This study aims to examine the effectiveness of metacognitive scaffolding in different inquiry tasks related to optics. Two high school classes participated in this study. One class, the treatment group (n = 33), which integrated metacognitive prompts into the simulation-based inquiry, was compared to the other class, the control group (n = 34),…

How do toddlers learn the names of geometric forms? Previous work suggests that preschoolers have fragmentary knowledge and that defining properties are not understood until well into elementary school. The current study investigated when children first begin to understand shape names and how they apply those labels to unusual instances. We tested…

Reasoning about graphical representations representing dynamic data (e.g., distance changing over time), including interpreting, creating, changing, combining, and comparing graphs, can be considered a domain-specific operationalization of the general twenty-first century skills of creative, critical thinking and solving problems. This paper…

How do toddlers learn the names of geometric forms? Previous work suggests that preschoolers have fragmentary knowledge and that defining properties are not understood until well into elementary school. The current study investigated when children first begin to understand shape names and how they apply those labels to unusual instances. We tested…

This study investigates representational code-switching (RCS) by considering three high school students' communications in the process of comparing and contrasting pairs of representations (e.g., equation and graph) in the context of rational functions. Supporting this study is research in the realms of students interacting with mathematical…

In learning conceptual knowledge in physics, a common problem is the incompleteness of a learning process, where students' personal, often undifferentiated concepts take on more scientific and differentiated form. With regard to such concept learning and differentiation, this study proposes a systemic view in which concepts are considered as…

Graphs are commonly used in science, mathematics, and social sciences to convey important concepts; yet students at all ages demonstrate difficulties interpreting graphs. This paper reports on an experimental study of free, Web-based software called SmartGraphs that is specifically designed to help students overcome their misconceptions regarding…

Statistics is a domain that is taught in Mathematics in all school levels. We suggest a potential in using an interdisciplinary approach with this concept. Thus the development of the understanding of a situation might mean to use both mathematical and statistical reasoning. In this paper, we present two case studies where two middle school…

In mathematic courses, construction of some concepts by the students in a meaningful way may be complicated. In such circumstances, to embody the concepts application of the required technologies may reinforce learning process. Onset of learning process over daily life events of the student's environment may lure their attention and may…

Chemistry students in Israel have two options for studying chemistry: basic or honors (advanced placement). For instruction in high school honors chemistry courses, we developed a module focusing on abstract topics in quantum mechanics: Chemistry--From the Nanoscale to Microelectronics. The module adopts a visual-conceptual approach, which…

The aims of this cross-grade study were (1) to determine the level of understanding of energy concepts of students at different academic grades and the differences in understanding between these grades and (2) to analyse the conceptual development of these students. Two hundred and forty-three students at 3 different levels (high school,…

Knowledge representations and mental models from graphically presented information were investigated for 98 college students with different levels of mathematics experience. The subjects were drawn from a remedial algebra course (n=35), a second semester calculus course (n=35), and a calculus-based statistics course (n=28); they were all exposed…