These curricular materials are intended to explain wastewater treatment processes, detail the goals of the Boston Harbor Project, and describe the responsibility of individual citizens to the revitalization of Boston Harbor. A series of student activities covers three main topics: wastewater operations, wastewater residuals, and household…

This document presents the framework and rationale for assessing the science achievement of students throughout the United States in 1996 and 2000. A general overview of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and the NAEP Science Framework adopted by the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) is provided. The process by which…

The videos in this educational series, for grades 4-7, help students understand the science behind weather phenomena through dramatic live-action footage, vivid animated graphics, detailed weather maps, and hands-on experiments. This episode (23 minutes) looks at how meteorologists gather and interpret current weather data collected from sources…

The implementation of basic research on children's scientific thinking into science curricula continues to be a slow process. This chapter summarizes research on cognitive development that has helped to establish the goals for much of early science education and examines its implications. The chapter begins by describing scientific thinking and…

Determined extent to which eighth-grade students' (N=35) knowledge of concepts relevant to mineral classification influenced their ability to classify minerals and which concepts were most influential. Results showed that 58.7% of variance in correct mineral classification was accounted for by students' knowledge of relevant concepts, particularly…

Traces the development of a pencil and paper instrument which measures the change in pupils' (N=576) conception of the particle model of matter. Responses of four groups of children in grades 5-12 and university sophomore nonscience majors revealed that some cognitive difficulties are experienced at all ages. (CS)

Traces the events leading to the creation of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM). Discusses how the units have been represented by their standards, and investigates how the original metric system evolved into the International System of Units (SI), focusing on the meter, second, kilogram, and electrical units. (SK)

Results of considering the "at rest" condition of an object with two high school physics classes suggest three instructional factors which apparently aid in the development of students' concepts of force. Includes implications for teaching and an example of a technique fostering concept development. (Author/JN)

Thought papers, research findings, and program descriptions pertaining to science education are presented. Topics include inservice education for primary science, curriculum development, factors affecting science provision for 10- to 14-year-olds, science programs for the gifted, thinking in science lessons, and the nature of scientific knowledge.…

Implications for learning and science instruction are discussed based on the interview-about-instances technique which identified five patterns of student (7-20 year olds) understandings of the concept of force. (SK)

The author presents an analysis of alternative views about why students should learn science, shares some anecdotal impressions about the heuristic potential of the concept "curriculum emphases" in a practical setting, and examines some problems related to teaching science to early adolescents. (Author/PB)

Investigates the misconceptions in physics among South African students. The physics test which was administered to selected high school and college students is included. (HM)

This study, conducted in an Australian institution, investigates the intellectual requirements of the mechanics section of a first-year college physics text. Instructional and prerequisite concepts were classified in terms of the intellectual skills required to understand them. (HM)

This study compared effects of two approaches to hands-on science, supported inquiry science (SIS) and activity-based science, in six urban and two suburban fourth-grade general education classrooms involving 172 students, 33 of whom had learning disabilities (LD). The study found that students with and without LD demonstrated greater concept…

A study with nine physics students in a Quebec university found they saw themselves learning primarily outside the classroom as they solved assigned problems, saw few new concepts being introduced, and felt they had moved beyond memorization to application of concepts to problem solving. Students' perceptions were sometimes at odds with teachers'…