While recent research has examined students' and teachers' understanding of models and modeling, few studies have focused on how teacher educators can support preservice elementary science teachers in envisioning enriched learning processes and outcomes for their students while engaging in modeling practices. Informed by reflective practices…

Background: In the context of recent research in science education and continued struggles to understand how best to support science teachers, epistemological frames, made up of sets of epistemological resources teachers activate, have emerged as an important focus of research. However, at the time of this writing no research was available to…

The science teacher education community plays a prominent role in teacher preparation programs. Particularly, science methods courses emphasize modeling instructional strategies to promote inquiry-based practices. Integrating appropriate educational technology to enhance and support classroom practices should be embedded in these courses. The…

There is a current national emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Additionally, many states are transitioning to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which encourage teachers to incorporate engineering in science classrooms as well as have their students learn science by doing science. Methods courses are…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among science content knowledge, understanding the Learning Cycle, and self-efficacy among preservice teachers. Preservice teachers enrolled in an elementary science-methods course were categorized as Fearful, Disinterested, Successful, or Enthusiastic science learners based on differing…

This study examined the difficulties and factors that led to understanding the learning cycle teaching strategy. Participants included 83 preservice elementary teachers (PTs) enrolled in multiple sections of a science methods course taught by the same professor, one of the authors of this study. Analysis revealed that there were four categories of…

This book describes methods used in the education of science teachers. Chapters in the book and authors are as follows: (1) "Teaching Elementary Teachers How to Use the Learning Cycle for Guided Instruction in Science" (John Staver and Gail Shroyer); (2) "Helping Preservice Teachers Master Authentic Assessment for the Learning Cycle…