PROPOSED MODIFIED COURSE (MATH 200)
A. Description: One of NASA’s’ enterprises is Aerospace Technology. The exploration of NASA’s aerospace technology requires a basic understanding of the concept of the equilibrium and motion of an object. The teacher education (PreK-12) majors have neither a Dynamics course nor a Statistics course in their curriculum. However, the above mentioned concepts are introduced in the Physical Science course (Chem 101). This course is taught by the faculty of the Department of Chemistry. Chem101 is required by the curriculum for the education majors as a general education course. However, the concepts of equilibrium and motion due to the action of forces (Resistance, gravity, etc) are not addressed in depth. We plan to modify MATH 200 to include an in-depth treatment of these concepts.
Geometry and algebra content will be connected to physical science. The equilibrium of an object acted by three forces will be connected to geometry of the plane figures such as squares, rectangles and parallelograms. The concepts of “rate of change” will be introduced to illustrate the terms velocity and acceleration. The rate of change of distance, velocity with respect to time will be connected to the concept of the slope of a line. The velocity-time curve (V-T curve) for a uniform motion (constant velocity, acceleration or deceleration or a combination of these) will be introduced for the introduction of straight lines with zero, positive and negative slopes. The area of a rectangle, triangle and a trapezoid involved in the uniform motion’s V-T curve will be computed to find the total distance traveled by the object in a uniform motion. Using the velocity-time trapezoid we will illustrate the application of the foot on the accelerator, cruise control and the acceleration of a rocket and aircraft will be explored.
The content
strand’s measurement and data-analysis will be connected to the biological
science content. The statistical
concepts mean, median and mode will be used to assess
real data collected by students from the greenhouse at Claflin
or a nearby plant nursery. Students will
also collect data of patients having diabetes through local medical centers in
The mathematical concepts discussed above are normally introduced to a student taking a Pre/Differential Calculus course, a Calculus-based / Algebra-based Physics course or a Bio-statistics course. These courses are not part of the curriculum of the education majors. To express these concepts of Mathematics without a background in calculus, physics or statistics takes a tremendous amount of planning, hands on demonstration and the use of appropriate technology such as graphing calculators (TI-83 and up) and computer software (Excel, Maple, etc.)
B. Inclusion of Standards. The national Council of Teacher of Mathematics (NCTM) Principles and Standards for School Mathematics 2000, The South Carolina Mathematics Curriculum Standards 2000, The American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) Project 2061 Benchmarks for Science Literacy (1993), the National Research Councils (NRC) National Science Education Standards (NSES)(1996), The South Carolina Science Curriculum Standards and the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers constitute our reference framework and philosophical guide for defining learning objectives, designing assessment strategies, adopting effective pedagogical methods, and selecting content. We will consult the above documents regularly as we modify our course.
Mathematics 200 will be modified to enhance the content standards geometry, measurement, and data analysis. Furthermore, we have adopted three areas—Inquiry, Life Science, and Physical Science from the National Education Standards, and the six standards areas with emphasize on Teaching, Learning and the Curriculum, and Assessment and Evaluation from the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. The Mathematics standards (geometry, measurement, and data analysis have been chosen) not only because they create the best opportunity for us to address the science and technology standards in one course, but also because this connection provides an opportunity for application and integration of mathematics, science, and technology through the support of NASA’s ATE, and BPR.
The Principles and Standards for School Mathematics and the National Science Education Standards describe in detail communication as a process and provide examples of how to teach mathematics and science through communication.
The national standards stress the importance of designing assessment strategies that take into account course content, pedagogical methods, student backgrounds, and the purposes served by the assessment. They also stress the need to build assessment strategies into course form the beginning and to collect and reflect upon assessment data continuously. We will refer to assessment data frequently in order to ensure effectiveness.
We will refer to the standards often to maintain perspective on our own efforts to design and implement a course that in many ways departs form traditional courses.
C. Innovative Instruction. We propose to apply instructional methods that will be new to the course instructors and will depart radically from the traditional model (single-instructor lectures and passive demonstrations). In part following the National Science Education Standards (NSES) for teaching, and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Professional Standards for Teaching Mathematics, we will emphasize:
These are other innovative teaching strategies that we will study and consider adopting while we modify the course.
D. Student Assessment. Student assessment will reflect the content that we select, the particular pedagogical methods that we employ, and the level of academic skills that we can expect of the students. Some likely possible assessment techniques include:
Paper-and-pencil assessments will be used, as appropriate, to measure such things as student’s knowledge of facts, concepts, and procedures; their ability to solve problems; and their ability to comprehend text.
We will aim to assemble evidence from a variety of sources to yield an accurate picture and provide students with prompt and frequent feedback.
E. Instructional Technology. Instructional technologies will be integrated into the course to the extent that they can help students achieve learning objectives. In a particular, described below are two categories of instructional technology that we will employ in the course.
E.1. The Internet and Computers.
1. Course Management: An internet course management software can give students on-line interactive access throughout the campus to a wide range of course-related materials including syllabi, exercises, discussions, reference materials, each other’s projects, assessments etc. (For example, the Department of Mathematics and computer science at Claflin is very familiar in using intranet access for a variety of purposes in their course management categories. Dr. Sriskanda uses intranet (by creating a folder in a student’s accessible drive in the university computer system) to teach his large computer concepts class.
2. Development of Learning Modules: Learning modules developed by others will be used. Examples: Instructional programs such as NASA CONNECT, NASA Science files series, etc will be purchased or will be required viewing when the programs air in our local area. Students will visit other NASA Internet sites such as CORE (Central Operation of Resources for Educators) to download data and related classroom activities.
3. Exercises with feedback and testing: Web-based exercises to deliver content include color graphics, animation, and hypertext links to references, feedback, testing, and the ability to gather data to assess student performance. As an example the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics has used the www.thinkwell.com site for the above mentioned purposes in both mathematics and biology courses.
4. Information about living and working in space: There is a vast and still growing body of information about life sciences on the NASA Educational Web. Students will explore these educational resources about how humans adapt to live and work in the realm of microgravity. Data Sets and Data Analysis Tools: a tremendous amount of data relevant to rocket motion is also available on the NASA Web, and Microsoft Excel spreadsheet software will be used for analyzing and plotting some of these data. Such data would make many possible the mathematical investigation of principles such as velocity, acceleration, gravity changes with altitude, etc.
5. Communications: Creating a new email distribution list for the Math 200 Course will foster a climate for discussions outside of class. Opportunities to communicate with NASA scientists and researchers and to experience the excitement of science as it is happening will be possible. (Example: NASA Quest features interactive projects that allow students and teachers the opportunity to communicate with NASA scientists).
6. Publishing: Students can publish their projects on Claflin’s intranet site, which can motivate them to produce high-quality products and serve as examples for other students. By doing this, students will learn to integrate Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
E.2.
Graphing calculators and Calculator Based Laboratory (CBL) systems.
Measurement Graphing calculators and CBL’s with probes can be used to illustrate some basic physical properties and behaviors relevant to aerospace technology. For example, students will determine acceleration due to gravity by collecting, organizing, graphing and analyzing data.
Graphing: Graphing calculators quickly convert measurements and calculations into graphical form for easier interpretations, saving time otherwise spent graphing manually and allowing more class time for investigating physical phenomena.
Calculating; Graphing calculators make many types of quantitative analyses- an important part of scientific investigations – more efficient and effective.
E. Connection to Systemic Reform. Ten years ago the National Science Foundation funded the South Carolina Systemic Initiative for improving the K-12 teaching and learning of mathematics, science, and technology. Although these is the last year, some components of the infrastructure will remain. For example, our regional Hub/center through the State Department of Education will continue to provide curriculum support through both mathematics and a science specialist. We will seek the assistance of both of these individuals as we modify our course.
Standard 1 of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Educatino (NCATE) calls for all teacher candidates and other professional school personnel to know and demonstrate the content, pedagogical, and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn. In addition, a section of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) states “all elementary teachers must demonstrate subject matter knowledge.”
The Support from NASA with its’ reform objectives will ensure that the Math 200 course at Claflin has the appropriate content and pedagogy demanded by the South Carolina State Department of Education, NCATE, and the NCLB ESEA. As other systemic reforms evolve, we will explore opportunities for collaboration.
IV. CONNECTION TO
NASA STRATEGIC ENTERPRISES
A. Aerospace Technology (ATE). Two of the primary goals of the ATE are to improve the awareness of ATE to the public through education and outreach programs and to ensure the widest application of NASA-Developed technology to benefit the nation. We will address questions such as “how rockets liftoff from the earth’s surface,” – which is an application of Newton’s Laws of Motions – and “how the Hubble Space Telescope hangs in outer space—an example of equilibrium conditions will be addressed. Our modified Math 200 course will address these goals through the following objectives.
1.) “Teaching Future Teachers who will train the next generation of scientists.” Our modified interdisciplinary math course will serve to assure that the mathematics educators who train our future scientists will have a strong content preparation and pedagogical underpinnings.
2.) “Continue to educate and train educators as capabilities change.” By interfacing with NASA with regard to ATE content, the instructors for the modified course can be assured that course content undergoes continual updating as capabilities change.
3.) “Improve Math, Science, and Engineering literacy.” NASA’s office of aerospace technology sponsors a broad range of professionally designed learning activities and materials for students and teachers at all grade levels. The course will utilize these leanings materials and will support the national standards for mathematics, science and technology education.
4.) “Strengthen the interface between educators and NASA scientists, and secure greater support by scientists for broad education effort.” As a corollary to our usage of the NASA Quest website to interact with NASA scientist, our Office of Research Development will work to initiate collaborations between the scientist/educators here as the researchers at NASA.
B. Biological and Physical Research (BPR). One of the fundamental question addressed by NASA’s BPR Enterprise involves the specific roles that gravity and other aspects of the space environment plan in biological and physical processes? The Math 200 course will identify the principles of mathematics nad physics that apply to microgravity. A second fundamental question seeks to determine what research must be done in order to allow humans to live and work safely in earth orbit? The modified course will use the topic of International Space Station Clean Water to address this question. The activities designed to answer the above questions will excite our students with hands on inquiry-based experiment.
V. COLLABORATIVE
EFFORTS
A. Ties to public schools. We will recruit content experts from NASA, Higher Education and the regional mathematics & Science center for our Curriculum Committee. The content experts form the Regional Mathematics and Science center work closely with the local schools. In-service teachers who have attended NASA sponsored workshops will also be chosen. The Curriculum Committee will be responsible for the design and modification of the Math 200 Course specifically addressing activities, technology, and assessment for particular principles taught with the course.
B. Involvement of undergraduate students. Junior or Senior level undergraduate mathematics education majors, biology education majors, and computer science majors will be invited to serve as presenters for special topics in the modified course. This will give them valuable experience in presenting scientific data.
C. Interdisciplinary Connections. . The
three principal investigators (Dr. Sriskanda,
Engineering; Dr. Velummylum, Mathematics; and Mrs.
Theresa Davis, Mathematics Education) for this proposal come from the
Mathematics and Computer Science Department.
One team member has experience teaching the methods courses in the Department
of Teacher Education. Thus, we are committed to working together closely with
the Department of Teacher Education during the design, implementation, and
evaluation of our modified course. In
addition, the Chair of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (who is
a biology professor at
D. Community Involvement . We will consult with the experts at
VI. Project
Assessment and Evaluation.
A. Design and Implementation Curriculum Committee. We will assemble a diverse curriculum committee to advise us about the design, implementation, assessment and evaluation of the course. The curriculum committee in lcudes scientists forms NASA, individuals from Higher Education, an expert in instructional technology, two content specialists, one pre-service elementary education major and one pre-service mathematics education major, three elementary education in-service teachers, and The Chair of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.
C. Project milestones.
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Summer 2003 |
Fall 2003 |
Spring 2004 (PILOT TRIAL) |
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1. Begin course design: clarify learning objectives, identify assessment strategies, and select likely context and exercise topics and appropriate pedagogical methods. |
1.Develop exercises |
1.Have two faculty members co-teach Math 200 |
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2.Integrate pedagogy, content and assessment |
2.Attend Nova Leadership Development Conference |
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2.Select appropriate technologies |
3.Assign duties of co-instructors |
3.Evaluate course to identify problems and make adjustments |
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4.Prepare detailed syllabus |
4.Draft report to NOVA |
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3.Attend curriculum design workshop |
5.Share the modified co-course with the department and division members |
5.Prepare to teach the course for Fall 2004 |
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6.Design evaluation rubric |