Five Canadian high school Chemistry classes in one school, taught by three different teachers, studied the concepts of dynamic chemical equilibria and Le Chatelier's Principle. Some students received traditional teacher-led explanations of the concept first and used an interactive scientific visualisation second, while others worked with the…

The premise underlying this article is that identifying and using the "five practices model" can make discussions of cognitively challenging tasks more manageable for teachers. By giving teachers a roadmap that they can follow before and during whole-class discussions, these practices have the potential for helping teachers more effectively…