Background: Science skills play a crucial role in fostering economic development and technological innovation, making the enhancement of science education a global priority. Despite the recognized importance of teacher practices in enhancing equitable and effective learning, much of the research on their impact on student outcomes has been…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection in Investigating and Improving Quantum Education through Research.] One of the greatest weaknesses of physics education research is the paucity of research on graduate education. While there are a growing number of investigations of graduate student degree progress and admissions, there are very few…

Previous research has shown that in prehigher education stages, inquiry-based teaching is not sufficient for forming a mature understanding of the nature of science (NOS). However, there is relatively little research conducted on colleges. Inquiry-based teaching should not overlook cognitive frameworks, as students' limited scientific reasoning…

This ethnographic cross-case study examines five teachers' year-long efforts to implement practice-based physics instruction within the unique organizational context of a no-excuses charter network. The teachers were attempting to adapt their didactic, rigid, and compliance-based instructional approach to include more opportunities for students to…

Einstein's derivation of special relativity theory (SRT), based on hypothetical reasoning and thought experiments, is regarded as a prime example of physics theory development. In secondary education, the introduction of SRT could provide a great opportunity for students to engage in physics theorizing, but this opportunity is largely being missed…

This study investigated evidence of how students' mental models of fundamental kinematic relations evolved (i.e., developed cognitively over time) as observed during an introductory course in calculus-based classical mechanics. The core of the curriculum is based on a claim known as Galileo's principle of relativity. The course material comprised…

Digital practical work (DPW) has emerged as a highly effective and indispensable component of science education, enhancing and extending traditional laboratory experiences. DPW aims to complement physical laboratory experiments, particularly those that teachers may find challenging to conduct or lack the confidence to perform. In this study, a…

This study investigates the impact of blended learning on developing scientific thinking skills and self-efficacy among pre-service classroom teacher students. An experimental pretest-posttest design was employed to achieve the study's objectives. Two research instruments were developed: a scientific thinking skills test comprising 20 items and a…

Many technological applications (apps) purport to help children learn academic material. Building on research in developmental and educational psychology, we developed and tested an app to teach biological and physical science content to preschool children. There were 21 children in the control condition (M[subscript age] = 50.30 months, SD =…

This study investigates the challenge faced by eighth-grade students at Southern State Middle School in grasping abstract concepts within the domains of physical science, physics, and chemistry. This difficulty is manifested in their poor performance on summative assessments. A comprehensive analysis of state-provided data, in conjunction with…

The problem here dealt with concerns physics education, and specifically the concept of force. The idea behind this research is that a historical approach to the teaching of such a notion is of great help for the students to fully understand the meaning of this basic physical magnitude. For, most of scientific concepts can be better grasped by the…

Evidence from physics education research suggests that the introduction of a formalistic description of quantum phenomena can be beneficial to student learning, particularly in terms of helping students move away from naive realist views of quanta or space-time descriptions of quantum phenomena. However, the mathematical requirements for mastering…

The aim of the study is to reveal physics teachers' views on constants in teaching physics subjects that include physical constants. The phenomenology approach, one of the qualitative research designs, was used in the study. The study group consists of a total of 10 physics teachers, 2 female and 8 male, working in five public high schools in two…

Laboratory experimentation providing students with hands-on experiences can greatly enhance the teaching and learning of physics. However, traditional hands-on laboratories are very expensive, limiting the possibilities for practical activities. In addition, limited time for laboratory practices prevents teachers and students from conducting…

Our nation has declining participation in science and technology fields, even though in the United States we have seen an astounding collection of innovations in technology, communication, the Internet, and financial products. This lack of participation is even more noticeable for students with learning disabilities (SWLD) when compared to general…