Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Methodology And/Or Technology: Making Difference In Improving Students' Problem Solving Skills, Zdeslav Hrepic, Katherine Lodder, Kimberly Shaw

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

Wirelessly networked, in-class computing opens a wide array of possibilities for active instructional methodologies (Hrepic, Rebello, & Zollman, 2009). Earlier studies showed a substantial potential that the pen input computers combined with interactive software like DyKnow (www.dyknow.com) may have in facilitating students’ problem solving ability. The session has two goals. The first one is to demonstrate the instructor-student classroom interaction dynamics enabled or facilitated by DyKnow software and pen-input computers. The second one is to present selected research findings associated with student learning while using this technology. The most recent of our studies was to isolate the effect of the …

A Medley Of Successful Active-Learning Methods, Sarah Formica

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

This workshop will present a medley of active-learning methods that have been implemented successfully in physics courses. The participants will engage in methods that include Just-in-Time Teaching, clicker questions, whiteboard activities, and virtual experiments. The workshop goal is to show how these active-learning methods can be applied in a STEM classroom to increase students’ conceptual understanding and problem solving skills.

Building Transformative Leaders In Stem Education, Julia Metzker, Karynne Kleine, Laurie Huffman

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

Representatives from Georgia College will use their experiences as members of the Innovative Course-building Group, a structured collaboration across departments and disciplines, to stimulate a discussion with attendees about building strong faculty leaders capable of making the important structural changes needed to address curriculum issues in the STEM fields. Our goal is that you will leave this roundtable with an action plan for engaging STEM faculty at your institution.

Undergraduate Students' Self-Reported Use Of Mathematics Textbooks, Aaron Weinberg, Emilie Wiesner, Bret Benesh, Timothy Boester

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Textbooks play an important role in undergraduate mathematics courses and have the potential to impact student learning. However, there have been few studies that describe students' textbook use in detail. In this study, 1156 undergraduate students in introductory mathematics classes were surveyed, and asked to describe how they used their textbook. The results indicate that students tend to use examples, instead of the expository text, to build their mathematical understanding, which instructors may view as problematic. This way of using the textbook may be the result of the textbook structure itself, as well as students' beliefs about reading and the …

Beginning Chemistry Teachers: A Longitudinal Study Of The Triplet Relationship, Krista Adams

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

No abstract provided.

Tackling Teaching: Understanding Commonalities Among Chemistry, Mathematics, And Physics Classroom Practices., Samuel Pazicni, Karen A. Marrongelle, Warren Christensen

Chemistry

Abstract:

Education research in chemistry, mathematics, and physics tends to focus on issues inherent to the discipline, most notably content. At this time, little literature evidence exists that documents fruitful collaborations between education specialists across the STEM disciplines. This work seeks to unite the disciplines by investigating a common task: teaching. This study explores how discipline-specific practices influence the common act of reformed teaching pedagogy with a focus on the use of inquiry. We seek to identify commonalities among classroom teaching practices in these disciplines and contribute to the development of analytical tools to study STEM teaching.

Concept Inventory Design For Determining Students’ Conceptual Understanding Of Oceanography, Leilani Arthurs

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

Concept inventories are relatively new types of diagnostic instruments intended to measure student learning. Concept inventories exist for astronomy, biology, chemistry, engineering, fluid mechanics, geology, and physics. None is yet available for oceanography, and development of the Introductory Oceanography Concept Inventory Survey (IO‐CIS) serves to fill this gap. A context‐driven development strategy was designed to create this instrument. Qualitative methods utilizing grounded theory and classical test theory were used to construct it. Quantitative methods, including statistical methods associated with classical test theory and item response theory, were used to evaluate and further refine the IO‐CIS. The instrument is valid and …

Does Participation In The Smith Summer Research Fellows (Surf) Program Increase Your Odds Of Attaining An Advanced Degree?, Tanya Hakim, Nicholas J. Horton, Cate Rowen, Minh Ly

The Office of Institutional Research

No abstract provided.

Learning Interdisciplinary Pedagogies, Alison J. Friedow, Erin E. Blankenship, Jennifer L. Green, Walter Stroup

Department of Statistics: Faculty Publications

Advocates of interdisciplinary teaching and learning in higher education suggest that interdisciplinary courses “promise a wide range of desirable educational outcomes for students” (Newell 1994: 35). These outcomes include enhanced affective and cognitive abilities, increased understanding of multiple perspectives, greater appreciation for ambiguity, and superior capacities for creative thinking, among others (35). Despite claims about the possibilities interdisciplinary learning offers, we have few examples of how faculty from different disciplines work together to create interdisciplinary classroom environments where such outcomes can occur. In short, more examples of how faculty from different disciplines actually develop, engage, and revise interdisciplinary pedagogies with …

"Our Research Was Centered On Whether Or Not The Following Changes Made To The Pre-Calculus Algebra Class Positively Affected Student Performance…", Andrea Winchester

Summer Community of Scholars Posters (RCEU and HCR Combined Programs)

No abstract provided.

Using Web-Based Key Character And Classification Instruction For Teaching Undergraduate Students Insect Identification, Douglas A. Golick, Tiffany M. Heng-Moss, Allen L. Steckelberg, David W. Brooks, Leon G. Higley, David Fowler

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

The purpose of the study was to determine whether undergraduate students receiving web-based instruction based on traditional, key character, or classification instruction differed in their performance of insect identification tasks. All groups showed a significant improvement in insect identifications on pre- and post-two-dimensional picture specimen quizzes. The study also determined student performance on insect identification tasks was not as good as for family-level identification as compared to broader insect orders and arthropod classification identification tasks. Finally, students erred significantly more by misidentification than misspelling specimen names on prepared specimen quizzes. Results of this study support that short web-based insect identification …

Framework For Discipline‐Based Education Research: Dber Meeting Starter “Nugget” : Series Of 6, Leilani Arthurs

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

What is Discipline‐Based Education Research (DBER)?

Who Does Discipline‐Based Education Research (DBER)?

Where and When is Discipline‐Based Education Research (DBER) Done?

How is Discipline‐Based Education Research (DBER) Conducted?

Why is Discipline‐Based Education Research (DBER) Important?

Discipline-Based Education Research (Dber) Group Meeting — Monday, October 24, 2011, Leilani Arthurs

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

AGENDA

1. Welcome & Introductions

Name, Dept, research interest, what you hope to gain from participating in DBER Group meetings

2. Purpose & Schedule for remaining part of the semester

a. Alternate times you are available to meet this semester

Please indicate your alternate available times on the bottom of this agenda, and return to Leilani.

b. Volunteers to present their research or facilitate discussion on peer‐reviewed science education research article with relevance to, applications in, or implications for undergraduate science education

Week of Mon. Oct. 31: Dr. Marilyne Stains (CHEM Dept) on “TBA”

Week of Mon. Nov. 7: CHEM …

Astr 403: Galactic And Extragalactic Astronomy, Edward Schmidt

Department of Physics and Astronomy: Syllabi

Syllabus for ASTR 403 Galactic and Extragalactic Astronomy for Fall 2011 semester.

Introducing Astrophysics And Cosmology As Part Of Multidisciplinary Approaches To Liberal Arts Courses Addressing “The Big Questions” Of Human Experience, Joseph C. Wesney

Physics Faculty Publications

There is an opportunity to bring college students to the exploration of the grandeur and wonder of the universe through the design and crafting of courses for the university and liberal arts curricula that would develop multidisciplinary perspectives within the frames of reference of astrophysics and cosmology. There is broad interest within colleges and universities to provide courses that examine “The Big Questions” of human experience from a variety of perspectives. The study of the history of discoveries and insights that we have gained through the development of astrophysics and cosmology provides course options for students to use to explore …

Factors That Contribute To Persistence And Retention Of Underrepresented Minority Undergraduate Students In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics (Stem), Sidney Kirk Mitchell

Dissertations

The objective of this research was to identify specific factors that contribute to underrepresented minority (African American, Hispanic, Native American) undergraduate students‟ success in STEM disciplines at a regional university during the 2007-2010 timeframe. As more underrepresented minority (URM) students complete STEM degrees, many will possess the skills to become part of the domestic human capital needed to meet U. S. workforce demands and enhance the nation‟s STEM innovation. According to Burke and Mattis (2007), the lack of URM students in STEM education and in the workforce is one of the major contributors to STEM shortages in the United States. …

Lesson’S Learned: A Journey In Computational Science, Ryan Botts, Lori Carter

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

Inspired by work on building a computational science program and student questions about modeling, we aim to discuss some of our experiences with computational science. We will first clarify what computational science is, why it is a legitimate science, why it is worth our students’ time and what makes it a challenging field. We will also discuss how computer scientists, mathematicians and laboratory scientists each have something different to contribute to the field.

A Bayesian Secondary Analysis In An Asthma Study, Samuel P. Wilcock, Vernon M. Chinchilli, Stephen P. Peters

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine by the Asthma Clinical Research Network (ACRN) compared three different treatments for their effectiveness in treating adults with uncontrolled asthma. This paper will describe the study design and its results, then detail the beginnings of a secondary analysis using Bayesian methods to estimate the parameters of interest. The methods will be explained, and the preliminary estimates given and contextualized. The paper will conclude with a discussion of the next steps and the goals for further analysis of the data in this study.

What We Can Learn From Process Theology: Integrating Faith And Mathematics, Josh Wilkerson

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

In the inaugural issue of The Journal of the Association of Christians in the Mathematical Sciences, James Bradley, the founding editor, suggests fourteen areas that need to be addressed by Christian mathematicians who are series about integrating their faith and their work. One of those areas is the topic of this paper. Bradly frames the question: “Some thinkers (perhaps influenced by process theology) have asserted the idea that God’s creation is not a finished work but that he creates new mathematical objects through mathematicians. Is this idea theologically sound? Is it helpful for our understanding of mathematics?” I copy …

Google And The Mathematics Of Web Search, Michael Rempe

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

This article examines the algorithms used by Google to rank search engine results, called PageRank.

Calculus Communication Circle, Judith Palagallo

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

Calculus Communication Circle is a network for the professional development of Advanced Placement Calculus teachers. In Northeast Ohio the Circle provides a forum where teachers meet to share ideas about mathematics and the teaching of calculus. This article describes the creation of the Circle and the progress it has made over its three year existence.

Using Original Historical Mathematics Texts In The Classroom, Maria Zack

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

Incorporating information from the history of mathematics into undergraduate mathematics courses is an effective way to help students make connections between the mathematics they are learning and their general education courses. It also helps students to see mathematics as living subject that has changed over time. One way to introduce historical topics into a variety of classes is through the use of original mathematical texts. This paper describes how non-experts can make use of original texts and provides sources for identifying candidate texts.

The Mathematics Of Cubic Sudoku, Nicholas Zoller

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

In the last decade the Sudoku puzzle has fixed itself in America’s puzzle consciousness. Sudoku puzzles share space with crossword puzzles and word finds in newspaper puzzle sections, and several books have been written for the Sudoku playing community. Mathematicians are among the most dedicated Sudoku players. Although some are content with simply solving puzzle after puzzle, others have used tools from combinatorics and algebra to study its important properties.

We investigate a variant of Sudoku called Cubic Sudoku, as well as Cubic Sudoku’s simpler relative, Cubic Shidoku. We successfully count the number of Cubic Shidoku puzzles in two different …

Math History Study Abroad Program: Learning Math History In A Cultural Context, Donna Pierce

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

In January 2011 fifteen Whitworth University mathematics students and I, their professor, traveled through Europe to study the history of mathematics. The goal was to gain an understanding of how mathematical ideas have developed over time; how social, cultural and historical factors have influenced the development of mathematics and conversely, how mathematics contributed to society and human culture. Over a course of three weeks we traveled to three countries and over a half dozen cities, viewing the tools, papers and workbooks or these mathematicians, seeing their engineering and artistic creations, and learning from local experts as they guided us through …

Thinking Philosophically About Mathematics, Robert L. Brabenec

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

In my early years as a teacher of mathematics, the history of mathematics was seldom mentioned in the classroom. It was viewed as an unworthy topic that would detract from the presentation of mathematics itself. This opinion has dramatically changed over the years, and the history of mathematics is now embraced and used by many mathematicians in their teaching and even research. We might choose to ask a related question. How much philosophy is necessary or helpful for a mathematics teacher to know, and to use in his or her teaching? We see a growing interest in the philosophy of …

The Need For A Graphics Programming Course, Nathan Gossett

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

A discussion of the benefits of offering a course on programming Computer Graphics in an undergraduate Computer Science curriculum. A sample course outline is provided, as well as a discussion of ways to conduct lectures, labs and a list of suggested assignments. A discussion of “dos and don’t s will also be presented, including a list of required prerequisite courses and skills that students would need in order for the course to be a success.

Bringing Undergraduate Research Into The Classroom, Stephen Lovett

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

Mathematics graduate programs and companies that employ math majors often want to ascertain an applicant’s potential for research. However, in many undergraduate courses, assessments consist only of regular exercise sets, quizzes, and in-class tests. Without doing a senior research thesis or landing an official REUs, students do not regularly gain experience in or an appreciation for research. Courses in the humanities regularly require students to write in the discipline, progressively preparing them methodologically for “writing in the field.” This begs the question: could math departments do a little more to prepare our students to use mathematics beyond college?

In this …

Real Simulations And Simulated Reality, Wayne Iba

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

Movies such as The Matrix have stimulated popular interest in “brain in a vat” scenarios. Amidst the traditional questions of the mind, we tend to overlook an integral enabling component—the world simulation—which merits consideration in its own right. When facing the simulations in these imagined scenarios, we struggle with conceptual muddles regarding what is real and not. In this paper, I argue that simulated worlds are every bit as real as the one we inhabit. This turns out to be important when considering the possibility, as suggested by Nick Bostrom, that the world we experience as “real” is actually a …

Pk Mathematics, Jeremy Case

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

An examination of the historical development of mathematics and how mathematical history has changed by looking at mathematicians who were also PKs (Preacher’s Kids).

History Of Mathematics: An Exercise In Strengths, Mary Walkins

ACMS Conference Proceedings 2011

As a leader in strengths-based education, Lee University encourages each new student, since fall of 2003, to take the Gallup StrengthsFinder to determine their top 5 signature themes (out of a possible 34). At Lee, the syllabus for the History of Mathematics course calls for students to write a paper on a mathematician. In the fall of 2009, as an added dimension, students were asked to critically think about and incorporate the strengths they believe that mathematician may have. Each student was required to compare and contrast his or her strengths with those of the mathematician. This was done with …