This article describes a content analysis of 37 Inquiry Design Modules (https://c3teachers.org), conducted with the purpose of identifying the core teaching practices (CTP) necessary to successfully enact them. Although there has been research identifying CTP in other content areas, research on social studies inquiry at the elementary level is an…

The concept of "Global citizenship", which has become more and more important, based on the students' multi-focused individual development, has brought to the fore based on 21st century skills and has required appropriate educational environments for gifted students. In this context, the development of differentiated inquiry-based…

Purpose: Critical thinking and student attitudes are pertinent to 21st century learning of cultural values which is still very low. Research with a focus on improving these skills and attitudes using inquiry-based approaches are very limited. This research aimed to improve critical thinking and student attitudes of elementary school teacher…

Practice: An Inquiry-Based Mathematics Activities Module (IBMAM) was developed in accordance with the developmental characteristics, interests, needs, and expectations of preschoolers. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of the IBMAM on preschoolers' numbers and operations skills. A quasi-experimental method, which was a…

Computational thinking (CT) is increasingly acknowledged as an essential skill to solve problems interdisciplinary. This paper describes the development and validation of the unplugged activity of CT in science (ACTS) module, which is specifically designed to integrate CT. The present study was conducted in five phases: Phase I was composed of…

This paper describes the development of "ScienceKit," a mobile, social media application to promote children's scientific inquiry. We deployed "ScienceKit" in "Kitchen Chemistry" ("KC"), an informal science program where children learn about scientific inquiry through cooking. By iteratively integrating…

Loyola University Chicago's Teaching, Learning, and Leading With Schools and Communities (TLLSC) program is an ambitious break from traditional university-based teacher preparation models. This clinically based initial teacher preparation program, fully embedded in local schools and community organizations, takes an ecological perspective on the…

This article presents a systematic review of research on the achievement outcomes of all types of approaches to teaching science in elementary schools. Study inclusion criteria included use of randomized or matched control groups, a study duration of at least 4 weeks, and use of achievement measures independent of the experimental treatment. A…

Preservice preparation courses for elementary teachers of science can provide opportunities to build pedagogical content knowledge. One common concern of preservice teachers is how to cope with a preplanned lesson that does not proceed as planned. Providing opportunities for preservice teachers to experience the unexpected actually immerses them…

Powerful Ideas in Physical Science (PIPS) is a preservice curriculum that provides modules for physical science courses designed for elementary education majors. Because the courses are built on the learning cycle approach, students develop concepts from activities and then apply this conceptual knowledge. A summative evaluation done by Horizon…

The science achievement of 226 5th graders from districts that have a kit-based inquiry science curriculum supported by intensive professional development (PD) is compared with data from a group of 173 5th graders from other districts that use nonkit science materials and do not have systematic science PD for teachers. Within the kit-based…