conversations, on the agentic engagement of a group of sixth grade students. The author describes the outcomes of data collection using randomized student agentic engagement surveys. She outlines the successes and struggles that were realized during the process as well as the realization that an isolated component or two does not make a significant change in agentic engagement.

Science Interactive Notebooks: A Case Study On Learning In High School Students, Autumn A. Mollet

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

I conducted a qualitative case study using classroom observations, written documentation, and experience to answer the research question, what is the effect of science interactive notebooks on high school biology students learning? One class of tenth grade biology students was observed and asked writing prompts in order to determine how interactive notebooks influenced learning. Several key themes emerged within the data collected including; organization, note taking, creativity, variation, reference, student engagement, and student affinity towards the interactive notebooks. Findings suggest that students are more engaged in class and are able to identify key ways in which the science interactive notebooks …

Developing A Garden-Based Curriculum For Middle School Content Enrichment, Dane Warming

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Garden-based education has been around for more than a century. It is one of the many outdoor learning strategies used by modern teachers. Gardens provide an engaging, safe, and interesting place to learn. However, teachers face a number of challenges when teaching in an outdoor setting. In order to decide if those efforts are justified a study of the research relating to outdoor education was conducted. The literature review revealed that outdoor learning offers benefits to student learning, physical and mental health, and overall development. This literature review informed the creation of a cross-content curriculum project. The lessons that make …

Creating An Inquiry-Based Force Unit For A Ninth-Grade Science Class, Hans P. Harlane

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

As students study science, they need to learn how to investigate a question, as a scientist would, not just memorize facts and figures. Teaching through inquiry lends itself well to students working collaboratively to build their own understanding as opposed to only being told. The literature shows that there are several ways to teach through inquiry, all of which include the students being engaged in, exploring, explaining, and extending their learning. Using the four necessary parts of inquiry, along with the Understanding by Design framework, a unit curriculum on forces was developed to help guide the students to build their …

A Quantitative Survey Analysis Of Elementary Preservice Teacher Perceptions Of Assessment Tasks In Science Coursework, Allison D. Killingsworth

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This replication survey research study sought to further understand preservice elementary teachers’ perceptions of assessment tasks they encountered in secondary science coursework. Students are assessed through informal and formal assessments, including close-ended and open-ended questions, through classroom and high-stakes assessments. With great significance placed on high-stakes state assessments, classroom instruction and assessments oftentimes mirror the format of state assessments. The researcher administered a validated Likert scale inventory, the Perceptions of Assessment Tasks Inventory (PATI), to preservice elementary teachers to examine their perceptions of how assessment tasks reflected their knowledge and understanding of science assessment tasks. The researcher found the research …

Impacts Of Professional Development In Integrated Stem Education On Teacher Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectancy, And Stem Career Awareness, John Geoffrey Knowles

Purdue Polytechnic Doctoral Dissertations

This research analyzed the effects of teacher professional development and lesson implementation in integrated Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) on: 1.) Teacher self-efficacy and their confidence to teach specific STEM subjects; 2.) Teaching outcome expectancy beliefs concerning the impact of actions by teachers on student learning; and 3.) Teacher awareness of STEM careers. High school science and technology education teachers participating in the Teachers and Researchers Advancing Integrated Lessons in STEM (TRAILS) project experimental group attended a ten-day summer professional development institute designed to educate teachers in using an integrated STEM education model to implement integrated STEM lessons. The …

Energy Poverty: Sos, Kaitlin Tomlinson

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This honors thesis is a part of a larger ISAT Senior Capstone project with partner Rachel Stukenborg. The purpose of the collaborative ISAT Capstone Project was to develop a set of university-level teaching and learning resources about energy poverty that incorporate a spherical display system, Science On a Sphere (S.O.S.). Four lesson “packages” were created regarding energy poverty for the ISAT Capstone. The first three incorporate Science On a Sphere while the fourth delves into the social, political, economic and cultural dynamics of sustainable solutions, without S.O.S. images. Each lesson package includes a background analysis, a comprehensive lesson plan, supporting …

A Comparative Study Teaching Chemistry Using The 5e Learning Cycle And Traditional Teaching With A Large English Language Learner Population In A Middle School Setting, Cynthia Nicole Mcwright

Dissertations

For decades science educators and educational institutions have been concerned with the status of science content being taught in K-12 schools and the delivery of the content. Thus, educational reformers in the United States continue to strive to solve the problem on how to best teach science for optimal success in learning. The constructivist movement has been at the forefront of this effort. With mandatory testing nationwide and an increase in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) jobs with little workforce to fulfill these needs, the question of what to teach and how to teach science remains a concern among …

Claim, Evidence, And Reasoning: Evaluation Of The Use Of Scientific Inquiry To Support Argumentative Writing In The Middle School Science Classroom, Gabriela Mastro

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

In light of the essential science and engineering practices identified by the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), this study focuses on the specific science and engineering practice, "engage in argument from evidence," and how classroom practices can serve to strengthen this skill (National Research Council, 2012, p. 71). The NGSS focus on inquiry necessitates students’ use of argument, particularly in writing, to communicate their knowledge and scientific findings and to develop an understanding of scientific practice. The purpose of this teacher action research study is to evaluate the influence of inquiry-based argumentative writing exercises, based on the Argument Driven Inquiry …

Preview-View-Review: Increasing Academic Access For Students With Intellectual Disabilities Who Are English Learners, Dolores Marie Williamson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Recent changes to federal education laws for students with and without disabilities have kindled an increased interest in implementing evidence-based practices for teaching academic skills to all students, including students with severe disabilities and students learning English. Teaching students with significant disabilities who are learning English poses a unique set of challenges. To date, no research has been conducted on teaching science to students with significant intellectual disabilities who are learning English.

This study was designed to measure the effect of an evidence-based science curriculum, delivered in both English and Spanish using the preview-view-review (PVR) strategy, on the science vocabulary …

Using Educative Assessment In A Science Classroom, Jordan Truitt

Honors Projects

The focus of this study is to consider educative assessment in the science classroom and its effectiveness in assessing student-centered learning. By using educative assessment to measure learning, student work can be evaluated by rubric in addition to a traditional summative assessment. In comparing the student learning measured using the rubric results and traditional results, there was no statistical difference between the two assessments. However, the educative assessment provided greater insight into higher levels of learning. Conversational data also showed evidence of skills-based learning in the field of science. Further research into the applications for ‘at-risk’ students is required.

Making Sense Of School Reform: A Case Study Of Mathematics And Science Teachers' Sensemaking With One District's Differentiation And Detracking Initiatives, Katelyn Daplyn Skinner

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to examine how individual science and mathematics teachers within a particular high school made sense of a district differentiation effort. A focus on teachers' perceptions and interpretations of this effort was targeted through the theoretical framework of sensemaking. Two of the teachers were present for an initial detracking reform effort, which enabled the researcher to examine their sensemaking of both initiatives.

There were clear differences in the sense that teachers made of the differentiation initiative. Additionally, there were multiple factors that impacted teacher sensemaking; the district initiative was not one of these factors. …

The Impact Of Informal Education On Formal Education In Science A Symbiotic Relationship, Colin Johnson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Classroom science teachers face many obstacles, from standardized exams to including real world concepts in their science units. Informal science educators are looking for ways to expand their mission into school curricula in the form of activities and project-based learning. Incorporating real-world experiences from informal science institutions can supplement and enrich the formal science educator’s classroom learning units. The research in question in this Capstone was to address how formal and informal science educators can work together to increase students’ participation in science and the environment. I interviewed science professionals about why they pursued a career in science and I …

Discovering Conceptual Metaphors In High School Biology To Instruct English Language Learners, Nancy R. Mccurdy

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

An investigation was completed to identify and define abstraction that occurs within abstract nouns in biology terminology in the Mississippi high school biology subject area practice test in order to determine conceptual language patterns in biology terms to teach to high school English Learners. The conceptual metaphors that dominate biology concepts in major scientific theories of the text exemplar examined are ORGANISMS ARE MACHINES, ECOSYSTEMS ARE COMMUNITIES, DNA IS A TEMPLATE, and DESIRED TRAITS ARE VALUABLE. The most prevalent common conceptual metaphors found within abstract nouns in biology of the text examined are MATTER IS A STRUCTURE, PROCESS IS A …

How Do You Empower At Risk Students To Become Active Citizens About The Environment, Through The Design And Implementation Of An Urban Environmental Science Curriculum Within An Alternative Education Setting?, Stephen N. Szczodroski

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

At-risk students come with a history of failure in school. The mainstream classroom setting has not worked for them in the past; therefore, educators must think outside the box and get students doing as many hands-on, experiential lessons as possible. Generally, these students do not have the opportunity to experience many experiential activities. This new curriculum helped students get outside learning new skills, and lured them away from chalkboard lessons. A major component with the curriculum was coordinating with the local parks and recreational system, to create a program where students are involved in using and maintaining local natural areas …

Interactive Videos As A Vocabulary Pre-Teaching Tool In Middle School Science, Kimberly Severson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of interactive video instruction to teacher-led direct instruction for pre-teaching science vocabulary to newcomer middle school ELs. The second phase of the experiment utilized interactive videos to pre-teach science vocabulary in a flipped learning environment. This study was influenced by vocabulary experts Beck, McKeown, and Kucan, as well as R. E. Mayer, multimedia learning expert. Data collection included pre-tests and post-tests of expressive and receptive vocabulary knowledge, as well as a student survey to determine ease of use, students’ perceived learning and satisfaction with the type of instruction. Results from …

A Study On The Effectiveness Of A Pilot Inquiry-Based Middle School Science Program On Non-Cognitive Outcomes And Academic Achievement, Rui Meira Dionisio

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The randomized research study assessed the effect of an inquiry-based science (IBS) program on non-cognitive outcomes and academic achievement. The study was the result of a grant that was awarded by Professional Resources in Science and Mathematics (PRISM), a program affiliated with Montclair State University in conjunction with Bristol-Myers Squibb, and part of the New Jersey Statewide Systemic Initiative (NJSSI). The NJSSI is a partnership of schools, districts, colleges and universities, science centers, businesses, and museums dedicated to improving the teaching and learning of science, mathematics, and technology in New Jersey. The quantitative research study utilized an IBS instructional program …

Vocabulary Acquisition: Implementing Word Walls With Images In Science For Ells, Mary Orr

Master of Education Applied Research Projects

With increased concern about science instruction for ELLs, this quantitative applied research project sought to answer the research question, “Is there a relationship between the vocabulary instructional strategy of a word wall with images (WWwI) and the science vocabulary acquisition for ELLs?” The research design was a pre-test post-test control condition study using a group of ELLs in an ELL classroom for both the control condition and experimental condition. The quantitative data confirmed the results that there is a relationship between the students learning the science vocabulary words with the use of a WWwI since the experimental condition of ELLs …

The Perceptions Of Elementary School Teachers Regarding Their Efforts To Help Students Utilize Student-To-Student Discourse In Science, Jennifer Lovejoy Craddock

Educational Studies Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions of elementary teachers who teach science as opposed to science teacher specialists regarding their efforts to help students use student-to-student discourse for improving science learning. A growing body of research confirms the importance of a) student-to-student discourse for making meaning of science ideas and b) moving students’ conceptual development towards a more scientific understanding of the natural world. Based on those foundations, the three research questions that guided this study examined the value elementary teachers place on student-to-student discourse, the various approaches teachers employ to promote the use of …