This column shares reflections or thoughtful opinions on issues of broad interest to the community. This month's issue discusses tools of formative assessment.

Science fiction and the "technofantasies" of the future that it provides may attract some students to study physics. The details and assumptions informing these "imaginaries" may, on the other hand, be unattractive to other students, or imply that there is not a place for them. This forum discussion complements Cathrine Hasse's…

Angela Chapman and Allan Feldman (2016) conducted a study that aimed to exam how a group of diverse urban high school students were affected by the participation in a contextually based authentic science experience. The analysis of all data led the authors to conclude that the experience of authentic science positively influenced the science…

What is science? Depending on who is asked, it may mean the pursuit of knowledge, explanations of the everyday world, a difficult subject at school, or a field populated by larger than life characters such as Einstein, Feynman, or Hawking. For the author, science has been and remains an unexpected journey, an adventure and an ever-changing career.…

EngineeringUK estimates that the UK will require 87,000 new engineers a year over the next ten years. However, with skills shortages threatening to derail the UK's engineering industry, it is clear that immediate action needs to be taken if this quota is to be met. In this article, Vincent English, managing director of Vernier Europe, offers his…

This paper is a response to Maria Andree's paper. Andree tells in the paper how mistakes in practical lessons may be critical events to change students' attitudes in regard science. While traditionally mistakes in practical lessons could obligate students to repeat the experiment in order to get the "right result" in the paper we have a good…

This is a conversation with Randy Asher, principal of New York City's Brooklyn Technical High School. Brooklyn Tech is a selective science high school in New York City, founded in 1922 as a school for boys with potential for careers in engineering and applied science. Today, it provides full-time education for both male and female students from…

The author notes that the sciences are now something one must latch onto early and successfully as a teenager, and endure against all odds. This pivotal point requires maturity and even myopia--delayed gratification and voluntary dorkiness--traits not common in the young. As a nation, Americans are losing their hegemony in the sciences. In just…

Of the many valuable tools available to science education, the mystery in science is the one that is most ignored, underused, or misunderstood. whenever it is used, it is only as mere entertainment or as an attention grabber. In this article, the author discusses how the mystery in science can improve student attitudes, generate a life-long…

In this article we describe how the Bush administration has used deceptive techniques and subterfuge to force its ideology upon the American people. We provide examples of similar techniques used to manipulate public opinion and national policy in three broad areas: national defense, science, and education. Our example from national defense…

Discusses questions such as how birds fly and the meaning of bird songs. Explains the relationship between birds and ecological activism and points out the excitement in research and observation of birds. (Contains 34 references.) (YDS)

The general and creative characteristics of scientifically prone gifted youth are outlined and the importance of self concept and fostering scientific behaviors is stressed. Among characteristics identified are curiosity about what makes things work and fluency of thought. (PHR)

The authors argue for the involvement of science undergraduates in K-12 outreach to enhance their communication skills, generate enthusiasm for science in today's youth, and extend relationships between institutions of higher learning and surrounding communities. Here we present three opportunities created at Oregon State University for engaging…

After citing literature contending that science education is exclusive, academic, and devoid of inquiry orientation, this article gives principals suggestions for improving science education and making it available to all students. (MJL)

Some feminists have become discouraged because the theoretical and conceptual changes leading to a feminist science have not yet occurred. A scheme has been developed which charts the phases through which the disciplines in the social sciences and humanities progressed before reconceptualization from the new scholarship on women transformed those…