StFX Scholar (St. Francis Xavier University)
Not a member yet
55051 research outputs found
Sort by
Josephine (Burke) Morrison
No full textposted: SaltWire, Mar. 21, 2022; funeral arrangements by Green's Funeral Home; "Tussie"; formerly of River Bourgeoi
Dale Glenwood Kaiser
No full textposted: SaltWire, Jan. 19, 2022; funeral arrangements by G. W. Giffin Funeral Home; formerly of Port Bickerton; served in the C.A.F. (1972-1992); member of The Veterans UN NATO, Nova Scoti
Donald Edmund Zinck
No full textposted: SaltWire, Jan. 18, 2022; funeral arrangements by MacIsaac Funeral Home; "Donnie"; owner/operator of Zinck's Transport/Tax
Margaret Isabel (O'Connor) Connolly
No full textposted: SaltWire, Mar. 25, 2022; funeral arrangements by Dennis Haverstock Funeral Home
Toward Student Engagement and Success in a University Physics Department
No full textDespite decades of research and investment, low enrollments and a lack of diversity in undergraduate physics programs remain problematic (American Institute of Physics, 2020; Merner & Tyler, 2017; Porter & Ivie, 2019). For example, Laurentian University closed its physics department in 2021, due primarily to low undergraduate enrollments (Schwabe, 2021). Many scholars have indicated that the traditional physics culture is a key barrier that prevents students from pursuing physics degrees (Eran-Jona & Nir, 2020; Hyater-Adams et al., 2019; Seyranian et al., 2018). Detailed studies of how to shift this traditional culture toward student engagement, success, and inclusion have been missing from the literature (Corbo et al., 2016; Strubbe et al., 2020). This dissertation is a qualitative, instrumental case study (Stake, 2005) of one university physics department in Canada where a group of concerned faculty members worked with the author to make changes that would benefit students, with the eventual goal to increase enrollments and diversity. Data collection lasted 17 months and included 37 interviews, 345 pages of field notes, and 424 student survey responses. The qualitative data was processed using qualitative thematic analysis. The analysis showed that a spectrum of views were held during the research by the various participants, and some movement away from traditional views and toward progressive ones was observed. Three common threads were produced in the qualitative analysis: Building Skills and Changing Mindsets, From Teacher Centered to Student Centered, and Building Community. These threads respectively represented changes that took place within the participants’ own minds, within their classrooms, and across the whole department. Taken together, the threads and their sub-themes present a roadmap for a cultural change that could lead to increased enrollments and diversity in physics. The collaboration between an educator and the group of faculty members was highly valued by the study participants, as was the individual, context-based nature of the assistance they were offered. Several participants indicated that, because they were participating in the study, they made pedagogical changes that they would otherwise not have attempted. Simultaneously, other participants did not make any observable changes during the research. This study contributes to the physics education literature by illuminating the complex process of shifting culture toward inclusion, student success, diversity, and belonging. Educators can play a crucial role in this process because it requires expertise in building supportive classrooms, adopting the growth mindset, and fostering cultures of inclusion
Donald William Borden
No full textposted: Le Necrologue, Necro Canada; funeral arrangements by Dennis Haverstock Funeral Homes; "Donnie"; appeared with his musical group on the Don Messer's Jubilee sho
Mary Theresa (McKeough) Mattie
No full textposted: SaltWire, Mar. 9, 2022; funeral arrangements by MacIsaac Funeral Home; formerly of Mattie Settlemen
Elizabeth Marie (McCready) Bourque
No full textposted: SaltWire, Mar. 9, 2022; funeral arrangements by C. L. Curry Funeral Services; "Betty"; raised in Johnson's Mills, New Brunswick; also of Sydney, Cape Breto
Howard Stanley Toole
No full textposted: SaltWire, Feb. 9, 2022; funeral arrangements by Dennis Haverstock Funeral Home
Shirley Mae (Brigley) Kaiser
No full textposted: SaltWire, Jan. 27, 2022; funeral arrangements by G. W. Giffin Funeral Home; "Shirl"