This study examined the effects of science and engineering (S & E) inquiry on preschool and kindergarten children's academic outcomes using a randomized control-group design. Participants were divided into three groups: a classroom-only group (C-only) receiving NGSS-aligned S & E inquiry; a classroom plus family engagement group (C + F)…

Designing inquiry-based science lessons can be a challenge for secondary school teachers. In this study we evaluated the development of in-service teachers' lesson plans as they took part in a 10-month professional development course in Peru which engaged teachers in the design of inquiry-based lessons. At the beginning, most teachers designed…

This study focuses on elementary teachers' comprehension of flooding before and after inquiry-based professional development (PD). There was an improvement in teachers' understanding toward a normative view from pre- to post-test (n = 17, mean gain = 4.3, SD = 3.27). Several misunderstandings and a general lack of knowledge about flooding emerged…

Over the past three years, the authors' team at Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) has been researching a professional development program in science, "Foundations of Science Literacy" ("FSL"), for preschool lead and assistant Head Start teachers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Year 1 was a pilot year, so it is the…

Describes an inservice professional development program, Project LIFE (Laboratory Investigations and Field Experiences), that has successfully implemented guidelines from the National Science Education Standards. Includes a three-week summer course; an independent science research project; academic year follow-up through workshops, classroom…

Calls for reform in science education stress the need for inquiry-based, integrative methods that provide students with opportunities to solve authentic problems. Project INSITE, a four-year professional development effort in Indiana, was designed to help teachers integrate problem-centered science methods in their classrooms. This approach was…

Describes the Envision Project to demonstrate how teachers designed and conducted their own study, and presented the results. Identifies project ideas for environmental problems with a site survey through the Internet, aerial photographs, and maps. (YDS)

Reports on the use of GLOBE, a teaching tool that enables students to use hands-on, inquiry-based methods to gather and interpret scientific data. Summarizes the results of teacher workshops. (DDR)

This guide provides background information on the development and implementation of thematic units that focus on a hands-on approach, process orientation, integrated curriculum, cooperative learning, and critical thinking. Topics of the thematic units and mini-units include wild animals, dinosaurs, rainforests, the human body, earth science,…

This digest provides an overview of the Head Start on Science (HSS) program which is designed to encourage the science literacy of preschool children in Head Start programs and to improve the capacity of Head Start teachers, assistants, and parents. The overall goal of the HSS program is threefold: (1) to broaden HSS participants' science…

This paper describes a program sponsored by Dartmouth's Thayer School of Engineering for high school science and mathematics teachers that includes an intensive summer workshop, post-workshop consultation and communication with the Thayer School staff and other past participants, and materials development. The program offers teachers a framework…

This document contains the proceedings of the 2001 Annual International Conference of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science which was held in Costa Mesa, California, January 18-21, 2001. Papers include: (1) "An Elementary Preservice Teacher's Search for Solutions about the Evolution-Divine Creation Question: The Story of Tracy"…

This program, supported by the Center for Communication and Educational Technology at the University of Alabama, incorporates the perspectives of biology, earth/space science, chemistry, and physics into an innovative science curriculum for the middle grades. Students are engaged for 20 minutes 3 times a week by an on-air instructor who is doing…

Describes Project Alliance, a program that brings the university and science communities together to support middle school teachers working in teams to create integrated inquiry-based science curricula. Discusses the two-year program that trains teachers to become leaders in science education reform, six types of science partnerships, partnership…