Modeling is a fundamental tool in the teaching and learning processes of life and earth sciences. It serves as an investigative instrument that enables students to test hypotheses and solve scientific problems. This paper presents the findings of a survey conducted among 96 Moroccan life and earth sciences teachers teaching students at the…

The recently released document "A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas" emphasizes the importance of engaging students in practices of science and engineering to help them understand how scientific knowledge about the natural world develops. The document identifies eight essential…

In this article, the author presents the science and engineering practices from the recently released "A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas" (NRC 2011). The author recognizes the changes implied by the new framework, and eventually a new generation of science education standards will present new…

As science teachers, they understand the importance of gaining student interest to promote learning. They know how challenging it is to spark the curiosity to truly engage students in the processes of "doing science." One often-used method of motivation is the demonstration of science in action. Demonstrations such as "discrepant events". They are…

The Exemplary Practice in Science and Mathematics Education (EPSME) project involved outstanding teachers of science or mathematics from Western Australia. The project's goal was to identify effective practices of exemplary teachers for the purpose of developing programs for improving practices in science classrooms. Thirteen science teachers and…

Meta-Analysis procedures were employed to integrate existing science education research findings on the effectiveness of teaching strategy analysis training to: (1) determine overall magnitude of effect that can be expected from such training; (2) determine and compare relative magnitude of effects attributable to various approaches to such…