The aim of this study is to scrutinize the characteristics of conceptual meaning making when students engage with virtual worlds in combination with a spreadsheet with the aim to develop graphs. We study how these tools and the representations they contain or enable students to construct serve to influence their understanding of energy resource…

Discusses reasons for using spreadsheets in science teaching. Presents a list of possible applications together with examples of these from very simple to more complex uses including animation of dynamic systems. Also provides a list of references for materials for beginners and more advanced users. Contains 12 references. (Author/ASK)

Good primary science is about children being engaged in questioning, exploring and interpreting--and enjoying the experience. Good ICT is where appropriate software, hardware and activities complement and support science activities. It is all too easy to see only the whizzes and bangs of the latest technology and forget about the learning…

Some aspects of biology, for example the Hardy-Weinberg simulation of population genetics or modelling heat flow in lizards, have an undeniable mathematical basis. Students can find the level of mathematical skill required to deal with such concepts to be an insurmountable hurdle to understanding. If not used effectively, spreadsheet models…