Understanding how scientific conclusions are drawn from data is central to learning about the nature of science. Many students struggle with aspects of reasoning from data, including identifying relationships among variables, interpreting graphs, coordinating theory and evidence, and not allowing personal beliefs to outweigh the data when forming…

The study is based on an implementation of the basic steps of the Change Laboratory methodology (Engeström, Virkkunen, Helle, Pihlaja & Poikela, 1996) at the University of Ioannina. It was derived by a discussion with master's students during a course about science education curricula in pre-school and primary education and their effectiveness…

Identification and quantification of an unknown illicit drug (cocaine) from both simulated drug paraphernalia and simulated urine can be achieved via direct analysis in real time (DART) triple quadrupole linear ion trap (QTRAP) mass spectrometry (MS). We describe a novel, hands-on laboratory activity which utilizes the recent DART technology…

Using a cooperative learning framework in a quantitative reasoning laboratory course, students were assigned to static teams of four in which they adopted roles that rotated regularly. The roles included: team leader, protocol manager, data recorder, and researcher. Using a mixed-methods approach, we investigated students' perceptions of the team…

This study took place in a biotechnology laboratory course series that provided students with authentic research experiences. We documented student identities after the experience and explored how these identities related to future career aspirations.

A simple, reliable, and cost-effective experiment is presented in which students synthesized citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (GNPs), functionalized them with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), and transferred the PEG-GNPs from water to the organic phase dichloromethane. The experiment introduces students to nanotechnology with foci on important…

Virtual worlds are a potential medium for teaching college-level chemistry laboratory courses. To determine the feasibility of conducting chemistry experiments in such an environment, undergraduate students performed two experiments in the immersive virtual world of Second Life (SL) as part of their regular General Chemistry 2 laboratory course.…

The advent of new educational technologies has stimulated interest in using online videos to deliver content in university courses. We examined student engagement with 78 online videos that we created and were incorporated into a one-semester flipped introductory mechanics course at the Georgia Institute of Technology. We found that students were…

Developing a better understanding of the measurement process and measurement uncertainty is one of the main goals of university physics laboratory courses. This study investigated the influence of graphical representation of data on student understanding and interpreting of measurement results. A sample of 101 undergraduate students (48 first year…

The importance of culture and social interactions in disciplinary learning and language development within specific social practices and contexts is now an agreed-upon notion in the science education literature. In a pivotal article in 1990, Lemke introduced the idea of manual-technical operations as one of four modes making up the "hybrid…

The purpose of this mixed method research study was to examine the constructivist beliefs and instructional practices of secondary science teachers. The research also explored situations that impacted whether or not student centered instruction occurred. The study revealed science teachers held constructive beliefs pertaining to student…

This dissertation studied the impact of the inclusion of three-dimensional digital images of the human skeleton on the educational outcomes and perceptions of novice learners studying introductory skeletal anatomy. A group of students with little or no knowledge of human skeletal anatomy completed an online educational module, with the treatment…

Reformed experimental activities (REActivities) are an innovative approach to the delivery of the traditional material in an undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory. A description of the design and implementation of REActivities at both a four- and two-year institution is discussed. The results obtained using a reformed teaching observational…

The research study concerned here was to: (1) produce a virtual physics laboratory application to be called ViPhyLab by using the Android smartphone as basis; (2) determine the appropriateness and quality of the virtual physics laboratory application that had been developed; and (3) describe the improvement in learning independence and conceptual…

The purpose of this study is to explore factors that affect exclusively physical, virtual and both a Virtual-Physical (VP) and Physical-Virtual (PV) sequence of manipulatives within Studio Physics environment. In this environment students actively work together to learn through real world experimentation and simulation based activities. Activities…