A collaborative effort by policymakers and researchers designed an experiential learning program to empower preuniversity chemistry teachers to integrate Sustainability and Green Chemistry principles into their curricula using case-based learning (CBL) strategies. Eighteen teachers from 17 schools participated in a workshop and a site visit to…

Background: The integration of pedagogical agents (PAs) into educational settings has become widespread, yet the impact of humorous versus non-humorous PAs on student academic performance and engagement remains underexplored. Although research highlights the benefits of PAs, the specific role of humour in enhancing educational outcomes is not well…

During the years 2020-2022, COVID-19-related restrictions led to fewer in-person lab offerings in Neuroscience and Biology courses, resulting in negative impacts on students' skills and confidence. In this study, we investigate the impact of a co-curricular undergraduate lab skills program, the Practical Skills Passport (PSP), on student lab…

Current science education reform efforts have identified sensemaking as an important goal of science education, and science education researchers have studied what constitutes the sensemaking process in the science classroom. Because the studies of sensemaking are loosely linked to those of scientific reasoning, however, they have provided little…

Electrochemical characterization techniques are essential for studying and developing advanced materials across various fields, from corrosion science to energy storage, photovoltaics, and bioelectrochemistry. However, these techniques are often under-represented in educational curricula. This practical guide with a hands-on laboratory experiment…

This study examines how active learning principles and considerations are reflected in preservice teachers' learning experiences with augmented reality (AR) and how they conceptualize its use in their future classrooms. Twenty-eight preservice teachers, including three interviewed participants, were surveyed about their experiences with AR and…

Visual representations in molecular biology tend to follow a set of shared conventions for using certain shapes and symbols to convey information about the size and structure of nucleotides, genes, and chromosomes. Understanding how and why biologists use these conventions to represent DNA is a key part of visual literacy in molecular biology.…

There is increasing reliance on graduate student teaching assistants (GTAs) in undergraduate education, yet the impact of this role on graduate students is understudied. Previous research has focused on tangible outcomes such as skill development, rather than how GTAs value or find meaning in this role. Our study used a phenomenological approach…

Structure-function relationships are a core concept in many STEM disciplines. Most biology curricula introduce students to macromolecules, their building blocks, and other small molecules that play key roles in biological processes. However, the shapes, interactions, and functions of these molecules are often discussed using schematic diagrams,…

Background/purpose. 21st-century skills are essential across all aspects of life in the modern era. Pre-service elementary school teachers must also develop computational thinking skills as part of the problem-solving process--one of the most critical 21st-century competencies. These skills are critical in science learning and serve as fundamental…

This randomized controlled trial assessed the comparative effectiveness of a biochemistry education program delivered through an immersive virtual reality (iVR) experience and traditional video-based instruction. Undergraduate students enrolled in three nutrition courses from a large R1 American university participated (n = 95). Students were…

The objective of the current study was to identify an effective learning environment for kindergarten students as they acquire an initial understanding of scientific inquiry activities (SIA) and a simple (idealized) scientific inquiry cycle (SIC). The study aimed to examine (a) the effects of instructional support and (b) the role of similarity…

Effective science education is crucial for developing a scientifically literate citizenry, and for many, foundational primary science education experiences play a significant role in defining their long-term science trajectories. However, primary science education has been limited by a dissonance between the poor science trajectories for…

Prior research suggests most students do not glean valid cues from provided visuals, resulting in reduced metacomprehension accuracy. Across 4 experiments, we explored how the presence of instructional visuals affects students' metacomprehension accuracy and cue-use for different types of metacognitive judgments. Undergraduates read texts on…

Modeling is a core practice in science and is a meaningful way to learn the subject. This article introduces a modeling-based approach that highlights the idea that modeling is an iterative process and integrates the fundamental parts of scientists' work and key suggestions for teaching through modeling. The lesson "The Structure and Function…