X-rays are such an important and familiar part of the electromagnetic spectrum, but is there a way to safely bring x-rays into your lecture? The demo team at the University of California at Berkeley seems to have managed this. They have an x-ray safe box that they use to produce a live x-ray image on a fluorescent screen. In this article, we…

This paper examines the pedagogical integration of Virtual Microscopes (VMs) in Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), to identify best practice and improve online pedagogy. It has captured the perspectives of 12 Health and Earth Science university teachers, through in-depth interviews, about the current integration of the VM in online teaching,…

Despite tremendous efforts by instructors and textbook authors, students find it difficult to develop useful chemical intuitions about structures and key properties of the important d-block organometallic species that have a d[superscript 6], d[superscript 8], or d[superscript 10] d-electron count. A full molecular orbital analysis is not always…

Science student development of creative thinking ability is not sufficiently promoted and can even be inadvertently discouraged by current methods of instruction. Aimed at addressing this issue, the present study examined an undergraduate biology course in which scientific content instruction and creative drawing were integrated through use of…

This qualitative study examines the semiotic meanings communicated through multiple representations in the teaching of an advanced undergraduate course in biology. Scientific discourse is intrinsically multimodal in nature; in other words, science is discussed and researched using multiple modes that convey meaning (Lemke, 1998). Therefore, to…

Given the importance of phylogenetic trees to understanding common ancestry and evolution, they are a necessary part of the undergraduate biology curriculum. However, a number of common misconceptions, such as reading across branch tips and understanding homoplasy, can pose difficulties in student understanding. Students also may take phylogenetic…

We conducted a study with introductory and upper-division level physics students in a Mexican and a Spanish university to learn how students recognize the main characteristics of the electric field in three of its more widely used representations, namely, algebraic notation, vector field plot, and electric field lines, and how the students do…

This study compared the performance of two audience response systems (ARSs) without students requiring smartphone technology or Internet access during problem-based learning (PBL) activities. Clicker handsets linked to a radio frequency (RF) receiver and paper voting cards, known as Plickers, which display a QR code (two-dimensional barcode) that…

The objective of this work was to evaluate the implementation of a metavisual strategy for students to revise and self-regulate concepts arising in a study of a chemical reaction between ions. For this purpose, two chemistry education undergraduate students at a Brazilian public university carried out an investigative activity, involving…

It is essential that chemists develop strong oral communication skills. At the undergraduate level, this requires students to build confidence in their ability to speak without a script and to utilize graphics effectively. We have developed a short activity that helps address common presentation issues such as overuse of text and reading verbatim…

The mathematical models that describe enzyme kinetics are invaluable predictive tools in numerous scientific fields. However, the daunting mathematical language used to describe kinetic behavior can be confusing for life science students; they often struggle to conceptualize and relate the mathematical representations to the molecular phenomena…

Visual representations of physical and natural phenomena are important components of the teaching and learning of biology. In current undergraduate biology classrooms, visual representations are most often provided to students on PowerPoint slides. This study focuses on the use of, and perceptions about, PowerPoint in undergraduate introductory…

Phylogenetic trees have become increasingly important across the life sciences, and as a result, learning to interpret and reason from these diagrams is now an essential component of biology education. Unfortunately, students often struggle to understand phylogenetic trees. Style (i.e., diagonal or bracket) is one factor that has been observed to…

Teaching Experimental Sciences is a compulsory subject in the Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education (BDPE). It belongs to the discipline of Education and to the field of "Knowledge of the social and natural environment", and consists of a total of 24 ECTS, of which 6 ECTS correspond to "Teaching Natural Sciences" (TNS). This…

Drawing appropriate diagrams is a useful problem solving heuristic that can transform a problem into a representation that is easier to exploit for solving it. One major focus while helping introductory physics students learn effective problem solving is to help them understand that drawing diagrams can facilitate problem solution. We conducted an…