Background: Feedback is one of the most significant factors for students' development of writing skills. For feedback to be successful, however, students and teachers need a common language--a meta-language--for discussing texts. Not least because in science education such a meta-language might contribute to improve writing training and…

Communication skills are one of the most important competencies for 21st century global citizens. Our guiding presupposition was that socioscientific issues (SSIs) could be used as an effective pedagogical tool for promoting students' communication skills by increasing peer interactions, stimulating students' reasoning, and in constructing shared…

This exploratory research investigated how science education communities of practice in Oklahoma engage in translations of climate change education (CCE). Applications of actor-network theory to educational policymaking facilitate this analysis of the spaces of prescription and spaces of negotiation that characterize CCE in Oklahoma. Informed by…

Having the learning and retention of science content and skills as a goal of scientific literacy, it is significant to study the issue of retention as it relates to teaching and learning about nature of science (NOS). Then, the purpose of this study was to investigate the development of NOS understandings of students, and the retention of these…

The use of animals in biomedical research is a socio-scientific issue in which decision-making is complicated. In this article, we describe an experience involving a role play activity performed during school visits to the Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB) to debate animal testing. Role playing games require students to defend different…

In educational reform, teaching through socio-scientific issues (SSIs) is considered the best way to promote scientific literacy for citizenship as the goal of science teaching. To bring SSIs into the science classroom, Thai pre-service science teachers (PSTs) are expected to understand the concept of SSI-based teaching and to use it effectively…

In this paper, the authors present and evaluate a partially web-based Basic Optics course held each year from 2000 to 2003. The course has evolved over the last four years, and we analyse this process based on students' responses to a paper-based questionnaire. Their responses show the difficulty they had in adapting to this new environment, in…

This research examines the problems that religious Jewish science teachers in Israeli high schools have in coping with science subjects (such as geological time) which conflict with their religious beliefs. We do this by characterizing the philosophical approaches within Judaism that such teachers have adopted for dealing with such controversy.…

The rapid advances in technology and scientific knowledge in modern society increases the need for a workforce with an understanding of technology and critical thinking skills College graduates are entering the working world without the critical thinking skills and ability to apply the scientific knowledge gained during their undergraduate…

The world faces a number of complex challenges that are sometimes referred to as "wicked problems." Universities have been relatively poor at preparing graduates for such challenges, yet it will be the future professionals who need to tackle the problems. This essay looks at two related projects that have attempted to advance the skills…

Science centres aim to present science in ways that will attract visitors and enhance public interest in, and knowledge of, science. But what images and different aspects of science are visitors confronted with at Nordic science centres? This study aims to explore the different aspects of science that are displayed and the ways in which these…

Described are experiences with a research project at the University of Queensland (Australia). Medical students are required to conduct the research during their fourth and fifth year of study. Considered are departmental expectations and objectives for the course, student experiences and opinions, and the provisions and processes which facilitate…

Describes how one instructor developed a biology questionnaire designed to get students interacting and thinking about biology course content on the first day of class. Discusses why student interest is captured, how the questions are made, and how the questionnaire results are used in class. Contains a 15-question true/false questionnaire. (LZ)

Grade 11 students enrolled in a science/technology/society (STS) course, students not enrolled and their respective teachers were profiled. The results indicate that STS education rather that STS "doctrination" is the norm, the goal of "STS-literate" students has not been achieved, and the long-term retention capability of the established and…