Volume 16, Number 4 1997
Paul De Palma
Department of Mathematics and Computer ScienceGonzaga UniversitySpokane, WA 99258-0001, USAdepalma@gonzaga.eduThe discipline of computer science has barely penetrated the highschool curriculum. This is surprising when one considers that primaryand secondary schools own 4.5 million computers and that universitydegree programs in computers science have proliferated in the past 15years. In fact, the number of high school students writing programshas declined considerably in recent years. The dearth of computerscience instruction in secondary schools may be due less to studentsthan to their teachers. Specifically, lack of teacher andadministrator training has led to some fundamental misunderstandingsabout computer science as a discipline. We propose a program toretrain high school teachers of science and mathematics to teachcomputer science. This program will run two summers and contribute toa master’s degree.
Molly Nicaise
Math/Science/Technology InitiativeUniversity of Missouri-ColumbiaColumbia, MO 65211, USACOUNMN@showme.Missouri.EduOne of the more promising areas in promoting learning forunderstanding has been advanced by the area of situated cognition,and there is growing interest in creating technological tools basedon cognitive research. Described in this paper are several exemplarsof software that emulate and incorporate machine-supported aspects ofcognitive apprenticeships in science and mathematics. Cognitiveapprenticeships embed learning in social and physical activitiessimilar to craft apprenticeships of the 17th and 18th centuries.Modern apprenticeships are used to provide rich, exploratoryenvironments and to teach students how to construct knowledge,conceptualize problems, or develop problem-solving skills. In thispaper, the author suggests that some software can support complexlearning in math and science. The paper concludes with an evaluationof software against cognitively guided principles and with asummarization of the difficulties associated with creating andimplementing machine-supported apprenticeships.
Betty Travis and Elizabeth Lennon
Division of Mathematics, Computer Science, and StatisticsUniversity of Texas at San AntonioSan Antonio, TX 78249, USAbtravis@lonestar.utsa.eduA pilot program was developed to study the use of computersoftware to enhance spatial skills presumed to be related to successin calculus. In particular, it addressed the effects of such aprogram on female and minority students. The objectives were to (a)explore the effect of the use of the computer on enhancing spatialskills, (b) relate spatial ability to success in calculus, (c)consider gender and ethnic differences, and (d) explore other factorswhich might influence spatial skill development. Results indicatedthat the combined effect of the computer, drawing/drafting, andgender variables produced a significance level under .01 and wereable to explain 31% of the variance in test scores. Both gender andthe drawing/drafting variables reached significance on the meancalculus test scores.
Michael Eisenberg and Ann Nishioka
Department of Computer Science and Institute of CognitiveScienceUniversity of Colorado, BoulderBoulder, CO 80309-0430, USAducks@cs.colorado.eduDescribed in this paper is a computer application named HyperGamithat permits users to design, explore, decorate, and study a richvariety of paper polyhedral models. In structure, HyperGami is a“programmable design environment,” including both a directmanipulation interface as well as a domain-enriched programmingenvironment based on the Scheme language; the application is thusdesigned to be accessible to students of geometry while providingchallenging projects for long-term or expert users (such asprofessional mathematicians and designers). In the course of thispaper, we describe the HyperGami interface and language, illustratethe construction of “customized polyhedra” of various sorts, discussthe results of our initial experiences using the system in workingwith middle school students, and argue for the utility of embeddingprogramming languages in educational design environments such as thisone.
Gary E. Adamson, James R. Zimmerman, and Mary B. Nakhleh
Department of ChemistryPurdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IN 47907-1393, USAmnakhleh@purdue.eduThis paper describes interfacing a hand-held oxygen probe with amicrocomputer and also suggests experiments for undergraduatechemistry courses that could facilitate students’ understanding ofaquatic environmental processes involving dissolved oxygen (DO). Theprobe’s response is linear over the 0-14 parts per million (ppm)range, and the data are graphed on-screen in real time. Data can beanalyzed through the program or exported into other software. Samplerate, sampling time, and number of data points can be specified inthe program. The results of an experiment to detect light /darkcycles of photosynthesis by Anacharis are discussed, and otherpossible experiments are indicated. Some student evaluations of theprobe are also included.
Yael Friedler
The School of Education and the Israel Science TeachingCentreThe Hebrew University of JerusalemGivat-Ram, Jerusalem 91904, IsraelAngela E. McFarlane
IT UnitHomerton CollegeCambridge, CB2 2PH, EnglandA.E.McFarlane@BTInternet.com.ukThe understanding of line graphs when used as a model of therelationship between variables involves a level of abstraction whichis inaccessible to many pupils, even at the age of 16. There is someresearch evidence which suggests that the use of data logging (alsoknown as microcomputer-based laboratory or MBL) to produce dynamicgraphs can help bridge this conceptual gulf. The study reported hereintroduced data logging, using portable computers, as part of aninvestigative approach to science. This activity was embedded in thenormal science curriculum and delivered by the usual class teachers.Working with control and experimental classes of 14- and16-year-olds, the results of pre- and posttest comparisons suggestthat the use of data logging can have an impact on graphing skills at14, which is not necessarily repeatable at 16.
Marcia L. Tharp
Department of Education, Curriculum, and InstructionOld Dominion UniversityNorfolk, VA 23529, USAAlanS@chcs.pvt.k12.va.usJames A. FitzSimmons
Educational Theory and Practice\Mathematical Physical SciencesThe Ohio State UniversityColumbus, OH 43210, USARobin L. Brown Ayers
Mathematics DepartmentWestern Kentucky UniversityBowling Green, KY 42101, USAThe purpose of this research was to examine the perceptions ofteachers as they engaged in initial instruction using graphingcalculators. Data collected from 261 mathematics and science teachersof grades 6-12 who participated in a 4-month Virginia Network forTechnology (VANT) Outreach interactive telecourse, included pre- andpostquestionnaires and journals describing their instruction.Overall, participant views changed significantly (p <.001) infavor of viewing the graphing calculator as a “thinking tool” toenhance conceptual understanding and expand exploration ofmathematics and science topics. However, an analysis of data fromquestionnaires shows a significant correlation between holding a morerule-based viewpoint about learning mathematics and the view thatgraphing calculators do not enhance instruction and may even hinderit (tau_hat = .394, p <.001). In contrast, less rule-basedparticipants were more willing to adopt the use of calculators as anintegral part of instruction. When journals were coded, rule-basedteachers were found to be more likely to use procedural thaninquiry-oriented approaches to learning (p <.01) and to judgesuccess of an instructional activity based on student emotionalreactions rather than indications of conceptual understanding (p<.05). Implications for integrating graphing calculators intoinstruction using inquiry are discussed in this article.
Ruth Russo
Chemistry DepartmentWhitman College,Walla Walla, WA 99362, USArussorn@whitman.eduComputers are powerful tools in science education and have greatpotential for sparing the lives of animals in teaching laboratories.However, in areas of physiology education, virtual labs are not asrich a learning experience for the advanced students as are liveanimal labs. The frequency, complexity, and idiosyncratic nature ofthe data gained in pharmacological experiments demand creative,synthetic thinking from students. In addition, the revulsion thatstudents experience in sacrificing lab animals is itself a valuableeducation.