Education Commons^™

Numerical Integration Of Linear And Nonlinear Wave Equations, Laura Lynch

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

We begin our study with an analysis of various numerical methods and boundary conditions on the well-known and well-studied advection and wave equations, in particular we look at the FTCS, Lax, Lax-Wendroff, Leapfrog, and Iterated Crank Nicholson methods with periodic, outgoing, and Dirichlet boundary conditions. We will then extend our study to the nonlinear equation g_tt = g_xx – g_t²/g, introduced by Khoklov and Novikov. The nonlinearities are similar to those seen in General Relativity, and thus our analysis establishes the effects of numerical integration and boundary condition choices on the long-term stability …

Education In The Environment: A Hands-On Student Research And Outdoor Learning Experience: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending November 30, 2004, Margaret N. Rees

Reports (PLI Education)

During the past three-months, the focus of the university’s efforts has been 1) making progress on the hiring of permanent project managers for the Education in the Environment Strategy and the Forever Earth / Wonderful Outdoor World on the Water (WOW) projects; 2) completing legal review of the cooperative agreement and standard operating procedures required for the university to assume operations of the Forever Earth vessel; and 3) writing curriculum for the WOW and Forever Earth projects.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: November 16, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from October 19 Meeting (5 minutes)
3. Presentation of Biology Curriculum Strands – Paul Buck (15 min.)
4. Discussion of Possible Advisory Board Structures – Michael Reiland (15 min.)
5. Update from Line and Space Architects – Les Wallach/Henry Tom (20 min.)
6. Discussion of Student Risk Analysis/Liability Issues (15 min.)
7. Standing Reports (10 minutes)
   A. UNLV/CESU Update – Nancy Flagg
   B. BLM Update – Michael Reiland
8. Committee Reports (5 min.)
   A. Building Committee – Angie Lara
9. Open Discussion / New Business (5 min.)
   A. January Meeting – Tuesday, January 18, 10:30 a.m., UNLV Paradise
   Campus
   B. Core …

What Factors Contribute To The Success Of African American Women In Science And Mathematics: Do Teaching Techniques Matter, Sheryl Mcglamery

Teacher Education Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

The session content will focus on the author's research about effective teaching techniques that engage and assist African American women (and others) in succeeding in science and mathematics courses. Several case studies will highlight the effective practice focus of this session.

Stressing Concepts And Teaching In The Classroom: A Low-Technology Approach Using Concept Tests And Classroom Polls, Walter S. Borowski

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Electronic student response technologies can be used effectively to increase learning in the classroom. Although these systems are not terribly expensive, their purchase may be out of reach for many departments and institutions. Here we model a low-technology approach that stresses active learning, peer teaching, and testing student understanding of key concepts by using think-pair-share sessions and in-class responses to key concept-test questions.

Questions used in class are chosen carefully to emphasize a concept essential to understanding some aspect of geoscience in an introductory geology course. Each class involves the introduction of a key concept question or questions followed by: …

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: October 19, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from September 21 Meeting (5 minutes)
3. Review & Discussion of Suggested Core Curriculum Themes – Jeanne Klockow/Michael Reiland (20 min.)
4. Update from Line and Space Architects – Les Wallach/Henry Tom (20 min.)
5. Standing Reports (20 minutes)
   A. UNLV/CESU Update – Nancy Flagg
   C. BLM Update – Michael Reiland
6. Committee Reports (10 min.)
   A. Building – Angie Lara
   B. Design Oversight – David Frommer
   C. Educational Programs – Paul Buck
   D. Fund-Raising & Partnerships – Blaine Benedict
   E. NEPA – Charles Carroll
   F. Operations – Jack Ramsey
   G. Other Uses – Pat Williams
   H. Wild …

Dynamic Web Tools For Undergraduate Mathematics, Mike Martin, Steven J. Wilson

Innovations in Math Technology

The internet has become widely available, and tools for mathematical computation on the net have now appeared. The authors used webMathematica software to create interactive web pages which allow students and faculty to compute and visualize results directly from a web browser. The nature of the innovation, its significance for instruction, and some implications for student understanding are discussed.

Mathematics Placement Test: Helping Students Succeed, Norma Rueda, Carole Sokolowski

Mathematics Faculty Publications

A study was conducted at Merrimack College in Massachusetts to compare the grades of students who took the recommended course as determined by their mathematics placement exam score and those who did not follow this recommendation. The goal was to decide whether the mathematics placement exam used at Merrimack College was effective in placing students in the appropriate mathematics class. During five years, first-year students who took a mathematics course in the fall semester were categorized into four groups: those who took the recommended course, those who took an easier course than recommended, those who took a course more difficult …

Talent Development In Science: A Unique Tale Of One Student's Journey, Terry W. Neu, Susan M. Baum, Carolyn R. Cooper

Education Faculty Publications

This narrative presents the educational route followed by an Intel Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) winner who was not always recognized for his scientific abilities. Factors contributing to the success of this gifted student are presented, as well as his creative insights for solving the problem that gave rise to the winning project. Further, the major issues that emerged from this student's story can inform both professional development and instructional practice. These issues include: the need to recognize science talent or creative productive behaviors in students with special needs; students' need for an experiential science curriculum that incorporates multidisciplinary …

Nebraska Earth Systems Education Network – Fall 2004

Nebraska Earth Systems Education Network

Content:

Careers for Students – Help Them Think Outside the Box by Dave Gosselin, NESEN Director

NATS Annual Conference

University of Nebraska State Museum Virtual Tour by Kathy French, Education Coordinator, University of Nebraska State Museum

Measurements from Nearly 5,000 Wells Show Groundwater Declines by Steven Ress

Second Annual Water Law, Policy and Science Conference

UNL Natural Resources Lectures Focus on Environment, Ecology by Steven Ress

Environmental studies students chart multiple careers, find many prospects by George Green

Job opportunities for foresters should be plentiful by George Green

Prospective Teachers’ Ability To Pose Word Problems, Nusrat Fatima Rizvi

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

The purpose of this study was to assess difference in prospective teachers’ ability to pose word problems for mathematical expressions involving division before and after an instruction intervention. After the initial assessment of participants’ ability to pose word problems for division expressions, the researcher introduced an alternative model i.e. rate or ratio to represent division involving whole numbers. After the intervention it was assessed whether the model helped the prospective teachers develop word problems for division of fractions. The findings revealed that the prospective teachers successfully posed word problems for division of whole numbers based on intuitive model of fair …

Randy's Return: A Case Study In Food Safety Regulation, Matthew Laposata

Faculty and Research Publications

No abstract provided.

Math Anxiety: Causes, Effects, And Preventative Measures, Megan R. Smith

Senior Honors Theses

Math anxiety is a real problem facing students and teachers today. The mathematics teacher especially needs to understand the causes and effects of math anxiety as well as ways to help students overcome it. There are many symptoms of math anxiety including an unwillingness to attempt mathematics problems, a fear of taking advanced mathematics classes, and being unusually nervous when in mathematics class. Math anxiety hinders students' working memory (Perina, 2002). It occurs at different ages in different people for different reasons. The main cause of math anxiety is the teacher himself It has been shown that students tend to …

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Core Group Meeting: September 21, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions (5 min.)
2. Approval of Minutes from August 17 Meeting (5 minutes)
3. Potential Tie-in with City of Las Vegas New Directions YouthArts Program –
   Markus Tracy (20 min.)
4. Presentation of Education in the Environment Curriculum Matrix and correlation to
   RRDLC curriculum development – Jeanne Klockow (30 min.)
5. Discussion of Policy-making Board for the Center – Michael Reiland (15 min.)
6. Discussion of Observatory Location – Michael Reiland (25 min.)
7. Standing Reports (20 minutes)
   A. Line and Space Architects Update – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
   B. UNLV/CESU Update – Nancy Flagg
   C. RRCNCA Capital Improvements Update – BLM
8. Committee Reports (10 min.)
   A. …

Education In The Environment Partnership, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI Education)

• Update on Oliver Ranch
• Update on Forever Earth
• Update on WOW on the Water

Engagement Enhance Interest In Physics, Harcharan Pardhan

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

No abstract provided.

How To Make The Teaching Of Transfer Of Heat More Effective, Muhammad Nabi Khan, Amos Ngugi

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

No abstract provided.

Teachers’ Conceptions Of The Nature Of Science: A Comparative Study From Pakistan And Uk, Nelofer Halai, Jane Mcnicholl

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

Curriculum designers in both Pakistan and the UK accept that science education for today’s young people should not just be about learning science, it should also include learning about the nature of science. However, together with other research evidence, this article suggests that for many science teachers, teaching about the nature of science might be problematic as they do not have the necessary understanding of the nature of science themselves. This article also argues that there are benefits in teachers across cultural divides sharing their understandings about the nature of science.

Helping Children To Understand Particulate Nature Of Matter, Muhammad Riaz

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

Whenever I taught about the particulate nature of matter in solids, liquids and gases, I often had difficulty explaining this abstract concept to my students. The students, in turn, had much difficulty conceptualizing the structure and behavior of the particles, which ultimately led to difficulties in understanding the complex configuration of particles in matter at various levels. This article focuses on studies that reveal students’ alternative frameworks for the particulate nature of matter in solids, liquids and gases. Also, I suggest factors that contribute to these alternative frameworks, incorporating my own experiences in developing an understanding of this concept. Finally, …

Reflection On Learning About Forces, Mir Zaman Shah, Mahmood Ghaznavi, Mohammad Ibrahim Khan

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

Force is a basic concept in the physical sciences. It is included in Pakistan’s national curriculum from the primary level through the higher levels. Because of the abstract nature of the concept of force, both students and teachers have alternative frameworks in this area. This was revealed in our classroom discussions on force during the Lower Secondary Science Module of the M.Ed. program at the Aga Khan University Institute for Educational Development (AKU-IED) in Karachi, Pakistan. In-depth discussions and a variety of activities we carried out while teaching about forces challenged our previous concepts and allowed us to think critically …

Education In The Environment: A Hands-On Student Research And Outdoor Learning Experience: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending August 31, 2004, Environmental Education Strategy For Nevada

Reports (PLI Education)

In the first three months of this agreement, UNLV has met with the Outside Las Vegas Environmental Education Committee to establish the duties of and create detailed job announcements for the project managers for the Environmental Education Strategy and for the Forever Earth/WOW Program. Although the university had planned to meet with the committee at its June meeting, that meeting was cancelled due to summer scheduling conflicts among the committee members. Subsequently, Dr. Peg Rees and Nancy Flagg met with the committee on July 14,2004. The committee was brought up-to-date on goals and deliverables of the task agreement, UNLV’s role …

Oliver Ranch Core Group Meeting: August 17, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions (5 minutes)
2. Approval of Minutes from June 15 Meeting (5 minutes)
3. Review of Draft Talking Points/FAQ – Nancy Flagg (30 min)
4. Discussion of Wild Horse and Burro Facility – Billie Young (30 min.)
5. Standing Reports (30 minutes)
   A. Line and Space Update – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
   B. UNLV/CESU Update – Peg Rees/Nancy Flagg
   C. RRCNRA Capital Improvements Update – Mark Morse/Michael Reiland
6. ORSS Committee Reports (15 minutes)
   A. Design Oversight – David Frommer
   B. Educational Programs – Paul Buck
   C. Fund-Raising & Partnerships – Blaine Benedict
   D. NEPA – Charles Carroll
   E. Operations – Jack Ramsey
   F. Other Uses …

How We Think About And Prepare To Teach Physics, Dewey I. Dykstra

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We have been preparing physics teachers in the same manner for many decades. Yet, physics education research reveals for some observers disturbing evidence of little or no change in understanding the phenomena occurs as a direct result of physics instruction from elementary school through the college years. The apparent compatibility between these learning results and prevailing paradigm enables the construction of a description the paradigm. If it can be demonstrated that there is even just one alternative paradigm from which powerful alternative pedagogical practice is derived, are we not obligated to change how we prepare to teach physics?

Oliver Ranch Core Group Meeting: July 20, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Introductions (5 minutes)
2. Approval of Minutes from June 15 Meeting (5 minutes)
3. Review of Draft Talking Points/FAQ – Nancy Flagg (30 min)
4. Discussion of Wild Horse and Burro Facility – Billie Young (30 min.)
5. Standing Reports (30 minutes)
   A. Line and Space Update – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
   B. UNLV/CESU Update – Peg Rees/Nancy Flagg
   c. RRCNRA Capital Improvements Update – Mark Morse/Michael Reiland
6. ORSS Committee Reports (15 minutes)
   A. Design Oversight – David Frommer
   B. Educational Programs – Paul Buck
   C. Fund-Raising & Partnerships – Blaine Benedict
   D. NEPA – Charles Carroll
   E. Operations – Jack Ramsey
   F. Other Uses …

Lewis And Clark State Park Signs, Robert F. Diffendal Jr., Les Howard

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Bob Diffendal wrote text and Les Howard created maps for new Lewis and Clark signs at Ponca State Park on the Missouri River.

The Corps of Discovery led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark reached what is now southeastern Nebraska on July 10, 1804. It arrived at the point on the Missouri River adjacent to what is now Ponca State Park on August 22, 1804; and entered fully into South Dakota on September 8, 1804. Over this span of nearly two months members of the expedition saw and described many geologic features. The locations of some of the more prominent …

The Challenge: Magazine Of The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 13, Summer 2004), Center For Gifted Studies, Tracy Inman Editor

Gifted Studies Publications

No abstract provided.

Developing Scientific Talent In Students With Special Needs: An Alternative Model For Identification, Curriculum, And Assessment, Carolyn R. Cooper, Susan M. Baum, Terry W. Neu

Education Faculty Publications

Can students with learning and attention difficulties in school actually be talented scientists in disguise? This article presents a model that was highly successful in identifying and developing scientific talent in these special students. The factors that contributed to the success of the model were the following: The emphasis was on helping students become creative producers. The model also featured a strong mentoring component that included role-modeling and problem solving within specific scientific domains and provided students with authentic, discovery-based, experiential, advanced level subject matter of the domain. Finally, the alternate means of assessing student achievement focused on a student’s …

The Morphology Of Steve, Eugenie C. Scott, Nicholas J. Matzke, Glenn Branch, Steven Mccullagh

Faculty and Research Publications

This report is part of Project Steve. Project Steve is, among other things, the first scientific analysis of the sex, geographic location, and body size of scientists named Steve. We performed this research for the best of all reasons: we discovered that we had lots of data. No scientist can resist the opportunity to analyze data, regardless of where that data came from or why it was gathered.

Rui Barbosa And The Argument For Teaching The Natural Sciences In The Brazilian Primary School Of The Xix Century, Karl M. Lorenz

Education Faculty Publications

The paper discusses the ideas of Rui Barbosa on the importance of teaching science in the primary schools of nineteenth-century Brazil. Barbosa was one of the great parliamentarians of his time and one of Brazil’s most vocal advocates of educational reform in the nineteenth century. In 1882, Barbosa was directed to provide a written assessment of the1878 educational reform of Minister Leonçio de Carvalho. In the document that resulted, Barbosa states his rationale for why and how the natural sciences should be taught in the primary school. This paper relates Barbosa’s ideas on science teaching and argues that he was …

Oliver Ranch Core Group Meeting: June 15, 2004, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

1. Approval of Minutes from May 18 Meeting
2. UNLV/CESU Update – Peg Rees/Nancy Flagg
   A. ORSS History and Talking Points
   B. Presentations to Civic Groups
3. Line and Space Update – Les Wallach/Henry Tom
4. RRCNRA Capital Improvements Update – Mark Morse
5. ORSS Project Timeline – Michael Reiland
6. Linkages Between ORSS Curriculum and Building Design – Paul Buck
7. Video Interviews of CCSD 5th Graders – CCSD Staff
8. ORSS Sub-Committee Reports
   -- Status of Committee Mission Statements
   -- Committee Responses to L&S Draft
   -- Proposal to Establish a Building Committee
   A. Operations – Jack Ramsey
   B. Wild Horse & Burro – Billie Young
   C. …