The use of investigations in science teaching is both common and commonly advocated for in science education literature. We suggest that the use of investigations should differ depending on the complexity of the subject matter. That complexity can vary depending on both the nature of the information and students' expertise levels. The present…

Science fairs have a long history in the United States and internationally. Their implementation varies greatly (Kook et al, 2020), yet few empirical studies have examined the outcomes of these experiences for student learning. Research indicates that authentic scientific inquiry that focus on students' agency in investigations can contribute to…

The inquiry-based learning (IBL) approach is at the core of contemporary science education programs and aims to enable students to conduct research. In this study, an IBL activity was developed based on scientific concepts related to the respiratory systems of fish and scientific investigation skills. The developed activity was implemented for 2…

Prior studies on scaffolding for investigative inquiry practices (i.e. forming a question/hypothesis, collecting data, and analyzing and interpreting data [21]) revealed that students who received scaffolding were better able to both learn practices and transfer these competencies to new topics than were students who did not receive scaffolding.…

The present study examined to what extent inquiry-based investigation as an instructional approach associated with students' overall science achievement and achievement in cognitive domains, including knowing science facts, applying scientific principles, and reasoning with scientific concepts to solve problems. Using TIMSS 2007 science…

This paper examines the process of high school students' planning investigations in the chemistry laboratory across two consecutive academic years in terms of their actions and their progress. The context is a set of five inquiry-based laboratory tasks in which participants (9th and 10th graders, 14-15 and 15-16 years of age) are required to plan…

This study examined the impact of a one-to-one iPad program on inquiry-based instruction (IBI) in an all-girls science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-focused school with 99% African American students. Case study research was used and included three teachers at the school for the purpose of this study. Data collection included pre- and…

This paper describes investigative homework with apples, aiming to contribute to the primary-school students' understanding of density and conditions leading to floating and sinking. The assignment represents an opportunity for individual autonomous learning of physics and adoption of established scientific concepts through practical activities…

This report describes how teachers support ninth-grade students who are doing scientific investigations in Natural Sciences in South African schools. This is of interest as allowing students to participate in inquiry-based investigations is a significant shift from traditional practices. It presents a new challenge to teachers as it signals an…

This article investigates if WebQuests have been an effective instructional tool for teaching Social Sciences subjects. In order to obtain an answer to this question, a review of scholarly literature from 1995 to the present has been undertaken and action research in 8th grade U.S. history course was conducted. The literature investigation has…

This article describes a teacher's techniques and strategies for promoting productive discourse and supporting active learning in the mathematics classroom. The lesson excerpts included are from two days of a workshop with primarily middle-grades teachers. These excerpts demonstrate the teacher's typical progression through defining a problem,…