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Related Concept Videos

The Scientific Method02:40

The Scientific Method

Research is what makes the difference between facts and opinions. Facts are observable realities, and opinions are personal judgments, conclusions, or attitudes that may or may not be accurate. In the scientific community, facts can be established only using evidence collected through empirical research.
The Scientific Method03:50

The Scientific Method

Chemistry is an empirical science. Scientists often pose questions to understand the chemistry in everyday life and seek answers to these questions. To achieve this, scientists follow a definitive series of steps that together make up the Scientific Method. This approach involves making observations, asking questions, building a hypothesis, conducting experiments, analyzing results, and forming a conclusion.
Ethics in Research01:56

Ethics in Research

Today, scientists agree that good research is ethical in nature and is guided by a basic respect for human dignity and safety. However, this has not always been the case. Modern researchers must demonstrate that the research they perform is ethically sound.
Group Design02:01

Group Design

The most basic experimental design involves two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The two groups are designed to be the same except for one difference— experimental manipulation. The experimental group gets the experimental manipulation—that is, the treatment or variable being tested—and the control group does not. Since experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, we can be sure that any differences between the two are due to...
Surveys02:16

Surveys

Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.
Data Collection by Experiments01:13

Data Collection by Experiments

Data collection is a systematic method of obtaining, observing, measuring, and analyzing accurate information. An experimental study is a standard method of data collection that involves the manipulation of the samples by applying some form of treatment prior to data collection. It refers to manipulating one variable to determine its changes on another variable. The sample subjected to treatment is known as “experimental units.”
An example of the experimental method is a public clinical trial...

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Updated: May 31, 2026

Problem-Solving Before Instruction (PS-I): A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities
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Published on: September 11, 2021

What's in a Prompt? Assignment Prompt Cues Influence Data Analysis, Critique, and Inclusion of Follow-up Experiments.

Sloan Zak1, Lisa McDonnell2, Ella Tour2

  • 1Math and Science Learning Center, College of Sciences, San Diego State University, San Diego, California, 92115.

CBE Life Sciences Education
|May 28, 2026
PubMed
Summary

Prompt design significantly impacts how students demonstrate scientific thinking skills. Different assignment prompts influenced data interpretation and the use of scientific practices like evidence-based claims and follow-up experiments.

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Area of Science:

  • STEM Education
  • Biology Education Research

Background:

  • Developing scientific thinking is a key goal in STEM education.
  • Effective assignment design is crucial for fostering critical analysis and evidence-based claims.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how different prompt designs affect the demonstration of scientific thinking skills in undergraduate biology students.
  • To compare student performance across argument-building, sense-making, and grant-reviewer prompt contexts.

Main Methods:

  • 110 upper-division biology majors interpreted the same figure using three distinct prompts.
  • Student responses were benchmarked against those of biology faculty.
  • Prompts varied in cues and task context (argument-building, sense-making, grant-reviewer).

Main Results:

  • Argument and Sense-making prompts led to more complete data interpretations than the Grant reviewer prompt.
  • Students across all prompts struggled to form claims using multi-panel figures.
  • Specific cues in prompts encouraged critique and follow-up experiment suggestions.

Conclusions:

  • Prompt design substantially influences the scientific skills students exhibit.
  • Careful prompt engineering can better elicit critical data evaluation and evidence-based argumentation.
  • Further research is needed to optimize prompts for developing comprehensive scientific reasoning abilities.