Dissertation Proposal Announcement Ed.D. Program: Megan Schnall “Contextualizing Geometry Through Real-World Collaborative Problem Solving to Build Engagement in the Middle School Classroom”

10:00 am - 11:30 am

U.S. students consistently underperform other nations on international standardized mathematics tests, particularly in problem-solving (Mullis et al., 2020; U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Educational Sciences, 2022). While low test scores are concerning, they obscure a deeper issue: problematic mindsets in the mathematics classroom. Many students struggle with problem-solving not due to a lack of math skills, but because they experience anxiety (Devine et al., 2018; Lawson et al., 2022; Mutlu, 2019), boredom (OECD, 2021), or superficial problem-solving approaches (Dewolf et al., 2011; Schoenfeld, 1989). These mindsets undermine students’ confidence, engagement, persistence, and ability to see the relevance in math (Ryan & Deci, 2000; Pintrich, 2003). In the long term, students’ trajectories may be affected as they are less likely to pursue advanced math coursework or STEM-related careers (Barroso et al., 2021).

Grounded in Social Constructivism (Vygotsky, 1978) and Self-Determination Theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000), this study seeks to understand how eighth-grade students’ interest, motivation, and engagement change after working with non-traditional problematic situations. Students in a suburban New Jersey middle school will participate in a lesson sequence that incorporates productive struggle (Hiebert & Grouws, 2007), relevant real-world applications (Freudenthal, 1983), and collaborative learning (Francisco 2013; Nyman, 2016; Sengupta-Irving & Agarwal, 2017) during their regular geometry class time. These approaches have been shown to foster deeper engagement by encouraging sensemaking, persistence, and autonomy (Mueller et al., 2014). This study uses a qualitative action research design (Creswell & Creswell, 2018) and collects data through interviews, classroom observations, focus groups, and student work analysis.

The findings will contribute to the existing literature on student engagement and problem-solving by providing insights into how students’ attitudes and approaches shift in response to activities designed to increase interest in math. This research will offer educators practical methods for sparking curiosity and developing lifelong learners of math.

To attend this event virtually and for more information, please contact academic.services@gse.rutgers.edu.