Graduation Date
5-2011
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department or Program
Education
First Reader
Madalienne F. Peters, EdD
Abstract
Many high school Hispanic students display passivity and a lack of confidence with regards to their abilities to master science curriculum, setting them up for failure with both current course grades and future success in a healthcare field. The purpose of this study is to determine more effective techniques a high school biology teacher could use to eliminate passivity and establish self confidence in Hispanic student's abilities to master science curriculum. Literature overwhelmingly suggests that incorporating Hispanic culture into the science curriculum and having more cooperative learning activities in class will help to improve the confidence of Hispanic students. Experimental data gathered during this study has indicated that students become most confident in an area when they are learning in a learning environment where they are working with peers and getting a lot of teacher support.