This study explored the mathematics beliefs of students enrolled in a first year calculus class at a Midwestern university in the United States. The Indiana Mathematics Belief Scale was administered to 162 students enrolled in a first year calculus class during the first week of school. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed to examine the factor structure of the survey instrument. Five factors were extracted: Effort, Usefulness, Difficult problems, Understanding, and Steps. Students' responses were analyzed for inter-item correlation and internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's α). The results were compared with similar studies conducted by Kloosterman and Stage (1992) as well as Berkaliev and Kloosterman (2009). The reliability obtained in this study was consistent with the previous studies. In particular, the Steps subscale was quite low (0.52). It might therefore make sense to drop the Steps subscale in future studies.
Calculus at the college level has significant potential to serve as a pump for increasing the number of students majoring in STEM fields. It is a foundation course for all STEM majors and, if mastered well, should provide students with a positive and successful first-year experience and gateway into more advanced courses. Studies have shown that a high percentage of students failing college calculus has caused a shortage of individuals entering fields that are heavily dependent on mathematics. Many students are entering college ill-prepared for the rigors of college-level mathematics. This mixed methods study examines the relationship among high school preparation, additional preparation in college, and introductory calculus success. Using a convenience sample of three calculus professors, seven calculus teaching assistants and two hundred and seventy one calculus students at a large public mid-west university in the United States, we investigated the relationship between the amount and level of high school mathematics and student performance in college calculus. Our results suggest that good preparations in high school pre-calculus form a springboard for future success in college calculus as well as subsequent advanced mathematics courses.
Recent studies report that students' attitudes toward statistics play an important role in their statistics achievement. The goal of this study was to test the psychometric properties of the Survey of Attitudes Towards Statistics (SATS-28) among undergraduate health science students enrolled in an introductory statistics course. Most students held positive attitudes towards statistics. The average SATS scores were above neutral. Confirmatory factor analysis validated the four-factor structure of the questionnaire (Affect, Cognitive Competence, Value, and Difficulty), albeit with a few modifications. The RMSEA value of 0.065 was below the suggested cutoff of 0.07. Cronbach's alpha for the entire scale was .907, which was well above the recommended cutoff value of 0.7. The study provided evidence for the appropriate metric properties of the SATS-28 as a valid instrument for measuring the statistics attitudes of a sample of first year students at the University of Minnesota Rochester.
Purpose -This paper presents the results of a study that sought to determine teacher conceptions of classroom management and control. The study explored classroom management knowledge of participants, and how the knowledge was gained. It also investigated the extent to which participants held various conceptions, including rule-based, dominance and nurturance conceptions, about how teachers established and maintained classroom control.either the dominance or nurturance conceptions showed strong support for rule-based conceptions.Significance -The significance of this study to classroom practice is that knowing how to manage the classroom is one of the most important traits of quality instruction. Therefore it is important that teachers -both new and veteran -find the best way to manage their classroom in order to create a serene atmosphere for quality learning to take place.
This paper synthesizes the views of 6 university lecturers on Ghana's undergraduate mathematics education. These views were expressed during a mathematics workshop sensitization program on the "contribution of undergraduate mathematics education to the Ghanaian economy." The data consisting of open-ended questions followed by semi-structured interviews were analyzed using qualitative analysis. The results of this study indicated that lecturers' teaching methods do not enable students to connect theories with practice. The topics these lecturers teach and the methods they use in the classroom seem far removed from students' everyday experiences. As a result, many students are rarely able to identify and connect their ideas with everyday realities of life. Additionally, some topics are delivered in a weird and abstract methodological mode, making it increasingly difficult for students to comprehend. The study finally concludes with suggestions that an overhaul of the curriculum is paramount with emphasis on students' comprehension for adoption by Ghanaian universities, to acquaint lecturers with modern teaching methods.
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