In recent years, short question-and-answer activities known as lecture tutorials that are designed to help students work with and discover concepts for themselves, rather than simply being told about them (lectured to) have become a popular tool for learner-centred teaching of introductory college astronomy. Students on such a course are usually…

We studied student seating habits in both a traditional lecture hall with the instructor in the front and in a SCALE-UP (Student-Centered Activities for Large Enrollment Undergraduate Programs) studio-style classroom with the instructor in the middle. Like several previous authors, we find that students with higher course grades tend to sit in the…

Interactive lecture demonstrations (ILDs) are a powerful tool designed to help instructors bring state-of-the-art teaching pedagogies into the college-level introductory physics classroom. ILDs have been shown to improve students' conceptual understanding, and many examples have been created and published by Sokoloff and Thornton. We have used the…

In this study, we examined 96 undergraduate non-science majors' conceptions of stem cells, stem cell research, and cloning. This study was performed at a large, Midwest, research extensive university. Participants in the study were asked to answer 23 questions relating to stem cells, stem cell research, and cloning in an on-line assessment before…

One critical element of increasing science literacy is student engagement. In this article, I report on the impacts of changing an introductory environmental science class to move away from standard lecture delivery and increase student engagement in science. The class was designed around small-group activities, inquiry labs, and substantial use…

This paper investigates the consequences of L2 use in university lectures. Data in the study stem from parallel lectures held by the same experienced lecturer in Danish (L1) and English (L2). It is found that the lecturer takes 22% longer to present the same content in L2 compared to L1, and that the lecturer speaks 23% more slowly in L2 than in…

In July 2008, a new professional development program called Satellites, Weather and Climate (SWAC) began at the University of Vermont. Its goal was to enhance the competency of in-service K-12 science and mathematics Vermont teachers in the atmospheric, climate, and geospatial sciences. The pilot program ran until 2010, during which time 14…

This study reports the effects of student response systems (clickers) "versus" online homework on students' long-term retention of General Chemistry I course material. Long-term content retention was measured by a comprehensive yearlong American Chemical Society (ACS) GC97 exam administered seven months after students had completed the General…

"Science Learning and Instruction" describes advances in understanding the nature of science learning and their implications for the design of science instruction. The authors show how design patterns, design principles, and professional development opportunities coalesce to create and sustain effective instruction in each primary scientific…

The present research analyzes instructional strategies used to integrate the learning of content and English as a foreign language in a bilingual physics class at a university in Shanghai, China. It examines how the instructor handles meaning and form of new English science vocabulary in concept-focused physics lectures and the strategies he used…

The study examined the effect of concept-mapping and problem-solving teaching strategies on achievement in biology among Nigerian secondary school students. The method used for the study was a quasi-experimental pre-test treatment design. One hundred and thirteen senior secondary three (S.S. 111) students randomly selected from three mixed…

To determine whether teaching an introductory physics course with a traditional lecture style or with Just-in-Time teaching (a student-centered, interactive-engagement style) will help students to better understand Newtonian concepts, such as Newton's Third Law, 222 students in introductory physics courses taught by traditional lecture styles and…

Too often, students enter our classrooms with insufficient knowledge of physical science. As a result, they have a difficult time understanding content in texts, lectures, and laboratory activities. This lack of background knowledge can have an impact on their ability to ask questions and wonder--both key components of inquiry. In this article,…

Students in 4 Canadian high school physics classes completed instructional sequences in two key physics topics related to motion--Straight Line Motion and Newton's First Law. Different sequences of laboratory investigation, teacher explanation (lecture) and the use of computer-based scientific visualizations (animations and simulations) were…

The cAcL[subscript 2] approach (concept Advancement through chemistry Lab-Lecture) incorporates three major educational methodologies into one: a student-centered approach, the full integration of lecture and laboratory formats, and hands-on activity based-instruction. This format has been tested for cognitive and attitudinal gains in students and…