Type of Document Dissertation Author Hannah, Deborah Coleman Author's Email Address deborah_hannah@bellsouth.net URN etd-04232008-015934 Title Attitudinal study: The interaction of students taking calculus and prerequisite courses while participating in peer tutorials Degree Ph.D. Department Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology Advisory Committee
Advisor Name Title Christine D. Thomas, Ph.D. Committee Chair Marti Singer Committee Member Miles Anthony Irving, Ph.D. Committee Member Pier Junor Clarke, Ph.D. Committee Member Keywords
- geometry
- algebra
- calculus
- mathematics
- tutorial
- tutor
- peer
Date of Defense 2007-10-17 Availability unrestricted Abstract ABSTRACT
ATTITUDINAL STUDY:
THE INTERACTION OF STUDENTS TAKING CALCULUS AND PREREQUISITE COURSES WHILE PARTICIPATING IN PEER TUTORIALS
by
Deborah C. Hannah
Bridging the achievement gap while improving overall performance in high school
mathematics is a primary concern in the educational arena. A peer tutoring strategy was
implemented to examine its effects on the achievement and attitude of African American
students in mathematics courses. Vygotsky’s theory of social interaction and the Zone of
Proximal Development served as the guide for this investigation involving 138 high
school students. Dyads were formed by pairing 46 Algebra and Geometry students with
46 Advanced Placement Calculus students for after- school tutorial sessions. Forty-six
members of a control group received no tutoring intervention. Participants completed a
25-item graduation pretest and a 31-item Mathematical Disposition Survey (Donovan &
Beveridge, 2004). No significant group differences were found on any pretest measures.
After working with trained tutors for six weeks, the tutees completed a posttest and
survey. Students’ course grades from the first week were compared to their grades at the
conclusion of the study. ANOVA indicated achievement margins were statistically
significant at the .05 level; however, attitudinal changes were not significant. Results
indicated that participation in peer tutorials appears to have a predictive effect on
increased achievement, but not on student attitudes toward learning mathematics.
Files
Filename Size Approximate Download Time (Hours:Minutes:Seconds)
28.8 Modem 56K Modem ISDN (64 Kb) ISDN (128 Kb) Higher-speed Access hannah_deborah_c_200801_phd.pdf 2.27 Mb 00:10:31 00:05:24 00:04:44 00:02:22 00:00:12