Classrooms with higher teaching quality were associated with higher learning outcomes in mathematics and science. Classrooms where teachers reported high degrees of limitations to teaching in the classroom--including disruptive students or students with language barriers--were associated with lower learning outcomes. These are two of the important…

Psychological science has much to contribute to enhancing teaching and learning in the classroom. Teaching and learning are intricately linked to social and behavioral factors of human development, including cognition, motivation, social interaction, and communication. Psychological science can also provide key insights on effective instruction,…

This study examined students' perceptions of attitudinal learning outcomes and instructional activities within a language and cultural exchange (LACE) course at a midwestern U.S. university and explored whether perceptions differed based on students' prior knowledge, major, and/or demographics. We utilized a mixed-methods approach to gather…

How do engineering students approach mathematical modelling problems and how can they learn to deal with such problems? In the context of a course in mathematical modelling and problem solving, and using a qualitative case study approach, we found that the students had little prior experience of mathematical modelling. They were also inexperienced…

This article describes an initiative undertaken by a coalition of psychologists (Coalition for Psychology in Schools and Education) from the American Psychological Association (APA) to identify the top 20 principles from psychological science relevant to teaching and learning in the classroom. This article identifies these principles and their…

In this theoretical essay, the author addresses the existence of divergent evidence, portraying both competence and lack of competence in a fundamental realm of higher order thinking--causal and scientific reasoning--and explores the educational implications. Evidence indicates that these higher order reasoning skills are not ones that can be…

Purpose: The purpose of this exploratory study is to identify trainee attributes relevant for development of skills in 3D computer-aided design (CAD). Design/methodology/approach: Participants were trained to perform cognitive tasks of comparable complexity over time. Performance data were collected on the time needed to construct test models, and…

Many researchers have investigated the effects of students' prior knowledge upon learning chemistry, for example, the tenacity of alternative conceptions. Knowledge about learning also shapes students' learning of chemistry. This research describes the development of CHEMX, a survey instrument that measures an aspect of knowledge about learning…

While research concerning feedback and cooperative learning is prevalent in educational literature, there has been little systematic research to support whether various types of feedback in cooperative learning situations can affect student performance. This study examines possible interactions among different types of computer-delivered feedback…

Research has established that students generally possess conceptions relevant to curricular topics before they begin to study them and that these preconceptions often persist despite instruction on scientific theories which contradict them. Discrepancies between students' post instruction conceptions and the scientific theories as taught often…