Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/733
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Item Effect of professional development on teachers' understanding of interdisciplinary earth science concepts(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2023) Huffman, Sue Ellen; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: C. John GravesThe Critical Zone describes the interactions that support life on Earth among the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere. To truly understand the complex processes, scientists must look outside their immediate focus: geologists, biologists, hydrologists, and physicists collaborate to see how their research fits together. Teachers can do the same and use critical zone concepts to bridge across subjects and from the classroom to the real world. Unfortunately, K12 teachers may not have the requisite knowledge or research experience to feel confident in incorporating critical zone topics into their classes, and professional development services provided by scientists may not properly meet those needs. A three-day professional development program, the result of a collaboration between a research group, Critical Zone Network Drylands Hub, and a non-profit science center, Insights Science Discovery, was developed to support teachers with including place-based, cross-curricular instruction. This mixed-methods study aimed to measure the impact on teachers' knowledge of the related concepts and their confidence in teaching it. Teachers were assessed, surveyed, and asked to draw an image or mental representation of the critical zone model and identify related academic disciplines. Both teachers and contributing scientists were surveyed to learn how their motivations for participating in professional development compared to one another. Mental models increased in their complexity and accuracy of CZ components. This result, combined with a modest improvement in their performance on assessments and a substantial increase in confidence towards including CZ concepts in their curriculum, could indicate that the PD successfully impacted teachers and actions in the classroom. Surveys also revealed that teachers and researchers share many of the same motivations for participating in PD. Ultimately, both groups shared that contributing scientists could be better informed about the teachers' context and needs, making PD content more relevant and applicable to better support student motivation and learning.Item Do spawning salmon indirectly influence ungulate space use in the Copper River Delta, Alaska by attracting bears?(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2020) DeFries, Elizabeth Shaw; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisOne of the key challenges in ecology is understanding the drivers of animal movements and distributions. Here, I used remote camera photography to examine whether the timing of spawning salmon altered ungulate space use due to the presence of bears. Using observational data collection methods, I quantified ungulate and bear presence at individual salmon spawning sites. I then analyzed relationships between bear and ungulate detection data to test for indirect effects between salmon and ungulates by applying linear regression models. A zero-inflated negative binomial model suggested that increases in bear detections are associated with decreases in ungulate detections. Results did reveal little overlap in the timing of ungulate and bear use of stream habitat during salmon spawning times, however, rigorous testing of my hypothesis may be limited by low rates of ungulate detection. Research dedicated to understanding the indirect effects of the timing of salmon spawning in the Copper River Delta can help evaluate the evidence for trophic interactions at various ecosystem levels. It may also offer insights into the potential magnitude the impact salmon has on the prey of large predators, other herbivore densities, plant communities, riparian area morphology, and essential ecosystem functions.Item Outdoor education and citizen science in a high school freshwater ecology science classroom(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2019) Tierney, Sarah Martina; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisOutdoor education and citizen science practices were implemented into a high school freshwater ecology curriculum to assess student motivation, attitude, and in general their connection with the outside world. In this study students were exposed to various outdoor learning opportunities and citizen science activities. Pre and post treatment student surveys were conducted, student interviews, student journaling, and student engagement tally sheets were all recorded to assess student engagement. As a result of this study, a majority of students reported a benefit from lessons outside the classroom as well as indicating an increase of energy, pleasantness, and engagement.Item Examining the impacts of reforestation and bioremediation projects on high school environmental science students' feelings of biophilia and learning about environmental issues in Hawaii(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2019) Forster, Lorinda; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisThis action research study focused on the overall problem of how to promote biophilia in students while learning in experential, place-based settings. Surveys, relections, scientific terminology probes, anootated drawings, modeling and pre/post quizzes were used to access the results of the study. Results of the study indicate that some students were inspired to follow career paths in the natural sciences while others were further disconnected from nature. Some progress was made in learning vocabulary and facts about places visited. Further work is needed to promote deeper learning and feelings of biophilia for students prone to disconnecting from nature.Item Growing academic resilience in students of science through mimicry of forest resilience(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2018) Rapone, Marcia G.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Walter WoolbaughFor this education-based classroom research project, inspiration was drawn from the mechanisms used to transmit nutrients and information between individual organisms in a forest through the mycorrhizal network. Whereas forest resilience is based on speed of recovery and ability to regenerate biomass, academic resilience is based on the student's ability to recover from a setback and remain engaged in the learning process. The goal of the project was to mimic the communication network observed in forest mycelium and thus transmit information and receive feedback from students continuously in an effort to support the growth of academic resilience. The hypothesis of this project was that in fostering communication between students and creating opportunities for communication between individual students in the classroom, overall student academic resilience, grit, and content understanding would increase. During the 9-week study, students communicated their level of confidence in understanding content, provided insight into misconceptions they may have been developing, and gave advice to other students to enhance understanding of the material being taught. A culminating whole-class inquiry project was used to require students to work together on finding the solution to a problem. While not statistically significant, positive growth in resilience was observed in 57% of project participants, (N=83), but honors-level students reported higher levels of resilience at the start of the project than those of their general-level counterparts. A statistically significant growth in grit and content understanding was observed in honors-level students. Growth by at least 20% in content understanding over the course of the project was observed in 91% of all student participants. No singular data point was determined to be a predictor of student capacity for resilience, but development and use of a regular survey process provided insight into student mindset and opinion. Due to student inability or unwillingness to give themselves credit, development of a resilience recognition program is recommended as part of the next phase of research to foster awareness in the classroom of actions that exemplify resilience.Item Teaching chemistry through real-world applications(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2017) Littlejohn, Samantha Michael; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisContext-based approaches to chemistry aim to increase student engagement and understanding by framing learning in a meaningful, real-world context. This study examined the effect of teaching high school chemistry in the context of environmental issues. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a context-based approach to chemistry improved conceptual understanding and desire for inquiry among learners. Content assessments, attitude and motivation surveys, and student interviews were conducted and analyzed to examine the effect of a context-based approach to chemistry.Item Effect of social media and pledge coins on pro-environmental behavior of Yellowstone National Park Youth Conservation Corps enrollees(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2017) Sedgeley, Nicole Marie; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Walter WoolbaughIn a world facing many serious environmental concerns, such as climate change, there needs to be a new generation of stewards willing to ensure our natural resources can be enjoyed for generations to come. These next stewards may come from programs like the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) in Yellowstone National Park. These individuals are from the ages of 15 - 18 and serve for one month inside the park. They work on projects that help conservation and education efforts in Yellowstone National Park while also learning and developing leadership and career skills. The two sessions of 2016 YCC enrollees (N = 60) were chosen to participate in this study focused on the impact of social media and social pressure on pro-environmental behavior. Studies have shown that this age demographic is more likely to be influenced by social media, thus this study was interested in how this influence impacted their behaviors and attitudes toward the environment and creating social change. Half of the enrollees (n = 27) were asked to create a video to post to social media in which they would pledge to help the environment. Then once the pledge was completed, they would post another video to social media challenging another individual to also perform a pro-environmental action and passing on to them a wooden pledge coin. The other half of enrollees were the comparison group and were not asked to post any social media components. Both sessions were given two sets of Likert-scale question and short-answer questionnaires six months apart to evaluate any changes in attitudes or behaviors toward the environment following their experience in the YCC. The results of this study showed that after six months of social media monitoring, no YCC enrollee posted a pledge video to social media, and only one enrollee reported passing on a pledge coin. The questionnaires confirmed these findings. Enrollees disagreed that social media was an influence, but rather they agreed that families and social networks were an influence on their behavior. They also agreed to having interest in and caring for the environment. Furthermore, the short-answer questions identified the already strong connection these teenagers had to the environment, with many stating that they often participate in many pro-environmental behaviors already, but that the YCC program increased their awareness and likelihood of doing more. Indeed, these YCC participants are the current and future stewards of our natural world, but this study found that using social media with pledge videos and pledge coins are not likely to be an effective means to encouraging others to do the same. Further research is needed to validate these findings due to the small sample sizes and complications with the questionnaire administration.Item How does developing an online field ecology course to support high school students impact my growth as a teacher?(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2017) Gottlieb, Liz; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Walter WoolbaughThe purpose of this project was to investigate how developing an online field ecology course for high school students impacted my growth as a teacher. I teach at an independent high school (N=410) in the San Francisco Bay Area. Three years ago my school joined a BlendEd online consortium. I was asked to teach an online field ecology course for the program. I had no experience with virtual learning as a teacher or student at the time. Data collection for this project not only included teacher journaling and reflection, but also course and teacher surveys from my online and traditional classes, a catalogue of teaching practices, and a trans-classroom teacher survey to compare my experience and growth with other trans-teachers. (Trans-classroom teachers are teachers who teach in both online and traditional classrooms.) The results indicate that I have made changes to teaching practices since teaching online. For example, results of my gall lessons with my online and traditional groups illuminate how online teaching has inspired me to employ multiple new practices like the use of homework kits and science notebooks in my traditional classes. Additionally, developing an online ecology course required me to participate in a wide range of professional development opportunities that all of my students were able to benefit from. Finally, the results of my trans-classroom teacher survey confirm that my experiences are not unlike other trans-teachers; 88% of teachers that I surveyed indicate that their traditional teaching was somewhat or very impacted by their online teaching. After 17 years traditional teaching, I have found online teaching to be invigorating and an opportunity for reinvention.Item Using current science articles to evaluate the effect on students seeing relevance of science in their everyday lives(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Yourey, Melissa Louise; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.In this classroom research project, current events were used to help students integrate environmental science concepts into their lives. The project focused on determining whether the use of current events influenced 'aha' moments, and if it influenced student learning. Students were given a relevant current events article to read during three separate units of study. Writing prompts followed each of the three articles. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of current events in the classroom, students were surveyed and interviewed, class discussion followed the writing prompts, teacher journaling took place, and the students were assessed on corresponding free response questions on the three units' summative assessments. Collected data suggests that currents events help students understand the relevance of science in their lives and also have a positive impact on student learning.Item Scientific literacy : the effects of incorporating literacy into a high school environmental science classroom(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Rossana, Lisa Mary Rossana; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.The purpose of this research project was to study the effects of incorporating scientific literacy into a high school environmental science classroom. The methods used assessed students' content knowledge, attitudes, and confidence. Students were provided with a variety of ancillary methods relating to content material and real-world applications. The overall treatment incorporated three units of study. The first unit of study was on the human population and incorporated basic textbook content material. The second unit of study was on environmental health. The second unit used the pedagogy of the first unit. In addition, students collaborated on ancillary textbook materials which facilitated the connection between content knowledge and real-world applications. The third unit of study was on soil and agriculture. The pedagogy in this unit included all teaching methods from the first two units. Additional ancillaries were incorporated into this unit in the form of a case study, a documentary, and a current event. The purpose of additional ancillaries beyond the text was to further the connection of environmental science content material to real-world applications, and to improve students' attitudes and confidence. Data were collected using student pre-treatment and post-treatment assessments, surveys, and interviews. In addition, teacher data were collected using classroom teacher and colleague observations. Observations were employed to gain understanding of students' interest and academic needs and to assess teacher pedagogy practices. The data indicated an overall improvement of students' understanding of content material. Data also indicated an overall decline in students' attitudes and confidence at the conclusion of this research project.