Czech libraries have undergone significant changes since the fall of communism in 1989. All facets of Czech librarianship
have been affected and continue to evolve as the country adopts international practices and standards. OSU catalog
librarian Richard Sapon-White's presentation covers the state
of Czech libraries, drawing on his six months...
Recent science education reforms have placed a large emphasis on inquiry-based teaching strategies as an effective way of improving conceptual understanding of science principles, comprehension of the nature of scientific inquiry, and development of the abilities for inquiry (NRC, 1996). To better understand the relationship between inquiry-based instruction and student...
Problem-based learning (PBL) is one type of inquiry-based learning. Many community college instructors use inquiry-based learning as an instructional strategy. There is much literature on the use of problem-based learning in undergraduate, graduate and medical school education, with a multitude of examples of specific techniques and problems to be addressed,...
Geographic information systems (GISs) offer a useful tool for educators to teach students about local and global communities in various subjects. GISs are increasingly being used in K-12 education, but that growth is hindered due to many teachers’ limited access to time or resources necessary to adequately learn a GIS...
The work described herein entailed three separate but related
education/outreach activities aimed at distinct audiences. This portfolio required
acquisition of a range of skills in order to effectively convey information in a fashion accessible to each target audience. The first project consists of contributions to a
sample chapter of a...
In the past most research of family learning in informal science learning environments has included limited diversity among participants considering ethnic, cultural, and social economic status. The diversity seen in informal learning environments such as museums does not typically reflect that of the general population. Therefore, in order to foster...
The Cooperative Institute for Oceanographic Satellite Studies
(CIOSS) partners with The Science and Math Investigative Learning
Experiences (SMILE) Program to bring ocean sciences and satellite
oceanography to high school students and teachers around the
state of Oregon. This study was conducted as a formative program
assessment during the third year...
From September, 1984 through March, 1985, I worked as a Visiting
Intern for the Division of Special Programs, College of Arts and Sciences,
Northeastern University (NU). My position entailed the administration and
promotion of university marine related projects. The Division of Special
Programs is responsible for the development, implementation and...
This dissertation consists of two articles to be submitted for publication. The first,
a literature review, makes visible common influences on science teaching self-efficacy
beliefs and also points to potentially invisible validation concerns regarding the
instrument used. The second investigates the participants' invisible science teaching self-efficacy
beliefs and, through the...
With 150 million people visiting accredited zoos and aquariums annually, these institutions have the unique opportunity to present conservation-oriented messages to a large and receptive audience. The purpose of this study was to explore the role of interpretation and/or the viewing of live animals in the communication of these messages....
This thesis is a qualitative study of the social justice practice of experienced student affairs professionals employed in higher education. If we are to be truly supportive of all of our students, as is paramount in the values of student affairs professionals (Komives et al., 2003), systemic change is needed...
The purpose of this study was to understand how instruction in an introductory nonmajor astronomy course at Oregon State University affects how non-science majors view science and the scientific process. The study used research-based methods to design a reform-based lecture/lab course and implement it for students. Two top-level questions were...
This dissertation has two objectives. The first objective is to determine where best to situate the study of mentoring (i.e. the 'making of scientists') on the landscape of the history of science and science studies. This task is accomplished by establishing mentoring studies as a link between the robust body...
This study investigated how a minority population of Latino/a immigrant children attending a middle school in the Pacific Northwest made sense of engaging with school and school mathematics. A cross disciplinary theoretical framework was used to examine how individual student motivation is impacted by the social context in which the...
This book is offered to youth leaders and teachers as a tool to help young learners discover some of the wonders that the sea has to offer. It is also a tool for youth development.
A large body of research has examined how children enter the science classroom
with previously formed ideas about the content they will learn. These ideas influence how
the child interprets instruction. This study reversed the investigative focus by exploring
how children's ideas in science influence teaching. Specifically, the study examined...
Ocean observing groups are currently making efforts to work with well-defined end-user groups, like boaters and fishermen, to provide meaningful and effective real-time data (RTD) products and visualizations. However, providing meaningful data products for undefined groups such as the general public is not straightforward. In Oregon, several industry, science, and...
This dissertation details an experiment designed to identify gender differences in learning using three experimental treatments: animation, static graphics, and verbal instruction alone. Three learning presentations were used in testing of 332 university students. Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA, binomial tests for differences of proportion, and descriptive statistics. Results...
Field trips are well recognized by researchers as an educational approach with the potential to complement and enhance classroom science teaching by exposing students to unique activities, resources, and content in informal settings. The following investigation addresses teachers' field trip practices in three related manuscripts:
(1) A study examining the...
John Archibald Wheeler (09 July 1911- ) is a familiar name to physicists and historians of physics alike. Among his many contributions to the corpus of knowledge, in 1939 John Wheeler and Niels Bohr co-authored the first paper on the generalized mechanism of nuclear fission. Beyond that seminal work, Wheeler...
The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine scientific arguments constructed by secondary science teachers during instruction. The analysis focused on how arguments constructed by teachers differed based on the mode of inquiry underlying the topic. Specifically, how did the structure and content of arguments differ between experimentally and...
The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the development of social norms in a fifth-grade reform-based mathematics classroom through a close examination of one teacher's actions during the first three weeks of school. This study offers insights into the following research questions: 1) How does an elementary...
Current reforms in science education advocate instruction which capitalizes on broad,
integrative understandings of a few underlying concepts. Such recommendations imply
that science teachers already hold integrated conceptualizations and will use such
understandings to guide practice. However, little research exists which delineates the
global content understandings of biology teachers (herein...
This is an evaluation report for the installation of the Magic Planet exhibit at the Hatfield Marine Science Center. The report is on file with NOAA and is Oregon Sea Grant Publication ORESU-S 10-04.
The major purpose of the study was to determine whether
science process achievement tests could be developed for administration
to groups of primary grade students. Six Basic Science Process
Tests (BSPT) were constructed as samples of the format proposed.
Each BSPT was designed to assess one of the basic science...
Second revised edition. Revised January 1986. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Outreach is a small, but significant component to modern research.
Developing an exhibit for public display can be an effective way to communicate science to broad audiences, although it may be a less familiar method to scientists than writing papers or giving presentations. I outline the process of developing an...
Although many science educators and researchers believe that emotion is an important part of the learning process, few researchers have dealt with the topic in a systematic fashion. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of emotion in the learning process, particularly in the learning of science...
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...
Hobby activities can be viewed through the lens of informal, free-choice learning. A wide range of hobbies combine fun and learning-intensive practices, and can contribute to scientific literacy. Hobby learning involves clear goal orientation, persistence and effort, and often results in more richly and strongly connected knowledge; traits highly valued...
Instructional time for social studies in elementary classrooms has decreased
since the passage of Goals 2000 and No Child Left Behind, with content contracted to align with reading goals. Consequently, opportunities for preservice teachers to observe and teach social studies lessons have diminished. This qualitative multiple case study examines the...
A theoretical argument is presented to suggest that engineering curriculum be
designed to develop social capital. Additionally, the value of social capital in the
retention of students in the College of Engineering, and the development, role, and value
of social capital in an electrical engineering laboratory is evaluated. Data collected...
Given the high probability of national and federal research laboratories continuing to sponsor science education partnerships between their staff and classroom science teachers and the dearth of research in this area, this study set out to delineate best practices associated with such partnerships for the purpose of increasing the effectiveness...
This thesis seeks to better understand the most pressing cultural barriers to progress in the sustainability movement, and to offer suggestions for overcoming barriers. This research includes a two-year long case study of the sustainability movement at OSU, where the researcher coordinated projects encouraging behavior change. Despite increasing severity and...
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....
Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) is the primary organization responsible for monitoring, evaluating and certifying the quality of engineering, engineering technology, computing and applied sciences education in the United States. In 2000, ABET changed the way computer science (and engineering) programs are accredited from a ‘checklist’ approach...
In spite of wide spread adoption of the internet technology in teaching and learning, little research exists on the use and the effect of web incorporation in teaching and learning. Immediate clarification of how, when, and for whom the web integration in education is beneficial is needed. This qualitative study...
A combination of theoretical perspectives is used to create a rich description of student reasoning when facing a highly-geometric electricity and magnetism problem in an upper-division active-engagement physics classroom at Oregon State University. Geometric reasoning as students encounter problem situations ranging from familiar to novel is described using van Zee...
This multiple case study explores issues of equity in science education through an examination of how teachers' reasoning patterns compare with students' reasoning patterns during inquiry-based lessons. It also examines the ways in which teachers utilize students' cultural and linguistic resources, or funds of knowledge, during inquiry-based lessons and the...
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the current status of the
implementation of Benin's new elementary science curriculum. The study
used the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM), a model designed to
evaluate the implementation of educational innovations. Specifically the
study attempted to ascertain teachers' concerns about the science curriculum,...
The purpose of this study was to identify the management demands that may
be unique to science classrooms. The sample consisted of three biology teachers and
three language arts teachers from two high schools located within the same school
district. To establish a basic framework, two quantitative questions were addressed:...
The study was designed to assess the efficacy of Lou and Charlson's
(1991) social cognition training program for deaf adults. Sixteen deaf
adult subjects who were vocational rehabilitation clients, and who had
been identified as experiencing difficulties in social functioning, were
assigned to receive a eight-week training program designed to...
Although a concern for gender equity provided the framework for this research,
the results of this study highlighted the fact that the question of equity should be
broadened to include concern for the tier of talented women and men who currently
choose not to persist in an undergraduate computer science...
Museum settings including aquariums, zoos and science centers rely heavily on their volunteer docent populations to interact with and communicate science and conservation concepts to the visiting public. The interactions docents have with museum visitors are important to meeting the educational expectations of museums and improving public science literacy as...
The purpose of this study was (a) to develop a valid and reliable attitude
toward science instrument for use with Arabic male students at the secondary
school level, (b) to determine the differences in their attitudes toward science and
in their achievement, and (c) to determine the relationship between measures...
The purposes of this study were to: 1) determine in what ways incorporating active engagement into a traditional lecture chemistry course contributed to students' science identity and their motivation to learn the science, and 2) determine how the development of a science identity could be measured through the use of...
The purposes of this study were to develop a valid and
reliable attitudes toward science instrument in the Thai
language and determine the differences in attitudes toward
science and achievement in physical and biological science
of Thai boys and girls in lower secondary education.
The population consisted of 709 students,...
The purposes of this study were as follows: (1) to
determine if the use of selected supplementary instructional
materials, in the form of either computer assisted
instruction or additional readings and worksheet
presentations, could influence test scores relating to
science achievement for fifth grade students, and (2) to
determine whether...
The purpose was to gain information about the determinants of student behavior with respect to laboratory (lab) and non-laboratory (non-lab) science learning activities. Fishbein and Ajzen's (1975) theory of reasoned action was used to investigate students' salient beliefs, correlations between determinants of intention, and the relative weights of determinants of...
As with other areas of the curriculum home economics
tends to respond to the objectives of powerful interest
groups rather than to the work of recognized scholars and
the ideals of democracy.
The philosophical orientation of this study is derived
from the work of Jurgen Habermas, a dominant figure in...
The major purpose of this study was to test the relationship between
students' cerebral lateralization for the Arabic language and
their achievement in science. A secondary purpose was to investigate
handedness as a factor in that relationship. The experiment was conducted
in the City of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, using dichotic...
The purpose of the study was to analyze and compare the teaching
styles of a trial group of junior secondary science teachers
trained to use and using new materials, and a control group of teachers
using traditional materials. The new materials consisted of portable
science kits, demonstration apparatus, teacher's guides,...
In this qualitative study, ethnographic methods were used to identify parent funds of knowledge related to ocean literacy in a rural, coastal context. Participants included 16 parents of students in the teacher-researcher's third-grade classroom. Interactions between parent-child, parent-parent, and parent and the teacher-researcher were studied in order to determine factors...
Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this investigation was to measure some of the effects of an elementary science program, the Science Curriculum Improvement Study (SCIS) on science achievement of certain sixth grade students. Important to the problem was how the SCIS students compared with students exposed to a...
Research was undertaken to describe the teaching and learning
of science in a non-Western village with particular attention paid to
cultural parameters. Cognitive elements in a Philippine (Tagalog)
village and school were analyzed.
The local language was studied for its capacity of transmitting
scientific information. Verbal interaction in the science...
The purpose of this study was to investigate one of the
effects of the SCIS program in the Corvallis Public Schools.
The investigation was based on a comparison of students
ability to construct a logical theoretical model from a
discrepant event.
The total sample consisting of 289 students, was
obtained...
The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an in-service project for teachers of the social studies (K-12). The project was sponsored by the Region II Committee of the Oregon Council for Curriculum and Instruction (O.C.C.I.) during the period from November 1, 1966 to April 1, 1969....
The purpose of the study was to prepare and statistically
evaluate a series of 11 history of science case studies designed to
teach the following abilities involved in scientific thinking:
1. Recognizing problems, hypotheses, experimental conditions,
and conclusions.
2. Understanding the relationship of evidence to hypotheses.
3. Understanding experimental conditions...
The purpose of this study was to statistically evaluate the
influence of student placement at reading level by means of an informal
reading inventory in one kind of elementary science materials. The
materials were written at five levels of reading difficulty to better
meet the reading ability spread found in...
Acquisition of divergent-productive thinking skills by using
elementary science materials constitutes the basic idea of this experiment.
The data collected was used to determine statistically if
the materials had a significant role in inducing such skills.
The Ss were fifth-grade students obtained from two public elementary
schools in Oregon. Those...
The purpose of this study was to explore the issues involved with implementing and using pedagogies of engagement in community college STEM courses. The rationale for this study was based on current and emerging STEM education policy directives calling for an updated approach to teaching undergraduates, focused on student engagement,...
This study was designed to reveal the outcomes of participation
in science project activities such as Science Fair projects among
ninth grade science students in Multnomah County, Oregon, during
the second half of the 1963-1964 school year.
A stratified sample of five public schools was selected to participate in this...
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine statistically the
effects of an automated science curriculum on the science learnings
of eighth grade students. This curriculum involved the use of
Keysort cards as a flexible handbook for teachers and included in
the directions for use a teaching method which...
This investigation was designed to determine the extent to
which students who are completing planned curricula in science education
are proficient in aspects of critical thinking, and possess
understandings of science consistent with those of the practicing
scientist. The effects of science curricula upon the development of
these abilities and...
The purpose of this study was to statistically evaluate one kind
of new elementary science curriculum materials. The materials;
(1) are written at five reading levels to partially meet the reading
ability spread found in the intermediate grades, (2) provide ways to
stimulate class discussion, and (3) provide three levels...
There has been a rapid increase in technological advances in the biological sciences that has contributed to an increase in societal issues that require attention from both scientists and citizens. Consequently, there is a need for the development of biologically literate citizens who have the ability to use their knowledge...
A study concerning the correlation of health and science instruction in the junior high school was undertaken for the following reasons:
1) Boys and girls in junior high schools need instruction in science;
2) The need for interesting students in health is well recognized; and
3) In many schools there...
There is growing evidence that children develop science-related interests in early childhood, before they enter school, and that these interests may have long-term implications for science participation and achievement. Although researchers have made headway in describing interest development in the preschool years, little is currently known about the proximal processes...
The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover the experiences nurse educators (NEs) have had with oppression and to uncover how their experiences may have impacted their teaching. This study was significant as nurse retention is negatively affected by oppressed group behaviors (Duchscher & Myrick, 2008; Tinsley & France,...
In the past two decades, occurrences of summertime upwelling-driven low dissolved oxygen (DO) events, or hypoxia, have increased along the northeast Pacific coast. If hypoxic events are severe enough to cause marine species mortality, the areas affected are often called "dead zones." In 2002 and again in 2006, the events...
This thesis explores the evolving purposes for the teaching of first-year English composition in Belize. Starting from an analysis of the underlying cultural assumptions of U.S. composition pedagogies, this thesis argues that American composition pedagogies need to be rethought when applied in a Belizean context to fulfill the country's unique...
Citizen science work has built the foundation of much of our knowledge on regional-scale large cetacean spatial patterns through historical whaling data. Historical whaling data on sperm whales was used as an example to show the type of ecological questions large-scale, long-term citizen science datasets can address. Results from the...
In previous work, the Idea Garden was created to help those relatively new to programming overcome their barriers in CoScripter. The goal of this thesis was to generalize the Idea Garden's success to other users and environments. We present a set of principles on how to help EUPs like this...
The underlying aim of my dissertation was to contribute knowledge that may better support and foster STEM education improvement initiatives at public research universities. The two research studies included in my dissertation advance knowledge per perspectives of key stakeholders targeted by initiatives attempting to foster change, students and faculty. In...
Assessing student conceptual understanding is a valuable method for gauging specific student learning outcomes but can be difficult and time consuming to measure. This research investigates the potential of automating some intermediary steps of a qualitative analysis of student conceptual understanding with tools from the field of Natural Language Processing...
Research exploring methods to improve student learning of leadership, mathematics, and science in the United States is critically important. In this study, I sought to delve into the potential for student learning of leadership, mathematics, and science within the context of school-based agricultural education. Recognizing the teacher as a gatekeeper...
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are a recent set of standards that leverage decades of research to present an innovative and coherent image for K 12 science education in the United States. Major themes in the NGSS include the intertwining of learning and doing science, addressing connections across scientific...
The National Research Council has aggregated research evidence on the pedagogy of science teaching and learning (NRC, 2012), culminating in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). These standards support emphasis on eight scientific practices as an important component for teaching science as inquiry to K-12 students. This latest framework for...
Recent state and national standards have increased the interest in engineering at the K-12 level. Science standards, in particular, have begun to make the case for including engineering throughout the K-12 scope of study. Despite the increased attention to engineering, the characteristics and uniqueness of the field of engineering are...
Student engagement in a course plays a vital role in a student’s ability to process and construct knowledge. Student engagement research has investigated how students engage in and out of the classroom on a macro scale, through observation and survey data collection of large student populations, which lack focus on...
There is a significant amount of research analyzing the effect of race, gender, and other common demographical data on student interest and performance in computer science. However, there is relatively little research concerning less common demographic populations, such as introverts, artistic students, and visual learners. This study investigates if these...
This paper explores the affordances and constraints of STEM faculty members' instructional data-use practices and how they engage students (or not) in reflection around their own learning data. We found faculty used a wide variety of instructional data-use practices. We also found several constraints that influenced their instructional data-use practices,...
Multiple factors are known to influence student success in higher education. Barriers to postsecondary success for underrepresented STEM students are numerous and well documented. We detail an exploratory study of STEM faculty notions of successful students and the instructional practices they employ to cultivate student success. We use a conceptual...