Learning to argue is prerequisite to solving complex problems in groups, especially when they are multidisciplinary and collaborate online. Environments for Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) can be designed to facilitate argumentative knowledge construction. This study investigates how argumentative knowledge construction in…

This brief shows how middle and high school teachers in a Time-Technology Swap school model, with or without Multi-Classroom Leaders, may earn more while reaching more students, sustainably. In this model, students alternate between learning with teachers and working in a digital learning lab, where they learn online and engage in offline skill…

The New Media Consortium (NMC) and the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD), with the generous support of Dell and Intel, have jointly released the "Technology Outlook for Community, Technical, and Junior Colleges 2013-2018: An NMC Horizon Project Sector Analysis." This report applies the process developed…

Chemistry instructors in teaching laboratories provide expert modeling of techniques and cognitive processes and provide assistance to enrolled students that may be described as scaffolding interaction. Such student support is particularly essential in laboratories taught with an inquiry-based curriculum. In a teaching laboratory with a high…

There is a perceived need for anatomy instruction for graduate students enrolled in a biomedical engineering program. This appeared especially important for students interested in and using medical images. These students typically did not have a strong background in biology. The authors arranged for students to dissect regions of the body that…

The article "Torsional Oscillations with Lorentz Force" by Paul Gluck provides a glimpse into the major world of ancient physics demonstrations in the late 19th and first half of the 20th centuries. The apparatus that was described and similar pieces of apparatus are the basis for many memorable but long forgotten educational demonstrations. The…

First reported in the early 1930s, variation in the ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) has since become one of the most widely studied of all human genetic traits. Guo and Reed (2001) provide an excellent review of work on this polymorphism prior to the identification and sequencing of the PTC gene by Kim et al. (2003), and Wooding (2006)…

The cryophorus dramatically demonstrates the cooling effect of evaporation. This article describes some simple and easy-to-make cryophoruses, ideal for demonstrating evaporative cooling to students at all levels. The most dramatic effects occurred with cyclohexane and benzene, with water generally freezing more slowly. (Contains 4 notes, 2 tables,…

This article describes a laboratory experiment that allows the students to investigate the radiative properties of the green and red emitting phosphors that are employed in commercial fluorescent lamps. Making use of a spectrofluorometer, students first record the emission spectrum of a fluorescent lamp under normal operating conditions, and then…

A simple in class laboratory illustrating the principles of ion exchange chromatography as a bioseparation technique is described. A protein's isoelectric point as a driving force for ion exchange chromatography is easily demonstrated by using combinations of proteins with natural color or fluorescence, such as DsRed2, enhanced green fluorescent…

Light from a rough sample surface illuminated with a laser consists of a speckle pattern. If the surface evolves with time, the pattern becomes dynamic, following the activity of the sample. This phenomenon is used both in research and in industry to monitor processes and systems that change with time. The measuring equipment generally includes…

This article examines the use and benefits of communities of practice (CoPs) in academic settings. In the 2010-2011 academic year Teaching Support Services at Wilfrid Laurier University introduced four theme-based CoPs for faculty and academic support staff after a successful pilot initiative. This article explores our motivation for focusing our…

A ten-year tracer study of Radiologic Technology graduates of Lyceum of the Philippines University SY 1997-2007 using a survey-structured questionnaire was conducted to examine retrospective contribution of their education to their current work. The objectives of the study included the determination of graduates' job-placement profile; how…

In an effort to bring more knowledge about "what works" to educational practitioners, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has made significant investments in developing and disseminating focused, rigorous research projects in order to increase the supply of and demand for this research in educational decision making. These efforts…

Attempts to bring authentic science into the K-16 classroom have led to the use of sociocultural theories of learning, particularly apprenticeship, to frame science education research. Science educators have brought apprenticeship to science classrooms and have brought students to research laboratories in order to gauge its benefits. The…