Broadening Participation Research Project: Effects of Innovative Mathematics Instruction Methods on Student Attitude, Self-efficacy, Effort and Performance

北卡罗来纳A&P；T州立大学的研究人员正在研究数学商场和放大模式对学生学习和在看门人数学课程中的表现的相互影响。该项目以动机、自我效能感和归因理论为框架，以研究记录为基础，证明吸引人的课堂环境和积极的学习有助于提高学生的表现。研究人员特别感兴趣的是探索接触数学教学模式如何改变守门人数学课程学生现有的心理社会过程。该项目将通过提供干预措施的经验证据，减少少数族裔学生在STEM中坚持学习的一个反复出现的障碍，即掌握看门人的数学课程，从而促进现有的知识。研究人员将检验两个假设：在微积分和三角函数预科课程中实施数学商场和放大模型会对学生的态度、自我效能感和学习成绩产生积极影响，并且这些变量之间存在因果关系。该项目将采用混合方法研究设计和顺序方法来回答研究问题，包括大约120名治疗对象和120名对照对象。该项目的质量阶段旨在揭示影响认知和情感过程的潜在因素，并扩大已被证明可改善STEM教育和坚持性的理论和当前实践知识。考试前后的设计将被用来确定学生未来的态度和信念，以及在相关的看门人数学课程中，这些随着时间的推移而发生变化的程度。研究人员将使用一个对照小组来记录干预对学生态度、自我效能感、努力程度和课程结果的影响程度，并使用描述性统计来表征类别变量和数字变量。重点小组会议将针对重要发言和紧急主题进行转录和编码，并将使用文本挖掘工具进行文本和分类数据分析。预计研究结果不仅将提高学生在看门人数学课程中的成功，还将广泛增加STEM中未被充分代表的学生的留存率。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Researchers at North Carolina A&T State University are examining the mutual effects of the Math Emporium and SCALE-UP models on student learning and performance in gate-keeper mathematics courses. Framed using theories of motivation, self-efficacy, and attribution, the project is grounded by research documenting that an engaging classroom environment and active learning improve student performance. The researchers are interested particularly in exploring how exposure to mathematics instruction models can modify existing psychosocial processes among students in the gate-keeper math courses. The project will contribute to the current knowledge by producing empirical evidence of an intervention that can mitigate a recurring barrier to underrepresented minority student persistence in STEM, i.e., mastery of gatekeeper mathematics courses. The researchers will test two hypotheses: implementing the Math Emporium and SCALE-UP models in pre-calculus and trigonometry courses will positively impact students' attitudes, self-efficacy, and academic performance, and there is a causal relationship among these variables. The project will employ a mixed-method research design and sequential approach to answer the research questions and include approximately 120 treatment subjects and 120 control subjects. The qualitative phase of the project aims to reveal underlying factors that influence cognitive and affective processes and expand theory and current knowledge of practices that have been demonstrated to improve STEM education and persistence. A pre-post-test design will be used to determine students' incoming attitudes and beliefs and the extent to which these change over time in related gate-keeper mathematics courses. The researchers will use a comparison group to document the magnitude of the effect of the intervention on student attitudes, self-efficacy, effort and course outcomes and employ descriptive statistics to characterize categorical and numerical variables. Focus group sessions will be transcribed and coded for significant statements and emergent themes, and textual and categorical data analysis will be conducted using text mining tools. The research results are expected to not only improve student success in gatekeeper mathematics courses but also to increase underrepresented student retention in STEM broadly.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.