Date
8-24-2023
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)
Chair
Veronica Sims
Keywords
project-based learning, attitudes towards mathematics, non-equivalent control group, ATMI
Disciplines
Education
Recommended Citation
Postlethwait, David E., "Project-Based Learning and its Impact on High School Students' Attitudes Towards Mathematics: A Quantitative Study" (2023). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 4713.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/4713
Abstract
This quantitative, quasi experimental, nonequivalent control group study analyzed the relationship between students engaging in project-based learning and its impact on their attitudes towards mathematics. Sixty-six high school students taking a non-entry level mathematics class participated in the study. This study compared students taking the same high school mathematics course with one group taught in the traditional way of lecture notes and tests and the second group being taught using projects. These students’ responses from the Attitudes Towards Mathematics Inventory were compared using one-way analysis of covariance to determine a difference in student attitudes. The study determined that there was no significant statistical difference in student attitudes toward mathematics between the project-based group and the traditional instruction group when controlling for pretest scores. Future research recommendations include a longer timeframe, focusing on special education students, and making accommodations for English Language Learners to help ameliorate language barriers.
