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Eric.ed.gov – From the Classroom to Washington: Einsteins on Education Reform

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars was delighted to host a group of current and former Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellows as they celebrated the 20th anniversary of the fellowship program. Outstanding math and science teachers in America’s K-12 schools, the Einstein Fellows spend a year (or sometimes two) working on Capitol Hill or in the science related offices of several federal agencies. The 1990 cohort of Einstein Fellows was part of a growing national concern about the performance of Americas K-12 schools and the lagging performance of American students in mathematics and science. Now, 20 years later they continue to be a part of a growing federal role in seeking excellence and equal opportunity in the nation’s schools. The road to effective education reform has… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Student Collaboration and School Educational Technology: Technology Integration Practices in the Classroom

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: With the onset of Web 2.0 and 3.0–the social and semantic webs–a next wave for integration of educational technology into the classroom is occurring. The aim of this paper is to show how some teachers are increasingly bringing collaboration and shared meaning-making through technology environments into learning environments (Evergreen Education Group, 2014). Purpose is to show a case study of how teachers include student-to-student online collaboration in their Technology Integration Practices (TIP), and how some research projects are examining useful methodologies for incorporating evaluation, assessment and reflection of the approaches (Wilson et al., 2012; Wilson, Scalise, & Gochyyev, 2014). Results from the use of TIP collaborative math/science notebooks in the Assessment and Teaching of 21st Century Skills (ATC21S) project are presented. Recommendations are to help teachers answer… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Unplugged Cybersecurity: An Approach for Bringing Computer Science into the Classroom

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The United States Naval Academy (USNA) STEM Center for Education and Outreach addresses an urgent Navy and national need for more young people to pursue careers in STEM fields through world-wide outreach to 17,000 students and 900 teachers per year. To achieve this mission, the STEM Center has developed a hands-on and inquiry-based methodology to be used with K-12 educators at professional development workshops and with students through camps, festivals and fairs, and STEM days. According to recent data, math and computer science (CS) are the fastest growing fields among STEM careers (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). The Computer Science for All initiative (U.S. Office of the Press Secretary, 2016) urges communities to bring more computer science education into the classroom to meet the rapidly rising… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Generalizing Expert Misconception Diagnoses through Common Wrong Answer Embedding

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Misconceptions have been an important area of study in STEM education towards improving our understanding of learners’ construction of knowledge. The advent of largescale tutoring systems has given rise to an abundance of data in the form of learner question-answer logs in which signatures of misconceptions can be mined. In this work, we explore the extent to which collected expert misconception diagnoses can be generalized to held-out questions to add misconception semantics. We attempt this generalization by way of a question-answer neural embedding trained on chronological sequences of learner answers. As part of our study, we collect natural language misconception diagnoses from math educators for a sampling of student answers to questions within four topics on Khan Academy. Drawing inspiration from machine translation, we use a multinomial… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Development of Computational Thinking Scale: Validity and Reliability Study

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Computational thinking is a way of thinking that covers 21st century skills and includes new generation concepts such as robotics, coding, informatics and information construction. Computational thinking has reached an important point especially in the field of science in line with the rapid developments in technology. Robotics applications, software-based activities, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) education and problem-based studies are some of the areas where this thinking is used. In this study, which is based on this point, it is aimed to develop a scale for computational thinking. Exploratory sequential design, one of the mixed research methods, was used in the study. First of all, a detailed literature review was conducted and needs analysis was carried out. This study consists of two stages. In the first stage,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – An Investigation the Effect of STEM Practices on Fifth Grade Students’ Academic Achievement and Motivations at the Unit “Exploring and Knowing the World of Living Creatures”

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study aims to investigate the effects of Science Technology Education Math (STEM) practices on academic achievement and motivations of students in the 5th grade of middle school in “Exploring and Knowing the World of Living Creatures” section in Science lecture. The study was designed in a semi-experimental pattern with pre-test post-test control group. A middle school in the center of Antakya was selected by appropriate sampling method. The sample of the study was formed by the 5th grade students who were studied in 2 sections where the same teacher taught. A group of students in one section formed the control group of students while the other branch formed experimental group. The unit ‘Exploring and Knowing the World of Living Creatures’ was explained through the lesson plans… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Making Friends and Buying Robots: How to Leverage Collaborations and Collections to Support STEM Learning

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In a climate of increased interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), school libraries have unique opportunities to grow collections and cultivate partnerships in the sciences. At the federal level and in many states, STEM initiatives encourage hands-on exposure to technologies and open the door for student-led discovery of tools related to robotics, coding, programming, and electronics. Influenced by local STEM initiatives, the Learning Resource Center (LRC) at the University of Wyoming Lab School decided to create a circulating collection of STEM kits. (The UW Lab School is a tuition free charter school with a diverse population selected by lottery.) This school library also partnered with Lab School teachers to explore these STEM collections and to develop programming and a curriculum to teach digital literacies and… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Toward Achievement in the “Knowledge Economy” of the 21st Century: Preparing Students through T-STEM Academies

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Schools are constantly engaged in implementing reform strategies to prepare students for postsecondary education leading to their career choices. Challenges here involve education initiatives addressing programs not strategically planned, educators not prepared for transition, and no follow-up support beyond initial implementation stages. This study examined school reform initiatives by the Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math academies toward better-quality instruction, to prepare students for post-secondary education, and in-turn, for the knowledge economy of the 21st century. The purpose of the study was to gauge the effectiveness of these academies in math, science, and engineering, and if these academies are successful educational-reform systems. Inductive data analysis was conducted from general program data and teacher interviews from one rural and one urban high school. Data were obtained through observations,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – STEM Education and Leadership: A Mathematics and Science Partnership Approach

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The issue of attracting more young people to choose careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) has become critical for the United States. Recent studies by businesses, associations, and education have all agreed that the United States’ performance in the STEM disciplines have placed the nation in grave risk of relinquishing its competitive edge in the marketplace. A Congressional Research Service (2006) report stated that, a “large majority of secondary students fail to reach proficiency in math and science, and many are taught by teachers lacking adequate subject matter knowledge.” Students lacking in STEM skills will not have the ability or skills to enter in the professions of science and engineering or areas requiring mathematics, science, and technology literacy. To counteract these circumstances, multiple STEM-based initiatives… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – “Educate to Innovate”: How the Obama Plan for STEM Education Falls Short. Backgrounder. No. 2504

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: President Obama’s Educate to Innovate initiative has provided billions in additional federal funding for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs across the country. The Administration’s recognition of the importance of STEM education– for global competitiveness as well as for national security–is good and important. But the past 50 years suggest that federal initiatives are unlikely to solve the fundamental problem of American underperformance in STEM education. Heritage Foundation education and national security analysts explain that, though Educate to Innovate is intended to raise the U.S. “from the middle to the top of the pack in science and math,” the federal program’s one-size-fits-all approach fails to remedy the underlying problems of academic performance and does not plug the leaky pipeline in the American education system. (Contains… Continue Reading