Nowadays, technology plays a fundamental role in education, in general, and in mathematics education in particular. The graphing calculator has been an important technological tool in mathematics classrooms since its invention and introduction in 1985 by Casio. As graphing calculators provided so many uses, their contribution to the teaching and learning process has been investigated by many researchers who have shown the use of such technology can have a significant effect on improving mathematics teaching and learning. Investigating the impact of graphing calculators on student learning is important. It is also essential to research teachers’ perspectives on how using graphing calculators in mathematics determines how such use affects their teaching and learning. However, there are few studies on this issue. Therefore, this dissertation study may fill the gap in the literature in terms of examining high school mathematics teachers’ perspectives when they teach a precalculus course with technology integrated in the curriculum materials. In this study, I analyzed eleven teachers’ perspectives about using graphing calculator technology in a precalculus course, titled Functions, Statistics, and Trigonometry (FST). This study was a descriptive intrinsic case study in which I analyzed teachers’ perspectives about how they use graphing calculators in the FST course, specifically about their teaching and students’ learning with available graphing calculator technology. Additionally, I explored teachers' perspectives about the issues they face when using the available technology and for what topics teachers frequently used it. I used mixed methods to examine eleven mathematics teachers’ perspectives about their teaching, students’ learning, and issues that arise when they use graphing calculator technology. In the quantitative part of the study, I created an Index of Teachers’ Initial Perceived Attitude and Experience Level and an Index of Teachers’ Use of Graphing Calculators to measure teachers’ perspectives on technology use at the beginning and end of the school year, respectively. In the qualitative inquiry, I analyzed teachers’ responses to semi-structured interview questions by using thematic analysis. The results of this study showed eight of the eleven mathematics teachers’ students used graphing calculators with Computer Algebra System (CAS) capability loaned by The University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (UCSMP). Five teachers had a high initial perceived attitude and experience level and the other six teachers had a medium level. All teachers reported that helping students learn to use a symbolic manipulator was equally or less important than to use a graphing calculator. The themes (1) Teachers’ use of graphing calculators, (2) Teachers’ opinions about students’ use of graphing calculators, and (3) Teachers’ issues with graphing calculator technology were created to explain teachers’ responses to interview questions related to their graphing calculator perspectives throughout the year. Teachers typically used graphing calculators almost every day for such purposes as exploring mathematics, solving problems, and checking work. Some teachers reported the benefits of using graphing calculators in terms of instruction were focusing on the concepts and showing additional solution approaches. Teachers who wanted their students to be able to do some work without graphing calculators used no calculator tests or questions on which graphing calculators were not allowed as part of their assessment process. Teachers mentioned the need for a manual showing the steps for using graphing calculators with CAS. Teachers’ opinions about students’ use of graphing calculators included that students generally liked them. Teachers reported graphing calculators positively affected students’ learning because students were able to find the answers for problems and have better visualization opportunities. However, teachers reported some meaning was missing and students’ arithmetic skills were negatively affected because of the presence of graphing calculators. Additionally, five teachers indicated their students relied on the graphing calculators too much. The most common issue teachers had relative to graphing calculator technology was the liability issue of the graphing calculators sent by UCSMP for students to loan. Teachers were responsible for those loaned graphing calculators. Additionally, cheating, using features that minimized the mathematics, and not being familiar with the type of graphing calculators loaned from UCSMP were other issues teachers reported. Teachers’ graphing calculator use was demonstrated based on the index of teachers’ use of graphing calculators. Seven teachers were high in terms of their use of graphing calculators at the end of the school year and four teachers had a medium use of graphing calculators. For implications of this study, mathematics teacher educators can use the results to improve professional development programs for teachers. They might create workshops based on teachers’ perspectives and their initial perceived attitude and experience level. Additionally, textbook developers can create more exploration activities with graphing calculators, especially with CAS.

The purpose of this study was to investigate how writing in mathematics is treated in one 4th grade National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded mathematics textbook titled Everyday Mathematics and one publisher-generated textbook titled enVision MATH. The developed framework provided categories to support each of the research questions. The results indicate that writing is supported in both traditional and NSF developed 4th grade mathematics textbooks Results also indicated the number of exercises and writing prompts was higher in the enVision MATH textbook. However, Everyday Mathematics had a higher percentage of exercises that were coded as writing prompts. The framework domains of content strand in enVision MATH and Everyday Mathematics are similar in percentages with the exception of prompts coded in the other category. Everyday Mathematics appeared to be the only textbook analyzed to support writing across different content areas. Furthermore, the content strand of number sense had the largest percentage of writing prompts coded between both textbook series. Other findings from this study suggest that the type of vocabulary coded within the writing prompts was similar in all categories between both textbook series analyzed. Additionally, vocabulary specific to the domain of mathematics and symbols appeared to have the largest percentage in this category for both textbook series. The teacher and student editions were explored in enVision MATH and Everyday Mathematics to provide more depth to the research. An exploration of the teacher edition indicated how writing was supported for instructional purposes. The teacher editions in both textbook series had the largest percentage of support in the form of one sample response. Within the student edition category, the layout varied in the enVision MATH and Everyday Mathematics textbook series. As a result, only the language of Everyday MATH could be analyzed for patterns in the sections, sub-sections, and additional sub-sections of where the prompts were located. Although this investigation did not involve analyzing student responses to the writing prompts, the findings provide information regarding the expectations of the writer in order to construct a mathematical response. For example, the domain specific vocabulary (DSV) and symbols category was rated the highest in percentage for both textbooks indicating that students will need to have command of the language and symbols of mathematics in order to engage in meaning making written discourse. Because most of the math prompts were specific to the problem solving category, it was determined after a linguistic analysis that the affordance of the prompt is much more complex than then binary categories of content and process Additionally, in order for students to respond to these content writing prompts, many process words known as meta-language (i.e., explanation, description, why question, how question) need to be comprehended in order for composition to begin. In light of these findings, I recommend that special attention be given to the teacher and student editions regarding the implementation of writing in mathematics. The development of these materials has important implications regarding instruction and learning of mathematical concepts through writing, potentially impacting student performance on national and international assessments.

This study explores how racial differences may influence achievement and persistence in physics by using data provided by the Persistence Research in Science and Engineering (PRiSE) project, which surveyed college students throughout the United States about their backgrounds, high school science experiences, and science attitudes. This study draws upon previous studies to first determine the factors that predict achievement and persistence in physics by using hierarchal linear multiple regression analysis. Once statistically significant factors of persistence and achievement were determined, the study determines whether those variables are significantly different among students of determine races. The study found that race was ultimately not a good predictor of both achievement and persistence in physics; however, this does not necessarily mean that race was an insignificant component. Due to the nature of hierarchal regression analysis, the component of race may have been accounted for in other predictors. However, the analyzed predictors for could not fully account for the variance in either achievement or persistence. This may be due to the limited scope of the PRiSE survey, which did not include socioeconomic factors. The study concludes with a proposal for future research.

This dissertation examines college student understanding and attitudes toward biological evolution. In ethnographic work, I followed a cohort of 31 students through their required introductory biology class. In interviews, students discuss their life history with the concept - in school, at home, at church, and in their communities. For some Creationist students, confronting evolution in class has meant confronting existential issues regarding both the basis of science and the basis of faith. For other Creationist students, claims of evolution's theoretical strength are eschewed for its direct challenge to their worldview. For most students, science holds minimal interest against other values in their lives. Faculty and policy makers decry this as poor American science literacy which demands change. This work illustrates the gap between "ideal science literacy", and the everyday practices which result in half of Americans rejecting evolution as sound science.

Colleges and universities worldwide have struggled to find a way to measure student satisfaction in online courses. This study examined the growth of math courses that are delivered in the online format. This study aims to address many gaps in the research literature concerning distance education using technology. In particular, it is the intention of this study to investigate satisfaction and performance of students as a result of taking online courses. There has been an expanding concern over whether students are satisfied and can perform well in courses taken in an online environment. Satisfaction and performance in distance education have always been examined in comparison with traditional education that implements instruction through face-to-face interactions. A careful examination of the research literature also indicates that researchers apply vastly different ways to measure satisfaction and performance. This situation may well be responsible for the inconsistencies among empirical studies in the research literature. The first purpose was to develop and validate an instrument that measures satisfaction regarding taking online courses. The second purpose was to predict student satisfaction (measured through the developed instrument) from the learning characteristics of an online environment. The third purpose was to predict student performance from student satisfaction (measured through the developed instrument) in an online environment. A deductive approach was adopted for this research project and utilized a quantitative research design including surveys. Survey data was collected from adult students who were students in the online College Algebra course at a certain Community & Technical College. The instrument was developed and found to be reliable through confirmatory factor analysis. Using multiple regression for the second question, it was found that age (of students) demonstrated statistically significant absolute and relative effects on satisfaction with online mathematics courses. In other words, satisfaction with online mathematics courses depended on age both individually and collectively. Lastly, using multiple regression and ANCOVA to answer question three, it was found that gains from pretest to posttest did not depend on individual characteristics, learning preferences, and online (learning) environment. Meanwhile, gains from pretest to posttest did not depend on satisfaction with online mathematics courses.

This mixed methods status study examined 32 fourth grade students’ conceptual understandings of energy flow through ecosystems prior to instruction and 40 eighth grade students’ conceptual understandings of the same topic after five years of daily standards-based instruction in science. Specific ecological concepts assessed related to: 1) roles of organisms; 2) the sun as the original energy source for most ecosystems; and 3) interdependency of organisms. Fourth and eighth grade students were assessed using the same three-tiered forced-choice instrument, with accompanying tasks for students to defend their forced-choice selections and rate their level of confidence in making the selections. The instrument was developed for the study by a team of researchers and was based on similar tasks presented in the research literature. Distractor options were embedded in each assessment task using common non-scientific ideas also reported in the research literature. Cronbach’s alpha values at or greater than .992 for each task indicated inter-rater consistency of task answers, and Rasch analysis was employed to establish the reliability of the instrument. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were employed to assess the data. Constant comparative methods were employed to analyze students’ written responses, which were coded and grouped into emerging themes. These themes were further developed to characterize students’ conceptual understandings. Student open responses also were scored and coded by a team of researchers using a rubric to identify level of scientific understanding. Quantitative analyses included Rasch analysis used to normalize survey data. Independent samples t-tests were then employed to compare students’ forced-choice responses to their written responses and to the confidence ratings, as well as to compare fourth and eighth grade students’ responses. Findings indicated that eighth grade students generally outperformed the fourth grade on both the forced-choice and written responses, but both groups demonstrated conceptual difficulties in all three topics assessed. Thus, results from the current study support the assertion that students’ understanding of concepts related to energy flow in ecosystems is not at the expected level according to national science education standards and frameworks. Conceptual difficulties identified in the study are discussed along with implications and curricular recommendations.

Ongoing changes in values, pedagogy, and curriculum concerning sustainability education necessitate that strong curricular elements are identified in sustainability education. However, quantitative research in sustainability education is largely undeveloped or relies on outdated instruments. In part, this is because no widespread quantitative instrument for measuring related educational outcomes has been developed for the field, though their development is pivotal for future efforts in sustainability education related to STEM majors. This research study details the creation, evaluation, and validation of an instrument – the STEM Sustainability Engagement Instrument (STEMSEI) – designed to measure sustainability engagement in post-secondary STEM majors. The study was conducted in three phases, using qualitative methods in phase 1, a concurrent mixed methods design in phase 2, and a sequential mixed methods design in phase 3. The STEMSEI was able to successfully predict statistically significant differences in the sample (n= 1017) that were predicted by prior research in environmental education. The STEMSEI also revealed statistically significant differences between STEM majors’ sustainability engagement with a large effect size (.203 ≤ η2 ≤ .211). As hypothesized, statistically significant differences were found on the environmental scales across gender and present religion. With respect to gender, self-perceived measures of emotional engagement with environmental sustainability was higher with females while males had higher measures in cognitive engagement with respect to knowing information related to environmental sustainability. With respect to present religion, self-perceived measures of general engagement and emotional engagement in environmental sustainability were higher for non-Christians as compared to Christians. On the economic scales, statistically significant differences were found across gender. Specifically, measures of males’ self-perceived cognitive engagement in knowing information related to economic sustainability were greater than those of females. Future research should establish the generalizability of these results and further test the validity of the STEMSEI.

The present study specifically evaluated the long-term effects of problem-based learning (PBL) instruction on the mathematics achievement of students who demonstrated higher ability in the subject area than their comparable peers. Subjects included 65 students from six south-central Kentucky elementary schools who participated in Project Gifted Education in Math and Science (Project GEMS), a grant partially funded through the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Program. The students were assigned to one of three conditions – PBL-Plus, PBL, or Control – based upon school of attendance. The participants were then administered baseline testing in the fall of the third-grade year using the Test of Mathematical Abilities for Gifted Students (TOMAGS). The TOMAGS was then re-administered each subsequent spring (grades 3-6) for growth data. A mixed two-factor ANOVA revealed that there was no significant interaction between the groups across time. Therefore, it was determined that PBL instruction did not result in a greater level of mathematics achievement compared to a traditional curriculum; in addition, quantity of PBL instruction did not impact mathematics achievement. Interestingly, all groups demonstrated significant gains in mathematics achievement regardless of treatment condition. Several limitations could have interfered with the results of this study, including student attrition, fidelity of implementation, and professional development in PBL curriculum received by the control schools (outside of Project GEMS). As a result, the researchers recommend further research employing stricter fidelity checks and larger sample sizes.

The goal of this qualitative study was to gain insight into which personal factors most affect student adjustment in a state residential STEM school. Factors from Tinto’s Model of Institutional Departure were used as the framework to capture the transition of gifted high school students from traditional high school to The Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science in Kentucky, a statewide residential STEM school. Tinto’s Model predicts college persistence using pre-existing individual characteristics and institutional experiences. These qualities and experiences were used to form questions about student traits and transition. Questionnaires were administered to Gatton Academy first-year students, parents, and staff members. Participants included 10 students, two parents, and six staff members. The answers were analyzed using deductive analysis. The study found the student participants at The Gatton Academy came from intact families, were often not challenged at their sending high schools, and entered the residential setting with very few study habits but high self-control. The findings suggest that gifted students are highly adaptable to the college environment despite being younger than traditional college age.

Debates over the promising change Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) might offer to traditional online learning now produce significant attention and discourse among the media and higher education. Ample articles discuss the potential benefits of MOOCs from the perspectives of faculty and administration. However, little is known about students’ perceptions of MOOCs. Given the lack of relevant literature and the reality that MOOCs are created to benefit students, it is important to elicit current college students’ perceptions of MOOCs since it is well documented learning mathematics online has its problems (Ashby, Sadera, & McNary, 2011; Frame, 2012; Ho et al., 2010; Hughes et al., 2005; Jameson & Fusco, 2014). In this descriptive exploratory case study, I explored the perceptions of eight adult college students enrolled in a developmental mathematical xMOOC. I utilized constant comparative methods (open, axial, and selective coding) to analyze the data and identified overarching themes related to student perceptions of learning developmental mathematics via an xMOOC. XMOOCs are structured like large online lecture courses, usually with auto grading features for tests and quizzes and video-recorded lectures. I also employed post structural tenets to scrutinize the data through different lenses. My goals were to explore college students’ perceptions of learning via developmental mathematical xMOOCs, the reasons students chose to learn developmental mathematics via an xMOOC, students’ beliefs of personal characteristics needed to successfully complete a developmental mathematical xMOOC and their ideas about how to improve developmental mathematical xMOOCs. The study provides insights about college students’ learning and success via developmental mathematical xMOOCs and adds needed information to the literature on higher education distance learning.