Scholarship & Research
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Item Study on the nature and perceptions of single-gender education(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2021) Weed, McKenzie; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisThe validity of single-gender education is a debated topic within the field of education. Research on best practices is limited. As part of their 'Strategic Vision,' Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, Colorado expressed a goal to become a leader in single-gender education. This study seeks to uncover the nature and perceptions of single-gender education at the school as an initial step towards achieving this goal. Surveys and interview were conducted to expose students' and teachers' attitudes and perceptions towards single-gender education. The results indicated primarily positive perceptions and attitudes towards single-gender education from both students and teachers, although there as much variation in the survey data. Girls seemed to have a more positive perception of single-gender education than boys. This action research study showed there is room for improvement in areas of course offerings, school culture, student peer interactions, and teacher professional development related to single-gender education.Item Designing, teaching, and assessing an innovative online science curriculum for effective student learning(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2021) Sussberg, David Alexander; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisMany educational institutions have transitioned to online learning, opening opportunities and demand for creative, innovative, effective, and engaging online environmental science curricula. Therefore, I designed and taught an online Brightspace (D2L) science course. Student and staff study population were affiliated with Blackfeet Community College in Browning, Montana. A mixed methods research design assessed the curriculum's effectiveness for student learning; results indicated that students were positively impacted, gaining a greater understanding of scientific theory and praxis. This study significantly empowered me as an educator and can serve as a resource to construct online science curricula.Item Bridging the gap between math and science: does the use of simple math instruction tools produce growth in the physical science classroom?(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2020) Doyle, Irene Marie; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisIt was observed that students struggle with making connections between math and science, especially in a physical science class. Research shows that this is not a behavioral issue, but a cognitive one. This is very problematic because it has been shown that making cross curricular connections is the foundation to critical thinking, and critical thinking is a highly desired skill in any field of study or career. As a potential solution to this problem, three treatments were administered to two different advanced physical science classes with two different trials. The treatments included math warm-ups at the start of a lesson, scaffolded guided practice problems at the conclusion of a lesson, and the use of graphic organizers when new formulas were introduced. Most students claimed the treatments were helpful, and there was growth in students' assessment scores.Item The effects of homework grades on the outcome of student assessment scores in high school physical science(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2020) Bondy, Kaitlyn Elizabeth; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisScience education faces many challenges in engaging students based on many internal and external factors: academic ability, grit, and social-economical. Students want instant feedback; they want the fastest way to learn the material, and some do not find value in education. This study investigated the impact of grading homework and classwork and its effect on the overall understanding of the material. This study also investigated the impact of graded homework on the students' attitudes on science, work, and grit the student might have. Through multiple forms of formative and summative assessments, surveys, and interviews, students found that they learned and retained the most information using paper and pencil, and when work was graded for credit. Results showed that students need both an internal and external reward to want to learn. This action research project demonstrated that grading students' homework and classwork with positive feedback resulted in the highest scores on assessments causing a positive attitude in physical science.Item Test anxiety interventions implemented before summative science assessments(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2019) Bakken, Randi Martin; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Greg FrancisThis investigation examined the effectiveness of tools to mitigate test anxiety on student performance and students' perceptions of anxiety. Additionally, this study explored whether or not students were impacted differently based on their age level. Participants included 3 classes of 9th-graders with 14, 15 and 16 students, and 1 class of 13 11th and 12th-graders. The investigation introduced students to three different anxiety-reducing techniques at the onset of three quizzes. At the semester final exam, students chose one strategy to implement. Quiz scores, final exam scores, surveys, and interviews were used as data collection instruments. The results suggested that students had an improved experience with the test anxiety intervention though there was not an impact on their performance. Students in 9th-grade and 11th or 12th-grade had similar levels of test anxiety. Students show a willingness to utilize test anxiety interventions in the future.Item Word power! How vocabulary instruction impacts the 10th grade biology class(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2019) Christensen, Liesel Bennion; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Walter WoolbaughHigh school science classes are heavy in content-specific vocabulary. Many students, particularly those who have lower reading abilities, have a difficult time answering the summative assessment questions because they cannot understand what the questions are asking. However, vocabulary instruction is often boring, ineffective, and time consuming. My purpose in conducting this classroom research project was to make realistic and sustainable changes to my vocabulary instruction using purposeful, effective, and engaging methods. In this study, students were taught vocabulary through the 'non-traditional' process of prioritizing vocabulary lists, coordinating morphemes, introducing words in context, explicit instruction through engaging activities, and teaching comprehension rather than memorization. The effect on assessment scores and student attitude were measured using pre and post-tests, surveys, content exams, and a teacher journal. Qualitative and quantitative data results suggest an increase in student content assessment scores and a positive effect on student attitudes.Item The effects of note taking strategies on retention of science content on high school students(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2019) Ferrigan, Timothy Charles; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Walter WoolbaughThroughout my own educational career, both high school and college, note-taking has always been an important part. As a teacher in the classroom of today, I still try to instill that practice in my students. I know the powers that be would like the standard lecture and note taking go by the wayside. I believe it can still be part of the educational process and the art of note taking can be beneficial to students in their future educational or career endeavors. Over the past fifteen years as a teacher, I have seen students struggle with note taking. The standard practice for lecture and note taking is to display a PowerPoint presentation and while the teacher talks and clicks through the presentation, the student scramble to write things down. Is there a strategy that would be beneficial to the students and help with retention of the lecture material? This is what lead me to my classroom research project. The main research question for the project asks if certain note taking strategies influence retention of science concepts in high school students. The project consisted of three note taking strategies: student-generated, partial (fill in the blanks), and guided. The data collection consisted of pre- and post-assessments, a summative assessment, and a teacher journal. Based on the data obtained, there was about a four percent increase in retention when guided notes were used by student compared to the student-generated notes. A larger discrepancy exists between the partial note strategy and the other two strategies. I believe the data shows no particular note taking strategy outweighs another.Item Broadening participation in atmospheric science through a program needs assessment(Montana State University - Bozeman, Graduate School, 2016) Rockwell, Alison B.; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Peggy Taylor.The National Science Foundation (NSF) Lower Atmosphere Observing Facilities (LAOF) Educational Deployment Program is a short-term facilities deployment program designed to strengthen STEM-related education. It provides access to eight separate research facilities for authentic instruction in the field of observational meteorology and engineering. Facilities are available for graduate, undergraduate, and K-12 education, and can be deployed to a College or University for up to three weeks. Anomalies were found in the diversity of requested facilities and requesting Principal Investigators (PIs) in the 46 education deployments from the calendar years of 2008-2015. A needs assessment was conducted to determine actual program performance, identify performance gaps in the program, and to determine the desired program performance. The needs assessment resulted in a data-driven recommendation action plan to close the gaps that when implemented, will increase the diversity of requesting PIs and the requested facilities, thereby increasing diversity within the education program.