Inquiry-based science interventions aim to improve students' science proficiency by helping them understand scientific processes. In these interventions, students conduct hands-on investigations of science concepts and everyday phenomena, construct explanations for what they observe, consider alternative explanations, and communicate and justify…

Inquiry-based science interventions aim to improve students' science proficiency by helping them understand scientific processes. In these interventions, students conduct hands-on investigations of science concepts and everyday phenomena, construct explanations for what they observe, consider alternative explanations, and communicate and justify…

Inquiry-based science interventions aim to improve students' science proficiency by helping them understand scientific processes. In these interventions, students conduct hands-on investigations of science concepts and everyday phenomena, construct explanations for what they observe, consider alternative explanations, and communicate and justify…

This paper describes validity of quality improvement system (QIS) performance measures and longitudinal change over four years in Oklahoma 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) programs. In general, our findings indicate that the Oklahoma Afterschool Improvement Process is performing in accordance with its purposes: using accurate…

This study sought to determine the beliefs that tenured, in-service high school science teachers hold about how their participation in a large mid-Atlantic university's 6-week summer research experiences for teachers (RET) program might influence their pedagogical practices. The findings show a number of factors that teachers believed helped them…

A recent reform initiative in the Malaysian educational system has sought to develop "Smart schools", intended to better prepare students for adult life in a developing economy and to increase the flow of young people prepared for scientific and technological careers. The study reported in this paper examined lower-secondary science…

It is no coincidence that many of the "Grand Challenges for Engineering" (National Academy of Engineering, 2007-2010)--such as carbon sequestration--address environmental problems that were precipitated by human inventiveness and engineering achievements. Although people recognize their dependence upon environmental processes to provide…

This study investigated the effects of collaborative group work skills training on pupil attainment in science. Twenty-four experimental classes were drawn from schools in rural and urban settings. Pupils in experimental classrooms engaged in general group work skills training and two structured group work activities in science. Attainment was…

Despite the growing popularity of robotics competitions such as FIRST LEGO League, robotics activities are typically not found in regular K-12 classrooms. We speculate that, among other reasons, limited adoption is due to the lack of empirical evidence demonstrating the effect of robotics activities on curricular goals. This paper presents a mixed…

This initial study focused on high school students' experiences about their understanding of, and abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry, two foci emphasized by the National Science Education Standards in the strand on "science as inquiry". The research method consisted of Likert-scale survey with space provided for students' comments about…

The Iowa Chautauqua Program was developed in 1983 with support from National Science Foundation (NSF) which awarded the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) a major grant to study an inexpensive in-service model for stimulating reform in K-12 science classrooms. Iowa was one of the six Chautauqua sites which were modeled after a program…

In January 2005, the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) was awarded a three-year ITEST grant (Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers) through the National Science Foundation (award #04-23417). This "AMNH-ITEST High School Science Research Program" aimed to target 120 urban high school youth, grades 10-12, from…

The Biology Fellows Program at the University of Washington aims to enhance diversity in science by helping students succeed in the rigorous introductory biology classes and motivating them to engage in undergraduate research. The composite Scholastic Achievement Test scores and high school grade point averages of the Biology Fellows are…

In this paper, the authors' investigated whether "Scott Foresman Science" program, a year-long curriculum intended for daily use that provides a sequence of structured and supportive inquiry activities and text materials to develop students' independent investigative skills, is more effective than current science programs in five diverse…

In this paper, the authors' investigated whether "Scott Foresman Science" program, a year-long curriculum intended for daily use that provides a sequence of structured and supportive inquiry activities and text materials to develop students' independent investigative skills, is more effective than current science programs in five diverse…