This paper explores the influence of symbolic or representational learning materials on pupil engagement or learning outcomes, when 14-16 year old pupils use common types of science simulations. The project pilot phase involved three (15-16 year old) male pupils and a main phase involved twenty-one (14-15 year old) pupils. A retrospective accounts…

Peering through a thematic science lens--elementary students embarked on a one-week study of ants during a month-long summer school program. This integrated unit addressed reading and writing skills while developing the science-process skills of observation, inferring, and communicating in a motivating and authentic way. Pre- and post-assessments…

A summer program was created for undergraduates and graduate students that teaches bioinformatics concepts, offers skills in professional development, and provides research opportunities in academic and industrial institutions. We estimate that 34 of 38 graduates (89%) are in a career trajectory that will use bioinformatics. Evidence from…

This paper reports on a small scale study undertaken at the University of Iowa to examine whether students perceive a difference as to the value of learning in General Education Requirement (GER) science classes compared to learning in science application courses. It also explores the need for a different approach to the teaching of science…

'Scientific Investigation' was the first of the four Attainment Targets which prescribed the science component of the national curriculum in England and Wales in 1991. Following a brief historical account of the origins of scientific investigation as a curriculum objective, this paper comments upon the attempt by the central government to define a…

This book is organized around a set of simple observational physics activities that stimulate questioning and answering and encourage the generation of answers to stimulate individual creativity. The activities integrate drawing, counting, measuring, predicting, recording, hypothesizing, and verifying. The activities are designed to sharpen…

Science educators and other are faced with determining what changes must be made in education to insure scientific literacy for all students. One area that has been identified as playing a crucial role in science achievement outcome is assessment. This monograph focuses on improving assessment techniques used by teachers as they devise tests to…

The question addressed here is how to integrate computational tools, namely interactive general-purpose platforms, in the teaching of process units. Mathematica has been selected as a complementary tool to teach distillation processes, with the main objective of leading students to achieve a better understanding of the physical phenomena involved…

An established methodology involving the sequential presentation of five skills on ASPEN Plus to undergraduate seniors majoring in ChE is presented in this document: (1) specifying unit operations; (2) manipulating physical properties; (3) accessing variables; (4) specifying nonstandard components; and (5) applying advanced features. This…

This report provides guidance for a rigorous science curriculum in the middle grades based on a solid set of essential standards that can prepare all students to perform at least at the basic level of proficiency and for increasing percentages of students to perform at the proficient and advanced levels. This report is organized around 19…

The gateway to a successful future is not so much knowing your intended career path today but in keeping an open and curious mind about the information you are learning now in your classes and how it relates to potential career opportunities for the future--whether entering the work force after high school, college or advanced studies. This issue…

One of the best ways to learn how something works is to take it apart, look at the pieces, and see how they are connected. In this activity, students disassemble and analyze a click pen and investigate the technology it uses. This activity requires a 30-minute time period for completion. (Author/SOE)

This paper describes a project that investigates elementary school students' behavioral changes using video as a modeling tool and examines the teaching behavior of teachers. For this purpose, videotaped images of culturally diverse children displaying appropriate behavior engaged in inquiry science were used. These images serve as peer role…

This book uses a detective approach to teach about environmental issues. Student sleuths investigate many potential causes of fish dying including chlorine pollution, acid rain, erosion and sediment pollution, predator-prey relationships, phosphate pollution and algal blooms, and oil pollution. The text provides students the opportunity to grapple…

Shares some strategies for encouraging students to notice their environment in the broadest sense through using the Socratic method. Focuses on specific examples with historical significance such as exploring the period of a pendulum. (DDR)