ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Earthquake Emergency Education in Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Author: Mohadjer, Solmaz
Date: 2010-03-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Pretests Posttests,Seismology,Curriculum Implementation,Grade 8,Grade 9,Emergency Programs,Science Activities,Middle School Students,Science Instruction,Scientific Concepts,Observation,Focus Groups,Plate Tectonics

We developed a middle school earthquake science and hazards curriculum to promote earthquake awareness to students in the Central Asian country of Tajikistan. These materials include pre- and post-assessment activities, six science activities describing physical processes related to earthquakes, five activities on earthquake hazards and mitigation strategies, and a codification art/literacy project. This curriculum was implemented with 43 middle school students in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in the winter of 2008. We examine the effectiveness of each curriculum component in communicating the causes, effects, and mitigation strategies associated with earthquakes to young people, and find significant improvements in seismic and earthquake hazards literacy as a result of the program.
Laboratory Earth: A Model of Online K-12 Teacher Coursework
Author: Gosselin, David C.
Date: 2010-09-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Elementary Secondary Education,Earth Science,Science Instruction,Graduate Study,Online Courses,Pretests Posttests,Surveys,Teacher Attitudes,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Self Efficacy,Psychological Patterns,Program Effectiveness,Teaching Skills,Student Centered Learning,Communities of Practice,Distance Education,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Learning Modules,Action Research,Mixed Methods Research

Laboratory Earth, a series of three NASA-Sponsored, on-line graduate courses for K-8 teachers, was designed to meet a variety of learning styles and appeal to teachers' motivation to learn the content and improve their teaching. This is especially important to teachers as they seek to demonstrate &quot;highly qualified&quot; status to meet No Child Left Behind standards. These graduate-level courses consist of four modules of two to four lessons each. Pre- and post-course surveys indicated significant increases in teachers? (n = 51) content knowledge, science teaching efficacy beliefs (STEBIA), sense of community within the course (LEO) and science teaching enjoyment (STES). Qualitative data indicated teachers valued the cohort system, content aligned to teaching needs, and the instructor's response to requested feedback. Results indicated that online courses can provide valuable professional development opportunities for K-12 science teachers to deepen their knowledge, sharpen their skills, and maintain their knowledge of science developments. Because teachers play an important role in the development of their student?s attitudes towards science, it is extremely important that science and education communities collaborate to create courses that use contemporary pedagogy to address the content-knowledge needs of teachers required by National Science Standards criteria.
A Comparison of the Performance of Online versus Traditional On-Campus Earth Science Students on Identical Exams
Author: Werhner, Matthew J.
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Earth Science,Science Instruction,College Science,Distance Education,Online Courses,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Community Colleges,Comparative Analysis,Conventional Instruction,Science Tests,Science Achievement,Statistical Analysis,Grades (Scholastic),On Campus Students

In this paper I compare the performance of online versus traditional on-campus students on identical exams in an earth science class. The number of college level distance learning classes offered online continues to increase as they offer greater scheduling flexibility to students, they appeal to students who like to work independently, and allow colleges to increase enrollment without building new classrooms. Hillsborough Community College (HCC) is a two year urban community college in Tampa, Florida. An online earth science class was first offered in Fall 2005. Most students enrolled in Earth Science are non-science majors fulfilling a science requirement for graduation and both online and oncampus classes average about 30 students. As this is a traditional earth science course it covers topics in geology, oceanography, meteorology, and astronomy. This material is divided into four units with an exam at the end of each unit. The exams are short answer, predominantly multiple choice with diagram identification and contain about eighty to ninety questions. All classes used the same study guide and textbook and all of the classes in this study were given exactly the same exams. This process was repeated over four semesters from Fall term 2005 to Spring term 2007. Statistical analysis comparing exam grades indicates that there was no significant difference in student performance on exams between the online and on-campus students.
Science in the Mountains: A Unique Research Experience to Enhance Diversity in the Geosciences
Author: Hallar, A. Gannet
Date: 2010-03-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Earth Science,Science Instruction,Student Recruitment,Minority Group Students,Student Interests,Science Interests,Career Choice,Experiential Learning,College Students,Program Evaluation,Program Effectiveness,Mentors,Role Models

Ethnic and racial minorities constitute an important part of the geosciences community because of their diverse perspectives and backgrounds. However, the geosciences have the poorest diversity record of all the science and engineering fields. Recruitment of minorities is important and numerous programs are focusing on engaging students in geosciences during their undergraduate schooling. The Geoscience Research at Storm Peak (GRASP) program provides a model for retaining students in the geosciences pipeline and encouraging students' interest in geoscience careers. GRASP offers college age students research experiences in urban and rural environments, introduces students to a wide range of geosciences career options, and connects students to mentors and role models. The main challenge associated with the GRASP program in its first year was recruitment. This paper uses the Geoscience Pipeline Model as a framework for evaluating the program's success. GRASP not only exposed the students to a variety of geosciences careers, but it also taught them skills used by geosciences professionals. Overall, GRASP participants demonstrated a positive change in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to the pipeline indicators.
Assessment of In-Service Training Activities for Junior High Mathematics Teachers
Author: Izci, Eyup
Date: 2017-12-23
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Secondary School Teachers,Junior High Schools,Inservice Teacher Education,Mathematics Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Case Studies,Qualitative Research,Semi Structured Interviews,Teaching Methods,Seminars,Teacher Workshops,Outcomes of Education,Foreign Countries,Constructivism (Learning),Expectation

The current education system aimed to train active deliberative individuals who learn to learn with the adoption of the constructivist educational approach. Based on this objective, there have been significant changes in the roles of teachers. To assist the development of teachers, the Ministry of Education organizes several in-service training activities every year. The present study aimed to assess an in-service training activity organized by the Ministry for mathematics teachers based on the teacher views. The study was a case study, which is a qualitative research model. The study group consists of 12 junior high school mathematics teachers who were selected by sampling method from approximately sixty junior high school mathematics teachers who participated in the activity. A semi-structured interview form was used to collect data in the study. The present study scrutinized the expectations, experiences during the process and recommendations of the teachers about the inservice training activity they participated in, and obtained qualitative data obtained were analyzed with the descriptive analysis method. Study findings demonstrated that participating teachers mostly participated in the activity to &quot;learn different teaching methods and techniques&quot;. Since the training activity was a &quot;special instructional methods and techniques-mathematics&quot; seminar, the aforementioned expectation was a priority for the teachers. Almost all participants stated that the most positive aspect of the training they attended was &quot;to exchange information with their colleagues.&quot; Furthermore, certain teachers participating in the seminar stated that they refreshed their knowledge in the process, while others mentioned that they learned new information.
The [Geo]Scientific Method; Hypothesis Testing and Geoscience Proposal Writing for Students
Author: Markley, Michelle J.
Date: 2010-09-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Hypothesis Testing,Proposal Writing,Undergraduate Students,Earth Science,Reading Materials,College Science,Science Instruction,Scientific Methodology

Most undergraduate-level geoscience texts offer a paltry introduction to the nuanced approach to hypothesis testing that geoscientists use when conducting research and writing proposals. Fortunately, there are a handful of excellent papers that are accessible to geoscience undergraduates. Two historical papers by the eminent American geologists G. K. Gilbert and T. C. Chamberlin (Gilbert, 1886; Chamberlin, 1897) were the first to fully articulate and explore the method of multiple working hypotheses. Both papers still make for inspirational reading. A long essay on the scientific method by Johnson (1933) presents both a recipe for rigorous scientific thinking and a traditional but detailed articulation of linear hypothesis testing using geologic examples. More recently, papers by Frodeman (1995) about the fundamentally non-linear nature of interpretation and reasoning in the geosciences and Cleland (2001) about a &quot;smoking gun&quot; approach to validating hypotheses are helpful articulations of the geoscientific method, i.e. a shared understanding of how geoscientists articulate, frame, and tackle research questions.
Linking Physical Geography Education and Research through the Development of an Environmental Sensing Network and Project-Based Learning
Author: Roberts, Dar
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Physical Geography,Science Education,Science Instruction,Instructional Innovation,Science Process Skills,Field Trips,Science Activities,Instructional Effectiveness,Outcomes of Education,College Students,Active Learning,Student Projects,Meteorology,Scores,Course Evaluation,Comparative Analysis

Geographic education is more effective when students actively participate by developing hypotheses, designing experiments, collecting and analyzing data, and discussing results. We describe an innovative pedagogical approach, in which students learn physical geography concepts by analyzing environmental data collected in contrasting environments in Santa Barbara County, CA. The major components of this approach include a local network of micrometeorology stations (the Innovative Datasets for Environmental Analysis by Students (IDEAS network)), student field trips, a web portal (www.geog.ucsb.edu/ideas) and analysis tools which support student education and research. Examples of student work, graded rubrics, course evaluation scores, and instructor observations demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach. The most serious limitation is the high cost of equipment given the low number of students initially involved, a weakness that can be addressed through expanded use of this facility by other physical geography classes and institutions, facilitated by the IDEAS website, and increased enrollment in existing classes.
Lessons on the Role of Fun/Playfulness from a Geology Undergraduate Summer Research Program
Author: Jarrett, Olga S.
Date: 2010-03-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Geology,Science Instruction,College Science,Undergraduate Study,Summer Programs,Student Research,Play,Earth Science,Questionnaires,Student Attitudes,Teaching Methods,Learner Engagement,Educational Environment,Undergraduate Students,Qualitative Research

This paper examines past and current experiences with fun and playfulness of participants in two summers of a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded summer research experiences for undergraduates (REU) geosciences program. Thirty students responded to questionnaires on the role of play in their previous learning and their playful, inspirational, or &quot;ah-ha&quot; feelings while doing their summer research. They reported a sense of playfulness during science classes, promoted by engagement with interesting phenomena, ability to work independently, and a relaxed atmosphere. Their descriptions of playfulness in the program were similar to those of scientists describing playfulness while doing research. They described the fun of the work itself, the opportunities for playful social interactions with peers, and excitement at finding results. Implications for science education involve the inclusion of playfulness and fun in the modeling of scientific inquiry and the structuring of science classes and labs to allow more students' input into their own learning, the provision of field experiences, and the allowance of some socialization.
Evaluation of Teacher Candidates Writing Skills
Author: Bagci Ayranci, Bilge
Date: 2017-12-23
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teachers,Preservice Teacher Education,Writing Skills,Writing Achievement,Writing Evaluation,Error Analysis (Language),Error Patterns,Language Skills,Content Analysis,Foreign Countries,Statistical Analysis

In this study, 200 volunteer students who were in Faculty of Education printed free essay compositions and the compositions were evaluated by descriptive statistics and content analysis. Content analysis is to interpret similar data within specific contexts and themes. The students were free to choose their own writing topic. The reason for this is the possibility that the person writing in freelance writing is feeling freer and thus able to collect more data. Thus, written expression errors will be examined in more detail. The data have been examined and themed. In this process, collected data were evaluated according to written expression evaluation scale. The results of this study indicated that 200 data points collected from education faculty students regarding written expression skills were found between acceptable &quot;DC&quot; in terms of arithmetic mean. Research is important in terms of revealing the mistakes that are often found in written expressions of teacher candidates. This research is also important for lecturers in terms of assessing the participant teacher candidates' attitudes towards writing. According to the findings of this research, it is expected that the mistakes of teacher candidates' in their written expressions are made clear, and that contributions of the recommendations and the studies related to the field are expected to be provided. It is expected that the comparison of the study with the previous studies reveal the changes and developments in the historical process related to the subject.
Climate Change in the Classroom: Patterns, Motivations, and Barriers to Instruction among Colorado Science Teachers
Author: Wise, Sarah B.
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Climate,Earth Science,Science Teachers,Secondary School Teachers,Public School Teachers,Science Instruction,Teacher Motivation,Barriers,Teacher Surveys,State Surveys,Online Surveys,Misconceptions,Controversial Issues (Course Content),Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Faculty Development,Best Practices,Scientific Literacy,Qualitative Research,Semi Structured Interviews

A large online survey of Colorado public school science teachers (n = 628) on the topic of climate change instruction was conducted in 2007. A majority of Earth science teachers were found to include climate and climate change in their courses. However, the majority of teachers of other science subjects only informally discuss climate change, if at all. Teachers are motivated to include this topic in the curriculum when they perceive it is represented in their standards and when they receive direct encouragement from members of their school and wider communities. At the time of this study, only a small minority of teachers had experienced pressure to avoid teaching climate change. Certain misconceptions about climate change are widespread among teachers, as is the belief that &quot;both sides&quot; of the public controversy over human causes of climate change should be presented to students. The patterns of instruction, knowledge gaps, and a lack of learning experiences for teachers documented here suggest that all science teachers would benefit from professional development focused on climate science, best practices in climate instruction, and climate communication.
Perceptions of the Nature of Science by Geoscience Students Experiencing Two Different Courses of Study
Author: Nadelson, Louis S.
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Scientific Principles,Earth Science,Undergraduate Students,Student Attitudes,Advanced Students,Pretests Posttests,Cohort Analysis,Concept Formation,Introductory Courses,Emotional Response,Statistical Analysis

Student knowledge of the Nature of Science (NOS) is critical to their understanding of science. NOS encapsulates the tenets of how science is regarded and the heuristics by which science is judged to be valid and appropriate. The importance of NOS to science education has lead to curricular and policy development that mandate the construct be taught throughout the K-12 science curriculum. If this curriculum is effective there is an expectation that students would enter post-secondary with foundational knowledge of NOS. Our research examined the perspectives of NOS among two different cohorts of undergraduate geoscience students, one of lower division students beginning their study of geoscience and a second of upper division students nearing the completion of their degree. We assessed their intellectual and emotional perceptions of NOS at the beginning of the semester. At the end of the semester we again assessed their perceptions of NOS and their conceptual understanding of geoscience. Our results indicate there was not a significant difference between the two cohorts and there was a significant drop in the emotional perceptions of NOS over the semester (p &lt; 0.05). Conceptual understanding of geoscience was found to be significantly correlated with emotional perceptions of NOS. The results, implications, and directions for future research are discussed.
One-Week Module on Stochastic Groundwater Modeling
Author: Mays, David C.
Date: 2010-03-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Natural Resources,Water,Probability,College Science,Earth Science,Vocabulary,Correlation,Spatial Ability,Models,Assignments,Hands on Science,Educational Technology,Computer Uses in Education,Homework,Computer Software,Student Surveys,Science Process Skills,Graduate Study

This article describes a one-week introduction to stochastic groundwater modeling, intended for the end of a first course on groundwater hydrology, or the beginning of a second course on stochastic hydrogeology or groundwater modeling. The motivation for this work is to strengthen groundwater education, which has been identified among the factors contributing to the lack of stochastic groundwater modeling in professional consulting practice. The educational objectives are for students to (1) define key terminology, (2) explain spatial correlation, (3) produce realizations of groundwater flow, and (4) critique deterministic groundwater models. This one-week module includes a reading assignment, a class presentation, a guided computer exercise, and a homework assignment. The module introduces students to a few basic terms and concepts, then gives them experience through hands-on computer exercises. This article includes a detailed lesson plan and homework assignment, and complete model inputs and solutions are provided. The guided computer exercise and the homework assignment are performed using the freely available software Processing Modflow for Windows (PMWIN). Submitted homework assignments demonstrate that students were able to transfer skills from the module to a new application, and through an assessment survey, students reported significant improvement in their ability to perform three of the four educational objectives.
Unpacking Instructional Strategies of Early Childhood Teachers: Insights from Teachers&apos; Perspectives
Author: Thompson, Mumuni
Date: 2017-12-23
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Strategies,Early Childhood Education,Preschool Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Case Studies,Qualitative Research,Child Development,Classroom Techniques,Kindergarten,Semi Structured Interviews,Observation,Foreign Countries,Teaching Methods

Even though previous research points to the significance of early childhood teachers' practices that take into consideration the nature of children and how they learn, there is limited research regarding how instructional strategies impact children's development in diverse ways. To close this gap in literature, a qualitative multi-case study into the perceptions and classroom practices of four kindergarten teachers in two Ghanaian schools, Tata and Kariba, was carried out over a six-month period. One research question guided the study, namely, which instructional strategies do teachers use in a kindergarten classroom? Data used were semi-structured individual interviews and pair-based interviews and fieldnotes of classroom observations. Both within and across case interpretative analysis, as was used. The findings of this study revealed these teachers believed that instructional strategies impacted children's development in different ways; they pointed to play-based instruction and integration as well as specific strategies such as picture-walk and think-pair-share that they believed promoted effective teaching and learnng in kindergarten classrooms which in turn, enhanced and promoted children's multiple intelligencies in terms of socio-emotional, physical, cognitive and language development.