At the pre-college and first-year college level of physics instruction, Kepler's laws are generally taught as empirical laws of nature. Introductory physics textbooks only derive Kepler's Second law of areas. It is possible to derive all of Kepler's laws mathematically from the conservation laws, employing only high-school algebra and geometry.…

The normal equations discussed in this paper for a least-squares parabolic fit have a unique solution if and only if there are at least three different x-values in the observations. This requirement is satisfied by most real sets of quantitative observations. For particular data sets, the appropriateness of parabolic fits should be assessed with…

This paper is written on a level accessible to college/university students of mathematics who are taking second-year, algebra based, mathematics courses beyond calculus I. This article combines material from geometry, trigonometry, and number theory. This integration of various techniques is an excellent experience for the serious student. The…

This report presents empirical findings from the analysis of the performance of 85 students from Madison Park High School, Boston, Massachusetts, on the Boston Public Schools City Algebra Test (BPSCAT) in June and August 2000, and how their participation in Jobs for Youths Boston PLATO computer-based instruction in the intervening months may have…

Brooks (1999) compared algebra achievement of students enrolled in the intervention group (I CAN Learn[R] classes) to that of students enrolled in the comparison group (traditional classes) at pretest, midyear, and posttest. Brooks found that students in the I CAN Learn[R] classes achieved higher scores in algebra than students in traditional…

The purpose of the present study was to examine the nature of the discourse generated by two different online approaches to mathematics teacher professional development. Thirty mathematics teachers participated in online activities involving analysis and discourse about artifacts of teaching practice. Half were randomly assigned to a group that…

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) "Special Education at a Glance," which includes a copy of the "Guide to Planning and Assessing School-Based Special Education Programs," provides in a single document, information about the special education population at each Montgomery County (Maryland public school, including…

This newsletter focuses on strategies middle grades schools are using to prepare more students for success in high school. This is part of a series of newsletters describing best practices for implementing the HSTW, MMGW and TCTW (High Schools That Work, Making Middle Grades Work, Technology Centers That Work) school improvement models. The series…

Florida International University's Center for Urban Education and Innovation in the College of Education and the Algebra Project have created a model for accelerated learning for disenfranchised children. The program includes mathematics instruction using university researchers in high school classrooms, supplemented with after-school enhanced…

Borrowing the concept of story grammar from reading comprehension literature, the purpose of this study was to examine the effect of teaching "word problem (WP) story grammar" on arithmetic WP solving that emphasizes the algebraic expression of mathematical relations in conceptual models. Participants were five students in Grades 4 and 5 with or…

The first year college experience is anxiety producing, and for college students who represent traditionally underserved populations, particularly ethnic and linguistic minorities, the anxiety can be even more pronounced. Add to the mix a requirement for students to complete at least one course in mathematics during the first semester and the…

This booklet is intended to help students do their best on the ACT. It summarizes general test-taking strategies, describes the content of each test, provides specific tips for each, and lets students know what they can expect on test day. Included in this booklet are complete practice tests--"retired" ACT questions that were administered to…

This report describes the results of two studies designed to evaluate the impact of self-reported mathematics course-taking on performance on SAT mathematics questions measuring new content (Algebra II). A supplemental table and figure are appended.

This paper illustrates the use of computer-based projects in two one-semester first-year undergraduate mathematics classes. Developed over a period of years, the approach is one in which the classes are organised into work-groups, with computer-based projects being undertaken periodically to illustrate the class material. These projects are…

This study examines the effect of teacher communication on freshman high school students towards doing their homework assignments and their level of engagement and attitudes in the classroom. It also investigates students' and parents' attitudes toward school work. The researcher randomly selected four Algebra I classes; two assigned to the…