Elementary students learn best when they make observations about perplexing natural phenomena, ask questions about what they observed, and pursue answers to their own questions through engagement in science practice. However, facilitating such learning experiences can be challenging for novice instructors. In this unit, pre-service elementary…

Preservice preparation courses for elementary teachers of science can provide opportunities to build pedagogical content knowledge. One common concern of preservice teachers is how to cope with a preplanned lesson that does not proceed as planned. Providing opportunities for preservice teachers to experience the unexpected actually immerses them…

Over the past decade, increasing numbers of institutions have reported using undergraduate students as instructors in science and technology courses. Undergraduates are most commonly used as assistants to graduate students, staff, or faculty who are the primary instructors for the course or lab/recitation section. In some cases, however,…