There were several changes in the laboratory teaching program in the Biological Sciences at Florida International University (FIU) between 1993-1994. The underlying goal was the improvement of the amount of material learned and retained by the student, but these changes showed little positive improvement. It was deemed necessary for FIU to…

There is a collective need to increase the use of inquiry-based instruction at the college level. This paper provides of an example of how inquiry was successfully used in the laboratory component of an undergraduate course in microbial ecology. Students were offered a collection of field and laboratory methods to choose from, and they developed a…

In this article, we describe an exploratory study of a small-scale, concept-driven, voluntary laboratory component of Introductory Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. We wished to investigate whether students' attitudes toward biology and their understanding of basic biological principles would improve through concept-based…

Incubation studies are traditionally used in soil microbiology laboratory classes to demonstrate microbial respiration and N mineralization-immobilization processes. Sometimes these exercises are done to calculate a N balance in N fertilizer-amended soils. However, examining microbial responses to environmental perturbations would appeal to soil…

A survey was conducted among second-year students in organic chemistry (OC) lab and first-year students in English composition (EC) to determine whether an interdisciplinary exchange and review of articles would improve students' understanding of the process of scientific research and of writing within the field of chemistry. The primary…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the blended learning preferences under which adult students study mathematics, electronics and industry certificate examinations like project management and e-SAP (systems, applications and products). Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on four case studies in mathematics,…

The purpose of this study is to first develop an 8-week college teaching module based on root competition literature. The split-root technique is adapted for the teaching laboratory, and the Sugar Ann English pea (Pisum sativum var. Sugar Ann English) is selected as the species of interest prior to designing experiments, either original or…

The recent structural reforms in New Zealand education have given schools and teachers unprecedented freedom in curricular design and delivery. Using official educational award statistics for 2004 and data arising from a study of 23 schools' upper secondary science curricula in the same year, this study represents an early monitoring of the impact…

The MicroObservatory network of five online telescopes has been used by middle and high school students, their teachers, and the public in all 50 states to carry out a wide variety of inquiry-driven projects. From an analysis of 475 student projects and other data, we report substantial gains in students' conceptual understanding of what…

This document reports on the evaluation study of the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology (FCCSET) 1993 Summer Institutes that provided opportunities for teachers from around the country to participate in hands-on education programs in areas such as environmental and ecological studies, material science, space…

In order to avoid the projected shortfall of a half a million science and engineering professionals by the year 2010, many believe that we must find ways to increase the number of minorities and women who choose the sciences as a discipline of study. This study, involving 500 high school students, explores the collective relationships among…

An environment appropriate for activity-oriented science is one that contains sufficient work space, equipment, and materials for students to practice and master the essential elements. This publication was developed to aid Texas school administrators, teachers, and architects to upgrade existing science facilities or plan new ones for…

Twelve technicians and research support specialists employed in two laboratories of a university biotechnology center were observed and interviewed for 1 year to compile data on their job duties, knowledge, and status. Although the university differentiated technician and research support specialist positions across nine pay grades that were…

Recently, some researchers are considering the effects of classroom environment on student achievement and attitudes. Due to the concerted effort of a number of educators, remarkable progress has been made over the last quarter of a century in conceptualizing, assessing and researching this area of concern. However, today there is growing concern…