Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
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Item Performance-based cluster grouping in ninth grade honors physics(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2017) Christman, Jessica L.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisGifted students at Twin Valley High School often report that they are not academically challenged during their freshman year. A lack of rigor may promote poor work habits, study skills, and attitudes among the brightest students. This action research study compared two concurrent sections of ninth grade Honors Physics. Both sections were taught by the same teacher; however, only one section received the intervention of performance-based cluster grouping with targeted instructional strategies. The four-week intervention included homogeneous grouping by table, along with opportunities to demonstrate mastery of certain skills with fewer repetitions by completing the most difficult practice problems first. A variety of data collection measures were utilized, including student surveys, the Force Concept Inventory, summative assessments, and semi-structured interviews. The results of this action research project highlighted the importance of incorporating purposeful homogeneous grouping into the regular classroom setting. The majority of students reported that they learn best when working with peers of a similar ability level. Additionally, within the homogeneous groups, the cluster teacher observed a more even distribution of the workload and more in-depth conversations among the students. The majority of students attempted to complete the most difficult problems first at least once and indicated a positive or neutral attitude towards the instructional strategy. Interestingly, students who always attempted the most difficult problems first performed better on summative assessments than those who did not attempt the most difficult problems first. Although this difference was not quite statistically significant, a strong positive correlation was observed between how often students opted to try the most difficult problems first and how well they performed on their summative assessments. This finding suggests that the students exercised good judgement when choosing whether or not to attempt the most difficult problems first. The results of this action research project suggest that the Most Difficult First strategy positively affected student confidence in their math ability. However, there was no apparent effect on student's conceptual understanding, as measured by the average normalized gain on the Force Concept Inventory.Item Teaching science to learners of an introverted type(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Friedlund, Andrew J.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.Last year the principal team at the high school where I teach made a rule that math classrooms had to organize student desks in cooperative learning pods. Students were seated in groups of three or four and teachers were encouraged to integrate group work in most lessons. Administrators even encouraged teachers to give mostly group quizzes. While this strategy has increased student learning in many students, particularly those of the extraverted personality type, I have found that many of the introverted students that I teach struggle to learn in such a stimulating environment. This year I identified the introverted students in my classroom with a personality type survey. I then offered these students an alternative to the highly social laboratory activities and group performance tasks. This alternative focused on the same material, yet provided a quiet environment with optional social interaction and lots of space to think, read, and theorize at their own pace. Using a pre-test and a post-test I was able to observe that introverted students who received my intervention made significantly larger gains than those who did not.Item The use of computer-based and inquiry-based learning activities to differentiate instruction for high school chemistry(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Good, R. Brian; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.Annville-Cleona High School is a small school located in southeastern Pennsylvania. The school only offers one chemistry course: 'College Prep Chemistry'. Students' abilities in science vary greatly within each section of this course. Scores on the Pennsylvania, high-stakes biology exam range from below basic to advanced. Students' math abilities also vary as some are enrolled in AP Calculus, while others are enrolled in Algebra II. It is challenging to meet the needs of these diverse learners in a single classroom. In this research project, self-paced learning activities were created to teach advanced students challenging topics that were not part of the core curriculum and to provide remediation for students who were struggling with core topics. Video lessons and guided inquiries were used to teach the advanced topics, and video lessons alone were used as remediation. Instantaneous feedback via formative assessments was a key component of these learning activities. The research was conducted during the unit on molecules and compounds. Two of the four sections served as the treatment group and the other two sections served as the comparison group. Most students in the treatment group and all the students in the comparison group received the core curriculum. Formative assessments were given after each topic was taught to identify students who did not master the topic. Students in the treatment group who scored poorly on a formative assessment were assigned the remediation video lesson. Twelve advanced students in the treatment group learned three challenging topics in addition to the core topics. The results showed that computer-based and inquiry-based learning activities were effective tools for differentiating instruction. About three-fourths of the time advanced students mastered the additional, challenging topics. Over two-thirds of the struggling students were able to improve their understanding of a topic from basic to proficient or advanced after completing the remedial video lesson. Furthermore, students had favorable attitudes about video lessons. Student surveys showed that almost two-thirds of the students liked video lessons and more than 80% of them liked the instantaneous feedback they received from these lessons.Item Using differentiated physics homework to create self-regulated learners(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Fiala, Andrew; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.At the beginning of the year students were taught the Question Formulation Technique -- a process that introduces the ideas of metacognition, convergent, and divergent thinking, as well as open and closed-ended questions. Then during each unit of study, students used the Question Formulation Technique to compile a list of questions. For homework, students examined their lists, and then identified five questions to prioritize for research in order to provide the greatest academic gain. To demonstrate academic growth, students created differentiated homework capable of teaching others in the form of their choice including songs, board games, and videos. This process was studied for its ability to improve students' attitudes about learning while at home, and to see if it encouraged self-regulated learning. The results of this study support the idea that students can use the Question Formulation Technique to differentiate physics homework. Many students improved their self-regulatory skills related to their physics education and a marginal improvement occurred in relation to student attitudes about learning while at home.Item A comparison of the achievement test scores in the intermediate grades in a school using performance grouping and a school using heterogeneous grouping(Montana State College, Division of Education, 1961) Burton, Priscilla J.The main purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not a form of ability grouping known as performance grouping had an effect on the students' achievement test scores that would not be obtained in a heterogeneous classroom. The major hypothesis held was that added gains would be shown on the standardized achievement test scores by the students in a school using performance grouping that would not be shown by students in a school using heterogeneous grouping.Item An experiment to compare an ability grouped class and an individualized class in Typing I on the secondary level(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Professional Schools, 1973) Grossman, Juanita YvonneStatement of the Problem: Which of two--ability grouping or individualized instruction--methods will more effectively help students meet the performance objectives for beginning typing? Need: An experiment of this nature will be beneficial to beginning typing teachers by helping them to determine methods to use in their classes. The writer feels that her teaching in future years will benefit from this experiment especially if a significant difference is found between the attainment of the two groups.Item An experimental reading program to provide for individual differences(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1959) Jursnich, Edward A.Item An investigation into the use and value of homogeneous grouping in teaching the individual child in grades 1-6 in the public schools of Wyoming(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1962) Hecker, Francis E.Item The effects of departmentalization on student achievement at the sixth grade level(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1964) Cline, Robert LeeItem A survey of literature on ability grouping as a means of improving ability grouping practices in the Bozeman junior high school(Montana State University - Bozeman, 1967) Bobinski, Zenon A.