A planetarium is an invaluable tool for teaching introductory astronomy, but one that few astronomy educators have ready access to. Here we describe a do-it-yourself planetarium that can be built with modest funding. There have been other planetarium construction projects described in the literature and online, most of which use cardboard to make…

Fused filament fabrication 3D printing is a process by which three-dimensional objects are created by depositing layers of a material onto a hard, flat surface by a robot. It is often referred to as an "additive manufacturing" technique because material is added in successive layers to create an object. Because many scientific…

Augmented reality (AR) is a means of superimposing artificial 3D objects over the real world via a mobile device. An AR standard file format has been recently implemented on mobile devices that current students commonly own. Here we describe three relatively nontechnical methods to produce 3D AR objects for chemistry courses and demonstrate their…

This curriculum case study describes the design and enactment of the Build a Better Book project with a group of Spanish-English bilingual high school students. Within an enriched literacy project-based learning instructional approach, students collaborated to design and fabricate multimodal 3D printed tactile picture books for children who are…

Today's students are increasingly immersed in a landscape of screens and handheld digital devices through which a good deal of their interactions with the world around them are mediated. Physics educators, meanwhile, continue to rely on traditional human interactions with the physical world, such as sliding down a ramp or throwing a baseball, in…

This paper presents an active learning approach that focuses on practical investigation of the ecosystem of tidal flats using 3D modeling and printing for biology students in order to enhance understanding of natural selection. The learning approach for the study followed a 5-step procedure: i) learning about 3D modeling and printing, ii)…

Digital culture and creativity are often framed as immaterial (Casemajor, 2015), distinct from traditional media, such as paint and clay, and divorced from the immediate, embodied, and political realities of the arts classroom. 3D printing troubles this distinction, providing a concrete way for students' digitally created artifacts to manifest in,…

This article incorporates a multidisciplinary approach by reviewing the use of 3D printing and 3D printing in art. It contains a brief background about the 3D printing process and a description of how 3D printing is being used in schools. Examples of how artists are currently using this new technology are provided to encourage art education…

A Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) tool is proposed in this manuscript; which consists of an interactive, simple and low-cost computer based simulation and game, with the aim of easing the teaching/learning process regarding the physics concept of projectile motion. The novelty of this proposal relies on the use of a…

Assistive technologies are frequently used to help disabled students to access core and expanded core curricula and to improve their functional, communication and literacy skills. Non-optical low vision devices and optical and tactile graphics technologies are some of the assistive technologies used by visually impaired students in today's…

The human capital supply chain is a complex network of systems with inherent challenges to accommodating Total Learning Architecture (TLA) operability. This document covers the objective end-state for Department of Defense (DoD) learning organizations migrating to TLA compliant data and microservices. This document is organized into sections that…

Biology and biochemistry students must learn to visualize and comprehend the complex three-dimensional (3D) structures of macromolecules such as proteins or DNA. However, most tools available for teaching biomolecular structures typically operate in two dimensions. Here, we present protocols and pedagogical approaches for using immersive augmented…

Sets of models of molecules (which are of interest for teaching molecular structure, symmetry, and related topics in many chemical disciplines) were prepared and made available either for self-directed 3D-printing or through the 3D-printing company Shapeways providing 3D-printing as a service. This allows teachers to save time on searching for…

Students with blindness or visual impairment face learning barriers in the typical higher education classroom where a great deal of information is conveyed visually. Instructors can use a variety of strategies to accommodate such students and make visually presented information accessible. One common and inexpensive strategy is the use of tactile…

We demonstrate that the simplicity of preparing functional microfluidic devices using 3D printing is well suited for undergraduate laboratories. Educational experiments utilizing non-paper-based microfluidic devices are often relegated to well-equipped, resource rich universities because traditional fabrication techniques require specialized and…