This study examined how background knowledge activation impacted reading comprehension. Comparisons were made between discussion-based background knowledge activation, paired informational text background knowledge activation, and a control group. One-way ANOVAs discovered significant differences between the discussion group and the control group…

Cognitive load studies are mostly centered on information on perceived cognitive load. Single-item subjective rating scales are the dominant measurement practice to investigate overall cognitive load. Usually, either invested mental effort or perceived task difficulty is used as an overall cognitive load measure. However, the extent to which the…

Teaching practices used by teachers influence students' achievement of learning outcomes. These practices may be explored from students' perspectives. Because gender may influence students' perceptions of learning environments, this study explored gender differences in students' perceptions of teaching practices employed in their biology…

This study investigates the role of environmental insight--defined as students' prior knowledge--and the use of a virtual reality laboratory in exploring celestial bodies and solar system content integrated with Qur'anic science, with a focus on their effects on students' argumentation abilities. The research employs a quasi-experimental design,…

Especially in higher education -- but true for any setting -- what students do within a learning environment determines their learning outcomes. Given that they regulate their own learning, students do not always act in accordance with the instructions and intentions of the designed learning environment, which in turn has implications for their…

Childhood is a period when memory consolidation and knowledge base undergo rapid changes. The present study examined short-delay (overnight) and long-delay (after a 2-week period) consolidation of new information either congruent or incongruent with prior knowledge in typically developing 6- to 8-year-old children (n = 32), 9- to 11-year-old…

Interleaved practice combined with comparison prompts can better foster students' adaptive use of subtraction strategies compared to blocked practice. It has not been previously investigated whether all students benefit equally from these teaching approaches. While interleaving subtraction tasks prompts students' attention to the different task…

This article reports on an ethnographic case study of the professional identity development of Mark--an English language teacher who identified as cisgender, gay, Catholic, white, and not wealthy. Using the lenses of intersectionality (e.g., Crenshaw, 1989, 1991) and "perezhivanie" (Vygotsky, 1999)--"the emotional and visceral…

This paper explores the different epistemologies that define the Professional Doctorate, paying close attention to how Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs) doing a Professional Doctorate reconcile academic and professional knowledge. Through a narrative exploration of the literature published since the first UK Professional Doctorates were awarded in…

The ubiquity of formal education in modern nations is often accompanied by an assumption that students' motivation for learning is innate and self-sustaining. The latter is true for most children in domains (e.g., language) that are universal and have a deep evolutionary history, but this does not extend to learning in evolutionarily novel domains…

Even with the increase in virtual learning, there remains a stigma that virtual schools are not successfully supporting students based on traditionally lower graduate rates and state assessment data. The problem is statewide educational decision-makers lacked an understanding of the prior academic performance, specifically credit attainment, among…

A common feature of many assessment plans is the use of multiple-choice questions. Although there are criticisms of multiple-choice questions, this assessment format is here to stay--multiple-choice questions are effective means of evaluation in large classes, central to many licensing and entry exams, used in most adaptive learning platforms, and…

The quality of products from the causal mapping process and the effect of factors related to causal map quality are unlikely to be the same for students at different educational levels. However, there is a lack of studies that provide insights into causal maps constructed by primary school students to reveal appropriate strategies. This study…

The need of being able to foster transformative learning (TL) has increased due to the demands for continuous development in today's work life. Previous research has proposed six core elements to foster TL; however, in these a process perspective is missing. By using an adaptive approach and inspired by action research, drawing on teachers'…

This piliot study assessed the experiences of police officers related to persons with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) via a survey assessing prior experience, comfort, knowledge, and ability to identify autistic persons. Fifty-one officers completed the survey: 52.9% reported previous ASD training, 34.8% reported personal experience with ASD, and…