Education Commons^™

Consequences Of Math Anxiety And Stereotype Threat: An Intersectional Perspective, Jennifer E. John Buck

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Individuals with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) skills are highly valued for their contribution to the U.S. workforce and society. However, women and some people of color enter STEM fields at lesser rates than do White men. Math anxiety and stereotype threat have been found to cause math performance decrements for women and some people of color. Presently, it is not clear how math anxiety and stereotype threat might work together to dually influence math performance and subsequent STEM participation. The current study focuses on a diverse sample of 295 undergraduate students who were randomly assigned to one of …

Understanding Stem Faculty Members' Decisions About Evidence-Based Instructional Practices, Rebecca Louise Sansom

Theses and Dissertations

Traditional teaching practices in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses have failed to support student success, causing many students to leave STEM fields and disproportionately affecting women and students of color. Although much is known about effective STEM teaching practices, many faculty continue to adhere to traditional methods, such as lecture. In this study, we investigated the factors that affect STEM faculty members' instructional decisions about evidence-based instructional practices (EBIPs). We performed a qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews with faculty members from the Colleges of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Engineering who took part in the …

Exploratory Learning Activities In The Physics Classroom: Contrasting Cases Versus A Rich Dataset., Campbell Rightmyer Bego

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In exploratory learning, students engage in an exploration activity on a new topic prior to instruction. This inversion of the traditional tell-then-practice order has been shown to benefit learning outcomes, especially conceptual knowledge and preparation for future learning, but not always. In three studies, the current work examines whether the type of exploration activity impacts learning mechanisms and outcomes, on the topic of gravitational field in undergraduate physics classrooms. Activities using either contrasting cases (CC) or a rich dataset (RD) are compared in two instructional orders, explore-first (EF) and instruct-first (IF). Learning outcomes measured procedural knowledge, conceptual knowledge, and performance …

The Roles And Responsibilities Of Makerspace Educators, Kelli Duhaney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The maker movement is rapidly growing as schools look to address learning in the subjects of STEM subjects. This movement emerged from Papert’s 1980 theory of constructionism. Makerspaces are venues where students have the opportunity to create artifacts that demonstrate their learning about a subject. Students may also tinker and create new artifacts within a makerspace. Much research on the maker movement is anecdotal, focusing on the student experience in makerspaces. Little was known about the role of the educator in a makerspace. The purpose of this study was to examine the roles and responsibilities of educators while implementing makerspaces …

The Effect Of Role Models And Real-World Stem Content On 6th Grade Student Learning And Interest In A Stem Career, Charles P. Huber

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This study investigated the effects of using role models to teach lessons about real-world STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) content through experiential learning to increase interest in STEM careers. The research conducted in a large upper Midwest middle school. Five data collection tools were used: Likert scale rating, pre and post intervention student interest in STEM surveys, student role model evaluation survey, STEM role model research project scores, and Rube Goldberg project scores. Pre and post data was categorized into three content areas: science, math, and technology and engineering. While quantitative evidence identified a minor decrease in interest of …

Moderating Effect Of Homeschooling On Retention And Academic Achievement Of Stem Majors At A Private, Faith-Based, Liberal Arts College, Aresia Watson

Dissertations

Previous research has indicated that homeschooling is a growing trend within the U.S. Previous research has also indicated that less than one half of students who begin a STEM major at postsecondary institutions will complete their degree. This study sought to look at the possible moderating effect homeschooling has on the academic achievement and retention of STEM majors at a private, faith-based liberal arts college using a modified version of Tinto’s Model of Student Departure.

Independent sample t-tests were used to compare means and intercorrelations of homeschooled students and traditionally schooled students in unmatched and matched samples for several academic …

Stem Ready: Inspiring And Preparing Undergraduate Students For Successful Volunteerism In After-School Stem Programming With Marginalized Youth, Bailey N. Wagner

Community Engagement Student Work

The activities in which children and youth engage while outside of school hours are critical to their development, highlighting the need for quality afterschool programs that engage students – regardless of gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or minority classification. STEM Ready set out to study the effectiveness of an experiential education pedagogy approach in the design of a professional workshop for undergraduate volunteers who work directly with these marginalized populations in afterschool programs. This project hosted a training that gave the opportunity for afterschool volunteers to come together to be trained on STEM curriculum that has been developed in collaboration with …

The Impact Of A Science Fair On High School Students’ Feelings Of Self-Efficacy In Stem, Nathaniel P. Wharton

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this present action research study was to describe secondary students’ feelings of self-efficacy in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Through a curriculum linked to a science fair project, the teacher-researcher focused on student-participants’ perceptions of perseverance and task completion linked to STEM courses and postsecondary STEM careers. A Likert scale pretest (n=44) and posttest (n=33) based on Bandura’s model of four categories of self-efficacy (mastery experience, vicarious experiences, verbal/social persuasion, and emotional/psychological states) was administered to middle to low income students at a high school in Pennsylvania in the fall of 2018.). Data was also collected …

The Impact Of Undergraduate Research Experiences On The Development Of Biology Students’ Domain Knowledge, Domain Interest, And Career Aspirations, Amy Haddock Keagy

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Federal and state agencies in the United States have pressured institutions in higher education to increase the number of graduates in STEM disciplines and supply an educated workforce for the increasing shortages in the STEM economy. Undergraduate research experience is one potential mechanism for supporting retention and student success within STEM disciplines. Most evaluations of the impact of undergraduate research to this point have been qualitative research studies. The purpose of this study was to use a quantitative model to examine domain knowledge, domain interest, and career aspirations in undergraduate biology majors and how participation in research experiences may impact …

The Effect Of Stem And Non-Stem Education On Student Mathematics Ability In Third Grade, Elke Hyacinth

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although early mathematics instruction is predictive of future mathematics achievement, the effects of STEM-based mathematics instruction on mathematics gains in elementary school have been largely unexplored. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine whether mathematics scores from third grade student state-mandated standardized mathematics test differ between students who were enrolled in STEM schools and students who were enrolled in non-STEM schools in the largest school district located in a Southwestern state in the United States. Polya's problem-solving heuristics formed the theoretical framework because of their relevance to concepts on the third grade mathematics test. Two research questions focused …

Identifying College Students’ Course-Taking Patterns In Stem Fields, Fahimeh Bahrami

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

In spite of substantial investments in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, low enrollment and high attrition rate among students in these fields remain an unmitigated challenge for higher education institutions. In particular, underrepresentation of women and minority students with STEM-related college degrees replicates itself in the makeup of the workforce, adding another layer to the challenge. While most studies examine the relationship between student characteristics and their outcomes, in this study, I take a new approach to understand academic pathways as a dynamic process of student curricular experiences that influence his/her decision about subsequent course-takings and major field …