Modern reforms in science education research can present as abstract and difficult to apply to practices that occur within a learning environment. Coined by the Next Generation Science Standards, three-dimensional learning (3DL) describes a phenomena-based approach to teaching that grounds learning in three dimensions: disciplinary core ideas, scientific practices, and crosscutting concepts. In the cross-curricular study presented here, we characterize how in-class curricular emphasis and assessment emphasis supported students’ in making sense of atomic- and molecular-level phenomena using the 3DL framework. The analysis of video recordings and assessment documents was used to produce nuanced characterizations of the instructional and assessment emphases in three first-semester general chemistry learning environments (Didactic, Active, and Three-Dimensional) producing various student outcomes. These data provide concrete examples of curricular reforms enacted across institutions. Evidence suggests focused alignment between assessments and instruction on making sense of chemical phenomena is critical for supporting student engagement. Implications for research include holistically attending to all aspects of a learning environment in order to understand how students are making sense of phenomena. Implications for educators relate to the role different types of intellectual work emphasized during instruction and on assessments throughout the course has in supporting students in applying fundamental disciplinary ideas and concepts to predict, model, and explain, chemical phenomena.

Characterizing learning environments using the three-dimensional learning framework to support students’ making sense of phenomena

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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