scholarly journals An Examination of an Online Tutoring Program’s Impact on Low-Achieving Middle School Students’ Mathematics Achievement

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shanan Chappell ◽  
Pamela Arnold ◽  
John Nunnery ◽  
Melva Grant
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Mathematics Achievement ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Progress Monitoring ◽  
Student Assessment ◽  
School Students ◽  
Assessment Scores ◽  
Online Tutoring ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to determine the impact of synchronous online tutoring services on struggling middle school students’ mathematics achievement. The online tutoring was provided as a response to intervention (RTI) Tier 3 support (intensive, individualized intervention) in schools implementing a school-wide mathematics program that addresses Tier 1 (high-quality classroom instruction) and Tier 2 (small group interventions). We employed quasi-experimental, within- and between-group designs to examine impacts for 119 students in two schools to measure the tutoring’s impact on mathematics assessment scores. We also conducted qualitative analyses of student and tutor postsession commentary. The findings suggest that the tutoring contributed to statistically significant gains in student assessment scores postintervention. Online tutors’ descriptions of their practice centered on ongoing progress monitoring of student learning, delivery of guided practice to students, the use of multiple explanations and representations of target concepts. Student perceptions of the online tutoring were predominately positive in nature.

Lessons Learned about Designing Augmented Realities

2011 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick O’Shea ◽  
Rebecca Mitchell ◽  
Catherine Johnston ◽  
Chris Dede
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Augmented Reality ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
School Students ◽  
Initial Development ◽  
Design Heuristics ◽  
Handheld Computing ◽  
The Impact

Utilizing GPS-enabled handheld computing units, we have developed and studied Augmented Reality (AR) curricula to help middle-school students learn literacy and math. In AR, students move around an outdoor physical environment, interacting with virtual characters and artifacts on their handheld computer. These “invisible” objects and characters provide clues to help solve a mystery, guiding the students through a process of inquiry and evidence-building. The first AR curriculum we developed, Alien Contact!, is based on a scenario where aliens have crash landed near the students’ middle school. Students, working in teams, learn math and literacy skills in the course of determining why the aliens have come to earth. This study describes the design heuristics used during the initial development and deployment of Alien Contact!, the results of two formative evaluations of this curriculum, and the impact these findings have had on revising our design heuristics for a subsequent AR curriculum about beached whales, called Gray Anatomy.

“The Way I Think About Scientists Has Changed”

2021 ◽  
pp. 43-58
Author(s):  
Brandon Grossman ◽  
Donna Farland-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
School Students ◽  
Work Location ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Way

The purpose of this research was to assess the impact of virtual, discussion-based interactions with five scientists on middle school students' (N=48) perceptions of scientists. Based on students' self-reflections and results from Enhanced-Drawings of Scientists Test (E-DAST), the week of virtual discussion-based interactions broadened students' perceptions of what scientists do (activity), where scientists work (location), and what scientists look like (appearance). The virtual discussion-based experiences had the most significant impact on middle school students' perceptions of the work scientists do (activity). As this important finding demonstrates—through middle school students' own words—students' perceptions of the appearance and location of scientists may be ‘gatekeepers' or secondary to the their ideas of what scientists do for activities. In other words, until students can ‘get past' or debunk the stereotype of what scientists look like (appearance) and where they work (location), students may not truly understand the work scientists do (activity).

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document