More Like this

1. Secondary Mathematics Teachers’ Efforts to Engage Students through Academic and Social Support

   Jansen, A. (January 2019, Proceedings of the 41st annual meeting of the North American Chapter for the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education)

   Teachers' efforts to support students, both academically and socially, can play a role in how high school students productively engage with mathematics in the moment. To examine the connection between teacher support and student engagement, we conducted an exploratory mixed-methods study combining data from 20 high school classroom observations with student self-reports taken during the observed activity. Our findings indicate that when teachers provide academic support to their students during a lesson, they are also likely to provide social support. Higher teacher support of both kinds correlates with higher student self-efficacy, as well as social and cognitive engagement. Investigating relationships between observations of teaching and students' self-reports of engagement in-the-moment is a potentially revealing approach for uncovering engaging instructional strategies in secondary mathematics classrooms. 

   more » « less
2. A Remote Instructor Like Me: Student–Teacher Congruence in Online, High School Courses

   https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584211018719  

   Darling-Aduana, Jennifer (January 2021, AERA Open)

   null (Ed.)

   Students belonging to marginalized groups experience positive impacts when taught by a teacher of the same race, ethnicity, and gender. The unique nature of standardized, asynchronous online course taking allows for greater separation of any possible educational benefits of student versus teacher-driven mechanisms contributing to these improved outcomes. Using a student-by-course fixed effect strategy on data from a large urban school district, I examined associations between whether students experienced racial/ethnic or gender congruence with their remote instructor and both engagement and learning outcomes. Students who identified as Black demonstrated higher rates of engagement, although no difference in achievement, within lessons taught by a same-race remote instructor. I find that representation is associated with engagement even when instructors follow closely scripted lessons, representation occurs in only small doses, and instruction occurs in an impersonal setting. 

   more » « less
3. A conjecture on the Feldman bandit problem

   https://doi.org/10.1017/jpr.2018.19  

   Nouiehed, Maher; Ross, Sheldon M. (March 2018, Journal of Applied Probability)

   Abstract We consider the Bernoulli bandit problem where one of the arms has win probability α and the others β, with the identity of the α arm specified by initial probabilities. With u = max(α, β), v = min(α, β), call an arm with win probability u a good arm. Whereas it is known that the strategy of always playing the arm with the largest probability of being a good arm maximizes the expected number of wins in the first n games for all n , we conjecture that it also stochastically maximizes the number of wins. That is, we conjecture that this strategy maximizes the probability of at least k wins in the first n games for all k , n . The conjecture is proven when k = 1, and k = n , and when there are only two arms and k = n - 1. 

   more » « less
4. Mobile Learning in STEM: A Case Study in an Undergraduate Engineering Course

   Pakala, K.; Bakic, M.; Bairaktarova, D.; Bose, D. (June 2023, 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   Student-centered educational system is needed for better educational outcomes. Technology enabled pedagogy has helped immensely during the pandemic times when rapid transition to remote learning was essential. This poster reports findings on year one of a two-year research study to utilize mobile technologies and a technology-enhanced curriculum to improve student engagement and learning in STEM undergraduate courses. This poster describes a quasi-experimental mixed methods study on implementing mobile devices (iPad and Pencil) and a technology-enhanced curriculum in an undergraduate thermal-fluids engineering course, a foundational engineering class. The technology-enabled curriculum was fully integrated in the thermal-fluids course to deliver content and to facilitate student engagement with the content, instructor, and fellow students. This approach leveraged the social-constructivist learning theory - a connected community of learners with classroom peers and co-construction of knowledge where the instructor’s role is that of a subject matter expert who facilitates learning. To examine the impact of mobile devices on student learning, in this two-year study (year one fall 2021 - spring 2022), the following research questions were addressed, hypothesizing improvements in the areas of engagement, enhancement of learning outcomes, and extension of learning to real-life engineering scenarios: (1) Does mobile device use facilitate engagement in thermal-fluid science course content? (Engagement), (2) Does mobile device use increase learning of identified difficult concepts in thermal-fluid science courses as indicated by increased achievement scores? (Enhancement) and (3) What are student perceptions of using mobile devices for solving real-life problems? This poster will provide an overview of the research plan and describe some preliminary research efforts based on year 1 of the project efforts. This work is supported by the NSF: Research Initiation in Engineering Formation (RIEF). 

   more » « less
5. Insights Gathered from the National Survey of Student Education (NSSE) About Engineering/Computer Science Participation in High-impact Educational Practices at Two Western Land-grant Institutions

   Ewumi, E.R.; Adesope, O.; Claiborn, C.S.; Minichiello, A. (July 2021, 2021 ASEE Annual Conference)

   Student engagement, especially among Engineering and Computer science majors (E/CS), has been a priority for researchers. Although considerable efforts have been made to improve college students' engagement and interest, underrepresented minority groups and first-generation students are still at risk of dropping out of engineering majors due to lack of inclusiveness, motivation, and other related factors. According to Kuh (2008), student participation in High-Impact Educational Practices (HIEP) is correlated with student outcomes such as persistence, performance, achievement, and intent to complete their current major. The present study reviews the existing National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE, 2012, 2017) data from two western land-grant universities to fully capture participation through the survey of first-year students and seniors (N = 674). The HIEP considered include service-learning, learning communities, research with faculty, internship or field experience, study abroad, and culminating senior experience. These practices are designed to encourage meaningful interactions between faculty and students, foster collaboration with students within different demographics groups, and facilitate learning outside the classroom. Insights were gleaned from how the students interacted with HIEP based on special characteristics such as sex, race, age, enrollment status, and residence. The purpose of the present study is to examine the extent to which E/CS students participate in HIEP and its effects on student outcomes. This study also offers comparisons or possible relationships between student demographics, student success, and HIEP involvement. For example, the participation rates of HIEP on different engineering and computer science majors, including civil, chemical, electrical, mechanical, and materials engineering, etc., are analyzed to examine the practices that work for a particular E/CS major. The present study reports findings from NSSE 2012 and 2017 surveys. Results show that among the E/CS seniors, service-learning, learning community, and study abroad program are the HIEP with the lowest participation rate with 41% (service-learning), 59% (learning community), and 68% (study abroad program), indicating that they do not plan to engage in these practices in their senior year. Conversely, internships and culminating senior experiences had the most participation among E/CS seniors with 52% (internships) and 68% (culminating senior experiences. Interestingly, first-year students showed a significant interest to participate in the following HIEP: internships, study abroad programs, and culminating senior experiences – with 76% (internships), 47% (study abroad program), and 68% (culminating senior experiences) indicating plans to engage in these practices. Finally, findings show that participation or engagement in HIEP is a significant predictor of student learning outcomes. Findings of this review may serve as a guide for future research in E/CS student participation in HIEP. The paper concludes with theoretical and practical implications of the findings on student engagement and learning. Key words: NSSE, high impact educational practices, Engagement 

   more » « less