The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of guided inquiry activities supported by digital stories in the 6th grade science lesson on students' attitudes towards inquiry. The method of the study was determined as the embedded design, one of the mixed method research designs. 27 students from a public school located in the countryside…

We present a simple activity based on the liquid-drop model which allows secondary school students to explore the uses of mathematical models and gain an intuitive understanding of the concept of binding energy, and in particular the significance of positive binding energy. Using spreadsheets provided as supplementary material, students can…

This article reports on the theoretical output of a design research study, which concerns the design of a learning environment (LE) for helping students challenge the 'balance of nature'-idea and reach an up-to-date understanding about ecosystems' contingency. Our focus is set on whether it is feasible to articulate an empirically tested theory of…

Because Laura Lukes used to be a geologist, when she started teaching science, she wanted to incorporate field experiences in her classroom. But, like many teachers, she faced obstacles: insufficient budgets, testing requirements, a lack of chaperones and transportation, and the safety concerns that come with fieldwork. As a result, a real field…

During the 17th century the idea of an orbiting and rotating Earth became increasingly popular, but opponents of this view continued to point out that the theory had observable consequences that had never, in fact, been observed. Why, for instance, had astronomers failed to detect the annual parallax of the stars that "must" occur if…

We have designed an exercise suitable for a lab or project in an undergraduate physical chemistry course that creates a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to calculate the energy of the S[subscript 0] ground electronic state and the S[subscript 1] and T[subscript 1] excited states of H[subscript 2]. The spreadsheet calculations circumvent the…

Despite their technological savvy, most students entering university lack the necessary computer skills to succeed in a quantitative analysis course, in which they are often expected to input, analyze, and plot results of experiments without any previous formal education in Microsoft Excel or similar programs. This lack of formal education results…

Density functional theory (DFT) is a type of electronic structure calculation that has rapidly gained popularity. In this article, we provide a step-by-step demonstration of a DFT calculation by hand on the helium atom using Slater's X-Alpha exchange functional on a single Gaussian-type orbital to represent the atomic wave function. This DFT…

This column discusses resources and science topics related to students in grades preK to 2. The author discusses teachers using technology to help students develop a science inquiry. Teachers can use technology to help students develop a science inquiry--express ideas, document observations, research information, discuss results, and relate…

This article reports on a research study that looked at the issues and challenges of training new science teachers to use the Internet in their planning and teaching. It was conducted within three university departments in England and focused on an exploration of the issues and challenges facing trainee teachers in using the Internet in their…

Collaborative inquiry learning is one of the most challenging and exciting ventures for today's schools. It aims at bringing a new and promising culture of teaching and learning into the classroom where students in groups engage in self-regulated learning activities supported by the teacher. It is expected that this way of learning fosters…

The near-UV spectrum of benzene is used to illustrate the effects of variations in instrument spectral bandwidth on absorbance and molar absorptivity measurements and on the independence of values of quantities such as the oscillator strength that are based on integrated absorptivity. Excel-based computer simulations are provided that help develop…

A method is described for building a cost effective digital circuit capable of monitoring the solar radiation incident upon a remote solar cell. The circuit is built in two sections, the first, digitises the analogue voltage produced by the solar cell at a remote location and transmits the received signal to the second receiver circuit which…

Classifying a particle requires an understanding of the type of bonding that exists within and among the particles, which requires an understanding of atomic structure and electron configurations, which requires an understanding of the elements of periodic properties, and so on. Rather than getting tangled up in all of these concepts at the start…

The European Association for Astronomy Education (EAAE), in collaboration with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina of Egypt and the participation of schools from all around the world, performed the Eratosthenes experiment on 21 June 2010. This activity has been selected as one of the finalists in the 11th international prize organized by Ciencia en…