Previous research suggests that the use of metaphors in science education have both possibilities and challenges. In this study, we analyse the role of metaphors in meaning-making in the upper primary science classroom. We investigate the potential of metaphors about nutrient uptake occurring in classrooms in which an animation was used. To…

While technology advancement and scientific innovation have created new topics and fields of inquiry in STEM education, external content experts such as university scientists/researchers have been increasingly involved to enhance K-12 teachers' disciplinary understandings and professional development (PD). However, few studies have scrutinized…

This paper re-validates middle school students' learning progression of the concept of buoyancy (Gao et al., 2020) by using two-time point data. The previous study developed a four-level learning progression based on data collected at a single time point using cross-sectional design. This single-time-point model of learning progression calls for a…

This paper argues that meaning-making with multimodal representations in science learning is always contextualized within a genre and, conversely, what constitutes an ongoing genre also depends on a multimodal coordination of speech, gesture, diagrams, symbols, and material objects. In social semiotics, a genre is a culturally evolved way of doing…

This study analyses the coherent integration of creativity into science education modules for eighth-grade students to enhance competence development. The learning modules' content covered a basic ecological unit about forests, applied as digital or analog lesson. By utilizing the creativity subscales 'Act' and 'Flow' its analysis resulted in a…

There is a long tradition of teaching science through inquiry, with broad agreement about the form it should take. Students should investigate researchable questions; gather and analyse data; and develop and represent evidence-based claims. Authoritative teacher or textbook representations are generally used to guide this learning (Buckley &…

Web-based inquiry learning provides opportunities for students to take responsibility to regulate their learning. However, due to a lack of science inquiry-specific self-regulated learning (SRL) frameworks, there is insufficient understanding of SRL processes in inquiry-based science learning. This study aims to explore students' SRL patterns by…

Despite the fact that the majority of museum visitors are often very young children, much research in museums focuses on pre-teen learners (ages 8-12). Our goal in this study was to investigate the behaviors of children aged 5-8 during a visit to a science exhibition. We aim to develop a methodology to assess children's levels of engagement with…

Understanding scientific models and practicing scientific modeling have been emphasized and advocated in science learning. Although teachers have been perceived as shaping their students' understanding of the nature of science, they have been recognized for their lack of understanding of scientific models. This study explores middle school science…