Across science disciplines, light is a common tool for measuring, characterizing, and catalysing molecules and molecular processes. Despite the ubiquity of light-based tools, little research has been done to investigate how students understand light and light-matter interactions (LMI). This topic is typically first introduced in first-year…

This study focuses on post-induction mentoring as a vehicle for science teachers' training in implementing a nanotechnology teaching-learning sequence. Five mentors and 15 mentee-teachers participated in a 9-months long mentoring programme. Qualitative methods of analysis were used to examine the content of the mentoring conversations and the…

The attractive photophysical properties of luminescent nanoparticles have prompted numerous studies on their synthesis and biological applications. Due to the complexity of components, sizes, morphologies, and strong light scattering of the nanoparticles the absorption spectrum alone is not enough for characterising and analysing the real…

In common with many other countries, the Iranian science curriculum does not introduce primary children to atoms and molecules but instead leaves the teaching of these concepts until high school. This paper challenges this practice and describes the changes in elementary Iranian children's understanding of atoms and molecules following a 10-h…

The growing popularity of flipped, blended, and online learning, combined with the need to support a student population with increasingly diverse backgrounds, has led to the development and use of online materials to support students' learning of chemistry outside of a face-to-face classroom. Chemistry simulations provide opportunities to make…

Advances in nanotechnology have drawn attention to nanotechnology education. The aim of this study is to determine awareness, exposure, and knowledge levels of science (physics, chemistry and biology) teachers about nanoscience and nanotechnology. Teachers (N=624) from secondary schools in Turkey comprised the working group. Descriptive methods…

The goal of this research is to provide a rich set of connections between two fields: (i) Nanoscale science and technology (NST) and (ii) topics from a common middle school physics curriculum. NST is emerging as one of the most promising new fields of the 21st century, which is one of the many arguments for including NST topics in secondary…

The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Nanotechnology Awareness Scale (NAI) in Turkish culture. The study group consists of 624 biology, physics and chemistry teachers working in secondary schools in Antalya, Denizli, Burdur and Ankara. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA)…

Characterizing how students construct causal mechanistic explanations for chemical phenomena can provide us with important insights into the ways that students develop understanding of chemistry concepts. Here, we present two qualitative studies of undergraduate general chemistry students' reasoning about the causes of London dispersion forces in…

In continuation of our investigation into the buildup phenomenon appearing in gamma ray attenuation measurements in laboratory experiments we study the dependence of the buildup factor on the area of the absorber in an effort to reduce the buildup of photons. Detailed measurements are performed for up to two mean free paths of [superscript 60]Co…

In this study, we investigated students' understanding of concepts related to the microscopic model of gas. We thoroughly reviewed the relevant literature and conducted think alouds with students by asking them to answer open-ended questions about the kinetic molecular theory of gases. Thereafter, we transformed the open-ended questions into…

Foams or bubble dispersions are common to milkshakes, bread, champagne froth, shaving mousse, shampoo, crude oil extraction systems, upholstery packing and bubble wrap, whereas the term droplet is often synonymous with either a small drop of water or a drop of oil--a type of coarse dispersion. The latter are seen in butter and milk, household…

This research aimed at investigating the effectiveness of STEM approach in developing visual reasoning and learning independence for preparatory stage students. To achieve this aim, the researcher designed a program based on STEM approach in light of the principles of nanotechnology. Twenty one preparatory stage students participated in the…

The Billotron is a device designed and built by the LPC Caen to illustrate the methods with which physicists are able to study the basic structure of matter, in particular the nucleus of the atom.

Misconceptions are the number one factor leading students to failure when studying physics. To teach physics effectively, misconceptions must be spotted and overcome. Conceptual change texts are of great use in identifying and dealing with fallacies. Such texts can help physics teachers diagnose student misconceptions and the reasons for these,…