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Bower CA, Liben LS. Instructors' Gestural Accuracy Affects Geology Learning in Interaction with Students' Spatial Skills. J Intell 2023; 11:192. [PMID: 37888424 PMCID: PMC10607687 DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence11100192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2023] [Revised: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Complex and often unobservable STEM constructs and processes are represented using a variety of representations, including iconic gestures in which the body is configured or moved to resemble a referent's spatial properties or actions. Earlier researchers have suggested links between gesturing and expertise, leading some to recommend instructional gestures. Earlier research, however, has been largely correlational; furthermore, some gestures may be made with misleading positions or movements. Using the illustrative topic of strike in structural geology, we investigated the existence and impact of inaccurate instructional gestures. In Study 1, we examined videotapes of participants who had been asked to explain strikes to another person. We observed inaccurate (non-horizontal) strike gestures not only among novices (first introduced to strike during the study itself, n = 68) but also among participants who had greater expertise in geology (n = 21). In Study 2, we randomly assigned novices (N = 167) to watch video lessons in which the instructor accompanied verbal explanations of strikes with accurate, inaccurate, or no iconic gestures and tested students' learning on a strike-mapping task. Students with low spatial-perception skills showed no impact of their gestural condition on performance. Students with high spatial-perception skills showed no advantage from accurate gestures but performed significantly worse in the inaccurate-gesture condition. Findings suggest that recommendations to use gestures during instruction should include professional development programs that reduce the occurrence of inaccurate gestures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corinne A. Bower
- Department of Psychology, California State University Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90032, USA
| | - Lynn S. Liben
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA;
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2
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Barley BK, Gao C, Luster T, Porro A, Parizi-Robinson M, Quigley D, Zinke P, Scullin MK. Chronotype in college science students is associated with behavioral choices and can fluctuate across a semester. Chronobiol Int 2023; 40:710-724. [PMID: 37080776 DOI: 10.1080/07420528.2023.2203251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023]
Abstract
Many students self-report that they are "night owls," which can result from neurodevelopmental delays in the circadian timing system. However, whether an individual considers themselves to be an evening-type versus a morning-type (self-reported chronotype) may also be influenced by academic demands (e.g. class start times, course load) and behavioral habits (e.g. bedtime social media use, late caffeine consumption, daytime napping). If so, then chronotype should be malleable. We surveyed 858 undergraduate students enrolled in demanding science courses at up to three time points. The survey assessed morning/evening chronotype, global sleep quality, academics, and behavioral habits. Evening and morning-type students showed similar demographics, stress levels, and academic demands. At baseline measurements, relative to morning-types, evening-types showed significantly worse sleep quality and duration as well as 22% greater bedtime social media usage, 27% greater daytime napping duration, and 46% greater likelihood of consuming caffeine after 5pm. These behavioral habits partially mediated the effects of self-reported chronotype on sleep quality/duration, even after controlling for demographic factors. Interestingly, 54 students reported switching from being at least moderate evening-types at baseline to being at least moderate morning-types later in the semester and 56 students showed the reverse pattern (6.3% of students switched from "definitely" one chronotype to the other chronotype). Evening-to-morning "chrono-switchers" consumed less caffeine after 5pm and showed significantly better sleep quantity/quality at the later timepoint. Thus, some students may consider themselves to be night owls in part because they consume caffeine later, take more daytime naps, or use more social media at bedtime. Experimental work is needed to determine whether nudging night owls to behave like morning larks results in better sleep health or academic achievement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blake K Barley
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
| | - Chenlu Gao
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
- Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders, Departments of Medicine and Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Taylor Luster
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
- Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Abbye Porro
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
| | | | - Dena Quigley
- Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
| | - Paul Zinke
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
| | - Michael K Scullin
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, USA
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3
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Weisberg DS, Dunlap LC, Sobel DM. Dinos and GoPros: Children's exploratory behaviors in a museum and their reflections on their learning. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1110612. [PMID: 36860778 PMCID: PMC9968754 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1110612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Research in both laboratory and museum settings suggests that children's exploration and caregiver-child interaction relate to children's learning and engagement. Most of this work, however, takes a third-person perspective on children's exploration of a single activity or exhibit, and does not consider children's perspectives on their own exploration. In contrast, the current study recruited 6-to 10-year-olds (N = 52) to wear GoPro cameras, which recorded their first-person perspectives as they explored a dinosaur exhibition in a natural history museum. During a 10-min period, children were allowed to interact with 34 different exhibits, their caregivers and families, and museum staff however they wished. Following their exploration, children were asked to reflect on their exploration while watching the video they created and to report on whether they had learned anything. Children were rated as more engaged when they explored collaboratively with their caregivers. Children were more likely to report that they learned something when they were more engaged, and when they spent more time at exhibits that presented information didactically rather than being interactive. These results suggest that static exhibits have an important role to play in fostering learning experiences in museums, potentially because such exhibits allow for more caregiver-child interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deena Skolnick Weisberg
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Villanova University, Villanova, PA, United States,*Correspondence: Deena Skolnick Weisberg,
| | - Lucretia C. Dunlap
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Villanova University, Villanova, PA, United States
| | - David M. Sobel
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States
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4
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Marcus M, Solis G, Sellars S, Haden CA. Promoting children's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning at home through tinkering and storytelling. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1146063. [PMID: 37207036 PMCID: PMC10189131 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1146063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023] Open
Abstract
This study examined whether connecting storytelling and tinkering can advance early STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) learning opportunities for children. A total of 62 families with 4- to 10-year-old (M = 8.03) children were observed via Zoom. They watched a video invitation to tinker at home prepared by museum educators prior to tinkering. Then, half of the families were prompted to think up a story before tinkering (story-based tinkering group), whereas the other half were simply asked to begin tinkering (no-story group). Once they had finished tinkering, researchers elicited children's reflections about their tinkering experience. A subset of the families (n = 45) also reminisced about their tinkering experience several weeks later. The story instructions provided before tinkering engendered children's storytelling during tinkering and when reflecting on the experience. Children in the story-based tinkering group also talked the most about STEM both during tinkering, and subsequently when reminiscing with their parents about their tinkering experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Marcus
- Department of Psychology, Roosevelt University, Chicago, IL, United States
- *Correspondence: Maria Marcus,
| | - Graciela Solis
- Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Shelby Sellars
- Department of Psychology, Roosevelt University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Catherine A. Haden
- Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
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5
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Kian T, Parmar PK, Fabiano GF, Pathman T. Tell Me About Your Visit With the Lions: Eliciting Event Narratives to Examine Children's Memory and Learning During Summer Camp at a Local Zoo. Front Psychol 2021; 12:657454. [PMID: 34305722 PMCID: PMC8295724 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.657454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
School-aged children often participate in school field trips, summer camps or visits at informal learning institutions like zoos and museums. However, relatively little is known about children’s memory and learning from these experiences, what types of event details and facts are retained, how retention varies across age, and whether different patterns are observed for different types of experiences. We aimed to answer these questions through a partnership with a local zoo. Four- to 10-year-old children (N = 122) participated in a weeklong summer camp, during which they engaged in dynamic events, including visits to zoo animals. On the last day of camp, we elicited autobiographical event narratives for two types of experiences: a child-selected animal event (visit to their favorite animal) and an experimenter-selected animal event. We coded event narratives for length and breadth using previously used autobiographical memory (AM) narrative coding schemes. In addition, we created a coding scheme to examine retention of semantic information (facts). We report the types of autobiographical event details and facts children recalled in their narratives, as well as age group differences that were found to vary depending on the type of information and type of event. Through this naturalistic, yet controlled, study we gain insights into how children remember and learn through hands-on activities and exploration in this engaging and dynamic environment. We discuss how our results provide novel information that can be used by informal learning institutions to promote children’s memory and retention of science facts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tida Kian
- Memory Development Laboratory, Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Puneet K Parmar
- Memory Development Laboratory, Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Giulia F Fabiano
- Memory Development Laboratory, Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Thanujeni Pathman
- Memory Development Laboratory, Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada.,LaMarsh Centre for Child and Youth Research, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
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6
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Vuong QH, Nguyen MH, Le TT. Home Scholarly Culture, Book Selection Reason, and Academic Performance: Pathways to Book Reading Interest among Secondary School Students. Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ 2021; 11:468-495. [PMID: 34708824 PMCID: PMC8314380 DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe11020034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Although studies have explored the predictors of book reading interest among children, little is known about the underlying mechanism that helps children become interested in reading books. This study attempt to demonstrate: (1) how book-reading interest is driven by reasons for choosing books (recommendation or personal preference), (2) how students with high and low academic achievements are motivated by different thinking pathways, and (3) how home scholarly culture improves book-reading interest through such pathways. Using Bayesian analysis on a dataset of survey responses from 4966 Vietnamese secondary students (11-15 years old, sixth to ninth grade), we found: (i) Reading interest is positively associated with a book recommendation and parental book reading activities (parents read books to children); (ii) High-achieving students are more interested in reading books if they can choose those books according to personal preferences; (iii) Parental book reading activities can promote book reading interest through recommendations and also by understanding children's personal preferences. We advocate a more personalized approach in educational policymaking, curriculum design, and home scholarly culture based on students' abilities and perceptions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quan-Hoang Vuong
- Centre for Interdisciplinary Social Research, Phenikaa University, Yen Nghia Ward, Ha Dong District, Hanoi 100803, Vietnam;
| | - Minh-Hoang Nguyen
- Centre for Interdisciplinary Social Research, Phenikaa University, Yen Nghia Ward, Ha Dong District, Hanoi 100803, Vietnam;
- A.I. for Social Data Lab (AISDL), Vuong & Associates, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam
- Correspondence: (M.-H.N.); (T.-T.L.)
| | - Tam-Tri Le
- Centre for Interdisciplinary Social Research, Phenikaa University, Yen Nghia Ward, Ha Dong District, Hanoi 100803, Vietnam;
- Correspondence: (M.-H.N.); (T.-T.L.)
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7
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Sobel DM, Letourneau SM, Legare CH, Callanan M. Relations between parent-child interaction and children's engagement and learning at a museum exhibit about electric circuits. Dev Sci 2020; 24:e13057. [PMID: 33108708 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2020] [Revised: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Play is critical for children's learning, but there is significant disagreement over whether and how parents should guide children's play. The objective of the current study was to examine how parent-child interaction affected children's engagement and problem-solving behaviors when challenged with similar tasks. Parents and 4- to 7-year-old children in the U.S. (N = 111 dyads) played together at an interactive electric circuit exhibit in a children's museum. We examined how parents and children set and accomplished goals while playing with the exhibit materials. Children then participated in a set of challenges that involved completing increasingly difficult circuits. Children whose parents set goals for their interactions showed less engagement with the challenge task (choosing to attempt fewer challenges), and children whose parents were more active in completing the circuits while families played with the exhibit subsequently completed fewer challenges on their own. We discuss these results in light of broader findings on the role of parent-child interaction in museum settings.
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8
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Mettler E, Massey CM, El-Ashmawy AK, Kellman PJ. Adaptive vs. Fixed Spacing of Learning Items: Evidence from Studies of Learning and Transfer in Chemistry Education. Cogsci 2020; 2020:1598-1604. [PMID: 34337610 PMCID: PMC8324178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Spacing presentations of learning items across time improves memory relative to massed schedules of practice - the well-known spacing effect. Spaced practice can be further enhanced by adaptively scheduling the presentation of learning items to deliver customized spacing intervals for individual items and learners. ARTS - Adaptive Response-time-based Sequencing (Mettler, Massey, & Kellman 2016) determines spacing dynamically in relation to each learner's ongoing speed and accuracy in interactive learning trials. We demonstrate the effectiveness of ARTS when applied to chemistry nomenclature in community college chemistry courses by comparing adaptive schedules to fixed schedules consisting of continuously expanding spacing intervals. Adaptive spacing enhanced the efficiency and durability of learning, with learning gains persisting after a two-week delay and generalizing to a standardized assessment of chemistry knowledge after 2-3 months. Two additional experiments confirmed and extended these results in both laboratory and community college settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Everett Mettler
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA
| | - Christine M Massey
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA
| | | | - Philip J Kellman
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095 USA
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9
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Gao C, Fillmore P, Scullin MK. Classical music, educational learning, and slow wave sleep: A targeted memory reactivation experiment. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2020; 171:107206. [PMID: 32145407 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2020.107206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2019] [Revised: 01/20/2020] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Poor sleep in college students compromises the memory consolidation processes necessary to retain course materials. A solution may lie in targeting reactivation of memories during sleep (TMR). Fifty undergraduate students completed a college-level microeconomics lecture (mathematics-based) while listening to distinctive classical music (Chopin, Beethoven, and Vivaldi). After they fell asleep, we re-played the classical music songs (TMR) or a control noise during slow wave sleep. Relative to the control condition, the TMR condition showed an 18% improvement for knowledge transfer items that measured concept integration (d = 0.63), increasing the probability of "passing" the test with a grade of 70 or above (OR = 4.68, 95%CI: 1.21, 18.04). The benefits of TMR did not extend to a 9-month follow-up test when performance dropped to floor levels, demonstrating that long-term-forgetting curves are largely resistant to experimentally-consolidated memories. Spectral analyses revealed greater frontal theta activity during slow wave sleep in the TMR condition than the control condition (d = 0.87), and greater frontal theta activity across conditions was associated with protection against long-term-forgetting at the next-day and 9-month follow-up tests (rs = 0.42), at least in female students. Thus, students can leverage instrumental music-which they already commonly pair with studying-to help prepare for academic tests, an approach that may promote course success and persistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenlu Gao
- Baylor University, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Waco, TX, United States
| | - Paul Fillmore
- Baylor University, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Waco, TX, United States
| | - Michael K Scullin
- Baylor University, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Waco, TX, United States.
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10
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Suh DD, Liang E, Ng FFY, Tamis-LeMonda CS. Children's Block-Building Skills and Mother-Child Block-Building Interactions Across Four U.S. Ethnic Groups. Front Psychol 2019; 10:1626. [PMID: 31354599 PMCID: PMC6639782 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2018] [Accepted: 06/27/2019] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Play offers an unparalleled opportunity for young children to gain cognitive skills in informal settings. Block play in particular—including interactions with parents around block constructions—teaches children about intrinsic spatial features of objects (size, shape) and extrinsic spatial relations. In turn, early spatial cognition paves the way for later competencies in math and science. We assessed 4- and 5-year-old children’s spatial skill on a set of block-building constructions and examined mother-child block building interactions in 167 U.S. dyads from African American, Dominican, Mexican, and Chinese backgrounds. At both ages, children were instructed to copy several 3D block constructions, followed by a “break” during which mothers and children were left alone with the blocks. A form that contained pictures of test items was left on the table. Video-recordings of mother-child interactions during the break were coded for two types of building behaviors – test-specific construction (building structures on the test form) or free-form construction (building structures not on the test form). Chinese children outperformed Mexican, African American, and Dominican children on the block-building assessment. Further, Chinese and Mexican mother-child dyads spent more time building test-specific constructions than did African American and Dominican dyads. At an individual level, mothers’ time spent building test-specific constructions at the 4-year (but not 5-year) assessment, but not mothers’ initiation of block building interactions or verbal instructions, related to children’s performance, when controlling for ethnicity. Ethnic differences in children’s block-building performance and experiences emerge prior to formal schooling and provide a valuable window into sources of individual differences in early spatial cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel D Suh
- Center for Research on Culture, Development, and Education, Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Eva Liang
- Center for Research on Culture, Development, and Education, Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Florrie Fei-Yin Ng
- Department of Educational Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong
| | - Catherine S Tamis-LeMonda
- Center for Research on Culture, Development, and Education, Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, United States
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11
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Abstract
In this introduction for this Special Issue we discuss the need for the investigation of science identity with an emphasis on the environment. As such, we propose taking an interactionist approach; one that examines the person in interaction within their environment (Adams & Marshall, 1996). The Special Issue highlights the role of psychology constructs, such as interest and belonging that are deeply relevant and ultimately inform students' science identity development. The Special Issue includes six articles: this introduction, four empirical papers investigating the psychological experiences of students in various science spaces with a focus on the interactions between the individual and the context, and a commentary. Each contribution emphasized how the context either afforded or did not afford that sense of belonging to develop in students. The collection of articles were inspired by a symposium on the topic of STEM identity development that was presented at the 2017 annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Antonio, TX.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ann Y. Kim
- Department of Human Development, California State University, Long Beach, USA
| | - Gale M. Sinatra
- Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA
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12
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Marcus M, Haden CA, Uttal DH. Promoting children's learning and transfer across informal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics learning experiences. J Exp Child Psychol 2018; 175:80-95. [PMID: 30025257 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2018.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2017] [Revised: 05/12/2018] [Accepted: 06/22/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated ways to support young children's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning and transfer of knowledge across informal learning experiences in a museum. Participants were 64 4- to 8-year-old children (Mage = 6.55 years, SD = 1.44) and their parents. Families were observed working together to solve one engineering problem, and then immediately afterward children worked on their own to solve a second engineering problem. At the outset of the problem-solving activities, families were randomly assigned to receive engineering instructions, transfer instructions, both engineering and transfer instructions, or no instructions. Families who received engineering instructions-either alone or in combination with the transfer instructions-demonstrated greater understanding and use of the engineering principle of bracing compared with those who received only transfer instructions. Moreover, older children who received both engineering and transfer instructions were more successful when working on their own to solve a perceptually different engineering problem compared with older children who received only one set of instructions or no instructions. Implications of the work for developmental and learning science research and informal education practice are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Marcus
- Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL 60660, USA.
| | - Catherine A Haden
- Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL 60660, USA
| | - David H Uttal
- Department of Psychology and School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
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Brewe E, Bartley JE, Riedel MC, Sawtelle V, Salo T, Boeving ER, Bravo EI, Odean R, Nazareth A, Bottenhorn KL, Laird RW, Sutherland MT, Pruden SM, Laird AR. Toward a Neurobiological Basis for Understanding Learning in University Modeling Instruction Physics Courses. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 5. [PMID: 31106219 DOI: 10.3389/fict.2018.00010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Modeling Instruction (MI) for University Physics is a curricular and pedagogical approach to active learning in introductory physics. A basic tenet of science is that it is a model-driven endeavor that involves building models, then validating, deploying, and ultimately revising them in an iterative fashion. MI was developed to provide students a facsimile in the university classroom of this foundational scientific practice. As a curriculum, MI employs conceptual scientific models as the basis for the course content, and thus learning in a MI classroom involves students appropriating scientific models for their own use. Over the last 10 years, substantial evidence has accumulated supporting MI's efficacy, including gains in conceptual understanding, odds of success, attitudes toward learning, self-efficacy, and social networks centered around physics learning. However, we still do not fully understand the mechanisms of how students learn physics and develop mental models of physical phenomena. Herein, we explore the hypothesis that the MI curriculum and pedagogy promotes student engagement via conceptual model building. This emphasis on conceptual model building, in turn, leads to improved knowledge organization and problem solving abilities that manifest as quantifiable functional brain changes that can be assessed with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We conducted a neuroeducation study wherein students completed a physics reasoning task while undergoing fMRI scanning before (pre) and after (post) completing a MI introductory physics course. Preliminary results indicated that performance of the physics reasoning task was linked with increased brain activity notably in lateral prefrontal and parietal cortices that previously have been associated with attention, working memory, and problem solving, and are collectively referred to as the central executive network. Critically, assessment of changes in brain activity during the physics reasoning task from pre- vs. post-instruction identified increased activity after the course notably in the posterior cingulate cortex (a brain region previously linked with episodic memory and self-referential thought) and in the frontal poles (regions linked with learning). These preliminary outcomes highlight brain regions linked with physics reasoning and, critically, suggest that brain activity during physics reasoning is modifiable by thoughtfully designed curriculum and pedagogy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Brewe
- Department of Physics, School of Education, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Jessica E Bartley
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Michael C Riedel
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Vashti Sawtelle
- Lyman Briggs College, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, Lansing, MI, United States
| | - Taylor Salo
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Emily R Boeving
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Elsa I Bravo
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Rosalie Odean
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Alina Nazareth
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | | | - Robert W Laird
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Matthew T Sutherland
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Shannon M Pruden
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
| | - Angela R Laird
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States
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14
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Weisberg SM, Newcombe NS. Embodied cognition and STEM learning: overview of a topical collection in CR:PI. Cogn Res Princ Implic 2017; 2:38. [PMID: 28959709 PMCID: PMC5596025 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-017-0071-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2017] [Accepted: 07/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Embodied learning approaches emphasize the use of action to support pedagogical goals. A specific version of embodied learning posits an action-to-abstraction transition supported by gesture, sketching, and analogical mapping. These tools seem to have special promise for bolstering learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, but existing efforts need further theoretical and empirical development. The topical collection in Cognitive Research: Principles includes articles aiming to formalize and test the effectiveness of embodied learning in STEM. The collection provides guideposts, staking out the terrain that should be surveyed before larger-scale efforts are undertaken. This introduction provides a broader context concerning mechanisms that can support embodied learning and make it especially well suited to the STEM disciplines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven M Weisberg
- Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA.,Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122 USA
| | - Nora S Newcombe
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122 USA
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15
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Michal AL, Franconeri SL. Visual routines are associated with specific graph interpretations. Cogn Res Princ Implic 2017; 2:20. [PMID: 28367500 PMCID: PMC5357663 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-017-0059-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 03/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
We argue that people compare values in graphs with a visual routine – attending to data values in an ordered pattern over time. Do these visual routines exist to manage capacity limitations in how many values can be encoded at once, or do they actually affect the relations that are extracted? We measured eye movements while people judged configurations of a two-bar graph based on size only (“[short tall] or [tall short]?”) and contrast only (“[light dark] or [dark light]?”). Participants exhibited visual routines in which they systematically attended to a specific feature (or “anchor point”) in the graph; in the size task, most participants inspected the taller bar first, and in the contrast task, most participants attended to the darker bar first. Participants then judged configurations that varied in both size and contrast (e.g., [short-light tall-dark]); however, only one dimension was task-relevant (varied between subjects). During this orthogonal task, participants overwhelmingly relied on the same anchor point used in the single-dimension version, but only for the task-relevant dimension (e.g., taller bar for the size-relevant task). These results suggest that visual routines are associated with specific graph interpretations. Responses were also faster when task-relevant and task-irrelevant anchor points appeared on the same object (congruent) than on different objects (incongruent). This interference from the task-irrelevant dimension suggests that top-down control may be necessary to extract relevant relations from graphs. The effect of visual routines on graph comprehension has implications for both science, technology, engineering, and mathematics pedagogy and graph design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audrey L Michal
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, 2029 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208 USA
| | - Steven L Franconeri
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, 2029 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208 USA
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16
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Abstract
Three laboratory experiments involving students' behavior and brain imaging and one randomized field experiment in a college physics class explored the importance of physical experience in science learning. We reasoned that students' understanding of science concepts such as torque and angular momentum is aided by activation of sensorimotor brain systems that add kinetic detail and meaning to students' thinking. We tested whether physical experience with angular momentum increases involvement of sensorimotor brain systems during students' subsequent reasoning and whether this involvement aids their understanding. The physical experience, a brief exposure to forces associated with angular momentum, significantly improved quiz scores. Moreover, improved performance was explained by activation of sensorimotor brain regions when students later reasoned about angular momentum. This finding specifies a mechanism underlying the value of physical experience in science education and leads the way for classroom practices in which experience with the physical world is an integral part of learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carly Kontra
- Department of Psychology, University of Chicago Committee on Education, University of Chicago
| | - Daniel J Lyons
- Department of Psychology, University of Chicago Committee on Education, University of Chicago
| | | | - Sian L Beilock
- Department of Psychology, University of Chicago Committee on Education, University of Chicago
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