As part of a pilot program, the researchers sought to develop an instrument that would effectively measure the nature awareness of students. With this information, the researchers correlated nature awareness scores and science averages. According to Salomon and Perkins' theory of transfer, experiences in one situation can influence experiences in…

As environmental changes become a significant societal issue, elementary science curricula need to develop students' understanding about the key concepts of energy and climate change. For teachers, developing quality learning experiences involves establishing what their students' prior understanding about energy and climate change are. A survey…

Reform documents have provided a framework for advancing science education (e.g., The Australian National Science Standard Committee, 2002), but omit the need to assess preservice teachers prior knowledge for designing effective learning programs. A pretest-posttest 34-item survey linked to the course outcomes (associated with four constructs)…