Search

The objectives of the present study are to investigate both the history of the collection of scientific instruments from the Maraslean Teaching Center (MTC) and the potential for the collection's use in STEM education programs. Although MTC went by a number of different names during its long history, its institutional goal remained the same: training the Greek state's primary school teachers-to-be. To so do, it was necessary to assemble a collection of scientific instruments. The first objective of the paper is to present in detail the gradual enlargement of the collection from the last quarter of the 19th century through to the 1930s, along with the way the instruments were used in science lessons and the central role MTC played in relation to other regional teaching schools in Greece in terms of the distribution, administration, repair and maintenance of the equipment. The second objective is to investigate the role the historical scientific instruments can play not only in the history of science, but also in contemporary science teaching. The findings reveal that the history of laboratory physics education in MTC along with the corresponding collection of the historical scientific instruments can be a fertile ground for implementing STEM education programs. Finally, the findings imply the broader integration of STEM education and history of science in order to promote cultural and procedural aspects of science in student teachers and beyond. Such integration gives rise to broader research on introducing STEM education to cultural embedded environments, such as museums and historically important schools and laboratories, such as MTC.

It is difficult for students to learn the concepts of chemical laboratory safety education from actual experiences because the traditional teaching model prohibits students from performing dangerous operations. Therefore, this study develops a novel mixed reality-based chemistry experiment learning system (MRCELS) to allow learners to conduct inquiry-based experimental operations in an environment integrating virtual and physical space by using a free and safe way so that chemical laboratory safety problems that usually occur in actual chemical laboratories that may hurt learners can be avoided. A total of 36 Grade 11 students from a girl's high school in Taipei City, Taiwan, were recruited to participate in the experiment. A total of 17 students were randomly assigned to the experimental group using the MRCELS to conduct chemical laboratory safety education, while the remaining 19 students were randomly assigned to the control group taught by a teacher in a physical-chemical laboratory. The research results show that the learning effectiveness of experimental group learners in chemical laboratory safety education is significantly superior to that of the control group. Besides, experimental and control groups significantly improved their attitudes toward laboratory safety after the instruction experiment, but no significant differences existed between them. Both groups of learners showed high satisfaction with the learning model they used, but no significant differences existed between them. Encouragingly, according to the interview results, learners preferred to adopt the MRCELS to support learning. They stated that the immersion experience in operating the chemical experiments through the MRCELS could enhance their awareness of hazardous operations and the development of laboratory safety concepts. The developed MRCELS contributes an effective and innovative learning model to chemical laboratory safety education.

Encouraging student engagement is a key aim in any educational setting, and allowing students the freedom to pursue their own methods of solving problems through independent experimentation has been shown to markedly improve this. In many contexts, however, allowing students this flexibility in their learning is hampered by constraints of the material itself, such as in the electronics laboratory, where expensive and bulky equipment confines the learning environment to the laboratory room. Finding ourselves in the position of teaching one such laboratory course at the undergraduate level, we sought to encourage students to learn through independent investigation and the pursuit of personal projects, by providing a more flexible and inquiry-based learning environment and allowing them to take their measurement equipment--and their learning--beyond the laboratory itself. We present this project as a case of design both for and by students, with the lead designer undertaking the project after attending the course in question, and pursuing its development as a foundational step in their graduate career. We discuss the challenges and opportunities we encountered over the course of the design and development process, and the eventual key output of the project: a portable, low-cost, integrated electronics experimentation platform called the WinterLab board.

Virtual microscopes are computer or web-based programs that enable users to visualize digital slides and mimic the experience of using a real light microscope. Traditional light microscopes have always been an essential teaching tool in health science education to observe and learn cell and tissue structures. However, studies comparing virtual and real light microscopes in education reported learners' satisfaction with virtual microscopes regarding their usability, image quality, efficiency, and availability. Although the use of virtual or web-based microscopy is increasing, there is no equivalent decrease in the number of schools utilizing traditional microscopes. We conducted a scoping review to investigate the comparative impact of conventional and virtual microscopes on different aspects of learning. We report a relative effect of virtual and light microscopy on student performance, long-term knowledge retention, and satisfaction. Our results show that virtual microscopy is superior to traditional microscopes as a teaching tool in health science education. Further studies are needed on different learning components to guide the best use of virtual microscopy as a sole teaching tool for health care education.

This article explores the possibilities of a cheap one-dollar microscope, the Foldscope, for enhancing out-of-school science education. Developed by Manu Prakash and Jim Cybulski from Stanford University, these origami-type paper microscopes make it possible to provide all students with their own microscopes, due to the low cost. This provides students the opportunity to engage in science outside of the classroom, as amateur sleuths engaged in environmental inquiries, e.g., determining the levels of pollution of local water resources. In this article the authors share two sets of research data: an activity where school students engaged in authentic problem-based learning using the Foldscopes, as well as student teachers' experiences of engaging with Foldscope microscopes. The outcomes of the first research project indicate that affective outcomes and cognitive gains were achieved. Responses in the second research project included five categories: preparation and presentation; potential of the Foldscope; use of slideshow; energy/complements; and limitations. The conclusion reached was that Foldscopes hold possibilities for enhancing STS (science-technology-society) approaches inside and outside the classroom. One recommendation is that such frugal-science approaches are emphasized more in both pre-and in-service teacher education.

Background: Integrated STEM approaches are acknowledged as important for making school subjects relevant and engaging for students and are reinforced with the current emphasis on computational thinking. Still, such approaches are rarely realized in schools. This study investigates how the traditional 'grammar of schooling' may prevent realization of more holistic teaching in line with ideas from integrated STEM. Purpose: A concrete teaching project where students design, program and build their own weather station is presented, and we investigate the values and challenges teachers see in the project and the obstacles that may prevent them from running it in class. This way it throws light on why STEM approaches may be difficult to realize in schools. Sample: The sample consists of teachers involved in a collaborative project in which Project Weather Station was developed, including the teacher who was undertaking the project in his grade 9 class. Design and methods: The study follows a case study design, with group interviews with teachers. Observation in class, video recording and interviews with students form a backdrop of the main interview data. Results: Results show that teachers see value in the weather station project in line with the overarching aims of the curriculum and consistent with STEM ideas. Challenges they see are related to own competence, time use, risk of failure and logistics across subjects. Conclusion: It is concluded that teachers' challenges reflect a tension between overarching aims in education and the more specific competence aims in the curriculum. On a systemic level there is therefore a need for an acceptance for the value of teaching that targets overarching aims of education. It is important to acknowledge teachers' challenges and fulfil their needs for support when undertaking extensive projects that have potential for realising the more holistic aims of education typical for STEM projects.

We redesigned our undergraduate laboratories to create a structured sequence that continuously improves the learning experience of students. We utilized a PBL and PjBL approach in which students are progressively introduced to ill-structured open-ended problems, the development of projects, and the creation of research products. We dynamically evaluate course content using a continuous improvement framework to ensure the laboratories promote the development of skills required by the work environment and effectively serve all program stakeholders.

This case study examines how material resistance (limitations posed by the physical world) and graph interpretation intersected during a high school biology investigation using digital sensors. We use an extended episode from a small group to illustrate how, in an inquiry-based unit, measuring near the resolution limit of a sensor caused scaling issues in graphs. Qualitative videotape analysis focuses on both the students' attempts to make sense of a perceived lack of variation in the collected data and the teacher's and classroom researchers' misinterpretation of the students' difficulties with graph interpretation. We suggest that these educators, though experienced, could have benefited from additional strategies to help them recognise and respond to graph interpretation issues introduced by digital representations of real-world data, and that the students could have benefited from explicit prompts to discuss the limitations of their equipment. We describe several implications for researchers, teachers, and curriculum developers interested in implementing inquiry-based biology investigations using sensor data. We argue that students should be supported to recognise that encountering unexpected results from their investigations and working to understand what these results have to say about the real world is an important and valid part of the practice of real science.

All anatomical educators hope that students apply past training to both similar and new tasks. This two-group longitudinal study investigated the development of such transfer of learning in a histology course. After 0, 10, and 20 sessions of the 10-week-long course, medical students completed theoretical tasks, examined histological slides trained in the course (retention task), and unfamiliar histological slides (transfer task). The results showed that students in the histology group gradually outperformed the control group in all tasks, especially in the second half of the course, [eta-squared] = 0.268 (p < 0.001). The best predictor of final transfer performance was students' retention performance after 10 sessions, [beta] = 0.32 (p = 0.028), and theoretical knowledge after 20 sessions, [beta] = 0.46 (p = 0.003). Results of eye tracking methodology further revealed that the histology group engaged in greater "visual activity" when solving transfer tasks, as indicated by an increase in the total fixation count, [eta-squared] = 0.103 (p = 0.014). This longitudinal study provides evidence that medical students can use what they learn in histology courses to solve unfamiliar problems but cautions that positive transfer effects develop relatively late in the course. Thus, course time and the complex relationship between theory, retention, and transfer holds critical implications for anatomical curricula seeking to foster the transfer of learning.

University laboratories deliver unique hands-on experimentation opportunities for STEM students, but often lack state-of-the-art equipment and provide limited access to their equipment. The University of Texas Cloud Laboratory (CLAB) provides remote access to cutting-edge series elastic actuators for student experimentation regarding human-centered robotics, dynamical systems, and controls. Through a browser-based interface, students are provided with learning materials using a remote hardware-in-the-loop system for effective, experiment-based education. This article discusses the methods used to connect remote hardware to mobile and desktop browsers, the adaptation of textbook materials to one degree of freedom arm experiment, data processing, generation of clean and useful results for student interpretation, initial usage of the end-to-end system for individual and group learning, and the acrlong BKT models to evaluate individual and group learning level. The evaluation result shows that the CLAB system successfully increases the knowledge learning of students, and assists students to perform better in the tests.

Augmented reality (AR) stands as a widely embraced technology that significantly enhances learning experiences for students. AR offers an instructional approach supported by technological design, thereby fostering enriched learning interactions. This research proposes an interactive AR framework, intended to create an augmented reality learning environment (ARLE) for the specific needs of electronics engineering laboratory hardware operations. The ARLE functions as an active learning system designed using a user-centered methodology. It offers interactive 3D models of laboratory equipment, providing learners with preliminary training in equipment operation. The real-time connection between the laboratory apparatus and the AR environment is established using the Arduino board. This interface empowers users to control the AR simulation through the laboratory equipment seamlessly. An experimental study involving 80 engineering students was conducted to evaluate the impact of AR intervention on user experience, usability, and operational skills. The participants were divided into two groups: the experimental group (N = 40) and the control group (N = 40). The experimental group underwent electronics equipment training using ARLE, while the control group followed instructions from a standard instrument handbook. To assess the usability and user experience of ARLE, the system usability scale (SUS) and the user experience questionnaire (UEQ) were employed (N = 40). The findings revealed an SUS score of 80.9 for ARLE, categorizing it as "good" according to SUS ratings. Additionally, the UEQ results demonstrated significantly favorable scores across the six scales when compared to the benchmark dataset. The study's outcomes demonstrate that AR intervention offers learners significant pedagogical value, resulting in a substantial positive impact on operational skills in electronics laboratories.

As part of its STEM programming initiatives, Community Boating, Inc., the nation's oldest public sailing organization introduced an "Introduction to Microscopy" course merging principles of scientific investigation with analytical techniques using compound light microscopes. Boston's Charles River provided the environmental setting for five two-day sessions. In all, 49 students between the ages of 10 and 15 took part. Students developed an ability to analyze river water samples they had collected during field expeditions in kayaks. Once in the laboratory, following instruction in the use of the microscope, wet mount slides were prepared for microscopic investigation for cyanobacteria and photosynthetic phytoplankton, diatoms, and dinoflagellates crucial for a healthy aquatic ecosystem. With these new skills students were able to better appreciate the biodiversity of the microbial life within the river, and better understand the importance of environmental stewardship in a world threatened by global climate change and the effects of urban pollution. This program demonstrated the feasibility of developing sophisticated STEM programming founded upon principles of the scientific method for important environmental initiatives in the unique setting of a community sailing program.

Providing hands-on practical education without access to laboratories during the COVID-19 pandemic has required creativity and innovation. In this paper, co-authored by academic staff and students, we describe an at-home mobile phone-based 'spectrophotometer' experiment used in an introductory undergraduate biology course. Using colour picker apps, a smartphone can be used to quantify concentration, which was used to compare the strengths of different brands of tea. The protocol is designed to be low-cost and safe to perform outside of a laboratory. Students used the methods to learn important biochemical methods such as preparing dilutions, constructing calibration curves, normalising data and testing a hypothesis. We reflect on the experience of developing and using the protocol from a staff and student perspective, which highlights the advantages of this approach in terms of student independence and inclusivity. We also suggest alternative experiments that could be performed using the protocol. We encourage biology educators to think creatively about the possibilities for using mobile phones or at-home experiments in their teaching. Our experience suggests that at-home experiments like this protocol will have value even after the pandemic is over, particularly in terms of inclusivity.

In virtual laboratories, various cognitive aids are used to improve students' performance and assist them while completing experimental tasks. However, excessive use of cognitive aids in virtual laboratories can lead to a cognitive load on students which affects their performance. In this paper, we proposed the concept of adaptive aids virtual reality chemistry laboratory. User expertise, quantitatively measured in terms of errors and time spent, is used as an adaptation criterion to dynamically update adaptive aids (arrows, text or animations). The system modifies the contents of such aids for good, average, and weak students to give them the opportunity to improve their performance. In this manner, adaptive aids assist the users to perform an experiment in the proposed system correctly according to the correct procedure with high performance. For evaluation, we conducted a comprehensive user study with 59 participants from various institutions. These students were selected randomly by their teachers and contained different levels of students (i.e., weak, average, and good students). We also conducted a written quiz and based on their scores we divided them into three groups (i.e., good, average, and weak). The participants (students) were classified into three groups G1, G2, and G3 based on their expertise levels (i.e., good, average and low). Then each group conducted an experiment four times. Evaluations revealed that the proposed system consistently improved students' performance in four trials. In particular, weak students' performance greatly improved as compared to that of good and average students in terms of a variety of factors, including time and errors during the performance of experiments.

During COVID-19 remote instruction, instructors were tasked with providing students with authentic laboratory experiences in an out-of-classroom environment. One solution developed for our introductory general chemistry laboratory involved students critiquing readily available technique videos to distinguish between correct and incorrect laboratory technique. After returning to in-person labs in Fall 2021, we incorporated this assessment into the pre-lab assignments in an effort to reduce the cognitive load of learning a new technique. Here we explore whether this critical-review exercise translates into improved technique as measured by precision and accuracy when using a 10 mL volumetric pipet. Additionally, we consider the impact of the pre-lab assignment given the involvement level of the TA, as some TAs are more willing to provide feedback on student technique during the lab period. We found that while students self-report the exercise as useful towards their learning, there are no significant changes in performance for most students. We did, however, find a reduction in the overall outliers and saw improvements when additional feedback (through a TA) was provided as well. These findings indicate that the exercise may be most useful for students who make large errors and who receive little individualized feedback.

Arduino is easy to use because it is a simple system. In addition, since Arduino has an open source code system, it is a system that is open to everyone's use, can be developed and can be easily implemented. Anyone who wants to use Arduino can buy and use the necessary parts for their application. It is a platform that can be very useful in the physics lab due to its low price and wide availability of sensors and transducers. In this article, the Arduino platform is briefly introduced, and by installing an RC circuit, the charge-discharge curve of the capacitor has been drawn on the serial plotter. In addition, distance measurement was calculated by using an ultrasonic distance sensor and time measurement between two sensor events was calculated with two infrared obstacle sensors. The measurement results are given in the serial monitor. As a result, several examples of what can be done in laboratories in physics experiments using Arduino and some sensors have been shown.

The study reported on here was undertaken to understand the impact of mentoring novice science teachers. The study was conducted within the Gauteng province, because there have been many debates and concerns on the necessity to devise ways of improving the understanding of science in schools in the province. The purpose of this study was to understand the effects and impact of mentoring novice natural science teachers within the Gauteng province. We used the qualitative research approach and this was motivated by the need to understand the perceptions and experiences of the research participants. Purposive sampling was used as sampling method to select novice science teachers and relevant teachers to be part of the sample. Through the use of semi-structured interviews as data collection method, it was discovered that mentoring of novice teachers refers to the method of empowering new teachers to be effective in their work-related tasks to become true professionals in the academic profession. We concluded that several mentoring initiatives and mechanisms were used to assist novice teachers. Among these programmes, training, skills development and technical support to enhance communication skills and manage the curriculum were underscored. We concluded that the mentoring of novice teachers was important within Gauteng, as it raised awareness and lead to expert science teachers being equipped with a wide range of skills to achieve the best results in the classroom. Mentoring also capacitates novice teachers on how to handle laboratory equipment and chemicals to benefit learners. We also gathered that mentoring had a direct impact on novice science teachers. It lead to the creation of an effective and excellent teaching environment, resulted in higher levels of teacher retention and improved teachers' service delivery. It also strengthened the emotional and psychological well-being of teachers. We thus recommend training, development, and the allocation of finances towards enhancing the mentoring of novice science teachers.

This study aimed to determine the cognitive structures of preservice primary school teachers for basic biology concepts using Word Association Test (WAT). The study group consists of 50 preservice teachers studying in a university in Western Black Sea Region in Turkey. Four separate cut-off points were determined and analysed. Organ, living things, microscope were the most common response words. The conceptual network was structured as three different islets that were disconnected from each other at the third cut-off point. The desired conceptual network was formed only when cut-off point was taken further than the last cut-off point, and that these desired interconnections, network structure were formed in some students. It is suggested that this situation should be taken into consideration while determining cognitive structures using WAT and that lecturing should be performed according to the structure of the conceptual network that is desired to be shaped in the students' memory.

During the SARS-2-COVID pandemic our institution sought to continue the teaching and learning of experimental laboratories by designing, assembling, and delivering a microscale chemistry kit to the students' homes. Thanks to this approach students were able to perform [approximately]25 experiments during each one of the Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 semesters in an elective Electrochemistry and Corrosion course offered to Chemical Engineering undergraduates. In addition to performing traditional experiments, students were encouraged to design some of their own and have the entire group reproduce them. One of such student-designed experiments involved the capture of CO[subscript 2] and its reduction with a readily available active metal (i.e., Al foil) in aqueous media to generate potentially useful products. The highly negative standard potential of Al is exploited for the reduction of lab-generated CO[subscript 2], and the products are chemically tested. Al as a foil has been reported to be electrochemically inactive for carbon dioxide reduction. However, encouraged by an earlier report of the reduction of CO[subscript 2] to CO, the Al surface is activated in the present experiment by removal of its natural oxide layer with a solution of CuCl[subscript 2] produced in an electrochemical cell. This procedure enables Al to react with CO[subscript 2] and yield useful chemistry. This experiment turned to be a discovery trip. The detailed procedure is discussed here, as well as the teaching methodology, grading scheme, and student outcomes.

The nowadays European educational framework boosts applying the learned theoretical concepts to real situations. Hence, practice sessions are key resources to present students direct applications of the theoretical concepts shown in class. Thus, developing new educational equipment and practice sessions oriented to bringing theoretical knowledge closer to practice should be one of the objectives of teachers. The present work describes a solution proposed by lectures of two Spanish universities looking to increase the knowledge of their engineering students. Along the years, these docents have noticed the lack of connection between the theoretical and practical knowledge among their students, drastically harming their learning procedure. Thus, in order to deepen into practical learning, a teaching methodology involving low-cost prototypes of vapor compression systems and a gamification method to help the students understand the concepts is proposed. The proposed methodology is expected to make a big positive impact on the results obtained by the students, taking into account the preliminary results reached.

Development of key practical skills is fundamental to bioscience courses in higher education. With limitations on access to laboratory time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a "Bioskills at home" kit was developed to create opportunities for first year undergraduate students to develop these skills using online support resources to guide their activities and build communities of learning. Equipment and activities in this kit enabled students to practice key skills such as pipetting, data handling, experimental design and microscopy, as well as build an online peer learning community through the use of discussion boards and microscopy competitions that encouraged students to explore their local environment. Students who engaged with these activities reported increased confidence in key practical skills. Practical assessment of skills showed that that there was no reduction in the proportion of students who succeeded in achieving the pipetting learning objective compared to previous years, despite a significantly reduced on-campus provision. Although the celebration event to choose the microscopy competition winners was well attended, there was limited use of the discussion boards by students to build a community of learning during the term. Refinement of this initiative will focus on providing greater scaffolding to encourage greater engagement with activities and enhance community building.

Families play a vital role in the development of the science interests and career aspirations of youth. Of particular interest is how a family's science capital and science habitus impact how children see themselves in relation to science. One aspect of science capital that has emerged as foundational in children's levels of science self-efficacy and academic self-concept is their access to science related tools outside of school. To learn more about the role of science tools in building the future science interests of youth, this exploratory study examined reported access to science-related tools and tool experiences for 89 participants (44 parents and 45 children). The results showed that more than half of the children reported a lack of home access to science tools such as a meter stick, compass, or scale. There were significant differences in reported access to science tools for African American and Latino/a youth. The reported access to tools for youth was significantly correlated with their science achievement value score (a measure of self-efficacy and self-concept). When comparing child and parent reported tool access, the parents noted having significantly more tools at home than the child participants. The findings from this study suggest that parents should provide opportunities for their children to explore these common household tools on their own as well as in family contexts. Having prior experiences with science tools outside of school is an important form of science capital that could foster success for children in the science classroom.

The study aims to examine the opinions of pre-service classroom teachers about science laboratories. The research was conducted with 66 third-year students (50 female, 16 male) studying in the classroom teaching undergraduate program of a university in the fall semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. In selecting the participants, taking the "Science Laboratory Applications" course before their volunteerism was taken as a basis. The Drawing-writing technique was used as a data collection tool, and the data were analyzed by content analysis. According to the findings obtained, it was seen that the pre-service teachers mostly used laboratory tables and volumetric flasks in their laboratory drawings. Participants stated that there are mostly chemicals, microscopes and test tubes in the laboratory environment. Almost all pre-service classroom teachers thought that the greatest advantage of using laboratories in science is to embody scientific phenomena. In addition, some pre-service teachers thought that there is no disadvantage in using the laboratory, while some thought that there might be various accidents. According to the findings, it was concluded that the pre-service classroom teachers had a general knowledge of science laboratories and thought that using laboratories in science education would provide an advantage rather than a disadvantage.

The fungi kingdom is among the important topics of biology, and students can develop misunderstandings and misconceptions about this subject. This study aims to determine misunderstandings and misconceptions of 5th-grade students about fungi. The participants of the study consisted of 22 (12 girls, 10 boys) fifth graders of an elementary school in Erzurum city center, which was determined by the convenience sampling method. In this qualitative study, a 'semi-structured interview form' was used. The form includes 16 open-ended questions prepared following the learning outcomes of the curriculum. The data collected in the study were subjected to descriptive analysis and the findings were presented by calculating the frequency and % values. The findings indicate that the students have misunderstandings and misconceptions on the structure of mold, yeast, and fungi, their feeding, whether they are alive, their classification, reproduction, living conditions, etc. At the end of the study, some suggestions were made on the teaching of the biology concepts with examples from daily life, usage of visual elements during teaching, more laboratory applications. It is also suggested that similar studies should be implemented with different grade levels and sample groups. [The page range (179-204) stated on the .pdf is incorrect. The correct page range is p179-203.]

Laboratories are an indispensable part of the fundamental sciences. Laboratories are important learning environments that enable students to relate events to daily life as well as being places where theoretical knowledge is implemented. The present study investigated the knowledge and usage level of preservice biology teachers regarding lab equipment and materials. The study utilized a descriptive survey. A total of 61 preservice biology teachers from the Biology Education Department of a public university in Turkey constituted the participants. Lab Equipment and Materials Recognition Form that is developed by the researcher of the present study was used to collect data. In the design of this form, the 9-12 grade biology curriculum was first analyzed, and a list of frequently-used equipment and materials of biology laboratories was created in line with the opinions of field experts. The form included 40 laboratories equipment and materials and questions regarding the recognition of these items, their functions, and their application processes. The preservice teachers' answers to these questions were graded as: zero points for each incorrect answer, one point for each partially correct answer, and two points for each correct answer. The data obtained were analyzed using cluster analysis, descriptive analysis, one-way analysis of variance, and independent samples T-test in SPSS27 software, and the Polycoric correlation coefficient in Factor Analysis software. The results revealed that the preservice teachers mainly recognize the biology laboratories equipment and materials but generally lack information regarding the application process of laboratories equipment and materials.

Astronomy is one of the few sciences where the data (star-light) can be seen by all. Yet, there is a disconnect between a typical undergraduate lecture and, for example, where a planet may be in the sky and how to observe it. With the advent of moderate cost, high-quality 'back-garden' astronomy, and standard computers powerful enough to produce original research, we show it is possible to build a small observatory capable of actual astrophysical research for a modest budget [approximately equal to]£30 000. We detail the iterative process of planning, funding, results and student-projects, that we followed over 4 years from a Raspberry Pi camera and home-owned telescope, to a permanent roll-top observatory with two fully automated telescope systems capable of undergraduate use and astronomical science. We report on projects ranging from early-years projects based on observational planning, data analysis and some restricted actual observations, to more open-ended final-year projects to observe, e.g. planetary transits, variable stars or high-resolution planetary imaging. We hope this work may act as a blue-print or encourage and aid other small to medium sized higher-education institutions and astrophysics groups to also develop their own undergraduate observatory.

Science is all about how and why. India is a land of diversity and having an equally diverse education system. In a diverse classroom, it is important for the teacher to impart knowledge in such a way that it kindles curiosity in the learner. The best way to communicate science is 'learning by doing'. This requires great skill and apt teaching methodology especially in non-urban areas where the learning resources are scarce. In this regard there is a dire need for inexpensive, useful teaching and learning tools that can foster interest in science. This article is concerned with exploring the use and application of one such innovative tool--Foldscope™. Foldscope™ is a low cost, paper microscope that can help to magnify beyond the ability of unaided eye and explore our surroundings at the microscopic level. It is well suited to be used as a teaching and learning aide in Under-resourced regions. During the pandemic COVID-19 online and distance mode learning has come as a savior, this frugal tool can further facilitate practical learning because of its portability and unique features.

The cyber archaeometry concerns a new virtual ontology in the environment of cultural heritage and archaeology. The present study concerns a first pivot endeavor of a virtual polarized light microscopy (VPLM) for archaeometric learning, made from digital tools, tackling the theory of mineral identification in archaeological materials, an important aspect in characterization, provenance, and ancient technology. This endeavor introduces the range of IT computational methods and instrumentation techniques available to the study of cultural heritage and archaeology of apprentices, educators, and specialists. Use is made of virtual and immersive reality, 3D, virtual environment, massively multiplayer online processes, and gamification. The VPLM simulation is made with the use of Avatar in the time-space frame of the laboratory with navigation, exploration, control the learning outcomes in connection to the archaeometric multisystem work. The students evidently learned to operate the VPLM following operations made via visual and home-made scripting, gaining experience in synergy, teamwork, and understanding. The resulting meaningful effects of the cyber-archaeometry with virtual operations and virtual hands, texts, and video equip students especially for e-learning with the required basic knowledge of mineralogical examination, which help to understand and evaluate mineral identification from material culture and provides readiness and capacity, which may be refined in a real polarized light microscopy (PLM) environment.

This study aims to develop and evaluate an augmented reality microscope, "MicrosAR", for a middle school Science course, which was aimed for use both in and out of school, and to understand the users' perceptions about it. The study adopted design-based research to iteratively develop and evaluate the MicrosAR. Learning activities and working handouts in the application were grounded upon inquiry-based learning. The initial prototype was evaluated with 99 middle school students, as well as 18 preservice and six experienced in-service science teachers. The second prototype was then evaluated with 96 different middle school students. Accordingly, design changes were applied to the second prototype to present the final product development. Participants' experiences and perceptions were gathered through a self-developed, paper-based instrument after they practiced with the MicrosAR. The findings indicated that the MicrosAR was favored by and recognized as an effective and useful tool by the participants. The study highlighted the benefits that augmented reality technology and such an application can offer for learning purposes, and that it can be practiced at any place to deliver a "real" learning experience over virtual platforms, thereby saving costs, enhancing its availability, and improved learner interest.

Development and evaluation of a teaching-learning activity in 4th year Forensic Physics course of Degree in Criminology was based on different combinations of a virtual laboratory and a research laboratory as teaching spaces. Students explored in detail the components and functioning of an electron microscope using both an online suite of education tools and an advanced scanning electron microscope (SEM). The aim of this study was to analyse the impact of all combinations of both activities on students' learning process, and to examine the effect on their interest towards the subject. A blend of research and virtual laboratories have a higher significant impact on students' achievements rather than each one separately, but the same is not true for student interest in scientific careers. These results confirm that the use of a research laboratory combined with a virtual one can have substantial benefits in improvement students' knowledge about abstract and complex concepts.

Most undergraduate students do not have practical experience working with model organisms despite having theoretical knowledge of their importance. This practical was developed to offer students experience working with three species of nematode, including "Caenorhabditis elegans." In the first task, students prepare slides of three previously fixed nematode samples and are asked to identify their feeding preferences based on information given to them in a short pre-practical presentation. The second and third tasks allow students to deduce the existence of a functional nervous system in "Caenorhabditis elegans" and then to measure the response of two genotypes, N2 and "slo-1," to different concentrations of an ethanol solution. These tasks demonstrate the heterogeneity of different nematodes and enable students to gain experience in widely applicable skills including microscopy, slide preparation, assay design and data presentation. Students also gain experience in specialised skills such as worm picking, which is essential in "Caenorhabditis elegans" research. This practical can be completed as a standalone and would suit any early year biology course.

Binocular disparity provides one of the important depth cues within stereoscopic three-dimensional (3D) visualization technology. However, there is limited research on its effect on learning within a 3D augmented reality (AR) environment. This study evaluated the effect of binocular disparity on the acquisition of anatomical knowledge and perceived cognitive load in relation to visual-spatial abilities. In a double-center randomized controlled trial, first-year (bio)medical undergraduates studied lower extremity anatomy in an interactive 3D AR environment either with a stereoscopic 3D view (n = 32) or monoscopic 3D view (n = 34). Visual-spatial abilities were tested with a mental rotation test. Anatomical knowledge was assessed by a validated 30-item written test and 30-item specimen test. Cognitive load was measured by the NASA-TLX questionnaire. Students in the stereoscopic 3D and monoscopic 3D groups performed equally well in terms of percentage correct answers (written test: 47.9 ± 15.8 vs. 49.1 ± 18.3; P = 0.635; specimen test: 43.0 ± 17.9 vs. 46.3 ± 15.1; P = 0.429), and perceived cognitive load scores (6.2 ± 1.0 vs. 6.2 ± 1.3; P = 0.992). Regardless of intervention, visual-spatial abilities were positively associated with the specimen test scores ([eta squared] = 0.13, P = 0.003), perceived representativeness of the anatomy test questions (P = 0.010) and subjective improvement in anatomy knowledge (P < 0.001). In conclusion, binocular disparity does not improve learning anatomy. Motion parallax should be considered as another important depth cue that contributes to depth perception during learning in a stereoscopic 3D AR environment.

Students' recognition of the common procedural mistakes in the chemistry laboratory was examined in this study. Data were collected from 49 undergraduates studying Science Teaching. A video in which a student is purposefully making common procedural mistakes was shown to the students, and they were asked to recognize the mistakes. A Written Response Form (WRF), Chemistry Laboratory Anxiety Scale (CLAS), Laboratory Equipments Knowledge Form (LEKF), and Calculation Form (CF) were the data collecting tools. Students' scores from WRF indicated that they could not recognize many mistakes. Correlation analysis was made between students' scores from recognizing mistakes (WRF) and their CLAS, LEKF, and CF scores. The study's findings imply that only the feelings towards laboratory work (anxiety in this case) correlated with WRF. When high anxiety students and low anxiety students were examined, it was found that high anxiety students did not recognize some mistakes at all.

Interdisciplinary collaborations between different academic disciplines can create knowledge and solutions to challenges that are beyond the scope of what a single discipline can achieve. However, little is known about how interdisciplinary teams of faculty and graduate students function as a whole and the processes that guide them as they work on collaborative tasks. Using Activity Theory, this qualitative study analyzed team meeting transcripts to examine interdisciplinary team interactions involving Science/Engineering and Science Education graduate students and faculty members as they co-developed laboratory activities for a grant-funded project. Several factors contributed to the team's success: shared goals (Object), environment (Community), and clear Division of Labor. Differences (contradictions) were found in the Tools, Rules, and Division of Labor; the PI and Science/Engineering graduate students tended to focus on the needed lab materials, and the Science Education members focused more on educational standards and teachers' ideas in the lab development (Tools). The PI and Science Education members set and enforced the team meeting agendas and deadlines (Rules). The Science/Engineering grad students focused on practical considerations to ensure the labs could successfully be implemented in a class setting (Rules) and were assigned the most tasks to complete (Division of Labor). The findings provide insight into the nature of interdisciplinary team dynamics between a Science/Engineering and Education grant team. The findings also suggest the importance of shared goals (Object), community development (Rules: Team Building), and the potential of capitalizing on different strengths and knowledge (contradictions) in an interdisciplinary team.

The term "histology" was coined a little over 200 years ago and the subject has always relied on microscopy as its defining technology. Microscopy was and still is an essential approach for the description of cellular components and their arrangements in living organisms. For more than a century and a half, histology or microanatomy has also been part of the basic science education for biomedical students. Traditionally, it has been taught in two major components, a didactic transfer of information, either in a lecture or self-learning format, and in active-learning laboratory sessions. These two modes of histology instruction conform with the dual-processing theory of learning, one being more automatic and depending mainly on rote memorization, whereas the other is analytical, requiring more advanced reasoning skills. However, these two components of histology education are not separate and independent, but rather complementary and part of a multi-step learning process that encourages a scientific analysis of visual information and involves higher-level learning skills. Conventional, as well as modern electronic instruction methods (e-learning) have been used in complementary ways to support the integrated succession of individual learning steps as outlined in this manuscript. However, as recent curricular reforms have curtailed instructional time, this traditional format of teaching histology is no longer sustainable and a reflective reassessment of the role of histology in modern biomedical education is a timely necessity.

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Instructional labs: Improving traditions and new directions.] In this paper, we describe the results of a research project whose goals were to (1) develop and implement video-based experimental investigations using the Investigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE) approach and (2) study how students who engage with video experiments develop scientific abilities and learn physics ideas in comparison to students who do the same investigations using physical apparatus. We developed six parallel ISLE-based investigations for the students to engage in, either with apparatus or with video arrays created in the Pivot platform. We found that substituting 30% of the apparatus-based activities with video-based activities did not affect student development of conceptual physics knowledge. On the other hand, the development of certain scientific abilities was significantly affected by whether students experimented with physical apparatus or used video experiments.

Heart muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, exhibit intrinsic contractility in vitro. We found that commercially-available mammalian cardiomyocytes serve as an excellent model system for studying the cytoskeleton and cellular contractility, fundamental topics in undergraduate cell and molecular biology courses. Embryonic rat cardiomyocytes were plated on cell culture dishes or glass coverslips and visualized using an inverted phase-contrast microscope. The cardiomyocytes began contracting within 1-2 days after plating and continued to contract for many weeks, allowing their use in multiple laboratory sessions. Following background reading and instruction, students fixed and triple-stained the cardiomyocytes to examine the relative distributions of actin filaments and microtubules and the position of nuclei. Analysis and image capture with fluorescence microscopy provided striking examples of highly organized cytoskeletal elements. Students then designed experiments in which cardiomyocyte intrinsic contractility was explored. Changes in contraction rates were examined after treatment with signaling molecules, such as epinephrine. The addition of epinephrine to the culture medium, within a usable concentration window, increased the rate of contraction. These adaptable exercises provide undergraduate cell and molecular biology students with the exciting opportunity to study cardiomyocytes using standard cell culture and microscopy techniques.

Physical experiments on real-world systems are proposed as a means to raise learning outcomes and Arduino microcontroller is highlighted as an appropriate tool to perform them. However, experimentation on a real system may encounter various barriers. Therefore, a learning environment was developed in order to perform Arduino experiments on digital entities when the real ones are inaccessible. That was consisted of an Arduino-based pH meter from which measurements were transmitted to three different digital entities: a shoal of goldfish, an ancient Greek temple and an ancient Greek statue. In order to evaluate the learning outcomes of teaching through physical experiments on digital entities, a pre- to post-comparison was conducted on three Greek Junior High Schools. In each school, students were divided into two subgroups. The one group was taught about Acids and Bases through physical Arduino experiments by demonstration, using real instruments and substances, with a simultaneous observation of their effects on the digital entities in real-time, while the other group was taught through the same Arduino experiments by demonstration without the use of the digital entities. The results have demonstrated that students of the former group exhibited greater learning gains regarding Declarative Knowledge than those of the latter one.

In this article, we demonstrate the use of a simple pendulum to explore the concepts of kinematics and dynamics. A simple homemade pendulum and a phone-based accelerometer are used to determine, at various points in time, the acceleration of a moving train. The dynamical and kinematics data from the homemade pendulum and the accelerator can then be compared, and this in turn highlights the relationship between dynamical and kinematics quantities. This project is originally part of a coursework requirement assigned to the first four authors for their introductory classical mechanics course at a university in the summer of 2020. Similar ideas have been explored earlier independent of this work, but this work will focus on the detailed description of our approach and using updated technologies as our benchmark. The project is one that can be implemented readily as an activity in high school physics classes.

The measurement of the charge-to-mass ratio, e/m, of the electron is a fundamental part of any study of electricity and magnetism. It is possible to use an apparatus designed to measure e/m for other things, including investigations of electron flow through a near vacuum, measuring a work function, and even exploring some quantum mechanics effects. These investigations can provide students with profound, meaningful research experiences.

The benefits of simulation-based education have been well-documented in health-related disciplines and are emerging in speech-language pathology. Several clinical training paradigms for acute care speechlanguage pathology skills have been successful when implemented in high fidelity, nursing simulation labs with price tags that are cost prohibitive for most speech-language pathology programs. Through funding support from a grant and a four-phased simulation development program, the authors developed an acute care simulation lab dedicated to speech-language pathology students for under $9,000 and simultaneously piloted a one-credit, acute care, adult- and geriatric-focused clinical practicum course. The clinical practicum was structured to scaffold student learning using task trainers, computer-based simulations, and live simulations with low fidelity manikins and standardized patients. The authors are hopeful that this article provides speech-language pathology programs a practical framework for structuring a dedicated, simulation space and course, while empowering faculty to more fully integrate simulation-based learning experiences into their curricula in a way that is evidence-based and in keeping with the best practice resources that are currently available in the field of speech-language pathology.

Lab orientation is a vital part of learning for new students entering the university, as it provides the students with all the necessary and important information about the lab. The current orientation is manual, tedious, suffers from logistical constraints, lacks engagement, and provides no way to assess that outcomes have been achieved. This is also supported by the results of a student survey which revealed students' dissatisfaction with current process of orientation. This study presents the design and development of a sample augmented reality mobile application, AR-LabOr, for the lab orientation that helps students in a quick and easy adaptation to the lab environment by familiarizing them with the lab equipment, staff, and safety rules in a fun and interactive manner. This application makes use of marker-less augmented reality technology and a blend of multimedia information such as sound, text, images, and videos that are superimposed on real-world contents. An experiment with 56 students showed that they found the novel method of orientation using the application more engaging than the traditional instructor-led method. Students also found the application to be more supportive, motivating, and that it helped them in better understanding the lab equipment.

This paper discusses the use of educational equipment and materials can be used by biology teachers. Science Education has an important role in raising individuals who can adapt to developing world with the 21st century skills. Within the scope of science education, biology covers information that individuals can make use of in their daily lives. This makes Biology teaching even more important. Teachers assume great responsibilities in the realization of an effective biology teaching. One of these responsibilities is the use of equipment and materials in teaching because the use of equipment in teaching helps with learning the information in an effective, permanent and meaningful way. It is also creating an active and fun classroom environment. Biology teachers should choose suitable equipment for the course, subject, students' level, setting and objectives. They should also be able to develop teaching materials in line with learning outcomes. In addition, the teacher should provide the students with the necessary information about the teaching materials. This paper aims to remind teachers how important using these equipment for teaching and demonstrate that equipment and materials are indispensable facilitators for an efficient and effective Biology teaching. It may help teachers by providing guidance on this issue.

In this paper, we show a laboratory experience describing the possibility to build a sensor using a coil to measure small thicknesses of materials with the possibility of measuring temperature simultaneously, with the same built sensor. Its operation is based on the following facts: An electric current (a.c), flows through a coil and a magnetic field appears producing self-induction characterized by an electromotive force induced in the coil when a conductive piece is situated in front of the coil. That permits us to obtain information about the distance between the coil and the conductive piece. When this separation thickness is changing, the magnetic field around the coil changes, because the self-induction coefficient (L) is also changing. Using resistance and impedance measurements (voltage in our case) in the coil, an expression has been obtained for the determination of the thickness of a non-conductive sheet placed between a metallic plate and the coil. Calibration measurements of resistance with temperature have been obtained. The thermodynamic analysis is also presented showing the equation of state of the system between the voltage, temperature, and the thickness of the non-conductive sample. The linear thermal expansion coefficient of the sample is also determined.

The main aim of this study was to find out how emerging technologies influence academic achievement of students at the University of Cape Coast. The study employed ex post facto research design utilizing quantitative approach for data collection. Findings from the data analyzed showed that emerging technologies are available for use in the various departments of the University. For instance, mobile phones (93.8%), internet (88.8%), laptops/desktops (86.8%), projectors (82.1%), electronic books (68.1%), Tablets (62.2%) and online courses (50.4%) were available and accessible to more than half of the respondents. It was also found that mobile phones, laptops/desktops, Intelligent Personal Assistants (IPAs), projectors, e-books, internet, and e-learning lab equipment were evenly distributed across the departments while the rests were not evenly distributed as there were statistically significant differences among their availability across the various departments. In addition, the study found that there is negative relationship on the extent to which respondents use emerging technologies and their academic performance. However, the use of the internet recorded a statistically significant relationship with p-value of 0.040. The study recommends that students must make a conscious effort to use the emerging technologies available in the university in order to be successful in their academic pursuits.