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Eric.ed.gov – Project Smart-Science and Math Access: Resources & Technology.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This paper describes Project SMART (Science and Math Access: Resources & Technology), a multi-year professional development effort that includes components for all adults who regularly have contact with children with disabilities. The common goal of each of the components is the development of both efficacy and capacity to inspire children with disabilities to overcome challenges in the pursuit of excellence in math and science education. While the emphasis of the program has been on inservice teacher education, components have been developed for the following groups that support the efforts of children: general education teachers, special education teachers, parents of children with disabilities, and guidance counselors. The model program is intended to promote positive and permanent changes in the academic climate of classrooms and to provide teachers and… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Supporting Iron Sharpening Iron: Developing a Swagger in the Hearts of Urban Math and Science Students.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Due to the increasing achievement gap between schools of urban settings and their suburban counterparts, and in an environment where statewide testing that may begin to hinder the graduation of many urban students, there is a need to close the gap especially in the areas of Math and Science. Teachers in such environments face the daunting task of accelerating learning for urban students in two arenas: conceptual and affective. The conceptual tasks observed during this study included: building up the basic skills of students, developing literacy and proficiency around test taking, as well as completing the curriculum for Calculus. The primary affective tasks observed during this study included: confidence (swagger) development; positive interaction around the “Truth” of their academic status; and work ethic development. In order to… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – District Action Plan 2003-2008: Improving Academic Achievement in Reading, Math and Language Arts

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The results of the SAT 9 tests administered to Guam students in grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, and 11 have consistently indicated below average academic performance in the subjects of reading, math and language arts over the past decade of testing. To ensure that students attain the necessary skills and knowledge in reading, math, and language arts, the Student Focus Committee has constructed a district action plan designed to address problems by focusing on measurable objectives to raise student performance. These objectives, discussed in detail in the plan, are grouped into the following categories: (1) standards and assessment; (2) personnel quality and accountability; (3) federal, state, and local programs; (4) home-school connection; (5) Education Indicator System; and (6) system-wide needs/changes. Appended are the following: (1)… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – ENLIST-Micros Teacher Network for Rural Math & Science Teachers.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: ENLIST-Micros (ENcourage LIteracy in Science Teachers’ uses of Microcomputers) develops state networks of science and mathematics teachers providing inservice education and support for the implementation of computers and technology in the classroom. In Alabama, the project operated from August 1990 through June 1994. Most inservice workshops were held at Auburn University. Participants included 50 urban, 22 suburban, and 31 rural teachers from schools in Montgomery and the Auburn area. The first 2 years of the project focused on training the teacher participants to use microcomputers and to share their knowledge with other teachers. In the third and fourth year, veteran teachers provided individual training and inservice workshops to other teachers. Teacher reactions were overwhelmingly positive and frequently focused on the collegiality and mutual support experienced in the… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – A Curriculum Redesign in Response to Students’ Anxiety to Math Competencies at the Secondary Level.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This action research project was designed to increase students’ math competencies and reduce math anxiety in targeted high school classes in a Midwestern suburb. The study included 37 students and took place from September through December in 2002. Factors influencing students’ math achievement included self-perceptions of math competence, teachers’ perceptions of students’ abilities, and an overemphasis on remediation which left students unchallenged and behind their peers (Fiore, 1999). Curriculum redesign is one way of improving students’ confidence and competence in their math abilities (Allexsaht-Snider and Hart, 2001). Given this, a curriculum redesign was selected as an intervention for this study. To document student progress in mathematical achievement and improve self-perception, methods of assessment used included surveys, document analysis, and observations. Post-intervention data indicated an increase in students’… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – New Perspectives on Problem-Solving: Autonomous Math Learning Behavior and Math Achievement.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Autonomous Learning Behavior (ALB) as mediators between internal and external influences and performance on high level cognitive tasks was proposed as a possible explanation for gender-related differences in mathematics. This study developed a measure of ALB by drawing on teachers’ working knowledge and the literature on problem-solving, including self-regulatory and metacognitive strategies. The Math Assessment Project Questionnaire was used to assess students’ awareness of their behaviors in a mathematics class and a non-routine word problem solving was used to measure the ALB. Students’ confidence and achievement were also collected as data. No gender differences were found on the math achievement measures, the ALB questionnaire, or the confidence measure on two-tailed t-tests. However, the inclusion of the interaction term between gender and confidence showed a significant rise in… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Hispanics in Math and Science: Attracting Student Teachers and Retraining Experienced Teachers.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This digest reviews a variety of strategies that might be employed by school districts, teacher education institutions, and state educational agencies to attract, train, and retrain Hispanic teachers in math and science. The need for long-term solutions is discussed. Five action-oriented steps to attract Hispanic high school graduates into the teaching profession include identifying talented Hispanic high school students, developing their interest in teaching, locating and engaging “master” teachers, arranging significant student-teacher contact, and providing incentives for students to participate in special programs. Adaptations of recommendations by Franz, Aldridge, and Clark are also listed. Short-term solutions are listed, e.g., providing readily available opportunities for recertification, offering improved working conditions, offering teachers financial assistance during additional years of college preparation, providing summer jobs in industry, recruiting part-time instructors… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Getting State Certification in Your Embedded Math Programs.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This document presents materials that were developed for a presentation explaining how the Gordon Cooper Technology Center in Shawnee, Oklahoma, obtained state certification for the geometry and trigonometry program that is embedded in its residential and commercial construction program and enables its students to receive high school geometry or trigonometry credit and thereby meet the Oklahoma PASS (Priority Academic Student Skills) objectives for high school math credit. The document begins with a brief description of the presentation’s objectives and content. The remainder of the document consists of the following presentation handouts: (1) excerpts from Oklahoma legislation regarding high school graduation requirements affecting students attending technology centers; (2) the program approval letter sent to the technology center; (3) a description of the math program approval process; (4) information… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Implementing the Massachusetts Adult Basic Education Math Standards: Our Research Stories. The ABE Math Standards Project. Volume 2.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The product of a project conducted in Massachusetts to apply the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics’ (NCTM) “Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics” to adult basic education (ABE) learning environments, this volume is a collection of teacher-researchers’ essays on field-based application of the adapted standards. The following essays are included: “Can the Fear of Manipulatives Be Overcome?” (Debra Richard); “Making Connections in Math and Science” (Karen DeCoster); “‘It’s Not through the Book’” (Leonora E. Thomas); “Exploring the Metric System in a Workplace Education Class” (Judith Sulzbach); “Non-Traditional Problems in the Forefront” (Marilyn Moses); “Learning to Learn. How Long Does It Take?” (Leslie Arriola); “Manipulatives vs. Rote Memory” (Margaret Fallon); “When You Have a Problem, Use Your Head (…and Your Instinct)” (Thomson Macdonald); “‘They Never Asked… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – What Is Equity? A Look into a Reform Math Classroom. Weaving Gender Equity into Math Reform.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The Weaving Gender Equity into Math Reform project at TERC has created a two- hour workshop session on equity in the standards-based mathematics classroom that is appropriate for use as a professional development tool with teachers, staff developers, after-school program providers, and other educators who work with parents. “What is Equity?” can be used as a stand-alone workshop or as part of an extended in- service training program for teachers and administrators. This session is intended to address equity related issues that surface in standards-based reform mathematics classrooms. Issues of teacher and student learning are also addressed along with discussions around specific equity issues that participants face in their school and classroom environments. The beginning of the session asks participants to reflect on their own experiences in… Continue Reading