Lexical Development in Adult Beginning Second Language Learners

This research tests the hypothesis that knowledge of derivational morphology facilitates vocabulary acquisition in beginning adult second language learners. Participants were mono-lingual English-speaking college students aged 18 years and older enrolled inintroductory Spanish courses. Knowledge of Spanish derivational morphology was tested through the use of a forced-choice translation task. Spanish lexical knowledge was measured by a translation task using direct translation (English word) primes and conceptual (picture) primes. A 2x2x2 mixed factor ANOVA examined the relationships between morphological knowledge (strong, moderate), error type (form-based, conceptual), and prime type (direct translation, picture). The results are consistent with the existence of a relationship between knowledge of derivational morphology andacquisition of second language vocabulary. Participants made more conceptually-based errors than form-based errors F (1,22)=7.744, p=.011. This result is consistent with Clahsen & Felser’s (2006) and Ullman’s (2004) models of second language processing. Additionally, participants with Strong morphological knowledge made fewer errors onthe lexical knowledge task than participants with Moderate morphological knowledge t(23)=-2.656, p=.014. I suggest future directions to clarify the relationship between morphological knowledge and lexical development in adult second language learners.

Fidelity of Implementation of Research-Based Instructional Strategies (RBIS) in Engineering Science Courses

Background Increasing attention is being paid to improvement in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education through increased adoption of research-based instructional strategies (RBIS), but high-quality measures of faculty instructional practice do not exist to monitor progress. Purpose/Hypothesis The measure of how well an implemented intervention follows the original is called fidelity of implementation. This theory was used to address the research questions: What is the fidelity of implementation of selected RBIS in engineering science courses? That is, how closely does engineering science classroom practice reflect the intentions of the original developers? Do the critical components that characterize an RBIS discriminate between engineering science faculty members who claimed use of the RBIS and those who did not? Design/Method A survey of 387 U.S. faculty teaching engineering science courses (e.g., statics, circuits, thermodynamics) included questions about class time spent on 16 critical components and use of 11 corresponding RBIS. Fidelity was quantified as the percentage of RBIS users who also spent time on corresponding critical components. Discrimination between users and nonusers was tested using chi square. Results Overall fidelity of the 11 RBIS ranged from 11% to 80% of users spending time on all required components. Fidelity was highest for RBIS with one required component: case-based teaching, just-in-time teaching, and inquiry learning. Thirteen of 16 critical components discriminated between users and nonusers for all RBIS to which they were mapped. Conclusions Results were consistent with initial mapping of critical components to RBIS. Fidelity of implementation is a potentially useful framework for future work in STEM undergraduate education.

Estimates of Use of Research-Based Instructional Strategies in Core Electrical or Computer Engineering Courses

Many research-based instruction strategies (RBISs) have been developed; their superior efficacy with respect to student learning has been demonstrated in many studies. Collecting and interpreting evidence about: 1) the extent to which electrical and computer engineering (ECE) faculty members are using RBISs in core, required engineering science courses, and 2) concerns that they express about using them, are important aspects of understanding how engineering education is evolving. The authors surveyed ECE faculty members, asking about their awareness and use of selected RBISs. The survey also asked what concerns ECE faculty members had about using RBISs. Respondent data showed that awareness of RBISs was very high, but estimates of use of RBISs, based on survey data, varied from 10% to 70%, depending on characteristics of the strategy. The most significant concern was the amount of class time that using an RBIS might take; efforts to increase use of RBISs must address this.

Influence of Engineering Instructors' Teaching and Learning Beliefs on Pedagogies in Engineering Science Courses

This study explored how academics' beliefs about teaching and learning influenced their teaching in engineering science courses typically taught in the second or third year of 4-year engineering undergraduate degrees. Data were collected via a national survey of 166 U. S. statics instructors and interviews at two different institutions with 17 instructors of engineering science courses such as thermodynamics, circuits and statics. The study identified a number of common beliefs about how to best support student learning of these topics; each is discussed in relation to the literature about student development and learning. Specific recommendations are given for educational developers to encourage use of research-based instructional strategies in these courses.