The Bergen Community College Journal of Scholarly Teaching

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The Bergen Community College Journal of Scholarly Teaching n In this issue n Visual Literacy and STEAM: The Perceptual Analysis of African Art by Charles Bordogna n Placing the Student in the Center of the Learning Experience with Audio and Video Captures in the Classroom by Jessica Fargnoli

n History through the Eyes of the Presidents by Daniel Saperstein and Evan Saperstein

n Effective Online Pedagogy for Student Success

by Melissa Krieger

n The One-Minute Paper in Introductory Economics

by Takvor H. Mutafoglu

n The Heat Seeking Flame Probe: Sharing an Invention with Students to Teach Both Thermodynamics and the Creative Joy of Research and Invention by Michael Francesco

n Giving a “Kahoot� about Teaching/Learning: Motivating and Engaging Nursing Students through Gamification by Carmen Cruz-Torres

n Reading, Writing, and Presenting in the Community College Mathematics Classroom

by Sara Mastellone

n Time, Space, Shape, Motion, and Sculpture

by Lynn Needle

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Editor: Carol Miele, Ed.D. Editorial Board: Beatrice Bridglall, Ph.D. Amarjit Kaur, Ed.D. Special thanks to Paula Williams, Ed.D. for consultation on APA format

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In This Issue Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 William Mulaney, Vice President of Academic Affairs Visual Literacy and STEAM: The Perceptual Analysis of African Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Charles Bordogna, Associate Professor, English Placing the Student in the Center of the Learning Experience with Audio and Video Captures in the Classroom . . . . . . . . .7 Jessica Fargnoli, Adjunct Professor, Communication History through the Eyes of the Presidents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Daniel Saperstein and Evan Saperstein, Adjunct Professors, History Effective Online Pedagogy for Student Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Melissa Krieger, Assistant Professor, Education The One-Minute Paper in Introductory Economics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Takvor H. Mutafoglu, Assistant Professor, Economics The Heat Seeking Flame Probe: Sharing an Invention with Students to Teach Both Thermodynamics and the Creative Joy of Research and Invention . . .25 Michael Francesco, Adjunct Professor, Science, Philosophy and Religion Giving a “Kahoot” about Teaching/Learning: Motivating and Engaging Nursing Students through Gamification . . .29 Carmen Cruz-Torres, Assistant Professor, Nursing Reading, Writing, and Presenting in the Community College Mathematics Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Sara Mastellone, Assistant Professor, Math Time, Space, Shape, Motion, and Sculpture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50 Lynn Needle, Adjunct Professor, Dance

The BCC Journal of Scholarly Teaching • Fall 2016

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Foreword Dr. William P. Mullaney Vice President of Academic Affairs

As the Vice President of Academic Affairs, I am proud to welcome you to the publication of The Bergen Community College Journal of Scholarly Teaching and congratulate those faculty members whose articles appear in this first edition.

One of the first things I noticed after coming to Bergen Community College was the vibrancy of the academic community here. I continue to be impressed not only by the credentials of the faculty but also the quality and volume of scholarly activity that is occurring. Whether it is in articles and publications or through conferences and workshops, scholarship is thriving at BCC. Traditional scholarship in the academic disciplines has been a stronghold at the college since its inception, but what this journal indicates is that the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is now an equally important part of intellectual pursuits of the faculty.

The articles that appear here represent the work of faculty members who have applied and extended their research skills to the classroom. They have often begun their work by asking questions about student learning and then gathered and analyzed a variety of evidence to answer these questions. This evidence can take many forms, both qualitative and quantitative. In addition to the original research that often results, their work may have taken the form of a literature review or analysis of existing SoTL research to understand more deeply the evidence and theory of a specific aspect of teaching and learning. This work represents a significant contribution to a growing body of knowledge about how students learn.

When thinking about scholarship, I am often inspired by the words of the Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote, “Scholarship is to be created not by compulsion, but by awakening a pure interest in knowledge. The wise instructor accomplishes this by opening to his pupils precisely the attractions the study has for himself.” This journal is a proof that Bergen Community College strives to awaken our students to wonders of the world.

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The BCC Journal of Scholarly Teaching • Fall 2016

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n Visual Literacy and STEM:

The Perceptual Analysis of African Art

Charles Bordogna Associate Professor English

Close observation is necessary, not only for the appreciation of art, but also for the development of perceptual accuracy required for critical analysis in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics). Art can enhance one’s awareness of scientific analysis, technology applications, design, geometry, proportion, and composition for “math-minded” students (Matsuzaki, 2016). This research confirms my own experience in bringing students into the Bergen Community College library to engage with African masks and statues. The close observation of these objects from multiple angles and viewpoints reveals proportions, volumes, subtleties, and textures. This experiential approach to learning allows students to make their own discoveries with real cultural objects rather than being told by experts that such-and-such a piece has merit. The perceptual analysis of African art encourages curiosity and creative exploration. Students can describe their own discoveries, write analytical descriptions, present illustrated or computer simulations, or calculate objects in mathematical values. Additionally, African art can be a springboard for research into Cultural Anthropology, Psychology, History, and Aesthetics. Since many students are highly visual learners, the perceptual analysis of African art promotes multiple learning engagements that stimulate critical thinking.

Those students who are unfamiliar with African art, and that may be most, would be comfortable working with objects that allow for various interpretations. The

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examination of a piece allows students to explore why a mask or figure would resonate with them. Indeed, why should an African mask, created in a dramatically different culture, speak to Western students? The reality is that these dramatic objects have a presence that is affectively appealing despite cultural differences.

Masks are more than decorative objects that add an element of drama to a drab room. They are objects of power that resonate within the depths and complexity of the human mind. As such, African objects are rich resources for analysis, contemplation, and enjoyment.

Examining African art enables students to explore a new world of objects with curiosity and without a pre-structured rubric of interpretation. Students are not told what to think; rather, they are allowed to make sense of the tangible unknown. They are not told to approach art through a prescribed interpretation but are encouraged to engage creatively with the object through a number of possible approaches.

The first approach – the preliminary visual experience – can be complemented by sketching or measuring the selected object. This step is not unlike drawing a microscopic cell or sketching a muscle’s structure. In fact, preliminary looking and illustrating are commonly used to promote accurate scientific observation. Sketching African masks or statues enables students to preserve what they see, while capturing significant details. The creative act of sketching deepens the student’s initial experience with the object. Spatial thinking skills are developed through this activity.

The second approach is the slow perceptual reflection of an object. Peter Felten (2008), writing on visual literacy, tells us that just because we live in an “imagerich” world does not mean students automatically possess sophisticated visual literacy skills. In fact, image immersion and profusion inundate students with so many visuals at such a fast pace that time for reflection is often impossible. The intake of images is so rapid that the body’s physical sensorium has been unconsciously trained to be impatient with a slower tempo of images. STEAM students need to transition consciously to a perceptual pace that allows for contemplation, stillness, and focus. A tangible object that can be viewed from multiple angles allows students to reflect. Science students may wonder about the surface qualities of the object, the pigments or patina, the type of wood used or the implements used by the artist in the carving. Technology students may wonder how the object could be photographed for a computer scan, the interplay of the planes or volumes of the object that create a kinesthetic feeling of movement. Art students may ponder the visceral qualities emanating from the object, the emotional presence. Engineering students may wonder about the use and selection of wood, the patterns of the grains, the density of the fiber, or the chemical composition of the surface encrustation. Math students may reflect on the balance of the elements and the measurements of the composition.

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A third approach for creative engagement with the object is to employ critical thinking. The skills necessary for perceptual analysis are analogous to the skills of critical reading – the literal identification of the object, interpretive investigation, creating value judgments, and developing personal preference. We may consider an African mask a multi-dimensional text that students can explore with patience, training, and practice. A distinct semantic vocabulary of visual forms can be developed, as one grows more sophisticated in the process of perceiving and analyzing visual images. Felton (2008) calls visual literacy, “… the ability to understand, produce, and use culturally significant images, objects, and visible actions” (p. 60). The object as text requires that we use the vocabulary of our specific discipline to describe it.

The fourth approach involves the very physical encounter with the object. Active engagement with the primary African art object is a major aspect of the perceptual experience. Students are not looking at a one-dimensional, miniaturized photograph; they are moving around and handling the object itself, viewing it from every possible angle. Bringing artwork into a personal encounter encourages learners to probe physically the object’s distinctive elements of shape, surface texture, weight, and condition. The classic six questions of Burke’s (1969) pentad can be used to initiate investigation: who, what, when, where, why, and how? The forensic examination of the object leads to questions of age, authenticity, and usage. Who are or were the people who have produced the object? Where do they live? What language do they speak? Do they have written language? What is the object’s significance in its culture? How is an object valued in its culture? Is the object “real” or a recent copy? How does one value the object in the Western culture? What does the object tell us of its creators, their culture, belief systems, and values?

The perceptual analysis of African art allows the students to have an extended encounter with an object of aesthetic and ethnographic importance. The instructor should encourage close and thorough examination, invite student impressions, explore interpretations, and initiate group discussions. Clearly, at first, not everyone is going to “see” the same object. For some, the object may evoke a personal bias (which in itself can be discussed). For others, the visual elements may provoke confusion. One of the teaching challenges is to have students make sense of what they are experiencing in the object. This is not unlike a nature walk where leaves, trees, and fauna are discovered and explored for their distinctive elements. Students in STEM need to develop their powers of observation, for scientific observation “is a rigorous activity that integrates what the scientists are seeing with what they already know and what they think might be true” (Paul, para. 1). Just as scientists, students should offer hypotheses about the creative process, the artist’s intention, and support their assertions with evidence in the artwork.

To conclude, in this high tech world, visual literacy, whether recognized as a

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particular set of skills or as part of perceptual investigative analysis, should be acknowledged among the fundamental attainments of college education. Using African art to enhance the learning experience can complement other resources essential in the development of visual literacy in higher education. It can promote: (1) visual cognition, (2) analytical perception, (3) design recognition, (4) intercultural appreciation, and (5) aesthetic judgment.

References Burke, Kenneth. (1969). A Grammar of Motives. Berkeley: U of California Press.

Felton, Peter. (2008). Visual Literacy. Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning.

40(6), 60-64.

Matsuzaki, Katy. (2016, February). Artstor & STEM: How art can enhance scientiďŹ c and mathematical thinking. The Artstor Blog. Retrieved from https://artstor.wordpress.com/ 2016/02/22/artstor-stem-how-art-can-enhance-scientiďŹ c-and-mathematical-thinking/ Paul, Annie Murphy. (2012, May). How to increase your powers of observation.

TIME. Retrieved from http://ideas.time.com/2012/05/02/how-to-incease-your-powers-of-observation/

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n Placing the Student in the

Center of the Learning Experience with Audio and Video Captures in the Classroom

Jessica Fargnoli Adjunct Professor Communication

When I ďŹ rst instructed my Speech Communication courses in the Fall 2008 semester, my students delivered their speeches in front of a live audience where they received instructor and peer critique in real-time, but they did not have the opportunity to actually see how their speech performance appeared to the audience. I could explain to them in either oral or written response what they needed to improve upon and even model the correct nonverbal communication for proper speech delivery. However, the students could not actually see or hear their speech performance and understand their public speaking strengths and weaknesses. What a student perceived as being a wonderful delivery may not have been good at all, and what a student may have perceived as being an awful delivery may not have been bad at all. Students would be able to beneďŹ t through feedback in a form other than an oral or written response from the instructor. The students lacked a real opportunity for self-reection, intrapersonal dialogue, and personal feedback. They needed the opportunity to be able to visualize their public speaking on their own and form their own analytical and visual perspective of their presentation.

A colleague in my discipline approached me during the 2009 winter break and encouraged me to consider utilizing audio and video captures in my classroom for the Spring 2009 semester. I felt that technology, whether positive or negative, was a tool that could be incorporated into my classroom. It depended on how that tool was utilized in determining what the results

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and effects would be. The College had the software and equipment for faculty and students to use, but it wasn't being utilized. I was familiar with lecture capture when instructors would record their own lecture and make the recordings available to students for study and recall; however, recording students and enabling them to analyze and review their own presentation was an interesting concept.

The technology provided a way to capture students interacting with the audience, and it allowed them to make new connections with themselves, their classmates, and ultimately, their instructor. These features would allow students and instructors alike the ability to conduct a fine analysis of interaction and a study of individual qualities of the speaker.

Fast forward to 2016, I have been utilizing audio and video captures for seven years in my classroom and have found that students are more engaged with the course content, fellow classmates, and with the instructor (Fargnoli, 2012). For example, my students have undergone a professional transformation in how they view and portray themselves. Instead of delivering their speeches in a pair of ripped jeans and a t-shirt with profanity written on it, they dress up in a nice dress shirt and slacks. They take pride in their recordings, want to impress their peers, and strive to embody the role of a professional speaker. Since students are able to review their own audio and video recordings, they can visualize, identify, and apply course concepts quite easily, as well as model appropriate behaviors. If I tell students that they do not maintain enough eye contact with the audience, they can view the recording, see what I am referring to, and identify that they need to work on developing this nonverbal communication with the audience. Without a recording of the student's speech to show the student his or her mannerisms accurately and realistically, the student can interpret critiques as an overzealous, strict instructor who enjoys delivering negative criticism. However, being able to show the students their unique strengths and weaknesses as a public speaker goes a long way in teaching them how to become better communicators.

Incorporating and applying audio and video capture software in college-level Speech Communication courses is an innovative, collaborative, and active learning tool and medium to engage multi-tasking social media users, also referred to as "Digital Natives," who desire instant fulfillment (Tapscott, 1999, 2008; Prensky, 2001a). This particular cohort of students, the Net Generation, speaks the "multimedia language of the screen" allowing them to process audio and video in a way that prior generations did not (Tapscott, 1999, 2008; Bleed, 2005). Through classroom observation and my own survey data administered to my students, it is clear that audio and video captures affords students an opportunity for self-reflection and a customized learning experience (Fargnoli, 2012). It enables them to experience several learning styles, such as visual, auditory, verbal, kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal, all at once (Goleman, 1995; Berk, 2009). Students are placed in the center of the learning experience.

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References Berk, R. (2009). Multimedia teaching with Videoclips: TV, Movies, YouTube, and MTVU in the college classroom. International Journal of Technology in Teaching and Learning, 5 (1), 1-21 Bleed, R. (2005, August). Visual literacy in higher education (Educause Publication No. ELI4001). Retrieved from Educause, Educause Learning Initiative website: http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI4001.pdf Goleman, D. (1995) Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More than IQ. Bantam Dell.

Fargnoli, J. (2012). Utilizing Audio and Video Captures to Train and Engage the Net Generation in Effective Presentation Skills. In Ferris, S. P. (Ed.), Teaching, Learning and the Net Generation: Concepts and Tools for Reaching Digital Learners. (pp. 340-357). doi:10.4018/978-1-61350-3478.ch019 Prensky, M. (2001a). Digital natives, digital immigrants. Part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20%20digital%20natives,%20digital%20immigrants%20-%20part1.pdf Prensky, M. (2001b). Digital natives, digital immigrants. Part II: Do they really think differently? On the Horizon, 9(6), 1-6. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20%20digital%20natives,%20digital%20immigrants%20-%20part2.pdf Prensky, M. (2004). Use Their Tools! Speak Their Language! Connected 10, 8-11.

Retrieved from http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/connected_10_tcm4-122006.pdf Prensky, M. (2006). “Don’t bother me mom--I’m learning!”: How computer and video games are preparing your kids for twenty-first century success and how you can help!. St. Paul, MN: Paragon House.

Tapscott, D. (1999) Growing Up Digital: The Rise of the Net Generation.

McGraw-Hill.

Tapscott, D. (2008) Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is Changing Your World. McGraw-Hill.

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n History through the Eyes of the Presidents

Daniel Saperstein Evan Saperstein Adjunct Professors History

About seventy-five years ago, a Master's student at the University of Southern California wrote a thesis entitled Methods of Teaching History through Biography (Kartozian, 1931). The thesis mapped out advantages and limitations of biographizing history, many of which still hold true today. The author noted, on the one hand, that "all events cannot be taught biographically" and that "biography gives an exaggerated view of the individual" (p.11). On the other hand, the study noted that "biography is more interesting to the [student]," "appeals strongly to the [student’s] dramatic interest," and "gives the [student] an opportunity to use imagination" (16-17).

Through our collective experience as professors at Bergen Community College (BCC) and elsewhere, we recognize and appreciate the varying utility of methodologies for teaching history, including biography. As outlined in Kartozian’s thesis, the degree to which biography guides or shapes the content of a course can hinge on the nature of the historical material. And for one history course at BCC—20th Century United States History since World War II (HIS-114)—the role of biography looms large.

While HIS-114 broadly examines the political, social, economic, and cultural developments in the United States from the 1940s to the present, instead of teaching the course in thematic groupings, we opted to categorize the material by administration (with each president’s tenure titling a lecture unit). Under this ap-

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proach, students are encouraged to view the historical events of the post-World War II era critically through the prism of presidential leadership. Now, that is not to say that we structured the course as pure biography or as an exercise in heroworship. It remains a survey course. It is not a look at the lives of the presidents, nor does it seek to supplant the study of dates, battles, and movements with anecdotes about our nation’s leaders.

We also do not contend that all other United States history courses should be taught in the same manner as HIS-114. To teach, for instance, a class covering 1776 (Declaration of Independence) to 1865 (end of Civil War) or 1865 (beginning of Reconstruction) to 1918 (end of World War I) through the eyes of the presidents would not do the material justice. While prior to World War II there were powerful, eventshaping presidents such as Washington, Jefferson, Jackson, Lincoln, Wilson, and the Roosevelts, the legislative branch (Congress) was more or less co-equal to the executive branch (President). With the end of World War II and the advent of the nuclear age, however, the United States confronted a sustained prospect of war like never before. With this specter of war (among other factors) came increased executive power, morphing the presidency into a "modern" and "full-blown institution" (Milkis & Nelson, 2016, p. 310; Rossiter, 1987). As Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. (1973) underscored in his well-known book The Imperial Presidency, the postWorld War II/Cold War era produced an uncharacteristically strong executive branch—a trend that would only continue with the War on Terror beginning in 2001. Yes, there were ebbs and flows in presidential power following 1945—the post-Watergate Ford and Carter administrations come to mind. As a general matter, however, the presidency has transcended its gridlocked counterpart, Congress, for the past seven decades.

Thus, to know post-World War II history is to know the presidents that defined it. To examine the foreign policies of the Cold War and the War on Terror, and the domestic push for civil rights and reforms, is to recognize the singular impact that one person can have on the direction of the country at any given time—from the Truman Doctrine to Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System, from Kennedy's Cuban Missile Crisis to Johnson’s Great Society and Vietnam, from Nixon's Watergate to Ford's pardon, from Carter's hostage crisis to Reagan's "evil empire" speech, from the first Bush's Gulf War to Clinton's impeachment, from the second Bush’s Gulf War to Obamacare.

It is from the vantage point of these leaders that we can best gauge our recent history. One such leader, former President Clinton (2013), made this very point when praising his successor's library for “invit[ing] us to make different decisions, if we choose, on [sic] the decisions [the president] was facing.” And that is precisely the message and goal of HIS-114–for students to put themselves in the shoes of presidential decision-makers, stare through the lens of history, and evaluate the results.

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References Clinton, B. (2013). Speech presented at George W. Bush Presidential Library Opening in Dallas, Texas. http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1304/25/cnr.06.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8zS23nAy5k Kartozian, A. A. (1931). Methods of teaching history through biography (Master's thesis). Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses database. (Order No. EP56776).

Milkis, S. M., & Nelson, M. (2016). The American presidency: Origins and development, 1776-2014. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press.

Rossiter, C. (1987). The American presidency. Baltimore, MD: John Hopkins University Press.

Schlesinger, A. M. (1973). The imperial presidency. Boston, MA: Houghton Miin.

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n Effective Online Pedagogy for Student Success

Melissa Krieger Associate Professor Education

The uniqueness of the community college student population indicates that varied instructional strategies are necessary in order for our teaching to influence student learning in a significant way. Students’ academic needs must inspire college faculty to examine and experiment with a variety of research-based pedagogical principles in order to impact academic success. Open enrollment means that students embody all categories of diversity–linguistic, economic, cultural, age, skills, and learning style. Factors such as variability in English language acquisition, immigration status, special learning needs and more, all indicate that students in community college will not learn in uniform ways, and teachers cannot rely solely on traditional college-level teaching methods. To increase enrollment and decrease attrition, the value of engaging our students in the classroom requires our full attention. If academic institutions of higher learning are to increase the retention and graduation of all students, student success endeavors must be centered on the classroom (Tinto, 2012). College-wide student success initiatives that are focused on teaching and learning will produce greater institutional effectiveness and excellence in classroom engagement and teaching, which will lead to higher college-completion rates and better preparation of students for the workplace.

If we accept the classroom as the starting point for student success initiatives, it is important that evidence-based pedagogy be manifested in all learning environments, including on-campus, hybrid and on-

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line course offerings. With a focus on accommodating students’ need for flexible scheduling, more and more college programs offer online courses, and excellent pedagogy in the online classroom is an area that I am currently researching. Based on data related to increased retention when active learning strategies are in place, it seems that students should engage collaboratively regardless of whether the classroom is face-to-face or virtual (Tinto,1993).

It is clear that students today think and process information fundamentally differently from their predecessors, bringing to today’s classroom their preferences for collaborating, connecting, and creating social change (Prensky, 2001). Engaged in a research-based professional development project for my reappointment at Bergen, I developed an online course which incorporates active learning strategies calling for greater student collaboration in the virtual environment. This online course reflects all elements of effective pedagogy, and my preliminary findings have influenced how I view effective online pedagogy. I am currently evaluating and experimenting with a variety of instructional methods in the development of online assignments and will continue to research aspects of the most effective course design for the teacher training.

My preliminary findings suggest that attention to the diverse needs of students enrolled in community colleges be reflected equally, in both content and delivery of our online courses. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) (Meyer, Rose, Gordon, 2014), can be used as the framework for developing and revising online courses to address all our students’ needs better. There should be complementary guidelines for differentiating instruction, course materials, and means of assessment, regardless of the mode of delivery. In this way, college instructors can enhance content with the passion they feel for their discipline and truly enjoy academic freedom within their courses, as excellent pedagogical principles for student engagement and learning would be the built-in foundation for all courses. Certainly, with equity on the forefront of our student success initiatives, we must ensure that all students are presented with the same opportunities to learn course material.

Recognizing that the realm of the virtual classroom varies greatly from face-toface classes, I have found that certain guidelines and pedagogical practices should be reflected in the online course design. Most importantly, the design of the online course environment has to take into account the role of the classroom, where the great majority of students meet the professor and one another to engage in formal learning activities (Tinto, 2012). The fact that what goes on in the classroom is so clearly linked to student success must not be ignored in online course design. Oncampus instruction gives ample opportunities for instructors to provide visual, auditory and kinesthetic input, in the form of lectures and Power Point presentations. Furthermore, instructors teaching face-to face courses provide opportunities for students to take notes, both during lectures and while students engage in small

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or whole group discussions. In the on-campus classroom environment, role-playing and debates can take place seamlessly, also adding elements of visual, auditory and kinesthetic input leading to optimal student learning and engagement (Fleming 2012). All of these factors and opportunities must be incorporated in some way into the online environment.

However, attention to varied instructional input in an online environment requires a substantial amount of effort and preparation. It is up to the online instructors, to develop courses that integrate engaging academic resources with thoughtful instructional strategies that rely on student collaboration and peer work. While academic essay writing skills, critical thinking and presentation skills remain strong components in online coursework, we must also include innovative strategies to engage and motivate students to participate in weekly and ongoing activities. When coursework pairs the traditional means of assessment with the on-going endeavor of integrating all available technologies, online teaching will lead to improvements in student engagement and learning. Collaborative assignments, which require the cooperative effort of students and their joint input, will guarantee the positive outcomes of online teaching, leading to the development of the 21st century skills, which equals student success.

To support my perspectives on engaging students in online courses, I have done a considerable amount of research on the topic of effective online course design.

I developed a fully online section of a required course in the Early Childhood Education associate degree program. This course, EDU-130: Infant and Toddler Development, was previously offered only in an on-campus format, and since the Fall 2013 semester, had a maximum enrollment of 18 students, who were more than likely Early Childhood Education majors. In the Spring 2016 semester, when the online format was first offered, 26 students registered. Along with the increase in student enrollment, there was high student retention throughout the semester.

Though 3 students did not participate consistently, 23 students demonstrated constant engagement and participation throughout the course. I believe the low attrition and strong self-regulation demonstrated by most of the students were direct outcomes of the active learning strategies incorporated into the course design. As well, students were provided with specific and regular feedback on their weekly assignments and discussions with all questions and concerns answered in a timely way. The high level of support and the interactivity certainly contributed to the positive feedback that I received within three separate student surveys taken throughout the semester.

With student success in mind, I incorporated the effective pedagogical strategies used in the face-to-face classroom environment into my online course materials, assignments and discussions. Assessment activities allowed for all student work to be viewed and discussed, with exemplary work serving as models for all stu-

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dents to achieve the objectives of each topic. With the additional guidance I provided and through feedback from their peers, a sense of community developed, with a strong spirit of teamwork leading to their greater confidence and accountability.

Though not a formal learning community, the essence of ‘learning in a community’ was laced throughout my students’ online experience and will, hopefully, continue into the new peer relationships. Discipline-specific opportunities to participate in Service Learning and community outreach group endeavors, which require students to collaborate in person on various projects, can lead to students’ behaving as members of a professional learning community. In my research, I have noted that volunteering in the field was a springboard for friendships built on similar interests and goals, and what certainly looks like supportive academic relationships. Consider the sense of belonging online students feel when they meet and participate in volunteer work as a group, when they are meaningfully involved in course assignments and related activities that they feel passionate about. Inspiration and commitment develop organically through these shared experiences that call for a personal perspective supported with concepts and ideas they learn through online instruction. Through my research, I have seen that it is beneficial for online students to engage collaboratively in person resulting in a learning community in action.

For me, the experience of thoughtful online course design has been deeply rewarding, as I consistently witness the development and advancement of strong academic and personal skills in my students. The positive characteristics that lead to future life success are also reflected in these students’ participation and performance. Of course, technological and literacy skills advance dramatically as students learn how to upload videos that they create, post their often too large presentation files, create scripts for their role plays, and interact with one another in writing, in an ongoing and academic way. Personal and academic skills also advance. Students grow more confident in written communication, and achieve a sense of self-efficacy, and demonstrate more empathy in their feedback and the support they provide for one another in discussions. Students need to navigate the online coursework individually, and through their own efforts, they must independently complete challenging assignments that require trouble-shooting and problem solving. My online students continually demonstrate their dedication, reflected by their low attrition and high participation. The success of these online students provides me with a sense of accomplishment and a strong motivation to revise my other online courses to mirror what I have learned through my research project. This endeavor is ongoing and consistent and keeps me deeply connected to exactly how I need to present course materials and develop assignments and assessments in order to ensure that students are constantly engaged in order to learn the information that they need in order to succeed.

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Recent curriculum revisions within the Education program have strengthened the program by providing greater support for Education majors to fulfill their desire to become future teachers. On-board faculty advising, close guidance within their fieldwork, and Service Learning opportunities have led to more focused students, who clearly recognize how to turn their passion into a plan. Information about how to earn teacher certification in order to work in New Jersey’s public schools is built directly into on-campus coursework and regularly supported by ‘rightafter-class’ group advising sessions. This approach to imparting important career and academic advice was effectively folded into my online course as well and supported by online discussions that encouraged general questions related to the field of teaching. Many times students themselves responded accurately to their peers’ questions, and at other times, I answered these questions directly on the forum so that all could view the information.

In this instance and throughout the course, students found that their instructor was approachable and reachable. These question and answer forums mirrored my on-campus accessibility and the advising I offer to all Education majors. The collaborative spirit of so many of my online students volunteering to work with children in Bergen County, their high attendance at off-campus and on-campus workshops in preparation for transfer to four year Teacher Education programs, and the departmental academic advising they are offered all add to the feeling of community that both online and on-campus Education majors appreciate overall.

Non-education majors in my online course have also been impacted. Many have revisited their future goals, considering the possibility of becoming classroom teachers, having been positively influenced by their peers’ goals of becoming certified teachers, school support staff, daycare directors, and other employment options available in the field of Education. I am hopeful that the essence of this collaborative spirit will be reflected in future data to report greater graduation, transfer and employment rates of our Education majors. Nothing would be more personally and professionally satisfying than to see Bergen County P-12 classrooms flooded with BCC alumni in the very near future.

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References Fleming, N. D. (1995). I'm different; not dumb. Modes of presentation (VARK) in the tertiary classroom. In A. Zelmer (Ed.), Research and Development in Higher Education, Proceedings of the 1995 Annual Conference of the Higher Education and Research Development Society of Australasia, HERDSA (Vol. 18, pp. 308 – 313). Retrieved from http://varklearn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ different_not_dumb.pdf Meyer, A., Rose, D. H., & Gordon, D. (2014). Universal design for learning: Theory and Practice. Wakefield, MA: CAST Professional Publishing.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants, Part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/prensky%20%20digital%20natives,%20digital%20immigrants%20-%20part1.pdf Tinto, V. (2012). Completing college: Rethinking institutional action. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

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n The One-Minute Paper in Introductory Economics

Takvor H. Mutafoglu Associate Professor Economics

Introduction The one-minute paper is touted in the education literature as an important pedagogical innovation for improving teaching (Angelo and Cross, 1993). It is implemented in the final minute or two of the class by asking students to respond in writing to two questions: (i) what is the most important thing you learned today? and (ii) what is the least clear issue to you? The first question provides the instructor insight into what is being learned and the second what is still needed. The one-minute paper offers various benefits including but not limited to: (i) guidance for student’s own ongoing instruction (unlike end-of-term evaluations), not for other students in the future, (ii) opportunity for the instructor to review and clarify poorly understood points, (iii) respect for and interest in student opinion as well as active involvement in the learning process, and (iv) stress-free expression of what is being comprehended and not since most students in our classrooms feel nervous about speaking up. Clearly, the one-minute paper presents an easy, low-tech, no-cost way for any professor to improve his or her class during the semester (Light, 1990).

A recent paper by Stowe (2010), examines the impact of numerous factors, including the use of one-minute paper, on student performance in three sections of Principles of Macroeconomics courses offered at Wingate University in North Carolina during the spring semester of 2009. In fact, only one section was the experimental group, responsible for writing a one-

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minute essay at the end of each class. The other two sections were the control group. Empirical evidence shows that students who wrote the one-minute papers scored higher than students who did not. Additionally, Chizmar and Ostrosky (1998) conducted a study in which the instructor began class with the review of questions from the prior meeting’s one-minute papers. The control group did not write papers and did not hear a review at the beginning of class. Their finding is that students who wrote one-minute papers scored higher on the Test of Understanding of College Economics at the end of the semester.

The efficiency of the one-minute paper was tested in two sections of Principles of Macroeconomics, taught by the same instructor, at Bergen Community College, during the spring semester of 2015. One section was the control group and the other section comprised the experimental group. Students in both sections took the same type of quizzes and exams, but the experimental group wrote a oneminute essay at the end of each class.

Methodology & Results This study considered two consecutive sections of Principles of Macroeconomics, from 3:15 to 4:30 pm and 4:45 to 6:00 pm, taught by the same instructor on the same days, Monday & Wednesday. The latter section was chosen as the control group: students did not write a one-minute paper at the end of each class, and the former was chosen as the experimental group: students took exactly the same tests, quizzes, and submit the same homework assignments plus they wrote a oneminute essay at the end of each class, except on a day a test is given. The research question was whether writing influenced students’ course grades in the experimental section.

Each one-minute paper was read by the instructor who then addressed all the confusing topics at the beginning of next class and also posted written comments on the most confusing topics in Moodle, so students could access that information anytime they wished.

There was a practical motivation for choosing the 3:15 to 4:30 pm section as the experimental group and the 4:45 to 6:00 pm section as the control group. The author of this paper has been teaching those two back-to-back sections for the past three years and observed that never once had the overall student performance in the earlier class been higher than that of students in the later class despite the fact that they were taking exactly the same tests, quizzes and submitting the same homework assignments. Therefore, it seemed appropriate to designate the earlier section as the experimental group and the later section as the control group.

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Table 1.1 Descriptive Statistics of Letter Grades Experimental Group Mean Grade 2.2 Median Grade 2.5 Mode Grade 2.5 Maximum Grade 3.5 Minimum Grade 0.0

Control Group 2.0 2.3 0.0 4.0 0.0

Table 1.2 Number of Students & Letter Grades Experimental Group A = 4.0 0 B+ = 3.5 1 B = 3.0 4 C+ = 2.5 10 C = 2.0 6 D = 1.0 2 E = 0.0 1 F = 0.0 1 Total Number of Students 25

Control Group 2 4 5 6 5 4 7 1 34

The results of this pilot project revealed that the descriptive statistics, represented in Table 1.1, of the experimental class were somewhat higher than the control class.

That is, the mean, median, and mode, of students’ course grades in the experimental group seemed to be slightly better than that of students in the control group.

The most significant difference was present in the mode of grades. While the mode was 2.5, a letter grade of C+, for students in the experimental group, it was zero, a letter grade of either E or F, for students in the control group. Whereas the median course grade for students in the experimental group was 2.5, it was calculated as 2.3 for students in the control group. While none of the students in the experimental group earned a 4.0, a letter grade of A, two students achieved that maximum in the control group. The maximum in the experimental group was a 3.5.

The above results indicate that the usefulness of the one-minute paper to improve student performance in Principles of Macroeconomics courses is, in fact, ambiguous. While the mean score of students in the experimental group are somewhat better than the students in the control group, 2.2 and 2.0, respectively, the mean letter grade of students in both sections is essentially the same (see Table 1.2). Furthermore, the presence of several E grades (unofficial withdrawal), with a numerical value of 0.0, in the control group, creates challenges to identifying the true effectiveness of the one-minute paper in this pilot project. More interestingly, (perhaps alarmingly!), the fact that no students in the experimental group achieved a 4.0 should not only be of great concern but might also reflect the limited use of the one-minute paper in fostering student success.

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Conclusion The primary purpose of this pilot project was to investigate whether the use of one-minute paper would help improve student performance in a Principles of Macroeconomics course offered during the 3:15 to 4:30 pm time period (experimental group) in which students have consistently, in the past three years, performed poorly compared to their peers in a 4:45 to 6:00 pm time period (control group). The results are in line with the research literature presented in the introduction section of this paper. That is, the implementation of this project essentially increased student course grades in the experimental section and lifted the student performance to the same level of the control section. Nevertheless, it did not help surpass that higher level of performance usually displayed by students in the later section, 4:45 to 6:00 pm.

There were several notable observations during the application of the project.

Although participation in the project was strong at the beginning of the semester, many students decided to opt-out after the spring break. There was almost a 50 percent decline in the response rate. Moreover, students had a tendency to write down the final topic discussed during the class as the most confusing one in their papers. Hence, it was difficult to determine whether that topic was, in fact, confusing or whether it was just an easy response to fulfill a requirement at the end of the class. The instructor’s responses to one-minute papers were provided not only at the beginning of the next class but also via Moodle, so students could go back anytime and read the explanations. It has come to the author’s attention that a significant number of students lacked the basic operational knowledge of Moodle as well as Bergen e-mail. Consequently, it seems plausible to consider that the decline in the response rate accompanied by the lack of technical knowledge may have contributed to the meager student performance. Future research should, perhaps, attempt to make participation in the activity mandatory, part of student’s final grade, and present students, the first day of class, the simple mechanics of Moodle, as well as the importance of utilizing the Bergen portal.

Furthermore, interested instructors may consider implementing the exercise in one particular section (experimental group) throughout a semester and compare student performance to the same section taught in the previous semester (control group). Such an attempt to improve the study may shed more light on the efficiency of utilizing the one-minute paper in the classroom since it would compare student performance in same sections across semesters as opposed to different sections in the same semester.

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References Angelo, T.A., & Cross, K.P. (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Chizmar, J.F., & Ostrosky, A.L. (1998). The One-Minute Paper: Some Empirical Findings. Journal of Economic Education, 29(1), 3-10.

Light, R.J. (1990). Explorations with Students and Faculty about Teaching, Learning, and Student Life. The Harvard Assessment Seminars, First Report. Cambridge, MA: Graduate School of Education and Kennedy School of Government.

Stowe, K. (2010). A Quick Argument for Active Learning: The Eectiveness of One-Minute Papers. Journal of Economic Educators, 10(1), 33-39.

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n The Heat Seeking Flame Probe:

Sharing an Invention with Students to Teach Both Thermodynamics and the Creative Joy of Research and Invention

Michael Francesco Adjunct Professor Science, Philosophy and Religion

The Heat Seeking Flame Probe (HSFP) was designed and built by me and my colleague Fady Ishak to autonomously scan a flame and find its hottest point, displaying temperatures as a continuous digital readout on an LCD display. It was designed to be a demonstration device useful in Chemistry lectures or labs when teaching the temperature differences found at different points of a Bunsen burner or candle’s flame. I have also found it to be a useful demonstration for physics, electronics and robotics classes to show students the application of STEM principles by illustrating in a concrete way the whole creative process of conception, design, construction and programing of a “smart” device that can scan its environment, take measurements and respond mechanically to what it is sensing as an autonomous system. Students seem appreciative that I am sharing with them in class a device that I personally designed and made, and I go through an introductory presentation for them of what my colleague and I were trying to create and the challenges encountered in its design and fabrication, as well as the interdisciplinary science involved in understanding thermocouples, flame chemistry, thermodynamics, electronic wiring, programing a microprocessor and the physical fabrication of the device with its gears and moving mechanical parts (robotics).

A thermocouple simply consists of two wires of different metals joined together. Thermocouples generate a small voltage when heated, and consequently can function as a kind of electronic thermometer. The idea

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is to send the voltage generated when the thermocouple is in the flame into a microprocessor which also controls an attached motor that can move the thermocouple through the flame until finding the hottest point. In building the device, a type-K thermocouple was used as a flame sensor to generate a temperature-dependent output voltage, which was amplified using an operational amplifier (LM 358N) and sent into a Parallax Basic Stamp 2 microprocessor via an A/D converter. Code was written in PBASIC to adjust the motion of a servo motor in response to the thermocouple’s output, allowing the attached gear system to move the thermocouple vertically until it found the hottest point in the flame. It then oscillates about the point of maximum temperature, which is usually at the top of the inner cone of the flame, but often moves in response to the flame’s dynamic fluctuations. Throughout the scan, a continuous LED display shows students the current temperature at that point in the flame (see figures 1 and 2).

Active Elements 5V

Rf=100 k!

5V 1/0 ready

Ri=1 k!

p2

p1

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+

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Thermocouple

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p8

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Figure 1: Wiring, components and connections.

Flowchart of Signals and Actions Heat Source

A

Heat Probe

OP-AMP 3885 C

B

AD CONVERTER

1-The heat source sends heat (A) into the probe (thermocouple) 2-The probe generates an analog

Basic Stamp 2

voltage which will be amplified through the OP-AMP (B) ,

D

which is sent to an A/D Converter (c) and then to the

E LED Converter

Basic Stamp 2 microprocessor.

3-The basic stamp activates motor ( D) to begin moving motor upward

Motor

It will sample voltage and calculate

F

corresponding temperatures .

4. The motor will compare successive temperature values until a decrease in temperature is detected , at which point it will reverse, oscillating at the point of maximum temperature.

LED Display

5. There will be a continuous LED display of the temp (°C).

Figure 2: Flowchart of signals and actions.

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Calibration of the device was done with water baths between 0 and 100°C, giving amplified readings of 240 Celsius degrees per Volt output from the amplified thermocouple signal. Using a candle flame, low temperatures in the 200-350 °C range were found near the lower wick of paraffin candles, with a hot spot varying between 600 – 750 °C. 20䇿 high

Heat Seeking Flame Probe

Stand

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Thermocouple

20䇿 high

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Plexiglass box 20 䇾 height 15䇿 width base 10 䇾 length base

Candle Circuit

Temperature Display

650 ºC

Basic Stamp 2

Stand STAND !15䇿!

Figure 3: Physical structure of the HSFP (left) and the author assembling and testing the device in its early stages.

Part of the research process that we teach students involves finding a way to measure something new that we may be investigating for the first time. In the laboratory that may mean literally building a new measuring device, or in the humanities it may mean designing a new research methodology or mining for new data, applying a unique approach to find fresh understandings of things we may already feel we know well. I like to demonstrate the HSFP not merely to teach about the thermodynamics of the candle and flame, but to share my own experience of the creative process of invention and the role it plays in the scientific endeavor of discovery. I find that students respond very positively to the fact that I am sharing something personal that my colleague and I conceived and actually created ourselves with our own minds and hands, that needed to be tinkered with, reconceived and reattempted after failed construction designs and trials, until it ultimately began working as an autonomous system that could find on its own the hottest point in a flame. This is part of the creative process not only of science, but of academic research and innovation in general.

When the probe’s robotic arm begins moving, and temperatures light upon the screen, I am often surprised to find the students very positive reaction to and engagement in the demonstration. I could certainly purchase for the lab an infrared sensor that would measure a candle flames’ temperature, but that would hardly allow me to share the fun and adventure of creating a measuring device from scratch and of making it “smart” with a microprocessor and some code. The HSFP has been of value to me as a teacher of not just Physics and Chemistry, but as a teacher of the human experience of learning, invention, research and discovery that is so much a part of what we seek to experience and share in the academic world.

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We designed and built our original HSFP at Brooklyn Polytechnic University in New York City as part the SMART Mechatronics program through a grant from the National Science Foundation and the University to promote robotics innovation and invention among educators and their students. The NSF as the funders holds all proprietary rights to the device (and all devices designed by those in the program) and they are made available to educators through Brooklyn Polytechnic as needed for classroom use.

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n Giving a “Kahoot” about

Teaching/Learning: Motivating and Engaging Nursing Students through Gamification

Carmen Cruz-Torres Assistant Professor Nursing

Creating active, student-centered learning activities is challenging for faculty in nursing education. Today, nursing students are digital learners and find traditional lectures limiting (Prensky, 2001). Gamification is a teaching strategy that can be used to relieve the boredom of traditional lecture and allow for engagement with course content. Gamification is a recent trend in education that incorporates game elements in nongame applications or domains. The objective of using gamification as a learning activity is to stimulate in learners the same motivation and engagement toward education that gamers have towards games. By increasing learner motivation and engagement, learning is predicted to improve. (Cheong, Filippou & Cheong, 2014).

Gaming technology in nursing education caters to meeting the needs of kinesthetic/tactile learners and digital students (Meehan-Andrews, 2009). Gamification in nursing as a teaching and learning strategy also supports concepts of active learning (Royce & Newton, 2007). Active learning methods allow students to develop concepts, understand principles and apply knowledge in nursing practice instead of being “spoonfed factual information” (Rossignol, 2000). During gamification, students are engaged in what they are learning. Schaffer, Squire, Halverson and Gee (2005) suggest that “students play first, understand after, and then generalize” in an attempt to apply this learning in a new situation.

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Day-Black, Merrill, Konzelman, Williams & Hart (2015) suggest that serious games, which are games that are driven by educational goals, not entertainment, are effective in improving student learning outcomes. Gaming as part of the teaching-learning experience meet the philosophical underpinnings and strategies of active learning. The overall motivation to learn can facilitate effective transfer of learning. Benefits of gaming in nursing include enhanced recall and ability to apply knowledge, critical thinking, increased student engagement and increased student self-monitoring of their own learning (Day-Black, et al., 2015).

In nursing, memorization of facts does not allow students to develop critical thinking and clinical reasoning skills. It is not enough to know a concept; the student nurse must be able to apply the concept in different nursing situations. However, it is difficult to think at the application level if the student doesn’t understand the principles being taught or does not know the concept. Nursing faculty, teaching a nursing specialty, Maternal-Child Nursing, have overheard students equating the concepts and principles taught in the course to learning a foreign language, and many do poorly on tests because they cannot apply the concepts to a nursing situation.

In reflecting on my own practice and the methods used to teach Maternal-Child Nursing, I discovered that lecture, PowerPoints, videos and case studies were not enough to keep the students engaged and motivated. Additionally, there was no convenient opportunity for me to really assess if the students knew the principles and content, so I decided to incorporate a free on-line quiz game called “Kahoot” as postlecture assessment of the knowledge of the nursing concepts and principles previously presented. “Kahoot” allowed me to quiz the students without the use of clickers; instead, students downloaded the “Kahoot” app and played the game using their mobile devices. The students were asked to use their names or nicknames, whichever they felt comfortable using, as names would be projected on the white board.

The first thirty minutes of class were used to play a ten question “Kahoot” quiz with an emphasis on the nursing concepts and learning objectives that should have been learned from the previous lecture. Students had 20 seconds to answer a multiple choice question, created by the professor, at the knowledge level or low application level. After each question was timed out, the game generated a bar graph, so the class and I were able to see how many people chose the different answer choices. Students who answered correctly would be asked to explain how they chose the correct answer, and the concept was reviewed by providing the rationale for correct answer.

Students were engaged and motivated to do well during the quiz. Points were scored not only for correct answers but also for quickness, so two people with the

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correct answer would have different scores. I added a competitive edge by having a small prize (candy or a pen) for the top two winners. Once students realized that these game/quizzes were a reoccurring activity, they would start logging on to the game as soon as they arrived in class. Some would chant, “It’s Kahoot time” and “Get ready for gaming”.

Students did better on their tests overall. I compared the Test#1 average of the previous semester’s class sections (didn’t have “Kahoot”), which had a 72 to the “Kahoot” group which achieved a 79 grade average. Additionally, students in the “Kahoot” group did better on the group case studies presented in class. Since these students had more accurate knowledge of nursing concepts, they were able to improve the application of concepts in class. Lastly, on their course evaluations many students added that they enjoyed “Kahoot” as a teaching/learning strategy. The preliminary findings of implementing “Kahoot” as a post-lecture teaching-learning strategy were consistent with the results suggested above by Day-Black et al.(2015).

Not only did “Kahoot” engage and motivate the students to learn Maternal-Child Nursing, it also engaged and motivated me to facilitate learning through this fun, innovative gaming activity.

I plan to continue to use “Kahoot” as a post lecture activity. I think it is a great way to make a formative assessment of what students learned from the lecture content, as well as what was missed. It gives me time to make clarifications and address any misconceptions from the lecture during the review of answers. I plan to have about 10 multiple choice questions so that the students continue to be engaged in the game without taking too much class time. I found that my students would be excited to play, and as soon as they saw the “Kahoot” logo, they started to log-in.

Another perk that I discovered about “Kahoot” is the public forum where teachers can utilize other contributors’ quizzes. The forum is easy to search by subject area or key words. It enables users to preview other contributors’ quizzes to make sure they fit their students’ learning needs. So, professors can still give a “Kahoot” even if they don’t have time to make up their own quiz.

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References Cheong, C., Filippou, J., & Cheong, F. (2014). Towards the gamification of learning: Investigating student perceptions of game elements. Journal of Information Systems Education, 25 (3), 233-244.

Day-Black, C., Merrill, E.B., Konzelman, L., Williams, T.T., & Hart, N. (2015).

The ABNF Journal, 90-94.

Meehan-Andrews, T. (2009). Teaching mode efficiency and learning preferences of first year nursing students. Nurse Education, 28 (4), 354-360.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9 (5).

Rossignol, M. (2000). Verbal and cognitive activities between and among students and faculty in clinical conferences. Journal of Nursing Education. 39(6), 245-250.

Royse, M.A. & Newton, S.E. (2007). How gaming is used as an innovative strategy for nursing education. Nursing Education Perspectives, 28 (5), 263-267.

Shaffer, D.W., Squire, K.R., Halverson, R., & Gee, J.P. (2005). Video games and the future of learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 87 (2), 104-111.

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n Reading, Writing, and

Presenting in the Community College Mathematics Classroom

Sara Mastellone Assistant Professor Math

One desire that seems universal to all teachers is that their students could read content for understanding, write in the vocabulary of the field, and present their ideas orally in professional settings. The obstacles to STEM professors' implementing lessons that would advance students' ability to read their mathematics textbook, as discussed in the work of Siebert and Draper (2008) are: (a) a belief that literacy concerns are within the purview of the English department, (b) lack of training among STEM professors in the field of literacy, and (c) cramped curricula that do not allow time for literacy coaching.

What follows is a discussion of the research and advice of mathematics literacy authors of the past two decades on both why and how collaboration between literacy and STEM content specialists could best address the obstacles. This foundational work can serve as a guide to formulating a series of lessons for community college mathematics courses required of under-prepared STEM majors. These courses must support students in developing both the foundational mathematics skills and concepts as well as the reading, writing and presenting (RWP) skills necessary for the autonomous learning required of college students.

In 2000 Borasi and Siegel undertook a significant, long-term, classroom-based project that explored the notion of “reading to learn mathematics”. This study was a collaboration of a mathematics educator and a reading educator. They collaborated with two high school mathematics teachers who taught the subject

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using an inquiry-based pedagogy. This team explored the integration of reading in mathematics classrooms. Their project “Reading to Learn Mathematics for Critical Thinking" involved developing, documenting, and analyzing reading experiences in selected inquiry-based1 secondary mathematics classrooms. The findings from this project, and the subsequent RWP work that built on this study in the past 16 years, should effectively inform the teaching of mathematics and science reading in community college courses. Borasi and Siegel suggest that instructional supports designed to help students read, write, and present in STEM classes should be developed and evaluated collaboratively by content and literacy professionals.

Reading In an earlier article Borasi & Siegel (2000) point out that reading is not a straightforward extraction of knowledge from text but rather a meaning-making activity that benefits from social interaction. Therefore, these authors focused on the work of transactional reading theorists2 in developing their reading strategies and studied the impact of the lessons they developed on the behaviors of the students in three high school classes. None of these were typical classrooms run in traditional ways. However, the researchers reported that the mathematical thinking, as reflected in students’ conversations and writings, improved.

Siebert and Draper (2008) discussed obstacles to students' engagement in reading in: Why Content-Area Literacy Messages Do Not Speak to Mathematics Teachers. One concern was the difficulties professors anticipated in engaging students in doing the assigned reading. This concern is not baseless as it has been noted in numerous studies (Wade & Moje, 2001; Aagaard, 2014; Shepherd, 2011 & 2012; Weinberg, 2011, 2012). Siebert and Draper provide plausible reasons for students’ lack of engagement with the text, including the following: (a) Students find reading the textbook difficult; (b) Teachers do not require reading the text as a primary source of information in most mathematics classes; (c) Students’ experience is that all content will be presented by the teacher; and (d) Textbook-based instruction is guided by the belief that students possess adequate reading abilities and can develop understanding from interacting with the text. Any initiatives to improve the RWP skills of community college mathematics student need to address these barriers to engagement.

In 2011, Shepherd, Seldin and Seldin designed a study to “understand how math1 Inquiry-based learning is primarily a pedagogical method, developed during the discovery learning movement of the 1960s The philosophy of inquiry based learning finds its antecedents in constructivist theories, such as the work of Piaget, Dewey, Vygotsky, and Freire among others. Generating information and making meaning of it based on personal experience is referred to as constructivism.

2 Transactional theory asserts a "mutually shaping" exchange between reader and text The reader and text are two aspects of a total dynamic situation - meaning doesn't reside readymade "in" the text or "in" the reader but happens during the transaction between reader and text

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ematically more advanced readers read for understanding in mathematical exposition as it appears in textbooks compared to first-year undergraduate students.”

One difference is that “the more mathematically advanced readers are more likely to read-the-meaning, instead of the [sic] reading the symbols verbatim.” This ‘reading-the-meaning’ skill is one hallmark of a mathematician that needs to be developed in the undergraduates as well as articulated for most literacy coaches (Draper, 2010). For example: 3 < x ≤ 10 could be literally read as “3 is less than x, and x is less than or equal to 10”. While this reading of the inequality is accurate, it is not ‘reading-for-meaning’ that fluent mathematics literacy requires. The mathematics behind reading: 3 < x ≤ 10 as “all values between 3 and 10, including 10” requires prior understanding of both the graphs of inequalities and the Boolean logic implicit in the structure of the inequality notation. This reading of the text must be the responsibility of the mathematics instructors, as they are the professionals trained to read the text for its authentic meaning with a back-drop of mathematical activity and knowledge that supports that meaning.

Siebert & Hendrickson (2010) support the involvement of mathematics teachers in literacy instruction, in their article (Re) Imagining Literacies for Mathematics Classrooms. They state that: “Although literacy specialists may lack the necessary knowledge about the discipline of mathematics to create literacy instruction … they nonetheless can be catalysts for helping mathematics teachers meet students’ literacy needs” (p. 53). The literacy coaches could make significant contributions in analyzing the literacy efforts of the mathematics teachers for their conformity with literacy frameworks and can help evaluate the reading-for-understanding activities through the structure of these literacy frameworks. Borasi and Siegel (2000) also state that their collaboration as mathematics and literacy teachers added depth to their work, and they advise future collaborations between specialists in these two fields and with classroom teachers. Finally, it is mathematics professors who need to be the lead writers of any reading guides used to support students' productive reading of textbooks, but their efforts need to be informed by the expertise of literacy specialists.

Adams, Pegg & Case (2015) offered an example of a reading guide for a mathematics textbook in Anticipation Guides: Reading for Mathematics Understanding.

In this article, published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the authors described both the "benefits and specific considerations for supporting reading comprehension in mathematics" (p. 1) using anticipation guides. Their ideas will be discussed later is this article.

Besides ‘reading the meaning’, other differences between first-year mathematics undergraduates and mathematically advanced readers are discussed in the literature. One of these differences is that "more mathematically advanced readers are clearly very conscious of their own understanding" (Shepherd, et al., 2011, p. 85).

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This metacognitive activity is noted by many writers and researchers in mathematics education to be a vital component of reading for understanding. In addition, Siebert & Hendrickson (2010) found that advanced readers spend more time working through ideas presented in challenging material and show a willingness to search for understanding beyond the text. Guiding students to engage in this self-regulating behavior is a goal of RWP activities and should be prompted by the questions written for any textbook reading guide.

Which students will be able to read their mathematics text books effectively? That is, which students will need the reading guides discussed above? Shephard et al., (2001) saw that first year undergraduates did not read for understanding with the skills shown by their professors. They found that their students did not approach their reading by attending to the mathematical development, by working the illustrated and matching problems, or by reviewing the main concepts and likely misconceptions as was intended by the text authors. The students were first-year mathematics undergraduates who were good at both mathematics and reading, applied their reading skills to their textbooks, and did not find the notation or syntax of these textbook passages very burdensome, but still could not read their textbooks effectively.

The reading of mathematics textbooks is a complex cognitive activity involving several sub processes. They include the reader’s ability to: (a) identify a purpose of the text; (b) access appropriate prior knowledge; (c) engage in the reading activity with focus and motivation; and (d) bring metacognition into play as she or he interacts with the text. How well the students master these skills will determine if the reader will be able to learn the information by reading the mathematics and science texts (Pugalee, 2015). This engagement and focus was found missing by Shepherd et al. (2011) even among readers who had high reading scores on standardized tests, Their report cited: "periods of lapsed or diminished focus" (p. 85).

How can professors support effective reading of textbooks?

Several researchers have offered suggestions for how educators can teach effective STEM reading. Among them are the frameworks that support reading in mathematics found in Tovani (2004) who recommended that educators: (a) identify instructional purpose; (b) uncover difficult conceptions/ideas; (c) present approaches for negotiating difficult concepts/ideas; (d) reinforce outcomes from reading; and (e) provide reading supports.

Additional suggestions were offered by David Pugalee in Effective Content Reading Strategies to Develop Mathematical and Scientific Literacy (2015). He identified six features of effective reading: conventions, context, synthesis, comprehension, interpretations, and evaluation (p. 15-16). One of the most basic is the reader’s ability to understand conventions of a textbook. These conventions can be looked at specifically through structuring questions in a reading guide requiring exploration

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of the glossary, table of contents, indexes, and review questions. These are some of the navigational tools that are used effectively by adept readers. Therefore, part of the role of reading guides is to draw attention to the structure of the book.

Brown (as cited in Pugalee, 2015) believes knowledge of “text structures plays a significant role in students’ selection of successful reading strategies, since informational texts employ less familiar text patterns” (p. 22). These include diagrams, examples, definitions, and generalizations that need careful attention. As Pugalee further states, readers must be made aware of the import of these structures in how they connect to past knowledge, how they advance the learning of new concepts, and what questions they raise for further learning.

Metacognitive skills are useful in “helping readers identify and implement various approaches to comprehending the text” (Pugalee, p.22). With strong metacognitive skills readers can surface appropriate prior knowledge and make connections between what they know and the information in the textbook. These skills are necessary for understanding in reading all subjects and are critical in reading mathematics.

Students need to be supported in monitoring the adequacy of their comprehension while reading, and they must also be given a structure that supports synthesizing the information within the text and across multiple information sources while making inferences and asking questions to guide comprehension as they read (Ruddell & Ruddell, 1995; Penny, Norris, Phillips, & Clark, 2003). Because these general reading techniques are required of all successful students, literacy specialists have developed teaching strategies, which STEM specialists can utilize in supporting students' success in learning content through reading activities.

One strategy for developing many of these reading skills is “anticipation guides”.

They are provided for students as they read a section of the textbook. These guides aim to support students in uncovering the structure of the text, attending to main concepts, procedures, and misconceptions, surfacing prior knowledge, and asking questions that require metacognitive attention.

These learning objectives for supporting reading for understanding provide a framework for literacy and STEM content specialists to use when writing anticipation guides. These guides include questions that prompt students to: (a) identify the purpose of the text; (b) use techniques for accessing appropriate prior knowledge; (c) engage with focus and motivation; (d) search beyond the immediate text; (e) engage with illustrated and matching problems; (f) identify misconceptions; (g) identify mathematical writing conventions; (h) attend to metacognition; (i) attend to mathematical development; (j) expand implied meanings; and (k) construct mental images.

A number of experts in the field recommend anticipation guides. Many students ben-

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efit from scaffolding mathematical thought, both when solving problems and “when reading about mathematical concepts and relationships” (Buehl 2011, p. 65). Anticipation guides are reading comprehension tools designed to scaffold text comprehension.

Adams et al., (2015) describe their anticipation guide as an example of a reading support questionnaire that elicits the key ideas and common misconceptions associated with producing the graphs for linear inequalities in two variables. They also discuss the use of anticipation guides as tools to engage students actively and critically in reading, mathematical reasoning, and comprehension of mathematics text while supporting students’ metacognitive skills. Critical concepts for mathematical understanding are often implied in textbooks. In reading mathematics text, readers need to analyze and expand meaning rather than condense ideas (Shanahan and Shanahan 2008). Any attempt to scaffold students' interaction with their textbooks must contain questions that highlight these implied concepts and help students expand the implied meanings.

Adams et al., (2015) explain: “Anticipation guides support students in developing skills in justifying findings and supporting ideas with evidence, skills also used in mathematical justification and proof. Constructing viable arguments and evaluating others’ reasoning are core mathematics practices in which students justify their conclusions, communicate them to others, and respond to the arguments of others (CCSSI 20103, pp. 6–7)” (p. 2).

Skill in making and justifying claims can be developed in mathematical investigation, but reading and discussing the nuances of mathematical texts provide an additional context in which to develop reasoning and justification skills. When using anticipation guides, students construct arguments that relate to both incorrect and correct ideas, and thus have the opportunity to address misconceptions and engage in debate from various viewpoints and interpretations. Adams et al., (2015) make the following suggestions for writing and using anticipation guides: • • • • • • 3

Direct students to carefully consider each statement before reading; doing so activates and assesses their prior knowledge.

Have them determine whether or not each statement is true.

Have them discuss their decisions with a partner and defend decisions about statements on which they did not agree.

Encourage students to read with a purpose, seeking information to justify their position.

Encourage students to read the text interactively, comparing current knowledge with information in the text while looking for confirming evidence.

During the reading phase, ask students to read thoughtfully, record evidence supporting their thinking along with the text location where the evidence

Common Core State Standards Initiative

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• •

• • •

was found, and prepare to justify their interpretation using support from the reading (Duffelmeyer and Baum, 1992). A valid justification must explain why a statement is true, false, or sometimes true. Before beginning this phase, talk with students about what constitutes adequate evidence and justification. This would be an appropriate time to model the use of representations to illuminate thinking. “Mental imagery enhances deep level cognitive connections that facilitate engagement, recall, comprehension, and problem solving (Douville et al., 2003).”

Remind students to read all parts of the text—margins, text, pictures, captions, graphs, and figures.

After students have read the text, have them discuss and defend their interpretations of each anticipation guide statement, using evidence from the text, and listen to other students’ conceptions They can “try out” their interpretations in a small group before joining a whole-class discussion.

The individual writing and class discussion that occur during anticipation guide lessons also provide opportunities for teachers to gain insight into students’ sense making, reasoning, and understanding.

When moderating discussions, professors' maintain focus on supporting claims with evidence, not on whether an answer is correct.

Finally, have students reflect on changes in their understanding that resulted from reading and discussion.

In designing an anticipation guide, the authors advise teachers to use a small number of statements (seven or fewer). Using fewer statements will allow students to take the time needed to read and interpret thoughtfully and to locate evidence supporting their positions. Well-designed response sheets should also provide space for students to indicate their response to each statement both before and after reading. Requiring students to write pre-reading decisions in a different color from post reading decisions will make changes in thinking based on reading or discussion evident. It is important to provide ample space for students to record their reasons and supporting evidence and its location in the text for each statement.

Writing in Mathematics Reading STEM content is not the only literacy skill expected of proficient students.

Writing and presenting are also important. Writing as a form of communication in mathematics has the potential to promote deep and generative understanding of mathematical concepts and procedures (Pugalee, 2000; Spierpinska, 1998; Morgan, 1998; Brown, 2001). Complete and lucid writing has this potential because writing well requires deliberate analytical action to identify, organize, and explain one's understanding of a concept or procedure (Vygotsky, 1987). Since writing requires a level of reflection, students are required to attend to their thinking about mathematical processes. This self-regulation of the writer’s predictions, planning, revising, selecting, classifying, and checking falls under the rubric of metacognition and, as stated

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earlier, metacognition is a key element in learning.

Pugalee’s Comparison of Verbal and Written Descriptions of Students’ Problem Solving Processes (2004) demonstrated that: “writing can be a tool for supporting a metacognitive framework and that this process is more effective than the use of think-aloud processes” (p 44). In this study: Students were encouraged to expand and elaborate on steps where descriptive information was vague or nonexistent. In general, the focus was to encourage students to extend both the quantity and quality of the descriptions of their mathematical thinking: providing details about processes, justifying and reasoning about the steps taken on the problems (p 32).

In 2006 J. A. Taylor and C. McDonald built on Pugalee's work by designing a study that explored the use of group work and mathematical writing to develop the mathematical problem solving skills and enhance the mathematical communication skills of first year university mathematics students. The students who participated in this study were members of a core mathematics course for first year students planning to gain a degree from the University of Southern Queensland's Engineering and Surveying, Sciences and Information Technology program.

Of the students participating, 49% declared that they found mathematics difficult in the past, and 39% stated that they did not enjoy studying mathematics. The student population of this study disaggregated by mathematics preparation as follows: 25% were having difficulty with simple algebra and graphing; 31% could perform simple algebraic manipulations and graphing; 44% could solve and manipulate a range of algebraic expressions and showed some exposure to calculus.

The results of this study indicated that the introduction of "communication skills such as the formal writing and small group discussion of problem solving activities need not over-extend students and already loaded curricula, but, in fact, can be an ally in the development of one of the most important mathematical skills, nonroutine problem solving" (p 651). Taylor & McDonald claim that students displayed metacognitive regulation. They observed that: "the inclusion of writing slowed down the entire process and ensured that students reflected upon and checked the match between aim, method, results and conclusions before being satisfied that they had completed the task" (p 652). This "slowing down of the process" refers to the tendency of students of mathematics to apply an operation immediately without adequate reflection or justification. Therefore, the additional time required to do that thinking replaces the time it takes to correct the mistakes generated by immediately jumping to unjustified calculations.

In 2007 D. Cross reported on a study aimed at examining the effects of writing and argumentation in mathematics achievement. This multi-method study of 211

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ninth grade students investigated the effects of three treatment conditions on mathematical achievement. The students were placed in one of four classes. One class engaged in only writing exercises (W) for particular mathematical prompts.

A second group engaged in only argumentation of the prompt (A). The third engaged in both argumentation and writing (AW), while the fourth group (C) did not engage in either activity and were taught the content of the prompt by the traditional technique of teacher explanation, student practice, and teacher assessment.

It was found that students who engaged in both argumentation and writing gained significantly more knowledge than students who engaged in argumentation alone or in neither activity. While the difference between the groups that engaged in writing and argumentation demonstrated greater learning outcomes than the writing only groups, these differences were not significant. This implies writing is a key to improved learning outcomes in mathematics.

Cross conducted qualitative analyses to provide explanations for these quantitative findings. The "qualitative analyses showed that argumentation was a useful strategy for generating and sharing ideas" (p 923). While the A-only group showed evidence of generating ideas, highlighting misconceptions, and confirming thinking about concepts, these insights did not necessarily lead to the greatest knowledge gains. It appears that the consolidation of understanding that writing provides is an important feature for learning. As Cross states: A number of researchers who study the generative processes of writing and composition have stated that writing is an extremely challenging and effortful cognitive process (Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1987). The major part of the effort in writing is generating the content, more specifically thinking about what you want to articulate (Flower & Hayes, 1980) . . . [T]he student would have to engage in the metacognitively-oriented actions of diagnosing (the problem at hand), planning (an effective strategy to obtain a solution), monitoring (one's thought processes as the strategy is being implemented) and evaluating (the reasonableness of the solution in the context of the problem, an approach to writing akin to (Bereiter & Scandamalia's (1987) 'writing as knowledge-transformation' " (p 925).

This study illuminates the synchronicity of discussion and writing in achieving desired learning outcomes for students of mathematics.

Presentation and Discussion There is evidence that students learn best when they present their thinking.

Chapin, O’Connor & Anderson (2003) found that when middle-school students were required to present their solutions to problems and participate in productive talk about the mathematical assertions of classmates, their reasoning became “more complex, more sophisticated, and more recognizably mathematical. Students were better able to give clear explanations for their problem solutions, their

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use of language became more precise, and their communication skills improved noticeably” (p. xi). While the motivation of college STEM professors for wanting to include presentation skills in their teaching of mathematics is to prepare college students for professional positions, the use of presentation experiences in the classroom shows promise for greatly improving the learning of the course content for all students. In their study, Chapin et al., (2003) found that results “from test scores to testimonials-indicated that productive talk was a crucial part of the program. It enabled low-income students, three-quarters of whom spoke a language other than English at home, to become mathematically articulate”(p xiii).

Student preparation for a presentation requires the following components: organization of thoughts, justification for each opinion, answers for peers’ questions, and engagement in understanding peers’ thinking. The presentation section of the class lesson improves memory of content and illuminates misconceptions (Chapin et al, 2003). Therefore, giving each student opportunity for practicing these skills in a guided environment should be an effective way to improve students’ presentation and discussion skills, their cognitive engagement (Smart & Marshall, 2012), and their understanding of content. Teacher preparation for facilitating both student presentations and the class discussion that these presentations initiate also require detailed planning.

It is worth noting that the roots of classroom discourse are planted in constructivist and sociocultural principles and have grown out of the emerging interdisciplinary fields of cognitive science, sociocultural psychology, and situated cognition (Michaels, O’Connor, & Resnick, 2008). There is a positive correlation between students’ cognitive engagement and the following aspects of classroom discourse: questioning level, complexity of questions, questioning ecology, communication patterns, and classroom interactions (Smart & Marshall, 2012). Questions that prompt students to apply and analyze information were found to be effective in increasing students’ cognitive engagement.

The questions that had the greatest impact on students' cognitive engagement are ones that emphasize processes such as justification, reasoning, explanation, and critique (Smart & Marshall, 2012). The role of the teacher in the presentation section of the class is not that of evaluating for correctness, but of asking questions that support deeper and broader thinking.

These questions would be of the type: Can you say more about that? Can you paraphrase what your classmate just said? Do you agree or disagree (say why)?

These types of questions have been called "talk moves" (Chapin, et al (2003). Suppose the following answer is given in a team presentation: 1/5+1/5 =2/10. A nonevaluative question might be: can 2/10 be simplified? Or if you add 1/5+1/5 , will the answer be smaller, bigger, or the same as 1/5. Leaving the group or class with

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question of this type and stepping back will encourage students to think further about a problem. Of course, these probing questions must be asked for correct answers as often as for incorrect answers. Students are attuned to the teacher's evaluative frequency, and if a probing question is asked, the student most likely assumes the answer is wrong. Developing a questioning ecology requires that professors step out of the "evaluator-of-correct-answers" role and assume the role of "discussion facilitator".

In preparing for a productive discussion of student answers to the prepared reading guide, the professor needs to anticipate likely answers (both correct and incorrect) that teams may offer. These anticipated answers should be recorded on a tool that the teacher can refer to while facilitating the presentation from each team. Along with each anticipated answer, the teacher should record interventions that deepen the conversation and/or raise cognitive dissonance in the students, prompting them to think more deeply about an answer. This preparation will help to keep the discussion ‘on track’ and will help to guide equitable participation in the conversation.

This monitoring tool is key to ensuring focused and productive class discussion.

In summary, anticipation guides help to focus students’ attention on the concepts, procedures, and structures illustrated by the reading assignment. The small groups’ attention to the written answer for the group’s assigned question and the editing activity of the gallery-walk (described below) give practice in writing, critiquing, and rewriting. Facilitated group discussion led by the presenting group allow students to practice the presentation skills needed in the STEM work place while deepening students' mathematical understanding Classroom Practices that Support RWP Richard Allington (2002) delineated six common practices among effective literacy instruction: finding time, selecting texts, teaching, talking, providing tasks, and testing. Pugalee (2015) contends that “providing reading instruction and support within the instructional context of mathematics and science is a time-efficient means to support student learning while honoring the commitment to provide the best possible teaching to help students develop content-area knowledge and skills” (p. 36). Structuring the reading assignments in a way that respects this real concern for time is one of the challenges of reading instruction in the content area, and the constraints of time in the college level course structure is particularly acute. However, the constrained time frame may be an asset in that it requires that the reading of particular textbook sections will, of necessity, be the main source of student contact with the particular content and, therefore, eliminate the students’ resistance to reading because they believe the content will be presented by the professor. But, where in the curriculum can we the find time to assign reading?

In most STEM classes, no homework is assigned immediately following a test.

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The class meeting after a test is usually an introductory presentation by the professor of the next unit. If the introductory section of the next unit is assigned for reading and accompanied by an anticipation guide or another form of guided reading questions, it will not add time to the curriculum to interject RWP. The authors Borasi, and Siegel (2000) wrote: “consistent with the conceptual shift already underway within the field of reading education, our research has shown that reading, writing, and talking do not work separately in practice, and if we want to understand how they work together, we need to conceptualize and study them as interrelated" (p. 192). As noted by Pugalee (2005): “A comprehensive approach to developing students’ mathematical and scientific literacy involves an interactive model where reading, speaking, and writing interplay in a dynamic instructional environment” (p.37).

Anticipation guides to accompany a reading assignment should be developed so that the eleven-point synthesis for writing questions delineated in this paper (pp. 37-38) is incorporated into the guide through the types of questions asked.

However, one of the components, motivating readers, could benefit from asking students what behaviors and professor requirements would motivate them to read their textbooks. Aagaard, Conner, and Skidmore (2014) did just that. They surveyed 105 undergraduates on what might encourage students to complete textbook reading assignments. The top rated strategies according to the students were: being held accountable for the information in the reading without the benefit of lecture; requiring only brief reading assignments; using the textbook during class; and group presentations of the content. Classroom lessons after reading assignments, following this student advice, are of interest not only because they honor the advice of these students, but also because they facilitate the inclusion of RWP into the curriculum without taking away from the time needed to 'cover' the material.

Borasi and Siegel argue, as Pugalee (2015) points out, “that the design of meaningful experiences that integrate reading, writing, and talking provide rich opportunities for learning and that the development of reading practices should become part of a class’s everyday events that promote learning communities that value collaboration and meaning making”. It has also been established that interaction among peers reinforces memory acquisition (Winstead, 2004). Stephens and Brown (2005) state that content literacy is “neither an add-on to the curriculum nor is it a substitute for content. It provides teachers and students alike with effective tools for learning the content of any subject (p. 8). Jacobs and Paris (1987) report that explaining thinking skills that could be used before, during, and after reading are beneficial to students of varying ages and reading-ability levels. This process meshes well with the self-questioning, summarizing, paraphrasing, and predicting that characterize reciprocal teaching. The class structure explained below blends the advice of all of the researchers to produce a lesson that supports productive and effective reading of mathematics textbook.

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Most mathematics classes follow a common structure. Professors introduce the content of a unit, students practice problems related to the concepts, assessments are implemented and graded, and then these three steps are repeated for the next unit. As previously mentioned, it is suggested that the introductory lesson for each unit exchange professor’s lecture and demonstration with textbook reading and student presentations. The reading is assigned the day of a test for completion before the next class meeting. Along with the page numbers for the reading assignment, an anticipation guide is distributed. This reading guide is developed by the content area teacher in collaboration with a literacy coach.

The class following the reading assignment is dedicated to students’ collaborating on the answers to the reading guide. Each student is assigned by the professor to a small group. Each group is responsible for answering one of the reading guide questions and writing their answer on a large piece of poster paper. After 5 to 10 minutes, the professor directs the groups to move one poster clock-wise. Each group then reads the work presented on the poster and writes comments and questions about the answer written by the authoring group. After a few minutes, the professor directs each group to move another poster clock-wise and repeat the same process. This activity is called a “gallery-walk.” It continues until the groups have circled back to their original work.

Once facing their poster, each group reads the comments and prepares a presentation of the answer to their assigned question to the class. This summative section of the lesson allows both the students and the professor the opportunity to ask questions, highlight misconceptions, and reinforce 'big mathematical ideas'.

This lesson structure will take the place of the introductory lesson that a professor would otherwise present. In this way students will have the benefit of practicing reading, writing, and presenting in the content area, using the scaffolding support (the anticipation guide) suggested in the literature, while being held accountable for the reading as students suggested in Aagaard, Conner, and Skidmore's article: College textbook reading assignments and class time activity (2014).

The anticipation guides discussed in class through the gallery-walk and summary protocol has promise for supporting students' deep understanding and memory of this introductory content while scaffolding their ability to read for learning, write in the protocols of the discipline, and present to their peers. In order to effectively meet the goal of teaching STEM students to read, write, and present STEM content, content and literacy specialists must collaborate to produce needed literacy support. Reading guides, written to scaffold the skills needed to read introductory units of course textbooks effectively and used as the basis for a gallery-walk lesson, promise to aid students in transitioning from novice to educated STEM readers.

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The collaboration of content and literacy specialists should also extend to assessing the reading guides' ability to support deep understanding and retention when used in gallery-walk protocols. The studies cited addressed the obstacles of time for implementation, who should be responsible for improving students' STEM literacy, and how a collaboration between content area specialists and literacy specialists can effectively meet the goals of improving students' reading, writing, and presenting in the STEM classroom.

References Aagaard, L., Conner, T. W., II, & Skidmore, R. L. (2014). College textbook reading assignments and class time activity. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 14(3), 132-145. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14434/josotl.v14i3.5031 Acevedo-Gil, N., Santos, R. E., Alonso, L., & Solorzano, D. G. (2015). Latinas/os in community college developmental education increasing moments of academic and interpersonal validation. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 14(2), 101-127. doi:10.1177/1538192715572893 Adams, A. E., Pegg, J., & Case, M. (2015). Anticipation guides: Reading for mathematics understanding. NCTM Mathematics Teacher, 108(7), 498-504.

Retrieved from http://www.nctm.org/ Alharbi, F. (2015). Writing for learning to improve students’ comprehension at the college level. English Language Teaching, 8(5), 222-234. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/elt.v8n5p222 Allington, R. L. (2002). You can’t learn much from books you can’t read. Educational Leadership, 60(3), 16-19. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/ Barton, M. L., Heidema, C., & Jordan, D. (2002). Teaching reading in mathematics and science. Educational Leadership, 60(3), 24-28. Retrieved from http://ebscohost.com/ Bol, L., Campbell, K. D., Perez, T., & Yen, C. J. (2015). The effects of self-regulated learning training on community college students’ metacognition and achievement in developmental math courses. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 40(6), 480-495. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2015.1068718 Borasi, R., Siegel, M., Fonzi, J., & Smith, C. F. (1998). Using transactional reading strategies to support sense-making and discussion in mathematics classrooms: An exploratory study. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 29(3), 275-305. Retrieved from http://www.nctm.org/ Borasi, R., & Siegel, M. (2000). Reading counts: Expanding the role of reading in mathematics classrooms. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

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Braasch, J. L. G., & Goldman, S. R. (2010). The role of prior knowledge in learning from analogies in science texts. Discourse Processes, 47(6), 447-479. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01638530903420960 Brizuela, B. M., & Gravel, B. E. (Eds.). (2013). “Show me what you know”: Exploring student representations across STEM disciplines. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

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125 practical reading and writing ideas. Norwood, MA: ChristopherGordon Publishers.

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n Time, Space, Shape, Motion, and Sculpture

Lynn Needle Adjunct Professor Dance

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Professor Lynn Needle's Modern Dance students explore architectural space and campus landscape to further their understanding of the body as an expressive instrument, better understand the laws of Physics, weight shift, balance, gravity, partnering, and trust and individual/group expression. Each studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique voice and authenticity is encouraged throughout the semester which culminates in a showing of student solos. Professor Needle was able to share this same philosophy when she was invited to teach at the Universidad de Colima, Mexico, where she was able to teach workshops akin to her Modern Dance curriculum at BCC.

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