The goal of this paper is to present several methods of visualizing student activity and collaboration in problem-based learning (PBL) in ways that can augment understanding of the complexity within PBL classrooms as well as to provide insights into the use of specific visual representations to address research questions in PBL. Grounded in…

Tentativeness is often framed as a deficit, synonymous with timidity or a lack of confidence. In this article, I situate the notion of tentativeness in an enactivist framework and describe its role as both a strategy and affordance in a spatial visualization exercise. Drawing on insights from mathematics education and ecological psychology, I…

Different molecular representations are usually used to depict the three-dimensional (3D) structure of organic compounds. Mastering the skill of interconverting one form into another is essential for students to ensure success in organic chemistry. The traditional and recently developed methods for completing such interconversions that rely on 3D…

In pursuit of active learning and fostering conceptual understanding, educators and researchers have tirelessly endeavored to reshape the perception of chemistry, transcending its apparent barriers of technical jargon, semantics, and symbolism. One innovative approach that aligns with this mission is the integration of narratives into chemical…

The geosciences consist of multiple disciplines including geology, oceanography, and atmospheric science. Significant work expended to understand spatial thinking skills important to teaching and learning geology has advanced our ability to support students in geology courses and to achieve increased student success, retention, and diversity in…

There is a large body of research that suggests a sound understanding of rational number is vital for success in all areas of mathematics, at school and beyond. In the Australian Curriculum, fractions are formally introduced from Year 1, yet there is evidence to suggest that current approaches are not leading to deep understanding in later years.…

The last 15 years have witnessed a quiet revolution in the understanding of spatial skills, and the authors are finding that these all-important science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) competencies are rooted in spatial knowledge. Spatial skills are the tools use to visualize and navigate the world. Spatial skills allows people to…

In this article, Rebecca Seah and Andrew Beencke explore the importance of developing critical thinking and spatial reasoning skills. They explore a series of activities designed to develop the visualisation and critical thinking skills with Year 4 students.

Spatial visualization is a well-established topic of education research that has allowed improving science and engineering students' skills on spatial relations. Connections have been established between visualization as a comprehension tool and instruction in several scientific fields. Learning about dynamic processes mainly relies upon static…

Admittedly, the study of Complex Analysis (CA) requires of the student considerable mental effort characterized by the mobilization of a related thought to the complex mathematical concepts. Thus, with the aid of the dynamic system Geogebra, we discuss in this paper a particular concept in CA. In fact, the notion of winding number v[f(gamma),P] =…

Decades of research have demonstrated the correlation of spatial abilities to chemistry achievement and career selection. Nonetheless, reviews have highlighted the need and scarcity of explicit spatial instruction to promote spatial skills. Therefore, the goal of this literature review is to summarize what has been done during the past decade in…

Anatomy is a foundational component of biological sciences and medical education and is important for a variety of clinical tasks. To augment current curriculum and improve students' spatial knowledge of anatomy, many educators, anatomists, and researchers use three-dimensional (3D) visualization technologies. This article reviews 3D display…

This literature review explores visualisation within the context of learning in design, engineering and technology education. The investigation first defines visualisation, providing examples of activities that utilise visualisation skills within an applied field. Then exploration of the mental mechanisms of visualisation used to engage with those…

Stereoscopy's potential as a tool for science education has been largely eclipsed by its popularity as an entertainment platform and marketing gimmick. Dozens of empirical papers have been published in the last decade about the impact of stereoscopy on learning. As a result, a corpus of research now points to a coherent message about how, when,…

We extended the classic anorthoscopic viewing procedure to test a model of visualization of 3D structures from 2D cross-sections. Four experiments were conducted to examine key processes described in the model, localizing cross-sections within a common frame of reference and spatiotemporal integration of cross sections into a hierarchical object…