The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), has made an effort to increase the use of technology and the use of calculators into the classroom and curriculum. As a result, many studies and articles have been written on the subject of calculator use in the classroom. A review of over 600 studies revealed that it is not curricula that…

In this study, we investigated gender and minority achievement gaps on 8th-grade science items employing a multilevel item response methodology. Both gaps were wider on physics and earth science items than on biology and chemistry items. Larger gender gaps were found on items with specific topics favoring male students than other items, for…

The purpose of this study is to examine students' perceptions of instructional practices in the classroom, and to further investigate the relationships among instructional practices, motivational beliefs and science achievement. Hierarchical linear modelling was utilised to examine the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2007…

This article presents a new perspective on measuring gender differences in the large-scale assessment study Trends in International Science Study (TIMSS). The suggested empirical model is directly based on the theoretical competence model of the domain mathematics and thus includes the interaction between content and cognitive sub-competencies.…

Using Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 eighth-grade international dataset, this study explored the profiles of instructional practices reported by high- and low-performing mathematics teachers across the US, Finland, Korea, and Russia. Concepts of conceptual teaching and procedural teaching were used to frame the…

This study investigated the effect of van Hiele Phase-based Instruction (VHPI) on Ghanaian Pre-service Teachers' (PTs') geometric thinking in terms of the van Hiele Levels. A pre-test post-test quasi-experimental design was employed. There were 75 PTs each in the experimental group and the control group. Van Hiele Geometry Test (VHGT) was…

The aims of this study were to determine low-achieving students' attitudes towards chemistry and how the attitudes differ within a low achieving group. The most preferred teaching methods were also defined. Empirical data (n = 2949) were collected by stratified sampling from fifteen-year-old Finnish lower-secondary school students as part of a…

We conducted a methodological review of articles using the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) or Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data published by the SSCI-indexed science education journals, such as the "International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education," the "International…

Given the abundance of literature describing the strong relationship between inquiry-based teaching and student achievement, more should be known about the factors impacting science teachers' classroom inquiry implementation. This study utilises the theory of planned behaviour to propose and validate a causal model of inquiry-based teaching…

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether certain contextual factors pertaining to principals and teachers influenced U.S. eighth grade students' math achievement. More specifically, the study comparatively examined the direct and mediating predictive influence of teacher instructional approaches (i.e., teacher-directed; constructivism),…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of dimensionality, common-item set format, and different scale linking methods on preserving equity property with mixed-format test equating. Item response theory (IRT) true-score equating (TSE) and IRT observed-score equating (OSE) methods were used under common-item nonequivalent groups design.…

Professional development for teachers has been a substantial issue in contemporary educational research and policy. Yet, opportunities for professional development activities have been very limited in Turkey. In this study, we examined Turkish teachers' involvement in professional development activities by comparing their participation with the…

The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast student, teacher, and school factors that are associated with student mathematics achievement in South Korea and the United States. Using the data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011, this study examines factors that are linked to teachers who deliver…

Deictic linking gestures, hand and arm motions that physically embody links being communicated between two or more objects in the shared communicative environment, are explored in a cross-cultural sample of mathematics instruction. Linking gestures are specifically examined here when they occur in the context of communicative analogies designed to…

Prior research has shown that greatest student achievement in sciences is attributed to "inquiry-based instructional approach", in which the goal of science teaching is nurturing attitudes and skills necessary for independent quest for scientific knowledge. While prior research has clearly demonstrated positive instructional effects of…