This laboratory class combines molecular visualization and laboratory experimentation to teach the structure of the immunoglobulins (Ig). In the first part of the class, the three-dimensional structures of the human IgG and IgM molecules available through the RCSB PDB database are visualized using freely available software. In the second part, IgG…

Advances in automated scoring technologies have the potential to support student learning during inquiry instruction by providing timely and adaptive guidance on individual students' responses. To identify which forms of automated guidance can be beneficial for inquiry learning, we compared reflective guidance to directive guidance for…

The concept of specificity of enzyme action can potentially be abstract for some students as they fail to appreciate how the three-dimensional configuration of enzymes and the active sites confer perfect fit for specific substrates. In science text books, the specificity of enzyme-substrate binding is typically likened to the action of a lock and…

The purpose of this work was to share our findings in using the Kinect technology to facilitate the understanding of basic kinematics with middle school science classrooms. This study marks the first three iterations of this design-based research that examines the pedagogical potential of using the Kinect technology. To this end, we explored the…

Abstract electronics concepts are difficult to develop because the phenomena of interest cannot be readily observed. Visualisation skills support learning about electronics and can be applied at different levels of representation and understanding (observable, symbolic and abstract). Providing learners with opportunities to make transitions…

We explore the initial characterization of the pedagogical content knowledge of four, in-service, Colombian pre-university secondary education physics teachers on the concept of electric field. Two of them teach the content in English as a second language. The aim of the study was to obtain an image of the participants' teaching of electric field…

Spatial visualization is an essential prerequisite for understanding geological features at all scales, such as the atomic structures of minerals, the geometry of a complex fault system, or the architecture of sedimentary deposits. Undergraduate geoscience majors bring a range of spatial skill levels to upper-level courses. Fortunately, spatial…

Advances in 3D printing technology over the past decade have led to its expansion into all subfields of science, including chemistry. This technology provides useful teaching tools that facilitate communication of difficult chemical concepts to students and researchers. Presented here is the use of 3D printing technology to create tangible models…

Earth and space science deserve the same level of inclusion in early childhood curriculum as the other science disciplines, and research shows that the sooner children are introduced to concepts like those presented in planetarium programs, the stronger their lifelong interest in science will be. Much astronomy visualization outside of…

The ripple tank is one of the physics education devices most appreciated by teachers and students. It allows one to visualize various phenomena related to wave physics in an effective and enthralling way. Usually this apparatus consists of a tank with a transparent bottom that is filled with a thin layer of water. A source of light illuminates the…

Cross-grade studies are valuable for the development of sequential curriculum. However such studies are time and resource intensive and fail to provide a clear representation to integrate different levels of representational complexity. Lin (Lin, 2006; Lin & Chiu, 2006; Lin, Chiu, & Hsu, 2006) proposed a cladistics approach in conceptual…

Atomic orbitals are a theme throughout the undergraduate chemistry curriculum, and visualizing them has been a theme in this journal. Contour plots as isosurfaces or contour lines in a plane are the most familiar representations of the hydrogen wave functions. In these representations, a surface of a fixed value of the wave function ? is plotted…

Because electric fields are both invisible and three dimensional, they can be quite difficult to introduce to students. Simple diagrams are unable to convey the complexity or depth of the field, and computer simulations in isolation do not provide a familiar spatial context for students to understand what they see. Through "immersing"…

Research on learning about science has revealed that students often hold robust misconceptions about a number of scientific ideas. Digital simulation and dynamic visualization tools have helped to ameliorate these learning challenges by providing scaffolding to understand various aspects of the phenomenon. In this study we hypothesize that…

Th?e authors examine the potential impact of play on astronauts adapting to the extreme conditions of space travel. Th?ey cite research showing that well-trained astronauts, though in general physically fi?t and emotionally stable, can suffer from--among other things--boredom and sensory deprivation in the con?fines of the microgravity capsules…