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Science and Mathematics Education

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Understanding The Neuronal Controls Behind Heart Rate And Respiration, Sowmya Anjur Apr 2014

Understanding The Neuronal Controls Behind Heart Rate And Respiration, Sowmya Anjur

Faculty Publications & Research

Students in the course Physiology and Disease at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy learn physiology by designing, executing and evaluating their own experiments based on evidence. This semester, students designed laboratory experiments that involved the use of the same type of exercise to increase both heart rate and respiration rate. Students will collect quantitative data from these experiments to make conclusions regarding the correlation of heart rate and respiration rate. This will be followed by student research into the neuronal controls in the brain that were responsible for these correlations.


Mastery Learning In Calculus I Affects Student Learning, Grade Improvement, And Professor Exhaustion, Judith Puncochar, Don H. Faust Apr 2014

Mastery Learning In Calculus I Affects Student Learning, Grade Improvement, And Professor Exhaustion, Judith Puncochar, Don H. Faust

Conference Presentations

Three Calculus I courses were taught under conditions of either traditional teaching, 2/3 mastery, or full mastery to test four hypotheses. Under conditions of mastery learning on exams, students should attain appropriate higher-level mathematical concepts, achieve more learning of higher-level mathematical concepts, learn higher-level mathematical concepts more quickly, and evaluate mastery learning favorably. Support for all hypotheses occurred only in the 2/3 mastery condition. A shift toward higher grades was attributed to grade improvement, not grade inflation, as determined by six mathematicians with blind review of final exam items. Final exams in mastery learning courses were significantly more …


An Investigation Of Teacher Response To National Science Curriculum Reforms In Turkey, Ridvan Elmas, Nilay Öztürk, Meltem Irmak, William W. Cobern Apr 2014

An Investigation Of Teacher Response To National Science Curriculum Reforms In Turkey, Ridvan Elmas, Nilay Öztürk, Meltem Irmak, William W. Cobern

Scientific Literacy and Cultural Studies Project

Major science education curriculum reform is taking place in Turkey involving a substantial break with past science curricula. Such reform has significant implications for teachers but to date there has been little research on teacher response to these reforms. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the impact on the teachers who are charged with implementing reforms. Semi-structured interviews with 18 elementary science teachers were conducted and additional observational data was recorded. The interview schedule comprised 23 questions in 9 themes. According to the data analysis, the main problem for teachers is that curriculum reforms involve overly big …


Eliciting And Characterizing Students’ Mental Models Within The Context Of Engineering Design, Chelsey Ann Dankenbring Apr 2014

Eliciting And Characterizing Students’ Mental Models Within The Context Of Engineering Design, Chelsey Ann Dankenbring

Open Access Theses

Recently, science education reform documents have called for the incorporation of engineering principles and practices into the K-12 science standards and curriculum. One way this has been done is through the use of engineering design tasks as a way for students to apply their scientific understandings to real-world problems. However, minimal studies have documented students' conceptions within the context of engineering design. Thus, the first chapter of this thesis outlines the steps taken to develop a draw-and-explain item that elicited students' mental models regarding the cause of the four seasons after finishing an engineering design task. Students' mental models regarding …


Planning And Enacting Mathematical Tasks Of High Cognitive Demand In The Primary Classroom, Kelly Georgius Apr 2014

Planning And Enacting Mathematical Tasks Of High Cognitive Demand In The Primary Classroom, Kelly Georgius

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

This study offers an examination of two primary-grades teachers as they learn to transfer knowledge from professional development into their classrooms. I engaged in planning sessions with each teacher to help plan tasks of high cognitive demand, including anticipating and planning for classroom discourse that would occur around the task. A detailed description of the planning and teaching that took place during the study provides information about how a teacher can learn and what a teacher learns to consider in order to plan and implement meaningful mathematical lessons. This design experiment describes the work of two teachers who participated in …


A Study Comparing Fifth Grade Student Achievement In Mathematics In Departmentalized And Non-Departmentalized Settings, Karen Nelson Apr 2014

A Study Comparing Fifth Grade Student Achievement In Mathematics In Departmentalized And Non-Departmentalized Settings, Karen Nelson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, causal-comparative study was to examine the application of the teaching and learning theory of social constructivism in order to determine if mathematics instruction provided in a departmentalized classroom setting at the fifth grade level resulted in a statistically significant difference in student achievement on the Virginia 2011 Grade 5 Mathematics Standards of Learning (SOL) Test when compared to the achievement of students in a non-departmentalized setting. Regular fifth grade education students, who attended non-Title 1, Pre-K through Grade 5 elementary schools in an urban eastern Virginia school district, participated in this study. A three-way between-groups …


Spread The Word! A Look At The Development Of Communication Technology, Sue Leahy Apr 2014

Spread The Word! A Look At The Development Of Communication Technology, Sue Leahy

Lesson Plans

No abstract provided.


Preparation For Practice: Elementary Preservice Teachers Learning And Using Scientific Classroom Discourse Community Instructional Strategies, Elizabeth Lewis, Oxana Dema, Dena Harshbarger Apr 2014

Preparation For Practice: Elementary Preservice Teachers Learning And Using Scientific Classroom Discourse Community Instructional Strategies, Elizabeth Lewis, Oxana Dema, Dena Harshbarger

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Despite historical national efforts to improve elementary science education, science instruction continues to be marginalized, varying by state. This study was designed to address the ongoing challenge of educating elementary preservice teachers (PSTs) to teach science. Elementary PSTs are one of the science education community's major links to schools and science education reform. However, they often lack a strong background in science, knowledge of effective science teaching strategies, and consequently have low confidence and self-efficacy. This investigation explored the initial learning of elementary PSTs using an interdisciplinary model of a scientific classroom discourse community during a science methods course. Findings …


Ua64/2 The Challenge: Magazine For The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 34, Spring 2014), Center For Gifted Studies, Tracy Inman Editor Apr 2014

Ua64/2 The Challenge: Magazine For The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 34, Spring 2014), Center For Gifted Studies, Tracy Inman Editor

Gifted Studies Publications

No abstract provided.


Comparing Technology-Supported Teacher Education Curricular Models For Enhancing Statistical Content Knowledge, Dionne Cross Francis, Rick Hudson, Crystal Vesperman, Arnulfo Perez Mar 2014

Comparing Technology-Supported Teacher Education Curricular Models For Enhancing Statistical Content Knowledge, Dionne Cross Francis, Rick Hudson, Crystal Vesperman, Arnulfo Perez

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning

Recent calls have been made to enhance and extend the statistical experiences of K-12 students. However, to ensure that such goals are met, teachers also need to develop deep conceptual understanding and pedagogical content knowledge that are essential to statistical thinking and reasoning. In this regard, over the past two decades, leading thinkers and professional organizations had advocated that teaching and curricula should be focused and organized around problem solving. In this paper we describe three such technology-supported curricula—a project-based learning (PjBL) unit, problem-solving activities (PS) unit, and a model-eliciting activities (MEA) unit—that align with this perspective and discuss the …


Engaging Non-Scientists In Stem Through Problem-Based Learning And Service Learning, Andrew Tawfik, Rebecca J. Trueman, Matthew M. Lorz Mar 2014

Engaging Non-Scientists In Stem Through Problem-Based Learning And Service Learning, Andrew Tawfik, Rebecca J. Trueman, Matthew M. Lorz

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning

This study follows the evolution of a single biology course designed for non-science majors. In its original design, the course used only traditional pedagogical techniques, such as lecture and textbook homework assignments. Over several iterations of the course, the class combined problem-based learning (PBL) and service learning to better support student knowledge. For this study, our goal was for students to learn biology concepts as they engaged in a lake cleanup project within the greater Chicago metropolitan area. Data sources consisted of pretest, posttest, and final exam scores to assess learning. The results suggest the combination of PBL and service …


Assessing The Effects Of A Teaching Course On Biology Graduate Student Teaching Assistants, Caralyn B. Zehnder Mar 2014

Assessing The Effects Of A Teaching Course On Biology Graduate Student Teaching Assistants, Caralyn B. Zehnder

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Research was conducted to measure changes in knowledge and perceptions of teaching and learning by biology graduate students enrolled in a Teaching Techniques course at Georgia College. Results show that graduate students exhibited gains in their knowledge of assessment and active learning pedagogies and saw some changes in how they viewed the role of the teacher in the classroom. This research demonstrates that a semester-long teaching course affects graduate students learning and attitudes toward teaching.


Clay Modeling Of The Musculoskeletal System: Does Active Learning Increase Retention And Comprehension, Kelly Massey Mar 2014

Clay Modeling Of The Musculoskeletal System: Does Active Learning Increase Retention And Comprehension, Kelly Massey

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

The focus of a Structural Kinesiology course is a detailed study into the musculoskeletal system and joint action. The course contains a lot of memorization: skeletal muscle origin, insertions, innervations and muscle/joint actions but there is also an applied component for the content. Group study has been incorporated into the course to increase knowledge retention and comprehension however group interaction has been seen to be minimal. Two studies have looked at group construction of skeletal muscle models using clay during class time in assisting with the active learning of muscle origin, insertion and actions (Cruz-Espaillat et al., 2010 & Waters …


A Discussion Of A Flipped Classroom Model (For Calculus), And Of The Use Of Self-Graded Homework, Frédéric D. Mynard Mar 2014

A Discussion Of A Flipped Classroom Model (For Calculus), And Of The Use Of Self-Graded Homework, Frédéric D. Mynard

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

The intent is to share my experience with a flipped Calculus course using resources I have developed: instructional videos, e-books, and a comprehensive set of resources for self-graded homework. I have also used this technique successfully for other non-flipped courses, and this may be of interest whether one wants to flip the classroom or not.


"When Scientists Look At Their Data, They Don't Know The Answer:" Talking Science In A University Introductory Science Course, Victoria M. Deneroff, Rosalie Richards, Markeeta Clayton Mar 2014

"When Scientists Look At Their Data, They Don't Know The Answer:" Talking Science In A University Introductory Science Course, Victoria M. Deneroff, Rosalie Richards, Markeeta Clayton

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

We use conversation for instruction in our introductory level physical science course. The content focuses on science as a way of knowing, particularly the ways in which scientific claims are backed by evidence. We find our 21st Century students do understand consensus building and have some skill in listening to each other’s ideas, and are learning to harness these strengths for instruction.


Complex Adaptive Systems And Quantitative Reasoning In An Interdisciplinary Stem Mathematics Classroom, Robert L. Mayes, Kania Greer Mar 2014

Complex Adaptive Systems And Quantitative Reasoning In An Interdisciplinary Stem Mathematics Classroom, Robert L. Mayes, Kania Greer

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

In this presentation we will share outcomes from the Real STEM project, which provides professional development for rural teachers in the Georgia Coastal Plains supporting implementation of interdisciplinary STEM courses as well as STEM modules in mathematics and science courses. Real STEM includes a number of innovative student-active strategies for teaching including: Understanding by Design (UbD) approaches to teaching for understanding, problem-based learning (PBL), place-based education (PBE), complex adaptive systems (CAS) thinking, and quantitative reasoning (QR). QR is the mathematical underpinning of the projects. The projects are ongoing so we will report our results on impact on teacher practice and …


Food, Cooking And Nutrition-Engaging A Wide Audience To Explore Inter-Disciplinary Science Topics, Sharmistha Basu-Dutt, Victoria Geisler Mar 2014

Food, Cooking And Nutrition-Engaging A Wide Audience To Explore Inter-Disciplinary Science Topics, Sharmistha Basu-Dutt, Victoria Geisler

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Food and cooking have been a central theme in several courses developed recently at the University of West Georgia. In this presentation, the nature of the content and learning outcomes of these courses will be presented. A unique multi-tiered approach will be offered to show how this theme can be effectively used to engage audiences of all ages and capabilities to use the scientific method. Sample activities will show how to engage the young novice elementary student to explore introductory science concepts in a fun environment and challenge the college science major to design an effective experimental design to answer …


The Power Of Animations In Stem Courses, Adrian Heinz, Xin Xu Mar 2014

The Power Of Animations In Stem Courses, Adrian Heinz, Xin Xu

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

We demonstrate educational web-based animations to facilitate teaching and learning in STEM courses. These animations were developed by IT students who closely worked with the researchers and faculty. The animations are later used in the classroom to explain specific concepts to students of STEM disciplines such as chemistry, biology and mathematics. The interactive nature of the animations allows students to become active participants of the learning process. In order to measure their value as a teaching and learning tool, pre and post survey data was collected and analyzed.


A Touch Of Glass, Daniel E. Rivera Mar 2014

A Touch Of Glass, Daniel E. Rivera

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Learn more about Google Glass! We will demonstrate how Glass works, provide details on the features, functions, and limitations, and explain where Glass is moving in the future. Why do educators need to know about it? What are the implications of such technology? How is it being used in STEM education?


Critical Thinking And The Languages Of Stem, Connie H. Rickenbaker, Sally Gilbreth Mar 2014

Critical Thinking And The Languages Of Stem, Connie H. Rickenbaker, Sally Gilbreth

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Participants in this session will learn about the critical thinking strategy of SEEI (Nosich, 2011) as used by both high school and university students. SEEI (State, Explain, Example, Illustrate) has a strong connection with the languages of STEM (Baber, 2011) which will be shown by the presenters. Participants will have the opportunity to implement and share their own SEEIs as part of the group discussion.


From The Co-Editors Mar 2014

From The Co-Editors

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.


Systems Thinking With Biology Models, Joseph Dauer Mar 2014

Systems Thinking With Biology Models, Joseph Dauer

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

The recent AAAS call to improve undergraduate biology education suggested university instruction should focus on teaching core concepts like matter and energy, evolution, and systems and core competences like quantitative reasoning, modeling and integrating disciplines. My research has focused on how undergraduate biology students organize their knowledge of biological systems and how they reason about the myriad interactions and potential outcomes inherent to these systems. I will report ongoing research into students’ model construction during an introductory biology course and during clinical interviews 2 years after the course. My colleagues and I have found students’ models change dramatically in both …


Two Bit Circus, Elise Lemle Feb 2014

Two Bit Circus, Elise Lemle

The Transdisciplinary STEAM+ Journal

Two Bit Circus collaborated with the Girl Scouts of the Greater Los Angeles Area to explore the exciting world of wearable electronics. Over the course of the program, the students explored concepts of introductory electronics while designing and creating their own illuminated fashion piece. The program was held in Montrose, CA in Fall 2013. The students were approximately 10 girls ages seven to 14. The program was held over seven sessions with each session lasting 80 minutes.


Full Steam Ahead: Creativity In Excellent Stem Teaching Practices, Danah Henriksen Feb 2014

Full Steam Ahead: Creativity In Excellent Stem Teaching Practices, Danah Henriksen

The Transdisciplinary STEAM+ Journal

This article emphasizes the value of creativity and arts-based learning in the sciences (STEAM education), using one example from a recent research study of creative and effective classroom teachers. The future of innovative thinking in STEM disciplines relies on breaking down the distinction between disciplines traditionally seen as “creative” like the arts or music, and STEM disciplines traditionally seen as more rigid or logical-mathematical (Catterall, 2002). The most exceptional thinkers in fields like science or math are also highly creative individuals who are deeply influenced by an interest in, and knowledge of, music, the arts and similar areas (Caper, 1996; …


Learning Catalytics Workshop, Chad Brassil Feb 2014

Learning Catalytics Workshop, Chad Brassil

Discipline-Based Education Research Group 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 [email protected] beforehand to set‐up a demonstration Learning Catalytics account.


A Comparative Analysis Of The Singapore Math Curriculum And The Everyday Mathematics Curriculum On Fifth Grade Achievement In A Large Northeastern Urban Public School District, Tina L. Powell Feb 2014

A Comparative Analysis Of The Singapore Math Curriculum And The Everyday Mathematics Curriculum On Fifth Grade Achievement In A Large Northeastern Urban Public School District, Tina L. Powell

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study examined the differences between the achievement effects of one proposed Common Core State Standards-aligned mathematics program, Math in Focus: Singapore Math, and one NCTM-aligned mathematics program, Everyday Mathematics, on Grade 5 mathematics performance. An explanatory non-experimental research design was employed using post hoc pre- and post-treatment data from 2010 NJ ASK3 and 2012 NJ ASK5 administrations, respectively. The study examined the achievement outcomes of 205 Grade 5 general education students across several independent variables (race/ethnicity, gender, SES, attendance). Statistical analyses revealed fairly consistent results regarding differences in student performance on the 2012 NJ ASK5 in schools implementing Singapore …


The Impact And Effectiveness Of Student-Centered Classroom Structure, Amie P. Westberg Feb 2014

The Impact And Effectiveness Of Student-Centered Classroom Structure, Amie P. Westberg

Mathematics Graduate Theses

The purpose of this paper is to explore the effectiveness of student-centered learning as an alternative classroom structure. It is important that we continually reflect on our teaching methods and explore alternatives that can help give our students the best chance to succeed. While the literature is mixed with regard to which classroom style is best, there are many sources showing the benefits of student-centered instruction over a strictly teacher- centered classroom. Sources also showed that teachers do not need to choose exclusively one style of teaching, and that a blended classroom using a variety of teaching styles can be …


Mathematics Achievement With Digital Game-Based Learning In High School Algebra 1 Classes, Terri Ferguson Feb 2014

Mathematics Achievement With Digital Game-Based Learning In High School Algebra 1 Classes, Terri Ferguson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined the impact of digital game-based learning (DGBL) on mathematics achievement in a rural high school setting in North Carolina. A causal comparative research design was used in this study to collect data to determine the effectiveness of DGBL in high school Algebra 1 classes. Data were collected from the North Carolina End-of-Course (EOC) Test for high school Algebra 1. The data collection was broken down by comparison groups based on academic achievement as measured by the North Carolina EOC Test for Algebra 1. The comparison groups were student participants who received digital game-based instruction and tradition instruction …


Differences In Math Achievement: Utilizing Supplemental Computer-Based Instruction And Traditional Instruction, Todd Clark Feb 2014

Differences In Math Achievement: Utilizing Supplemental Computer-Based Instruction And Traditional Instruction, Todd Clark

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Mathematics achievement has become vitally important in public education, obligating students to meet and exceed higher standards in spite of ability and knowledge level. This causal-comparative study sought to establish the achievement of the Classworks® supplemental math program with seventh grade students from two public schools in Georgia. The national Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) scores in math were used to compare 129 seventh grade students (control group) who used traditional instruction and 129 students (experimental group) who used traditional instruction along with the supplemental Classworks® software program. In addition, the study analyzed the relationships between gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. …


Ua64/2 The Challenge: Magazine For The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 33, Winter 2014), Center For Gifted Studies, Tracy Inman Editor Jan 2014

Ua64/2 The Challenge: Magazine For The Center For Gifted Studies (No. 33, Winter 2014), Center For Gifted Studies, Tracy Inman Editor

Gifted Studies Publications

No abstract provided.