A simple and reliable didactic laboratory has been developed to illustrate fundamental concepts of hydrophilicity, hydrophobicity, wetting, and spreading phenomena for undergraduate students. The described laboratory includes preparation of surfactant solutions at different concentrations and applying droplets of these solutions on a hydrophobic…

Hands-on digital interactivity in science centers provides new communicative opportunities. The "Microcosmos" multi-touch table allows visitors to interact with 64 image "cards" of (sub)microscopic biological structures and processes embedded across seven theme categories. This study presents the integration of biological…

Many teachers are confused about how to implement the phenomena-based teaching recommended by the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013). This article describes one possible approach--purposely repurposing existing activities. This process involves having teachers: (1) Choose a phenomenon that informs the development…

News media reports of scientific discoveries are often oversimplified, lacking nuance and context. As a result, citizens need both science literacy and information literacy skills to both decode the science content in a media report and track down the original scientific literature that prompted the media report. This article evaluates the…

This research reports the assessment of pre-service teachers' reception and attitudes towards virtual laboratory experiments in Life Sciences with the aim of advancing adaptability to digital learning. Using sequential mixed-methods in a quasi-experimental design, 68 pre-service teachers in the 3rd year of a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) program…

This study used qualitative approach which involves interviews that are analyze using Nvivo software. Qualitative approach which uses phenomenological design to reflect on the experience of the former students towards their experience and learning contents of secondary school upper level science core subject which impacted their career aspirations…

Many studies have shown a decrease in scientific interest with an increase in age. Since interest is linked to a high degree of deep-level learning, it is of great relevance to foster interest in science. This study investigates interest in biology from 7th, 9th, and 12th grade students in Germany (N=257). Results show a significantly lower…

This analytic paper explores the challenges that undergraduate students face in understanding introductory physics concepts on circular and rotational motion. Challenges are drawn from researchers' own experiences and from the research literature. An innovative method is proposed that combines practical work, PhET simulations, and a systematic…

In selecting from a repertoire of traditional kinetics experiments, an instructor often has to choose among having students gain experience with the graphical method, the method of initial rates, or a temperature-dependent experiment in which students construct an Arrhenius plot. This paper presents an environmentally friendly bleaching reaction…

Many Marvel superheroes have a strong connection to science and STEM-related fields. As a result, these popular films are a growing resource for increasing student engagement and enhancing science instruction. The nature of science (NOS) is defined as "a way of knowing, or the values and beliefs inherent to the development of scientific…

The main objective of this study is to evaluate students' perceptions regarding different methods of assessment and which teaching/learning methodologies may be the most effective in a Fluid Transport System course. The impact of the changes in the assessment methodology in the final students' grades and attendance at theoretical classes is also…

Although nanotechnology lessons are increasingly integrated into curricula, students still face significant challenges in understanding the characterization techniques used to investigate nanotechnology. Many characterization techniques, such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), are prohibitively expensive for primarily undergraduate…

Classroom talk is frequently limited, often used to check student comprehension rather than develop thinking. In classrooms with higher numbers of students living in poverty, teachers talk more and students talk less (Lingard, Hayes, and Mills 2003), positioning students as passive learners, which is problematic to developing critical thinking.…

To date, few general chemistry laboratory studies have included affective measures despite calls for more research on aspects of this domain. This shortage of studies may be partially due to the scarcity of affective measures that have been designed for, or tested in, the college laboratory setting. To provide measures for use in this environment,…

Systems thinking is highly desirable for re-imagining chemistry education, which will help in the development of an integrated and sustainable approach that takes into account the interdependence of a system under study with other components of the ecosystem rather than practicing a fragmented approach. Thus, to develop a systems' perspective into…