The purpose of this study is to provide insight into short-term professionalization of teachers regarding teaching socioscientific issues (SSI). The study aimed to capture the development of science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for SSI teaching by enacting specially designed SSI curriculum materials. The study also explores…

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…

Despite the centrality of the informal manufacturing sector ("Jua Kali") to the Kenyan society and its richness in scientific phenomena, there is no strong link between activities in the Jua Kali and school science. And, although there has been an ongoing public discourse in Kenya to industrialize, this hope is unlikely without…

This article presents an empirical study on an initial learning progression of energy, a concept of central importance to the understanding of science. Learning progressions have been suggested as one vehicle to support the systematic and successful teaching of core science concepts. Ideally, a learning progression will provide teachers with a…

We report here on the first of two evaluations of a national project (Getting Practical: Improving Practical Work in Science--IPWiS) designed to improve the effectiveness of practical work in both primary and secondary schools in England. This first baseline evaluation of the effectiveness of practical work is based on a study of a diverse range…

This study investigated the representations of a select group of scientists (n = 10) in a sample of Canadian high school and college textbooks. Drawing on semiotic and cultural-historical activity theoretical frameworks, we conducted two analyses. A coarse-grained, quantitative analysis of the prevalence and structure of these representations…

Finnish students' opinions about the frequency of learning activities and communication in the Finnish science classroom, their interest in science and science studies and careers, their sense of self-efficacy, and their beliefs about their own competence as well as their performance in science are analyzed based on PISA 2006 Scientific Literacy…

The aim of the present study is to shed light on the conceptions that young students have of heat and temperature, concepts that are both important in school science curricula and closely related to daily life. The subjects of the study were students from a rural district in South Korea and they ranged in age from 4 to 11 years. Interviews were…

Investigates difficulties in thinking about interactions between variables and suggests remedial educational means. Reports that expert thinkers demonstrate thinking about interactions at both an operational and metastrategic level. Lay adults, however, encounter substantial difficulties in drawing valid interaction inferences while engaged in an…

The role of science education in rural development is of great interest to science educators. In this study I investigated how residents of rural Kirumi, Kenya, approach health and healing, through discussions and semistructured and in-depth interviews with 150 residents, 3 local herbalists, and 2 medical researchers over a period of 6 months. I…

Investigates the potential for using case-based pedagogy as a context for collaborative inquiry into the teaching and learning of elementary science. Uses two teacher-generated case narratives that serve as the centerpiece for deliberation around key tensions that reflect both the struggles and positive aspects of teacher learning that took place.…

Reports descriptive study concerning student understanding of isomers. Sample of 7,441 senior high school students completed tests which contained 12 questions on isomerism. Results indicate students are inclined to restrict their concept of isomerism to compounds belonging to the same class. There was no evidence students expected molecular…

Presents the story of one nongovernmental organization (NGO) and the role it played in reconceptualizing science education in South Africa. Describes the success of the Science Education Project (SEP) in confronting authoritarian practices of government organizations and those within its own ranks. Science education can become the Trojan horse of…

Investigated relationship between lesson content and participation of pupils in rural India primary schools. Spontaneous participation in teacher-directed classrooms (N=136) was shown to be correlated with time spent by teachers in relating textbook content to pupils' natural experience. Experiments and teaching aids were also useful in drawing…

Investigated the problems chemistry majors have with learning distillation concepts in traditional chemistry laboratory courses. Reports that students take the generalized concepts at face value, construct decontextualized concepts for distillation, and cannot interpret their observations or make reasoned decisions based on the theoretical…