Developed as part of an international curriculum effort, this unit aims to provide information to students about the interdependence of Pacific nations and the importance of the Columbia River and its ports in international trade. Geared for grades 5-7, the materials focus on harbors both as natural ecosystems and as locations of international…

Designed to supplement a short course for parents and their middle school children, this document provides organized, cooperative learning activities to be done at the zoo and at home. It is intended that the course be a vehicle for promoting positive attitudes toward the study of science in parents and their children and to increase their levels…

Suggestions for instructional improvement are offered for science teachers in this compilation of research summaries on specific areas of science education. This series includes the articles: (1) "Improving Students' Understanding of the Nature of Science" (discussing the relationship between teachers and students conceptions of science…

This grade 2 science curriculum guide contains three activity units: (1) insects; (2) measuring; and (3) sink or float. Each unit contains a rationale, teacher background material, lesson plans, and lists of resources including books, audiovisual materials, resource persons, and science activity modules. The lesson plans list the science processes…

To cope with some social problems, Japanese educational planners are drafting some proposals for research into innovations in the educational system. This paper reports on some research recently done which looked into the relationships of the Japanese educational environment and the reasoning/thinking skills and process skills of students in…

According to this report, since the 1960s many of the gains of post-Sputnik reform have been allowed to slip away and, as reports of the early 1980s have emphasized, elementary and secondary education has been neglected. The shock of technological and economic losses to other countries has once again alerted the United States to its educational…

This document is the second of three volumes of the proceedings an international seminar which focused on student misconceptions in science and mathematics as well as teaching strategies intended to deal with those misconceptions. An introduction to the volume explains the format of the conference and the organization of the sessions. It stresses…

Research on science education in the Caribbean which has been completed and published between 1970-1987 in the form of doctoral or masters theses, published papers, conference/seminar papers, and university-based mimeograph research material was examined, synthesized, and organized around the following themes: (1) agricultural education; (2)…

This physical science activity module was designed to facilitate developing concepts related to sound. It is intended for use primarily in elementary grades but may be useful at higher grades. It provides students with hands-on experience and observational skill development. The package provides: (1) a teacher background sheet; (2) an activity…

Canada is one of nearly 40 countries involved in the Second International Science Study (SISS). The Ontario Ministry of Education used the data generated in the study as a vehicle for assessing science education in the province, and comparing the province to the rest of Canada. Each chapter of this report contains a non-technical summary of…

This is a checklist for use by science coordinators, school principals, science supervisors, and teachers in identifying strengths and weaknesses of science programs in grades seven through eight. It can also be used by science coordinators during school visits. This guide contains space for recording information concerning: school name and…

This study guide was designed to help teachers and students understand the problems surrounding solid wastes. It includes an overview of solid waste and recycling, a glossary, suggested activities and a list of resource publications, audiovisual materials and organizations. There are 19 activity suggestions included in this guide designed for use…

There is a serious risk that the extra burden of adding instruction about microcomputers and software to regular elementary school curricula may turn off both teachers and students to the potential that microcomputers have for improving learning. To counter this risk, microcomputers should be integrated into the regular instructional program of…

Questionnaires with over 400 items were administered to key teachers of the 1982 Search for Excellence in Science Education programs. It was hoped to compare the characteristics of teachers of exemplary programs with those possessed by teachers in general. Results are presented under the following headings: (1) qualifications of science teachers;…

One area explored in the second (in-depth) phase of the Learning in Science Project was "children's science," defined as views of the world and the meanings for words that children have and bring with them to science lessons. The investigation reported focuses on the concept of "electric current" held by 43 elementary school…