BROWN EDS PROJECT Resubmitted REV DRL 01511

THE EFFECTS OF WRITING TO WIN STRATEGIES IN MATHEMATICS Except where reference is made to the work of others, the work described in this thesis is my own or was done in collaboration with my Advisor This thesis does not include propriety or classified information _ Brenice L Brown Certificate of Approval: _ Donald R Livingston, Ed.D Associate Professor Education Department Sharon Livingston, Ph D Project Advisor Education Department THE EFFECTS OF WRITING TO WIN STRATEGIES IN MATHEMATICS A project submitted by Brenice L Brown to LaGrange College In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of SPECIALIST IN EDUCATION in Curriculum and Instruction LaGrange, Georgia July 4, 2011 iii Abstract: iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract iii Table of Contents iv List of Tables and Figures .v Chapter 1: Introduction Statement of the Problem # Significance of the Problem # Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks # Focus Questions # Overview of Methodology # Human as Researcher # Chapter 2: Review of Literature Chapter 3: Methodology .16 Research Design # Setting # Sample / Subjects / Participants # Procedures and Data Collection Methods # Validity and Reliability Measures .# Analysis of Data # Chapter 4: Results 22 Chapter 5: Analysis and Discussion of Results 26 Analysis .26 Discussion 31 Implications .33 Impact on Student Learning 33 Recommendations for Future Research 34 References .35 Appendixes 38 Appendix A Appendix B v List of Tables and/or Figures Tables Table 3.1 Data Shell 19 Figures Figure 4.1 Title of Figure .23 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Statement of the Problem In response to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and in an effort to increase student achievement, educators are implementing various measures to increase test scores and promote academics success (Brown, 2010) Recent reports, The National Research Council (2001) and The National Mathematics Advisory Panel (2008), both call attention to student achievement in mathematics In recent years, concerns about low student achievement scores have prompted calls for tougher standards In 2004, the State Board of Education adopted the Georgia Performance Standards (GPS) Most recently, the Mathematics I curriculum was developed to address student achievmentachievement in Georgia Mathematics I curriculum is organized into four content strands: Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and Statistics The mathematics curriculum stresses rigorous concept development, presents realistic and relevant tasks, and keeps a strong emphasis on computational skills (Georgia Department of Education, 2010) The Georgia Mathematics Curriculum focuses on actively engaging the students in the development of mathematical understanding by using manipulative and a variety of representations, working independently and cooperatively to solve problems, estimating and computing efficiently, and conducting investigations and recording findings There is a shift towards applying mathematical concepts and skills in the context of authentic problems and for the student to understand concepts rather than merely follow a sequence of procedures (Georgia Department of Education, 2010) There are many ways to evaluate student achievement Standardized tests are often chosen because of the reliability and means of providing an objective assessment of student performance (Brown, 2010) The State Board of Education is required by Georgia law to adopt the End of Course Test (EOCT) in core subjects in grade nine through twelve The EOCT is designed to improve student achievement by assessing student performance on the curriculum standards specific to each course tested The Mathematics I curriculum was designed to prepare students for the End of Course Test (Georgia Department of Education, 2010) According to the 2009-2010 Mathematics I EOCT’s report card of this study’s school, fifty percent passed, five percent pass plus, and forty-five percent failed These results show progress from previous years in Mathematics I However, there is still a large percent of students who that are failing Further evidence showed that there is a need to put more focus on high school student achievement and math education (Georgia Department of Education, 2010) The purpose of this study is to determine if the Writing to Win strategies have any impact on the ninth grade Mathematics I End of Course Test Significance of the Problem Student achievement continues as a focal concern in the United States Although schools can and make a significant difference, research has identified numerous factors which affect student success (Barton, 2005) The graduation rates are below 70 percent, schools fail to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP), struggle to narrow the achievement gap between high and low performing students, parent involvement, and the concern that even students who complete high school are not adequately prepared for higher education or work success (Barton, 2005) Student achievement also plays a vital role on educators and the society (National Center for Education Statistics, 2004) Many educators believe that there has been a failure to adopt new instructional practices which have shown to improve student learning The key to helplinghelping students succeed is focusing on the best opportunities for students to master learning objectives (Bottoms, 2003) Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks The conceptual framework of this research is aligned with Tenet 2: Exemplary Professional Teaching Practices in the Lagrange College Education Department’s Conceptual Framework (2005) The study focused on the Competency Cluster 2.2: Instructional Skills which states: • Candidates use effective verbal, nonverbal, and media communication techniques to encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem-solving, and performance • skills Candidates understand and implement effective and appropriate classroom management techniques that promote democratic classroom communities This tenet also aligns with several other state and national standards such as domain 3(learning environments) and Domain (planning and instruction) of the Six Domains of the Georgia Framework for Teaching, Element 1c (professional and pedagogical knowledge and skills for teacher candidates) of the Five Elements of NCATE 2000 Standard for Initial Programs, Principle (multiple instructional strategies), principle (learner motivation and behavior) and Principle (inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction) of the Ten INTASC Principles for Beginning Teachers, and Proposition (teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students) of the Five NBPTS Core Propositions for Experience Teachers (Lagrange College, 2005) The Lagrange College Education Department (2005) explained how educators should develop instructional skills that are based on “constructivist teaching principles that emphasize the need to teach for conceptual understanding, before content information is presented to learners” (p 7) In this research, teachers will be able to develop these skills through the use of the constructivist theory Bruner (1996), states that constructivism is “an active process in which learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current or past knowledge” (p 30) The constructivist theory is a general framework for instruction based upon the study of cognition Bruner (1996) also explains that the theory of instruction should address three major principles: (1) Instruction must be concerned with the experiences and contexts that make the student willing and able to learn (readiness), (2) Instruction must be structured so that it can be easily grasped by the student (spiral organization), and (3) Instruction should be designed to facilitate extrapolation and fill in the gaps (going beyond the information given) Bruner’s theory is linked to the child development research of Piaget Jean Piaget has contributed to our understanding of the development of learning in students He suggested many comprehensive developmental theories According to Piaget, each student has thoughts and feelings of their own A student brings those feelings and thoughts into the classroom where they will form their own opinions about what and now they learn (Phillips, 1995) Writing in mathematics will provide opportunities for students to develop their thoughts and critical thinking skills This study will investigate the relationship between writing in mathematics and students’ achievement levels through the constructivist theory and the development of teachers’ instructional skills Focus Questions In mathematics, it is important that educators provide all students access to an engaging, stimulating, and enriched learning environment Therefore, the research question asks “How can educators use Writing to Win strategies to prompt critical thinking in mathematics?” This study focused on three specific areas: advanced content knowledge, affective assesssment and school improvement The first focus question asks “How Writing to Win strategies in mathematics affect student achievement levels”? The second focus question asks “How Writing to Win strategies affect students’ attitudes towards mathematics The third focus question asks “How will writing in mathematics affect the attitudes of educators”? This will provide opportunities to change the remedial instruction and stress students’ strengths as a means to improving student learning and closing the achievement gap Overview of Methodology The pilot study is an action research study which is undertaken in a local county high school setting located in southwestern Georgia Action research is used to search for solutions to everyday real problems experienced in schools, or looking for ways to improve instructions and increase student achievement The process of action research assists educators in assessing needs, documenting the steps of inquiry, analyzing data, and making informed decisions that can lead to desired outcomes (Charles & Mertler, 2002) The subjects are ninth grade students Three Math I classes were used in the study The first focus question (How does Writing to Win strategies in mathematics affect student achievement levels?) will be measured by using assessments A comparison between last year and this year’s End of Course Test will be analyzed using an independent t-test to measure the significance of the data Student attitudinal pre and post surveys will be used to measure the second focus question (How does Writing to Win strategies affect students’ attitudes towards mathematics?) The survey consists of ten questions procedures and the time, which they devote to inventing and discovering new ideas (Cobb, Yackel, & Wood, 1992) The purpose of the pilot study is to use Writing to Win strategies in the math classroom to prompt critical thinking skills Writing is a tool to provide opportunities for students to explore and discover mathematical concepts Combs (2005) discussed that Writing to Win critical thinking strategies elevate students’ writing about math beyond procedural description and summaries and promote individual ways of organizing math concepts presented in the class Incorporating writing into math class adds an important and valuable dimension to learning by doing (Burns, 1995) Writing encourages students to examine their ideas and reflect on what they have learned It helps them deepen and extend their understanding When students write about mathematics, they are actively involved in thinking and learning about mathematics (Combs, 2005) Improving students’ attitudes toward mathematics Over the directions of research in mathematics education, there is a growth in the attention paid to the role of attitudes of students In the field of mathematics education, research on attitude has been believed that student’s attitude towards a subject determines their success in the subject A student’s constant failure in mathematics can make a student believe that they can never will well in mathematics On the other hand, a students’ successful experience can make them develop a positive attitude towards mathematics The definition of attitude is described as “the positive or negative degree of affect associated with a certain subject” (McLeod, 1992, p 576) According to this point of view, mathematics is seen as good if ‘you get it right’ (Tapia & Marsh, 2004) Students who claim not to like mathematics tend to describe 10 incidents from their past This suggests that negativity is based on established patterns from the past supported by justifying stories (Mason, 1994) Several generally accepted factors affect students’ attitude toward mathematics They include confidence, anxiety, value, enjoyment, motivation, and parent teacher involvement These factors are relevant for future study One researcher used these factors to conduct a study on a relatively small group of high school students (Marsh, 2004) The author’s research showed little correlation of parent teacher expectations to student’s attitudes, which played an important role in previous research (Marsh, 2004) Marsh concluded that the value placed on math education, the enjoyment of math and the strong desire to succeed were the most relevant factors in improving students’ attitude towards mathematics In other research, gender was determined to be a factor in students’ attitude towards mathematics (Farooq & Shah, 2008) According to these researcher’s, girls are discouraged from participating in mathematics from an early age which affects their attitude in latter years Although the gender gap is decreasing, as suggested by achievement scores, there is still a difference in some areas of mathematics (Farooq & Shah, 2008) In advanced mathematics classes and in careers in mathematics you still find fewer females (Farooq & Shah, 2008) Male or female, students need to be highly motivated to be successful in mathematics Using games and activities is one way to achieve a positive attitude towards mathematics (Nisbet &Williams, 2009) These authors conducted a study using the same accepted factors in measuring attitudes in learning (Nisbet & Williams, 2009) They found that student’s excitement and enjoyment was one of the key factors in education (Nisbet & Williams, 2009, p25) These authors used games and activities to promote excitement and enjoyment in the classroom in an effort to motivate students to learn mathematics specifically games of chance The results of the study were positive The research showed greater enjoyment, less stress and an increase in motivation about learning about chance in the classroom From the teacher’s perspective, the students were having fun, challenged and competitive while engaged in the activity Also of note by the teachers, was the reduction in the amount of stress and anxiety by the students (Nisbet & Williams, 2009) Obviously, using games and activities in the classroom generates a lot of interest and enthusiasm for mathematics Students and teachers were motivated and teaching and learning was taking place The key is to maintain the enthusiasm and motivation into subsequent lessons through classroom discussions, reflections, and the introduction of theories associated with the games (Nisbet & Williams, 2009) The goal of this researcher is to accomplish similar results with Writing to Win Student beliefs and attitudes have the potential to either facilitate or inhibit learning In a comparative study, researchers found that there is a direct link between students’ attitudes toward mathematics and student outcomes (Burstein, 1992) Gibbons, Kimmel and O’Sheal (1997), suggests that students’ attitudes about the value of learning mathematics may be considered as both an input and outcome variable because their attitudes toward the subject can be related to educational achievement in ways that reinforce higher or lower performance In other words, students who well in mathematics, generally have more positive attitudes towards mathematics, and those who have more positive attitudes towards mathematics tend to perform better in mathematics (Gibbons, Kimmel, & O’Sheal, 1997) This suggests that students’ attitude towards mathematics could be enhanced through effective teaching strategies (Akinsola & Olowojaiye, 2008) Educators must be open to different instructional techniques such as writing to reach these students and encourage a more positive attitude toward mathematics Organizational change 12 Educators have seen many changes over the past decade designed to influence change in teaching and learning Changes in use of technology, schedules, teaching methods, enrichment strategies, parent involvement, active engagement, and teacher training have dominated the research by educators However, the strongest possibility of improving student learning emerges where schools implement multiple changes in teaching and learning activities affecting the daily life of students (Mason, 1994) Organizational change research supports this approach In the book, “Heart of Change,” in order to accomplish successful large-scale change, the key element is reaching the heart and emotion of the people involved (Kotter, 2002) This is the responsibility of the leadership team, by establishing a clear vision (Kotter, 2002).The purpose of the identified vision is to motivate and energize people to work towards the future view of the organization (Hord, 1997) Hord further suggests, the establishment of a Profesional Learning Community which would yield effective implementation of change in schools and school districts (Hord, 1997) The key elements of a Professional Learning Community include having support from the top, namely, the principal or key administrator and input from the staff and teachers Another critical component is creating an environment where creativity is encouraged and nurtured (Hord, 1997) The author says each participant needs to put the organizational goals ahead of their personal goals Additionally, a sense of open sharing and communication on a regular established basis provides the best framework for organizational change (Hord, 1997) For example, if the aim is to improve student achievement on End of Course tests, the school might plan to introduce new strategies such as Writing to Win The value of a teacher focusing more attention on teaching for meaning may not be demonstrated if student assessments concentrate on rote recall of facts and proficient use of isolated skills It is important to note that opportunity to learn is related to equity issues This study plans to implement a major change through the Writing to Win strategy, which is designed to help students with critical thinking skills The responsibility for implementing this change is largely on the instructor It is also up to the individual teacher to ensure that the relevant equity issues are addressed The book, Using Equity Audit to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools, discussed education equity, the educational policies, practices and programs necessary to eliminate educational barriers and provide equal educational opportunities Chapter 10 discussed how to develop nine high-quality teaching skills It is essential that math educators incorporate all nine of these skills in the classroom because it will ensure that students are learning and deeply understanding the mathematical concepts In this pilot study, consistent and reliable classroom procedures and routines and communicating high expectations will be implemented Skill says that “students are actively, cognitively engaged if they are thinking” (Skrla, McKenzie, & Scheurich, 2009, p 99) This skill ties in with the one of the purposes of writing in math class Writing strategies will prompt critical thinking In the math classroom, teachers are often fooled about the level of active cognitive engagement The reason for this is because some teachers are only using a traditional approach to teaching which causes students to lose interest and eventually become un-disengaged Teachers need to structure learning so that they monitor students’ active cognitive engagement Writing will allow an opportunity to catch a misunderstanding or a lack of understanding early enough to prevent a gap and ensure equity 14 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY Research Design A combination of an action research design and an evaluation research design was used for this project To define the action research design, Charles and Mertler (2002) stated that the action research is used to search for solutions to everyday, real problems experienced in schools, or looking for ways to improve instruction and increase student achievement The process of action research assists educators in assessing needs, documenting the steps of inquiry, analyzing data, and making informed decisions that can lead to desired outcomes (Charles & Mertler, 2002) Moreover, this method specifically refers to a disciplined inquiry done by a teacher with the intent that the research will inform and change his or her practices in the future On the other hand, evaluations research design is involved in making judgments about the value of merit of a program This method is used to analyze the impact of a particular program on a certain social problem The process of evaluation research includes comparative content analysis, resultant student achievement, teacher acceptance, student acceptance, observations and interview, and analysis of theoretical tenets (Charles & Mertler, 2002) The overall goal of the project used an action research design that developed something new and an evaluation research design that appraised the quality of the innovation In this study, mixed methods are an approach to inquiry that combines both qualitative and quantitative forms Qualitative research is a means for exploring and understanding the meaning individuals or groups ascribe to a social or human problem (Creswell, 2009) Quantitative research is a means for testing objective theories by examining the relationships among variables The process of this research involves emerging questions and procedures , data collected in the subjects setting, data analysis inductively building from particulars to general themes, and the researcher making interpretations of the meaning of the data (Creswell, 2009, p.4) Student attitude surveys, teacher focus groups, and principal interviews are data gathering methods that are used to collect data on attitudes towards mathematics and low student achievement scores A comparison between this year and last year Mathematics I End of Course Test was use to analyze any significant differences among the two groups Setting The location of this study is in southwestern Georgia at a local high school The high school enrolls 784 high school students from grades 9-12, which is a medium sized city with a median household income of $27,976 The large faculty and staff, including fifty-four fulltime teachers, serves the student body with an average class size of 14.5 The majority of students enrolled are White, making up about fifty-three percent of all students Forty-three percent are Black, 1% Asian, 1% Hispanic, and 2% Unknown The students’ eligible for free lunch is forty-two percent and 9% are eligible for reduced lunch There were several steps taken to gain access to conduct the study Permission was given from the principal of the high school, the local county board of education, and the Institutional Review Board Participants and Subjects The study participants are the principal of the high school, math teachers, and ninth grade students The principal of the high school was interviewed He has worked at the high school for 12 years in a myriad of positions: teacher, coach, athletic director, assistant principal, and finally principal for the last five years Seven math teachers participated in the focus group All participating teachers are state certified in mathematics, and taught a wide variety of math 16 subjects Teachers’ experience varied from four to twenty-five years Twenty-eight subjects that participated in this study are Math I ninth grade students, 16 males and 12 females The reason why these students were selected for the study is because there are only two teachers actively involved in the Writing to Win project who taught ninth grade Math I students at the time of the study Procedures and Data Collection Methods The data shell below (table 3.1) describes the overview of the research study methodology It includes three focus questions, literature sources, type of method and data, how and why data are analyzed, rationale, and strengths/weaknesses Table 3.1: Data Shell How does Writing to Win strategies in mathematics affect student achievement levels? In order to determine if Writing to Win strategies affect student achievement levels, a comparison method was conducted between the scores from the Mathematics I End of Course Test from last year and this year Writing to Win enhances the way students learn with the nine critical-thinking journal strategies presented in the Writing to Win journal books Each strategy promotes a different thought pattern, boosting students’ ability to explain fluently what they learn Focus Questions Literature Sources Burns, M (1995) How does Writing Combs, W to Win strategies in (2005) mathematics affect Countryman, J student (1992) achievement Enyart, A M & levels? Van Zoest, L R (1998) How does Writing to Win strategies affect students’ attitudes towards mathematics? Meaney, T., Trinick, T., & Fairhall, U (2009) Goos, M., Brown, R., Makar, K., & Mathematics Education Research Group of, A (2008) Whitin, P & Whitin, D How does Writing (2000) to Win strategies in Phillips, D mathematics affect (1995) the attitudes of Beecher, M., & educators? Sweeny, S (2008) Type of Method and Data Why these data provide valid data Type of Validity Content Parallel Test How these data are analyzed Rationale Strengths / Weaknes ses Quantitativ e: Descriptive and inferential statistics Dependent T-test Quantitative : Determine if there are significant differences Validity Reliabilit y Dependability Bias Method: Student attitudinal pre and post survey Likert Scale Type of Validity: Content Construct Predictiv e Qualitative: Independent T-test Chi Square Crombach Alpha Qualitative: Look for categorical and repeating data Validity Reliabilit y Dependability Bias Method: Principal interview Teacher focus groups Type of Validity: Content Construct Predictiv e Qualitative: Qualitative: Coded for themes Look for categorical and repeating data Validity Reliabilit y Dependability Bias Method: Assessmen t EOCT Exam 18 in every class Some strategies include acrostic vocabulary, focused free writing, quad cluster, admit slip, and free writing How does Writing to Win strategies affect students’ attitudes towards mathematics? Research on attitude has a long history in mathematics education A student attitude survey was used to analyze the opinions of students towards mathematics The instrument was administered to 28 Math I ninth grade students The survey consists of items which the students were expected to respond by expressing their level of agreement or otherwise on a fourpoint scale of Strongly Agree (SA) rated 4, Agree (A) rated 3, Disagree (D) rated and Strongly Disagree (SD) rated The instrument used was Student Attitude Scale (SAS), which was adapted from the modified Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scales (refer to see Aappendix Afor survey) How does Writing to Win strategies in mathematics affect the attitudes of educators? Attitudes to mathematics and its teaching are important contributors to a teacher’s makeup and approach, because of the effect they can have on a students’ attitude to mathematics and its learning but ultimately on student achievement in mathematics (Schoenfeld, 2001) Teachers’ attitude towards mathematics itself includes liking, enjoyment and interest in mathematics, teacher’s confidence in his or her own mathematical abilities, teacher’s mathematical selfconcept, and the teacher’s valuing of mathematics (Quinn, 1998) In this research study, interviews and focus groups are used to collect information from those individuals participating in the study (administrators and teachers) to learn from them about their experiences Interviews are valued for their rich descriptive detail which can help clear an understanding of how intervention is being implemented and connecting with people The data are coded for themes and categorized by topic and repeating data The records and documents are extremely valuable in providing tangible evidence of implementation and progress and to analyze attitudes and opinions about Writing to Win strategies in mathematics References Barton, P (2005, February) One-third of a nation: Rising dropout rates and declining opportunities Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service Beecher, M., & Sweeny, S (2008) Closing the Achievement Gap with Curriculum Enrichment and Differentiation: One School's Story Journal of Advanced Academics, 19(3), 502-530 Retrieved from ERIC database Bottoms, G (2003) Closing the achievement gap: A “high schools that work” design for challenged schools Atlanta,GA: Southern Regional Education Board Bruner, J (1996) The Culture of Education, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press Brown, E (2010) Impact of freshman transition interventions on ninth grade academic achievement Liberty University Burns, M (1995) Writing in Math Class White Plains, NY: Cuisenaire Company of America, Inc 20 Burstein, L 1992: The analysis of multilevel data in educational research and evaluation Review of Research in Education; 8, 158-223 Federal Republic of Nigeria 2004: National Policy on Education (Revised), NERC Charles,C., & Mertler, C (2002) Introduction to educational research Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon Cobb, P.,;Yackel, E.,;Wood,T (1992) A constructivist alternative to the representational view of mind in mathematics education Journal for research in mathematics education (Reston,VA), vol 23, p 2–23 Combs, W (2005) Writing to win: journal for writing across the curriculum Athens, GA: Erincort Consulting, Inc Countryman, J (1992) Writing in Mmathematics: Strategies that Wwork Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Creswell, J (2009) Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches 3rd edition Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, Inc Farooq, M., & Shah, S (2008) Students' Attitude Towards Mathematics Online Submission, Retrieved from EBSCOhost Georgia Department of Education (2010) End of Course Test Scores Improve Retrieved from www.doe.k12.ga.us/ Gibbons, S; Kimmel, H and O’Shea, M 1997: Changing teacher behaviour through development: Implementing the teaching and content standards in science School Science and Mathematics; 97(6), 302-310 Hiebert, J., et al (1997) Making sense: teaching and learning mathematics with understanding Portsmouth, NH, Heinemann Hord, S M (1997) Professional learning communities: What are they and why are they important? Issues …About Change, 6(1) Retrieved from http://www.sedl.org/change/issues/issues61.html Kilpatrick, J (1992) A history of research in mathematics education In:Grouws,D.A., eEd Handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning, p 3–38 New York, Macmillan Kotter, J., (2002) The heart of change: real life stories of how people change their organization Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business School Press LaGrange College Education Department (2009) Conceptual Framework LaGrange, GA: LaGrange College Marsh, G (2004) An instrument to measure mathematics attiudes Academic Exchange Quarterly Mason, J.: 1994, Researching From the Inside in Mathematics Education: locating an I You relationship, in Ponte, J and Matos J (eds), Proceedings of PME XVIII, Lisbon, Portugal, 176–194 McLeod, D (1992) Research on affect in mathematics education: a reconceptualization In D.Grows (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Mathematics Teaching and Learning (pp.575596) New York: McMillan Publishing Company National Center for Education Statistics (2004) The condition of education 2004, indicator 31: Remedial coursetaking.Washington, DC: US Department of Education 22 Nisbet, S., & Williams, A (2009) Improving Students' Attitudes to Chance with Games and Activities Australian Mathematics Teacher, 65(3), 25-37 Retrieved from EBSCOhost Phillips, D (1995) The good, the bad, and the ugly: The many faces of constructivism Educational Researcher, 5-12 Quinn, R J (1998) Effects of mathematics methods courses on the mathematical attitudes and content knowledge of preservice teachers Journal of Educational Research, 91(2),108 Schoenfeld, A H (2001) Mathematics education in the twentieth century In L Corno (Ed.), Education across a century: The centennial volume (pp 239-278) Chicago, Ill.:National Society for the Study of Education, University of Chicago Press Skrla, L., McKenzie, K., & Scheurich, J (2009) Using equity audit to create equitable and excellent schools Thousand Oaks, California: A Sage Company Tapia, M., & Marsh I, G (2004) An instrument to measure mathematics attitudes Academic Exchange Quarterly (2), 1-8 Whitin, P & Whitin, D (2000) Math is Language language tToo: Talking and wWriting in the mMathematics cClassroom Reston, Virginia: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics ...2 THE EFFECTS OF WRITING TO WIN STRATEGIES IN MATHEMATICS A project submitted by Brenice L Brown to LaGrange College In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree... enough to prevent a gap and ensure equity 14 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY Research Design A combination of an action research design and an evaluation research design was used for this project To... data in educational research and evaluation Review of Research in Education; 8, 158-223 Federal Republic of Nigeria 2004: National Policy on Education (Revised), NERC Charles,C., & Mertler, C (2002)