Instructional Science

Students’ socioeconomic background is a strong predictor of academic achievement. Likewise, teaching quality is considered an important prerequisite influencing students’ educational opportunities and their academic achievement and affective outcomes. Empirically, there is still a need for research on these presumed relations. Especially on the associations between younger students’ perceptions of teaching quality and students’ mathematics achievement and mathematics confidence. Drawing theoretically on educational effectiveness research, this study investigated relationships between aspects of teaching quality (classroom management and instructional clarity) and mathematics achievement and mathematics confidence. These relationships were explored in a secondary analysis of students’ perceptions of their teacher’s activities and instructions as indicators of teaching quality. The rationale is that students experience and perceive the teacher’s actions in the classroom, and they may be influenced differently. Aggregating students’ perceptions at the classroom level will decrease the bias of individual ratings. The sample comprised grade four data from the Swedish 2019 cycle of the IEA Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) (N = 3,965). Multilevel structural equation modelling was used to keep classroom variation separate from individual variation when exploring associations between classroom management and instructional clarity and mathematics achievement, and mathematics confidence. Results showed that at the classroom level, mathematics achievement is strongly related to aggregated classroom management. At the individual level, classroom management was associated significantly with mathematics achievement, and instructional clarity with mathematics confidence. Additionally, teaching quality could be beneficial for students with lower SES backgrounds, as findings indicated an achievement gap between classrooms in Sweden. Limitations and implications are discussed.

Understanding nanoscale phenomena poses significant challenges for students because it requires reasoning about emergent behaviours that are invisible and highly abstract. Agent-based models (ABMs) can function as embodied learning environments, enabling students to manipulate individual agents and observe system-level outcomes while engaging embodied processes such as perspective taking, causal inference, and motor-supported thinking. In this study, two treatment conditions were developed: (a) working with ABMs and (b) watching visualization videos. The aim was to investigate whether ABMs are associated with greater engagement in embodied reasoning strategies than videos, and whether such engagement is associated with conceptual understanding in nanoscience education. Twenty-seven undergraduate students were assigned to one of the two conditions, and their conceptual understanding was assessed through pre- and post-tests alongside process data. Results showed that ABM students demonstrated greater gains in explanatory knowledge, knowledge transfer and engaged more frequently in embodied reasoning strategies. Beyond nanoscience, the findings illustrate how technology-enhanced instructional designs that leverage embodied processes—such as gesture, spatial transformation, and active manipulation—may support students’ reasoning about complex scientific phenomena across STEM domains.

Mobile augmented reality (MAR) provides learners with an immersive and interactive experience. However, few studies have applied situated learning theory (SLT) to the design of MAR in educational contexts, and even fewer have explored its use in the learning of Tang poetry. This study aimed to address this gap by designing and developing a mobile augmented reality application (app) based on situated learning theory (SLT-MAR) to support primary school students in learning Tang poetry. The study involved 120 4th-grade students from a public primary school in central China. Using a QUAN-qual sequential mixed-methods experimental design, this study examined the effectiveness of the SLT-MAR app. The results indicated that students using the SLT-MAR app outperformed students in the MAR and traditional classroom learning (TCL) groups in terms of Tang poetry achievement, motivation, and technology acceptance. In addition, semi-structured interviews revealed that students perceived the SLT-MAR app as enhancing their motivation and found it beneficial to their Tang poetry learning. The study discusses both theoretical and practical implications, contributes to the literature on integrating SLT with AR technology in educational settings, and provides insights for future research and practice.

This design-based research study examines the implementation of inclusive pedagogy in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom in a Chinese elementary school, integrating the Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling (TPRS) method within the Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) framework. Addressing a critical gap, it explores how inclusive pedagogy can be effectively applied within China’s exam-oriented education system, where such practices are often misunderstood or underutilised. Over three years, iterative cycles of planning, action, development, and reflection refined teaching strategies and assessed their impact on diverse learners. Data were collected through teacher field notes, classroom videos, parent and peer-teacher feedback, and student assessments, including standardised tests and reading evaluations using the Oxford Reading Criterion Scale. The findings indicate that inclusive pedagogy significantly enhanced students’ English proficiency, engagement, and sense of belonging, benefiting high-, mid-, and low-performing students alike. Additionally, the study highlights the transformative role of teacher collaboration and parental involvement in overcoming cultural and systemic barriers. By providing empirical evidence of the effectiveness of inclusive pedagogy in a non-Western context, this research offers valuable insights for educators and policymakers aiming to implement inclusive practices in diverse educational settings. The findings underscore the importance of evidence-based, culturally responsive approaches to inclusive education that support all learners.

Design-based research (DBR) is a widely adopted methodology in the learning sciences. As an alternative to the conventional experimental studies in controlled lab settings, DBR recognizes the intricate dynamics of the naturalistic educational settings and distinguishes itself through well-defined contexts and iterative design cycles that generate findings to inform both theory and practice. A significant advancement in DBR is Sandoval’s introduction of conjecture mapping (CM) in 2004 and subsequently refined in 2014. CM provides a visual framework to elucidate the DBR designs, with the primary objective of identifying the most critical features of a learning design. This paper reports on a case of adopting CM in a three-cycle DBR study of Character Education Learning through Digital Storytelling in Primary 5 classrooms in Singapore. It refines the conjecture formulation and introduces a generic conjecture statement to reinforce the robustness of DBR design logic. Design principles, intervention evidence, and complementary evidence are incorporated as new components to strengthen the links between DBR and CM frameworks. Additionally, it enhances the visual notations of the map to systematically distinguish conjectures by their status and prominence within each cycle. This paper exemplifies the application of CM. It contributes to the ongoing discourse on CM, while advancing the discussion of DBR as a meta-methodology and proposing future directions for DBR and CM research.

A review of the literature reveals a discrepancy about what type of task with concept maps is the most effective for individual learning. Furthermore, to date, no research has compared these tasks in individual and collaborative learning contexts. This paper explores the influence of the different tasks on learning, involving concept maps and summaries. The participants were 226 undergraduates who were randomly assigned to 12 experimental conditions. Two independent variables were considered: the knowledge representation task (fill-in-the-blanks concept map, sort a shuffled concepts-provided map, self-construct a map, write a summary) and the structure of the activity (individual + collaborative, collaborative + individual, and fully individual). In addition to the evaluation of comprehension and delayed recall, 4195 verbal exchanges during the collaborative activities were recorded and analyzed. Results confirm an interaction between the type of task and the structure of the activity. The students who self-constructed complete concept maps and then discussed them in pairs obtained better learning results than those in other conditions. Verbal interaction was much more dialogic in this type of task, with a significantly greater proportion than in the other conditions of in-depth exploratory talk episodes, and a lower proportion of cumulative talk. However, the fill-in-the-blanks and shuffled-concepts conditions provided a greater proportion of superficial exploratory talk, and the collaborative summary condition generated a greater proportion of non-dialogic talk fragments. The findings are discussed in the context of the ICAP (Interactive, Constructive, Active, and Passive learning) framework, cognitive load theory and the sociocultural perspective on dialogic learning.

In an increasingly competitive educational landscape, understanding the determinants of academic success is imperative. While prior research has identified epistemic curiosity as a predictor of academic achievement, the psychological mechanisms through which curiosity cultivates internal resources—such as grit and learning flow—remain underexplored. Drawing on Psychological Capital Theory and Self-Determination Theory, the present study investigates how epistemic curiosity promotes grit and learning flow, which together constitute a serial mediation pathway leading to academic success in a large sample of Chinese adolescents. Utilizing data from 17,352 students across 36 primary and secondary schools in 21 provinces in China (age = 9–18, M = 14.1, SD = 2.9), we employed established measures such as the Epistemic Curiosity Scale, Grit-S, and Study-Related Flow Inventory. Our findings reveal that: (1) epistemic curiosity, grit, learning flow, and academic performance are significantly and positively correlated; (2) learning flow and grit may potentially serve as partial mediators in the relationships between epistemic curiosity and academic performance; (3) grit and learning flow point to a potential sequential mediation process connecting epistemic curiosity to academic performance. This research advances the theoretical understanding of curiosity-driven psychological resource development and offers valuable implications for educational policy and practice, emphasizing the importance of nurturing these psychological traits to enhance student performance.