The purpose of this study was to find the effectiveness of digital storytelling technology integration through a project-based learning approach using digital stories combined with hands-on guided inquiry science lessons. As a teacher researcher, the focus was on the effectiveness in the performance of second-grade students using higher-order thinking science standards. For a period of ten weeks, the researcher through comparative action research investigated how emergent technology integration improved the performance of two second-grade classrooms implementing three higher-order thinking life science standards. A total of 27 students from two second-grade classrooms volunteered for this research. For the study, a pretest and posttest from Classroom A and Classroom B were utilized for the quantitative data analysis. A web-based rubric was created to assess the science digital story and student journals. The students also completed a self-assessment progression scale at the end of the study. The data collected showed an improvement in the performance of second-grade students using higher-order thinking science standards with technology integration.

On September 20, 2017, Hurricane Maria struck the island of Puerto Rico. The damage was extensive, and many people found themselves to be natural disaster refugees. As a result, schools in Central Florida saw an influx of new students who had their educations interrupted by the disaster and now were resuming school in a new language of instruction. These students not only faced linguistic challenges but also academic differences due to the high prevalence of poverty and the effects of neocolonialism in their previous schooling. This mixed methods study implemented an intensive intervention in probability to aid students in developing mathematical understanding and forming meaningful connections. Student participants, who had been affected by Hurricane Maria, were now attending a public high school and were paired one-on-one with a bilingual, mathematically high performing student mentor to complete culturally responsive, bilingual probability tasks. Data collection occurred over the course of six weeks in fall 2019. Both mentor and mentee students participated in focus group interviews, and the mentees completed a probability pre-test and post-test. Student participants were found to have statistically significant increases in the understanding of probability concepts when comparing pre-intervention and post-intervention results, with the understanding and usage of the multiplication rule showing the most significant improvement. Both mentors and mentees reported feeling a stronger sense of unity and belonging post-intervention as well as improvement in bilingual academic vocabulary. With the impact of natural disasters on the rise, implications of this study include its adaption to respond to future displaced students as they resume schooling post-interruption in Central Florida and beyond.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of two first grade mathematics programs, a literature based language and manipulative approach to mathematics instruction, Explorations, as compared to a manipulative approach, Math Their Way. These two programs use a similar manipulative approach, however, Explorations includes the use of literature and structured language activities. Procedures: Ninety-eight students were involved in this study. Sixty-seven students received instruction with Explorations and thirty-one with Math Their Way for a period of approximately five months. All students were preand posttested on the Metropolitan Achievement Tests Sixth Edition (MAT Q.) in the areas of listening comprehension, number, problem solving, and computation. In addition, a random sequential sample of thirty-one students was observed and tested on specific problem solving skills and processes by the researcher and an experienced consultant. A quasi-experimental design was used to test three sets of hypotheses. The two approaches to teaching mathematics were compared on the following variables: listening comprehension, numeration, problem solving (operation recognition), computation, problem solving strategies, and problem solving processes. Findings: Using the analysis of covariance procedures, the Explorations group scored significantly higher, p <. 001 , on the numeration test. This test evaluated numeral recognition and reading, and place value. Conclusions: Both programs were viewed favorably by teachers and students. On most outcome variables both programs produced comparable results. One ancillary finding of interest indicated that students who were able to verbalize their processing scored significantly higher in the area of computation.

Three elementary teachers made changes in their mathematics teaching by learning more mathematics content knowledge designed for mathematics teachers, and by adopting professional development teaching roles. Recent professional development programs have demonstrated that elementary teachers need content knowledge for teaching. By learning more mathematics with clear definitions, concept interconnections, and multiple models and themes for teaching mathematical concepts, the teachers improved their understanding of mathematics and changed their teaching behaviors in the classroom. This seven month study examined the three teachers during their professional development experience in the Massachusetts Mathematics Institute. Data collection included pre/post tests, an assignment designed for teachers to test out new content knowledge in their classrooms, written evaluations, interviews, and classroom observations. The pattern analysis is presented as case studies of three elementary mathematics teachers. Results indicated that specially designed content knowledge for teachers changed mathematics teaching and learning in the classroom.

This study explores the process of planning, implementing, and following-up teacher professional development programs (TPDPs) in Palestine focusing on the programs that are directed to mathematics teachers. It also describes teachers’, supervisors, principals’, and policy makers’ beliefs about mathematics and mathematics teaching and learning, and the beliefs that TPDPs have about mathematics teaching and learning. The study used qualitative methods, including interviews and document analysis, to collect data. The participants were chosen from two district areas in West Bank and included five policy makers, eight supervisors and training developers, four principals, and six teachers. In addition to interviews, training materials and policy documents related to teacher training and supervision were studied for the purpose of this study. The data obtained from these documents integrated and validated the data which were collected through the interviews. The findings of the study suggest the necessity to improve the methods used in teacher training in a way that activates the role of the trainee teachers and reflects the content of the training in the process of teacher training. In addition, there is a need to provide teachers with better follow-up methods through and after their participation in TPDPs. Most importantly, TPDPs should be based on a clear vision of their objectives that is based on understanding the problems in student learning and current teaching practices as well as the desired behaviors and actions that help to mitigate problems. The findings also indicated that most of the participants hold the instrumental view of mathematics where mathematics is viewed as a body of facts and procedures. Furthermore, their views about mathematics teaching and learning and the curriculum correspond with the instrumental view or with the content-focused approach in teaching mathematics. The researcher concluded that there should be more emphasis on TPDPs that are planned on the district and schools level or what is called job-embedded professional programs. In parallel, trainers’ competences should be upgraded so that they are more able to respond to teachers’ needs in their contexts. Improving the way in which TPDPs is planned and implemented will have a greater influence on teachers’ beliefs and practices.

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is the most recent reform in science education across the United States. The NGSS demands a shift in both teaching and learning. Yet there is no direction on how teachers are to implement this shift in their classrooms. This mixed-methods study examined 12 middle school teachers’ perceptions and the instructional practices within the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) by using interviews and classroom observations. Findings suggest that there was a shift in instructional practices and a varying degree of implementation of the eight SEPs. The data analysis identified ongoing needs related to specific professional development. The researcher concluded that district leaders and school principals need to provide tangible supports to teachers in order to successfully meet the demands of this new vision of science education.

In recent years, attention to equity and inclusion has rightfully become an essential focus in mathematics education. Given the social nature of mathematics, collaborative learning is one of the instructional strategies with the greatest potential for developing conceptual learning and creative problem-solving, and when facilitated well, has the potential to minimize racial and social biases. However, although the expected outcome of student collaboration is a collective mathematical agency, studies show that for this to happen, it is first necessary to develop among students Collective Mathematics Identity, which are beliefs and dispositions developed by a group of students about their collective ability to participate and operate successfully in a mathematical community through mutual interdependence. Therefore, this study explored how the Complex Instruction components of social norms and small group strategies contributed to developing a community of learners that fosters a Collective Mathematics Identity that supported preservice teachers' collective learning of mathematics. This study employed designed-based research with an ethnographic approach for examining the development of a community of learners. Data collection took place during the course of fourteen weeks in an undergraduate secondary mathematics education content course intended for preservice teachers. The participants were four preservice teachers who sat together during the semester. Data were gathered using video and audio recordings, field notes, and ethnographic interviews. The data gathered were then analyzed using qualitative methods, primarily ethnographic analysis. During this study, participants engaged in mathematical content in connected ways, as well as in team/skill-building activities designed to support social norms for effective communication and collaboration. Through engaging in this study, participants changed their behaviors and dispositions toward small collaborative groups and developed both, a supportive community and a collective mathematics identity among participants. All of the above resulted in deeper and more meaningful learning of mathematics.

The purpose of this study was to implement the van Hiele model of geometry in the seventh grade of a public school and determine if the levels of knowing, determined by the van Hieles, could be identified in a classroom setting. The study investigated the observed subjects' entry levels of geometric knowing, whether those entry levels were consistent with those identified by Pierre and Dina van Hiele and in the Brooklyn College Study, whether journal entries could be used to identify the van Hiele levels of thinking within the context of a classroom setting, and the five phases that van Hiele believes are necessary for progression from one level of thought to another. Seventy-eight subjects, from three ability level groups, participated in the 15 sessions of the study. Each session included time for the individual student to record initial responses to questions and to explain relationships and share responses. This study was designed to determine if a classroom investigator could follow the steps outlined by The Project at Brooklyn College, and identify the van Hiele levels of thinking using the Module descriptors. The students in this study kept their own records which were read and interpreted by the investigator. A second reader validated the findings. It was found that it is possible to correlate the van Hiele levels of thinking in the classroom setting with findings of The Project at Brooklyn College. Sixty-eight percent of the subjects in Class A remained at Level 0, identifying shapes by appearance, while 32% of the subjects made progress toward Level 1 where properties were included. For Class B, 10% remained at Level 0, 70% made progress toward Level 1 and 20% had some movement toward Level 2, where informal arguments were presented. Class C had 6% in Level 0, 73% in Level 1 and 21% showing movement toward Level 2. Finally, as suggested by the van Hieles, one must continually pass through the five phases of learning to move from one level to the next. This was affirmed in the clinical setting in the Brooklyn College Study and reaffirmed in this classroom study.

Black females have faced unique experiences that impact their mathematical identity. As they continue through teacher preparation programs and transition from student to teacher, it is important to better understand the life experiences of Black females both in and out of educational settings. These life experiences have deeply rooted impacts on their mathematical identities and the ways in which teacher preparation programs might best embrace the unique strengths Black females bring to the teaching workforce and their students and how those strengths can be leveraged to develop their positive mathematical identities as teachers. Two Black female prospective elementary teachers were purposely selected for this study as they will become the teachers of K-5 students who are at the beginning stages of developing their mathematical identity. The mathematical identity of prospective teachers contributes to their dispositions toward mathematics and how they teach their students. Autobiographical videos and interviews served as data sources for this study. Each data source was transcribed into message units. Data were then organized into a chronological timeline of events including the place, plot, and scene for each participant called "stories." Unique themes were developed for each participant to represent the contributions of their life experiences on their mathematical identities. The established themes for the first participant included culture and parent expectations, teachers, academic performance, and helping others. Themes for the second participant included support, positioning in society, and teacher interactions. Through a synthesis, commonalities that existed across participants were explored by comparing the narratives of the two participants. Key findings, implications, and directions for future research were shared.

The USA is at risk of losing its position as a global leader in the space sector because currently students are performing below other space faring nations on international science assessments and are showing declining interest in STEM careers. Recent advancements in the space sector have prompted reform in USA science education that targets improving student academic achievement in science and student interest in pursuing a STEM career. Research on student self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977) has shown positive relationships with student academic achievement in science and STEM career interest; likewise, research has shown a positive relationship between student self-efficacy and teacher self-efficacy. This quasi-experimental study examined the extent to which participation in Giant Moon MapTM enrichment activities affected middle school students' space science self-efficacy and interest in pursuing a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers, and if their teachers' space science self-efficacy influenced those two variables. The Giant Moon MapTM enrichment activities included 20 curated space science lessons and the Aldrin Family Foundation's Giant Moon MapTM. Pre- and post-survey data were collected using measurement scales that assessed self-efficacy, academic achievement, and STEM career interest. Multilevel modeling was used for data analysis of pre- and post-surveys of students (n=397 pre, n=244 post) and teachers (n=10). Results of the multilevel models indicated improvement in space science self-efficacy but not in academic achievement or interest in pursuing a STEM career. No statistically significant relationships of the variables of interest were observed between clusters of students. Findings were limited by missing student data, lack of comparison group post-survey participation, and underuse of the Giant Moon MapTM enrichment activities. Discussion of these findings and implications of this research are presented.