This study was designed to identify the variables that are the strongest predictors of elementary school science achievement in selected schools in the Republic of China. Thirty-eight schools (2950 students) were selected for the study and were representative of large and middle size schools throughout the country. Variables investigated included:…

Most Aboriginal people in Australia lack the background qualifications to enter higher education courses in science and mathematics. In 1984, the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT) (now Curtin University of Technology) developed a project which created and evaluated bridging courses for Aboriginal people seeking to gain access into…

Designed for use in vocational education programs, this unit on solar space heating contains information and suggestions for teaching at the secondary school level. It focuses on heating, ventilating, and air conditioning programs. Educational objectives and educational objectives with instructional strategies are provided for each of the eight…

The naive conceptions that children develop tacitly or explicitly, outside the classroom, contribute to their interpretation of the teacher's words, paragraphs in a book, or the results of an experiment. These conceptions (or "alternative frameworks") may persist even in the face of systematic teaching of competing scientific concepts…

To expedite acquisition of English language skills needed for full mainstreaming, the Bilingual Basic Skills Program at South Bronx High School in New York City provided instruction in English as a second language and native language arts, and bilingual mathematics, science, and social studies for 370 Spanish speaking students of limited English…

This document provides a unit of lessons and activities on thunder storms and blizzards that are intended to provide students with a basic understanding of the causes and consequences of these natural disasters. The booklet is designed to be used in correlation with a science unit or as a supplement to an elementary science curriculum. The lessons…

In 1981, an estimated 25% of the nation's secondary school teachers had summer jobs outside education. This report on the current status and future directions of employer-sponsored teacher internship programs has an underlying theme: that such programs can make a serious contribution to the career and professional development needs of teachers and…

Developed to serve as a comprehensive science methods text for elementary school teachers, this book combines method with content and presents 294 science activities for classroom use. The activities are organized by content areas into 20 chapters and address topics such as sound, weather, plants and animals, oceans, nutrition, and the…

This ERIC Digest describes the parameters of misconception research as it relates to the learning of science and highlights some of its implications for the teaching of science in the elementary school. The document reviews terminology associated with misconception research, identifies common characteristics of misconceptions, and specifies…

Analogies and examples from student's experiences are frequently cited as important to teaching conceptual material. This study was conducted in order to explore the effectiveness of an analogical teaching technique, which uses a connected sequence of "bridging" analogies, compared with a more standard teaching-by-example technique. The…

Designed to arouse interest in students about animals, this document was developed to provide teachers with a variety of information and teaching activities. The booklet is intended to enable students to become knowledgeable about science concepts relating to animals without the use of expensive equipment. The teaching activities deal with: (1)…

Designed to supplement a basic life science or biology program, this document provides teachers with experiential learning activities dealing with the human body. The learning activities vary in the length of time needed for their completion, and require a minimum of equipment and materials. The activities focus on: (1) the human skeleton; (2)…

Based on the idea that active participation stimulates the processes by which learning takes place, this document provides teachers and students with a variety of information and learning activities dealing with chemistry. Basic concepts about chemistry are presented through the use of laboratory experiments, demonstrations, worksheet exercises…

This document offers an explanation and drawings of each of the major systems of the human body and of the five senses. It provides teachers with classroom activities, demonstrations, and experiments which are intended to involve students in the acquisition of knowledge concerning the structure and function of their bodies. The drawings of the…

A teaching procedure and a curriculum construction model known as the learning cycle is described in this paper and research findings are discussed. Questions investigated include: (1) would students achieve more content understanding if taught with the learning cycle or exposition?; (2) would more content retention be evident if measurements were…