Historical thinking is a construct approached by different disciplines with a recent proliferation in research interest compared to thinking in other domains. Leading exponents do not agree on its definition and include the two main traditions: Anglo-American and German, and various groups or research centres throughout the Western world.…

We used an "approach to learning" theoretical framework to explicate the ways students engage in scientific modeling. Approach to learning theory suggests that when students approach learning deeply, they link science concepts with prior knowledge and experiences. Conversely, when students engage in a surface approach to learning, they…

Educational research and practice have proven that there are many benefits for applying learning theories' recommendations through teaching and learning of different subjects in all school levels. Based on interrelationships among learning theories of contextualism, connectivism, constructivism, and cognitivism, the researcher proposed an…

This study is based on the generative learning model which involves context-based learning. Using the generative learning model, we taught the topic of Halogens. This topic is covered in the grade 10 chemistry curriculum using activities which are designed in accordance with the generative learning model supported by context-based learning. The…

Science curriculum and instruction in K-12 settings in the United States is currently dominated by an emphasis on the science standards movement of the 1990s and the resulting standards-based high-stakes assessment and accountability movement of the 2000s. We argue that this focus has moved the field away from important philosophical…

The paper is the outcome of an experiential learning episode encountered by a teacher educator (the author) with a group of student-teachers under his mentorship during a session of the practice teaching programme (2006-07) at the secondary school level. The crisis faced by a student teacher in connection with the development of a lesson template…

This article concerns the development of conceptual understanding of a physical phenomenon through the use of computational representations. It examines how students make sense of and interpret computational representations, and how their understanding of the represented physical phenomenon develops in this process. Eight studies were conducted,…

In science education, students should come to understand the nature and significance of models. In the case of chemistry education it is argued that the present use of models is often not meaningful from the students' perspective. A strategy to overcome this problem is to use an authentic chemical modelling practice as a context for a curriculum…

This paper presents an interpretation of the term "concept," as the term is used in Ausubelian learning theory to define the unit of organization in cognitive structure. Several facets of a concept are described, a model of a concept is presented, and the model is then discussed and criticized as a heuristic device to aid educators in…

This study is based upon an interpretation of Ausubel's subsumption learning theory. The primary characteristic of this theory is that it views a learner's specific content knowledge as a crucial factor in learning. Two types of assessment instruments were used with first-grade students to determine concept attainment based on specific models…

Discusses the nature of the internal representation of cognitive structure, the methodological problems involved in mapping it, and the proposed kinds of "maps." Reviews research on the organization of scientific concepts in semantic memory. (GA)

Argues for a scientific philosophy that views theory not as absolute truth but as a model that attempts to explain reality and promote inquiry. Proposes that science teachers build upon students' existing knowledge by first presenting simple, less accurate but more comprehensive models and later discussing the weaknesses. (DC)

Presents a theory of learning in science based on students deriving conceptual linkages among multiple models which represent physical phenomena at different levels of abstraction. Finds that high school students who were exposed to derivational links among three models for basic electricity performed better when solving both qualitative and…

In this paper, the authors argue that chemical knowledge in the classroom will be enriched by the application of characterizations of models drawn from a range of disciplinary backgrounds. This discussion highlights two important issues relating to chemical knowledge in the classroom: (1) the status of chemical knowledge in the classroom,…

Details two studies: (1) Study A describes a close replication of a Bishop and Anderson study (1990) using the same conceptual-change teaching module to teach a unit on evolution to nonmajor biology students; and (2) Study B used high school students, and the instruction was based on the inquiry approach to science. (28 references) (Author)