https://phys.org/science-news/education/ en-us Phys.org provides latest news on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education Imagine opening a difficult book in a quiet room. The first page is dense. You read one paragraph, then reread it. Nothing "clicks" yet. Your brain is doing what learning often requires: spending effort before the reward arrives. Then your phone lights up. One thumb movement, and the situation changes completely. A joke, a message, a clip, a tiny social reward: all available instantly, all requiring almost no effort. The book has not become harder and, definitely, your intelligence has not disappeared. But the book now feels more expensive, because another activity nearby offers a much better bargain: reward now, effort almost zero. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-instant-digital-rewards-hard-worthwhile.html Social Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:40:01 EDT news702221821 Reading difficulties, like dyslexia, are common and often affect achievement and outcomes during school and later in life. A new study, published in Current Biology, reports that current methods used to test for reading disabilities in young children may be missing a certain subgroup of children whose reading issues stem from visual-processing difficulties. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-language-based-screeners-kids-struggle.html Education Wed, 24 Jun 2026 13:00:01 EDT news701522868 In the minds of many people, math lives in the classroom—on blackboards, in textbooks, and in tests. New research from Amber Simpson, associate professor in the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Educational Leadership at Binghamton University's College of Community and Public Affairs, shows how math is happening all around us, especially at home, and that families don't even realize the role they play in how children experience mathematics. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-math-lesson-children-kitchen-table.html Education Wed, 17 Jun 2026 21:20:02 EDT news700931562 Can your behavior in third grade predict outcomes in high school and beyond? A new study, published in Developmental Psychology, says yes. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-grade-impulses-linked-academic-adulthood.html Education Thu, 11 Jun 2026 19:00:03 EDT news700414921 A dribble and a jump shot, followed by a fractions task. That is what physical education classes looked like for a group of pupils, and the pupils not only found the lessons more engaging than usual—they also became better at mathematics with a basketball in their hands, according to a new study from the University of Copenhagen. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-basketball-mathematics-children-boost-math.html Mathematics Wed, 10 Jun 2026 12:40:04 EDT news700308601 A major new study led by researchers at Queen Mary University of London has revealed that noncognitive skills—such as motivation, curiosity, academic interest and self-belief—play a key role in translating children's genetic dispositions into academic achievement. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-children-attitudes-play-key-role.html Education Tue, 09 Jun 2026 15:40:05 EDT news700233370 Recent technological advances and the introduction of new digital media platforms have dramatically changed how people learn and source information about topics that interest them. Some recent studies have found that while browsing online or scrolling down social media platforms, users tend to spend under one minute on average on individual videos. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-short-videos-hinder-fragmenting-attention.html Education Thu, 04 Jun 2026 08:40:04 EDT news699715452 States with restrictive abortion policies saw slower growth in the proportion of female medical school applicants following the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade, according to a new study published in the open-access journal PLOS Global Public Health by Amrit Kirpalani of Western University, Canada, and colleagues. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-abortion-restrictions-female-medical-school.html Social Sciences Wed, 03 Jun 2026 14:00:08 EDT news699694141 A new study by researchers at the University of Tokyo explores whether reading manga on paper or on a tablet changes how the brain understands and remembers stories. Participants first read the opening half of a two-part manga story either on paper or on a tablet. Later, while inside an MRI scanner, they read the second half through LCD goggles and answered questions about the story. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-manga-brain-storytelling-advantage.html Education Wed, 03 Jun 2026 14:00:01 EDT news699706839 Italians are famous for speaking with their hands. But a new international study suggests that when it comes to teaching children, adults everywhere instinctively become more expressive with their gestures—even in cultures known for gesturing less. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-italians-dutch-gestural-instinct-reveals.html Social Sciences Thu, 28 May 2026 17:40:01 EDT news699194041 The citations at the end of a research paper should represent a solid foundation of existing knowledge about a particular field, a pool of peer-reviewed sources built over years of research and study. However, with the increasing use of AI and large language models in writing research papers, there's a growing chance that the citation someone clicks on may not even exist, and that the study, the source, or even the researchers themselves could be entirely fake. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ai-generated-fake-citations-scientific.html Education Mon, 18 May 2026 12:40:06 EDT news698316483 As more people—including researchers—use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in their writing, it's becoming increasingly important to define what plagiarism looks like and how to police it. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-policing-plagiarism-ideas-generative-ai.html Education Mon, 18 May 2026 09:58:38 EDT news698317071 For decades, researchers have documented an achievement gap between children from higher- and lower-income families. On average, children with more resources perform better in school and on cognitive tests. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-child-environment-brain-problems.html Social Sciences Thu, 14 May 2026 12:14:38 EDT news697979641 The sci-fi film Project Hail Mary, currently in theaters, is capturing the attention of both audiences and the scientific community for its science-based content. It manages to engage viewers with complex, cutting-edge topics—from astrophysics to language—without sacrificing entertainment. Yet not all films strike this balance. Many have promoted inaccurate or even misleading scientific ideas, and, thanks to their wide reach, have contributed to shaping distorted public perceptions of science. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cinema-effect-gateway-science.html Education Wed, 13 May 2026 00:00:01 EDT news697727761 A new Columbia University School of Nursing AI-assisted audit reveals nearly 3,000 peer-reviewed medical papers have fake citations that do not exist in scientific databases. The results highlight an alarming trend in academic publishing as the use of AI grows. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-peer-medical-papers-fake-citations.html Education Fri, 08 May 2026 09:00:03 EDT news697447922 For decades, the common explanation for why children struggle to read has stayed remarkably consistent. Smart kids read well. Kids who don't simply aren't smart enough. And when children strain over a page, the assumption has often been that something about how they see the text is getting in the way. By this logic, reading comes down to intelligence and visual processing. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-years-struggles-obvious-massive-analysis.html Education Thu, 07 May 2026 19:00:08 EDT news697377932 You probably know that Einstein changed the face of physics with his theory of relativity in his twenties. What you may not know is that he spent his later career on a crusade against quantum mechanics, the model that would go on to drive the next century of advances in the field. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-nostalgia-effect-scientists-disruptive-age.html Education Thu, 07 May 2026 17:50:02 EDT news697391521 Millions of students worldwide have long relied on self-paced learning through pre-recorded video lectures, a model that forms the backbone of massive open online courses (MOOCs) and large-scale online education. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, dependence on video-based online learning has increased significantly, with learner participation rising sharply. However, this expansion has also been accompanied by a widespread decline in student engagement, undermining overall learning outcomes. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-ai-human-teachers-pre-chat.html Education Wed, 06 May 2026 13:00:04 EDT news697285561 Artificial intelligence can undoubtedly help scientists with their academic papers by summarizing research and helping to improve writing. However, one downside is that it has led to a wave of poorly written submissions and reviews, according to a new study published in Organization Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-journal-ai-academic-publishing-quality.html Other Fri, 01 May 2026 14:40:06 EDT news696849537 Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed college writing. As paper drafts are increasingly co-written with AI, professors are left wondering not whether students are using AI, but how. A 2025 AI in Education trend report found that 90% of college students use AI in their coursework, with nearly half using it during the drafting process. As AI becomes embedded in everyday writing, traditional tools like Grammarly or Turnitin for evaluating student learning fall short. If AI is to be expected in most student writing, then merely detecting its presence isn't enough. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-tool-ai-role-student-visible.html Education Sun, 26 Apr 2026 11:00:03 EDT news695918955 Every 25 minutes in the United States, a baby is diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a condition that occurs in newborns who have been exposed to opioids in the womb and develop withdrawal after birth, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Historically, research has focused on the impact of NAS—also known as neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome—on the health and development of young children, which has found that prenatal opioid exposure is associated with increased risk for adverse developmental, cognitive and behavioral outcomes in early childhood. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-prenatal-opioid-exposure-babies-doesnt.html Education Sat, 18 Apr 2026 17:00:04 EDT news695313246 Learning a second language is becoming increasingly popular worldwide, with millions of people turning to digital tools and mobile applications to pick up a new language at their own pace. But what makes some more popular or effective than others? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-memory-language.html Education Wed, 15 Apr 2026 09:20:01 EDT news695463422 A new study finds teachers tend to provide assistance to similar subsets of students when using AI-powered educational tools, rather than touching base regularly with everyone in their classes. The findings could be used to develop tools that help teachers track their classroom interactions to ensure they are giving each student the attention they need. The paper is published on the arXiv preprint server. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-teachers-tend-kids-ai-powered.html Education Tue, 07 Apr 2026 14:10:01 EDT news694788175 Findings from the Systematizing Confidence in Open Research and Evidence (SCORE) program—a collaborative effort involving 865 researchers—have been published in Nature as a collection of three papers alongside a release of five additional preprints. The SCORE program offers new empirical evidence on the reproducibility, robustness, and replicability of research across the social and behavioral sciences, and the predictability of replicability. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-replicate.html Social Sciences Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:00:16 EDT news694187761 Students across education levels have a blind spot for identifying situations that might bring their academic integrity into questionable territory, a study finds. When navigating questions on citation, collaboration, and data collection, students in higher education struggle to identify the gray zones in academic practice. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-college-students-struggle-problematic-gray.html Education Tue, 31 Mar 2026 15:40:04 EDT news694179662 To date, the main role of AI in scientific research has been to assist with narrow tasks such as discovering chemical structures, analyzing data or predicting protein shapes. But now, the technology has broken new ground with a fully AI-generated paper passing peer review at a major machine-learning conference workshop. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ai-paper-peer.html Other Mon, 30 Mar 2026 13:40:06 EDT news694094745 A new study published in Nature Communications finds that worldwide, people with higher levels of education are more culturally similar to those in Canada, the U.S., U.K., and other Anglo, industrialized countries and countries in Western Europe. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-student-samples-higher-shift-values.html Social Sciences Fri, 27 Mar 2026 08:40:05 EDT news693819422 Analysis of two decades of student data at a large U.S. university suggests that grade inflation exists in graduate education. Researcher Vivien Lee and colleagues at the University of Minnesota, U.S., present these findings in the journal PLOS One. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-significant-grade-inflation-decades-worth.html Education Wed, 25 Mar 2026 14:00:03 EDT news693587581 When holidays or pandemics shut down schools, gender differences in children's reading habits widen; boys stop reading, while girls continue, according to a new study from the University of Copenhagen. The researchers say their findings suggest that boys are more dependent on school routines and expectations than girls. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-boys-ditch-schools-girls.html Social Sciences Tue, 24 Mar 2026 13:00:01 EDT news693570698 When we learn something new, that information does not exist in isolation. It integrates into the complex landscape of our knowledge, forging connections with existing ideas and opening up possibilities for new learning. In a study in Nature Communications, Dartmouth researchers report a mathematical technique for mapping the unique landscape of a student's conceptual knowledge from their performance on short multiple-choice quizzes. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-mathematical-framework-landscape-student-knowledge.html Mathematics Tue, 24 Mar 2026 06:00:02 EDT news693488653