Writing is usually integrated in the curriculum of science studies. However, students often lack the skills to write for various audiences or, to produce a well written manuscript. We developed a concise project of 15 European Credits to improve the writing skills in an early phase of the bachelor study. Students worked on texts from various…

Scientific knowledge is growing rapidly, particularly in biochemistry, an interdisciplinary subject in which the courses attract diverse students with varied disciplinary interests and career goals. Thus, there is a need to teach skills and concepts in biochemistry in a way that is both compelling to a variety of learners and also relevant to…

Science is full of amazing facts, but at times it may be difficult to fully appreciate their significance without an understanding of the scientific practices that gave them meaning. The teaching of evolution may be an example of this situation; there are many interesting facts to consider, but it is equally important for students to learn where…

In this activity, students learned scientific practices and evidence-based reasoning by formulating and testing hypotheses about factors affecting human reaction time and examining those hypotheses with data from ruler-drop tests. The project aligns with all eight of the science and engineering practices (SEP) embodied in the "Next Generation…

One of the most difficult challenges of incorporating literacy in the classroom--as called for by the "Common Core State Standards" (NGAC and CCSSO 2010)--is inspiring reluctant writers. Students are often unmotivated by essay assignments or having to write answers to open-ended questions. Some students may even view these as obstacles…

Writing has an important role in science education and practice. Emphasizing the interdisciplinary collaboration between English rhetoric studies and biology, seemingly disparate disciplines, we describe a model for a scientific writing and communication course. The goals of the course were to prepare students for science-oriented careers, as well…

The views on epistemology by philosophers of science are developed through an historical lens. Enabling students to develop a scientific mindset is complicated by student's views on the Nature of Science. Students need to appreciate the history of science and to contrast different frameworks. In order to do this, students have to be able to follow…

This paper outlines an integrative approach to teaching (qualitative) comparative methods at the introductory undergraduate level. The integrative approach does not view methodological instruction as a topic to be treated cursorily at the outset of a course, but rather one to be intertwined throughout an academic term as students simultaneously…

Most faculty will agree that students must learn to write well (Emerson, MacKay, MacKay, & Funnell, 2006), and in the sciences, a variety of approaches have been taken. In the College of Physical and Engineering Science at the University of Guelph, we have developed a way of embedding research, writing, and analytical skills into an…

This document presents writing samples that have been annotated to illustrate the criteria required to meet the Common Core State Standards for particular types of writing--argument, informative/explanatory text, and narrative--in a given grade. Each of the samples exhibits at least the level of quality required to meet the Writing standards for…

College honors courses provide an opportunity to tackle controversial topics in an atmosphere that encourages active learning, critical thinking, and open discussion. This venue is particularly appropriate for examining the debate about teaching intelligent design (ID) in public school science classes. A one-credit honors enrichment seminar taught…

A Quest is a treasure hunt-style poem in which the writers lead the visitor to special places on the property. The poems have movement clues to take the visitor from place to place and educational clues that teach about aspects of each property. The writing experience allows students to research unique features of a local property, demonstrate…

Describes the introduction of an innovative approach to learning and assessing critical science understanding by preservice elementary science teachers. Student teachers submit a cumulative, multivoiced (patchwork) text which integrates smaller pieces written across the module that demand critical and personal engagement and have been given peer…

This article describes a course in the Department of Science Education, Tel Aviv University, that was designed to teach MA students how to prepare a research assignment in science education. Our students are in-service teachers, graduates in one of the science domains. In general, most of them lack experience in planning and writing research…

Described are the experiences of one teacher with the teaching of writing in college level microbiology, virology, and immunology courses. Assignments, methods, evaluation, and student responses are discussed. (CW)