In this study, we aim to analyze the effects of discovery-based learning through film viewing on students' knowledge about a specific animal species and its habitat. The following hypothesis is tested: students' knowledge about animals and their environment is greater as a result of discovering information through watching videos. The study…

In the digital age we live in, electronic teaching materials can effectively increase students' participation in the learning and teaching process. In addition, it is known that using visual materials in science education has a positive effect on learning in this direction. The study aims to determine the effect of digital concept cartoons in the…

This mixed-methods research study focuses on students', teachers', and parents' perceptions of the influence therapy dogs in schools can have on reluctant readers' attitudes about reading and motivation to read at school and at home as well as exploring changes in the participants' oral fluency. Eight student participants read to our school…

This small study reveals the value of story writing as a pedagogical technique in environmental education. The qualitative research conducted in 2020 examines 14 Indian children's place-ecological meaning as expressed in the story books they authored. Thematic analysis of the story books, interviews, journals, creative writing assignments &…

"Citizen science" gives students a unique opportunity to engage with their own research, as well as data collected by other citizen scientists. Often, citizen science projects focus on students collecting and submitting data for scientists, which can sometimes limit opportunities to engage in the entire scientific process. This article…

The Puppy Love problem asked fifth and sixth grade students to use their prior knowledge of measures of central tendency to determine a data set when given the mean, mode, median, and range of the set. The problem discussed in this article is a task with a higher level of cognitive demand because it requires that students (1) explore and…

Sound is typically thought of something that is heard. Can it be seen or felt? Most students experience the noises that surround them in everyday life, but few stop to think about what sound is, how it travels, and the biological challenges associated with perceiving sound. Since students are already familiar with everyday sounds, inquiry-based…

In this research, the self-reported fear and disgust toward animals of preservice biology teachers and their willingness to incorporate live animals into their teaching were assessed with a questionnaire. An entire generation of pre-service biology teachers (N = 128) participated in this research. The results show that students are mostly afraid…

This article reports on a mixed methods evaluation of an indoor garden-based learning curriculum for 5th and 6th graders which incorporated aquaponics and hydroponics technologies. This study provides a better understanding of the extent to which indoor gardening technologies can be used within the formal curriculum as an effective teaching tool.…

This rich, arts- and spatial-thinking-integrated project examined the effects of making three-dimensional dioramas of traditional African cultures on Black fifth graders at an urban school on students' racial identities, knowledge of cultural universals, and spatial thinking skills. Pretest and posttest attitudes measured with the Multidimensional…

Using a dog's paw as a basis for numerical representation, sixth grade students explored how to count and regroup using the dog's four digital pads. Teachers can connect these base-4 explorations to the conceptual meaning of place value and regrouping using base-10.

Self-Determination Theory and Flow Theory propose that perceived autonomy fosters the positive qualities of motivation and flow-experience. Autonomy-support can help to maintain students' motivation in very interesting learning activities and may lead to an increase in the positive qualities of motivation in less interesting learning activities.…

All classrooms are active social systems; the middle school classroom involves complex interactions between and among peers as well as between students and teachers. In the elementary years, attention is often given to nurturing students and fostering relationships, yet when young adolescents transition to the middle school, a focus on control and…

This research examined the influence of contrasting instructional approaches on children's decision-making competence. A total of 764 fifth graders, mostly African Americans and Hispanic Americans, from 36 classrooms in eight public schools serving children from low-income families completed a six-week unit on wolf management, using either direct…

When studying informal science programs, researchers often overlook the opportunities enabled and constrained in each program and the practices reinforced for participants. In this case study, I examined the normative scientific practices reinforced in one-week-long "Herpetology" (the study of reptiles and amphibians) program for…