This in-depth review of the literature synthesizes articles and abstracts identified as education-oriented microcomputer research studies published since 1979. A brief, historic overview of educational computing is followed by a review of the Becker (1983) survey, which concerned the distribution of microcomputers in education in the United…

Preservice elementary school teachers entering a science methods course have been found to differ widely in their command of science process skills. A study was undertaken to examine several variables suggested by the literature to be related to these skills. Forty-five preservice elementary school teachers (5 males and 40 females) were tested at…

Designed for use with students in grades nine through twelve, the model curriculum standards in this guide were developed in response to Senate Bill 813 (Chapter 498, Statutes of 1983) of the California Legislature that focused on the reestablishment of high expectations for the content of courses taught in secondary schools and for the level of…

Presented are abstracts and abstractors' analyses of 10 studies related, in some manner, to learning. These studies focus on: (1) problem-solving processes used by experts and novices as they worked five mechanics problems (J. H. Larkin and F. Reif); (2) formal reasoning patterns of Italian high school students (M. L. Aiello-Nicosia, et al.); (3)…

Various responses to the current crisis in science and technology education have been initiated, including federal aid, responses from industry and professional organizations, and introduction of more than 30 bills into Congress. Reasons suggested for the crisis include the three ideas that defined the curriculum and instruction foci of the 1960s:…

This study investigated the extent of attitudinal change towards the teaching of science in elementary teachers (N=35) in Trinidad and Tobago during an activity-oriented science curriculum development workshop. The model used during the attempts to: (1) incorporate some aspects of science content development, manipulative hands-on experiences,…

The Open Learning Institute (OLI) is both an academic institution offering distance education courses and a publishing house for developing and producing distance education course materials. OLI has no resident faculty, but draws science content experts (course writers and consultants) from other academic institutions. The development process…

One area explored in the second (in-depth) phase of the Learning in Science Project was "children's science," defined as views of the world and the meanings for words that children have and bring with them to science lessons. The investigation reported focuses on students' (N=37) views of chemical change. Data were obtained using the…

Observational techniques were employed to gain insights into students' experiences from three perspectives (learner, teacher, and observer) as related to four aspects of a set task (nature of the task, including its purpose; how the task was carried out; perceived significance of outcomes achieved; and significance of outcomes in terms of science…

The Science Activities Action Research Group considered problems related to using science activities in teaching/learning of science ideas, problems previously identified and described during exploratory/in-depth phases of the Learning in Science Project. Three specific tasks were formulated by the group, including: investigating wording of…

Three papers are provided to assist local school districts and legislators in developing their positions when addressing creation/evolution controversies in Iowa schools. "Creation, Evolution and Public Education: The Position of the Iowa Department of Public Instruction (DPI)" presents the consensus of opinions of national and Iowa…

The University of Minnesota organized a conference ("Evolution and Public Education," December 5, 1981) to help clarify issues in the creation/evolution controversy and to examine arguments of the proponents of scientific creationism. This six-part book, a revised version of a resource manual compiled for the conference: (1) discusses the theory…

The Learning in Science Project (Primary--LISP(P)--designed to investigate the teaching and learning of science in New Zealand primary schools, arises from the work of the original Learning in Science Project (LISP). This paper is an attempt to clarify the direction of LISP(P) as it moves toward the central phase of the research. The ideas…

The stand taken in the Learning in Science Project (Primary)--LISP(P)--is that primary school science should be centrally concerned with children's present interaction with their world rather than their future science education. Further, it has been decided that one of the LISP(P) foci should be on questions that children ask and how these…

One area explored in the Learning in Science Project (Primary--LISP(P)--was children's questions about and explanations of phenomena. Data were obtained from work with classes of children, interviews with children, informal discussions with teachers, and observations of two teachers using an alternative teaching model (outlined in an appendix)…