The purpose of this study was to identify the the factors that influenced pre-service teachers' perceptions of their abilities to solve structured physics problems. 1185 pre-service teachers from different disciplines, enrolled in physics courses in one Turkish University from 2008 to 2017 participated in a descriptive survey. The factors…

Self-efficacy and achievement goals represent two extensively researched motivational factors in education and have been related to numerous academic outcomes. However, little is known about how they relate to different types of problem-solving. Furthermore, while prior work has found these motivational factors are related, less work has examined…

Students enter classrooms equipped with a rich foundation of skills and knowledge from their everyday experiences. High-quality science education builds on students' wealth of experience in making sense of the world. In science classrooms, "sensemaking" is a collaborative practice that includes students sharing initial ideas with peers…

The increasing prevalence of online courses has highlighted the importance of digital literacy for students. This study investigates the relationship between digital literacy and academic achievement among students who participate in an online course on anatomy and physiology. The study also evaluates how different aspects of digital literacy,…

Education for sustainable development is an emerging concept that encompasses a new vision in physics education that empowers the learner to assume responsibility for creating a sustainable future. Physics education is still struggling to adapt to the personalized approach in learning. Personalized learning thrives in this technology-rich…

The unit factor method, a generic strategy for solving any proportion-related problem, is known to be effective at reducing cognitive load through unit-cancellation providing step-by-step guidance. However, concerns have been raised that it can be applied mindlessly. This primarily quantitative prepost study investigates the efficacy of…

Problem Roulette (PR), an online study service at the University of Michigan, offers points-free formative practice to students preparing for examinations in introductory science, technology, engineering, and mathematics courses. Using four years of PR data involving millions of problem attempts by thousands of students, we quantify the benefits…

This study investigated whether clustering can identify different groups of students enrolled in a massive open online course (MOOC). This study applied self-organizing map and hierarchical clustering algorithms to the log files of a physics MOOC capturing how students solved weekly homework and quiz problems to identify clusters of students…

Students with and without learning disabilities in high school chemistry classes, either co-taught or self-contained, received instruction on calculating molar conversions using universal design for learning (UDL) or business-as-usual techniques. For Study 1, posttest scores of students with and without learning disabilities (LD) in co-taught…

One primary goal of many science courses is for students to learn creative problem-solving skills; that is, integrating concepts, explaining concepts in a problem context, and using concepts to solve problems. However, what science instructors see is that many students, even those having excellent SAT/ACT and Advanced Placement scores, struggle in…

A convergent mixed methods research study was used to investigate whether or not undergraduate students who participated in a problem-based learning (PBL) laboratory environment improved their self-efficacy beliefs in chemistry. The Chemistry Attitude and Experience Questionnaire (CAEQ) was used as a pre- and post-test to determine changes in…

The problem-solving strategies of students enrolled in general chemistry courses have been the subject of numerous research investigations. In most cases, the investigators were interested in the specific areas or concepts that posed the greatest difficulty to a student's success in achieving the correct answer. However, the investigation reported…

Reviews studies related to problem solving in science education. Discusses findings in the areas of investigative methods, improvement of problem-solving abilities, task variables (puzzles, problems), and subject variables (cognitive structures, developmental factors, disposition). (ML)

Investigated superiority of instructional strategies (factor-label method, proportionality, use of analogies, use of diagrams) in teaching problem-solving related to mole concept, gas laws, stoichiometry, and molarity. Also investigated effectiveness of strategies for students (N=609) with different verbal-visual preferences, proportional…

Highlights findings from cognitive science which suggest new approaches for science and mathematics instruction, addressing role of naive theories and qualitative understanding of situations in problem-solving. Also considers nature of the learner based on the findings. (JN)