Explanations are typically accompanied by hand gestures. While research has shown that gestures can help learners understand a particular concept, different learning effects in different types of gesture have been less understood. To address the issues above, the current study focused on whether different types of gestures lead to different levels…

According to cognitive load theory (CLT), the limitations of working memory (WM) in the learning of new tasks together with its ability to cooperate with an unlimited long-term memory (LTM) for familiar tasks enable human beings to deal effectively with complex problems and acquire highly complex knowledge and skills. With regard to WM, CLT has…

This article examines second language (L2) learner knowledge of English verb-argument constructions (VACs), for example, the "V 'against' n" construction. It investigates to what extent constructions underpin L2 learners' linguistic competence, how VAC mental representations in native speakers and learners differ, and…

Higher education institutions are developing more and more online courses to supplement and augment the courses they offer in on-campus modes. In fact, some universities now offer the majority of their courses through online contexts. However, for academic staff who design and teach these courses, the transition from teaching on-campus courses to…

The aims of religious education (RE) as a curriculum subject are contested and under constant review. One particular aim widely promoted by policymakers, practitioners and other stakeholders is that RE distinctively among curriculum subjects, prepares future citizens for life in a religiously and culturally diverse society. I support the view that…

This article reviews the terms and concepts that have been used for describing regulation of learning during cooperative and collaborative learning and suggests differentiating them on the basis of which parts of a regulatory feedback loop model are being shared. During cooperative and collaborative learning, not only self-regulation but also the…

The need for renewable and non-fossil fuels is now recognised by nations throughout the world. Consequently, an understanding of alternative energy is needed both in schools and in everyday life-long learning situations. This study developed a two-tier instrument to diagnose students' understanding and alternative conceptions about alternative…

This article seeks to develop the understanding of critical action learning (CAL) and to make a contribution to its theory and practice. The article begins by conceptualising critical action learning and builds on the work of Revans (1982) to stimulate fresh thinking. It provides a different calibration of his coupling of action and learning. An…

There are many continuous quantitative dimensions in the physical world. Philosophical, psychological and neural work has focused mostly on space and number. However, there are other important continuous dimensions (e.g., time, mass). Moreover, space can be broken down into more specific dimensions (e.g., length, area, density) and number can be…

In this essay, Shirin Vossoughi, Paula Hooper, and Meg Escudé advance a critique of branded, culturally normative definitions of making and caution against their uncritical adoption into the educational sphere. The authors argue that the ways making and equity are conceptualized can either restrict or expand the possibility that the growing maker…

The simulation of human mind often helps in the understanding of abstract concept by representing it in a realistic model and simplistic way so that a learner develops an understanding of the key concepts. Bian (1873) and James (1890) in their work suggested that thoughts and body activity result from interactions among neurons within the brain.…

We can now get purposefully directed in the way we assess our learners in light of the emergence of evidence from the field of neuroscience. Why higher-order learning or abstract concepts need to be the focus in assessment is elaborated using the knowledge of semantic and episodic memories. With most of our learning identified to be implicit, why…

This study examines elementary- and middle-grade teachers' understanding of the mathematical learning progression as they participated in a 6-month professional learning project. Teachers participated in a professional development project that consisted of a 1-week summer content-focused institute with school-based follow-up Lesson Study cycles in…

In the past decade, reform efforts in science education have increasingly attended to engaging students in scientific practices such as scientific modeling. Engaging students in scientific modeling can help them develop their epistemologies by allowing them to attend to the roles of mechanism and empirical evidence when constructing and revising…

Background: Density is difficult to learn and teach in middle schools. This study, hypothesizing that the density concept develops as part of a conceptual system, used a conceptual change approach to teaching density. The approach emphasized the use of multiple strategies to teach the density concept and the associated concepts in the conceptual…