Science Majors Research Articles

대학 이공계열 신입생의 고등학교 수학과 성취기준 도달에 관한 연구

Objectives The purpose of this study is to analyze the understanding of the high school mathematics contents of freshmen majoring in science and engineering. Methods To do this, the degree of reaching achievement standards in high school mathematics, mathematics I, and mathematics II subjects was measured by freshmen majoring in science and engineering. In order to measure the degree of reaching the achievement standards of high school mathematics, an evaluation tool was developed based on the achievement standards and evaluation standards of the 2015 revised curriculum. A nonparametric test, Kruskal-Wallis, was used for analyzing the degree of reaching achievement standards according to the type of high school from which one came from and the mathematics subject, and the Mann-Whitney test was used as a posttest. Results The results of this study are as follows. First, the test results of 689 people for a total of 19 questions consisting of mathematics, mathematics I, and mathematics II averaged 8.53. Second, when analyzing the degree of reaching the achievement standard of the high school mathematics according to the type of high school from which they came from, freshmen who graduated from general high schools showed higher levels than freshmen who graduated from vocational high schools. Third, when analyzing the degree of reaching the achievement standard according to the subject, the degree of reaching the achievement standard of the mathematics subject was higher than that of the mathematics I. Fourth, when analyzing the degree of reaching the achievement standard according to the subject, the degree of reaching the achievement standard of the mathematics II subject was higher than that of the mathematics I. Conclusions Universities need to provide teaching and learning programs for freshmen majoring in the science and engineering so that they can understand the high school mathematics contents. In addition, as the curriculum changes, freshmen's understanding of the content of the subject may change, so it is necessary to establish a system to continuously check the main contents of the high school mathematics.

Comparison of Physical Education Learning Motivation between The Science Department and The Social Sciences Department

This study aims to determine whether there are differences in motivation to study physical education between science majors and social studies majors at SMA Negeri 1 Subang. The research method used is non-experimental (ex post facto) with a comparative design, namely the research is directed to compare one sample group with another group. In this study, researchers wanted to compare the level of motivation to learn science majors with social studies majors at SMA Negeri 1 Samarinda. The population in this study were students of class XII IPA and XII IPS SMA Negeri 1 Samarinda, totaling 364 students with a sample taken of 20% of the population, namely 69 respondents. The instrument used in this study was a motivational questionnaire which was tested for validity and reliability by the author with the results of 25 valid items out of 27 existing item items and a reliability level of 0.902. In this study, the hypothesis was tested using the independent sample t-test formula with a result of 0.002 < 0.05, so with these results there was a significant difference between the motivation to study physical education majoring in science and social studies at SMA Negeri 1 Samarinda (exceeding the classical completeness standard). The results of this research show that animated learning media can improve responsiveness and science learning outcomes in special sports classes.

Optimism and mental health in college students: the mediating role of sleep quality and stress.

College students showed a high prevalence of stress, anxiety, and depression, with medical and nursing students experiencing particularly elevated levels of mental health challenges.Optimism significantly influences overall well-being by promoting a healthy lifestyle and cognitive responses. However, the association of optimism with sleep quality, stress, and mental health in college students remains unexplored. This study aimed to (1) explore the associations of optimism with sleep quality, stress, and mental health and (2) ascertain whether sleep quality and stress mediate the association between optimism and mental health among college students. A cross-sectional study was conducted using online surveys with students from health science majors at a public university in the northeast United States from September to December 2022. A total of 222 students participated in the study, providing data on sociodemographics, optimism, sleep quality, stress, anxiety, and depression. Parallel and serial mediation models were utilized to examine the potential mediating roles of sleep quality and stress in the association between optimism and mental health. The study found that optimism influences anxiety and depression through both direct and indirect pathways. In line with predictions, the parallel mediation analysis revealed that the impact of optimism on anxiety (βtotal = -0.598, 95% confident interval [CI]: -0.778 to -0.392) and depression (βtotal = -0.724, 95% CI: -0.919 to -0.519) was mediated by stress and sleep quality. Furthermore, the serial mediation models revealed that stress and sleep quality co-mediated the relationship betweenoptimism and anxiety (indirect effect [IE] = -0.074, 95% CI: -0.135 to -0.029) or depression (IE = -0.084, 95% CI: -0.142 to -0.036) in a sequential manner. Optimism was negatively correlated with poor sleep quality, stress, anxiety, and depression. Enhanced optimism was linked to high sleep quality and less stress, anxiety, and depression. These insights emphasize the potential for school-based optimism interventions to improve sleep quality, ameliorate stress-related concerns, and alleviate mental health challenges in college students.

A Study on English Learning Motivation of Computer Science Majors in China

The process of English learning among college students has a profound impact on their psychological factors and learning outcomes. English plays a crucial role in the field of computer science. It not only builds upon basic English but also encompasses a comprehensive understanding of computer science. Computer English serves as a vital tool for Computer Science (CS) students to improve their expertise and achieve better self-development. This paper primarily examines the current state of insufficient English learning motivation among college students majoring in CS in China, analyzes the significance and influencing factors of learning English, and subsequently proposes practical strategies to stimulate and cultivate college students' English learning motivation.

Exploration and Innovative Research on the Construction of Practical Training Bases for Art Majors in Science and Engineering Universities from the Perspective of "Double First Class" Construction

With the country's high-quality evaluation requirements for the construction of "double first-class" university majors, the construction universities have reorganized the development direction and positioning of majors to play a supporting role in the construction of "double first-class" and lay a solid foundation for high-quality talent cultivation. As an art major in a science and engineering university, how to support the "double first-class" discipline construction system through innovative education and teaching systems is a problem that needs to be solved for art majors. Practical training as an important part of practical teaching in art majors, practical training plays an important role in practical education and is an effective channel to transform knowledge into skills. Over the years, the college has attached great importance to the innovative construction of practical training bases. Through cooperation with enterprises, it has summed up successful experiences in the process of base construction, explored the collaborative education new model between schools and enterprises, innovated measures in practical teaching system reform, institutional guarantee, process supervision, assessment and evaluation system, and laid a solid foundation for the construction of "double first-class" university majors and high-quality talent cultivation.

Reflections on Implementing an ePortfolio as a Capstone Project for an LIS Master's Degree Program

In fall 2019, an electronic portfolio (ePortfolio) was implemented as the capstone project requirement for the Master's degree program with majors in library science and information science at the University of North Texas. This reflection provides a synopsis of the process of implementing an electronic portfolio as a capstone project, including the following details: what an electronic portfolio is, why it is beneficial for students, how it can be used, best practices in implementing an ePortfolio, suggestions for implementation, and benefits versus challenges of incorporating the project. We hope that sharing our experience in implementing an ePortfolio component in a Master's degree program may be helpful to other universities hoping or planning to implement an ePortfolio as a capstone project or even as an extended résumé.

Exploring Identity Perception and Bilingual Education Dynamics in Taiwanese University Settings

In an increasingly interconnected world, proficiency in English is becoming indispensable, prompting Taiwanese universities to implement English language requirements ranging from one to four years. This initiative aligns with a national bilingual education program aimed at bolstering the English proficiency of college students to enhance their international competitiveness. Consequently, English-medium instruction has become prevalent in various university courses, facilitated by the Freshman English course serving as a transition to English-mediated teaching. While linguistic development is emphasized, the dynamics of identity perception among students cannot be overlooked, as language identity profoundly impacts their learning experiences and growth. This study delves into the identity perception of college freshmen in Taiwan, where bilingual education is heavily emphasized by the government. The purpose of the study is to investigate how Taiwanese college freshmen perceive their identity as they participate in English language learning. In addition, this study aims to examine the influence of gender and college major on the individual differences in identity perception among college freshmen engaged in English language learning. Employing Gao et al.’s (2005) Likert-scale questionnaire on self-identity change, the research surveyed 360 freshmen from a university in northern Taiwan. Data analysis performed with SPSS includes two stages. At the first stage, descriptive statistics revealed that participants exhibited agreement on self-identity changes in four categories: self-confidence, zero, productive and additive. At the second stage, a multivariate analysis of variance demonstrated significant main effects of gender and major on identity changes. Female students exhibited higher self-confidence, additive and productive changes compared to male students. Furthermore, liberal arts majors experienced more pronounced self-confidence, additive and productive changes than their counterparts in business, science, and engineering majors. A Post Hoc test unveiled significant differences, with business majors scoring higher than science majors in subtractive and split changes, while science majors differed significantly from liberal arts majors in zero change. The study’s implications extend beyond theoretical understanding, informing pedagogical practices to enhance language learning experiences.

Study on Teaching Database Principles Course based on OBE Concepts

With the rapid development of information technology, database principles, as one of the core courses of computer science and technology majors, the quality of its teaching is directly related to the cultivation of students' practical work ability and innovation ability. However, the traditional teaching mode has problems such as emphasizing theory over practice, single assessment method and neglecting ability cultivation, which is difficult to meet the current social demand for high-quality technical talents. Therefore, this paper introduces the OBE (Outcome-Based Education) education concept into the teaching of "Principles of Database" course, and puts forward a series of teaching reform measures based on the OBE concept, including the formulation of specific teaching objectives, optimization of teaching content, innovative teaching methods, diversified course evaluation and assessment mechanism, etc., to realize the training of students' ability and innovation through the construction of student-centered and output-oriented teaching mode, and to realize the training of students' ability and innovation. By constructing a student-centered and output-oriented teaching mode, it realizes the enhancement of students' independent learning and innovation and practice ability, so as to make students become excellent talents of the new century with innovative consciousness and ability.

Reform and Exploration of Teaching Modes in Data Processing Courses for Humanities and Social Sciences Majors

This article explores innovative teaching methods such as personalized instruction, fostering students' self-learning abilities and creative thinking, integrating multimedia technology for blended learning both online and offline, incorporating research into teaching, diversifying evaluation methods, and enhancing teachers' self-efficacy for improving teaching effectiveness. Taking the course "Python Data Processing and Analysis" as a case study, the article applies these approaches in practical teaching. The research findings indicate a significant improvement in teaching effectiveness, with noticeable enhancements in student engagement and performance.

A matching model for major orientation of computer science students based on random forest model

With the advancement of computer innovation, there are increasingly major computer bearings, such as software development, network security, artificial intelligence, data science, etc. When choosing the direction of computer science, students have to consider their interests, techniques, soft skills and numerous other components to utilize their qualities and accomplish their career objectives. This article centres on how to use machine learning methods to anticipate the direction of computer science students. Theres a solid relationship between students interests, techniques, and soft skills when choosing the direction of computer science majors. By employing a random forest machine learning show to prepare students ability characteristics, it is conceivable to anticipate which direction of specialization students are more appropriate for. Within the explore, we isolated the training, validation, and test sets, agreeing to the proportion of 6:2:2. We utilized the exactness rate to judge the models forecast exactness. After preparing, the expectation precision of this show increments, and the precision rate of the test set comes to 96%. This implies that this machine learning show can reasonably foresee computer science students heading and give them way better career improvement proposals. In the future, we will encourage optimising the demonstration to make strides in the forecast exactness and apply it to a broader run of areas.

Increasing Diversity in Lifelong AI Education: Workshop Report

AI is rapidly emerging as a tool that can be used by everyone, increasing its impact on our lives, society, and the economy. There is a need to develop educational programs and curricula that can increase capacity and diversity in AI as well as awareness of the implications of using AI-driven technologies. This paper reports on a workshop whose goals include developing guidelines for ensuring that we expand the diversity of people engaged in AI while expanding the capacity for AI curricula with a scope of content that will reflect the competencies and needs of the workforce. The scope for AI education included K-Gray and considered AI knowledge and competencies as well as AI literacy (including responsible use and ethical issues). Participants discussed recommendations for metrics measuring capacity and diversity as well as strategies for increasing capacity and diversity at different level of education: K-12, undergraduate and graduate Computer Science (CS) majors and non-CS majors, the workforce, and the public.

Four‐Dimensional Ecology Education (4DEE) for everyone: teaching ecology to non‐majors

Originally developed for application to ecology courses for undergraduate majors, the Four‐Dimensional Ecology Education (4DEE) Framework offers possibilities for adaptation to courses with ecology content for many other audiences. Recognizing the extraordinary range of classroom contexts and constraints, we developed some general, flexible recommendations and approaches to guide instructors in adapting the 4DEE Framework for an array of non‐major audiences and classroom context needs. Our hope is that 4DEE‐aligned courses for non‐majors will provide these students with greater appreciation of ecology and inspire them to use their knowledge to address many critical environmental issues in their personal and professional lives. Many of our recommendations likely apply to natural science, engineering, and math majors as well. We encourage more ecologists to embrace teaching non‐majors courses as a response to the urgent need to improve ecological literacy for everyone.

Strategies for Developing Pre-Employment Adaptability from a High-Quality Employment Perspective: An Analysis of College Students' Job Preparation Behaviors

This study surveyed the job preparation behaviors of 210 college students and proposed strategies for job preparation behaviors that college students need to adapt to before entering the workplace. The results indicate that the overall level of students' job preparation behaviors is moderately average (M=3.07). Among the sub-factors of goal achievement behaviors, tool preparation behaviors, and information gathering behaviors, goal achievement behaviors scored the highest (M=3.14). Male students had higher scores in information gathering and tool preparation behaviors than female students; senior students outperformed junior students in information gathering; and students in science and engineering majors scored higher in information gathering and tool preparation behaviors than those in humanities and social sciences. The findings of this study have practical significance for optimizing and improving employment planning education in higher education and provide a foundational reference for research in high-quality employment, employment equality, and industry-education integration.

Insight into sleep quality and its relationship with emotional intelligence: results of a cross-sectional study among Italian university students.

This study aimed to investigate sleep habits and examine the relationship between sleep quality and its potential predictors, namely Emotional Intelligence (EI) and perceived health status. The present cross-sectional study was conducted between February 13 and February 28, 2023, at the "Magna Græcia" University of Catanzaro, in the Southern part of Italy. The study involved undergraduate students who were 18 years or older, proficient in the Italian language, and with no restrictions on the major attended. They completed a self-administered survey on socio-demographic information, health status, sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index-PSQI), EI, and perceived health status. The majority of the sample (59.6%) was enrolled in medical or life science majors. The results showed a high prevalence of poor sleep quality and sleep latency was identified as the most affected aspect of it. The female gender and the self-perceived health status were the strongest predictors of poor sleep quality. Poor sleepers showed lower emotional clarity, emotional repair, and total EI scores. Moreover, as age increased, the odds of being classified as a poor sleeper increased by 7%. The survey highlights that poor sleep health is still a significant issue and empowering individuals to make proactive decisions to adopt healthy lifestyles in the early phase of life is of paramount importance. The study exhibited the interesting role of EI in influencing sleep quality, highlighting that when emotional events are insufficiently regulated, it may result in sleep disturbances. Therefore, the promotion of sleep quality requires an integrated yet innovative approach including emotion regulation.

Rethinking Undergraduate Computer Science Education: Using the 4Es Heuristic to Center Students in an Introductory Computer Science Course

Rethinking Undergraduate Computer Science Education: Using the 4Es Heuristic to Center Students in an Introductory Computer Science Course

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics undergraduates’ knowledge and interest in quantum careers: Barriers and opportunities to building a diverse quantum workforce

Efforts to build the workforce in support of the second quantum revolution are growing, including the creation of education programs that will prepare students for jobs in this area. We surveyed 186 undergraduate students with majors across the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines and followed up with group interviews to understand their perspectives. The project was designed to understand what these STEM students know about quantum and quantum career opportunities and their level of interest in pursuing a career related to quantum. We found that most of the students know very little about quantum. Nevertheless, except for students in the life sciences, there was an interest in quantum careers. Across STEM majors, women were less likely to express interest in quantum careers than men, but this difference disappeared when we examined only physical and computer science majors. Of the few students who had knowledge of quantum concepts, most learned about this topic from online media, especially online videos. Some students reported learning about quantum in high school classes, where it was taught as an extension beyond the usual topics of the course. The undergraduate STEM students in our study identified multiple ways they would like to learn more about quantum, including short videos, seminars, courses, certificates, and degree programs. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

An identity-based learning community intervention enhances the lived experience and success of first-generation college students in the biological sciences

Working-class first-generation (FG) college students are underrepresented in higher education and STEM. Using a longitudinal quasi-experiment, we tested the impacts of a living learning community (LLC) in the biological sciences on FG students in their first year of college (Semester 1: N = 243; Semester 2: N = 199), across three cohorts (2018–2019, 2019–2020 and 2020–2021). Participation in the LLC enhanced FG students’ belonging, confidence, motivation, grades, knowledge of the social relevance of biology, and reduced STEM anxiety compared to a control group of FG students not in an LLC. LLC participation also increased retention in biological science majors one-year post-intervention compared to the control FG group. Moreover, LLC participation closed the academic gap between FG students in the LLC and honors students from college-educated families in a separate honors LLC. Benefits of the LLC intervention remained stable despite the COVID-19 pandemic, when living together became impossible, producing positive effects across cohorts from pre-pandemic to in-pandemic. Our results suggest that affinity-based learning communities—with or without shared housing—in the transition to college enhance academic thriving, persistence, and reduce social class driven achievement gaps in STEM.

Stressed Out: Identifying Inequities and Underlying Causes Associated With Pre-med Student Stress

Stress is among the top mental health concerns of US college students and hypothesized to be especially high among pre-med students. Yet, the extent to which pre-meds’ stress differs from other college science students’ stress, as well as the underlying factors contributing to pre-meds’ stress are understudied. Given that stress is disproportionately likely to impact students who are already underrepresented and underserved in science and medicine, it is integral to identify what underlies student stress. Study Objective: We conducted a sequential mixed-methods study to identify what factors exacerbate pre-med stress and the severity of pre-med stress compared to students who are not pre-med. Hypothesis: We hypothesized the competitive nature of being pre-med would account for the majority of pre-med stress and that their overall stress levels would be higher than those of their counterparts. Methods: In Study 1, we conducted an exploratory qualitative interview study with 30 undergraduate pre-meds to assess what aspects of being pre-med exacerbate their stress. We built on this work in Study 2, with a survey of 551 science undergraduates to (a) assess how generalizable the findings from Study 1 were among undergraduate pre-meds at scale and to (b) assess whether students with different career tracks express different levels of stress. Our specific research questions were: 1) On average, do students perceive that pre-meds have higher stress than non-pre-med science majors? 2) Do pre-meds report higher levels of academic stress, perfectionism, social comparison, and perceived competitive environment in science college courses? 3) What aspects of being pre-med induce stress? and 4) What recommendations do pre-meds have for instructors and institutions to decrease pre-med stress? We used open coding methods and regressions to analyze our data. Results: We found that most students perceived that pre-med students had higher stress than their peers. However, while pre-meds reported higher levels of social comparison, they did not express higher academic stress, perfectionism, or perceived competition compared to their peers in science. Regardless of career path, being a woman or non-binary, identifying as a person excluded because of their ethnicity or race (PEER), financially unstable and having a lower GPA significantly predicted a higher academic stress score. Aspects of the medical school application underlying pre-med stress include worrying about not being good enough or maintaining a competitive GPA. Conclusion: This study highlights the levels of stress among pre-meds do not differ compared to non-pre-med science undergraduates, but that women or non-binary students, PEERs, students who are financially unstable and those with lower GPAs are more likely to experience stress in the context of undergraduate science. This work provides student-produced recommendations for ways in which instructors and institutions can decrease the stress associated with being a pre-med student. This study was funded by an ASU Online Undergraduate Research Scholars program seed grant. Graduate student Mohammed is funded by an NSF GRFP #026257-001 and PI Cooper is funded by an NSF CAREER #2143671. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Promoting Deep Learning In First-Year Physiology Through Structured In-class Activities: Building a Bridge for Success

The transition from high school to university is often a diffcult journey for learners. From data we have collected (unpublished), many students report successful use of surface learning strategies in secondary school, such as highlighting and memorizing their notes or rote recall using flash cards. As such, most students continue using these same techniques in first-year STEM courses1, such as physiology. Furthermore, first-year learners are often unsure how to change their study habits, even after receiving a disappointing midterm grade, as most post-secondary students report that they have not been taught how to study2. This leads to the reinforcement of surface learning, creating a larger knowledge gap as students progress into upper-year courses without having achieved deeper learning in pre-requisite courses. Although many universities offer learning strategy workshops, it has been shown that teaching students these skills within the context of their course work is the most effective3. We hypothesize that modelling deep learning strategies through a variety of weekly hands-on activities will positively influence students’ self-reported study strategies, leading to the incorporation of these active learning techniques in their personal study time. Our first-year physiology course is a pre-requisite for both Kinesiology students and those in the Foods and Nutrition program. Approximately 420 students are enrolled and includes those in science and non-science majors. We have 12 tutorial sections of approximately 40 learners each and 21 weeks of tutorials over the academic year. These tutorials serve as active learning sessions that apply lecture content from the week earlier. Each week, we have designed activities such as concept mapping, case studies, card sorting, problem set worksheets, and Play-Doh modelling, to name a few. Students complete a learning attitude survey after each activity, where quantitative and qualitative data is collected, and two test-your-knowledge exit questions on the content covered by that activity. Students experience each activity in both semester 1 and semester 2, although for different course material. We will present examples of activities used during tutorials as well as preliminary data, which is currently being collected, on the learning attitudes submitted by our students for these activities. We anticipate that as deeper learning strategies are modelled in tutorials, students will be more likely to adapt these techniques as they study. We also anticipate that repeated exposure to the same learning activity in semester 2 will positively influence their attitude toward the usefulness of that tool. Physiology educators have embraced a shift away from didactic lectures to expand the use of problem-based learning in recent years. Our study contributes concrete examples that any educator could implement in their classroom and the associated learning attitudes regarding each activity from a diverse group of students taking their first physiology course. References cited: 1Cook, A. and Leckey, L. (1999) Do expectations meet reality? A survey of changes in first-year student opinion. Journal of Further and Higher Education. 23: 157-171. 2Kornell, K. and Bjork, RA. (2007) The promise and perils of self-regulated learning. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 14: 219-224. 3Hattie, J., Biggs, J., and Purdie, N. (1996) Effects of learning skills interventions on student learning, a meta-analysis. The Journal of Experimental Education. 66: 99-136. No support or funding. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Investigation of social variables affecting the subjective experience of Boston University pre‐health students

Introduction: Students who are pre-health experience higher levels of stress and adopt maladaptive coping behaviors including alcohol and drug use. Additionally, students belonging to sexual and gender minority (SGM) groups are more likely to drop out from science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) majors. Studies have yet to determine how SGM identities influence self-perceived ability and desire to pursue careers in healthcare. Hypothesis: Pre-health students belonging to SGM groups have lower self confidence in their career trajectory as a function of identity compared to their cisgender, heterosexual peers. Methods: Pre-health students at Boston University were surveyed using quantitative Likert-like items and open response questions. Survey content explored the degree to which students agreed with statements regarding how their sexual orientation and gender has affected their career trajectory as a pre-health student. Responses were grouped by gender and sexual orientation and unpaired Mann-Whitney rank tests were used to assess differences at an alpha of 0.05. Results: Of the 71 respondents, 44 (61.97%) identified as heterosexual women, 14 (19.71%) identified as queer women, 10 (14.08%) identified as heterosexual men and 3 (4.22%) identified as queer men. Queer women, compared to heterosexual women, reported higher perceived effects of sexual orientation (p=0.0228, median 2.0, IQR 1-2 vs. 1.0, IQR 1-2) and gender identity (p=0.0079, median 2.0, IQR 1-3.5, vs. median 1.0, IQR 1-2) on career trajectory. There were no significant differences between responses from queer men and heterosexual men regarding perceived effect of sexual orientation and gender identity on their career trajectories. Conclusion: Queer women in pre-health tracks may benefit most from targeted supportive intervention. This study was unfunded. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.