In this paper we present the results of a research-based teaching-learning sequence on introductory quantum physics based on Feynman's sum over paths approach in the Italian high school. Our study focuses on students' understanding of two founding ideas of quantum physics, wave particle duality and the uncertainty principle. In view of recent…

Many instructors in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields are striving to create active learning environments in their classrooms and in doing so are frequently moving the lecture portion of their course into online video format. In this classroom-based study, we used a two group randomized experimental design to examine the…

Producing a deep bass tone by striking a large 3 m (10 ft) flexible corrugated drainage pipe immediately grabs student attention. The fundamental pitch of the corrugated tube is found to be a semitone lower than a non-corrugated smooth pipe of the same length. A video (https://youtu.be/FU7a9d7N60Y) of the demonstration is included, which…

For this article, we use a 3D printer to print a surface similar to universal gravitation for demonstrating and investigating Kepler's laws of planetary motion describing the motion of a small ball on the surface. This novel experimental method allows Kepler's laws of planetary motion to be visualized and will contribute to improving the…

We all know that they do it, but what do students laugh "about" when learning science together? Although research has shown that students do use humor when they learn science, the role of humor in science education has received little attention. In this study, undergraduate students' laughter during collaborative work in physics has been…

The outcomes of educational assessments undoubtedly have real implications for students, teachers, schools and education in the widest sense. Assessment results are, for example, used to award qualifications that determine future educational or vocational pathways of students. The results obtained by students in assessments are also used to gauge…

Electromagnetic induction is an important, yet complex, physics topic that is a part of Croatian high school curriculum. Nine Croatian high school students of different abilities in physics were interviewed using six demonstration experiments from electromagnetism (three of them concerned the topic of electromagnetic induction). Students were…

This article argues that cross-disciplinary linkages -- that is, relationships among phenomena studied by those in different disciplines -- often serve to destabilize, at least temporarily, systems of stability that are theorized to operate within the sets of phenomena studied within most disciplines. It surveys across disciplines both systems of…

In this study, it is aimed to determine effects of pre-service elementary school teachers' misconceptions about short circuit and open circuit on their ability to set up simple electric circuits. The sample of the research is composed of 41 teacher candidates studying at Dokuz Eylul University. Open-ended questions and semi-structured interview…

The National Research Council (2012) recently published A Framework for K-12 Science Education that describes a vision for science classrooms where students engage in three dimensions--scientific and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas--to explain phenomena or observations they can make about the universe…

In the present study I developed and evaluated the effects of two interventions designed to target students' motivation to learn in an introductory college physics course. One intervention was designed to improve students' perceptions of utility value and the other was designed to reduce students' perceptions of cost. Utility value and cost both…

The blurring of the distinctions between pedagogy and curriculum, and experience and knowledge, has resulted in a generation of teachers who are confused about the part that each of these plays in the education of children. Schools may still teach through subjects, but there is little consensus about what constitutes a subject and what they are…

Intelligent tutoring systems (ITS), like human tutors, try to adapt to student's knowledge level so that the instruction is tailored to their needs. One aspect of this adaptation relies on the ability to have an understanding of the student's initial knowledge so as to build on it, avoiding teaching what the student already knows and focusing on…

Within the last 10 years, higher education has seen the accelerated development of blended learning (BL), active learning (AL), and STEM education. The presented mixed methods study examined a proposed framework that BL affordances enable or constrain AL, as a representation of constructivist learning theory, and that the relationship between BL…

The intent of this research is to evaluate the use of a formative assessment probe about balance and torque. The lesson was conducted with 52, 11th grade students studying in two physics classes at a state high school. A formative assessment probe was used at both the beginning and end of the study. After the students' prior knowledge about…