Lynda Ginsburg | Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (original) (raw)

Papers by Lynda Ginsburg

Adult literacy education, Oct 3, 2022

Background: Given the growing interest in, and relevance of, integrated approaches to STEM (scien... more Background: Given the growing interest in, and relevance of, integrated approaches to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, there is an urgent desire to understand the challenges and obstacles to developing and implementing integrated STEM curricula and instruction. In this article, we present phase 1 of a two-phase needs assessment study to identify challenges and needs of promoting integrated approaches in STEM education. Utilizing a key informant approach, 22 K-12 teachers and four administrators selected as potential leaders in STEM education in an unidentified state on the East Coast of the USA were interviewed. Participants were asked to identify challenges and perceived supports to conduct integrated STEM education. Questions were open-ended in order to inform a larger, state-wide questionnaire study in phase 2 to be reported subsequently and were qualitatively coded. Results: Several distinctive themes were identified as described by teacher par...

The American Statistician, 1998

Students' attitudes and beliefs can impede (or assist) learning statistics, and may affect the ex... more Students' attitudes and beliefs can impede (or assist) learning statistics, and may affect the extent to which students will develop useful statistical thinking skills and apply what they have learned outside the classroom. This chapter alerts educators to the importance of assessing student attitudes and beliefs regarding statistics, describes and evaluates different methods developed to assess where students stand in this regard, provides suggestions for using and extending existing assessments, and outlines future research and instructional needs.

This study examined adult students ' informal knowledge of percent and its relationship to t... more This study examined adult students ' informal knowledge of percent and its relationship to their computational skills. Sixty adults studying in urban and suburban adult education programs were interviewed to ascertain: (1) their ideas of the meanings of benchmark percents, 100%, 50%, and 25%, as they appear in advertising and media contexts; (2) their ability to use these percents in everyday mental math tasks; and (3) their visual representations of these percents. Students also completed written computational percent exercises. Students ' responses were examined to determine the nature of their informal knowledge and skills, and a number of patterns were identified. The range and fragility of student responses and the diversity of knowledge gaps suggest thc. acquisition of isolated ideas but the absence of elaborated frameworks. (Author/MKR) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.

Adult students' numeracy skills are typically assessed at various points during instruction ... more Adult students' numeracy skills are typically assessed at various points during instruction for a variety of purposes. These include student placement, informing instructional decisions, and measuring student learning. However, the assessment instruments available may not be adequate for providing interpretable and useful information to instructors, program directors, funders, or learners. The authors of this report advance a set of principles that reflect psychometric concerns and current research policies. These principles can be used to evaluate existing assessment practices and guide the development of new assessment models. Commonly used numeracy assessment tools are examined in light of these principles and are found wanting. The authors suggest alternative items and strategies. They further discuss emerging trends in numeracy assessment. Implications for policymakers and practitioners are also indicated. TABLE OF CONTENTS

This work has been produced by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) on behalf o... more This work has been produced by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) on behalf of the OECD. Funding was provided through the OECD. The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors/project team and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the OECD or of its member countries. You can copy, download or print the content for your own use, and you can include excerpts provided that suitable acknowledgement of the OECD as source and copyright owner is given.

This report examines the growing need for workers to expand their professional repertoire to incl... more This report examines the growing need for workers to expand their professional repertoire to include technology skills in the workplace and discusses basic skills demanded by most jobs. The guide begins by documenting the skills, competencies, and dynamics of individual industries or professions, and subsequently discusses the impact of new technology on workers' traditional activities. This is followed by a discussion of the workers' need to anticipate and be able to cope with rapidly changing technologies and examines a number of affective responses to these changes. The conclusion examines the benefits of helping experienced workers develop the new skills they need to keep up with changing technologies.

This study focused on the interactions between urban parents with limited mathematics education a... more This study focused on the interactions between urban parents with limited mathematics education and their 3rd and 4th grade children as they worked together on mathematics homework. A variety of parent behaviors, instructional strategies and support mechanisms emerged during the parent/child homework sessions, even though parents were not always able to complete the assignments themselves. This study seeks to explore what happens when parents, who did not complete high school, work with their children on math homework. This population is of great interest because, in some urban areas, up to 40 % of the adults have not graduated from high school and their children are at higher risk of poor school performance (Grissmer, Kirby, Berends, & Williamson, 1994). We hypothesize that parents with limited mathematics education will display behaviors and patterns of interaction that differ from those described in studies of relatively well educated middle class parents (Shumow, 1998, 2003). Co...

iii Introduction 1 Instructional Principles and Strategies 2 Implications: The Challenge of Teach... more iii Introduction 1 Instructional Principles and Strategies 2 Implications: The Challenge of Teaching Adults 16 References 18 ii TECHNICAL REPORT TR96--02 AUTHORS Lynda Ginsburg is presently Research Associate and Project Director of the Numeracy Project of the National Center on Adult Literacy at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Ginsburg has extensive experience teaching mathematics to teenagers in the New York City Public Schools and to adults in adult education, community college, and workplace settings. She received her Ph.D. from the Department of Urban Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a specialization in cognitive psychology and mathematics education in 1992. Her recent publications include What Does "100% Juice" Mean? Exploring Adult Learners' Informal Knowledge of Percent (1995), The Role of Beliefs and Attitudes in Learning Statistics: Toward an Assessment Framework (1994), and the staff development videoconference, Adult Numeracy Ins...

Contents I. Introduction II. Issues in Professionalization A. Preservice training and credentiali... more Contents I. Introduction II. Issues in Professionalization A. Preservice training and credentialing B. In-service learning and professional development III. Survey Methodology A. Goals and background B. Data source C. Sample design D. Instrument E. Limitations IV. Findings and Discussion A. Professional preparation and experience in the field B. Professional development V. Summary and Conclusions A. What is the profile of the "professional" adult educator? B. What can we say about this sample of respondents and why should we be interested in them? C. What conclusions can we draw from this survey? Endnotes References

Traditionally, basic adult education has had a particular concern with the skills of literacy and... more Traditionally, basic adult education has had a particular concern with the skills of literacy and numeracy, seeing these as essential for entry to the world of work. Adult education teachers may therefore be reluctant to adopt ICT, unsure of the part it should play, and worried about the time it takes away from the development of those basic skills. As we enter the 21 century, however, ICT has already become a necessary and important component of adult education. Formal and non-formal education are being delivered at a distance via technology – particularly the Internet – with the promise that learning can take place at any time and in any place. Moreover, technology may provide the motivation that draws into adult education those who might otherwise not participate, and facilitate more meaningful learning for them. With all the talk about the information

Lynn Reddy served as the contracting officer's representative. The views expressed herein do ... more Lynn Reddy served as the contracting officer's representative. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the positions or policies of the National Institute for Literacy. No official endorsement by the National Institute for Literacy of any product, commodity, or enterprise in this publication is intended or should be inferred. For quality assurance purposes, drafts of publications commissioned by the National Institute for Literacy are subjected to a rigorous external peer review process by independent experts. This review process seeks to ensure that each report is impartial and objective and that the findings are supported by scientific research. The National Institute for Literacy, a Federal government agency, is a catalyst for advancing a comprehensive literacy agenda. The Institute bridges policy, research and practice to prompt action and deepen public understanding of literacy as a national asset.

Over three years, eighty-two teachers in their first or second year of teaching participated in o... more Over three years, eighty-two teachers in their first or second year of teaching participated in orientation programs for new adult educators. During the programs, they reflected on their own instructional practices when teaching mathematics to adults. The teachers identified the practice they were likely to overemphasize and explained why they were likely to do so, posting their responses to online course discussion boards. Almost half of the respondents reported they “primarily emphasize calculation skills” and shared various reasons for doing so. The remaining respondents reported emphasizing one of four other instructional practices. Teachers put forth a variety of justifications for the instructional practices they have been using. Professional development efforts will need to recognize and take account of the teachers’ beliefs, assumptions and current practices.

MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. Adult Basic Education; *Adult Learning; *Cognitive Structures; *Computati... more MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. Adult Basic Education; *Adult Learning; *Cognitive Structures; *Computation; Interviews; Mathematics Education; *Percentage; *Prior Learning This study examined adult students' informal knowledge of percent and its relationship to their computational skills. Sixty adults studying in urban and suburban adult education programs were interviewed to ascertain: (1) their ideas of the meanings of benchmark percents, 100%, 50%, and 25%, as they appear in advertising and media contexts; (2) their ability to use these percents in everyday mental math tasks; and (3) their visual representations of these percents. Students also completed written computational percent exercises. Students' responses were examined to determine the nature of their informal knowledge and skills, and a number of patterns were identified. The range and fragility of student responses and the diversity of knowledge gaps suggest thc . acquisition of isolated ideas but the absence of elabo...

not necessarily represent the positions or policies of the Institute of Education Sciences, or th... more not necessarily represent the positions or policies of the Institute of Education Sciences, or the U.S. Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. CONTENTS FIGURES......................................................................................................................................... v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................................................................................. vii

The range of uses and applications of technology suggests a number of alternative approaches for ... more The range of uses and applications of technology suggests a number of alternative approaches for integrating technology into adult basic education. There are four basic approaches to integrating technology into adult learning and instruction. The unique educational benefits as well as limitations of the four approaches are technology as curriculum, as delivery mechanism, as complement to instruction, and as instructional tool.

Education, with co-funding from the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services. The missi... more Education, with co-funding from the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services. The mission of NCAL addresses three primary challenges: (a) to enhance the knowledge base about adult literacy; (b) to improve the quality of research and development in the field; and (c) to ensure a strong, two-way relationship between research and practice. Through applied research and development and dissemination of the results to researchers, policymakers, and practitioners, NCAL seeks to improve the quality of adult literacy programs and services on a nationwide basis. NCAL serves as a major operating unit of the Literacy Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

This study seeks to explore what happens when parents, who did not complete high school, work wit... more This study seeks to explore what happens when parents, who did not complete high school, work with their children on math homework. This population is of great interest because, in some urban areas, up to 40% of the adults have not graduated from high school and their children are at higher risk of poor school performance (Grissmer, Kirby, Berends, &amp;amp;amp;

Adult literacy education, Oct 3, 2022

The American Statistician, 1998