This slideshow is an overview of the Student Learning Impact Project I completed during student teaching in fall 2009.

1. Science Vocabulary Builder ProjectSTUDENT LEARNING IMPACT PROJECTEvidence Document Deb White Teacher Candidate Minnesota New Country School 20 November 2009

2. Project Purpose: To assess whether students using online flashcards to study vocabulary words experience larger gains than students using traditional paper flashcards. Objectives: Students who complete the Science Vocabulary Builder Project will… Learn meanings associated with Latin and Greek root words frequently used in science terminology Become more confident in their ability to define unfamiliar words Develop increased awareness of their personal studying preferences Learn about online flashcards, a new tool to help them build vocabulary knowledge for any subject

4. Maintain Study Log Paper Flashcards Treatment B *Vocabulary = 66 Greek and Latin root words

6. Knowing root words (along with prefixes and suffixes) empowers learners to interpret unfamiliar terms by looking at each word’s parts (IRA/NCTE, 2007).

7. In science, Latin and Greek root words are essential for understanding many terms and concepts (White, 2009a). For Example: Photo: light Tropo: turn; change Syn: with; together -thesis: an arranging -ism: the process of

9. A substantial body of research indicates that reading comprehension is directly related to vocabulary instruction (Pressley, 2001).

10. Learning root words improves spelling because patterns become recognizable (IRA/NCTE, 2007).

12. Two characteristics of effective vocabulary instruction include learning parts of words and students playing with the words in a variety of activities (DeAngelis, 2007). Online flashcard web sites generally incorporate games, self-tests, and other activities to promote learning.This SLIP was designed to assess whether students using online flashcards would learn more root words than students who studied with traditional paper flashcards.

13. Learning Context Minnesota New Country School – A modern one-room schoolhouse! Project-based; no letter grades, bells, or traditional classrooms Approximately 115 students in grades 6-12 Students grouped into eight advisories consisting of multiple developmental/age levels (up to 15 students per advisory) Each student has a workspace and computer

15. 23 students completed all requirements to earn credit for participating.Characteristics of the 23 participants: Ethnic Populations 20 White, non-Hispanic 2 Bi-racial (1 Blk/Wht; 1 unknown) 1 Hispanic Exceptionalities 1 Physical and Other Health Disability 2 Emotional/Behavioral Disorder 1 Autism Spectrum

17. Preparation

19. 2nd Meeting: Pre-Assessment

20. Assign Treatment Groups; Distribute Study Materials

22. Return Assessments and Signed Proposal Forms to Students/Advisors

23. Recognition

26. Wrote Student Survey, Pre-Assessment, Post-Assessment, and Study Log

30. Treatment B: Paper Flashcards

33. Entered data (scores, Study Logs) – MS Excel

36. Assessment Measures Student Survey: Accessing student learning styles and attitudes toward learning vocabulary

37. Assessment Measures Pre-assessment: Determining existing vocabulary knowledge Matching items were developed using guidelines from Stiggins (2005).

39. The terms that comprised each of the four lists remained the same.

40. However, the sequence in which the terms appeared on each list was modified for the Post-Assessment. Note: Participants did not have access to their Pre-Assessment until after the Post-Assessment was completed and collected. Both assessments were scored at the end of the study to minimize potential researcher bias that could occur during daily interactions with students.

41. Learning Results Revisiting the Project Purpose: To assess whether students using online flashcards to study vocabulary words experience larger gains than students using traditional paper flashcards. Research Questions: Q1. Which study method was associated with the greatest growth in student scores on the Vocabulary Assessment? Q2. What was the relationship between students’ scores on the Pre-Assessment and the percent change they demonstrated at the end of the Project? Q3. What was the relationship between amount of study time reported and percent change in scores on the Vocabulary Assessments?

42. Q1. Which study method was associated with the greatest growth in student scores on the Vocabulary Assessment? On average, students who studied with online flashcards improved their scores 29.7% more than students who studied with paper flashcards. Students who reported that they did not study at all showed, on average, a 16% decrease in score. n=10 n=10 n=3 Mean Percent Change for All 23 Participants = +97.9%

44. Students whose Pre-Assessment scores were in the middle range (24-40) tended to show very modest gains (mean=41.5%; n=8).*Note: Only one student achieved a perfect score (66) on the Post-Assessment, and none did so on the Pre-Assessment.

45. Q3. What was the relationship between amount of study time reported and percent change in scores on the Vocabulary Assessments? The data indicate no correlation between the amount of study time reported and percent change in vocabulary score. Self-reported data can be unreliable. Observations made during this Project indicated that a number of students did not record their study time accurately or consistently.

47. This is probably the result of uncontrolled (spurious) variables and sources of error such as:

48. Unstructured study methods within each treatment

49. Differences in actual study time or intensity

50. Studying with others (social learning) vs. studying independently

51. Differences in students’ developmental levels, abilities , or motivations

56. Increased control of spurious variables (via structure of research design) to strengthen internal validity.

57. Multiple types of measures (to determine convergent construct validity).

59. Some students have already recognized the value of this knowledge for interpreting unfamiliar terms.

60. Several students became motivated to continue developing their root word vocabulary independently.

62. On that note…How am I going to keep students engaged? It’s not practical to offer whiz-bang-fun-yet-meaningful-and-standards-based learning activities each minute for every student. I’m afraid that I’ll get burned-out trying. It is both an instructional strength (that I can provide quality and engaging learning opportunities) and a weakness (the fact that I want to create an active learning environment for all students so badly that I might kill myself or go broke trying to do so)! (Continued)

65. References and Acknowledgments, cont’d Root words used frequently in chemistry. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2009, from http://www.csun.edu/science/books/sourcebook/chapters/1vocabulary/resources/chemistry_roots.pdf Snow, C. (2008). What is the vocabulary of science? In A. S. Rosebery & B. Warren (Eds.), Teaching science to English language learners (pp. 71-83). Arlington, VA: NSTA Press. Stiggins, R. J. (2005). Student-involved assessment for learning (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. White, D. S. (2009a). Discussion: It’s all Greek (and Latin) to me. Resource produced for BIOL 100 Teaching Assistants at Minnesota State University, Mankato during spring semester. White, D. S. (2009b). Science vocabulary builder project – MNCS. Quizlet online flashcard set created on October 28, 2009, at http://quizlet.com/1343630/ science-vocabulary- builder-project-mncs-flash-cards/ To the student participants, their advisors, Nichole Kotasek, and Rob Groebner…THANK YOU!