The SunSpaceArt (SSA) project, led by the author, a solar scientist at the University of Cambridge, comprises a diverse team of scientists and visual artists who run STEAM (STEM + Arts) workshops in schools, space camps and at other venues (museums, science centres and so on). The project focuses mainly on 7- to 12-year-olds, which is a key age…

This study responds to the demands of the rapidly changing landscape of education, the 21st century competencies and development of curriculum. Those competences are being interpreted all over the world resulting to differing curricular changes. In the Finnish National Core Curriculum 2016 they are presented as seven transversal competences that…

HOTS is one part of the skills that need to be developed in the 21st Century . This study aims to determine the characteristics of the Fundamental Physics Higher-order Thinking Skill (FundPhysHOTS) test for prospective physics teachers using Item Response Theory (IRT) analysis. This study uses a quantitative approach. 254 prospective physics…

This study investigates the effects of process-oriented guided inquiry learning (POGIL) on the academic performance and science process skills of Grade 10 Filipino students in science. Specifically, this study aimed to (1) determine and compare the level of academic performance of students when exposed to POGIL and non-POGIL and (2) assess the…

The discipline of data science has gained substantial attention recently. This is mainly attributed to the technological advancement that led to an exponential increase in computing power and has made the generation and recording of enormous amounts of data possible on an everyday basis. It has become crucial for industries to wrangle, curate, and…

The goal of undergraduate chemistry laboratories is to allow students to learn about chemical systems and key laboratory skills. They should then apply this knowledge to solve problems and connect macroscopic observations in the laboratory with those occurring at the submicroscopic level. Unfortunately, these needs are not met through traditional…

For the past several decades, high-enrollment undergraduate chemistry laboratory experiences have favored traditional approaches involving disparate daily experiments with optimized protocols provided to students. This model often results in poor learning outcomes and low student engagement, and it lacks any attention to scientific inquiry. Here,…

Being immersed in the processes of research can develop undergraduate students' science identities and support their persistence in pursuing science careers. However, it can be difficult for students to find opportunities for engaging in authentic scientific research. The professional staff and scientific objects in natural history museums provide…

Building on rich training literature, we examined which skills constituting the control-of-variables strategy (CVS) benefit from a comprehensive training, and which develop similarly during content-focused inquiry at ages 10-12. In addition, we examined whether prior knowledge, reasoning abilities, and reading comprehension explain variation in…

In this study, the primary goal was to enhance the knowledge and awareness of 4th-grade primary school students regarding global pandemic diseases and methods of safeguarding against worldwide epidemic diseases which are socio-scientific issues. To achieve this goal, two activity modules tailored for 4th-grade students were created. These…

Although laboratory work is considered a significant factor in helping students develop their science process skills and cultivate alternative knowledge construction, there are still gaps in the selection, integration, and implementation of the basic elements in physics laboratories. In this study, three modified guided discovery and conventional…

Learning for sustainability (LfS) encompasses holistic, interdisciplinary experiences that equip learners with essential sustainability competences. The 2018 Council Recommendation on key competences for lifelong learning emphasises improving, among others, basic skills (such as literacy and numeracy), competences in STEM, and digital competences,…

For two decades, the state role in educating children before kindergarten has been growing, and it is accelerating. Enrollment in state-funded preschool today far exceeds that in federal Head Start, and states are the dominant provider at age 4, serving about half of all four-year-olds who attend any preschool program. New universal preschool…

Students need procedural understanding--that is, knowledge of the procedures that scientists use to establish scientific evidence (also known as "concepts of evidence"), to successfully perform scientific investigations, and to evaluate public and scientific claims. However, concepts of evidence are seldom explicitly targeted in routine…

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of science, technology, mathematics, engineering (STEM) applications and STEM based teaching on 8th grade students' environmental attitudes, scientific creativity, problem solving skills and science achievement and to get students' opinions about STEM practices. Two groups were used in the…