Students' understanding of nature of science (NOS) has been largely examined primarily in written or verbal modes. The visual, verbal, and written modes are essential for students' meaning-making of NOS. However, research has sidelined the interaction among these three modes in understanding students' collaborative discourse of NOS. Informed by…

This study explores book talks as an approach to teaching Nature of Science (NOS) to young children (4-6 years old). To teach about NOS means to, in one way or another, focus on the processes, humans that build science knowledge, as well as the characteristics and limits of scientific knowledge. Previous research in this area has studied the…

Previous research about the presence of nature of science (NOS) within science textbooks has been found to be lacking in sufficient coverage. However, given the shift in how scholars conceive of NOS, the shortcomings may not be present in the textbooks but rather in the NOS frameworks used to analyze textbooks. Whereas traditional NOS has taken a…

Argumentation constitutes an important element in nature of science education. However, its virtues and scope can be overstated. Here, we survey in detail the place of argumentation in science education. Our benchmark is the range of epistemic processes relevant to citizens and consumers as they assess the reliability of scientific claims in…

Individuals are increasingly relying on social media as their primary source of scientific information. Science education needs to adapt. Nature of science (NOS) education is already widely accepted as essential to scientific literacy and to an informed public. We argue that NOS now needs to also include the NOS communication: its mediation,…

Affect and emotions matter to science learning. They also matter because they are integral to science identity formation and sense of belonging. This study aims to foreground the epistemic and affective character of laboratory work in higher science education by conceptualizing it as epistemic practice, in which students activate their body and…

Promoting understanding of the epistemologies of science has long been the primary objective in science education, and can be viewed as a form of science learning outcome. Many studies have attempted to understand learners' conceptions of epistemology in science from various perspectives and methods; however, no recent reviews have focused on the…

As the vision in "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) takes hold in schools and classrooms, there is an urgent need for teacher professional development (PD) programs that align with NGSS-designed curriculum materials and address the unique strengths and needs of diverse student…

A persistent problem in engineering-focused science instruction is the "design--science gap," whereby learners focus on building successful engineering products, instead of focusing on the relevant scientific principles. This research explores (a) whether integrating contrasting cases into engineering activities can impact how deeply…

Quantum physics challenges our views of the physical world and describes phenomena that cannot be directly observed. The use of language is hence essential in the teaching of quantum physics. With a sociocultural view of learning, we investigate characteristics of preuniversity students' small-group discussions and their potential for enhancing…

The nature of science (NOS) as described by education scholars is a critical component of scientific literacy and includes both rational and social aspects taught best in an explicit and reflective manner. NOS is frequently tied to a critical contextual empiricism (CCE) framework for knowledge production. Central to CCE is that objectivity is…

The present essay examines the emerging issue of domain-general versus domain-specific nature of science (NOS) understandings from a perspective that illuminates the value of domain-specific philosophies of science for the growth and development of the NOS educational field. Under the assumption that individual sciences do have their own…

School principals play a key role as instructional leaders in reform efforts, yet little is known about their knowledge of science. A key focus in recent reform efforts is the inclusion of science practices, which are potentially a significant challenge for schools. Consequently, we investigated K-8 principals' views of good science instruction…

Through a randomized controlled trial, this mixed-methods study evaluated changes in elementary science teachers' understandings, confidence, and classroom implementation of problem-based learning (PBL), inquiry, and nature of science (NOS) instruction following participation in a professional development (PD) as well as the components of the PD…

The main aim of this paper is to describe high school students' attitudes concerning evolution and creation, with a focus on (1) attitudes toward evolutionary theory, (2) attitudes toward the Biblical accounts of creation, (3) creationist beliefs, and (4) scientistic beliefs. Latent class analyses revealed seven attitude profiles in a sample of…