Education Commons^™

Student Understanding Of Function And Success In Calculus, Daniel I. Drlik

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between student success in calculus and student understanding of function. Student understanding of function was measured using two questionnaires, one of which is a modification of an existing measure based on APOS theory. The other I developed with items from the concept image literature. The participants of this study were 116 high school students who were enrolled in a first-year calculus course. The results of the questionnaires were aligned to course exam scores to determine connections between function understanding and rate of success in calculus.

A major …

The Relationship Between Elementary Teachers' Self-Efficacy For Teaching Mathematics And Their Mathematical Knowledge For Teaching, Meagan Mckinney

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the relationship between elementary teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) and their self-efficacy for teaching mathematics. Self-efficacy and MKT are of high importance with implications in regards to quality of instruction and the Common Core State Standards for mathematics. Using the Content Knowledge for Teaching Mathematics (CKT-M) instrument, data for this study were collected from thirty-five elementary school teachers participating in the Improving Teachers’ Monitoring of Learning Grant at the time. The data were concerned with these teachers’ self-efficacy with the pedagogy and content of mathematics using the Self-Efficacy for Teaching Mathematics Instrument (SETMI). Qualitative data were …

Transforming Precalculus Instruction: Evidence-Based Course Design, Wendy M. Smith

DBER Speaker Series

The UNL Mathematics Department has been focused on transforming precalculus instruction since 2012, with a goal of greater levels of student success. A short-term measure of student success is the passing rate (C or better), which has jumped from an average of 62% (2007-2011) to 80% for the past two falls. A longer-term measure of student success is recruiting and retaining undergraduates to STEM disciplines and careers. In this talk I will share specifics of the reform efforts (the who-what-when-where-why-and-how), and also share preliminary results from the research we have simultaneously been conducting into the reform efforts.

On The Persistence And Attrition Of Women In Mathematics, Katrina Piatek-Jimenez

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

The purpose of this study was to investigate what motivates women to choose mathematics as an undergraduate major and to further explore what shapes their future career goals, paying particular attention to their undergraduate experiences and their perceptions of the role of gender in these decisions. A series of semi-structured, individual interviews were conducted with twelve undergraduate women mathematics majors who were attending either a large public university or a small liberal arts college. This study found that strong mathematical identities and enjoyment of mathematics heavily influenced their decisions to major in mathematics. At the career selection stage, these women …

The Relationship Among Math Anxiety, Mathematical Performance, And Math Education In Undergraduate Nursing Students, Joshua D. Beall, Troy Roebuck, Paul Penkalsky

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Although nurses spend up to 40% of their day calculating and administering medication doses, undergraduate nursing students often perform poorly on nursing math exams. The purpose of this study was (a) to examine the relationship among mathematical education, performance, and anxiety and (b) to compare the mathematical education, performance, and anxiety in sophomore and senior baccalaureate nursing students at a public university in the Midwest. This cross-sectional, descriptive study was guided by Bandura's self-efficacy theory. Math performance was measured with an 11-item math instrument, math education was measured with number of math courses, and math anxiety was measured with Fennema–Sherman …

Teacher Influence On Elementary School Students’ Participation In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics, Courtney Hartman

Honors College Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of elementary school teachers on encouraging students’ interest and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The researcher sought to understand what methods teachers use in their classrooms to encourage students to participate in STEM subjects and programs. This mixed methods study consisted of a questionnaire to collect quantitative data, as well as an interview of selected teachers who participated in the questionnaire to collect qualitative data. The data was analyzed to determine the overall perceptions of teachers regarding the importance of encouraging students to participate in STEM. The qualitative …