Symmetry and invariance play a fundamental role in modern physics and related disciplines, and students entering a STEM field need practice with symmetry-based arguments as part of the preparation for their future careers. We refer to symmetry based solutions as those that either make use of the existing geometric symmetry in a problem to simplify…

In Mexico there is a complicated situation regarding the subject of mathematics, especially in the high school students who have shown low performance in the results of the tests applied by international and national organizations. Therefore, the aim of the study is focuses on testing whether the variables of the scale proposed by Fennema and…

The Birthday Paradox problem can be investigated either with a carefully constructed spreadsheet (for greatest precision) or a calculator process (for reasonable precision). A number of ways of approaching this problem as a class activity are provided.

The purpose of this study was to examine how learners' problem-solving approaches and success changed from high school to graduate school. This case study included 15 participants who were purposefully selected regarding their grade levels. To examine the development, we asked three algorithmic questions and three problems, which were different…

Current problem-solving research has advanced our understanding of the problem-solving process but has provided little advice on how to teach problem-solving skills. In addition, literature reveals that individual difference is an essential issue in problem-solving skills instruction but has been rarely addressed in current research. Building upon…

Meta-reasoning refers to processes by which people monitor problem-solving activities and regulate effort investment. Solving is hypothesized to begin with an initial Judgment of Solvability (iJOS)--the solver's first impression as to whether the problem is solvable--which guides solving attempts. Meta-reasoning research has largely neglected…

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has been the subject of controversy since it was introduced in 1992. However, it has yet to be critically examined as an alternative paradigm for medical education, which is how it was proposed. This commentary examines EBM on the terms on which it was originally advanced and within the context that gave rise to it,…

When incorporating the environment into mental processing (cf., "cognitive offloading"), one creates novel cognitive strategies that have the potential to improve task performance. Improved performance can, for example, mean faster problem solving, more accurate solutions, or even higher grades at university. Although cognitive…

Visualisation is a necessary ability for students' mathematical education. The appearance of multiple Dynamic Geometry Software (DGS) has a stronger impact each day, and it raises many questions in the minds of researchers. In this paper, we present the findings of our exploratory case study in which a student preferring visual problem solving…

This paper shows how a freely downloadable and powerful software package, "SMath Studio," can be used to model physical systems in physics teaching. The software can form the basis of lecture demonstrations by teachers or can be used individually by students working in an educational environment or on their own home computers.

Storytelling has proved to be an effective way of passing on information from one generation to the next. Whether the information relates to history, culture, health, or morality, the story provides a framework so that complex ideas can be better understood and retained. In this article, we consider the role of narrative in the design and…

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the hidden presence of improvisation in organizations. The authors explore this presence through George Perec's notion of the infra-ordinary applied to the study of the learning organization and its paradoxes. Design/methodology/approach: Most studies of paradox and improvisation are qualitative and inductive.…

This article presents a qualitative descriptive-interpretive study about the abilities of pre-service primary science teachers (PPTs) to solve a measurement problem put to them as an activity of scientific inquiry. The participants in the study were 23 PPTs receiving training in science teaching, organized into small groups to solve the proposed…

Problem-solving is a significant skill in facing the 21st century. Students have different levels of problem-solving. The levels that explain individual abilities in solving mathematics problems are called as cognitive level. It consists of three levels; cognition, metacognition, and epistemic cognition. The cognitive level influences the…

Students today routinely conduct research in the digital world to solve problems in daily life and in learning tasks. Although research to date has proposed different models to describe the processes of information problem solving (IPS), little is known about the cognitive patterns demonstrated in the processes, particularly the iterative nature…