The objectives of the present study are to investigate both the history of the collection of scientific instruments from the Maraslean Teaching Center (MTC) and the potential for the collection's use in STEM education programs. Although MTC went by a number of different names during its long history, its institutional goal remained the same:…

In this Reflection on Practice we propose a triple nexus of research, public engagement and teaching that could provide a new pathway for academic developers to enable greater engagement in learning and teaching issues from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) academics. We argue that the public engagement activities demanded…

Population genetics is fundamental to understanding evolutionary theory, and is taught in most introductory biology/evolution courses. Many students are unaware that understanding this topic requires pertinent knowledge of mathematics and consequently struggle with the subject. As a response to this problem, a virtual tool (Pop!World) was…

The disciplines of anatomy and surgery are not dichotomous since one is dependent on the other. Traditionally, surgeons predominantly taught gross and clinical anatomy. In this review, we examine the context of how human anatomy is taught nowadays. In essence, we discovered that there are certain discernable trends consistently observable between…

A new educational simulation tool designed for the generic study of wireless networks, the Wireless Fidelity Simulator (WiFiSim), is presented in this paper. The goal of this work was to create and implement a didactic tool to improve the teaching and learning of computer networks by means of two complementary strategies: simulating the behavior…

Funding agencies and the science education community at large have pursued strategies for increasing K-12 outreach by scientists and for improving instructional practices in higher education classrooms. However, the simultaneous achievement of both goals is generally not a target for single projects or even single programs. A 4-year project…

This paper examines the experiences of three teachers who were engaged in a project designed to enhance student engagement in mathematics through the development of real-world context activities which enabled students to use mathematics as a tool for responsible citizenship and the pursuit of social justice.

A reflective portfolio as a capstone assignment was selected to accomplish recognition by teachers completing a science, technology, mathematics, engineering master's program for elementary teachers about their professional and personal changes and to provide program evaluators additional qualitative data regarding attainment of program goals. As…

In collaboration with preservice elementary teachers and in-service kindergarten teachers, the authors engaged in small-scale, demand-side production of educational software focused on numeracy skills. That is, the authors built applications designed to address children's specific learning needs as they surfaced in the classroom and were…

Programmable system-on-chip (PSoC), which provides a microprocessor and programmable analog and digital peripheral functions in a single chip, is very convenient for mixed-signal electronic system design. This paper presents the experience of teaching contemporary mixed-signal electronic system design with PSoC in the Department of Automation,…

A strong, recent movement in tertiary education is the development of conceptual, or "big idea" teaching. The emphasis in course design is now on promoting key understandings, core competencies, and an understanding of connections between different fields. In biochemistry teaching, this radical shift from the content-based tradition is…

We describe an investigative laboratory module designed to give college undergraduates strong practical and theoretical experience with recombinant DNA methods within 3 weeks. After deducing restriction enzyme maps for two different plasmids, students ligate the plasmids together in the same reaction, transform "E. coli" with this mixture of…

Well-developed professional communication skills, collaborative work practices, effective self-management and a clear understanding of social responsibility and ethical practices are essential for the new engineer who hopes to contribute to the profession and build a career. These attributes are in addition to the traditional sound knowledge of…

This article discusses the evaluation of programmatic interventions to enhance postsecondary STEM education for students with disabilities. SciTrain University, a federally funded project to provide instructor training on accessible teaching according to universal design principles, is presented here as a case study on evaluation for similar…

The teaching of biochemistry within medical disciplines presents certain challenges; firstly to relay a large body of complex facts and abstract concepts, and secondly to motivate students that this relatively difficult topic is worth their time to study. Here, nutrient biochemistry was taught within a multidisciplinary module as part of an…