Call number: LD2668 .T4 1937 G72

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1948 M68 / Master of Science

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1984 H635 / Master of Science

Education is an evolving process for teachers. In order to move away from the generally accepted face to face delivery method and adapt to upcoming trends in education, teachers are implementing the flipped classroom as a means to deliver curriculum content to their students. During this study a comparison between a flipped classroom and traditional lecture style teaching approaches was conducted within a Hong Kong based International School in order to gain insight into the effects on students attitude and academic attainment in science. The comparison was conducted using participants from two year 9 (13-14 year old) general science classes. One class conducted their science lessons for the academic year using the flipped classroom approach. Within this structure a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) was used as the platform for delivering the lesson content. Students were tasked to produce questions and notes based on the online material. The second class, completed their science lessons using a traditional lecture based approach. In these lessons, the teacher delivered content via a lecture and question and answer sessions. Both classes completed investigations and practical activities during the lessons with the flipped classroom class expected to contribute to the design of investigations and the traditional class following provided instructions. In order to determine the effects of the teaching strategies employed during the study on the students attitude and attainment in science, pre and post course attitudinal surveys and pre and post topic tests were presented to the students. The quantitative data was analysed using ANOVA tests and qualitative data responses were interpreted for what the responses could infer or imply. This research has found that the implementation of a flipped learning teaching strategy can be a positive and useful instrument for teachers to use. This strategy is still relatively in its infancy and will continue to develop along with the ever changing world of technology. With the findings relating to the effects on attitude and attainment largely being positive but not necessarily significant, it would appear as though a mix of strategies needs to be employed by teachers in order to facilitate the variety of learner approaches that are experienced. / published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

The major purpose of the study was to determine whether science process achievement tests could be developed for administration to groups of primary grade students. Six Basic Science Process Tests (BSPT) were constructed as samples of the format proposed. Each BSPT was designed to assess one of the basic science processes taught in the first three parts of the 1967 edition of Science--A Process Approach (Sci-APA). The test items were projected 35 mm color slides with a tape recording which asked questions and controlled slide advancement. Pilot studies in kindergarten, and first and second grades with 320 students in Corvallis and Portland, Oregon during the spring of 1968 contributed to the development of general testing procedures and directions for training students to use BSPTs. Preliminary indications of item performance and time requirements were determined from administrations of groups of validated items to students just completing a year of Sci-APA study at the minimum expected grade levels. The sample BSPTs were assembled and synchronized for automatic administrations to students who had studied the 1967 edition of Sci-APA. Measuring and Classifying BSPTs were administered twice to classes of first, second and third graders in Park Falls, Phillips and Rhinelander, Wisconsin during September, 1968. The 850 students yielded more than 100 students who took each BSPT at the minimum expected grade level who had Sci-APA the previous year, and more than 100 students in the same grades who had no Sci-APA experience. Test-retest score pairs were correlated for each experience group to give reliability estimates for each BSPT. The major question was whether groups of primary grade students could be assessed with the tests developed concerning their science process achievements. The administrations of the standardized, synchronized BSPTs seemed acceptable with student groups. Two of the six BSPTs were accepted as reliable on the basis of test-retest correlations. Thus, it was concluded that successful educational measurement instruments can be constructed to assess science process achievement using this format. A second question considered whether there was a difference in BSPT results between students who had studied Sci.-APA for a year and those who had not. Three of the six BSPTs yielded significantly higher means for the Sci-APA trained groups. Both of the reliable BSPTs which assessed process achievements taught in Part A of Sci-APA produced significantly higher means for Sci-APA students. / Graduation date: 1970 / Supplemental material (tests, slides and audio tapes) can be accessed and used on-site at the Valley Library.

This study was conducted to track content as representations in the experienced curriculum of a secondary environmental science class. The qualitative analyses involved both the identification and the tracking of pieces of content within and across curriculum occasions. Curriculum and instructional features were found to exist as patterns as content was represented in curriculum occasions. The patterns included an evolution from one or few representations to multiple representations. This evolution was commonly facilitated by the teacher during discourse episodes in which students' comments and questions were utilized in order to introduce alternative or different representations of pieces of content. Patterns also existed in the ways in which the teacher's knowledge of the students, the content, and the curriculum were related to representations of content. The findings suggest that content, embedded in the curriculum occasions in which it is represented, can be studied in an ecologically valid manner. Also, the close association found to exist between teacher knowledge and content representation suggests that arbitrary separations of the two in classroom inquiries may be inappropriate.

No description available.

The Race to the Top (RTTT) federal grant program was an initiative that targeted improving Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education. However, the evaluation of the program reported only student outcomes for mathematics and reading/language arts. The purpose of this study was to estimate the effects of RTTT program on student achievement in science by comparing the performance of students in states with RTTT grant (treatment group) with the performance of students in states that did not receive RTTT (comparison group) grants. Using data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and difference in differences analytic approach the effects of RTTT on science achievement of 4th and 8th grade public school students and subgroups of students, traditionally underrepresented in STEM disciplines were estimated. The results show that RTTT had positive significant effect on science achievement of 4th graders overall and of the studied subgroups. A positive significant effect of RTTT was observed only for 8th graders’ earth science achievement and 8th graders with low socioeconomic background. English language learners in both grades were not affected by the implementation of RTTT. The dissertation includes recommendations for policy makers to further expand the application of competitive education programs to innovate and improve public education. Suggestions for future research related to Race to the Top- District programs and effects of RTTT on science standards and curriculum are proposed. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester 2018. / April 2, 2018. / Difference in Differences, federal policy, Race to the top, science achievement, STEM disciplines, STEM workforce / Includes bibliographical references. / Toby Park, Professor Directing Dissertation; Diana Rice, University Representative; Marytza Gawlik, Committee Member; Lara Perez-Felkner, Committee Member; Anastasia Semykina, Committee Member.

No description available.

Scientific data visualizations are the products, and increasingly a core practice, of modern computational science across all domains. With recent science education standards emphasizing student engagement in practices, these scientific visualizations will only increase in their availability and use for K-12 science instruction. But teacher practice is key to the successful learning outcomes for these, and any, educational technology. This study follows eleven science teachers from initial exposure in a PD program through classroom use of scientific data visualizations that address topics in Earth and Space science. The framework of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) is used to examine key dimensions of teacher knowledge that are activated as they seek to understand the data visualizations and the conceptual models that they represent, select and integrate them into their curriculum, and ultimately use them for instruction. Baseline measures of select dimensions of TPCK are measured for all teachers. Two representative case studies allow for a deep analysis of TPCK in action throughout their professional and instructional experience, and finally the impact on teachers’ knowledge from the experience is examined, with implications for educative curricular material and PD program design.