These activities allow students to investigate behavioral responses of the large Milkweed bug, "Oncopeltus fasciatus," and the mealworm, "Tenebrio molitor" or "Tenebrio obscurus," to external stimuli of light, color, and temperature. During the activities, students formulate hypotheses to research questions presented. They also observe insects for…

In 1986, Lake Nyos, a volcanic lake in Cameroon, released a huge amount of carbon dioxide gas, killing over 1,700 people in the surrounding area. This case study, developed for use in a limnology or aquatic biology course, explores that event, introducing students to concepts relating to lake formation, thermal stratification, and dissolved gases.…

Changes in 70 teachers' confidence, attitudes and science understanding were tested before and after a major in-service programme. Attitudes were assessed using a 49-item Likert-scale test that probed attitudes to practical science teaching and in-service training. Multi-choice and open-ended questions measured understanding of electricity;…

This article brings theory into practice and demonstrates clearly how to apply commonly accepted language acquisition theories to science lesson plans designed for native speakers of English. In the first section of the article, readers will learn not only how to apply theory to science lessons, but also, and more important, why to apply certain…

Students in a physical sciences course were introduced to cooperative learning at the University of Queensland, Gatton Campus. Groups of four to five students worked together in tutorial and practical sessions. Mid-term and practical examinations were abolished and 40% of total marks were allocated to the cooperative learning activities. A peer-…

In this article, the authors introduce the Improving Science Together (IST) project (2000-2002), funded by the AstraZeneca Science Teaching Trust. The project was a partnership between 20 primary and 4 secondary schools in Bristol and South Gloucestershire, LEA advisory staff, BAE Systems, and the primary science team at Bath Spa University…

The purpose of this research was to discover whether the children (aged 9 to 11) were thinking while taking part in practical science activities. One method the author used was to video the activity and then watch the replay with each child in turn. She was then able to ask them what they had been thinking about at each stage. The majority of the…

This paper describes an easy experiment to study the absorption and action spectrum of photosynthesis, as well as the inhibition by heat, high light intensity and the presence of the herbicide 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU) on the photosynthetic process. The method involves measuring the chlorophyll fluorescence emitted by intact…

We describe a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) protocol suitable for use in secondary schools and colleges. This PCR protocol can be used to investigate genetic variation between plants. The protocol makes use of primers which are complementary to sequences of nucleotides that are highly conserved across different plant genera. The regions of…

The call for curriculum integration "with" and "through" the arts is evident within many elementary school environments. Arts specialists are frequently asked to link their classroom curriculum to other content area instructional goals and standards. Furthermore, fully one third of national, state and local content standards in the arts (music,…

Some aspects of biology, for example the Hardy-Weinberg simulation of population genetics or modelling heat flow in lizards, have an undeniable mathematical basis. Students can find the level of mathematical skill required to deal with such concepts to be an insurmountable hurdle to understanding. If not used effectively, spreadsheet models…

The relationship between the form and structure of plants and their gravitational environment is one of the most important teaching subjects of biological education. However, the teaching materials for the gravity effect have so long been concerned only with gravitropism, i.e. the short-time response of adjusting the orientation of seedling roots…

This paper describes some simple and rapid techniques for examining the growth responses of fungal hyphae cultivated on environmental gradients. The creation of such gradients using agar-based growth media in petri dishes is explained, along with recommendations for quantitative macroscopic and microscopic measurements. The intention is to provide…

This article takes Anderson's (1999) "code of the street" as the context for studying science learning in an inner city American public school. It is proposed that a socio-cultural model of mind can help to explain how students in an urban chemistry class negotiate contradictory cultural codes. This analysis includes a consideration of…

This study investigates the potential of enhancing students' learning of difficult science concepts by exploring the interaction between teachers' four different instructional approaches and students' four different learning preference styles. Students' immediate performance and their retention for learning of buoyancy concepts serve to examine…