This article argues that what is most at risk in schooling during a global pandemic, or other similar broad challenges to normal functioning, are those elements that might be considered the less traditional and so the most progressive. After setting out some general background common to the challenge faced by schools and school teachers, this…

To support our students during their study and exam preparation we have developed a novel synoptic revision exercise using the online PeerWise system. Academic staff involvement was passive after introducing the assignment to the cohort via scaffolding activities, thus generating an entirely student-led peer-learning environment for the task.…

An approach using Google Groups as method for distributing student-acquired NMR data has been implemented. We describe how to configure NMR spectrometer software so that data is uploaded to a laboratory section specific Google Group, thereby removing bottlenecks associated with printing and processing at the spectrometer workstation. Outside of…

Earthlearningidea was developed, without funding, to publish a new Web-based earth science teaching idea every week during the International Year of Planet Earth (2008); during 2009, publication continued, but at monthly intervals. The activities were mostly practically based and were aimed particularly at teachers and teacher educators in the…

This article explores the processes of writing in science and in particular the "complex performance" of writing a scientific argument. The article explores in general terms the nature of scientific argumentation in which the author-scientist makes claims, provides evidence to support these claims, and develops chains of scientific…

The Web is now a standard tool for information access and dissemination in higher education. The prospect of Web-based, simulated learning platforms and technologies, however, remains underexplored. We have developed a Web-based tutorial program (ChemVoyage) for a third-year organic chemistry class on the topic of pericyclic reactions to…

The paper traces a research process in the design and development of a science learning environment called WiMVT (web-based inquirer with modeling and visualization technology). The WiMVT system is designed to help secondary school students build a sophisticated understanding of scientific conceptions, and the science inquiry process, as well as…

A problem that is still unexplored in the field of socioscientific issues (SSI) and that was explored in this study is how different students decide upon a SSI they are discussing, how their justifications change during the instruction and how they use (or not) the evidence from the learning environment to support their justifications. For the…

The pedagogical experiment performed has proved the increase in the educational efficiency achieved by the students learning from the multimedia version of the handbook on "Experiment in chemistry" at the Faculty of Chemistry, Adam Mickiewicz University. The results of the tests checking the students' and teachers' knowledge have shown…

This content analysis explored how previously validated Web-based inquiries (WBIs) for science instruction are designed and to what extent they match the proposed teacher-support guidelines of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Examined WBIs implemented few recommended teacher-support mechanisms. This article explores the…

The concept map tool set forth by Novak and colleagues is underutilized in education. A meta-analysis has encouraged teachers to make extensive use of concept mapping, and researchers have advocated computer-based concept mapping applications that exploit hyperlink technology. Through an NSF sponsored geosciences education grant, middle and…

This study investigated the use of multimedia materials to enhance student learning in a large, introductory biology course. Two sections of this course were taught by the same instructor in the same semester. In one section, video podcasts or "vodcasts" were created which combined custom animation and video segments with music and…

Offering a series of diagnosis and individual remedial learning activities for a general class by means of web and multimedia technology can overcome the dilemma of conventional diagnosis and remedial instruction. The study proposes a three-layer conceptual framework and adopts a two-tier diagnostic test theory to develop a web-based two-tier…

The power of a web-based forensic science game to teach content and motivate STEM careers was tested among secondary students. More than 700 secondary school students were exposed to one of the three web-based forensic cases for approximately 60 min. Gain scores from pre-test to a delayed post-test indicated significant gains in content knowledge.…

The enhanced accessibility, affordability and capability of the Internet has created enormous possibilities in terms of designing, developing and implementing innovative teaching methods in the classroom. As existing pedagogies are revamped and new ones are added, there is a need to assess the effectiveness of these approaches from the students'…