A coin tossed onto a table often ends up rolling in such a way that the center of mass remains approximately stationary. Although this phenomenon has been studied for many years and is well-documented in the literature, it is perhaps not widely appreciated in the physics education community that the motion can be understood without the use of…

The introductory course in college physics has been criticized as fragmented and lacking in a theme or "story" to tie together the disparate chapters. As physicists, we see it as highly organized and hierarchical, developing from the great principles of Newton, Maxwell, etc. But to the student, it's just the chapter on lost hikers, the chapter on…

As often happens, a lot of physics can come out of a toy. What we found interesting is the observation of the magnetic field produced by different configurations built with GEOMAG[TM]. This toy provides small magnetic bars and steel spheres to play with. Amusing 3-D structures can be built; nevertheless, this possibility is not so obvious. Indeed,…

A concise, well-organized table of the boiling points of 392 organic compounds has facilitated inquiry-based instruction in multiple scientific principles. Many individual or group learning activities can be derived from the tabulated data of molecular structure and boiling point based on the instructor's education objectives and the students'…

Can storytelling--a revered teaching tradition in many Native American cultures--be used to generate enthusiasm for science and technology among indigenous children and address the achievement gap that exists between Indian and non-Indian children? The Tribal Youth Science Initiative (TYSI) is an innovative new media project for young people, ages…

Sociocognitive conflict has been used as a teaching strategy which may contribute to change students' conceptions about science concepts. The present paper aims at investigating the structure of the dialogic argumentation developed by students, when they are involved in science teaching sequence that have been designed to change their conceptions…

Teacher research--often called "action research"--is an intentional and systematic inquiry into one's own classroom practice with the goal of improved student learning (Cochran-Smith and Lytle 1993). In this article, the authors present a teacher research project undertaken to improve student understanding of the gas laws in a high…

This article explores the views and actions of four science teachers participating in a collaborative action research project. A qualitative case study approach was used to describe and analyze the development of these teachers. This development initially involved the teachers critically comparing their extant practices to current developments in…

Understanding how geckos--small lizards belonging to the family "Gekkonindae"--can "defy gravity" and walk across a ceiling provides a fascinating frame through which students can not only learn valuable content about electrostatic forces, but also engage in authentic scientific practice and explore new technologies based on gecko adhesion. In…

A cheap replica of the verge-and-foliot clock has been built from simple materials. It is a didactic tool of great power for physics teaching at every stage of schooling, in particular at university level. An account is given of its construction and its working principles, together with motivated examples of a few activities. (Contains 3 tables…

Constructivism in science education has been the subject of considerable debate in the science education literature. The purpose of this study was to facilitate chemistry teachers' understanding that the tentative nature of scientific knowledge leads to the coexistence and rivalries among different forms of constructivism in science education. The…

This study explored the effectiveness of an inquiry-based cellulase laboratory unit in promoting inquiry in undergraduate students in biotechnology. The following tools were used to assess the students' achievements and attitude: conceptual understanding test, concept mapping, students' documents, CLES questionnaire, students' self reflection, and…

To most students entering today's biology classes, evolution is something that occurred long ago, and is therefore irrelevant to their lives. Examples of evolution that are important concerns in the modern world, such as the resistance of insects to pesticides and antibiotic resistance, do not match students' concept of evolution. In this article,…

The law of inertia is a problem in teaching due to the impossibility of showing the proposition experimentally. As we cannot do an experiment to verify the law, we cannot know if it is correct. On the other hand, we know that the science based upon it is successful. A study in the history of mechanics has shown that there are different foundations…

A playground can provide a valuable physics education laboratory. For example, Taylor et al. describe bringing teachers in a workshop to a playground to examine the physics of a seesaw and slide, and briefly suggest experiments involving a merry-go-round. In this paper, we describe an experiment performed by students from a Society of Physics…