The overall project "Denken lernen - Probleme lösen" has been expanded in recent years after an initial sub-project in elementary school to include one for the lower secondary level. Schools throughout Austria were provided with the micro:bit and related materials. A training initiative for teachers was rolled out. In this article I…

Project-based learning (PBL) is an instructional approach that provides civics, social studies, and American government students with the opportunity to actively and cooperatively engage with real-world issues and situations. Students typically identify a problem in their community or school, research the problem and policy-based solutions,…

This study reports on the capabilities of 53 Year 4 students as they completed the final stages of their first complete statistical investigation. In the context of becoming acquainted with students in a sister school in another city, students in both schools wrote and refined questions, which were answered by all students in an on-line survey.…

There is a growing demand in the US for more trained engineers, yet attrition rates from university engineering programs are high and diversity in engineering is low. Few resources have been dedicated to the improvement of freshman engineering courses even though freshman students have the highest rates of attrition. Through a synthesis of the…

We explore the epistemological issues that arise when considering STEM as a curricular and instructional construct. Our approach is somewhat unique in that we are not focused on the curricular or instructional boundaries of STEM education, but consider the nature of the cognitive activity at play during STEM-focused activity, with an emphasis on…

This research presents two case studies on how human-centered design process can help the students find their purpose in making and designing in a constructionist learning-environment. Human-centered design guides students to deeper understanding of others' needs and encourages them to think and act collaboratively and creatively. When 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…

Election simulations are considered a viable tool to instigate democratic learning in schools. This paper reports an explorative qualitative inquiry into one type of simulation project: mock-elections (ME). Main objective was to gain an insight into the organization of ME-practices in eight schools in the Netherlands in 2012. Thematic analysis of…

This paper discusses the OpenForest portal and its related multidisciplinary learning project. The OpenForest portal is an open learning environment and ecosystem, in which students can participate in co-developing and co-creating practices. The aim of the OpenForest ecosystem is to create an extensive interactive network of diverse learning…

This paper describes a field experiment with a pretest-posttest-control group design in which the potential of reading picture books to children for supporting their mathematical understanding was investigated. The study involved 384 children from eighteen kindergarten classes in eighteen schools in the Netherlands. Data analyses revealed that the…

This paper addresses data arising from initial discussion with school principals concerning the implementation of a doctoral project at their schools. The doctoral project involved the prep teacher working with the preschool teacher to support children's numeracy practices as they made the transition to school. The findings presented in this paper…

Spatial visualisation is a subset of spatial ability and is exemplified in predicting whether or not a net will fold to form a target solid. The researchers examined video of interviews to explore the schemes of Year 5 students for determining the validity of nets for a cube and pyramid. Findings suggest the significance of imaged actions, shown…

History learning is many times considered dull and demotivating by young students. Probably this is due because the learning process is disconnected from these students' reality and experience. One possible way to overcome this state of matters is to use technology like mobile devices with georeferencing software and local history and heritage…

This paper seeks to compare the reflective writings of two cohorts of students (Year 4/5 and Year 8/9) participating in mathematical modelling challenges. Whilst the reflections of the younger cohort were results oriented, the older cohort's reflections spoke more to the affective domain, group processes, the use of technology and the acquisition…

The purpose of this study is to determine the level of internet use by prospective elementary school teachers in preparation of projects and assignments. The findings of the study indicated that internet use of prospective teachers is at the average level and gender is not a significant variable. Moreover, personal internet access and frequency of…