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Developing an Outdoor Classroom at a Palm Beach County Middle School
Title
Developing an Outdoor Classroom at a Palm Beach County Middle School.
Creator
Huey, Cheryl, Romance, Nancy, Graduate College
Abstract/Description
In June of 2013, a project at Jupiter Middle School was initiated to develop an outdoor science classroom. The 2.25-acre natural area and certified wetland is located on the school campus. The property is being developed to provide authentic multisensory hands-on learning for students at Jupiter Middle School. The lessons will focus on providing multifaceted understanding in the areas of ecology, conservation, weather, cycles in nature, as well as respect for nature. These learning...
Show moreIn June of 2013, a project at Jupiter Middle School was initiated to develop an outdoor science classroom. The 2.25-acre natural area and certified wetland is located on the school campus. The property is being developed to provide authentic multisensory hands-on learning for students at Jupiter Middle School. The lessons will focus on providing multifaceted understanding in the areas of ecology, conservation, weather, cycles in nature, as well as respect for nature. These learning opportunities will be designed with the additional objective that the students have an opportunity to develop real-life science inquiry and problem solving skills leading toward self-sufficiency and confidence. An outdoor classroom is a natural area which is set aside or developed for students to practice skills related to field studies and to learn about the interactions of species within ecosystems through hands on multisensory experiences. These areas are also referred to as schoolyard habitats or habitat restoration projects. There is compelling evidence that this type of place based environmental learning will be beneficial to middle school students socially, academically, and behaviorally Bell et al., 2009; Berman, 2008; Cole & Hall, 2010; Dillon, et al., 2006; Ernst & Monroe, 2006; Kaplan, 1995; Louv, 2008; Smith & Sobel, 2010; Wheeler & Thumlert, 2007.
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Date Issued
2014
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00005823
Format
Document (PDF)
STUDY OF THE RELATIONSHIP OF ALLOCATED INSTRUCTIONAL TIME AND OTHER SELECT FACTORS TO ACHIEVEMENT IN SCIENCE AT THE FIFTH GRADE LEVEL
Title
A STUDY OF THE RELATIONSHIP OF ALLOCATED INSTRUCTIONAL TIME AND OTHER SELECT FACTORS TO ACHIEVEMENT IN SCIENCE AT THE FIFTH GRADE LEVEL.
Creator
Romance, Nancy, Florida Atlantic University
Abstract/Description
The study was designed to determine the impact of time, materials and activities upon student achievement in science at the fifth grade level. The variables used represent factors which can be manipulated by educators. The sample included 1,393 fifth grade students and seventy-one teachers in nineteen elementary schools of a large, Florida school district. Assessment instruments included STEP Science, CAT Reading and student and teacher questionnaires. Statistical treatment of the data...
Show moreThe study was designed to determine the impact of time, materials and activities upon student achievement in science at the fifth grade level. The variables used represent factors which can be manipulated by educators. The sample included 1,393 fifth grade students and seventy-one teachers in nineteen elementary schools of a large, Florida school district. Assessment instruments included STEP Science, CAT Reading and student and teacher questionnaires. Statistical treatment of the data included Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients and multiple regression analysis using Fortran programming. Analysis of data revealed that time allotted for science varied considerably (15-180 minutes per week). Data reported by both students and teachers on the three variables represented positive and significant relationships. Student and teacher estimates of time allotted for science were positively correlated (r = 0.41, r = 0.30) with achievement in science. Reading achievement was significantly (r = 0.91) related to achievement in science. Regression analyses using teacher and student data revealed (r^2 = 0.84, r^2 = 0.82) that when time, materials and activities were partialled out, reading was the major predictor of science achievement. F-ratios were not significant at the .05 confidence level. While the statistical significance of this study is slight, some recommendations can be made both from the findings and from the insights gained as part of the process. Recommendations of the study include: (1) There is a need to define clearly the amount of time which should be allotted for science instruction at the fifth grade level to minimize discrepancies. (2) There is a need to further analyze the reasons behind the inconsistencies in instructional time allotted for science. (3) There is a need to investigate whether instruction designed to integrate reading in the content area of science results in greater gains in achievement in science and in reading. (4) There is a need to develop a system to implement, evaluate, and monitor the district's science program to prevent such reported inconsistencies in time, materials and activities. (5) There is a need to provide all students with the necessary materials for learning in science. (6) There is a need to continue with standardized testing information being disseminated to the parents and/or community.
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Date Issued
1982
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/11799
Subject Headings
Science--Study and teaching (Elementary)--Florida
Format
Document (PDF)
Effect of a research-based instructional intervention on student learning of the concept of gravity: Immediate and delayed achievement of fourth-grade students
Title
Effect of a research-based instructional intervention on student learning of the concept of gravity: Immediate and delayed achievement of fourth-grade students.
Creator
Kalvaitis, Lee H., Florida Atlantic University, Romance, Nancy
Abstract/Description
The study was designed to determine the effect of an organized, conceptually-oriented set of lessons involving the concept of gravity on the immediate and delayed achievement of fourth-grade students. Two demographically similar schools were selected for the study, with two "Treatment" classes in one school and two "Comparison" classes in the other school. The sample included 91 fourth-grade students in the four classes who were taught the concept of gravity for two weeks involving three 30...
Show moreThe study was designed to determine the effect of an organized, conceptually-oriented set of lessons involving the concept of gravity on the immediate and delayed achievement of fourth-grade students. Two demographically similar schools were selected for the study, with two "Treatment" classes in one school and two "Comparison" classes in the other school. The sample included 91 fourth-grade students in the four classes who were taught the concept of gravity for two weeks involving three 30-minute lessons per week. The Treatment Group teachers taught the concept of gravity using six prepared lessons. Within the same time frame, Comparison Group teachers used the text book as a guide to teach six lessons on gravity. At the end of the two weeks of lessons on gravity, a 20-question posttest was administered to each class. After another three weeks, a delayed posttest was given. Results of the Cronbach's alpha procedure showed that the two tests were reliable and appropriate for use with fourth grade students. Results of a student opinion question concerning how much the students thought they learned about gravity during the two week period showed that the students in the Treatment Group had more positive answers concerning their learning than the Comparison Group students. The ANOVA results confirmed there was no significant interaction between gender, socio-economic status, reading ability, or ethnicity and the treatment. An independent t-test found that the mean differences between the Treatment Group and Comparison Group scores on both the posttest and delayed posttest were large (4.6 and 5.2). The Treatment Group results were higher, which points to a greater retention of the concept of gravity over time by students. Cohen's Effect Size resulted in a large effect for the posttest and delayed posttest (1.8 and 2.3), suggesting that the intervention may have had a significant effect on student learning of the concept of gravity. This study suggested that having well organized, conceptually-oriented instructional lessons may assist the teacher in improving student learning of scientific concepts and aid in the retention of the concepts over time.
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Date Issued
2005
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12157
Subject Headings
Gravity, Fourth grade (Education), Science--Study and teaching, Student-centered learning
Format
Document (PDF)
Teacher content knowledge in the context of science education reform
Title
Teacher content knowledge in the context of science education reform.
Creator
Doby, Janice Kay., Florida Atlantic University, Romance, Nancy
Abstract/Description
The decline of science education in elementary schools has been well documented. While numerous efforts have been made for the purpose of reforming science education, most of those efforts have targeted science programs, assessment techniques, and setting national, state, and local standards, stressing teacher accountability for meeting those standards. However, inadequate science content knowledge of preservice teachers limits their ability to master effective teaching strategies, and also...
Show moreThe decline of science education in elementary schools has been well documented. While numerous efforts have been made for the purpose of reforming science education, most of those efforts have targeted science programs, assessment techniques, and setting national, state, and local standards, stressing teacher accountability for meeting those standards. However, inadequate science content knowledge of preservice teachers limits their ability to master effective teaching strategies, and also may foster negative attitudes toward science and science teaching. It is, therefore, highly unlikely that any significant reform in science education will be realized until this major underlying problem is addressed and resolved. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an experimental elementary science methods course, which employs the use of laser videodisc technology and instructional implications from cognitive science and instructional design, in terms of preservice teacher gains in Earth and physical science content knowledge and locus of control in science. The experimental elementary science methods course was compared to a more traditional approach to the same course which focused primarily on methods of teaching in the physical sciences and other science domains. The experimental and traditional groups were compared before and after treatment in terms of preservice teachers' content knowledge in Earth and physical science and locus ofcontrol in science. Results indicated that the experimental and traditional groups were comparable prior to treatment. The experimental group (89 preservice teachers) responded correctly to 45% of the items on the Elementary Science Concepts Test (ESCT) pretest and the traditional group (78 preservice teachers) responded correctly to 42% of the pretest items, the difference between groups being nonsignificant. Further, the experimental and traditional groups scored similarly on the pre-assessment of locus of control in science with scores on the Preservice Teacher Information and Science Opinion Questionnaire (ISOQ) of 162.12 and 163.65, respectively, the difference also being nonsignificant. The pre- and post-administrations of both the ESCT and ISOQ were all found to be statistically significant (F (4, 162) = 271.18343, p<0.05) in predicting group membership. Analyses of variance indicated significantly greater gains in Earth and physical science content knowledge (F (1,165) = 743.7746, p<0.025) and locus of control in science (F (1,165) = 45.7477, p<0.025) for the experimental group compared to the traditional group. A significant difference (F = (2,162) = 31.82279, p<0.05) was found between the combined effect of locus of control in science and Earth and physical science content knowledge in respect to treatment, indicating that the curriculum and instructional design of the experimental course significantly influenced preservice teachers' science content knowledge and locus of control in science. Suggestions for further research included: (a) determining whether the results of this present research may also apply to inservice teachers, (b) determining the effects of such preservice and inservice training on actual classroom practice, (c) relating increased science knowledge with improvement in science lesson planning and mastery of pedagogical skills, and (d) more detailed analysis of instructional implications from cognitive science and instructional design in regard to their application to the teaching of science (as well as other content areas).
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Date Issued
1997
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12507
Subject Headings
Science teachers--Attitudes, Science--Study and teaching, Educational change--United States
Format
Document (PDF)
effects of instructional format on community college students' geometric construction performance
Title
The effects of instructional format on community college students' geometric construction performance.
Creator
Shryock, Brenda Manning., Florida Atlantic University, Shockley, Robert, Romance, Nancy
Abstract/Description
The purpose of this study was to investigate which of two different instructional formats of a geometric construction activity was best suited to enhance student task performance. The subjects (N=50) were selected from community college students enrolled in introductory college mathematics courses and randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. The groups differed in that group A received a different format of the procedural steps to reconstruct a given angle than that of group B. Form...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to investigate which of two different instructional formats of a geometric construction activity was best suited to enhance student task performance. The subjects (N=50) were selected from community college students enrolled in introductory college mathematics courses and randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. The groups differed in that group A received a different format of the procedural steps to reconstruct a given angle than that of group B. Form A consisted of adjoining text and diagrams where a diagram for each of the five steps of the task was pictured. Form B consisted of only two diagrams for the five-step process where it was necessary for subjects to determine which of the two diagrams was being referred to while proceeding through the steps. Both formats are representative of instructional materials currently in use in classrooms from the middle school level to the post-secondary level. During a personal interview session, each subject received one of two sets of directions describing the procedure of reproducing a given angle using a compass and straightedge. Each subject was asked to study the assigned set of directions with materials provided to practice the task. With the directions removed, each subject was then asked to reconstruct another, slightly different angle. Students given Form B, the reduced diagram format, significantly outperformed those students given Form A, x^2 (1, $N=50)=5.19, with no significant differences in the two groups with respect to the time spent studying the directions, t(48)=0.04, or completing the testing phase, t(48)=1.58. Other than use of the assigned form, mathematics ability was a significant factor in the subjects' ability to successfully complete the construction task, F(1,46)=7.79, p<.01. Verbal ability was not a significant factor, F(1,46)=1.81, p=.19, in the subjects' ability to successfully complete the construction task. Gender alone was not a significant factor, F1,46 =0.31, p = .58; however, when examined in combination with mathematics ability a significant interaction resulted, F1,46)=6.41, p=.02. Overall, success was significantly related to format, mathematics ability, and gender relative to mathematics ability.
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Date Issued
1995
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12440
Subject Headings
Mathematics--Problems, exercises, etc, Problem solving, Mathematics--Study and teaching, Teaching--Aids and devices
Format
Document (PDF)
SQER
Title
SQER.
Creator
Chamely-Wiik, Donna M., Haky, Jerome E., Louda, Deborah W., Romance, Nancy
Date Issued
2014-03-11
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/flvc_fau_islandoraimporter_10.1021_ed300689n_1521555360
Format
Citation