In "Belonging and Identity in STEM Higher Education," leading scholars, teachers, practitioners and students explore belonging and identity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields, and how this is impacted by disciplinary changes and the post-pandemic higher education context. In STEM fields, positivist…

Recent science reform documents have called for incorporating authentic scientific discourse into science classes as engaging in discourse has shown to result in numerous benefits. Whether these benefits are observed in students depends upon the quality of the discourse in which they engage. However, characterizing the quality of student-student…

A Prelaboratory Preparation Period (PPL) was developed to introduce freshmen level students to weekly laboratories. Results (based on data obtained from 233 chemistry students) show that the PPL increased the academic achievement of students enrolled in the introductory chemistry course. (JN)

Although researchers in higher education propose alternatives to traditional approaches to assessment, traditional methods are commonly used in college or university science courses. The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility and validity of Prospective Science Teachers' (PSTs) concept maps as authentic assessment tools in a…

Presents a study designed to evaluate the influence of temperature on the equilibrium and the structural changes of the complexes interpreted in terms of ligand field theory. (CW)

The idea that cognitive science can provide useful guidance to the teaching of physics has been met by some with skepticism. One argument is that the current understanding of cognition is too crude to be helpful; another, that any scientific approach to education stifles the art of teaching. Some feel that art and science need not be incompatible.…

A multiphasic plan to improve lecture effectiveness which centers on teaching behaviors that can facilitate the learning process is described. Lectures were evaluated based on the inclusion of behaviors such as objectives, advance organizers, questioning, wait-time, and use of teaching aids. Included are the results and a discussion. (KR)

A problem-solving method of teaching was used in the recitation sections of a freshmen chemistry course for science and engineering majors at Purdue University. The method was based on prior research which revealed that good problem solvers formed better representations and used heuristics more often than poor problem solvers. Consequently, the…

Presents a mathematical and abstract approach to teaching the second law of thermodynamics in physical chemistry that is not used in any undergraduate physical chemistry text to date. (CW)

Surveyed college teachers about teaching modes, use of instructional aids, conditions relevant to teaching, changes that could optimize teaching, and ways professional organizations can help. Selected results (based on 873 forms returned out of 2,050 mailed-response rate of 43 percent) are presented and discussed. (JN)

This investigation tested in a university setting a laboratory teaching approach found to be productive in high school settings. The extended discretion approach (ED) gives the student a task, from two to five brief procedural steps, and a list of resources from which to choose. The student must exercise discretion in the use of available…

Contemporary researchers often refer to the information processing paradigm to exlain the relative ineffectiveness of contemporary instructional techniques for modifying incorrect scientific concepts that students often bring to a learning situation. As a result of this research, instructional procedures have been developed that maximize the…

Examined the feasibility of using two microcomputer simulations to improve preservice elementary teachers performance in the formation and testing of hypotheses. Considers the effects of mode of computer instruction and cooperation on the acquisition of skills. (CW)

This was an experiment to test the extended discretion laboratory approach versus a guided-inquiry approach for teaching biology in a university setting. Among three criterion variables (examination, reports, and quizzes), only the laboratory report scores showed differences between groups and group-by-instructor interaction. (Author/YP)

Summarizes research on inquiry and investigative strategies for teaching laboratory science. Concludes that meaningful laboratory instruction is distinguished by: student engagement in science inquiry processes, student manipulation of experimental materials, and the experiential teaching of specific scientific concepts. (RT)