The purpose of this study was to analyze the individual reasoning of
24 adults as they made decisions for two communities regarding municipal
wastewater treatment. The two western Oregon communities were both
responding to notices from governmental agencies of higher environmental
standards for the purification of wastewater before it could...
It has been held that heuristic training alone is not enough for developing one's mathematical thinking. One missing component is a mathematical point of view. Many educational researchers have proposed problem-based curricula to improve students' views of mathematical thinking. The present study reports findings regarding effects of a problem-based calculus...
The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe how novice students solved computer programming problems in a beginning college level computer science (CS) course with an introduction to object-oriented programming (OOP) and what knowledge they obtained about OOP and computer problem solving (CPS) as a result of their experiences....
This study explored scientists' epistemological views of science and compared
views based upon scientists' discipline area and primary investigative approach.
Participants were 24 scientists, averaging 25 years research experience, representing four discipline areas: life science (10), Earth and space science (5), physics (5), chemistry (5); and four investigative approaches: experimental...
The purpose of this research was to determine the role of formative experiences in the home and family pertaining to environment on children's overall environmental beliefs. Students attending environmentally related and non-environmentally related summer camps at a children's science museum served as test subjects in this study. A written instrument...
Scientific inquiry in K-12 classrooms tends to be procedural, lacking opportunities for students to gain understanding of how scientific knowledge is constructed through reflection, debate, and argument. Limited opportunity to develop scientific argumentation skills prevents students from practicing the scientific thinking needed to understand the nature of scientific knowledge and...
The purpose of this study was to describe the development of mathematics
preservice teachers’ technology pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) in a
subject specific, technology integrated teacher preparation program. The study also
investigated the roles of several influential components of the program and the
technology thread throughout the program in supporting...
This study examined the validity of the WA PPA process which was developed to assess teacher candidates for licensing purposes. Three validities were investigated using Messick’s view. Content validity was addressed using the raters’ judgment to
establish alignment between the WAC standards and the INTASC. Evidential validity refers to the...
Research suggests that long-term participation in professional development is critical in helping teachers meet the increasing demands of reform efforts and changing practice (Gallucci, 2003; Darling-Hammond, 1995; Little, 1993). Understanding the influence that participation in a community of teachers as a community of practice may have on teachers’ professional growth...
Reform in science education has often emphasized task-based learning as an instructional method to improve student understanding and retention of concepts, and to promote the development of reasoning and problem-solving. Yet studies assessing student knowledge at the beginning and end of a task-based class show mixed results. Students in task-based...