The mystery tube is a fairly well known activity among science teachers for illustrating the nature of science. A variety of procedures have been presented for carrying out this activity, such as Scott Miller's method based on the BCSE 5E Instructional Model. Mystery tubes and other "black box" activities allow the students to engage in…

This study evaluates a cooperative learning approach for teaching anatomy to health science students incorporating small group and peer instruction based on the jigsaw method first described in the 1970's. Fifty-three volunteers participated in abdominal anatomy workshops. Students were given time to become an "expert" in one of four…

Student-built photometers are recognized as being useful tools in teaching laboratories that help students understand the concepts behind experimental measurements, and several devices have been reported that employ photoresistors as the detector of choice. We demonstrate here an improvement over these instruments and the analyses thereof,…

3D printing was used to prepare space-filling models of electron density isosurfaces and high-resolution molecular models on the basis of the van der Waals radii of atoms. Both model types provide students with kinesthetic simulations of steric effects in bimolecular substitution and elimination reactions. The models can be printed in small sizes…

This laboratory experiment demonstrates the important utility of transition-metal complexes as catalysts in the addition reaction of carbon tetrabromide (CBr ) to select alkenes. This application offers students the opportunity to understand why transition-metal complexes are worth synthesizing. The experiment builds on fundamental theories…

This work describes the design, building, and testing of miniature, low-cost LED-LDR colorimeters for absorption-spectrophotometry experiments. It also describes using these colorimeters for simplified context-based-learning (CBL) activities in school teaching laboratories and for public-engagement events. The colorimeters are simple and robust,…

While circuitry lessons have traditionally been first introduced in late elementary school, they remain challenging conceptually for undergraduates in physics and engineering courses. Seeking to provide a higher quality and earlier introduction to circuitry learning for young children (ages 3-5), this paper investigates the affordances of…

This paper presents the creation of an educational resource using the camera of a mobile phone and video analysis software. The movie recorded is part of a daily context: an airplane's take-off. This work shows a way to introduce information and communication technologies (ICT) and digital educational resources (DER) as tools to teach and…

The author, Greg DeLisi, a professor at John Carroll University, is always looking for ways to bring current events into his introductory physics classroom or laboratory. He is especially interested in finding examples where basic principles of physics can be used to cast skepticism on assertions made by celebrities, politicians, or professional…

Scientific concepts are the building blocks of scientific thought and science communication. Therefore, to achieve scientific literacy it is necessary to construct and define the concepts accurately. In this study, the concept of friction force, which is frequently encountered in science textbooks, is discussed. The explanations of the concept in…

The main goal of this study is to present the effectiveness improvement of student's creative thinking skills using CBL implemented in STEM education and CBL combined with worksheet PSL. The STEM education perspective used in this study is a separate science discipline (Physics) that incorporates other disciplines. The research method used in this…

Educational Technology is an applied study which aims at maximizing learning by making use of the scientific and technological method and concepts developed in other social service. "Educational technology is the application of scientific knowledge about learning and conditions learning to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of teaching…

Setting primary science in an everyday context supports learning in a number of ways. Exploring the science associated with everyday people, places and materials helps to access pupils' prior knowledge and experience and thus facilitates a more constructivist and pupil-centred form of pedagogy. This account looks at various examples from the…

Curiosity is not about passive receiving of knowledge. Being curious involves action, a desire to know, discover or learn. Children's curiosity should be a central part of their science education. Often in science, curiosity can stem from an everyday occurrence that encourages an observation and promotes a 'what if?' or 'why?' reaction. The…

The Adventure Sack idea arose out of setting up a Forest School in a local National Trust mixed British woodland. A dilemma arose: how would 'stuff' be transported to the Forest School? The idea came to use a box of currently unused school logoed rucksacks that had only occasional outings on school trips. All of the Forest School stuff -- first…