Many countries, including the United States, emphasize the importance of developing students' scientific habits of mind and their capacity to think deeply about scientific ideas in an integrated fashion. Recent science education policies in the United States portray a related vision of science teaching and learning that is meant to guide the…

In this study we explore the strategies that undergraduate and graduate chemistry students use when engaged in classification tasks involving symbolic and microscopic (particulate) representations of different chemical reactions. We were specifically interested in characterizing the basic features to which students pay attention when classifying…

A sample of ninth-grade students utilizing the Intermediate Science Curriculum Study (ISCS) and other materials was used to investigate the relationship between cognitive preferences and science process achievement. The three cognitive preferences examined were: (1) application; (2) memorization; and (3) questioning. (HM)