History museum professionals make many assumptions about how visitors learn at their sites but, for various reasons, they rarely do research to test those assumptions. The primary purpose of this study was to explore how adults learn in history museums to fill that gap in understanding. This research utilized a conceptual framework that combined…

There is a significant need for young people to advance their education and prepare for science, engineering, math, and technology careers in agriculture. The Supervised Agriculture Experience (SAE) is a requirement of all high school students enrolled in agriculture education courses in Connecticut. SAE bridges the knowledge and skills developed…

Software Verification and Validation (SV&V) is proven to be an effective approach to ensure software quality. Yet it is not commonly deployed in industry practices. We started a project intent on building a sustainable community skilled in SV&V. The fundamental objective is the transformation of undergraduate education in software…

A central challenge of introductory statistics is the development of curricula that not only serve diverse students, but also leave them wanting more. To evaluate the potential impact of a multidisciplinary, project-based introductory statistics course, students' future course decisions were compared against traditional statistics courses using…

Student-centered teaching practices such as active learning continue to gain momentum in college science education. Many instructors committed to these innovative practices transform their classrooms beyond the standard lecture. Nevertheless, widespread implementation of these practices is limited, because the learning benefits for students are…

A tension in designing classroom learning involves balancing the questions and interests of students with the goals of teachers and standards. One approach to navigating this tension in science classrooms is to simultaneously support and constrain students' questions about an observable natural phenomenon in the classroom and then take up those…

There is growing consensus regarding the effectiveness of active-learning pedagogies in college science courses. Less is known about ways that student-level factors contribute to positive outcomes in these contexts. The present study examines students' (N = 245) trust in the instructor--defined as perceptions of their instructor's understanding,…

The current work seeks to explore University professors' perspectives on teaching and learning in an innovative classroom characterized by flexible design of space, furniture and technology. The study took place during the 2015-2016 academic year at Fairfield University, a Masters comprehensive university in the Northeastern United States.…

The benefits of introducing active learning in college science courses are well established, yet more needs to be understood about student buy-in to active learning and how that process of buy-in might relate to student outcomes. We test the exposure-persuasion-identification-commitment (EPIC) process model of buy-in, here applied to student (n =…

Competency-based pathways (CBP) have the potential to open new opportunities for students to learn and demonstrate their learning in meaningful ways that are grounded in application and relevant to their career goals. This brief argues that states can and should leverage CTE when considering how to move K-12 education toward a system marked by…

This article describes a four-week congressional committee simulation implemented in upper level courses on Congress and the Legislative process at two liberal arts colleges. We find that the students participating in the simulation possessed high levels of political knowledge and confidence in their political skills prior to the simulation. An…

Researchers have found that middle school students undergo developmental changes that require unique educational structures and support. As a result, experts have suggested a number of specific strategies for organizing middle schools in order to best meet students' needs. This Information Capsule summarizes middle school redesign initiatives that…

This action research study was designed to elicit urban, secondary school teachers' understandings of themselves as adult learners and their perceptions of job-embedded professional development in a single, urban school district in Connecticut. The conceptual framework that guided this study was derived from Knowles, Holton, and Swanson's (2011)…

This paper describes a case study of two pure mathematicians who flipped their lecture to teach matrix determinants in two large mathematics service courses (one at Stage I and the other at Stage II). The purpose of the study was to transform the passive lecture into an active learning opportunity and to introduce valuable mathematical skills,…

The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) published a series of case studies from 28 states to showcase examples of how ARRA EETT ("American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Enhancing Education Through Technology") grant funds have impacted teaching and learning. SETDA collected data for the case studies through…