Research has found that factors such as content, prompts, and individual motivational differences affect instructional effectiveness. While instructional effectiveness is acritical outcome variable, the limited availability of instructional time results in instructional efficiency being acritical consideration. This study evaluated whether varying…

Blended learning is becoming increasingly prevalent in engineering education due to its flexibility and enhanced learning outcomes, however it can face challenges in maintaining student engagement and satisfaction. This study investigates the impact of worked example videos (WEVs) as a blended learning approach within undergraduate engineering,…

These classroom notes are focused on undergraduate students' understanding of the polysemous symbol of superscript (-1), which can be interpreted as a reciprocal or an inverse function. Examination of 240 scripts in a mid-term test identified that some first-year students struggle with choosing the contextually correct interpretation and there are…

An underlying goal in most chemistry curricula is to enable students to think like chemists, yet there is much evidence to suggest that students can learn to solve problems without thinking conceptually like a chemist. There are few tools, however, that assess whether students are learning to think like Ph.D. faculty, putative experts in the…

Examples are believed to be very important in developing conceptual understanding of mathematical ideas, useful both in mathematics research and instruction (Bills & Watson in "Educational Studies in Mathematics" 69:77-79, 2008; Mason & Watson, 2008; Bills & Tall, 1998; Tall & Vinner, 1981). In this study, we draw on the…

A series of pedagogical problem set exercises are posed that illustrate the principles behind material efficiency green metrics and their application in developing a deeper understanding of reaction and synthesis plan analysis and strategies to optimize them. Rigorous, yet simple, mathematical proofs are given for some of the fundamental concepts,…

Textbook style problems including detailed solutions introducing pharmaceutical topics at the level of an introductory chemical engineering course have been created. The problems illustrate and teach subjects which students would learn if they were to pursue a career in pharmaceutical engineering, including the unique terminology of the field,…

This article discusses an activity designed to encourage writing to learn in mathematics. There were three stages of data collection. An assessment, requiring basic algebra only, was completed by 118 undergraduates from statistics and calculus courses. Students were given summaries of all participant responses, along with the correct answers.…

In this article, the authors aim to identify the causal effect of the use of graded problem sets on academic performance of Spanish students. The identification strategy relies on an experiment in which the authors exploit variation arising from observing the performance of nearly 300 students taking the same class during the same semester and…

Problem solving is a highly valued skill in chemistry. Courses within this discipline place a substantial emphasis on problem-solving performance and tend to weigh such performance heavily in assessments of learning. Researchers have dedicated considerable effort investigating individual factors that influence problem-solving performance. The…

The author describes a classroom activity in which students generate and then analyze insulting words to gain insights into how gender is socially constructed. After discussing how and why undergraduate students struggle with the concept of gender, the author highlights the usefulness of an active learning pedagogy in clearing these…

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education has become a key focus in the U.S. government's public education agenda. Many STEM degrees require the successful completion of undergraduate introductory organic chemistry (O-Chem), which is notorious for its difficulty and high attrition rate. Concept Maps (CM) have been used as…

Communication skills and insights form an important basis for employability and participation in society. Universities aim to produce graduates with effective communication skills. Effective oral communication is critical for the advancement and sharing of scientific knowledge. There is increasing recognition within tertiary institutions of the…

This article describes the development and implementation of an open-access organic chemistry question bank for online tutorials and assessments at University College Cork and Dublin Institute of Technology. SOCOT (structure-based organic chemistry online tutorials) may be used to supplement traditional small-group tutorials, thereby allowing…

Open-ended, inquiry-based multiweek laboratory exercises are the key elements to increasing students' understanding and retention of the major biological concepts. Including original research into undergraduate teaching laboratories has also been shown to motivate students and improve their learning. Here, we present a series of original…