Student Perceptions of Chemistry Laboratory Learning Environments, Student–Teacher Interactions and Attitudes in Secondary School Gifted Education Classes in Singapore

This study investigated the chemistry laboratory classroom environment, teacher–student interactions and student attitudes towards chemistry among 497 gifted and non-gifted secondary-school students in Singapore. The data were collected using the 35-item Chemistry Laboratory Environment Inventory (CLEI), the 48-item Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) and the 30-item Questionnaire on Chemistry-Related Attitudes (QOCRA). Results supported the validity and reliability of the CLEI and QTI for this sample. Stream (gifted versus non-gifted) and gender differences were found in actual and preferred chemistry laboratory classroom environments and teacher–student interactions. Some statistically significant associations of modest magnitude were found between students' attitudes towards chemistry and both the laboratory classroom environment and the interpersonal behaviour of chemistry teachers. Suggestions for improving chemistry laboratory classroom environments and the teacher–student interactions for gifted students are provided.     

University physics students’ ideas of thermal radiation expressed in open laboratory activities using infrared cameras

Background: University physics students were engaged in open-ended thermodynamics laboratory activities with a focus on understanding a chosen phenomenon or the principle of laboratory apparatus, such as thermal radiation and a heat pump. Students had access to handheld infrared (IR) cameras for their investigations.

Purpose: The purpose of the research was to explore students’ interactions with reformed thermodynamics laboratory activities. It was guided by the research question: How do university physics students make use of IR cameras in open-ended investigation of thermal radiation as a phenomenon?

Sample: The study was conducted with a class of first-year university physics students in Sweden. The interaction with the activities of four of the students was selected for analysis. The four students are males.

Design and methods: We used a qualitative, interpretive approach to the study of students’ interaction. The primary means of data collection was video recording of students’ work with the laboratory activities and their subsequent presentations. The analysis focused on how IR cameras helped students notice phenomena relating to thermal radiation, with comparison to previous research on students’ conceptions of thermal radiation.

Results: When using the IR camera, students attended to the reflection of thermal radiation on shiny surfaces, such as polished metals, windows or a whiteboard and emissive properties of surfaces of different types. In this way, they went beyond using the technology as a temperature probe. Students were able to discuss merits and shortcomings of IR cameras in comparison with digital thermometers.

Conclusions: With the help of IR cameras, university physics students attend to thermal phenomena that would otherwise easily go unnoticed.     

Maximising resource allocation in the teaching laboratory: understanding student evaluations of teaching assistants in a team-based teaching format

Minimal research papers have investigated the use of student evaluations on the laboratory, a learning medium usually run by teaching assistants with little control of the content, delivery and equipment. Finding the right mix of teaching assistants for the laboratory can be an onerous task due to the many skills required including theoretical and practical know-how, troubleshooting, safety and class management. Using larger classes with multiple teaching assistants, a team-based teaching (TBT) format may be advantageous. A rigorous three-year study across twenty-five courses over repetitive laboratory classes is analysed using a multi-level statistical model considering students, laboratory classes and courses. The study is used to investigate the effectiveness of the TBT format, and quantify the influence each demonstrator has on the laboratory experience. The study found that TBT is effective and the lead demonstrator most influential, influencing up to 55% of the laboratory experience evaluation.     

以重点实验室为平台,培养地方性工科大学生的实践和创新能力

论述了地方高校重点实验室的作用,特别是在提高本科教学质量、培养大学生的实践和创新能力方面的作用.以桂林理工大学材料学院为例,提出了利用其拥有的重点实验室资源培养学生实践和创新能力的途径、取得的效果以及存在的问题,对于地方工科院校重点实验室建设和人才培养具有一定的借鉴意义.     

实验教学改革与学生创新能力的培养

实验教学改革关系到21世纪人才培养质量。黑龙江科技学院以扩建新校区、实现学院跨越式发展为契机，创新实验教学改革，提高学生的创新能力。     

Anatomical Sciences Education Vol. 5, Issue 3, 2012 Cover Image

Medical students at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at The University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada, learn clinical facts about the hepatobiliary system as transplant surgeon Dr. Vivian McAlister (at the far right) demonstrates Whipple's procedure in the anatomy laboratory. In this issue of ASE, Ullah and colleagues describe an extracurricular student initiative known as the Surgically Oriented Anatomy Program (SOAP), which aims to deliver anatomy teaching from a surgical perspective through the philosophy of “education through recreation”.     

Exploring the relationship between students’ learning styles and learning outcome in engineering laboratory education

Abstract

It is a commonly accepted notion that people take different approaches in learning. Although attention has been given to learning styles as one of the determinants of learning performance, there is are limitations to the inferential approach to understanding the impact of learning styles on learning outcomes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of learning preference on student learning outcome in engineering labs. The findings of this paper contribute to the existing literature in two ways. This study describes the typology of participants’ learning styles, confirming some results from similar research. Additionally, it examines the impact of learning styles, using the Visual, Aural, Read/Write and Kinesthetic (VARK) inventory as indicators of students’ learning outcomes, and how the findings confirm or contradict prior research results in important ways. Further, this study includes demographic information to investigate the influence on learning outcome. Discussions of the results from both analyses will contribute to an academic understanding of the critical success factors of the learning process and their practical application in laboratory learning.     

高校公共计算机实验室管理模式探析

当前,高校公共计算机实验室日益成为集机房教学、上机实践、上机考试、培训、自主学习与实践创新为一体的高校共享平台,传统的高校公共计算机实验室管理模式已无法适应新时期高校人才培养的需求。高校公共计算机实验室管理必须寻求以高水平的实验室技术人员队伍为核心,以先进的技术手段为支撑,以培训机制为辅助的新的管理模式,培养学生的自主学习能力和实践创新能力。     

包装工程实验室的现状与发展探讨

结合国内包装工程实验室的特点和实际情况,分析包装实验室的现状与不足,提出改善我国包装工程实验室现状的建议:强化实验室管理和实验师资队伍建设,实现实验室开放式管理,创新实验室发展模式。     

高校体育专业实验室全方位开放模式探讨

随着社会对人才需求程度的不断提高,高校在人才培养的过程中需要扮演的角色也越来越多元化,除了使学生的专业水平达到社会的要求外,还要对其身体健康等综合性素质的构建作出必要的努力。本文从高校体育专业实验室在人才培养中的作用出发,将实验室开放的目的和要求作了详细的阐述,分析了其开放模式及其实现的途径。目的是通过对高校体育专业实验开放模式的研究,为时下人才的全方位培养提供一定的借鉴。