Many science students struggle with using scientific language and making sense of scientific phenomena. Thus, there is an increased interest in science education research and public policy with regard to understanding and promoting scientific language use and sensemaking in science classrooms. However, there is a lack of comparative studies on how…

Chemical bonding is central to explaining many phenomena. Research in chemical education and the Framework for K-12 Science Education (the "Framework") argue for new approaches to learning chemical bonding grounded in (1) using ideas of the balance of electric forces and energy minimization to explain bond formation, (2) using learning…

The interaction between student language use and sensemaking is an area in science learning that needs further elucidation in order to meet government standards in science education. In this study, concept mapping was used to explore the relationship between scientific language use and sensemaking defined as the interaction between the scientific…

This study was aimed at eliminating the difficulties in teaching the concepts and the students' conceptual understanding in the "Force and Energy" unit through semantic mapping. The study was conducted using the action research method. This study was conducted in the control group using the existing learning method in the science…

Researchers and educators have been exploring systems thinking (ST) in chemistry education to better equip citizens for 21st century challenges; however, little is known about students' perspectives and experiences. In this study, we investigated students' perspectives of ST and their experiences with ST activities. We designed and implemented a…

The properties and functions of complex systems apply across a variety of domains of science and are at the heart of the solutions to many global crises facing the world today. As such, understanding of complex systems has been increasingly recognized as a core goal of science education. Learning about complexity-related concepts and phenomena is…

This research employs the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method to investigate the configurations of multiple factors influencing scientific concept learning, including augmented reality (AR) technology, the concept map (CM) strategy and individual differences (eg, prior knowledge, experience and attitudes). A quasi-experiment…

Helping students to understand complex processes is one of the core challenges in teaching biology courses. Concept mapping is a flexible pedagogical method that enables students to learn the complexities of a given subject while at the same time being versatile enough that instructors can easily pivot between instructional modalities and/or…

National calls to improve science education include focusing on scientific practices coupled with learning disciplinary core ideas. Among the practices is constructing explanations. In the field of cellular and molecular biology, explanations typically include a mechanism and can be used to make predictions about phenomena. In this work, we…

Science educators have developed a variety of assessment techniques to help students connect their scientific knowledge and bridge conceptual gaps. In chemistry, concept maps and creative exercises are the two notable assessments that have been implemented into multiple chemistry courses and indicated promising effects on students' conceptual…

A key aspect of learning in K-12 education is the idea that what students know and are able to do grows and evolves over time. Simple ideas learned in the early elementary grades gain levels of detail and complexity as students progress in their education. Connections between different topics and disciplines are made. Therefore, a key feature of…

Concept maps are used to assess and improve prospective teachers' conceptual understanding levels. In this research, the aim was to describe prospective science teachers' conceptual understanding of the atom by using concept maps. The research employed the case study approach, one of the qualitative research patterns. The research group consisted…

This paper reports on a study aiming at examining the effect of using digital concept maps in inquiry learning. Digital concept maps were asked to be created in different stages of the inquiry learning sessions to support their investigations. The participants were a total of 24, 10th-grade students enrolled in a chemistry course at a public high…

Biology is a complex science that includes different subjects. As a result, misconceptions, confusion and misleading are common problems in biology education. In this study, it was aimed to determine the learning of pre-service science teachers about food web. The research, using the case study, was conducted in 2019-2020. The study group of the…

The study presented here is an action research that was conducted in a science and technology teaching course in a pre-service elementary teaching program at a private university in Turkey aiming at improving the pre-service elementary teachers' understanding of science and teaching science. In order to achieve this aim, an innovative approach,…