This study examines the role of epistemological beliefs in moderating the relationship between critical and creative thinking among science teachers. It aims to explore how advancements in understanding knowledge influence these cognitive skills. The primary focus is on the extent to which epistemological beliefs impact critical and creative…

Learner-centered and inclusive and equitable teaching practices aim to promote better learning outcomes for all students. Course syllabi can provide a window into these practices. We adapted an existing rubric to measure inclusiveness and equity-mindedness of syllabi and used an established rubric to assess their learner-centeredness. We then…

Background: Learning assistants (LAs) in undergraduate STEM lectures facilitate discussions between students in small groups. In this research study, we investigate the impact of LA facilitation on student learning as it occurs during LA-student interactions. To do so, our work builds on two sociocultural frameworks focused on LA facilitation and…

The study aimed to investigate the relationships between student-centered teaching approach, problem-based learning, and academic achievement in science teaching. The quantitative quasi-experimental research approach was adopted in this study. The data of the study was collected by a structured questionnaire. The sample of the study consisted an…

Efforts to improve student learning in K-12 education in the US are not new; however, educational research has traditionally focused on individual components of schools (e.g., teacher professional development, leadership, social relationships, programs, curricula) targeting teachers to improve student learning. While these innovations provide hope…

In the past couple of decades, the geoscience education community has made great strides toward investigating how to provide effective student learning experiences in the college setting. While experiences such as student-centered teaching strategies and course design elements are useful for the instructor, they may not make important elements of…

Experimental inquiry-oriented science labs can be designed to have students regulate their own learning and decide when they leave class or to have the teacher regulate student learning and determine when they leave class. In this study, grades were examined relative to student exit times in a student-regulated class design. Preliminary interviews…

A mounting body of evidence has shown that student-centered instructional practices are more effective than traditional teacher-centered methodologies in Undergraduate STEM courses. Several studies have shown the effectiveness of student-centered pedagogies through increases in student performance, retention, and higher achievement by…

Scientific literacy is a central aim of science education. The "Programme for International Student Assessment" (PISA) provides a measure of secondary students' scientific literacy and reported science instruction in 72 countries. Researchers have analyzed PISA data to identify important relationships between science instruction and…

While learner-centeredness is important to quantify, education researchers disagree on how best to measure it. The overall aim of this research was to measure the learner-centeredness of introductory biology classrooms with a valid and reliable instrument that offers a different perspective than self-reported faculty surveys or expert observation…

Introduction: Evidence has remained scarce whether teaching practices might be linked to students' educational equality. This study investigated (i) whether student-oriented teaching practices are associated with students' learning outcomes in mathematics, and (ii) whether student-oriented teaching might increase equality in learning outcomes…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extracurricular cadaveric dissection program available to medical students at an institution with a modern (time-compressed, student-centered, and prosection-based) approach to medical anatomy education. Quantitative (Likert-style questions) and qualitative data (thematic analysis of open-ended…

As a professor teaching general core science courses to non-science majors, I designed a learner-centered, inquiry-based course in order to potentially positively influence science-related attitudes of my students. Through the lens of action research with mixed methodology, I analyzed student attitudes regarding science through the Test of…

The present study investigated how science teachers' beliefs about intelligence and their beliefs about knowing and knowledge acquisition influence their teaching practices. A total of 285 science teachers participated in the present study. Our survey included three parts, namely: epistemological beliefs inventory, implicit theories of…

The move from general chemistry to organic chemistry can be a challenge for students as it often involves a transition from quantitatively-oriented to mechanistically-oriented thinking. This study found that the design of the general chemistry course can change the student experience of this transition as assessed by a reflective survey. The…