A better understanding of how to improve student retention in engineering is required to support students in completing engineering degrees and entering the workforce. Application processes to engineering majors are one barrier to retention in some engineering programs. This study evaluates demographic, grades, application process, and engineering…

Computational thinking is an important skill applicable to multiple disciplines and can be difficult to teach due to the stress and frustration novice learners feel from cognitively challenging learning activities. While existing theories like Zone of Proximal Development, Flow Theory, and Zone of Proximal Flow suggest that an ideal mode of…

After a redesign of our school year structure, our science team developed an introduction to science course focused on teaching science to non-science majors early in their postsecondary studies. The goal of this course was not to prepare students for further pursuit of science degrees; instead, we wanted to equip them with the skills and…

Science courses are required for nonmajor students as part of general education with the goal of students connecting scientific knowledge to their own lives using science to make decisions. Often, however, these science courses emphasize basic concepts and terms without making it relevant to students' lives. Thus, these courses may not be…

Lakes are artists' pigments made from colorants bound to an inert substrate, usually hydrated aluminum oxide. Before the late 19th century, lakes were made from natural pigments extracted from plants and insects, extracted either directly from the dyestuff or indirectly from waste materials generated in the manufacture of dyed textiles. The first…

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has provided the general public with an understanding of scientific processes and health systems surrounding vaccination in real-time. This report assesses responses of college students in a regional university to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors (KAB)…

The National Matriculation English Test (NMET), also known as the Gaokao English Examination, is a high-stakes, large-scale selection test for tertiary education in China, with numerous provinces and regions adopting the standardized national test papers. The validity of the NMET has garnered extensive attention. To verify the NMET's validity, it…

Researchers found in 2014 that only about 15 percent of students who participated in music in high school continued to participate in college as non-majors. Even when adding in the smaller number of students who continue as music majors, there is still a 75 to 80 percent attrition rate for the profession among the students who should be the most…

Transparency in learning and teaching (TILT) has been a growing topic of interest in higher education. This study aimed to examine how a simple TILT manipulation could impact a well-established, popular, interdisciplinary semester-long research symposium that involves scores of undergraduates. TILTing the instructions for this symposium had a…

This study examines the impact of Artist-in-Residence (AiR) programs on college students' creative behaviors. By surveying undergraduates, we found that art majors, compared to nonmajors, exhibited greater intentions to engage in creative behaviors following interactions with the AiR. These students also felt more social pressure to be creative,…

How much explicit logical reasoning instruction should be included in first-year mathematics courses, particularly those for non-math majors? We argue that all first-year students in mathematics courses should receive explicit instruction in logical reasoning. Engaging with precise logical statements is a fundamental skill in mathematics,…

Public affairs programs have long aimed to advance public service education. First defined as preparing public servants for government employment, public affairs programs have expanded to advancing the public interest and governance across all sectors. While modern public affairs programs have become more expansive in how they define public…

Although most students in nonmajor biology courses will not enter careers in science, they will need a working understanding of biology and how it relates to their lives to make informed decisions on important topics that will affect their lives, including food, environment, energy, and health. This research seeks to improve on nonmajors'…

The role of mathematics in several scientific disciplines is undisputed; work and everyday life take great advantage of its application. Nevertheless, students often tend to not particularly like it and to consider it of little interest. It is also believed that only people with a certain attitude are capable of mastering the subject. In…

Buckminsterfullerene (C[subscript 60]), along with diamond and graphite, appears in many chemistry textbooks as an example of an allotrope of carbon. This communication describes a hands-on activity to explore the characteristic structure of C[subscript 60] through the construction of a structural model using transistors and plastic tubes…