Instruction in most STEM domains uses visuals to illustrate complex problems. During problem solving, students often manipulate and construct visuals. Traditionally, students draw visuals on paper and receive delayed feedback from an instructor. Educational technologies have the advantage that they can provide immediate feedback on students'…

Educating new generations of physicists is often seen as a matter of attracting good students, teaching them physics and making sure that they stay at the university. Sometimes, questions are also raised about what could be done to increase diversity in recruitment. Using a discursive perspective, in this study of three introductory quantum…

The development of curricular problems based on the practice of synthetic organic chemistry has not been explored in the literature. Such problems have broadly been hypothesized to promote student persistence and interest in STEM fields. This study reports seven ideas about how practice-based problems can be developed for sophomore-level organic…

Demonstrates what theoretical physicists make a rule using juggling. Provides the thinking process and calculating procedure. (YP)

Compares experts', advanced students', and novice students' use of genetics knowledge to generate and test hypotheses while solving genetic pedigree problems. Reports that experts identified more critical cues, tested more hypotheses, were more rigorous in the falsification of alternative hypotheses, and were more flexible to their solving…

Relates the historical and contemporary perspectives of science and objective thinking. Cites investigations which indicate a need to reflect on past aspects of science in order to become aware of how early scientists searched for truth. (RT)

Suggests taking a relatively unsophisticated scientific theory and finding criticisms which could be leveled against it. Illustrates this instructional strategy by presenting a detailed criticism of the projectile theory of light. (SK)

Suggests that the overall educational experience of science aspirants has an indirect and latent role in preparing future types of researchers. Discusses arguments concerning the relationship between cognitive inclinations and educational experience, and how problem-solver and problem-identifier type students respond to educational dilemmas. (YP)

Descriptions of the problem-solving strategies of experts solving realistic, computer-generated transmission genetics problems are presented in this paper and implications for instruction are discussed. Seven experts were involved in the study. All of the experts had a doctoral degree and experience in both teaching and doing research in genetics.…