Science & Mathematics Education

Department's website

The Department of Science and Mathematics Education is committed to the improvement of science and mathematics teaching and learning in schools and in free-choice learning environments. We have major foci on K-16 teacher education (preservice and inservice), development of practitioners and researchers in free-choice learning, and research on teaching and learning. Our faculty members are engaged in research in K-12 classroom settings, within our own courses, on science and mathematics college courses, and in free-choice learning environments for example in museums, zoos, aquariums, science centers, and national parks.

School-Based Research

Our faculty research and evaluate mathematics and science education leadership and professional development, focusing on improving math and science content for teachers in the state and across the nation. In conducting this research, faculty work in partnership with school districts, community colleges, businesses, and industry. For example:

• A partnership with central Oregon school districts and the High Desert ESD assures that middle school mathematics teachers meet the high qualifications of the No Child Left Behind federal initiative.
• Another project is built on a partnership among Portland Community College, Portland metropolitan area high schools, and the construction industry, in a program where students experience the value of science and mathematics in post-high school career pathways.
• Researching Mathematics Leader Learning is an NSF-funded research project intended to study the understandings and practices of mathematics professional development leaders associated with developing mathematically rich learning environments. The project investigates the question: How can leaders cultivate professional development environments where teachers have a greater opportunity to grapple with and understand mathematics deeply?
• Research partnerships are also created within the OSU community. Faculty members are collaborating with the Physics Department to design and evaluate a course for prospective elementary and middle school teachers. Research within this course will study how to improve the generalist teacher’s understanding of physical phenomena and at the same time build an understanding of how students learn science.
• A partnership with Vernier Software and Technologies and with Texas Instrument is leading to new understandings about the role of innovative technologies helping students understand key science and mathematics concepts.

Research on Free Choice Learning Environments

The newly created Free-Choice Learning graduate program, housed in the OSU Department of Science and Mathematics Education and a Center for Free-Choice Learning at the Hatfield Marine Science Center, in collaboration with the Oregon Sea Grant Program, has been a major milestone in a rapidly developing field.

It is estimated that there are currently in excess of 100,000 free-choice learning professionals in the country, and thousands of additional students who would be interested in joining the field if they knew of an appropriate graduate program.

Oregon State University is the first in the world to offer such a graduate program focused on research in free-choice learning environments. Free-choice learning faculty members have done research and professional development in Ukraine, Australia, U.K., Japan, Taiwan, Brazil, and Chile. With NSF funding, free-choice learning faculty investigate the role of zoos and aquariums on the long-term impact of informal science experiences for girls. Faculty connected with OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center Visitors Center provide unique opportunities for research on free-choice learning as well as internship opportunities in informal science education for graduate students.

Collegiate Teaching

Faculty study the ways in which college students learn science and mathematics. Department faculty have teamed with the Physics Department to evaluate innovations in curriculum and teaching, funded by NSF in a program entitled Paradigm Physics. This research has examines the impact on learning in upper division physics students.

The new course mentioned above involving physics learning in preservice teachers is another example research on collegiate teaching and learning. Other projects are studying how faculty reform teaching practices to meet higher achievement and retention standards even in large lecture-recitation courses.

Finally, faculty are partnering with Electrical Engineering to evaluate curricular innovations involving the use of Tekbots® for integrating course content and emphasizing innovation and troubleshooting.