Drag racing is just one of the exciting sporting activities that students enrolled in the Parkland College's Engineering Science and Technologies program get an opportunity in which to participate. The college, located in Champaign, Illinois, has provided affordable career-tech and academic education to area residents since 1966. This article…

This study examines the practical work of a pair of students and an instructor using probeware in a mechanics lab. The aim of the study is to describe and discuss a type of interactional sequence that we refer to as "dark matter", the ordinary backdrop to the extraordinary sequences that are easily recognizable as clear-cut instances of learning.…

Despite the growing popularity of robotics competitions such as FIRST LEGO League, robotics activities are typically not found in regular K-12 classrooms. We speculate that, among other reasons, limited adoption is due to the lack of empirical evidence demonstrating the effect of robotics activities on curricular goals. This paper presents a mixed…

Demand for students with a solid foundation in science continues to grow. Also important, science education needs to ready citizens who do not pursue careers in science to handle dilemmas they will face in their lives, such as selecting treatments for diseases, evaluating messages about climate change, or using new technologies. Instruction that…

Integrating biology in the chemical engineering curriculum seems to be the future for chemical engineering programs nation and worldwide. Rowan University's efforts to address this need include a unique chemical engineering curriculum with an intensive biology component integrated throughout from freshman to senior years. Freshman and Sophomore…

In this case study, based on the reported rediscovery of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker in April 2005, students examine a real-world example of the scientific process and explore the practical implications of their conclusions. The case tells the story of Brad Murky, a student and research assistant who must decide whether the available evidence is…

This study explores effects of participation by second-semester college general chemistry students in an extended, open-inquiry laboratory investigation. Verbal interactions among a student lab team and with their instructor over three open-inquiry laboratory sessions and two non-inquiry sessions were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. Coding…

This document supports the integration of the scientific method not only into science teaching but also into the entire curriculum. It argues that the methods and attitudes that have made science the most productive enterprise of the past 300 years can be adapted to most areas of secondary education. The scientist's way of thinking is described,…

Science student assessors evaluated each other's work and ranked posters of major ecosystem processes in the same order as staff assessors. Students ranking highly in poster presentation tended to do poorly in their essay work and vice versa. This would suggest that diversity of assessment strategies is needed. (AIM)

Explores the interrelationship between students' problem-solving ability and their science-process skills in earth science. Statistical analyses indicated that a significantly moderate correlation existed between students' problem-solving ability and their science process skills. Results of a t-test also revealed that there were significant mean…

Answers the question, "What is science? with two components: body of knowledge and doing procedure. Points out the pitfalls scientists experience and how these pitfalls are not presented in textbooks, thereby affecting students' understanding and appreciation of science. Explains science as process, product, and perseverance. (YDS)

Points out the enthusiasm of students towards the complex chemical survival mechanism of some plants during the early stages of life. Uses allelopathic research to introduce students to conducting experimental research. Includes sample procedures, a timetable, and a sample grading sheet. (YDS)

Introduces gall-making insects and explains gall development. Explains how to bring galls into the classroom and conduct experiments. Suggests using gall systems to introduce students to the concepts of genetic control, biodiversity, plant and animal development, species interactions, biodiversity, and the flow of energy through the food web. (YDS)

Presents a unit of study about acorns that involves science process skills and emphasizes interdisciplinary possibilities. (MKR)

Involves 135 eighth graders in a study designed to identify those conditions that favor the transfer of laboratory-based science process skills to other areas of study. Data showed that a significant correlation exists between planning and performing (p<0.01), communication and interpreting (p<0.01), and performing and interpreting (p<0.05). (ZWH)