Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Access In Teaching Stem Subjects To The Blind, Ashley E. Neybert

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

There are still many gaps in the literature regarding the difficulties faced by instructors of students who are blind and low vision and who teach Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) subjects. We surveyed 26 K-12 STEM teachers about accessible materials they are aware of versus which accessible materials they use in their classrooms, their thoughts on how common challenges identified in the extent literature affect them in their teaching, and their perspective on how much extra time may be required for blind and low vision students (if any) to effectively learn STEM subjects.

1, 2, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 1, ..., Annemarie Torresen

Masters Theses

1

I invite you to see it and feel it and sit in it and breathe it in and

hold it in your lap. Art isn’t too scary, and neither is math.

2

bouncing between bounds of a binary

bippity boppity! let’s break brains and bread

balance or belly flop, what’s mine is yours:

bumptious and bumbling and barely able

i offer it broken and let you like it that way

An Analysis Of Ohio's Advanced Quantitative Reasoning Course, Ethan A. Douglas

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Beginning in about 2018, The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce partnered with the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the Ohio Math Initiative to create a mathematics transition course to provide high school students with a class that could prepare them for a college entry-level mathematics course if they had not previously earned a remediation-free score. This course was titled “Mathematical Modeling and Reasoning” and has since been named, “Advanced Quantitative Reasoning” (AQR) and has become an Algebra II equivalent course where students can receive their final math credit to graduate. This study looked to compare students in Algebra …

Expanding Community Engagement By Combining Extension, Service Learning, And Classroom Instruction, Chester L. Arnold, Juliana Barrett, Todd Campbell Dr., Marisa Chrysochoou, David Dickson, Michael Dietz, Randi Mendes

Journal of Extension

The Environment Corps program at the [university] approaches community engagement by combining teaching, service learning, and extension work. This model of engagement harnesses the power of trained undergraduates in conducting meaningful and actionable projects for communities, building on the topical knowledge, outreach experience, and community contacts of seasoned Extension professionals, and in turn expanding the reach of their programs. Over 175 projects have been completed in partnership with 96 municipalities, nonprofits, or other entities. The program has documented benefits to both students and partner communities. The program team is interested in assisting others to adapt the model.

Dr. Steven Iona Faculty Spotlight, Rachel Jaeger

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

An interview with Dr. Steven Iona of the University of Denver's Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Culture And Context: How Frames Of Teaching And Of Learning Mathematics Form And Change For Graduate Student Instructors, Johan Benedict A. Cristobal

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Why do instructors teach the way that they do? This question is key in understanding how and why asset-based or deficit-based practices are enacted in the classroom. In consequence, this question also gives insight into how the environment where students learn is shaped. Mathematics education research, in particular, has been concerned with how instructors respond to students’ contributions in the classroom and how these ways of responding can (dis)empower students.

One way to answer this question is to understand how instructors frame their own teaching and their students’ learning. Frames are mental constructs which help individuals filter details, interpret information, …

Perceptions Of Stem Education And Artificial Intelligence: A Twitter (X) Sentiment Analysis, Demetrice Smith-Mutegi, Yoseph Mamo, Jinhee Kim, Helen Crompton, Matthew Mcconnell

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Background, context, and purpose of the study: Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly prevalent in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, holding promising potential for supporting the design and implementation of quality STEM education. However, there is a lack of data-based research studying the diverse perceptions of AI in STEM education as conveyed on social media, the factors that influence those perceptions, or the change in those perceptions over time among public audiences. Results, the main findings: The purpose of this study was to examine public perceptions of AI in STEM education by analyzing X posts (Tweets) between 04/28/2020 …

Teaching Engineering To Enhance Beginning Elementary Preservice Teachers' Engineering-Related Knowledge And Beliefs, Jennifer Kidd, Danielle Rhemer, Kristie Gutierrez, Stacie I. Ringleb, Krishnanand Kaipa, Orlando Ayala, Pilar Pazos, Francisco Cima, Isaac Kumi

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Background

Teacher educators have begun exploring the most effective ways to prepare preservice teachers (PSTs) to engage elementary students in engineering design. However, this remains challenging as PSTs continue to report a lack of exposure to engineering during their K-12 school experiences. This study investigates the engineering-related knowledge and beliefs of PSTs in their first education course, collaborating in small teams to lead elementary students in engineering design challenges. We explored two different iterations to understand how the structure of the teaching experiences contributed to PST outcomes as a first step in identifying helpful approaches. In spring 2022, PSTs collaborated …

Editorial: Invention Education And Stem: Perspectives And Possibilities, Joanna K. Garner, Shiri D. Gandhi, Adam V. Maltese

Center for Educational Partnerships Publications

[Introduction] Generating solutions for society's complex problems requires a diverse workforce dedicated to technological and social innovation, and sustained efforts toward invention: the process of creating new, novel, and useful products to overcome challenges that affect quality of life and productivity (Couch et al. 2019). Historically, opportunities for K-12 students to develop inventive acumen have been rare and inequitably distributed, partly because educators were expected to provide such experiences without the support of professional development, curricular materials, and instructional examples. These issues have become the focus of an emergent field called Invention Education (IvE). IvE uses trans-disciplinary, equity-oriented …

Field-Based Courses Still Matter, But Not Like They Used To, Christopher T. Martine

Faculty Journal Articles

Increasingly, field-based courses are providing the first real opportunities for students to experience nature in meaningful ways. As a baseline, even before the content delivery and the graded assessments, this is already enough to change the way a person feels in the world and to spark an appreciation for the life around them.

(Part of a special feature on education in which recent winners of the Botanical Society of America's Charles E. Bessey Award share teaching philosophies and strategies.)

A Multiple Case Study Of Teaching-Focused Professional Development Programs Offered At Three Different Types Of Us Institutions Of Higher Education, Holly Fortener, Leilani A. Arthurs, Patrick Shabram, Ming-Tsan Pierre Lu, Chu-Lin Cheng, Stephanie Plaza-Torres, Carly Flaagan

Teaching and Learning Faculty Publications

Teaching-focused professional development (PD) programs offered at institutions of higher education (IHEs) are uniquely positioned to be levers of change that improve the quality of undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in ways that broaden participation in STEM education, workforce development, and career pathways in the United States (US). PD programs and their potential to transform undergraduate STEM education, however, are understudied. This multiple-case study compares suites of PD programs offered at three IHEs in the US: a community college, an emerging research institution, and a research-intensive university. Each suite of PD programs is characterized in terms of …

Easy, Bright, Fluorescence Demonstration Of Buffer Action, Mariana Dykstra, Yejin Chung, Mark Muyskens

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

We report an attractive update to the demonstration of acid–base buffer action that is appropriate for ease of use and getting attention in the classroom. The twist is based on new fluorophore information and the recent availability of UV flashlights serving as an ideal, portable excitation light source. The pH-dependent fluorescence comes from a choice among three natural sources, namely narra tree wood extract, kidneywood extract, and scopoletin, which is a purchasable coumarin, that all perform equally well. We provide practical details for performing the buffer demonstration at scales of 100 and 1000 mL and give background information for context.

Incorporating Sex-Diverse And Gender-Inclusive Perspectives In Higher Education Biology Courses, Breanne N. Harris, A Kelsey Lewis, Sam L. Sharpe, Teri J. Orr, Christopher T. Martine, Chloe C. Josefson

Faculty Journal Articles

Inclusive teaching is teaching in a way that reaches all students in the classroom; this is beneficial for everyone, particularly for those with minoritized identities. Instructors play a critical role in scaffolding how students are exposed to and learn science content in the classroom. In this manuscript, we discuss how biology instructors can make their classrooms more inclusive with regard to sex and gender diversity content. Many topics in biology are based on androcentric, heteronormative, and oppressive framing, even though those lenses are more reflective of our own history and culture than they are of the diversity we see in …

Examining The Influence Of Secondary Math And Science Teacher Preparation Programs On Graduates' Instructional Quality And Persistence In Teaching, Danielle M. Rhemer, Will Rogers, Sherry Ann Southerland

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This quantitative, non-experimental study explored the relationship between the features of math and science teachers’ preparation programs and their graduates’ instructional rigor and persistence in teaching. Five math and science teacher preparation programs from across the United States were examined. Six sets of instructional tasks were collected from forty-six recent graduates of these programs to provide insights into novices’ instructional rigor, and employment data were collected for thirty-seven of these graduates three to eight years after graduation. Regardless of the program’s features, all teachers could design and implement instruction with moderate to high rigor. However, this ability was not the …

Prospective Teachers' Conceptions Of Area, Betsy Mcneal, Sayonita Ghosh Hajra, Michael Battista, Ayse Ozturk

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

This study explored 10 prospective teachers’ (PTs’) understanding of the area of a rectangular region using square and non-square rectangular area-units. In an hour-long interview, each PT was first asked to explain how they would find the area of a given rectangular region in terms of a non-square notecard. For several PTs, this task prompted discussion of a square unit defined by the edge of the notecard. In a second task, PTs were presented with a rectangular array of squares and were asked to explain to a fictional child why multiplying length times width does not count the top left …

A Review Of “Making Black Girls Count In Math Education: Black Feminist Vision For Transformative Teaching, Michelle Craddock Guinn

Feminist Pedagogy

No abstract provided.

Investigating Correlations Among A Growth-Mindset Intervention, Students’ Math Anxiety, And Students’ Math Self-Efficacy, Anna Grace Chamberlain

Honors Projects

This paper details the methodology, data, and conclusions of a research study investigating the correlations among a growth-mindset intervention, math anxiety, and math self-efficacy. The study found that teaching students about mindset through an intervention approach did not make a significant difference in students’ math anxiety or math self-efficacy. Teacher-centered factors are discussed as having a greater impact on students’ math anxiety and math self-efficacy.

Interactive White Boards In A Secondary Mathematics Classroom, Leann Bolhuis

Mathematics Graduate Theses

"A Formal Portfolio Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS & COMPUTER SCIENCE In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN MATHEMATICS".

Hearing Silence: Understanding The Complexities Of Silence In Democratic Classrooms And Our Responsibility As Teachers And Teacher Educators. A Response To "Creating A Democratic Mathematics Classroom: The Interplay Of The Rights And Responsibilities Of The Learner.", Kersti Tyson, Allison Hintz, Andrea English, Diana Murdoch

Democracy & Education

This response to Priya Prasad’s and Crystal Kalinec-Craig’s article on the interplay of the Rights and Responsibilities of the Learner aims to engage with and add on to the authors’ exploration of learners overexercising or opting out of their rights. While grappling with these challenges alongside the authors, our curiosity deepened about a significant and understudied facet of democratic classrooms: silence. Through this response, we consider the multifaceted dimension of silence and how a focus on silence may help us more fully understand the tension between learners’ rights and responsibilities to self, each other, and the collective. Specifically, we engage …

Using Video Recordings To Support Meaningful Reflection Of Mathematical Teaching Practices, David Scalzo

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The practice of teaching mathematics is a skill that can be continually built upon. In order to maximize the effectiveness of one’s math lessons, it is essential that they become a reflective teacher. This project explains the importance of reflecting on mathematical teaching practices, then outlines the steps I have taken to start becoming a reflective teacher. Video recordings working with math are included as part of the project, which are used as the material I reflect about.

Science Methods For Elementary Teachers, Ron Browne, David Kimori

Science Methods for Elementary Teachers

Complete Digitized Text of Science Methods for Elementary Teachers by Ron Browne and David Kimori, Minnesota State University, Mankato, 2022.

Science Methods For Elementary Teachers, Ron Browne, David Kimori

MSU Authors Collection

Complete Digitized Text of Science Methods for Elementary Teachers by Ron Browne and David Kimori, Minnesota State University, Mankato, 2022.

Thinkmed: Providing An Environment For Disadvantaged Students To Explore Stem, Steven Trinh, Lauren Dudley, Peter Chang

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

ThinkMED is a nonprofit initiative offering a four-week curriculum specifically designed to develop critical thinking and encourage evidence-based decision making. Each week’s content material revolves around the use of a ThinkMED Science Kit containing a wet lab experiment designed to supplement the content curriculum. Each experiment is formulated to be inclusive of all California Next Generation Science Standards K through 5. Contained within each week’s ThinkMED Science Kit is a unique QR code that directs the student to an interactive simulation of the experiment created by our team of computer scientists and graphic designers. At the end of each week, …

Participatory Action Research: Undergraduate Researchers Engaging Secondary Students In Social Justice Mathematics, Isabelle Miller, Alexis Grimes, Camryn Adkison

The Journal of Purdue Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.

Contributions To The Teaching And Learning Of Fluid Mechanics, Ashwin Vaidya

Department of Mathematics Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This issue showcases a compilation of papers on fluid mechanics (FM) education, covering different sub topics of the subject. The success of the first volume [1] prompted us to consider another follow-up special issue on the topic, which has also been very successful in garnering an impressive variety of submissions.

As a classical branch of science, the beauty and complexity of fluid dynamics cannot be overemphasized. This is an extremely well-studied subject which has now become a significant component of several major scientific disciplines ranging from aerospace engineering, astrophysics, atmospheric science (including climate modeling), biological and biomedical science …

Building A Functional Cardiograph Over Four Semesters, Part 3: Estimating Heart Rate And Respiration Rate In The Time And Frequency Domains Using Matlab, Gail Baura, Francisca Fils-Aime, Vincent Chiun-Fan Chen, Leanne Kallemeyn

Engineering Science Faculty Publications

At Loyola University Chicago (LUC), all engineering courses are taught using a mandatory minimal lecture style, where the majority of course meeting time is devoted to group activities. Each activity may take place during that course meeting only, over the entire semester, or over multiple semesters. Curricular contextual threads take place over multiple semesters. One such contextual thread is the cardiograph project, whereby students build a functional cardiograph that estimates heart rate (HR) and respiration rate (RR) over four semesters (first, third, fifth, and sixth semesters). In Part III, students acquire their own electrocardiogram (ECG) using a custom motherboard, with …

Developing An Inquiry-Based Laboratory Project For Chem 142l Course At Bsu, Manuel Pina

Honors Program Theses and Projects

In addition to content knowledge, critical and independent thinking, scientific reasoning, and problem-solving skills are essential in preparing next generation of successful workforce. Since one of the biggest advantages of STEM disciplines is a “must-have” hands-on laboratory experience, it is intuitive to exploit this learning space to reinforce afore-mentioned skills. In this context, project-based (PBL) or inquiry-based (IBL) laboratory experiences are rapidly becoming mainstream pedagogical choice for many STEM instructors across United States.^[1-4] PBL, and IBL are learning experiences that offer students an opportunity to experience realistic scientific process of discovery through carefully designed inquiry-driven and/or open-ended investigative laboratory …

Publishing Successful Practitioner (Teaching Techniques) Manuscripts For The Journal Of Science Education For Students With Disabilities, Jonte C. Taylor

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities (JSESD)d is the premier journal focusing on the intersections of science education for students with disabilities. JSESD provides valuable content and context for teachers and researchers on what works in advancing science access, practices, and knowledge for all students across settings, grades, ages, and exceptionality. One way in which JSESD supports teachers and researchers is through publication of practitioner manuscripts also referred to as Teaching Techniques. These manuscripts focus on the how-to portion of science education. That is, JSESD practitioner publications give detailed information on how-to provide science instruction or how-to …

Metacognition In A Mathematics Classroom, Paige Murta

Honors Projects

The purpose of this action research study is to explore the connections between students’ ability to engage in metacognitive methods, their understanding of mathematical content, and their mathematical performance. By having a group of students engage in a lesson about metacognition and a mathematical modeling problem then comparing their test scores to that of a control group a correlation can be found to analyze the effects of metacognition methods in a mathematics classroom.

Ethnography: Building A Thriving Classroom Community In The Face Of A Pandemic, Joshua Timothy Jackson

Claremont Graduate University School of Education Teacher Education

A dive into the ride of a first-year teacher, which was also taught an entire year virtually. An extremely intensive look into the skills needed to grow as a secondary school teacher, in a situation that has never been experienced before. This paper also explores the foundations and scaffolds a teacher needs in order to become both a critical and socially just educator for all students within their classroom. The aspect of community is felt heavily throughout this journey, and the idea that communities are the very keystone of every single classroom; student-to-teacher community, student-to-student community, and classroom-to-household community are …