Difficult Concepts Research Articles

Chemistry in Our Community: Strategies and Logistics Implemented to Provide Hands-On Activities to K–12 Students, Teachers, and Families

Service learning is a community-based educational approach where college students are connected to academic content through active participation in planned community experiences. Therefore, service learning is the form of civic engagement that we have used to connect Chemistry undergraduate students with K–12 students, teachers, and parents in our community. We have developed several outreach programs and hands-on experiences to use the knowledge and skills learned in Chemistry courses and laboratories to motivate more precollege students toward a positive attitude about Chemistry and science courses in general. Undergraduate students from the Department of Chemistry at California State University, Stanislaus have worked on several hands-on activities with fifth–eighth grade students at university laboratories and with second–fourth grade students at elementary school classrooms. Undergraduate students have learned to simplify difficult Chemistry concepts for the general audience, while they have encouraged young students to develop a positive attitude toward science and the pursuit of higher education in the STEM fields. In addition, undergraduate students involved in these activities are more motivated to succeed in their own academic career. This article explains how we have accomplished the development of Chemistry outreach activities and how undergraduate students are involved in the preparation of these events.

A Consensus-Based Educational Approach for Large Lecture Classes

Peer learning is an active learning technique that has been used for students to internalize difficult concepts. We have developed a method of peer learning, a consensus-based education approach, which allows for discussion and class consensus in large lecture classes. We tracked student success on concepts that employed the consensus-based education approach and found that students significantly improved on their mastery of a majority of these concepts. Students who mastered these concepts also performed better overall throughout the class. Finally, this consensus-based educational approach can easily be adapted to remote synchronous learning platforms which have been necessitated by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Pre-emptive intervention and its effect on student attainment and retention

This paper describes how a small educational technology (edtech) company worked with academics, combining technological expertise, science content expertise, pedagogy and social research methodology to develop and evaluate the effect of video feedback on learners’ ability to answer science questions correctly. The investigation was carried out by the research team in Tassomai as part of their involvement with the EDUCATE programme. The Tassomai team worked with the research mentors in EDUCATE to find the best ways of helping students both to understand science concepts and to help them correctly answer science questions in exams. Findings indicated that, as expected, the video feedback helped learners to answer the question correctly, but also that, after a delay of around one week, a higher proportion of those students were still able to answer the question correctly compared to those in a control group of learners who did not have access to the related instructive video. The collaborative work between the Tassomai research team and the EDUCATE business and research mentors provided an environment to share expertise and channel it to improve Tassomai’s offering to learners. As a result of this study, Tassomai is now investing in the production of more instructive videos to help students understand difficult science concepts, and students will be offered these videos if they are having difficulty in answering the questions correctly.

Science for Students with Visual Impairment: An Analysis of Hands-on Activity

Science courses are considered to be one of the most difficult courses since they contain difficult and abstract concepts for the individual who needs special education. Because traditional science teaching is mostly based on visual teaching. However, an effective science education can be done by making instructional adaptations and taking into account the individual needs of the students. In this study, the science activities and materials prepared by taking into consideration the needs of the students with visual impairment using the case study of qualitative research methods were made. the study sample consisted eight students including three blind and five students with low vision. The Activity Evaluation Scale (AES) was used to collect data. At the end, activities and materials were evaluated by teacher and independent researchers. In order to ensure the reliability of the study, the videos which were recorded during the course separately analyzed by the researchers, the AES was filled and then the analyses of the researchers were compared. As a result, it was determined that the science activity and materials prepared for the students with visual impairment can be useful in teaching the concepts of heat conductor and heat insulator.

Resolution of electric field distribution and conductivity in a non-uniform electric field: A teaching proposal

This work offers an alternative teaching proposal for the instruction of challenging concepts of electric field distribution and specific conductivity in a non-uniform electric field. Specifically, electric field lines are initially plotted and later on the relation between the electric potential difference and electric field strength is validated. Additionally, on a selected electric field line, electric field strength versus path length and also conductivity versus path length are plotted to comprehend and teach exceedingly difficult concepts of uniform and non-uniform electric fields. In order to accomplish those tasks, a basic conducting sheet, that is simply a wet cardboard, is designed as a part of the apparatus together with a dc power supply, a multi meter and connecting cables. The established method is interesting in the sense that designed the conducting wet cardboard is novel, very practical, beneficial and minimal costing, hence the approach offers physics educators fresh teaching routes and opportunities to clarify the puzzling concepts of electrical field and conductivity.

A paradigm shift for academia teaching in the era of virtual technology: The case study of developing an edugame in animal science

The lack of real-life experiences, such as handling livestock at a production facility (e.g., ranch), exists for a variety of reasons such as availability, liability, time, and cost, amongst others. As more students enter undergraduate animal science programs without prior exposure to animal handling, the necessity for more hands-on, real-life experiences has increased dramatically. Complementary, educational simulation games (edugames) might provide means to overcome the lack of “hands-on” experiential learning by providing similar interactions in a virtual context. The primary goal of this study was to document the design and construction phase of a virtual cattle-handling simulation (CowSim) edugame, and to analyse preliminary survey data. An association exists between students’ notion of cattle being mishandled (or not) depending on students’ previous opportunity to work with animals (χ2 P value = 0.0017). Furthermore, students with previous experience handling cattle did not feel more prepared to handle cattle after playing CowSim, but students with previous experience handling cattle indicated they learned more about cattle handling after playing CowSim. After playing the CowSim game, students were, in general, optimistic about their playing experience. They perceived the CowSim game was realistic enough to increase their preparedness towards handling cattle. Our findings suggested there is heightened interest was for the use of an edugame to help visualize difficult concepts. Virtual learning tools such as the CowSim edugame are essential for advancing animal science education through the integration of virtual technology. However, improvements are warranted in the CowSim to capture more realistic scenarios given the complexity of the simulation game.

Developing public administration education by focusing on difficult key concepts: The case of Nigeria and Ghana

Students’ understanding of public administration (PA) plays an important role in ensuring the quality of human resources that African universities produce. Using a quantitative approach and sample N ​= ​650, this paper draws on empirical evidences of students lived expereinces of what they consider difficult in the study of PA in Ghana and Nigeria; establishing relations between selected variables and perceived difficulties. The study concludes that, African university students not having previous backgrounds in PA and syllabus being too wide accounts for difficulties in the study of PA; there is a statistically significant difference regarding bureaucracy, ethics, corruption, and arms of government between lower levels and upper level African university students on the perceived difficulty in the study of PA and there is a statistically significant difference between Bachelor of Business Administration and Bachelor of Science Public Administration among African university students in all concepts observed except government, public policy, politics and defining PA. We suggest teaching PA is remodeled as a study of classroom training that places students understanding at its core. F0B7 • Students find some concepts difficult to study in PA which has negative implications for the development of Africa and its higher education. F0B7 • Effective university training in PA is crucial for Africa’s public sector and its educational systems. F0B7 • Government reforms at making teaching student-centered are critical at reducing student difficulties in the study of PA and improving Africa’s public sector. F0B7 • Evidences from mainstream science courses provides hope for achieving simplifying difficult concepts in the study of PA to foster Africa’s education and its development.

Pre-class online video learning and class style expectation: patterns, association, and precision medical education

Background Online video learning has been gaining substantial attention in medical education. The purpose of the study was to evaluate medical students’ online video-viewing patterns as well as to identify features associated with their class style preferences in precision medicine courses. Methods A mixed methods research design was used. Part of the cognitive load of the class content of “acute liver failure” was shifted to a 10-minute pre-class online video learning which was further reduced using threshold concept strategy. In the 2019 academic year, all fifth-year medical students who had viewed the pre-class video were invited to take a survey on their learning process and four class style expectations for the upcoming in-person class. For each round of medical students, teaching assistants helped collect anonymous survey data before the class. The teacher then adjusted the in-person class as part of precision medical education. Furthermore, the researchers coded the video-viewing patterns through an action log transformation, along with the questionnaire results, for analysis. Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis tests were employed to compare group differences. Qualitative data were content-coded through a descriptive approach using thematic analysis. Results Of the 130 medical students, 114 (87.7%) joined the pre-class video learning, 113 (86.9%) responded to the questionnaires, and 87 (66.9%) provided their comments. Most medical students preferred the class styles of a thorough introduction (42.5%) and concept orientation (44.2%). High-engagement viewing patterns were associated with difficult concepts and the provision of comments. Class style expectation and video-viewing patterns did not demonstrate significant linkages. A majority of the substantial comments initiated thought-provoking questions after the online video learning. Conclusion Association between medical students’ preferred class styles and online video-viewing patterns was not necessarily linked. However, medical teachers are recommended to modify class styles based on medical students’ expectations after pre-class learning, thereby providing precision medical education. KEY MESSAGE Implementing precision medical education in the blended class is feasible. Online video learning is an ideal platform for balancing the dilemma between increasing the cognitive load of class content and the practice of precision medical education. The association between medical students’ preferred class styles and online video-viewing patterns was not clearly seen.

A translanguage pedagogy to promote Biotechnology concept engagement and academic literacy in a linguistically-diverse university context

Following the call for transformation, higher education institutions in South Africa were required to promote and implement indigenous languages in teaching and learning. This has led to various strategies and resources being explored and implemented, multilingual glossaries among them. In science, where English remains the global means of communication, our experience has been that such interventions are often underutilized. A more inclusive, holistic pedagogy is required to adequately prepare students, especially non-English speakers, for international scientific engagement. One such pedagogy is presently proposed and tested. Its purpose is to harness the dominant language - that which is most active in the learners’ minds - to first promote epistemological access to difficult scientific concepts, and after concept acquisition, develop the required English, scientific, and academic literacy. Biotechnology undergraduate students at Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) - many of whom are international - reported enhancing their learning experience and recognised the significance of their dominant language in deep learning as a result of this translanguage pedagogy. Such a pedagogy demonstrates that multilingualism, far from being viewed as an impediment to teaching and learning, should be seen as a rich resource that needs to be harnessed to facilitate epistemic access, cognitive development, transformation, social cohesion, and respect for all languages.

Analysis of misconceptions and alternative conceptions on the concept of ecology in senior secondary school online biology resources

Studies have established that misconceptions and alternative conceptions held by students are major barriers to meaningful learning of difficult concepts in Biology, and their sources have been traced to teachers, students, and Biology textbooks. The proliferation of e-learning in recent time due to COVID 19 pandemic has mount more pressure on the need for online resources consumption. Literature has it that difficult topics in biology were the most online resource visited frequently which the concept of Ecology falls into difficult topic to teach and to learn in biology. It is yet to be established if online Biology resources contain misconceptions and alternative conceptions in online content related to the concept of Ecology. The survey type of descriptive research method was adopted in the study. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 90 online Biology resources which were grouped into three categories based on ownerships i.e. educational institutional, corporate organization, and blogger websites. Three instruments, namely; Misconceptions in Online Biology Resource Content Analysis Template (MOBRCAT), and Alternative Conceptions in Online Biology resources Content Analysis Template (ACOBRCAT) and a questionnaire, “Students’ Frequently Visited Biology Websites (SFVBW)” were the researcher designed instruments used for data gathering. The findings of the study were that: misconceptions and alternative conceptions existed in the contents of senior school online resources on Ecology on websites hosted by bloggers (100%), and none on educational institution websites and corporate organization websites. This implies that online resources are also a source of misconceptions and alternative conceptions of Biology concepts, which could contribute to students’ poor performance in Biology. It was therefore recommended that Biology students, teachers, and researchers need to be sensitive and selective on the categories of websites that hosted online Biology resources.

Using Augmented Reality for Teaching Chemistry

Different technologies have been implemented in the educational sector to improve the method of teaching and learning. Augmented reality is one of the most trending technologies in the f ield of computer graphics and is used in different departments, especially in education as a smart learning environment. Augmented Reality (AR) technology has effective potential that enhances and replaces the old way of learning into a new digitized smart learning environment by converting the school books into a virtual 3D environment containing experiments and object having animation, which helps students extracting and absorbing complex concepts in less amount of time. AR is a computer vision-based technology that works by tracking the surrounding using a smartphone camera and then superimposing virtual 3D objects into the real world. Capabilities of Augmented Reality make classes more engaging, collaborative, and interactive. Studying may not be every student's cup of tea but with the help of smart learn- ing environment school lessons become much more interesting, interactive, and fun to learn. This research gives a brief insight that the interactive AR chem- istry application may lead the students to grasp diff icult concepts of chemistry more easily in an entertaining and engaging ways.

Functions of L1 Use in EFL Classes: Students’ Observations

This study aims to identify functions (Note 1) of teachers’ first language (L1) use in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes in public schools in Jordan based on students’ observations. The questionnaire items were selected based on the most common uses of L1 in second language (L2) classrooms as identified in the literature. The questionnaire was designed to elicit students’ observations to identify functions of EFL teachers’ L1 in English classes. The participants were 104 EFL students in Grades 10 and 11 in four Jordanian public schools. Participants’ responses to the questionnaire were analysed quantitatively using SPSS, a statistical software package. The study found that the students observed that their teachers shared their L1 with them in English classes to: 1) Explain complex grammar points, 2) Define some new vocabulary items, 3) Explain difficult concepts or ideas, 4) Give instructions, 5) Praise the students, 6) Translate the reading texts, and 7) Explain the similarities and differences between Arabic and English in terms of grammar, structure or pronunciation. However, the students did not observe that their teachers used the L1 in order to maintain discipline in the class as previous studies have found. The findings suggest that teachers’ L1 use in the L2 classroom may indicate the usefulness of this practice and call to license EFL teachers to use their L1 in English classes in public school in Jordan and other similar EFL contexts.

COMPARISON OF ONLINE VS CLASSROOM DELIVERY OF UNDERGRADUATE BASIC MEDICAL SCIENCES MODULE

ABSTRACT
 BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: Corona virus disease (Covid-19) pandemic has impacted lives and institutes globally with serious consequences. No doubt universities are facing immense challenges in this transition to online education. To evaluate the effectiveness of online system of teaching in Covid 19 pandemic as compared to classroom teaching in a basic medical sciences module.
 METHODOLOGY: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Islamic International Dental College, from 15th February to 15th May 2020 on 1ST year BDS students. At the end of their online module, an online feedback questionnaire was given to students. Assessment of the online module was compared with the previous class module assessment to get an insight of their performance. SPSS version 25 was used. Student’s t test was used.
 RESULTS: A highly significant p value was found in both Physiology and Biochemistry online tests as compared to class tests. Regarding feedback, 63(91.3%) students preferred classroom teaching as it enhanced active participation 59 (85.5%) and student teacher engagement 62 (89.9%). Students agreed that queries were addressed during online sessions 57 (70.9%) but they seemed less motivated 21(30.4%) and grasping of difficult concepts was tough 48 (69.5%). Teachers seemed more enthusiastic in online teaching 52 (75.4%), but there was variety of teaching tools used in classroom sessions 65 (94.2%).
 CONCLUSION: Gradually medical universities, faculty and students will adapt with the e-learning but we need to implement innovative and proactive measures for students and faculty to enhance students learning.

Effectiveness of Educational videos and Games for the concept clarity and understanding of social studies subject: An intervention study

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is considered a key requirement for learners as it augments their learning. This study investigated the effectiveness of utilising educational videos and games into teaching for better understanding and concept clarity of students in the subject of Social Studies. This experimental study was conducted in two Government Secondary schools, for four weeks on a sample size of fifty-eight students of class eight. Different topics from Social Studies subject were taught to the sample with the help of educational videos and games. The difference between the concept understanding of control and experimental group students was calculated through t-tests. The significant values of t-tests(0.00) and effect size(r=0.96) indicated that teaching through educational videos and games helped students in better way for their clarity of abstract and complex concepts of Social Studies subject. In the focus group discussion, students mentioned that teaching with educational videos and games helped them in understanding the difficult concepts of Social Studies and developed their interest in the subject.

Addressing Infection Risk in Veterinary Practice through the Innovative Application of Interactive 3D Animation Methods

Antimicrobial resistance is of growing concern in human and animal health. The aim of this study was to raise awareness and perception of risk of infection-related behaviours during routine preparation for veterinary surgery. We took a multi-disciplinary and multi-method approach to ‘make visible, the invisible’ by illustrating how microbial contamination can be spread during the preparation process for surgical procedures. The design-led visualization approach enhanced inter-disciplinary team and workshop participant contributions during the co-development of an innovative digital tool to support training for veterinary practitioners and students. After experiencing the intervention, 92% of 51 participants agreed to change their behaviour and stated an intention to implement an infection control behaviour that aligned with training objectives. The 3D graphics enhanced the delivery of training content by making difficult and abstract contamination concepts easy to understand. A similar approach could be taken for human health applications.

Application of bioinspired algorithms for solving transcomputational tasks

The paper investigates the pattern recognition task as one of the most important transcomputational problems. Pattern recognition is applied for statistical data analysis, signal processing, image analysis, bioinformatics, machine learning, and many other fields. The area of application is related to automated pattern detection in the data using computer algorithms and data classification in terms of different categories. The development of new ideas in the processing of large volumes of information creates a new trend in the pattern recognition area. A specific field is formed by the bioinspired algorithms as mathematical reorganization, that transform the initial information into the results based on simulating the evolution methods, natural analogies, and statistic approach. In terms of computer modelling based on the bioinspired algorithms, we can create and develop difficult concepts, for which we have no analytical description. The authors present the optimal bioinspired algorithms based on the ant, monkey, and bat behavior in nature and develop software based on the principle of pattern recognition using the uploaded photo and downloading the results into the file. The experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Remembering Sally Merry: Exemplary Teacher and Mentor

I am teaching Human Rights this fall, and like every time I teach this course, I assign at least one of Sally Merry's articles. The students' response to her work is always gratifying: they are better able to understand difficult concepts, they praise the clarity of her writing, and, by their own admission, they look at human rights from entirely new angles. Merry is not only a giant in human rights scholarship, but she has reshaped many other fields as well—legal pluralism, legal consciousness, indicators, and dispute resolution. Reflections on her life will rightly focus on the impact of her scholarship in law and society, legal anthropology, human rights, and other fields.

Innovative qualitative research data collection and analysis activities that engage nursing students.

Rather than traditional teacher-centered classrooms, it is important for instructors to shift to student-centered models, encouraging active learning. The challenge for instructors is to design in-person and/or virtual classroom activities that introduce and engage students in essential aspects of qualitative research data collection and analysis. Two instructor-created and student-centered activities focused on qualitative data collection and analysis strategies that connect instructors and undergraduate or graduate nursing research students are described. Instructors witnessed students' interaction and robust group discussion. Positive students' evaluations and quantitative success on assignments were noted. Outcomes suggest that these activities (in-person or virtual-platform) for qualitative data collection and analysis are effective classroom strategies to present difficult concepts in an easily understood and learner-friendly context. These leaning activities move students to engage with and learn from one another under instructor's guidance. Other faculty may use these activities in structuring classrooms that involve and stimulate students' critical thinking about qualitative research methods.

Surveying views of metaphor vs. literal language in psychotherapy

Abstract Five key therapeutic functions of metaphors are often discussed by psychotherapists. They (i) help clients express emotions and experiences, (ii) help therapists and clients explain difficult concepts, (iii) introduce new frames of reference, (iv) help work through client resistance, and (v) build a collaborative relationship between therapists and clients. Research on how these functions are enacted in psychotherapy talk tends to assume that they are indeed perceived as such by clients, and that metaphorical language is preferred to comparable literal language in performing them. This paper reports a survey study (N = 84) to critically interrogate these assumptions. Participants read two constructed therapy dialogues, controlled and counterbalanced for presentation sequence, where therapist and client discuss an issue using metaphorical and literal language respectively. Each dialogue is followed by a 15-item questionnaire to rate how well the presumed functions were performed (e.g. the therapist and client can work effectively together, the therapist is able to explain difficult concepts). A combined Confirmatory (CFA) and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) suggests that, instead of the five distinct functions proposed in the literature, participants discerned three functions which reflect a more holistic view of what metaphors can do. A second EFA conducted on literal responses yielded only two factors. This contrast in factor structure further suggests that (i) literal language is less functionally nuanced, and (ii) metaphors are not simply perceived as an ‘add-on’ to literal language, but are evaluated across an extended narrative in fundamentally different ways. Within-subjects metaphor vs. literal ratings of the items under the emergent three-factor structure were then compared. Metaphor ratings were significantly higher in all factors (p < 0.01), suggesting that metaphorical language is indeed perceived as more effective than literal language when discussing clients’ issues. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

Influence of gender and career interest on African university students’ perceived difficult concepts in the study of public administration

There have been few studies on topic difficulty in the public administration curriculum of African universities. This is further problematized by non-existent literature on the relationships between gender, future career interest and country of study on student difficulty in the study of public administration. This is a gap in the public administration literature which this study attempts to fill. The work is significant to the extent that our understanding of ‘where the shirt tights’ regarding topics that students find difficult will guide teachers and other stakeholders in applying appropriate remedies. The purpose of the study is to find out (a) what topics in public administration students find difficult to learn; (b) if there are statistically significant relationship between gender and concept difficulty in the study of public administration in African universities; (c) if there are statistically significant relationship between student’s career interest and concept difficulty in the study of public administration; and (d) if there are statistically significant relationship between country of study and concept difficulty in the study of public administration. Quantitative method was employed with sample (N = 650). The study reports bureaucracy, decentralization, public policy and politics as moderately difficult; significant relationship between gender and concept difficulty; and significant relationship between student future career interest and concept difficulty. We suggest curriculum development that would improve students’ knowledge by laying more emphasis on the perceived difficult areas in the study of public administration, gender, and encourage early students’ interest in public sector career choices.