A quasi-experimental control group pre- and post-test study was used to determine the effect of a Multi-Step Inquiry (MSI) approach on pre-service elementary school teacher's conceptual understanding. The MSI study involved the development of a conceptual workbook, and a Physical Science Concept Inventory. The conceptual workbook has activities…

The results of an earlier empirical research study on modifying 'step-by-step' instructions to practical activities requiring one or more steps of the experiments to be designed by students initiated a longitudinal study to investigate the effectiveness of the approach for younger students and over a period of time. The longitudinal study that…

A common problem in many schools is the lack of equipment and materials in their science laboratories due to both limited budget available to the school and high maintenance cost of the lab. The latest technological advancements provide great opportunities for schools to go over the budget and cost issues by using 3D virtual learning environments…

This article describes how by using three points to make a line and comparing the graphs for water and oil, students can mathematically demonstrate that Gatorade dissolves in water much more readily than in oil. Students can also use units to understand and solve a multi-step problem by observing the color of each solution, making conductivity…

In PASCO's Technical Article #763, it is stated that "PASCO [also] makes sensors with an 8-pin DIN connector. These sensors cannot be used with the Vernier interfaces, as they have different power requirements." Recently we had the need to make such connections in a 10-station freshman lab. Since the Vernier input is a 6-way BT 631A plug…

Winston Churchill once said of Russia that it was a riddle wrapped in mystery inside an enigma. Were the British Bulldog a physicist, he might have been talking of something other than our Slavic comrades. He might have been talking about an electron. This article covers the more modern representations of the electron. A brief reminder of the…

Under certain conditions a body of hot liquid may cool faster and freeze before a body of colder liquid, a phenomenon known as the Mpemba Effect. An initial difference in temperature of 3.2 °C enabled warmer water to reach 0 °C in 14% less time than colder water. Convection currents in the liquid generate a temperature gradient that causes more…

The motions of Newton's cradle, consisting of several steel balls hanging side-by-side, have been analysed in terms of a sound pulse that travels via points of contact among the balls. This presupposes a focused energy beam. When the pulse reaches the fifth and final ball, the energy disperses and dislocates the ball with a trajectory equivalent…

A physical experiment concerning the moment of inertia of a rigid disk is described. Basic physical quantities such as the moment of inertia and torque are very important in elementary physics courses. This experiment was designed to improve students' understanding of the relation between the rigid moment of inertia and torque. The moment of…

A simple setup was designed for a "time-of-flight" measurement of the sound speed in a metal bar. The experiment requires low cost components and is very simple to understand by students. A good use of it is as a demonstration experiment.

We safely remove the outer glass bulb from an incandescent lamp and burn up the tungsten filament after the glass is removed. This demonstration dramatically illustrates the necessity of a vacuum or inert gas for the environment surrounding the tungsten filament inside the bulb. Our approach has added historical importance since the incandescent…

An experiment with an electric transformer based on single coils shows how electromagnetic induction changes when the magnetic coupling between coils is adjusted. This transformer has two secondary outputs which are taken differentially. This is the basis for a widely used position transducer known as LVDT.

Because sound waves are such an abstract concept in physics, hands-on activities are often recommended to improve students' understanding and strengthen their knowledge. However, most schools do not have sufficiently sophisticated measuring instruments to perform sound wave experiments. Recently, researchers used smartphones as oscilloscopes,…

On July 19, 1969, Senator Edward Kennedy drove his vehicle off a low bridge on Chappaquiddick Island in Massachusetts. The vehicle sank in 2.1 m of water, coming to rest on its roof. According to Kennedy's version of events, he managed to escape from the submerged vehicle without injury, but his female companion, Mary Jo Kopechne, drowned without…

In this study, we have explored the ways in which small-group work in science can contribute to strengthen multilingual students' subject language and conceptual development when working with language-oriented classroom activities in primary classrooms. The aim is to determine whether it is possible to identify factors in interactions in…