Sociopolitical issues of mathematics education have not been a priority in research conducted in post-secondary contexts (Adiredja & Andrews-Larson, 2017; le Roux, 2009). When sociopolitical lenses are utilised, the focus is usually on issues of equity and mathematics is not viewed critically. At the same time, although mathematics education research has highlighted and scrutinised political aspects of mathematics education (e.g., Pais, 2012; Valero, 2004), mathematics is not always thought of as political, while there is little research focusing on how it has political features. This study adopts a critical approach to mathematics, in order to examine how mathematics is political in post-secondary contexts. Deriving its theoretical lens from Laclau and Mouffe (1985/2001, 1987; Mouffe, 2005), it views mathematics as a space in which meanings are negotiated and antagonisms take place, while at the same time other ways of meaning making are excluded. More specifically, I identify three features of mathematics which make it inextricably political: the values of mathematical knowledge (Bishop, 1991; Ernest, 2018, 2020; Skovsmose, 2020), the rationality of mathematics (Kollosche, 2014; Walkerdine, 1988), and the formatting function of mathematics (Barwell, 2013; Skovsmose, 1994b, 2000). I have conducted an empirical investigation of the ways in which mathematics is political within two post-secondary courses, an Introduction to Proofs and a Calculus course. Through a discourse analysis perspective based on the works of Foucault (1972), and Laclau and Mouffe (1985/2001, 1987), I explore how political features of mathematics are negotiated and established through the ways in which people interact in the context of the two courses. Findings indicate that mathematics is not a final product that students need to absorb, but it is instead a nexus of interconnected discourses which are not fixed or stable entities but rather are constantly shifting and contested social constructions. In the "Introduction to Proofs" course, I identified four overarching discourses: the "formalising as a prototype of rigour" discourse, the "diverse participation in mathematics" discourse, the "imaginary practice of mathematics" discourse, and the "efficacy of mathematical work/labour" discourse. In the Calculus course, the overarching discourses I identified were the "humanity of mathematics" discourse, the "applying mathematics" discourse, and the "the mathematics of the class and the mathematics of mathematicians" discourse. These discourses entail ontological, epistemological, and axiological aspects; are specific to a given time and place; and sometimes fit together nicely while in other cases can enter antagonistic relations. This work contributes to mathematics education literature by problematising the neutrality of mathematics and its consideration as apolitical in post-secondary contexts.

Active participation in the learning process enhance students’ critical thinking and problem-solving skills. We implemented peerocused, active learning, recitation sessions with the large-enrollment sections for General Chemistry I courses at Mississippi State University (MSState) over a period of four semesters beginning in Spring 2016. The peerocused recitation program was a success improving student final (standardized ACS) exam scores, pass/fail rates for the course, and continuation on to General Chemistry II (CH 1223) courses. Peerocused collaborative learning and students possessing ownership over their learning significantly enhanced academic outcomes of our program. Worked-example effect is the best known and apparently the most effective cognitive load reducing technique. We incorporated a modified version of worked examples, employing “incorrect worked examples” and studied the impact of incorrect worked examples vs correct worked examples. We hypothesized that looking for errors in incorrect worked examples would achieve greater attention and would prompt students to actively engage on calculation steps than correct worked examples. Eye-tracking results showed that incorrect worked example format was effective at obtaining student attention and engaging students actively on calculation steps. Survey results showed that incorrect worked example format inspired students’ motivation and enhanced student engagement and attentiveness to examine the worked examples intensively. This research provided insights on student focus while reading and learning chemistry worked examples, and opened new avenues for supporting online learning and usage of tablet PC in the learning process. Laboratory experiments provide students the opportunity to obtain hands-on experience on laboratory techniques and instrumentation. We created a biochemistry laboratory course (CH4990) for third-year chemistry major undergraduate students at Mississippi State University. I wrote the biochemistry lab manual consisting of eleven experiments, which involved protein and DNA extraction, ion-exchange chromatography, UV/vis spectroscopy, SDS PAGE electrophoresis, and enzyme kinetics experiments. A new laboratory experiment was incorporated which allowed students exposure to peptide sequencing and proteomics experiments in conjunction with mass spectrometry. The CH4990 biochemistry lab course is open for enrollment in Fall semesters since Fall 2018.

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<p> The curriculum for Molecular Biology 3A06 aMolecular Biology Laboratorya was evaluated according to J.J. Schwab's concepts of the practical. Persons were identified whose beliefs represented the four commonplaces of Ieamer, teacher, subject matter, and milieu. These persons were consulted for their evaluation of the curriculum, using questionnaires and interview/discussions. The data were used to formulate suggestions for a revision of the course curriculum. Conclusions were drawn about the nature of the kind of deliberation which might take place in this particular setting. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Young adulthood is an important period in the development of obesity. Undergraduate students are particularly at-risk since they gain more weight than those not attending university. As students transition from high school to university, they often adopt unhealthy lifestyle behaviours which are thought to lead to weight gain. On average, students gain three to five pounds (1.4-2.3 kg) during their first year of undergraduate education. However, less is known about how body composition changes throughout the four-year course of undergraduate education and what causes these changes. We thus conducted a systematic review to synthesize a comprehensive list of factors associated with obesity traits (e.g. body mass index, body fat percentage, muscle mass) in undergraduate students. Two hundred thirty-eight studies were included (175 cross-sectional, 49 cohort, 11 interventional, 3 qualitative). We identified age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, diet, eating habits, physical activity, sedentary activity, sleep, stress, university campus life, alcohol use, smoking, psychiatric disorders, body image, eating attitude, eating regulation, personality, and social/cultural influences as factors which are associated with obesity traits. These factors guided the design of the Genetic and EnviroNmental Effects on weight in University Students (GENEiUS) study, a prospective observational study which investigates the genetic and environmental determinants of body composition in undergraduate students over four years. The GENEiUS study will recruit 2500 multiethnic first- year undergraduates aged 17–25 years and will follow them every six months for four years. Primary outcomes are body mass index, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, body fat mass and body fat percentage. This study will help design obesity prevention programs in universities. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Background: While serious illness communication is an important aspect of nursing care, it is recognized as an area of practice for which nursing students are not adequately prepared. Communication tools such as the Serious Illness Conversation Guide (SICG) may help address these gaps in knowledge and skill. Aim: The aim of this study is to explore undergraduate nursing students’ experiences engaging in serious illness communication and their perceptions about participation in a SICG workshop that aimed to improve such communication. Methods: A qualitative descriptive approach was used. One-on-one, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight undergraduate nursing students at McMaster University who had attended SICG training. Critical incident technique was used to elicit participant accounts of engaging in serious illness communication at their professional practice placements. Data were analyzed using qualitative techniques. Participants were surveyed to assess perceptions of the SICG workshop. Findings: Three themes related to undergraduate nursing students’ experiences engaging in serious illness communication after receiving SICG training were: a) serious illness communication is challenging to enact, b) finding moral and ethical ground, and c) fitting into the culture of the professional practice setting. Three themes related to nursing students’ perceptions of the SICG workshop were: a) applicability of SICG training to practice, b) strengths of SICG training, and c) limited opportunities to develop competence. Conclusions: Nursing students are challenged by serious illness communication in their practice. Findings support the integration of educational resources aimed to better prepare them for critical communication knowledge and skills on entry-to-practice. / Thesis / Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)

Students often ask "when is this ever going to be useful?", "why are we doing this?", etc. when speaking about mathematics. If we take this as a question about 'meaningfulness', how can instructors respond and how do they even understand the terms 'meaningful' and 'meaning'? My dissertation looked at how college instructors see their instruction as meaningful or not. Drawing on social and cognitive perspectives of learning, I define four ways to think of what's 'meaningful' about mathematics. From a cognitive perspective, instructors can understand 'meaningful' as mathematical understanding versus understanding the significance of mathematics. From a social perspective where meaning is taken as the experiences of everyday life within communities, teachers can understand 'meaningful' as anything that engages students in practices the mathematics community engage in versus practices non-mathematics communities engage in (e.g. pushing computation or critical thinking as a means for maintaining social hierarchies). Using these four conceptions to categorize instructors' goals, this work focuses on how four undergraduate mathematics instructors thought of their instruction as meaningful and contextual and background factors that influenced those views. / Doctor of Philosophy / Students often ask "when is this ever going to be useful?" when speaking about mathematics. If we interpret this as seeking the meaning or purpose of their education, how can teachers respond and how do they even understand the terms 'meaningful' and 'meaning'? I wanted to look at how college instructors thought of this and how they addressed such a question in their classrooms. Drawing on different theories of learning, I outlined four ways to think of what's 'meaningful' about mathematics and then used these four ways to categorize how instructors think of their instruction as meaningful. To meet this end, I looked at some accounts of instructors' goals. My data came from college instructors of different mathematics classes: math for elementary education, math for liberal arts, statistics, and calculus. One important thing I found was that experiences with underserved communities or of not being 'a math person' corresponded with instructors' ability to attend to different kinds of 'meaningful' goals. What this might suggest is that educators may not feel prepared to respond to students' pursuit of meaning in diverse ways unless they have also personally struggled with it growing up or have personally experienced the consequences of disenfranchisement.

Computer Science students need to understand the mechanism of programming systems that involve computation, automation, and information. Computer scientists need to know how to design and analyze a problem and solve it with an algorithm. We study students' behaviors in CS education to find out patterns of those who need help. Several behaviors are examined: Time Management, Incremental development, Self-checking, Persistence, and Planning. Help-seeking, when done correctly, is known as a good strategy related to self-regulated learning. This behavior includes online searching, coming to office hours for help from instructional staff, and asking instructors and peers publicly on online forums. Some of these sources of help can be tracked more easily than others. We present efforts to collect and analyze data related to the help-seeking behavior of students in a second-semester programming course. The goal of this work is to establish mechanisms that will permit us to collect sufficient data from a variety of sources so that we can determine what help-seeking behavior patterns are associated with successful course outcomes. Our current data collection efforts are tied in part to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused courses to be taught online during our data collection period that normally would be taught face-to-face. Data includes logs of viewing or posting questions to the online forum system Piazza, office hour visit logs, Zoom logs, and grades from the Canvas LMS. We present initial analysis such as comparing course grades with the number of times students received help from instructional staff both in office hours and online forum Piazza. / Master of Science / Computer Science students need to understand the mechanism of programming systems that involve computation, automation, and information. Computer scientists need to know how to design and analyze a problem and solve it with an algorithm. We study students' behaviors in CS education to find out patterns of those who need help. Several behaviors are examined: Time Management, Incremental development, Self-checking, Persistence, and Planning. Help-seeking, when done correctly, is known as a good strategy related to self-regulated learning. This behavior includes online searching, coming to office hours for help from instructional staff, and asking instructors and peers publicly on online forums. Some of these sources of help can be tracked more easily than others. We present efforts to collect and analyze data related to the help-seeking behavior of students in a second-semester programming course. The goal of this work is to establish mechanisms that will permit us to collect sufficient data from a variety of sources so that we can determine what help-seeking behavior patterns are associated with successful course outcomes. Our current data collection efforts are tied in part to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused courses to be taught online during our data collection period that normally would be taught face-to-face. Data includes logs of viewing or posting questions to the online forum system Piazza, office hour visit logs, Zoom logs, and grades from the Canvas LMS. We present initial analysis such as comparing course grades with the number of times students received help from instructional staff both in office hours and online forum Piazza.

In this research, I utilize the theoretical perspective Knowledge In Pieces to identify the knowledge resources students utilize while in the process of completing various differential equations tasks. In addition I explore how this utilization changes over the course of a semester, and how resources related to the concepts of function and rate of change supported the students in completing the tasks. I do so using data collected from a series of task-based individual interviews with two students enrolled in separate differential equations courses. The results provide a fine-grained description of the knowledge students consider to be productive with regard to completing various differential equations tasks. Further the analysis resulted in the identification of five ways students interpret differential equations tasks and how these interpretations are related to the knowledge resources students utilize while completing the various tasks. Lastly, this research makes a contribution to mathematics education by illuminating the knowledge concerning function and rate of change students utilize and how this knowledge comes together to support students in drawing connections between differential equations and their solutions, structuring those solutions, and reasoning with relationships present in the differential equations. / Ph. D.

Though experiential learning is a popular topic in higher education, a great deal of research in the field neglects to make ties between program outcomes and educational theory, creating a gap in knowledge regarding how participant students truly experience educational programs. Consequently, this study proposes an updated perspective of experiential education that considers the experiential and social aspects of these learning environments. While it is important to determine programmatic impacts, it is equally important to assess how learning has occurred, so programs can be modified accordingly. The Equine Studies Program at the Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension Center began in 2010, with seven cohorts having completed the program since its inception. At this time, however, no study has been conducted to gain a thorough understanding of the program's purpose, nor assess if programmatic impacts align with its objectives. This study utilized qualitative interview methods to determine the program's objectives and impacts on participants. The findings provide insight on how experiential learning programs can be enhanced to better prepare students for the challenges of modern industry. Recommendations are made for continued research in this area to determine how the implementation of experiential learning programs may impact overall undergraduate curricula. Additional research should also be conducted to compare the impacts of varying types of experiential programs. / Master of Science in Life Sciences