This article tells the story of one second grade teacher and the ways she integrated informational texts into her classroom. Reported by the classroom teacher and a researcher who studied her practice for a year, the manuscripts detail the ways Michelle (the classroom teacher) embedded informational texts in her classroom primarily within the…

In three semiguided inquiry lessons on population biology, students use models and simulations to examine population trends and make projections. They are guided to create and evaluate data and to use algebraic and geometric representations to examine biotic and logistic growth models as part of examining human population growth. As they recognize…

Change is often expected as the logical outcome of large scale investments in professional development, yet research studies (e.g., Tyack & Cuban, 1995; Lipson, Mosenthal & Woodside-Jiron, 2000; Schraw & Olafson, 2002) note wide variations in instructional practice despite such efforts. This qualitative inquiry was designed to…

This study explored how Black men make sense of the masculine aspect of their identity and adult development juxtaposed with the ideology of leadership within the realms of a Black, Greek-letter fraternity on a predominantly White college campus in the South. Historically, administrators of colleges and universities have accepted those who…

This study examines the effect of deep approaches to learning on development of the inclination to inquire and lifelong learning over four years, as an essential graduated outcome that helps students face the challenges of a complex and rapidly changing world. Despite the importance of the inclination to inquire and lifelong learning, some…

The National Science Education Standards (NRC, 1996) have been one of the leading reformed documents in the U.S. since its release. It has served as a foundation for all state standards and has supported the development of the newest standards documents recently released in the U.S. (i.e., Achieve Inc., 2013; NRC 2012). One of the most important…

90-Day Cycles are a disciplined and structured form of inquiry designed to produce and test knowledge syntheses, prototyped processes, or products in support of improvement work. With any type of activity, organizations inevitably encounter roadblocks to improving performance and outcomes. These barriers might include intractable problems at…

Although inquiry-based learning has been debated throughout the greater educational community and demonstrated with some effect in modern classrooms, little quantitative analysis has been performed to empirically validate sustained benefits. This quantitative study focused on whether inquiry-based pedagogy actually brought about sustained and…

Improving youth science comprehension in the United States is imperative to reverse current trends in student achievement and to meet an expected shortage of scientists in the future. This lag in achievement scores and need for future scientists is a problem. One challenge is to link inquiry-based learning and experiential education with…

This paper is aimed at elucidating the current state of inquiry-based science education (IBSE) in Zambia's high school science curriculum. Therefore, we investigated Zambian teachers' conceptions of inquiry; determined inquiry levels in the national high school science curriculum materials, which include syllabi, textbooks and practical exams; and…

In a climate of high-stakes testing that emphasizes content, it can be challenging to teach science from an inquiry perspective. In addition there is a widespread call for a new approach to science education that includes science practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas (NRC 2011). However, it is not imperative for teachers to implement…

The purpose of this study is to answer this question: Which is academically superior for young children, full-or half-day kindergarten? This inquiry-oriented case study was designed to compare and contrast students who attended half-day versus full-day kindergarten programs in a suburban public school district. The study is necessary because the…

This study examines the developing beliefs and practices of six beginning primary teachers. Their accounts reveal practices indicative of contemporary approaches to teaching and learning in mathematics. Additionally, a consistency appears to exist between the beliefs and practices of the beginning teachers, and the ideals for mathematics teaching…

Prior research has shown that orchestrating scientific discourse in classrooms is difficult and takes a great deal of effort on the part of teachers. In this study, we examined teachers' instructional moves to elicit and develop students' ideas and questions as they orchestrated discourse with their fifth grade students during a learner-centered…

Research indicates that the use of metaphors to organize and frame questions concerning the teaching/learning process can be an effective tool. More problematic, however, has been the use of metaphor in framing policy questions, especially those metaphors employed to frame national education reform ideas. This article explores several research…