One aim of inquiry activities in science education is to promote students' participation in the practices used to build scientific knowledge by providing opportunities to engage in scientific discourse. However, many factors influence the actual outcomes and effect on students' learning when using inquiry materials. In this study, discourse from…

This study used a Chinese-language version of the Index of Science Reading Awareness (ISRA) to investigate metacognitive awareness and the Reading Comprehension of Science Test (RCST) to explore comprehension of science text by Taiwanese students. Structural equation modeling (SEM) results confirmed the validity of the underlying models of…

This study explores the impacts of selected early science experiences in kindergarten (frequency and duration of teachers' teaching of science, availability of sand/water table and science areas, and children's participation in cooking and science equipment activities) on children's science achievement in kindergarten and third grade using data…

Determined which form of kinetic structure (high or low) and/or micrograph content (unified or varied) was most effective on introductory college biology students' (N=100) achievement of reading micrograph skills. Findings, among others, suggest that high kinetic structure instruction does not affect actual reading micrograph skills, but…

Examines college students' perception of an interactive videodisc learning system as an alternative to the conventional laboratory for learning biology skills and concepts taught under classroom laboratory conditions. Reports that the videodisc instruction gave more experimental and procedural options and more efficient use of time than the…

The 422 Presidential Science Honorees (1980-86) participated in a Delphi study composed of two surveys regarding their professional reading patterns including science education journals, general education journals, science indexes, and general education indexes. Demographic information about the respondents is provided. (Author/YP)

Reports the results of a study designed to test the importance of manipulative experiences with science materials in the attainment of science process skills for kindergarten and third grade students. (JR)

Describes a study in which one group of ninth-grade biology students read supplementary scientific journal articles rated at a grade level of 12.7; another group read the same articles rewritten to a level of 9.1. A major result was that the rewritten articles increased reading rate and comprehension. (MLH)

Examines the educational value of exhibits for transferring wildlife information to high school students. Reports that the passive exhibitry technique produced increases in the wildlife knowledge of students. (Author/YP)

Determines how the use of a science education program affected selected ninth-grade students' comprehension of science reading material. The different effects of the program depended on students' reading and mathematics scores. (Author/YP)

Describes a paper-and-pencil test for high school biology students measuring science process skills, such as developing hypotheses; making predictions; identifying assumptions; analyzing data; and formulating conclusions. Reports some data on reliability and validity of the test. Provides all 35 items of the test. (YP)

Examines science textbook language and determines some characteristics of them: distant authorial voice, concern for precision, limited context, limited syntax, and rhetorical model. Suggests three further researcher needs. (YP)

This study examined the impact of a biology course emphasizing computer simulation on student achievement and student attitudes toward science. The students in the experimental group were placed in a class limited to 16 students to have 2 students to each computer. (YP)

Investigates whether enriching text with analogies, similes, and metaphors has an impact on student cognitive learning and attitudes. Reports no gain on achievement, negative gain on attitude, no gain on proposition recall test, and negative gain on student attention to the text. (YP)

Observes 16 students from five elementary science classes to examine how students use tools when constructing new knowledge during science instruction, how control of tools is actualized from pedagogical perspectives, how language and tool accessibility intersect, how gender intersects with tool use, and how competition for resources impacts…