Prompting learners to generate examples has been proposed as an effective way of developing understanding of a new concept. However, empirical support for this approach is lacking. This article presents two empirical studies on the use of example-generation tasks in an online course in introductory university mathematics. The first study compares…

In this paper the "Memory Transfer Language" program visualization (MTL PV) technique is combined with "constructivism" ("conceptual contraposition and colloquy") and "reversibility" to evolve a new approach for instructional design for teaching and learning introductory programming. A sample of 1,364…

In this study, we explore the use of analogies with classical physics in introductory quantum physics (QP) teaching. This work is part of a larger project in which a learning sequence covering three introductory QP topics was designed, tested, and evaluated in collaboration with high school teachers and physics education researchers. Based on the…

The Integrated Course Design (ICD), using Fink's taxonomy of significant learning, popularly known as ICD/SL, is a handy way to create a better learning environment for students. It is a learner-centered approach with the desired end-product, but at the same time, it upgrades the teaching by improving the instructors' delivery mechanism. Our goal…

This experiment utilized advanced visualization technology for the delivery of an introductory remote sensing lesson in an undergraduate geography course. Given the numerous immersive visualization solutions available, it is now possible to leverage the capabilities of augmented, mixed, and virtual reality (AR, MR, and VR) technology in a…

Introductory courses in biology often lack sufficient emphasis on quantitative skills and interdisciplinary problem solving, leaving many students unprepared for more advanced biology coursework and hampering their ability to pursue biology research careers. MathBench Biology Modules were created to enhance the quantitative skills of biology…

Our study compared the performance of students enrolled in a graduate-level introductory biostatistics course in an online versus a traditional in-person learning environment at a school of public health in the United States. We extracted data for students enrolled in the course online and in person from 2013 to 2018. We compared average quiz and…

Metaphors are well-known tools for teaching statistics to novices. However, educators might overlook metaphor theoretical developments that offer nuanced and testable perspectives on their pedagogical applications. This article introduces the notion of metaphor types--"correspondence" (CO) and "class inclusion" (CI)--as…

Data science is a new field of research that has attracted growing interest in recent years as it focuses on turning raw data into understanding, insight, knowledge, and value. New data science education programs, which are being launched at an increasing rate, are designed for multiple education levels and populations. Machine learning (ML) is an…

The processes of mitosis and meiosis are oft-cited and long-standing examples of concepts that are difficult for students to learn and understand. While there are many examples in the literature of "how-to-do-it," innovative instructional approaches for teaching mitosis and meiosis, publications that include measurement of learning gains…

The Model of the Use of Evolutionary Trees (MUET)-curricular module that systematically and comprehensively introduces the learning of evolutionary trees for the lower-level college students was developed and implemented in an introductory organismal biology laboratory course at a mid-size, doctoral degree-granting institution. A…

The present study provides empirical data measuring the effects of a flipped and blended course design for beginning-level Spanish on the four skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening, compared to a control group following a traditional present-practice-produce instructional format. The study provides a template for the successful…

Many people who learn Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) have encountered challenges when it comes to character writing. This was a follow-up study of our quantitative study in 2019 that showed that mobile app was a significantly more effective method than pen-and-paper method to learn Chinese character writing. Thirty beginning CFL learners…

Multiple studies have demonstrated the efficacy of various psychological critical thinking interventions. The current study tests a novel technique for improving introductory psychology students' ability to identify and evaluate methodological concepts in real-life media by prompting them to analyze secondary source news and blog articles.…

Duolingo is a commercial language-teaching platform that offers free courses on the web and on mobile apps. This study reports the ACTFL listening and reading proficiency levels of adult Duolingo learners who had completed beginning-level courses in Spanish or French. The participants (n = 225) were learners residing in the United States, had…