Guided by a situated learning framework, this research examines the nature of teachers' technology learning when participating in a content-focused technology inquiry group, the ways teachers integrate what they learn into content-specific student learning activities, and how situated features of the learning context influence teacher learning.…

This article provides an overview of our work on the nature of metacognitive knowledge, its relationship to learning through inquiry, and technologies that can be used to foster and assess its development in classrooms as students engage in collaborative inquiry. To illustrate our theoretical ideas, we present examples from our Inquiry Island…

In the spirit of the National Science Education Standards (NRC 1996), many teachers attempt to have their students experience science in a constructivist, inquiry-oriented manner. The egg bungee jump activity will certainly support that mode of teaching, and has the added benefit of providing a concrete context within which students can explore…

This comparative study of two pre-service teacher education programmes in England and in Canada focuses on the relationship between inquiry and the partnership structures within which the universities and schools work together. Despite the very different jurisdictions and cultures of the two systems, the two universities seem to experience similar…

This article provides a critical analysis and evaluation of how an inquiry-based learning (IBL) approach to learning and teaching was introduced into the curriculum of a large and well-established social work programme at a UK university. A rationale for the initiative is provided, in particular the rejection of the term problem-based learning…

This paper argues that the diverse curriculum reform agendas associated with science education are strongly and critically associated with the educational characteristics of the humanities. The article begins with a survey of interpretations of the distinctive contribution which the humanities make to educational purposes. From this survey four…

Crayfish, also known as "crawfish" or "crawdads," are easy to keep in the classroom, and with patience and luck, students will observe the complete life cycle of the crayfish. They will also learn about aquatic animals and habitats and get to conduct inquiry experiments about animal behavior. This article describes how a third-grade teacher used…

A laboratory experiment for undergraduate biophysical chemistry is described, in which the acid concentration and temperature dependences of the decarboxylation of pyrrole-2-carboxylate are measured using a continuous ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometric assay. Data collection and analysis are structured using principles of guided inquiry. Data…

This chapter considers whether there are grounds for believing that an inquiry-based approach to teaching and educational development will enhance practice. (Contains 1 table.)

Inquiry-based teaching and learning and technology integration are integral parts of the National Science Education Standards ad AAAA Project 2061 Benchmarks for Science Literacy. It is found that there are very few chemistry WBIs in the public domain, and the WBIs found are with a limited scope and content coverage and so the need for extensive…

The inquiry-focused learning is a process that provokes deeper thinking and investigation and greater student motivation to learn. Inquiry is a process of learning that embraces features such as learning experience, assessment, and questioning thus embodying an educational philosophy that directly responds to the national emphasis on high…

Studies of parental identity tend to focus on historical influences or experiences with the other parent of the child and overlook the influence of children on parents. To investigate children's influence on parental identity, this study examines individuals' perceived mattering or significance to their school-aged children. Cross-case qualitative…

Sixty-two high-school biology students, paired heterogeneously based on prior knowledge, learned about genetic using GenScope, a computer-based learning environment (CBLE), over four 90-minute class periods. Differences between low and high prior knowledge students emerged with convergence of verbal process data and pre- and post-test product…

Most undergraduates lack the scientific background to read and appreciate much of the primary literature in physiology. Even when the underlying concepts are elegantly simple, the inherent complexity of contemporary papers often makes the work inaccessible to them. However, with a little help, they can be guided to an understanding of the creative…

This article offers an introductory framework for public art that supports an inquiry approach to instruction. "Public art," or for the purposes of this article, "artworks outside museum and gallery walls," is a large and complex subject that lends itself to a variety of categorical divisions. A basic category, for example, includes the various…