In citizen science (CS) projects, citizens who are not professional scientists participate in scientific research. Besides serving research purposes, CS projects provide participants opportunities for inquiry-based learning to promote their topic-specific knowledge and scientific reasoning skills. Previous research suggests that participants need…

A goal of the New Zealand Curriculum is to equip students with the skills needed to use science critically and responsibly as citizens. One method of achieving this is through the participation in citizen science. Measuring the learning outcomes of citizen science experiences therefore, is important to ensure that development of science learning…

Background: STEM education and research are increasingly emphasized by governments worldwide to foster national development and productivity, economic competitiveness and societal wellbeing. There is no exception in Hong Kong, with its desire to promote STEM education and to strengthen Innovation and Technology development in the future. Purpose:…

Skill-based outcomes play a prominent role in citizen science experiences as they are situated directly between the dual, intertwining goals of advancing science learning and science research. Regular and transparent assessment of volunteers' science inquiry skills can support these goals, but we lack a comprehensive understanding of how these…

Scientific reasoning, argumentation, and problem-solving are essential skills in 21st century. They help people solve problems in daily life. This study aimed to investigate the effect of local-based teaching materials on student's argumentation, scientific reasoning, and problemsolving skills using Science Project-based Learning (SPjBL).…

Inquiry-based science education has become one of the most effective methodologies to learn science; however, proposals in preschool are scarce. Different factors are responsible for this situation, such as the low self-confidence of teachers to teach science and the belief that young children are unable to develop certain reasoning skills. This…

To succeed, undergraduate science students need to both acquire knowledge, and learn to apply it effectively. Here a novel 1st year undergraduate module (incorporating blended learning, applied bioinformatic skills and scientific posters) is described and its effectiveness evaluated (quantitatively and qualitatively). The aims were to engage…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Mathematics Infusion into Science Project (MiSP), which integrated science and mathematics in an engaging middle school science curriculum that fostered improvements in science content knowledge, higher-level problem solving, and affective domains related to mathematics. The project design was based…

This mixed methods research explored the autonomous experiences of South African school students when participating in a science fair. A prominent global goal for school science education is for students to partake in scientific inquiry in order to acquire understanding of science concepts, the processes and skills of science, and the nature of…

We designed the Integrated Sciences First-Year Program (ISFP) to introduce students to the nature and process of science early in their academic career, help them develop skills and competencies, and create an intellectual community of learners to foster belonging within science. Using their inherent curiosity, we designed active learning…

Undergraduate students are increasingly aware of complex global challenges and have a strong desire to take action and create change. Course-based undergraduate research experiences can offer a wide range of students the opportunity to gain skills needed to address these challenges. At a small liberal arts college in New England, we developed the…

Despite the increasing attention to afterschool science programs, little is known about the conditions under which children likely engage in meaningful scientific practices, such as argumentation and scientific explanation in those settings. This analysis draws on X hours of video data collected of elementary-aged children (n = 4) during a 14-day…

Internships in science research settings have received increasing attention as a means of helping students construct appropriate understandings, practices, tools, and language in scientific activities. To advance student-scientist partnerships beyond the status quo, the study aimed to investigate how cogenerative dialogs (cogens) may help high…

Data collection, organization, and analysis are indispensable means of seeking solutions during the process of inquiry. Representations (called inscriptions by some educators) including graphs, tables, photographs, and equations are powerful ways of arranging and displaying data in visual form. This study aims to analyze quantitatively the use of…

With the adoption of the "Common Core State Standards for Mathematics" (CCSSM), the process of mathematical modeling has been given increased attention in mathematics education. This article reports on a study intended to inform the implementation of modeling in classroom contexts by examining students' interactions with the process of…