We demonstrate how students' use of modeling can be examined and assessed using student notebooks collected from an upper-division electronics lab course. The use of models is a ubiquitous practice in undergraduate physics education, but the process of constructing, testing, and refining these models is much less common. We focus our attention on…

Different tools have been used to facilitate the teaching and learning process in different areas of knowledge. Practical activities represent a form of teaching in which students not only listen to theoretical concepts but are also able to link theory and practice, and their importance in the biological sciences is notable. Sometimes, however,…

We are hereby presenting a didactic concept for an advanced lab course that focuses on the design of donor materials for organic solar cells. Its research-related and competence-based approach qualifies the students to independently and creatively apply computational methods and to profoundly and critically discuss the results obtained. The high…

We explored the social shaping of science at the micro-level reality of face-to-face interaction in one of the traditional places for scientific activities--the scientific lab. We specifically examined how doctoral students' perception of their: (i) interaction with doctoral mentors (MMI) and (ii) lab social environment (LSE) influenced…

Although literature posits the invaluable role of educators as both teachers and leaders in cultivating meaningful student learning experiences, many educators do not identify themselves as leaders (Barth, 2001). This paper explores leadership strategies for cultivating teacher-leader identity in Anatomy and Physiology educators. Due to large…

This dissertation utilizes autoethnography to explore myriad cultural and institutional changes that impacted the author's work as a writing tutor at a Midwestern university over the span of a decade. Utilizing both writing center theories and composition theories, data in this text--presented in the form of narrative nonfiction--chronicles…

Students' self-assessment of language features in their oral explanations of a mathematics task was supported by language learning progressions. Learning progressions map a continuum of knowledge or skills development as they increase in sophistication over time. Learning progressions can be a framework to support formative assessment by both…

The main objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of immersive virtual reality (VR) as a medium for delivering laboratory safety training. We specifically compare an immersive VR simulation, a desktop VR simulation, and a conventional safety manual. The sample included 105 first year undergraduate engineering students (56 females).…

To better prepare physiology students for 21st century careers, we incorporated classroom-based undergraduate research experiences and service learning/community-engaged learning (SLCE) into a college-level physiology laboratory course. The interventions were incorporated over 4 yr and assessed using validated surveys of student-reported learning…

This study analyzes the impact of adding a review exercises module to an online tool used in a software engineering degree program. The objective of the module is to promote students' self-learning effort to improve their performance. We also intend to determine if this new feature has any effect on the amount of code copies detected in lab…

This article proposes a model for integrating text-to-speech software (TTS) in students' interpreting training and practice. It shows the aims of the model, the definition of TTS, the advantages of using TTS, how to search for TTS, instructional stages with TTS, and the interpreting instructor's role. The students can use TTS software online;…

Interdisciplinary exploration is vital to education in the 21st century. This manuscript outlines an innovative laboratory-based teaching method that combines elements of biochemistry/molecular biology, kinesiology/health science, computer science, and manufacturing engineering to give students the ability to better conceptualize complex…

The increase in ocean acidity since preindustrial times may have deleterious consequences for marine organisms, particularly those with calcareous structures. We present a laboratory experiment to investigate this impact with general, introductory, environmental, and nonmajors chemistry students. For simplicity and homogeneity, calcite was…

Although vacuum technology is essential to many aspects of modern physical and analytical chemistry, vacuum experiments are rarely the focus of undergraduate laboratories. We describe an experiment that introduces students to vacuum science and mass spectrometry. The students first assemble a vacuum system, including a mass spectrometer. While…

A laboratory experiment was designed for undergraduate students, in which the outcome of an easy single-step organic synthesis with well-defined conditions was not elucidated until the end of the exercise. In class, students predict and discuss the possible products using their knowledge of reaction mechanisms. In the laboratory, they learn how to…