Promotion of students' scientific literacy has long been and continues to be a central goal for reform efforts in science education. Although there is a great number of research conducted to evaluate student's scientific literacy, less is known about how we can improve students' scientific literacy through variety of scientific practices. In this…

This study aims to examine the effect of conceptual understandings related to anion-cation, acid-base, ionic-covalent, metal-nonmetal, and number of protons-number of electrons concept pairs taught in the periodic table to 8th grade students with the 5E learning model supported by concept maps. The study was conducted among 100 (50 in the…

Reading comprehension is an essential skill for learning in general and in science classes. Problems with reading comprehension might hinder students' participation in learning science. Text in science includes specific language features that distinguishes it from narrative text, so should reading instruction be part of teaching science? The…

The aim of this study was to compare the 5E learning model with traditional learning methods in terms of their effect on students' conceptual understanding of water subtopics. The participants of the study were grade 8 students of 2021 academic year. While 27 of them were randomly assigned to the experimental group, the other 27 were assigned to…

There remains a clear deficiency in recruiting middle school students in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine fields, especially for those students entering physiology from underrepresented backgrounds. A large part of this may be arising from a disconnect between how science is typically practiced at a collegiate and K-12…

This study aimed at designing instructional material named Biotechnology Instruction Module (BIM) which is enriched with active learning methods to enhance the 8th grade students' learning of the topic. The development of the teaching materials proceeded within the stages of the ADDIE instructional design model. The final form of the instructional…

Developing models and using mathematics are two key practices in internationally recognized science education standards, such as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). However, students often struggle with these two intersecting practices, particularly when developing mathematical models about scientific phenomena. Formative…

Troubleshooting activities require students to diagnose teacher-crafted erroneous examples by detecting and explaining the conceptual errors driving them. In a previous study, the author tested whether diagnosing erroneous examples and then scoring them using a rubric that contained the related worked examples, a step-by-step strategy to solve a…

The Japanese lesson study (JLS) model for curriculum development has seen limited application to middle school science classrooms. The JLS model was used to develop and refine three hands-on activities focused on four major eighth grade science topics from the California curriculum. Prior assessments of these topics showed limited understanding by…

As science becomes increasingly computationally intensive, the need for computational thinking (CT) and computer science (CS) practices in K-12 science education is becoming paramount. Incorporation of CT/CS practices in K-12 education can be seen in national standards and a variety of allied initiatives. One way to build capacity around an…

Classroom environment, family, and peers are important factors in influencing students' science learning. The primary aim of this study was to examine the effects of three environmental factors related to science learning (motivating science class, family models, and peer models) on students' approaches to learning science (deep approach and…

Significant attention is being paid to how assessments aligned to learning trajectories (LTs) can be used as a means to locate students' progress in learning big ideas in mathematics over time. Furthermore, data from LT-aligned assessments have been signaled as key to driving student-centered instruction on a day-to-day basis. For LTs and…

This research aims to investigate the impact of Common Knowledge Construction Model (CKCM) based science education teaching on the entrepreneurship skills of the eight grade students. The participants of this research are 50 students; 25 in control group (10 girls and 15 boys) and 25 in experimental group (9 girls and 16 boys). Quasi-experimental…

There is growing interest in the introduction of Einsteinian concepts of space, time, light and gravity across the entire school curriculum. We have developed an educational programme named 'Einstein-First', which focuses on teaching Einsteinian concepts by using simple models and analogies. To test the effectiveness of these models and analogies…

We developed a computerised simulation that utilises embodied modelling by letting students play the role of particles in a liquid. We compared the learning of two eight-grade classrooms that used the embodied modelling simulation during a weeklong learning module on phase change, with a comparison group that used an ordinary simulation with no…