When thinking about measurement uncertainty in a laboratory experiment that features quantum mechanical effects, it is important to consider both the physical principles of underlying quantum theory (e.g., the uncertainty due to quantum mechanical superposition states) as well as the limitations of the measurement (e.g., the spread in outcomes due…

Educational tools like EdPuzzle, PlayPosit, and Kaltura have gained recent attention, as they purportedly empower educators to incorporate questions, quizzes, and discussions into instructional videos. However, there is no empirical evidence on how or under what circumstances these platforms may impact students' learning. A quasi-experimental…

Purpose: This study aims to explore children's cognitions about data flows online and their understandings of algorithms, often referred to as algorithmic literacy or algorithmic folk theories, in their everyday uses of social media and YouTube. The authors focused on children ages 8 to 11, as these are the ages when most youth acquire their own…

The idea of "threshold concepts" has been used to identify discipline-based concepts that are critical to that academic area. Threshold concepts are often difficult for students to assimilate in a meaningful way but, once done, can be powerful for the learner. In general, threshold concepts are 1) transformative to learner thinking; 2)…

In recent years, there has been an effort to develop reform-oriented and inquiry-based early science instruction. Preliminary studies suggest that participation in inquiry-based learning activities promotes preschoolers' learning and interest in science. In addition, science education in early childhood is of great importance to many aspects of a…

As part of their general education requirements, many incoming college students are required to enroll in composition courses that explore various college-level writing practices. Some students, including those who are part of Generation Z, struggle because they may be unfamiliar with academically-dense language, lack real-world experience using…

When learning new information, should students focus on studying 1 concept at a time or should they alternate studying between different concepts? Recent research shows that students should mix up or interleave the study of different concepts, particularly when the concepts are related or hard to discriminate (Carvalho & Goldstone, 2015). But…

Educators, researchers, and policy makers recognize that student participation in classroom mathematics conversations, especially explaining one's own thinking and engaging with others' ideas, can promote students' mathematics learning. However, precisely "how" participating in these ways supports learning has not often been examined in…

The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the importance of designing effective methods for remote teaching. At the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of California, Santa Cruz, instructors adapted to the necessity of remote laboratory instruction by creating choose-your-own-adventure-style video-based online experiments introduced…

This design case describes the implementation of the Human-centered Design process, developed by the world leading design firm IDEO and Stanford d. school. The process describes the technology integration onto a teaching credential program course at a university in Central California. It reports the thought process to adopting HCD in the course…

This article describes the educational and public engagement outcomes of an activity called the "ChemClout Challenge" that was implemented in a general chemistry course at UC Riverside. Students worked in groups to make chemistry-themed videos, posted them to social media platforms, then voted on their favorite videos. The majority of…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Curriculum Development: Theory into Design.] A level of curricular design, called "design tactics," is identified to fill a gap in the research literature between the broad principles that guide curriculum development and the detailed writing of specific activities and lessons. The use of…

There is an urgent need for more Latinx students to pursue careers in STEM related fields as this has historically been an unserved population in schools. This mixed methods study examined the impact of a summer STEM pipeline program focused on hands-on chemistry concepts for 28 Latinx students in the 5th grade. Findings include statistically…

A new teaching assistant model was adopted and qualitatively assessed for the general chemistry laboratory, in which both an undergraduate and a graduate teaching assistant provided instruction to students during the lab. Verbal interactions between graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants were recorded, transcribed, and coded using the…

This article details a classroom-based study designed to provide agency and voice to first and second grade emergent bilinguals as they processed the COVID-19 pandemic. Two California teachers created a narrative writing unit not only to teach specific writing skills, but also to challenge pervasive deficit assumptions that young children…