An undergraduate online course on Applied Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was developed through different formats of case study that included lecture, class discussion, small-groups discussion, and individual work. Cases covering health, biotechnology, agriculture, and other issues were developed or adapted from the literature to reach the…

"Cases are stories with a message. They are not simply narratives for entertainment. They are stories to educate" (Herreid, 1997, p. 92). By this definition, a case study is two things: a story and a strategy to drive learning. Although the story typically comes from a narrative purposefully written for the classroom, such as the case…

"Blended" and "flipped" pedagogies are becoming more common features of classrooms as the technological revolution continues. While the appropriate use of technology in the learning environment can serve to motivate some students, significant problems surrounding student motivation and engagement remain. As such, the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the application of the model of the "flipped classroom" as a complementary method to school distance education in junior high school Biology. The "flipped classroom" model attempts a different way of organizing the educational process according to which the traditional methods of…

This article discusses the results of a survey that was posted for those who regularly peruse the website of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (NCCSTS). Faculty members were asked about their use of case studies and videos in their General Biology classrooms. The results are enlightening because General Biology is arguably the…

New technological developments have minimized training, hardware expense, and distribution problems for the production and use of instructional videos, and any science instructor can now make instructional videos for their classes. We created short "Khan style" videos for the topic of buffers in biochemistry and assigned them as…

Student outcomes in online courses trail considerably behind those in face-to-face courses. In order to gain insight into why this might be, the Community College Research Center (CCRC) undertook a series of studies that examined 23 high-demand, entry-level online courses at two community colleges in one state. CCRC researchers observed the online…

The integration of technology into modern classrooms has enhanced learning opportunities for students. With increased access to educational content, students gain a better understanding of the concepts being taught. "Flipped Instruction: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice" is a comprehensive reference source for the latest scholarly…

English Language Learners (ELL) are often at a distinct disadvantage from receiving authentic science learning opportunites. This study explored English Language Learners (ELL) learning experiences with scientific language and inquiry within a real life context. This research was theoretically informed by sociocultural theory and literature on…

This case explores the aggressive mimicry behavior of "femmes fatales" fireflies--female fireflies in the genus Photuris that mimic the flash pattern of females in the genus Photinus to lure Photinus males to their death. The case features entries in an old field notebook as well as a series of handouts that the instructor presents to students for…

Offering fresh alternatives to common instructional practices that fail to get results, this accessible, highly practical guide highlights ways to motivate middle school students while enhancing content-area learning. Each chapter features an enlightening case study of a teacher whose current strategies are not supported by research; describes…

In introductory physics courses at the Pennsylvania State University, student preparation outside class was inadequate to meet course needs. The plan-do-check-act cycle of the Total Quality Management approach was successfully used in this situation to evaluate instructional changes and help balance increased student assignments with increased…

These proceedings contain the papers of the 11th International Conference on Cognition and Exploratory Learning in the Digital Age (CELDA 2014), October 25-27, 2014, which has been organized by the International Association for Development of the Information Society (IADIS) and endorsed by the Japanese Society for Information and Systems in…

The 7th International Conference on Education Data Mining held on July 4th-7th, 2014, at the Institute of Education, London, UK is the leading international forum for high-quality research that mines large data sets in order to answer educational research questions that shed light on the learning process. These data sets may come from the traces…