Investigated were students' beliefs about the tentativeness of scientific knowledge, various sources of students' beliefs as well as those factors that have altered students' beliefs about science, and the implications of students' beliefs for daily personal and societal decisions. The research methodology and instructional implications are…

Listed with examples are six levels of thinking. The design of lessons to teach higher order thinking is discussed. A sample lesson on spontaneous generation which uses this method is provided. (CW)

The improvement in student attitudes as the result of the use of videomicroscopy in the science classroom at the elementary, secondary, and college levels is discussed. The results of published research studies are reviewed. (CW)

Examined is the hypothesis that an important intellectual acquisition during adolescence is the ability to generate arguments that involve reasoning to contradiction. Implication for hypothesis teaching at the elementary grades is discussed. (KR)

Examined is the program and professional development process that has characterized past and current science curriculum reform efforts. Illustrated are fundamental educational reform problems. Discussed is the importance of teacher involvement in educational decision making. (KR)

Identified are potential dichotomies that must be confronted by the would-be popularizer of science--science and technology, the applications and misapplications of science, simplification and complication, certainty and speculation. The importance of writing scientifically is urged. (KR)

Data obtained from the Change Facilitators Stages of Concern Questionnaire were used in the Philippines to select content in a one-month staff development program for department heads. The training program was strongly influenced by participants' concerns. The article describes the change facilitator stages of concern. (SM)

Proposes that science students keep thinking journals of their reading of their science textbooks as a method of increasing students' critical thinking skills. Discusses strategies to initiate the practice, effective use of time, sample student entries, and the use of class discussions to process the writing. (MDH)

Describes a three-week environmental minicourse in a general chemistry class. The minicourse consisted of two distinct phases, a one-week introduction to environmental chemistry and a two-week project involving a particular environmental problem. (PR)

Describes an activity that shows how understanding a modern coral reef environment helps predict the location of old subsurface reefs that may contain oil. (PR)

Describes how science fiction films can be used in science instruction. (PR)

Presents the experiences of high school science teachers who initiated tracking reform in their school, generating substantial debate and conflict in their community. The conflict illuminates key challenges teachers may encounter as they promote educational and social change. The paper notes implications for preservice teacher education,…

Secondary school earth-science textbooks in print from 1960 through 1979 were examined to determine how rapidly concepts of plate tectonics were incorporated into those texts during the period when scientists' views about these concepts were evolving most rapidly. Suggests that delays were probably due to an unwillingness to engage in speculation…

Describes how senior-level, preservice teacher certification candidates in secondary science and social science methods classes work in teams to prepare instructional materials on a community-based issue (such as the effect of the deposition of arsenic in a creek and small city lake). Argues that such projects provide valuable learning experiences…

Outlines the fundamental changes in initial teacher education in England and Wales in recent years, with particular reference to the Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE). Finds that a large proportion of secondary science teacher trainees had little or no knowledge of or experience with General National Vocational Qualifications (GNVQ)…