Model Eliciting Activities (MEAs) are pedagogical approaches that allow teachers to integrate multiple subjects into creative multi-day learning experiences that captivate students' curiosity and engage them in real-life problem solving. MEAs are known in the fields of mathematics and engineering (Gilat and Amit 2014), but despite their ability to…

If you've ever asked yourself whether problem-based learning (PBL) can bring new life to both your teaching and your students' learning, here's your answer: Yes. This all-in-one guide will help you engage your students in scenarios that represent real-world science in all its messy, thought-provoking glory. The scenarios will prompt K-12 students…

"Problem-Based Learning in the Physical Science Classroom, K-12" will help your students truly understand concepts such as motion, energy, and magnetism in true-to-life contexts. The book offers a comprehensive description of why, how, and when to implement problem-based learning (PBL) in your curriculum. Its 14 developmentally…

"Problem-Based Learning in the Life Science Classroom, K-12" offers a great new way to ignite your creativity. Authors Tom McConnell, Joyce Parker, and Janet Eberhardt show you how to engage students with scenarios that represent real-world science in all its messy, thought-provoking glory. The scenarios prompt K-12 learners to immerse…

An instrumentation-based laboratory curriculum combining traditional unknown analyses with student-designed projects has been developed for an introductory analytical chemistry course. In the first half of the course, students develop laboratory skills and instrumental proficiency by rotating through six different instruments performing…

In the STEM classroom, students can work in collaborative teams to build those essential skills needed for the 21st-century world. In project-based learning (PBL), teams of four to six students are often randomly selected to describe a realistic situation that may occur in today's workplace; this may be done by counting off in fours, fives,…

Digestion of DNA with restriction enzymes, calculation of volumes and concentrations of reagents for reactions, and the separation of DNA fragments by agarose gel electrophoresis are common molecular biology techniques that are best taught through repetition. The following open-ended, investigative laboratory exercise in plasmid restriction…

Medical physiology is known to be a complex area where students develop significant errors in conceptual understanding. Students' knowledge is often bound to situational descriptions rather than underlying principles. This study explores how medical students discern and process underlying principles in physiology. Indepth interviews, where…

The computer numerical control (CNC) flatbed router is a powerful tool and a must-have piece of equipment for any technology education program in which students will produce a product--whether it involves Manufacturing, Materials Processing, or any of the vast array of Project Lead the Way courses. This article describes an activity--producing a…

Creating activities that model engineering design as it appears in industry provides great experience for technology students. Design in general creates an element with special regard to its form and function. Engineering design involves doing that, and going beyond to produce an efficient product that addresses its intended purpose. In this…

Students in the Electronics Engineering Technology program at Pennsylvania College of Technology designed and built a computerized dynamometer platform for testing dc brushless motors. As the capstone experience for EET-320, Measurement and Tests course, students were divided into teams of four and were given three weeks to complete the project.…