Scholarworks

ScholarWorks is an open access repository for the capture of the intellectual work of Montana State University (MSU) in support of its teaching, research and service missions. MSU ScholarWorks is a central point of discovery for accessing, collecting, sharing, preserving, and distributing knowledge to the Montana State University community and the world.

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The effect of Next Generation Science Standards practices on students
(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2024) Lies, Timothy John; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John Graves
The purpose of the research project was to determine the impact of using Next Generation Science Standard practices on students. This consisted of the treatment unit containing a phenomenon at the beginning, and students making and then modifying a model of that phenomenon as their understanding changed throughout the unit. This was compared to a non-treatment unit which consisted of the curriculum as has been implemented in the past. Students were given a pre-test before each unit, as well as surveys and interviews on student experiences after the completion of each unit. The results were that students performed better on the non-treatment unit summative assessment than they did on the treatment unit. In addition, while the treatment unit did have increases in categories of student experiences, they were not statistically significant. The non-treatment unit did have a statistically significant increase in the personalization of learning for the student experience. The content of the two units were dissimilar, which could help explain the difference. The treatment was introduced part way through the school year, and so was a new and different experience. Finally, only a portion of the practices were used, instead of drawing from the full wealth of tools. In conclusion, I would say that this research supports what I and most of my colleagues already believe to be true. The idea that the Next Generation Science Standards are valuable for students, but there needs to be a place for some of the more traditional techniques as well. A blending of the old with the new is what I believe will serve learners the best.
Literature circles and primary sources: exploring science literacy in dual credit chemistry
(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2024) Huggins, Cassidy Ferrell; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John Graves
Many of today's high school students struggle with reading high school and college level texts, particularly in content areas. Two literacy strategies were implemented in high school dual-credit chemistry to target science literacy skills. Students participated in four weeks of literature circles, in which they analyzed a different science primary source article each week, then met in groups to discuss each article. Each student focused on a different literacy skill each week: vocabulary, summarizing, data analysis, and connecting readings to real life and class content. A science literacy assessment, student surveys, and interviews were conducted pre- and post- treatment to determine the effectiveness of the strategies. This was a mixed-methods study in which data was analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively to gain a holistic view of the effects of the study. Student scores on the science literacy assessment increased post-treatment, showing that literacy skills increased. Analysis of student survey and interview data also suggests that students felt more confident in their reading and analysis skills because of the strategies. Students especially loved the group aspect of the literature circles, and benefitted from seeing the other roles modeled each week and hearing their peers' perspectives on the readings.
The impact of outdoor experiential education on fifth-grade students
(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2024) Heinrich, Stephanie Cay; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John Graves
Outdoor education is not a new concept to education and has historically been shown to increase student connectivity to nature. Experiences through outdoor experiential education have also been used as a tool to build student social, emotional, and physical skills. Being outside the four walls of the traditional classroom presents a unique opportunity to challenge students in a new environment and develop skills outside their normal routine. This study aimed to evaluate the current impact of outdoor experiential education on fifth-grade students at La Jolla Country Day School. The goal was to investigate what skills were developed through the programming, in order to make changes beneficial to student development. To determine how students perceived their baseline attitude towards science and evaluate their perceived confidence to complete certain skills, students completed two Likert surveys prior to the treatment, the outdoor experiential education program. After completion of our outdoor experience, students were asked to re-evaluate their perceived attitude towards science, and perceived confidence to complete the same skills on identical Likert surveys. Students engaged in journal entries about the trip, and one student from each trail group was randomly selected to be interviewed about their experience. Faculty trail group leaders were also asked to fill out a Likert-style post-survey and provide feedback on the experience. Analyses of the results indicate that outdoor education has a positive impact on a student's perceived attitude towards science and their perceived confidence to take risks, be flexible, problem solve, lead their peers, collaborate, and have a growth mindset. These results conclude that outdoor experiential education is a beneficial addition to education as it contributes to a student's attitude towards science and their development of life skills.
The impacts of strength-journaling on the middle school science environment
(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2024) Loetz, Nathan; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John Graves
The VIA Institute on Character (VIA) is a non-profit organization that focuses on the scientific study of character strengths and virtues. It provides a framework for identifying and developing individual character strengths through interventions, one of which is strength- journaling. Strength-journaling is a reflective practice designed to enhance personal growth and deepen relationships. In this capstone, a strength intervention was administered in a middle school science classroom to improve the social-emotional quotient of the teacher, increase the salience of learning, and deepen relationships with students. The teacher wrote a journal for each student which highlighted one strength they demonstrated. The journal described the strength exhibited, expressed appreciation for it, and encouraged its development. A Likert-styled survey and an open-ended survey were conducted both before and after the students received the intervention. A t-test analysis of the resulting data did not reveal any significant change, with all data points falling below the critical value of 1.716. Positive results emerged from a thematic analysis of the open-ended survey and additional personal interviews which were conducted after the treatment period. The thematic analysis revealed that students value emotional engagement and social interactions as key factors influencing the retention, recall, and application of learning. Students also commented that teacher-student relational connections significantly contributed to their learning experience, and they expressed appreciation for attempts to deepen those relationships. It was concluded that the positive results were significant enough to continue experimenting with strengths not only with students, but also with staff members in the school. In the future, more strength journals will be written about students, and a special focus will be placed on discussing the VIA strengths with students who are new to the school. Communicating about strengths will become a part of the onboarding process for new teachers, and the development and integration of individual strengths will become a target for all staff members.
Students' conceptions and attitudes about climate change
(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2024) Immonen, Audrey Davis; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John Graves
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a climate change unit in an environmental science classroom at an alternative charter school. Before and after the unit, students were surveyed on their attitudes, tested on their content knowledge, and asked to complete two concept maps about climate change, climate change mitigation, and climate change adaptation. A random sample of five students were interviewed after the unit. Students showed increased content knowledge about climate systems, the effects of climate change, mitigation strategies, and adaptation strategies. Surprise and curiosity increased significantly. Some attitudes, like having strong feelings, anger, and shame may have increased. Other attitudes, including anxiety, hope, and happiness showed no statistical change. Future research may tease out the factors, such as coping mechanisms, that influence high variability in attitudes about climate change.