A comparison of student performance in an introductory biology class that used a lecture-based approach (N = 15 classes; 462 students) with those that had a no-lecture approach (N = 9 classes; 238 students). All classes were taught by the principal researcher. In the no- lecture environment, shifts in student perceptions of science were…

Introductory biology courses at most colleges and universities have two components: a lecture and a lab. However, for students who are not majoring in biology and taking the introductory course as part of their general education requirements, the distinct role of the lab has not been clearly articulated. We performed an online modified-Delphi…

Traditional lab courses separate lectures from lab work, whereas integrated lab-lecture courses (also known as studio courses) combine both in a single session under one instructor. Previous studies suggest that integrated lab-lecture courses may have the potential to enhance the learning experience for introductory-level students. In this…

The Energy and Momentum Conceptual Survey (EMCS) is a multiple-choice survey that contains conceptual problems involving a variety of energy and momentum concepts covered in a typical introductory physics course for science and engineering majors. Prior studies suggest that many concepts on the survey are challenging for introductory physics…

Considerable research has examined the prevalence and apparent consequences of task-unrelated thoughts (TUTs) in both laboratory and authentic educational settings. Few studies, however, have explored methods to reduce TUTs during learning; those few studies tested small samples or used unvalidated TUT assessments. The present experimental study…

Social justice is an American Psychological Association (APA) ethical principal which is often taught in content courses (e.g. social psychology, developmental psychology, introductory psychology) but rarely covered in psychological statistics courses. This is problematic, as psychology students may assume that bias is not an issue when…

Case studies are a staple in teacher education, especially in introductory courses when field experiences are less common. Even though case studies are used frequently, how to use case studies effectively has not been examined in this context. This quasi-experimental study was situated in an introductory educational psychology course for education…

The COVID-19 pandemic presented many challenges for educators. In Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs), where students learn about the scientific process by working on novel research, few resources for remote learning were available. Here the impact of changes to course delivery format on student learning gains in a…

Learning to take effective notes is particularly difficult for non-English-native university students enrolled on English Medium Instruction (EMI) courses. However, time and cost constraints mean that many universities provide no support in English for academic purposes or academic skills. One solution to this problem would be to work closely with…

This article outlines an exploratory study that investigated students' perceptions of the benefits and disadvantages of lecture recordings delivered as part of an introductory chemistry program in the UK during the COVID-19 lockdown in Spring 2020. Three features of these lecture recordings are considered: 1) the production of a series of…

Introductory mechanics is an obligatory course for many disciplines outside of physics and the failure rate is often high. Even the students who pass the course often fail to achieve the main learning goal: The conceptual knowledge required for modeling situations with physics principles. In many cases, this is due to inefficient learning…

At large institutions of higher education, students frequently have a choice whether to attend the introductory physics sequence asynchronously online, on-site in a traditional lecture setting, or in a reformed studio setting. In this study, we investigate how these different settings are correlated with measures of self-efficacy, interest in…

This study investigated the influence of longhand (paper and pen), keyboard, and stylus note-taking on academic performance in college classes. Students attended mini-lectures and took notes using longhand, keyboard, or stylus. Students took quizzes after each mini-lecture and reported their engagement. Final course grades were recorded.…

This study measured student engagement in real time through the use of skin biosensors, specifically galvanic skin response (GSR), in a large undergraduate lecture classroom. The study was conducted during an intervention in an introductory-level biology course (N = 420) in which one section of the course was taught with active-learning approaches…

Cell phones have long been known as a potential distraction from attention intensive activities such as studying and driving. Many, however, are developing the cell phone as a powerful tool to augment some of these same activities. Audience response systems (ARSs) are a type of teaching tool that allows educators to poll audience members in real…