A sample of 661 churchgoers from a range of Christian denominations in the United Kingdom was asked about Darwinian evolution (defined as the common origin of all species, including humans). Respondents were categorised as those who accepted the idea, those who rejected it, and those who were unsure or neutral. People in each category were given a…

Classification of concept maps made in British science classes resulted in three patterns that indicate students' progressive levels of understanding. The classification method analyzes hierarchy, processes, complexity, conceptual development, and representation. It suggests teaching approaches based on students' existing concept structures. (SK)

There is currently much interest in ascribing outcomes to Masters (M) level programmes. It is particularly difficult to define M level outcomes in bioinformatics for students on non-specialist programmes. An approach is described that attempts to discriminate undergraduate from M level in a data-mining exercise. Differentiation of level is based…

Presented a categorization of types of science education research, their possible contributions to cognitive science, and the potential of results from cognitive science for enriching the science education research accounts. Explored the relationship of an example of cognitive work to cognitive science. (15 references) (Author/JRH)

Reports on the status of the teaching of taxonomy in advanced biology classes in the United Kingdom. Reviews findings related to examination requirements, the principles, terminology, and methods of taxonomy, the understanding and attitudes of teachers of taxonomy principles, and the position of the topic in the advanced biology syllabus. (ML)

Interest in technical education of the higher order has been greatly increased by the European war, and as a consequence numerous inquiries have been received at the Bureau of Education with regard to the higher technical schools of foreign countries. These inquiries relate in the main to the organization and conduct of the foreign schools, their…

Described in this study are student teachers' frameworks of purity and the related concepts of the states of matter. The concept of natural versus pure substances, classifying states of matter, and implications for teaching drawn from the results are discussed. (Author/KR)