We describe four classical undergraduate physics experiments that were done with everyday objects and low-cost sensors: mechanical oscillations, transmittance of light through a slab of matter, beam deformation under load, and thermal relaxation due to heat loss. We used these experiments to train students for experimental homework projects but…

Providing students with one-on-one interaction with instructors is a big challenge in large courses. One solution is to have students interact with their peers during class. Reciprocal peer tutoring (RPT) is a more involved interaction that requires peers to alternate the roles of "teacher" and "student." Theoretically,…

Pencasts are videos of problem solving with narration by the problem solver. Pedagogically, students can create pencasts to illustrate their own problem solving to the instructor or to their peers. Pencasts have implications for teaching at multiple levels from elementary grades through university courses. In this article, we describe the use of…

The QuVis Quantum Mechanics Visualization Project provides freely available research-based interactive simulations with accompanying activities for the teaching and learning of quantum mechanics across a wide range of topics and levels. This article gives an overview of some of the simulations and describes their use in an introductory physical…

The utility of Just-In-Time-Teaching (JITT) is compared across course topics and groups of students not receiving JITT exercises in class. JITT feedback incorporated various active learning exercises based on students' performance on online homework problems from Sapling Learning. With over 200 students in two sections participating in the…

The University of Pennsylvania's doctoral chemistry curriculum has included a required course in chemical information since 1995. Twenty years later, the course has evolved from a loosely associated series of workshops on information resources to a holistic examination of the chemical literature and its place in the general research process. The…

The links students make among chemistry content is considered essential for a robust, enduring understanding in multiple learning theories. This article describes the development and implementation of an assessment technique, termed a Measure of Linked Concepts, designed to inform instructors on students' understanding of linking content…

Studying physics for nonphysics majors at college level is usually a process of learning new problem-solving skills and sometimes seems a frustrating experience. In an attempt to provide students with more learning resources, online homework was required to supplement the instruction. This study reveals the role of the online homework assignments…

Creative exercises (CEs) are a form of assessment in which students are given a prompt and asked to write down as many distinct, correct, and relevant facts about the prompt as they can. Students receive credit for each fact that they include that is related to the prompt and distinct from the other facts they list. With CEs, students have an…

This article reports a set of two homework assignments that can be used in a second-year undergraduate organic chemistry class. These assignments were designed to help reinforce concepts of molecular geometry and to give students the opportunity to use a technological database and data mining to analyze experimentally determined chemical…

This article describes a one-week introduction to stochastic groundwater modeling, intended for the end of a first course on groundwater hydrology, or the beginning of a second course on stochastic hydrogeology or groundwater modeling. The motivation for this work is to strengthen groundwater education, which has been identified among the factors…

Calibrated Peer Review™ (CPR), a web-based instructional tool developed as part of the National Science Foundation reform initiatives in undergraduate science education, allows instructors to incorporate multiple writing assignments in large courses without overwhelming the instructor. This study reports successful implementation of CPR in a…

Describes an effective and efficient method to induce students to do physics homework. (CP)

Discusses the use of two television sets with UHF coverage and a window screen or aluminum foil reflector to conduct a take-home experiment in physics. (CC)

Describes and evaluates introductory physics homework problems done in conjunction with student-performed demonstrations. Discusses them within a process approach to instruction consistent with Piaget's developmental theory. (MLH)