This study examines how middle school students develop an increasingly coherent understanding of aquatic ecosystems. As part of a broader design research study that used Structure-Behavior-Function (SBF) theory as an organizing conceptual representation, we created two instructional units that focused on pond and aquarium environments. We coded…

Framed in theories of social semiotics, this multiple case study describes and categorizes the actional-operational modes used by three middle school earth science teachers throughout the course of one school year. Data included fieldnotes, photographs, and video recordings of classroom instructions as well as periodic interviews with the…

The goal of this case study was to describe characteristic features of abductive inquiry learning activities in the domain of earth science. Participants were undergraduate junior and senior students who were enrolled in an earth science education course offered for preservice secondary science teachers at a university in Korea. The undergraduate…

Teachers' use of inquiry has been studied largely without regard for the disciplines in which teachers practice. As a result, there is no theoretical understanding of the possible role of discipline in shaping teachers' conceptions and enactment of inquiry. In this mixed-methods study, conceptions and enactment of inquiry for 60 National Board…

Discusses ways to increase the effectiveness of field studies as an instructional method. Describes a study in which high school students who completed a geological field study scored higher on an earth science test than students who had not participated in the field study. (MLH)

This evaluation study investigated the effects of a teacher-centered versus student-centered computer-assisted instruction (CAI) on 10th graders' earth science student learning outcomes. This study also explored whether the effects of different forms of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) on student learning outcomes were influenced by student…

Tested Ausubel/Novak hypothesis that primary grade students can learn meaningfully certain aspects of science concepts in the "reception learning" model. Revised audio-tutorial instruction unit on earth based on understanding children's misconceptions; assessed impact of revised units with second graders; and compared results to concept…

This study explores the roles that regional partners play in helping to support implementation of the GLOBE program, an international earth science and education initiative. Researchers at SRI International conducted case studies of two GLOBE partners' practices in an effort to identify the factors that contribute to effective implementation of…