Changing Teaching Practices to Influence Attitudes and Success in Mathematics
Abstract
How might we change our teaching strategies to help motivate students to want to learn and to do so in deep and meaningful ways? How do we know if the changes we make have any effect? If educational research suggests what to do, why are more faculty not doing it already?
In pursuit of answers to these questions, the authors participated in a “STEM Professional Academy for Reinvigorating the Culture of Teaching” (SPARCT), a year-long NSF funded faculty professional development program focused on the use of evidence-based teaching practices in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. A study was conducted to determine whether revision of their own teaching practices to incorporate Project /Problem-Based Learning (PBL) activities and lessons designed according to the Conceptual Change Model (CCM) influenced students' interest in and confidence level with course content, performance on assessments, and passing rates in multiple sections of traditional and business Calculus.
The audience will learn key features of PBL and CCM by comparing and contrasting former lessons with ones designed according to the evidence-based models. Research results will be presented. The poster content will be used to facilitate discussion concerning implications of the study and faculty reluctance toward adopting new teaching practices.
Location
Rooms 113 & 115
Recommended Citation
Brooks, Cara D. and Huffman, Tanya, "Changing Teaching Practices to Influence Attitudes and Success in Mathematics" (2015). SoTL Commons Conference. 35.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/sotlcommons/SoTL/2015/35
Changing Teaching Practices to Influence Attitudes and Success in Mathematics
Rooms 113 & 115
How might we change our teaching strategies to help motivate students to want to learn and to do so in deep and meaningful ways? How do we know if the changes we make have any effect? If educational research suggests what to do, why are more faculty not doing it already?
In pursuit of answers to these questions, the authors participated in a “STEM Professional Academy for Reinvigorating the Culture of Teaching” (SPARCT), a year-long NSF funded faculty professional development program focused on the use of evidence-based teaching practices in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. A study was conducted to determine whether revision of their own teaching practices to incorporate Project /Problem-Based Learning (PBL) activities and lessons designed according to the Conceptual Change Model (CCM) influenced students' interest in and confidence level with course content, performance on assessments, and passing rates in multiple sections of traditional and business Calculus.
The audience will learn key features of PBL and CCM by comparing and contrasting former lessons with ones designed according to the evidence-based models. Research results will be presented. The poster content will be used to facilitate discussion concerning implications of the study and faculty reluctance toward adopting new teaching practices.
