A qualitative study was conducted in a secondary school to evaluate student learning processes and outcomes by examining their inquiry questions, journals, and maker artifacts in a curriculum-based maker learning environment supported by the Guided Inquiry Design (GID). Thirteen 8th-grade students in a suburban middle school in the southwest of…

The lack of digital media to support middle school chemistry learning needs further expanded. Hence, an Android application as a learning media on acid, base, and salt topics was needed. This study aims to develop FunLABS (Fun Learning Acid, Base, and Salt) android-based applications. This study used a DDD-E model of development as a research…

In this paper we introduce a theoretical framework concerned with fostering functional thinking in Grade 8 students by utilizing digital technologies. This framework is meant to be used to guide the systematic variation of tasks for implementation in the classroom while using digital technologies. Examples of problems and tasks illustrate this…

Background: Gamification is the use of game design elements, such as rules of play, point scoring and competition, in a non-game context, in learning activities. We designed a game, based on the famous augmented reality game "Pokémon GO," called Insects GO in which players should capture images of real insects with their mobile phones.…

Drawing on experiences from a large-scale Nordic co-design research project, this paper explores the development of cross-border blended education with the aim to strengthen students' Nordic identity and knowledge of neighboring Nordic languages illuminating the flow of didactical designs students were offered to engage in, i.e. the knowledge…

Background: We examine the development of youth sociopolitical consciousness and agency in an eighth-grade science classroom as students of color engage in critical speculative design activities, exploring the multi-scalar, racial realities and possibilities of the science and engineering of pervasive digital technologies--specifically involving…

There have been increasing calls for integrating computational thinking and computing into school science, mathematics, and engineering classrooms. The learning goals of the curriculum in this study included learning about both computational thinking and climate science. Including computer science in science classrooms also means a shift in the…

This article describes methods and findings from a study focused on youth living in rural communities in northern New Hampshire who struggle with accessing STEM learning opportunities because of economic underinvestment and geographical isolation. These challenges also negatively impact researchers hoping to learn how rural youth benefit from…

In 2010 1.1 million pupils took private lessons in Germany, with 25% of all German children by the age of 17 having attended paid private lessons at some point in their school career (Klemm & Klemm, 2010). The high demand for support for learning curricular content led us to consider an integrated solution that speeds up both the design of…

The aim of the current study is to examine the effectiveness of brain-based learning for student direct and postponed retention in science. There were three groups in the study--one control group and two experimental groups. Brain-based learning was used in the first experimental group (mental group). In addition, technology was used in the second…

Given that there is no universal way to measure implementation fidelity, instructional designers developing instructional innovations may find themselves faced with the challenge of determining the extent to which teachers' implementation of an instructional model is faithful. This article contends that a faithful implementation is one in…

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) support students in learning a complex problem-solving skill. One feature that makes an ITS architecturally complex, and hard to build, is support for strategy freedom, that is, the ability to let students pursue multiple solution strategies within a given problem. But does greater freedom mean that students…

This is an abridged version of the full assessment framework, written for a general audience. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), otherwise known as The Nation's Report Card, informs the public about the academic achievement of elementary and secondary students in the United States. Report cards communicate the findings of…

TIMSS measures trends in mathematics and science achievement at the fourth and eighth grades in participating countries around the world, while also monitoring curricular implementation and identifying promising instructional practices. Conducted on a regular 4-year cycle, TIMSS has assessed mathematics and science in 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, and…

Computers are considered innovative in classrooms, raising expectations of increased cognitive learning outcomes or motivation with effects on Deeper Learning (DL). The "new medium", however, may cause cognitive overloads. Combined with gender-related variations in ability, self-efficacy or self-confidence, computers may even diminish…