We have developed a learning unit based on the Standard Model of particle physics, featuring novel typographic illustrations of elementary particles and particle systems. Since the unit includes antiparticles and systems of antiparticles, a visualization of anticolor charge was required. We propose an alternative to the commonly used…

A driving factor in designing interactive museum exhibits to support simultaneous users is that visitors learn from one another via observation and conversation. Researchers typically analyze such collaborative interactions among museumgoers through manual coding of live- or video-recorded exhibit use. We sought to determine how log data from an…

This phenomenological study investigates mining engineering students' game playing experiences for educational purposes and seeks to understand the essence of their experiences. In this study, three non-gamer and three-gamer mining engineering students were selected through a criterion sampling method, and then data were collected through in-depth…

Cognitive Processing weakness (CPW) is a psychological problem that impedes students' ability to learn effectively in a normal school setting. Such weakness may include; auditory, visual, conceptual, sequential, speed and attention processing. This paper therefore examines the basic assessment or diagnostic approaches such as Diagnosis by…

In this paper, we describe three practical exercises relating to algorithm education. The exercises are based on a learning support system that offers visualization of program behavior. Systems with the ability to visualize program behavior are effective to promote the understanding of algorithm behavior. The introduction of these systems into an…

We examine teachers' use of resources as they prepare to teach the topic of numerical series of real numbers, in order to identify how their "personal relationship" with mathematical content--and its teaching--interacts with their use of a commonly used textbook. We describe this interplay between textbook and personal relationship, a…

Gross anatomy is located in a three-dimensional space. Visualizing aspects of structures in gross anatomy education should aim to provide information that best resembles their original spatial proportions. Stereoscopic three-dimensional imagery might offer possibilities to implement this aim, though some research has revealed potential impairments…

Empirical evidence indicates that students are not learning geometry with relational understanding of the concepts. Studies have shown that digital technologies can support students in mathematics. The purpose of this study was to find which technologies and technological affordances are specific to learners of geometry. This paper presents the…

This paper reports on an interview study of 18 Grade 10-12 students' model-based reasoning of a chemical reaction: the reaction of magnesium and oxygen at the submicro level. It has been proposed that chemical reactions can be conceptualised using two models: (i) the "particle model," in which a reaction is regarded as the simple…

The "Yet Another extended Hu¨ckel Molecular Orbital Package" (YAeHMOP) has been merged with the Avogadro open-source molecular editor and visualizer. It is now possible to perform YAeHMOP calculations directly from the Avogadro graphical user interface for materials that are periodic in one, two, or three dimensions, and to visualize…

This paper is intended to investigate the merits of adding manipulative devices and solid model simulations to accompany traditional lecture and demonstration materials to a Dynamics course. Based on the successes of Graphics courses using manipulative devices and simulation software to enhance spatial visualization skills in engineering students,…

Design thinking is a creative practice that sparks managers' thinking and acting in response to the challenges of shifting consumer preferences, emerging new technological possibilities, and changing business models. The issues for management education, that is, preparing students for future management roles, is how one can teach design thinking…

According to variation theory, it is essential to enable students to focus on the object of learning and discern its critical features, but the features that "it is possible" to discern often depend on the equipment used. Thus, in labs, the experimental technologies used may shape students' experience of focal phenomena, in a…

Spatial ability predicts success in STEM (Science, Technology, Education, and Mathematics) fields, particularly chemistry. This paper reports two studies investigating the unique contribution of mental rotation ability to spatial thinking in a STEM discipline. Using authentic disciplinary tasks from chemistry, we show that the difficulty of a…

Introductory chemistry students encounter the concept of hybrid orbitals as a transition from atomic orbitals to molecular bonding. The principal purpose of learning hybridization in the undergraduate curriculum is to impart an understanding of the origins of molecular bonding and geometry. Physical models of both individual hybrid orbitals and…