Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Improving Lab Experience For Students In Phys2080, Khushi Bhatt

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

University Physics II (PHYS 2080) deals with providing hands-on experience with the experiments of electricity and magnetism. It aids students to develop computational thinking in physics through analysis of experimental and theoretical data using python programming language.

In Fall-2019, I taught the newly designed PHYS2080 class for the first time as per the requirements. During Spring-2020, I implemented some subtle changes using the skills that I gained through various teaching training. These changes are described in Methodology section. Data clearly shows improvement that was observed without lowering the expectations or changing the curriculum of the class.

Issues And Proposed Solutions To Team Based Assessment In University Physics Labs, Manqoba Q. Hlatshwayo

STEM Instructional Graduate Teaching Assistant Posters

Many education experts considers peer-to-peer education as the most effective way for students to learn (Peersdom, 2014). Western Michigan University (WMU) physics laboratories embraces this philosophy and has designed the assessment to be based on the team report. The assumption is that every team member contributed (not necessarily equally) to the work submitted by the team hence every team member should receive the same grade. This is a ubiquitous assessment philosophy in education, and some forms of additional individual assessment in team projects are strongly discouraged (David Boud et al, 1999).

There is no doubt on the effectiveness of peer-to-peer …

Nest Moisture Content Affects Loggerhead Hatchling Size And Neonate Development, Kelly M. Detmer

Scientific Communication News

No abstract provided.

Teaching With Digital 3d Models Of Minerals And Rocks, Graham Dm Andrews, Gabrielle Labishak, Sarah Brown, Shelby L. Isom, Holly Danielle Pettus, Trevor Byers

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The disruption to geoscience curricula due to the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the difficulty of making mineral and rock samples accessible to students online rather than through traditional lab classes. In spring 2020, our community had to adapt rapidly to remote instruction; this transition amplified existing disparities in access to geoscience education but can be a catalyst to increase accessibility and flexibility in instruction permanently. Fortunately, a rich collection of 3D mineral and rock samples is being generated by a community of digital modelers (e.g., Perkins et al., 2019).

Specifications-Based Grading Reduces Anxiety For Students Of Ordinary Differential Equations, Mel Henriksen, Jakob Kotas, Mami Wentworth

CODEE Journal

Specifications-based grading (SBG) is an assessment scheme in which student grades are based on demonstrated understanding of known specifications which are tied to course learning outcomes. Typically with SBG, students are given multiple opportunities to demonstrate such understanding. In undergraduate-level introductory ordinary differential equations courses at two institutions, SBG has been found to markedly decrease students’ self-reported anxiety related to the course as compared to traditionally graded courses.

Feasibility Of Modifying Existing Chemistry Demonstrations By Using Substitute Materials, Dane Mykel M. Quiambao, Armando M. Guidote Jr, Rhodora F. Nicdao

Chemistry Faculty Publications

This study aimed to reiterate the use of Chemistry demonstrations as effective teaching tools to students while addressing some of its drawbacks, which discourages teachers from doing them such as cost and safety. Four chosen existing Chemistry demonstrations (Blue Bottle Experiment, Copper Sulfate Experiment, Blown Away, Dancing Flames) were modified by using substitute reagents, which are more accessible, relatively safer, and at lower cost. These demonstrations were chosen based on how easily the substitute reagents will be obtained. Afterwards, with the permission of a private junior high school, they were presented to a group of Grade 9 students of their …

Effectiveness Of Virtual Manipulative Teaching Method In Enhancing Year Four Pupils’ Understanding Of Fractions, Kavitha Karbal Singh

Student Works (2020-2029)

Fractions are common numerical representations in mathematics. However, they seem to be a complicated mathematical concept to master, particularly among school pupils. Pupils have a hard time studying fraction due to insufficient understanding of the concept. An effective teaching method is therefore essential for the teaching and learning of this particular component. The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of the virtual manipulative teaching method in improving the understanding of fraction among Primary Year Four pupils. Essentially a quasi-experimental research, the method used was a non-equivalent, control group pretest-posttest approach. A total of 80 pupils from a …

Misconceptions On Chemical Bonding Among Form Four Pupils, Quah Mei Ling

Student Works (2020-2029)

The learning of chemical bonding in chemistry is an abstract concept for all students. The process of learning chemistry can be classified into three levels which are macroscopic, sub-microscopic, and symbolic levels. Students have problems correlating all three levels in learning chemical bonding. During the transition of these three levels, students face difficulties in relating the macroscopic and sub-microscopic levels which lead to misconceptions. Therefore, the purpose of conducting this study was to explore the misconceptions of chemical bonding which includes ionic bonding and covalent bonding among Form Four students. This study aimed to answer two research questions; 1) what …

Computer Science Teacher Survey, Josh B. Mcgee, Sarah C. Mckenzie

Arkansas Education Reports

In April/May of 2020, the University of Arkansas’ Office for Education Policy (OEP), in partnership with Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson's Computer Science and Cyber Security Task Force, fielded a survey with the 400+ Arkansas educators who at that time held a computer science endorsement (528), computer science approval code (5016), or computer science technical permit (5014) on their educator’s license. The survey received 153 responses, a nearly 40 percent response rate.

Relative Impacts Of Different Grade Scales On Student Success In Introductory Physics, David J. Webb, Cassandra A. Paul, Mary A. Chessey

Faculty Publications

In deciding on a student’s grade in a class, an instructor generally needs to combine many individual grading judgments into one overall judgment. Two relatively common numerical scales used to specify individual grades are the 4-point scale (where each whole number 0–4 corresponds to a letter grade) and the percent scale (where letter grades A through D are uniformly distributed in the top 40% of the scale). This paper uses grading data from a single series of courses offered over a period of 10 years to show that the grade distributions emerging from these two grade scales differed in many …

Relativity Lite: A Pictorial Translation Of Einstein’S Theories Of Motion And Gravity, Jack C. Straton

PDXOpen: Open Educational Resources

Relativity Lite is designed for the General Astronomy sequence (PH 361-2U, SCI 315-6U) whose primary book glosses over Special Relativity and General Relativity while trying to explain the Cosmology that is based on those subjects. Relativity Lite translates the mathematical equations conventional relativity texts rely upon into pictures that are readily understood and contain within them the mathematical essentials. This book provides the comprehensive coverage needed to understand, in sufficient depth, these three linked areas of our reality.

Readers seeking this knowledge on their own, and those in other courses for nonscientists, may also find it helpful.

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Multicourse Comparative Study Of The Core Aspects For Flipped Learning: Investigating In-Class Structure And Student Use Of Video Resources, Nicole Naibert, Emryse Geye, Michael M. Phillips, Jack Barbera

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Since 2013, the number of publications on flipped learning within chemistry have steadily increased. However, most of these studies focus on flipped course reforms within individual institutions, while the outcomes of any learning environment are dependent on how the environment is structured and the degree to which students interact with its elements. In this study, we apply a coordinated set of assessment practices to investigate similarities among flipped chemistry courses at five institutions in the United States. All courses in the study followed the two basic tenets of flipped learning: (1) foundational information was delivered through preclass materials (PCMs), and …

Faktor Yang Mempengaruhi Kebolehan Perwakilan Ikonik Dan Simbolik Murid Tahun Empat Dalam Nombor Pecahan Di Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina, Wee Pu Lim

Student Works (2020-2029)

Perwakilan matematik telah mula diberi perhatian lalu menjadi salah satu proses utama yang perlu dikuasai oleh murid. Hal ini kerana perwakilan merupakan satu elemen baharu dalam Kurikulum Standard Sekolah Rendah (KSSR). Kajian ini bertujuan untuk menentukan sama ada faktor jantina murid dan tahap pencapaian matematik murid mempengaruhi kebolehan murid tahun empat dalam perwakilan ikonik dan simbolik tentang nombor pecahan serta interaksi antara kedua-dua faktor tersebut. Untuk menjawab tiga soalan kajian ini, reka bentuk kajian perbandingan punca dan kajian faktorial telah digunakan. 596 orang murid tahun 4 (293 lelaki, 303 perempuan) daripada 5 buah sekolah dengan menggunakan pensampelan kluster dua tahap …

Effects Of Gender And Socioeconomic Status Towards Form Four Pupils’ Statistical Thinking Abilities, Jing Hui Ong

Student Works (2020-2029)

Statistical thinking abilities of Form Four students are not known as there is a lack of studies that measures it. Despite the fact that the students were exposed to the same curriculum and pedagogy, the thinking abilities of students varied in terms of gender. There is also uncertainty in whether socio-economic status is a cause that affects statistical thinking abilities due to lack of research in that particular area. This study aimed to examine the effects of gender and socio-economic status on statistical thinking abilities of Form Four students. To answer the three research questions of this study, survey descriptive …

Social Justice Mathematical Modeling For Teacher Preparation, Patrick L. Seegmiller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Today's math teachers face significant social and political challenges for which they receive little preparation. Mathematics content courses can potentially provide additional preparation in this regard by providing future teachers with experiences to mathematically explore social justice issues. This provides them with opportunities to increase their awareness and sensitivity to social justice issues, develop greater empathy for their future students, and serve as examples for high quality instruction that they can emulate in their future careers. This dissertation recounts the development and revision of three social justice mathematical modeling projects, and shares evidence from student work samples of the ways …

The International Conference On Creative Mathematical Sciences Communication: Online Event (Cmsc'20) And Cmsc'21, Frances Rosamond

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

You are warmly invited to register now for the 5th International Conference on Creative Mathematical Sciences Communication (CMSC’21) which will be held at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland, 2–6 July, 2021.

The International Conference on Creative Mathematical Sciences Communication (CMSC) is a unique gathering of computer scientists and mathematicians, teachers, musicians, dancers, dramatists, game designers, educators and communicators of all sorts.

Due to the pandemic, the in-person event scheduled for 2020 has been post- poned and a short CMSC Online Event was organized as a “teaser” or trailer in order to feel the spirit of the full 5th CMSC …

The Human Face Of Mathematics: Reuben Hersh (1927-2020) In Memoriam, Elena Anne Corie Marchisotto

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Reuben Hersh (1927-2020) celebrated mathematics as a human endeavor, historically evolved and intelligible only in a social context. It is therefore appropriate to remember him in the Journal of Humanistic Mathematics. There have been many tributes to Reuben, which commemorate his life and impressive mathematical and philosophical achievements. This memoriam to Reuben instead focuses on showing how his humanistic philosophy was so indicative of the person he was.

Creative Assignments In Upper Level Undergraduate Courses Inspired By Mentoring Undergraduate Research Projects, Malgorzata A. Marciniak

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

This article describes methods and approaches for incorporating creative projects in undergraduate mathematics courses for students of engineering and computer science in an urban community college. The topics and the grading rubrics of the projects go way beyond standard homework questions and contain elements of finding own project, incorporating historical background, inventing own questions and exercises, or demonstrating experiments to illustrate some aspects of the project. After analyzing challenges and outcomes of these projects, I identified several skills which help students be successful, including the skills of creativity. These skills are writing, oral presentation, math skills, and collaboration skills. I …

What Would The Nautilus Say? Unleashing Creativity In Mathematics!, Megan E. Selbach-Allen, Cathy A. Williams, Jo Boaler

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

While the nautilus shell is often represented in popular culture as an example of a golden spiral, according to many mathematicians it is not. In this paper we examine multiple arguments for and against considering the nautilus as a “golden” spiral and offer a semi-structured task that is accessible to middle school students and beyond to begin their own investigation. Our hope is that asking, what would the nautilus say, can serve as a starting point for children and adults alike to push against the walls we so often draw around mathematical questions and begin to see where their creativity …

A Study Of Problem Posing As A Means To Help Mathematics Teachers Foster Creativity, Deborah Moore-Russo, Amanda A. Simmons, Michael J.D. Tulino

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Research suggests that mathematical creativity often results from extended periods of mathematical activity and reflection based on the use of deep and flexible content knowledge [14, 15]. This implies that instruction can influence creativity. However, for teaching to foster creativity in mathematics, there should be purposefully designed instructional tasks. It is doubtful that routine, mechanical exercises would foster creativity. Moreover, mathematical creativity may neither be explicitly promoted, nor fully appreciated, by students when a learning space involves only problem solving, even if the problems are challenging and engaging. For students to get an authentic sense of mathematics and to develop …

Developing Arduino Coding Curriculum, Tyler Brown, Riley Bucheitte, Timothy Kidd

Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) Symposium

No abstract provided.

Lectures On Mathematical Computing With Python, Jay Gopalakrishnan

PDXOpen: Open Educational Resources

This open resource is a collection of class activities for use in undergraduate courses aimed at teaching mathematical computing, and computational thinking in general, using the python programming language. It was developed for a second-year course (MTH 271) revamped for a new undergraduate program in data science at Portland State University. The activities are designed to guide students' use of python modules effectively for scientific computation, data analysis, and visualization.

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Guided Reinvention As A Context For Investigating Students' Thinking About Mathematical Language And For Supporting Students In Gaining Fluency, Kristen Vroom

Dissertations and Theses

Fluency with mathematical language is important for students' engagement in many disciplinary practices such as defining, conjecturing, and proving; yet, there is growing evidence that mathematical language is challenging for undergraduate students. This dissertation study draws on two design experiments with pairs of students who were supported to encode their mathematical meanings with more formal language. I aimed to investigate the teaching and learning of mathematical language, and particularly the language in statements with multiple quantifiers, by engaging students in this type of activity. In the first paper, I investigated the complex ways in which the students in my study …

Exploring User Interface Improvements For Software Developers Who Are Blind, Guarionex J. Salivia, Flint D. Million, Megan E. Bening

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Software developers who are blind and interact with the computer non-visually face unique challenges with information retrieval. We explore the use of speech and Braille combined with software to provide an improved interface to aid with challenges associated with information retrieval. We motivate our design on common tasks performed by students in a software development course using a Microprocessor without Interlocked Pipeline Stages (MIPS) architecture simulation tool. We test our interface via a single-subject longitudinal study, and we measure and show improvement in both the user’s performance and the user experience.

Tactviz: A Vmd Plugin For Tactile Visualization Of Protein Structures, Olivia R. Shaw, Jodi A. Hadden-Perilla

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Scientific disciplines spanning biology, biochemistry, and biophysics involve the study of proteins and their functions. Visualization of protein structures represents a barrier to education and research in these disciplines for students who are blind or visually impaired. Here, we present a software plugin for readily producing variable-height tactile graphics of proteins using the free biomolecular visualization software Visual Molecular Dynamics (VMD) and protein structure data that is publicly available through the Protein Data Bank. Our method also supports interactive tactile visualization of proteins with VMD on electronic refreshable tactile display devices. Employing our method in an academic laboratory has enabled …

Visualization Without Vision – How Blind And Visually Impaired Students And Researchers Engage With Molecular Structures, Croix J. Laconsay, Henry B. Wedler, Dean J. Tantillo

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

This article examines the tools and techniques currently available that enable blind and visually impaired (BVI) individuals to visualize three-dimensional objects used in learning chemistry concepts. How BVI individuals engage with and visualize molecular structure is discussed and recent tactile (or haptic) and auditory methods for visualization of various chemistry concepts are summarized. Remaining challenges for chemistry education researchers are described with the aim of highlighting the potential value of educational research in further enabling BVI students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Variability In The Effectiveness Of Psychological Interventions Based On Machine Learning In Stem Education, Mohammad Hasan, Bilal Khan

School of Computing: Faculty Publications

This manuscript presents a framework to investigate the variability in the effectiveness of psychological interventions supported by Machine Learning (ML) based early-warning systems (EWS) in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. It emphasizes the importance of investigating the resulting variability and suggests that effective EWS cannot be designed without a deeper understanding of the variability. The framework uses an ML-based model to predict students’ academic performance early in the semester for a Sophomore-level Computer Science course at a public university in the United States. The students were given psychological interventions by sending their end-of-term performance forecast thrice during the semester. …

Playfair's Introduction Of Time Series To Represent Data, Diana White, Joshua Eastes, Negar Janani, River Bond

Statistics and Probability

No abstract provided.

Playfair's Novel Visual Displays Of Data, Diana White, River Bond, Joshua Eastes, Negar Janani

Statistics and Probability

No abstract provided.

Cross-Cultural Comparisons: The Art Of Computing The Greatest Common Divisor, Mary K. Flagg

Number Theory

No abstract provided.