Improving student success in chemistry through cognitive science

Chemistry educator Alex H. Johnstone is perhaps best known for his insight that chemistry is best explained using macroscopic, submicroscopic, and symbolic perspectives. But in his writings, he stressed a broader thesis, namely that teaching should be guided by scientific research on how the brain learns: cognitive science. Since Johnstone’s retirement, science’s understanding of learning has progressed rapidly. A surprising discovery has been when solving chemistry problems of any complexity, reasoning does not work: students must apply very-well-memorized facts and algorithms. Following Johnstone’s advice, we review recent discoveries of cognitive science research. Instructional strategies are recommended that cognitive studies have shown help students learn chemistry

Cognition · Cognitive science · Epistemology · Mathematics education · Philosophy of science · Science education · Scientific reasoning · Chemistry · Computer Science · Philosophy · Psychology · Science Education and Pedagogy · Various Chemistry Research Topics · Visual and Cognitive Learning Processes

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• Make It Stick

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• Memory

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• Human Memory

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• The magical number 4 in short-term memory

  Open Access•Nelson Cowan•Behavioral and Brain Sciences•2001

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• Working Memory

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• The Expertise Reversal Effect

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• The Magical Mystery Four

  Open Access•Nelson Cowan•Current Directions in Psychological…•2010

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• Visual working memory capacity

  Open Access•Steven J Luck, Edward K Vogel•Trends in Cognitive Sciences•2013

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• Short-term retention of individual verbal items.

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• Why is science difficult to learn? Things are seldom what they seem

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• Should There Be a Three-Strikes Rule Against Pure Discovery Learning?

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• Instructional design models for well-structured and III-structured problem-solving learning outcomes

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• Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work

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• On The Language Instinct

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