The "Next Generation Science Standards" place an emphasis on the practices of science and engineering, where ensuring that students understand and experience how science works is as important as, or maybe more important than, memorizing facts. The idea is that, while some facts may change, the practices will always be applicable, and it…

This paper reports on the use of the RAMR framework within a curriculum project. Description of the RAMR framework's theoretical bases is followed by two descriptions of students' learning in the classroom. Implications include the need for the teacher to connect student activities in a structured sequence, although this may be predicated on the…

The need to increase science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduates is great. To interest more students into STEM degrees, we made our graphene biosensor research portable, inexpensive, and safe to demonstrate technology development to high school students. The students increased their knowledge of biosensors and proteins, and…

Cognitive Acceleration through Science Education (CASE) on the Sunshine Coast is growing rapidly. It has expanded from one inaugural Year 8 class in 2012 to the current state of play with the involvement of over 3,000 CASE students from eleven Sunshine Coast State High Schools. It is being taught by more than seventy CASE teachers with…

Linked research and development forms the central pillar of the 5-year Wits Maths Connect Secondary Project in South Africa. Our empirical data emphasised the need for teaching that mediates towards mathematics viewed as a network of scientific concepts, and the development of the notion of 'mathematical discourse in instruction' (MDI), as an…

The purpose of this study was to develop, scale, and validate assessments in engineering, science, and mathematics with grade appropriate items that were sensitive to the curriculum developed by teachers. The use of item response theory to assess item functioning was a focus of the study. The work is part of a larger project focused on increasing…

Science is at heart a practical subject, but the perception of what makes good teaching and learning through practical science is often misunderstood. Through working with teachers on professional development courses at the UK's National Science Learning Centre, and drawing on work carried out by other organisations, we present some thoughts and…

In a regional gathering called the Youth Water Summit, high school students present projects that respond to the driving question behind their science curriculum: "How can you address a significant water resource challenge in your community's watershed?" Students exhibit scientific posters, interactive presentations, films, art projects,…

Formative assessment has been demonstrated to result in increased student achievement across a variety of educational contexts. When using formative assessment strategies, teachers engage students in instructional tasks that allow the teacher to uncover levels of student understanding so that the teacher may change instruction accordingly. Tools…

In 2012, WestEd received a "Development" grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Investing in Innovation (i3) competition to develop and implement Internet-based Reading Apprenticeship Improving Science Education ("iRAISE"). "iRAISE" was implemented in Michigan and Pennsylvania and was provided to over 100…

Dual-enrollment (DE) science courses offer a way to strengthen the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics pipeline between high school and college. These courses offer high school students the opportunity to experience college science in a more supported environment, allowing them to adjust to the different academic and social demands…

In the 1960s, the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) developed a programming language called LOGO. Underpinning this invention was a profound new philosophy of how learners learn. This paper reviews research in the area and asks how one notion in particular, that of a microworld, may be used by secondary school educators to build powerful…

Professor John Rice, a pioneer of the Australian Science and Mathematics School (ASMS), recognized that schools' curricula were at odds with the kind of science and mathematics driving the new economy. In addition to curriculum that lacked relevance to contemporary life, negative student attitudes and a shortage of qualified science and…

The aim of this study is to develop conceptual change texts in the teaching of aspects of the nature of science and to introduce the development of texts. The socio-cultural and the subjective aspects were taken into consideration in the conceptual change texts, which are presented in the study. The conceptual change texts were prepared to be used…

Schools are increasingly integrating multidisciplinary education into their programmes. The Minister of Education, Culture and Science has introduced a new, integrated science subject in secondary education in the Netherlands, called Nature, Life and Technology (NLT). This research note describes the design of a generic model for a professional…