This study examined the relationship between mathematics achievement and epistemic actions. Cognitive actions that are observed as outcomes of using intellectual resources are referred to as epistemic actions in this study. We focused on four epistemic actions as follows: "selecting," "analyzing," "computing," and…

Research in science education has emphasized the importance of knowledge generation approaches to learning. Creating generative learning environments requires teachers to address the epistemic underpinning of science practices and shift their orientations toward knowledge generation approaches. This study aimed to propose epistemic orientation as…

With an ultimate goal of characterizing teachers' movement toward understanding the epistemic complexity of generative learning environments, this study refers to adaptive teaching expertise (AdTex) as a developmental teaching capacity observable through a teacher's ability to utilize various resources to address the epistemic complexity of…

The shifting emphases of new national curricula have placed more attention on knowledge generation approaches to learning. Such approaches are centered on the fundamental sense of generative learning where practices and tools for learning become the focus of the learning environment, rather than on the products of learning. This paper, building on…

Abstract concepts, such as gravity, may provide the perfect opportunity to bring phenomena into the classroom. As a knowledge generation strategy, summarizing can foster that opportunity. Using phenomena and summary writing together might help student learning since it requires making connections between their ideas and words to explain the…

The centrality of knowledge construction to student learning is well-recognised in education. In this study, we explore what it means to go beyond knowledge construction to knowledge evaluation, and how knowledge evaluation combined with direct disciplinary access improves opportunities for meaningful learning. We first review literature to…

Language and argument are epistemic tools that learners can use to help them generate and validate knowledge for themselves, as emphasized in NGSS and previous NRC reports. Not all learning environments elicit or support the use of these epistemic tools equally, thus affecting how students grow in competence in relation to their use. The present…

This qualitative case study examined the process of change in an experienced elementary teacher's belief structure during implementation of an inquiry-based science program. Difficulties generally associated with ascertaining beliefs were minimized by using Leatham's ("Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education," "9," 91-102…

Science education reforms seek to increase student inquiry, peer collaboration, and making student thinking visible in order to better support science learning. Yet each of these ingredients assumes that students will choose to actively participate in various classroom activities. This article highlights key considerations to support agency -- or…

Various inquiry approaches have been promoted in science classrooms as a way for students to engage in, and have a deeper understanding of scientific discourse. However, there is a paucity of empirical evidence to suggest how children's actions and engagement in these approaches, or "practical epistemologies" (Sandoval, Science Education…

This study investigated the value of using a scaffolded critique framework to promote two different types of writing--argumentative writing and explanatory writing--with different purposes within an argument-based inquiry approach known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach. A quasi-experimental design with sixth and seventh grade…

The Next Generation Science Standards call for the adoption of many aspects of scientific inquiry in the classroom. The ways in which classroom talk and classroom environment change as students and teachers learn to utilize inquiry approaches are underexplored. This study examines the frequency with which linguistic markers related to access and…

This study developed an analytic framework consisting of four patterns of talk and writing that can support students' engagement in construction and critique: "Talk only," "writing only," "use of talk and writing in sequence," and "use of talk and writing simultaneously." This study aimed to examine how each…

In this review, we explore the notion of teaching science to English language learners (ELLs) as a balancing act between simultaneously focusing on language and content development, on the one hand, and between structuring instruction and focusing on student learning processes, on the other hand. This exploration is conducted through the lens of a…

STEM education is a current focus of many educators and policymakers and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) with the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics (CCSSM) are foundational documents driving curricular and instructional decision making for teachers and students in K-8 classrooms across the United States. Thus, practitioners…