The movement of air into and out of the lungs is facilitated by changes in pressure within the thoracic cavity relative to atmospheric pressure, as well as the resistance encountered by airways. In this process, the movement of air into and out of the lungs is driven by pressure gradients established by changes in lung volume and intra-alveolar…

This paper presents a perspective of how the radiation and radioactivity themes have been discussed at the high school level in several locations around the world. In this context, scientific journals, academic journals, theses, dissertations, and media materials were analyzed. Recent research has shown that the concern with the discussion about…

Given the great interest that black holes arouse among non-specialists, it is important to analyse misconceptions related to them. According to the author, the most common misconceptions are that: (1) black holes are formed from stellar collapse; (2) they are very massive; (3) they are very dense; (4) their gravity absorbs everything; and (5) they…

Earthbound manifestations of gravity in falling objects are distorted by the large mass and size of the Earth. Movement is also affected by air resistance. This article questions whether an approach based on everyday observations is necessarily the best starting point for introducing the idea of Newtonian gravity. Instead, a theoretical approach…

A physics textbook for the 8th grade was analyzed, in particular the section on the interaction between electric current and magnetic field. The textbook is written in the Macedonian language, but is translated into Albanian, Serbian, and Turkish, which provides an opportunity to influence a larger population of children, in a larger ethnic area.…

"MythBusters," the long-running though recently discontinued Discovery Channel science entertainment television program, has proven itself to be far more than just a highly rated show. While its focus is on entertainment, the show employs an array of pedagogical techniques to communicate scientific concepts to its audience. These…

In this paper, I discuss a "misconception" in magnetism so simple and pervasive as to be typically unnoticed. That magnets have poles might be considered one of the more straightforward notions in introductory physics. However, the magnets common to students' experiences are likely different from those presented in educational…

Finding the best ways to introduce quantum physics to undergraduate students in all scientific areas, in particular for chemistry students, is a pressing, but hardly a simple task. In this paper, we discuss the relevance of taking into account lessons from the history of the discipline and the ongoing controversy over its interpretations and…

This note is a response to a recent paper by McClelland (2011 "Phys. Educ." 46 469-471). The situation of a person who is walking horizontally along the ground is examined, and the statement "The person is accelerated by a net force from the Earth" is considered invalid. A key point in McClelland's analysis is his claim that: "The force…

We investigate student confusion of concepts of electric and magnetic force. At various times during a traditional university-level course, we administered a series of simple questions about the direction of force on a charged particle moving through either an electric or a magnetic field. We find that after electric force instruction but before…

Since long time ago, many authors advocated for more presence of physics history in physics teaching and learning in order to give students a better vision of the "nature of science", in other words, to let them learn not only established physics knowledge but also the ways of how physicists managed to get that knowledge. Generally,…

Opportunities for the development of science-related pedagogy during training are necessarily limited for the generalist primary (elementary), preservice teacher. While school placement is an important context within which to develop such professional expertise, the role of institution-based learning is less well understood in this regard. This…

This study presents and interprets some conceptual difficulties junior-level physics students experience with Ampere's law. We present both quantitative data, based on students' written responses to conceptual questions, and qualitative data, based on interviews of students solving Ampere's law problems. We find that some students struggle to…

We present the analysis of oral interviews with 112 undergraduate nonmajor students during the first week of a General Education Introduction to Astronomy class before they had received any instruction. The students were asked questions relating to Kepler's three Laws of Motion, as well as their understanding of what keeps planets in orbit around…

The authors aimed to propose a valid and reliable diagnostic instrument by developing a three-tier test on simple electric circuits. Based on findings from the interviews, open-ended questions, and the related literature, the test was developed and administered to 124 high school students. In addition to some qualitative techniques for…