Student difficulties with making sense of graphs in physics have been thoroughly reported. In the study of one-dimensional waves, the issue is even trickier since the amplitude is a function of two variables (position and time). In this work, we investigate students' reasoning and difficulties with interpreting the graphical representation of the…

The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) is a popular multiple-choice instrument used to measure a student's conceptual understanding of Newtonian mechanics. Recently, a network analytic technique called module analysis has been used to identify responses to the FCI and other conceptual instruments that are preferentially selected together by students;…

Creating equitable learning environments has been an area of significant focus for physics education researchers in recent years. Here we introduce a framework that posits that grade penalty is a measure of academic self-concept and investigate if there are gender differences in grade penalties in physics courses for students majoring in physics.…

America's future depends upon its citizens' basic science literacy. Soon the country will be relying on students in classrooms today to spur the discoveries needed to save lives, stave off disease, and protect the planet and to join the wide swath of professions that once did not require such knowledge and skills but now do. All students deserve…

Across science disciplines, light is a common tool for measuring, characterizing, and catalysing molecules and molecular processes. Despite the ubiquity of light-based tools, little research has been done to investigate how students understand light and light-matter interactions (LMI). This topic is typically first introduced in first-year…

A common task when problem solving in quantum mechanics, including in a spins-first curriculum, involves changing the basis of a given state. Our research in undergraduate quantum mechanics courses at three institutions explores student thinking about basis, basis expansion coefficients, and change of basis in the context of spin-½ systems. Our…

It is widely argued that Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (NST) is going to affect several aspects of our life. Therefore, students need to develop their nanoliteracy to cope with the everyday issues related to NST. Although there is an increasing interest in introducing NST content to primary school students, the theoretical frameworks for…

Conversational agents can deepen reasoning and encourage students to build on others' knowledge in collaborative learning. Embedding agents in group work, however, presents challenges where groups may ignore the agents, and this calls for designs where students perceive agents as learning partners. This study examines group interactions with two…

Special Relativity introduces students to Modern Physics, whose importance in the high school is increasing. Nevertheless its teaching and learning is a critical issue. Different solutions have been developed to overcome the encountered difficulties. In this paper we describe the spacetime globe, a mechanical instrument that allows to experience…

Similar to how stealth materials were developed to reduce the radar wave energy returning from an aircraft, here we explore a low-cost laboratory demonstration that uses similar principles to prevent detection of an object by an ultrasonic sensor. This demonstration setup can be used as a starting point to encourage students to explore the surface…

We discuss the limits of the equation of the period of a simple pendulum, T[subscript s] = 2[pi][square root]l/g, frequently used in high-school and university classrooms to measure the acceleration of gravity. We evaluate the relative error in determining the acceleration of gravity with this simple equation instead of a more realistic one,…

This paper investigates the interactions between context and professional development of physics instructors in a case study of two physics faculty. A phenomenological-case study approach was used to analyze two physics faculty at different institutions over a year and a half using three semistructured interviews each. The data enabled the…

A preliminary study showed that Biology learning in the classroom could not encourage the integration of science concepts and Islamic values. The aims of this study are to (1) develop a new learning model that integrates scientific principles and Islamic values, and (2) characterize the RQANI model's validity, practicability, and effectiveness.…

Scientific argumentation as a scientific practice has become an important issue in scientific concept learning. We systematically searched five databases to assess the potential of scientific argumentation to promote multidimensional conceptual change in science education. The systematic literature search and coding of studies were carried out by…

Textbooks can have a fundamental and positive effect on both learning and teaching. As such, in order to understand how students structure concepts in their minds, it is necessary to analyze the structure in which those concepts presented in textbooks are described. This study examined a network of concepts used in the domain of biotechnology in…