There is often a steady trajectory of curriculum change under the surface of developments that might seem arbitrary or inconsistent. This article traces the change from key competencies to science capabilities and, most recently, to enduring competencies. All these changes (and names) respond to increasing awareness of the challenges involved in…

A two-component undergraduate laboratory experience has been developed by students in a senior level capstone course. The first component is a 3 h laboratory experience dedicated to the rapid synthesis of a metal-organic framework (MOF-808) in aqueous solution using readily available reagents and equipment. During the second component, MOF-808 was…

Learning in the classroom is highly influenced by the experiences a teacher plans for students. Concerned that students were not achieving adequate conceptual knowledge during traditional undergraduate physics courses, the authors used the Making Sense of SCIENCE curriculum to tailor a course for 21 pre-service elementary teachers at the…

This article introduces and contextualizes the content of this theme issue of "The American Biology Teacher" (ABT), which focuses on integrating elements of the history of science (HOS) in biology instruction. Such orientations can enhance students' understanding of core biological concepts and the process of scientific discovery by…

This article describes practical lessons and experiences acquired as part of a journey in teaching a blind student at The University of Arizona to master the written and graphical language of first-semester organic chemistry and its associated concepts. These practical lessons include details on how to adapt an organic chemistry model set (with…

Learning outcomes are an essential element in curriculum development because they describe what students should be able to do by the end of a course or program and they provide a roadmap for designing assessments. This article describes the development of competency-based learning outcomes for a one-semester undergraduate introductory human…

The "Evolving 5-19 Biology" report (RSB, 2021) presents eight key recommendations and a framework for the development of biology curricula for ages 5-19. The framework proposes organising the curriculum in 23 coherent themes that form learning progression pathways. These pathways build answers to seven 'big questions' related to big…

Understanding the lifestyle changes that authorities have requested or required in response to COVID-19 requires some biological knowledge. Therefore, articulations of intended biology learning at the school level will need to be evaluated, to see if they continue to be fit for purpose in light of the pandemic. This article proposes two principles…

Computational and atmospheric chemistry are two important branches of contemporary chemistry. With the present topical nature of climate change and global warming, it is more crucial than ever that students are aware of and exposed to atmospheric chemistry, with an emphasis on how modeling may aid in understanding how atmospherically relevant…

Despite the recognized effectiveness of course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs), there are few examples of the development of a CURE-based course in a large-enrollment undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory. Herein, we describe the development and implementation of a series of undergraduate laboratory experiments centered…

The Institute of Physics curriculum committee has been looking at ways of framing schoollevel physics so that it gives students a rewarding and productive experience of physics and leaves them with positive views of the discipline and its cultural contribution, as well as lasting and detailed skills, knowledge and understanding. The result is some…

A teaching approach based on the Biggs and Collis SOLO taxonomy is described. Lessons were planned using the SOLO taxonomy to communicate how students could demonstrate increasing complexity of response to scientific questions. Consideration is given to extending the use of the SOLO taxonomy to create a relational curriculum, which may be useful…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Curriculum Development: Theory into Design.] Our investigation of 353 faculty-produced multiple-choice Think-Pair-Share questions leads to key insights into faculty members' ideas about the discipline representations and intellectual tasks that could engage learners on key topics in physics and…

The research completed by the authors into the teaching and learning of evolution and inheritance (2014 to 2018) seeks to understand the demands made by the revised National Curriculum in England (DfE, 2015) and to offer support. The commitment of the authors to applied research assumes more useful outcomes are likely when studies are conducted…

Computational thinking is an essential skill in the modern global workforce. The current public health crisis has highlighted the need for students and educators to have a deeper understanding of epidemiology. While existing STEM curricula has addressed these topics in the past, current events present an opportunity for new curricula that can be…