Set in the context of today's globalized approaches to curriculum reform, the purpose of this study was to compare the teaching and learning of science in Chinese and Australian Grade 6 classrooms. A conceptual framework based on notions of culture and socioeconomic status informed the research design. Case study participants were three teachers…

High school students in South Australia were administered in group fashion the pendulum and the chemical color change developmental tasks. The major conclusion of this study is the fact that it is possible to translate into group form, administer, and assess rapidly and with considerable reliability Piagetian problem indicators of developmental…

Investigated the predictive power of two written tests of Piagetian developmental level, The Understanding in Science Test and the Reasoning Test. Also examined the extent to which two variables, level of reading comprehension and level of field dependence-independence, were associated with performance of secondary school Australian students on…

Investigates effects of an independent variable (grade) on three dependent variables (membership, partial association, and generalization) describing preferential styles of thinking in 1635 pupils, measured by a 16 concept word test. (DS)

Explores the science content knowledge of elementary school teachers and its possible role in helping them teach effectively. Studies the issues in the context of an investigation of the views of elementary school teachers (n=106) who had participated in professional development courses that focused on the topic "natural and processed…

Investigated importance, according to teachers (N=257), of a validated list of 10 aims for school practical work at three grade levels. Also investigated the orientation of students (N=724) toward these same aims (expressed as influences) and compared aims for teachers with influences as perceived by students. (Author/JN)

Reports on a study of the interactions of students in Australian high schools and was designed to focus on "target students" who monopolized whole class interactions. Students who were asked by teachers to be target students tended to have higher formal reasoning ability and achievement levels than the other students. (TW)