Visual representations of data are widely used for communication and understanding, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). However, despite their importance, many people have difficulty understanding data-based visualizations. This work presents a series of three studies that examine how understanding time-based…

Data and computational literacies empower youth to be active participants and future leaders in our increasingly data-driven society. We conducted a design-based research project in which a small group (n = 5) of high school youth from diverse backgrounds learned how to code and create data visualizations and stories with public data about climate…

Visualizing molecular conformations and complex compound structures and chemical transformations in 3D is one of the most difficult tasks for undergraduate chemistry students. Modern computational technologies have revolutionized every aspect of our lives, including education. As a result, many researchers and educators are working on enhancing…

A study with K-9 Greek students was conducted in order to evaluate how the declarative knowledge acquisition was affected by incorporating Arduino experiments in secondary Chemistry Education. A Digital Application (DA) that blends the use of the Arduino sensors' experiments with digital educational material, including Virtual Labs (VLs), was…

Central to evolution is the concept of a common ancestry from which all life has emerged over immense time scales, but learning and teaching temporal aspects of evolution remain challenging. This study investigated students' interpretation of evolutionary time when engaging with a multi-touch tabletop application called DeepTree, a dynamic…

Synergistic learning combining computational thinking (CT) and STEM has proven to be an effective method for advancing learning and understanding in a number of STEM domains and simultaneously helping students develop important CT concepts and practices. We adopt a design-based approach to develop, evaluate, and refine our Collaborative,…

Science and computational practices such as modeling and abstraction are critical to understanding the complex systems that are integral to climate science. Given the demonstrated affordances of game design in supporting such practices, we implemented a free 4-day intensive workshop for middle school girls that focused on using the visual…

An important feature of inquiry learning is to take part in science practices including exploring variables and testing hypotheses. Computer-based dynamic visualizations have the potential to open up various exploration possibilities depending on the level of learner control. It is assumed that variable control, e.g., by changing parameters of a…

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…

Anatomy is a foundational component of biological sciences and medical education and is important for a variety of clinical tasks. To augment current curriculum and improve students' spatial knowledge of anatomy, many educators, anatomists, and researchers use three-dimensional (3D) visualization technologies. This article reviews 3D display…

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the intellectual structure of the research on educational technology in science education (ETiSE) within the most recent years (2008-2013). Based on the criteria for educational technology research and the citation threshold for educational co-citation analysis, a total of 137 relevant ETiSE papers…

In this study, we investigated how students used a drawing tool to visualize their ideas of chemical reaction processes. We interviewed 30 students using thinking-aloud and retrospective methods and provided them with a drawing tool. We identified four types of connections the students made as they used the tool: drawing on existing knowledge,…

This paper describes the design and impact of an inquiry-oriented online curriculum that takes advantage of dynamic molecular visualizations to improve students' understanding of chemical reactions. The visualization-enhanced unit uses research-based guidelines following the knowledge integration framework to help students develop coherent…

This paper reports the results of a study aimed at exploring the advantages of dynamic visualization for the development of better understanding of molecular processes. We designed a technology-enhanced curriculum module in which high school chemistry students conduct virtual experiments with dynamic molecular visualizations of solid, liquid, and…

Middle school students struggle to explain thermodynamics concepts. In this study, to help students succeed, we use a natural language processing program to analyze their essays explaining the aspects of thermodynamics and provide guidance based on the automated score. The 346 sixth-grade students were assigned to either the critique condition…