This study aims to develop guidance materials on the topic of evaporation and boiling within the Science course, to use the materials with 5th grade students, and to find out the students' opinions about the implementation of these materials. The participants consist of 10 students studying in a public middle school in the 2020-2021 academic year.…

Researchers engaging in science communication tend to present information that they find most important. However, understanding the level of prior knowledge and interest of a target audience is key for effective communication of science, especially when dealing with complex and mediatic themes, such as climate change. This study relies on a…

Following a massive wave of school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, educators found the need to be hyper-critical of how they spend their instructional time with students. Almost all students are expected to return nearly a full grade-level behind and would likely have to learn to navigate a completely new school environment. As a result,…

STEM has been integrated into science curriculum with recent changes. However, teachers are in need of resources to effectively apply STEM in their classrooms. This study aimed to prepare STEM activities and to find out the students' opinions about these activities. Case methodology was used. First, 5 activities were developed by the researchers…

Early adolescents, particularly from underrepresented or marginalized communities, may feel disconnected from school science leading to a lack of engagement. The lack of connection between their out of school experiences and school science may lead them to devalue science. This study examines interviews with 56 middle school students and 12…

This brief highlights key information about enrichment activities, which represent one of the main components of the Massachusetts Expanded Learning Time (ELT) initiative. Over time, the ELT initiative has supported over two dozen schools across the Commonwealth. A comprehensive evaluation of the ELT initiative found that implementation of the…

Over the past few decades, service-learning has surged in popularity. Although most programs are implemented in high school and college classrooms, service-learning has the potential for great impact in middle school. The present article evaluates a pilot service-learning program for fifth- and seventh-grade (N = 86) children in a large, urban,…

This study assessed the immediate and short-term outcomes of adapting a culturally-grounded middle school program, "keepin' it REAL", for elementary school students. After curriculum adaptation, 10 schools were randomly assigned to the intervention in 5th grade with follow-up boosters in 6th grade; 13 schools were randomly assigned to the control…