There is a plethora of research showing the effectiveness of active learning in a variety of academic disciplines; however, very few higher education faculty implement these techniques effectively into their classrooms. Departmental teaching culture influences the use of active learning as faculty's teaching behaviors often reflect the shared…

In 2016, the CCC Maker initiative provided the California Community Colleges with an influx of resources and energy designed to foster maker-centered learning (MCL). These hands-on practices have the potential to support the broader CCC mission by providing opportunities for engaged, empowering, and collaborative learning for the system's diverse…

Biomedical engineering (BME) undergraduate students take courses that allow them to develop skills in multiple disciplinary areas (e.g., biology, medicine, chemical, mechanical, electrical engineering) and as such, have a wide array of career opportunities available to them upon graduation. While their broad curricular exposure lends itself to…

In spring 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced educational systems to transition into an emergency remote learning modality. This quantitative study compared retention and productive grade rates of two 16-week academic semesters and compared face-to-face (fall 2019) and remote (fall 2020) emergency remote instruction. The study sample was drawn from…

The increasing number of students who struggle to read has become a significant challenge for the nation's public schools. This study aimed to investigate the use of an online instructional reading program on the academic achievement of students with disabilities compared to race, gender, socioeconomic status, and family structure. The i-Ready…

Social-emotional learning (SEL) has become a staple in the education system. The need for programs that support the overall well-being of students has become increasingly prevalent in today's society. There is an increase in the number of students experiencing anxiety and symptoms of depression as a result of the pandemic. Students in rural school…

Universities across the world have faced enormous disruption as a result of the pandemic, with those that can, forced to move their activities online. This rapid shift has particular significance in a Commonwealth context, where stark disparities in internet connectivity and infrastructure persist -- and for Association of Commonwealth…

The current study tests the hypothesis that language comprehension is, in part, influenced by language exposure, and the biases that people develop are related to the frequency of exposure to different linguistic input, like, for instance, pronoun coreference. As comprehenders filter the linguistic input they encounter, we ask, what is the impact…

My dissertation seeks to explore opportunities for disruptions--moments of learning in (digitally) networked spaces that seek to challenge, subvert, and reimagine our worlds. Drawing primarily on sociocultural theories of literacy and learning, I explore the ways that learning, mediated by digital technologies, takes place in formal and informal…

This study explores student agency in the context of a culturally authentic computer science (CS) curriculum implemented in an introductory CS course in two high schools. Drawing on focus group and interview data, the study utilizes qualitative research methods to examine how students exercise critical agency as they engage in the course and how…

Students often enter chemistry laboratory courses with a well-documented disconnect between their experiences outside the classroom and the procedures, concepts, and techniques that occur in our courses. Strong base, weak acid titration experiments are present in general chemistry laboratories but also relate to foods our students are familiar…

After spreading quickly around the world and causing the declaration of a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020, COVID-19 has also forced educational institutions into lockdown around the world. They had to continue their activities through distance learning and online courses to cope with this pandemic outbreak. One of the…

This article discusses a method of grammar feedback in Basic Writing that asks students to determine the extent of grammar feedback the instructor provides on their writing. Student-directed grammar feedback acknowledges students' agency and ownership of their own languaging and aligns with translingual writing pedagogy. Drawing on students'…

Effective science instruction involves opportunities for all students to do science, including engaging in the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices through inquiry-based learning. Many students with learning disabilities have the accommodation of shortened or reduced assignments in their Individualized Educational Programs to allow them equal…

The process of method development is at the heart of analytical chemistry, yet direct experimental experience with the process is rarely taught in the undergraduate laboratory. We report here an experiment that uses rapid, safe, and inexpensive paper-based microfluidics with cell phone detection in order to facilitate the development of a…