The ability to reason with representations is pivotal for successful learning in Organic Chemistry and is closely linked to representational competence. Given the visual nature of this discipline, this comprises competency in extracting and processing relevant visual information. With regard to the resonance concept, proficiency in identifying…

One expected outcome of physics instruction is that students develop quantitative reasoning skills, including strategies for evaluating solutions to problems. Examples of well-known "canonical" evaluation strategies include special case analysis, unit analysis, and checking for reasonable numbers. We report on responses from three tasks…

Recently, our course team transformed a large-enrollment introductory genetics course from being predominantly lecture based to active learning based. During class sessions, students engaged in problem solving, which occurs when a student attempts to solve a problem without knowing the path to complete it. We designed class activities…

Clathrate hydrates are attractive materials for education because they form from water and familiar compounds, such as carbon dioxide, and are relevant to novel technologies. In this study, an attempt to propose a laboratory experiment was summarized, which used carbon dioxide clathrate hydrate as an educational material with carbon capture…

This study investigated the strategies students in general chemistry and analytical chemistry courses used before and after instruction to solve a volumetric analysis problem in which the molar ratio was not 1:1. Questions like this have historically been very challenging for high school and undergraduate students. Student writing on open-response…

Resonance is a crucial concept in Organic Chemistry that enables both deriving chemical properties from molecular structures and predicting reactions by considering electron density distribution. Despite its importance for problem-solving and learning success, learners encounter various difficulties with this concept. Although prior research…

In the context of scholarly and scientific discourse, students often have to deal with graphic-visual modes of communication, which requires their ability to comprehend and utilize inscriptions, that is, scientific visual representations, to convey information effectively--what we call graphical literacy. Despite its pivotal role for training…

The work presented in the following chapters was undertaken with the goal of understanding and improving education in organic chemistry. Initial work, described in Chapters 1 and 2, focuses on students' ability to explain and rationalize the outcomes of organic chemistry reactions. Chapter 1 explores the relationship between assessment emphasis…

This study aimed to analyze second-semester organic chemistry students' problem-solving strategies, specifically focusing on the resources activated while solving problems on E2, E1, and E1cB elimination reactions. Using the theoretical framework by Elby and Hammer, we defined a resource as a unit of information used in the problem-solving…

This study investigates the cognitive processes of novice students in science learning, with a specific focus on how inhibitory control is employed to overcome a common student misconception about the buoyant force in liquid, which leads to the belief that "the greater the depth an object is in a liquid, the greater the buoyant force it…

Existing research has investigated student problem-solving strategies across science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; however, there is limited work in undergraduate biology education on how various aspects that influence learning combine to generate holistic approaches to problem solving. Through the lens of situated cognition, we…

We investigate students' eye movements when they solve sequential and simultaneous synthesis physics problems. In sequential synthesis problems, multiple events occur chronologically, whereas in simultaneous synthesis problems, multiple events take place concurrently. We captured students' eye fixations on each problem diagram and recorded their…

This dissertation investigates the complexities associated with developing expertise in physics problem-solving and the methods for measuring and assessing the skills involved. Problem-solving skills are critical in today's rapidly changing world, and thus, it is important to emphasize them in education. However, lacking precise methods for…

We discuss an investigation of student sensemaking and reasoning in the context of degenerate perturbation theory (DPT) in quantum mechanics. We find that advanced undergraduate and graduate students in quantum physics courses often struggled with expertlike sensemaking and reasoning to solve DPT problems. The sensemaking and reasoning were…

Commonly used methods to simulate the oxidation-reduction (redox) titration curves include the three-step method and the rigorous method. The simple three-step method simulates the redox titration curve with the assumption that the reaction is complete, which is widely used in undergraduate quantitative analysis courses. For the rigorous…