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WCER Today

January 2012

IN THIS ISSUE

Feature Story: Adolescent Reasoning in Mathematical and Non-mathematical Domains

Research Notes:

• Design Challenges for Middle School Science Students
• Mathieu Named AAAS Fellow
• Spanish Academic Language Standards and Assessment
• Blended Learning Across Virtual and Natural Ecosystems

Feature Story

Adolescent Reasoning in Mathematical and Non-mathematical Domains

A perennial concern in mathematics education is that students often fail to understand the nature of evidence and justification in mathematics, that is, the nature of proof. As a consequence, significant attention has been directed toward enhancing the role of proof in school mathematics.

Mathematical proofs play a critical role in promoting deep learning. Proofs constitute the basis of mathematical understanding and are essential in developing, establishing, and communicating mathematical knowledge. Yet, despite its importance to learning as well as the attention being placed on proof in school mathematics, research has often painted a bleak picture of adolescent students’ abilities to reason mathematically.

If true, that lack is especially unfortunate because skill in reasoning goes beyond mathematics to help students become citizens who can think logically and critically.

In contrast, cognitive science research has revealed surprising strengths in children’s abilities to reason inferentially in non-mathematical domains. Traditional views have posited children as limited to understanding obvious relations among observable properties. Yet there is growing evidence that children are capable of developing sophisticated causal theories, and of using powerful strategies of inductive inference when reasoning about the natural world.

This raises a paradox: Why do children appear so capable when reasoning in non-mathematical contexts, yet seemingly appear much less capable when reasoning in mathematical domains?

UW Madison education professors Eric Knuth, Charles Kalish, Amy Ellis, and colleagues explored that  paradox. Their research bridges the research on adolescents’ reasoning capabilities within mathematics education and within cognitive science.

A primary challenge students face in developing an understanding of deductive proof is overcoming their reliance on empirical evidence. In fact, the wealth of studies investigating students’ proving competencies demonstrates that students overwhelmingly rely on examples to justify the truth of statements.

Read the full article here.

Research Notes

Design Challenges for Middle School Science Students

Students and teachers in Grades 6-8 are piloting an approach to science instruction using a technology-rich interactive environment. Developed by Sadhana Puntambekar and colleagues, these science materials focus on work & energy and forces & motion. Students read texts and gather evidence, write procedures and explanations, use scientific and technical language, understand relationships between concepts, provide summaries, and use quantitative information in text. A hypertext system, CoMPASS-Physics, engages students in design challenges, simulations, and experiments using physical materials like ramps and pulleys. In small group and whole class discussions students collaborate throughout the modules. More...

Mathieu Named AAAS Fellow

WCER researcher Robert Mathieu is among 3 UW–Madison scientists recently named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  As professor of astronomy Mathieu conducts fundamental research on star clusters, binaries, and star-forming regions; provides community service and leadership of the WIYN Observatory; and is a proponent of innovation in STEM education. Selection as a AAAS fellow is a high honor conferred by peers in recognition of distinguished efforts to advance science. More....

Spanish Academic Language Standards and Assessment

Staff from the WIDA Consortium are beginning to develop Spanish language development standards for students in Pre-K through twelfth grade. These standards will underlie a practicable, reliable, and valid Spanish language proficiency assessment system for Kindergarten and Grades 1-2 for first-language-Spanish English language learners, and for students receiving content area instruction in Spanish, regardless of their first language. The project will collaborate with state educational agencies, institutions of higher education, local educational agencies, and other research institutions to develop, research, and administer a standards-referenced assessment system. More...

Blended Learning Across Virtual and Natural Ecosystems

Kurt Squire and colleagues are testing the hypothesis that student engagement, self-sufficiency, and understanding of life science will be enhanced if students participating in field trips employ mobile devices to collect and share data, visit geo-referenced locations, and access on-site information. The EcoMOBILE project involves middle school students and teachers, curriculum developers, and education researchers. The project is collecting data on the use of mobile-device enabled technologies on field trips and the effect of these tools on student learning gains. EcoMOBILE will compare the test curriculum with a similar, but more traditional field trip curriculum.. More...

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Part of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the 44-year-old Wisconsin Center for Education Research receives funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, and private foundations. http://www.wcer.wisc.edu

Contact the editor: pbaker@wisc.edu