The authors describe an instructional model of interdisciplinarity that aims to simultaneously develop undergraduate students' disciplinary knowledge and foster integrative skills. Two faculty members taught separate undergraduate courses in history and microbiology during which students came together at multiple points throughout the semester.…

Analogies are useful tools for teaching difficult scientific concepts and clearing up learners' misconceptions. However, if not properly used, they can lead to further misconceptions. More importantly, little is known about how science teachers use analogies in Nigerian classrooms. This study assessed science teachers' use of analogies by…

Disasters continue to have adverse effects around the globe leaving many lives susceptible to hazards and fatalities most especially children. The Philippines, known to be one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, experiences earthquakes, typhoons, and flooding yearly. For the reason of the country's vulnerability to disasters, it is…

In this exercise, participants create a fictional business based on a set of randomly generated words. This challenge requires participants to exercise creativity, while reinforcing the business concepts learned in class. The exercise has four steps: (1) generating a prompt of three random words, (2) designing a fictional business based on this…

Despite years of research and practice inspired by chemistry education research, a recent report shows that US secondary instruction is not aligned with current national reform-based efforts. One means to mitigate this discrepancy is focusing on pedagogical conceptual change, its precursors (higher selfefficacy and pedagogical discontentment), and…

The Physiology Core Concept of flow down gradients is a major concept in physiology, as pressure gradients are the key driving force for the bulk flow of fluids in biology. However, students struggle to understand that this principle is foundational to the mechanisms governing bulk flow across diverse physiological systems (e.g., blood flow,…

Visual literacy, which is the ability to effectively identify, interpret, evaluate, use, and create images and visual media, is an important aspect of science literacy. As molecular processes are not directly observable, researchers and educators rely on visual representations (e.g., drawings) to communicate ideas in biology. How learners…

The way in which informal learning in a Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is coordinated is poorly understood. Conversation -- with teachers, friends or family -- contributes to the processes involved in meaningfully negotiating resources. While institution-centric education creates contexts for conversations and codifies educational attainment,…

Drawing, constructing, and explaining a model of a given abstract phenomenon is a challenging task. In this study, students were engaged in the "Project-Based Inquiry Science (PBIS)-Air Quality" learning unit, as part of their chemistry curriculum. The study aim is to determine how well students understand chemistry conceptually after…

Loneliness in childhood and adolescence is currently measured using questionnaires and checklists. The most used questionnaires for youth are psychometrically limited, partly due to the absence of the young person's voice from the measurement development process. Given this gap in the literature, the current study explored primary-school aged…

In this study, we evaluate an innovative method to improve the teaching of linear algebra. The use of peer instruction in conjunction with a seminar strategy and supported by didactic engineering is proposed as a means to facilitate the mastery of abstract concepts, the undertaking of innovative research in problem solving, and the practical…

This lesson focuses specifically on teaching concepts of speed and its impact on energy, as well as providing a basic introduction to potential and kinetic energy to fourth-grade students. "Next Generation Science Standards" ("NGSS") 4-PS3-1 states that students should be able "to use evidence to construct an explanation…

In this study, it is aimed to reveal the images formed in the minds of high school students about the concept of mathematics with the help of their own expressions and drawings. In this qualitative study, the core of 100 high school students' experiences of math was examined with a holistic approach using Online Interpretative Phenomenological…

A well-developed mental model is crucial for effectively studying physiology core concepts. However, mental models can be difficult for students to represent and for instructors to evaluate and correct. Systems modeling as a visualization cognitive tool may facilitate mental model development. On the other hand, evidence of mental model…

This study concerns preservice teachers' knowledge of student thinking at the secondary level. In particular, it examines in what ways a three-week unit integrating content and student thinking was beneficial in developing preservice teachers' knowledge of student thinking associated with big ideas in algebra--such as variation, Cartesian…