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November 2006

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Unique math education approach studied by the U of M could improve poor math scores in Minnesota
Nov. 15 , 2006

Enhancing math instruction in high school career technical education classes is one of the ways schools could improve math scores in Minnesota, according to a study led by the University of Minnesota. In light of low state test scores release today, educators throughout the state are looking for ways to improve students proficiency in math. Only 32 percent of the state’s high schoolers performed proficiently on the math tests.

U of M researchers have found that high school students who took vocational education classes with enhanced mathematics instruction performed significantly better on standardized math tests than students in a control group.

The results of this study could have profound impact on schools and their curriculum for vocational education classes, which are now called Career and Technical Education (CTE) classes, said James Stone III, U of M professor and director of the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE). The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Vocational and Adult Education funded the study, titled “Building Academic Skills in Context: Testing the Value of Enhanced Math Learning in Career and Technical Education.”

The experimental study, which was conducted during the 2004-2005 school year, involved more than 3,000 students in nine states. It was designed to test a model for enhancing math instruction in CTE courses emphasizing the math that is already embedded in the CTE curriculum. CTE teachers assigned to the control group used the traditional curriculum while CTE teachers in the experimental group partnered with math teachers to create a math enhanced CTE curriculum. Students were pre-tested on their math skills at the beginning of the year and post-tested at the end of the year.

“The study found that schools could have a significant effect on students’ grasp of mathematics without investing enormous amounts of time,” Stone said. Teachers spent about 10 percent of classroom instructional time teaching the enhance CTE lessons. To learn how to enhance the embedded math, teachers spent five days in the summer at a professional development workshop to learn the pedagogy and create their lessons, then five more days during the course of the year develop new lessons and to refine existing ones.

“When we examined the test results of students in our study, the experimental kids significantly outperformed the control kids,” Stone said.

It is important for schools to acknowledge the amount of mathematics that exists within CTE classes and to enhance instruction in context, because many high school students do not have the math skills necessary for today’s jobs and college entrance requirements, Stone said.

“Our goal was to help kids master the math necessary for them to be successful in their work arena and not decrease their technical skills. But, it also improved their achievement on math tests,” Stone said.

In the researchers’ model for improving math skills, they simply emphasized the math already within the curriculum. Teachers worked to make math more explicit in a meaningful context. That means that the math usually found in textbooks is applied in real-life situations in their CTE classes. For example, in a building trades class, they will use the Pythagorean theorem as they construct a building.

A key to the enhanced math success involved teacher professional development workshops and the partnering of CTE teachers and math teachers to create their own enhanced lessons.

Other researchers involved in the study were: Corinne Alfeld, deputy director for research; Donna Pearson, deputy director for professional development; Morgan Lewis, research associate, and Susan Jensen, graduate research assistant.

The final report is available at http://www.nccte.org/mathStudy/index.aspx.

University of Minnesota floral design students create grave blanket in celebration of Day of the Dead
Nov. 7 , 2006

University of Minnesota floral design students have created an historic grave blanket in honor of the Mexican “El Dia de los Muertos” (the Day of the Dead) celebration. The grave blanket is on display until Thursday, Nov. 16 in the St. Paul Student Center, Harvest Room, adjacent to the main dining room, 2017 Buford Ave., St. Paul.

Each year, horticulture instructor Neil Anderson has his students work together in teams to design and create historic grave blankets in honor of a specific event.

This year, students used fresh and dried flowers, including Marigolds, as well as food in creating this floral tribute. Marigolds are native to Mexico and the United States, and are the traditional flower used to celebrate this holiday.

Students worked in four groups, attaching various material onto potato gunnie sacks. The sack were then sown onto a continuous piece of chicken wire. Each group designed around a symbolic theme from the Day of the Dead: the harvest moon, a cross, a skull and an Aztec pyramid.

College of Design students compete in reality-based “Project Holiday” contest at Bachman’s
Nov. 7 , 2006

Minnesota audiences need not turn on the TV to be involved in a reality show like “Project Runway,” “American Idol,” or “Design on a Dime.” Members of the public get a chance to cast their ballot right here in Minneapolis for the best University of Minnesota student designed mannequin display for the much-anticipated Bachman’s Holiday Atrium.

Six U of M College of Design merchandising student teams have made it to the final challenge in a contest dubbed “Project Holiday.” Originally, 12 teams battled for the chance to create something for the public display. Judges trimmed the teams to six in early October. The “Project Holiday” creations go on display today beginning with a reception for the student designers from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, at Bachman’s flagship store, 6010 Lyndale Ave., Minneapolis.

Bachman’s, a major floral, gift and garden center based in Minneapolis, asked the retail merchandising students to present fashion with a holiday twist by showing and using products that Bachman’s sells as part of holiday fashion.

To complete the project, the teams were given a $250 budget to purchase fabric, trim, supplies and accessories. Students were told that the final design “should be over the top, but believable and wearable,” said Kate Daly, the university research associate directing the project.

The students’ designs should reflect style and elegance with a formal look such as evening wear. Daly has gotten a sneak peak of her students’ work.

“Their displays are fantastic and creative,” Daly said. “This project is really about how to integrate active learning in the classroom and into the community.”

Customers will vote on their favorite display and the winning team members will each receive $200. A total of 51 students are working on the projects. The six teams whose designs were not chosen for the display at the flagship story did not get voted out completely. Instead, they created alternative projects at other Bachman’s locations to promote the Holiday Atrium at the flagship store.