Browsing by Subject "Mathematics -- Study and teaching"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Automaticity of Basic Math Facts: The Key to Math Success?
    (2011) DeMaioribus, Carmel E; Hyman, Randy
    Despite a concerted effort by policy makers and educators to improve U.S. math education, student math scores remain unimpressive. In exploring possible reasons for this, this study examined the role that basic math fact automaticity plays in math success, where automaticity is defined as the ability to recall facts with speed and accuracy at an unconscious level. Information processing theory posits that automaticity frees up cognitive resources for more complex processes, and should therefore be an important part of learning math. To investigate this, basic multiplication fact fluency levels of a group of college students were determined by a timed math probe. These same students also completed a short survey assessing their attitudes and high school math achievements. The students’ levels of fluency as demonstrated on the math probe were then compared to their reported math attitudes and achievements. Relationships between levels of fluency and math attitude and achievement were noted. The most interesting finding, however, was the lack of basic multiplication fact automaticity in 90% of the college students tested. The implications of this lack of automaticity present an interesting subject for future study.
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    Native American Students' Perceptions of the Manoomin STEM Camp
    (2013) Kowalczak, Courtney C
    Tribal governments are facing harsh realities as climate change, development, and economics threaten not only the sustainability of the natural resources but also their culture. There is a growing need to recruit Native American students into STEM fields to meet the needs of their tribal communities. Tribal communities are seeking educational interventions that will motivate their young people to go to college and pursue STEM fields that will benefit future generations. The Manoomin (“wild rice” in the Ojibwe language) camp is a place-based American Indian youth science research program based in Cloquet, MN. This camp is a result of partnerships between University of Minnesota researchers, Fond du Lac Reservation natural resource managers, local teachers, Fond du Lac Tribal & Community College, and community members, working together to integrate meaningful research with emphasis on the cultural significance of wild rice on the Fond du Lac Reservation. The study described how the students in the Manoomin STEM camp felt that camp impacted their sense of community, their academic success, opportunities for careers, connection with their culture, and influenced their attitudes and behavior. These results holds out hope that the Manoomin STEM camp model is an educational intervention that will lead to academic success and future generations of STEM professionals.
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    Oral history interview with Alexandra Forsythe
    (Charles Babbage Institute, 1979-05-16) Forsythe, Alexandra I.
    Forsythe discusses the career of her husband, George Forsythe, from the time of his Ph.D. in 1941. He studied meteorology at UCLA in preparation for a military commission. After the war he taught meteorology at UCLA, where he became involved with the National Bureau of Standards Western Automatic Computer (SWAC). In 1957, when the National Bureau of Standards closed its operation at UCLA, George accepted a position at Stanford University to establish its program in computer science. Forsythe recalls some of her husband's difficulties in securing funding for computer projects, the resistance he encountered in his attempts to sell computer time to the private sector, and his eventual success in establishing a well-funded program in 1965.