This paper reports the findings of a quasi-experimental study that investigated the impacts of effective group work on Hong Kong science classrooms. One hundred and fifty-two Secondary 2 (or Grade 8) students from two schools participated in a teaching intervention (comprising 16 lessons) in which they studied the topic 'Making Use of Electricity'…

Assessments of teacher content knowledge are increasingly designed to provide evidence of the content knowledge needed to carry out the moment-to-moment work of teaching. Often these assessments focus on content knowledge only used in teaching with the goal of testing types of professional content knowledge. In this paper, we argue that while this…

The transition from centralized energy systems based on fossil fuels to renewable-based systems is a macro-level societal shift necessitated by climate change. This review of recent environmental education (EE) research identifies gaps and opportunities for promoting environmental action in this new context. We found that environmental educators…

A lot of the activities of daily living require energy, playing video games, making dinner, turning on the lights, using a computer, and perhaps even brushing our teeth requires energy. In this unit students discover what energy is, think about where it comes from, analyze options for making energy evaluate feasibility in different parts of the…

Most physics educators would agree that energy is a very useful, albeit abstract topic. It is therefore important to use various methods to help the student internalize the concept of energy itself and its related ideas. These methods include using representations such as energy bar graphs, energy pie charts, or energy tracking diagrams.…

Earth wires and fuses work together in UK mains circuits to keep users safe from electric shocks and are taught in many school contexts. The subject can be quite abstract and difficult for pupils to grasp, and a simple but visually clear and direct demonstration is described which would be easy for most physics departments to build and which can…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to address the challenges of teaching sustainable development to computer engineering students. Part of the problem is that they perceive the topic as irrelevant for their future profession. Design/methodology/approach: To address this challenge, we introduced a project element into a course on sustainable…

The design and fabrication of functional scientific instrumentation allows students to forge a link between commonly reported numbers and physical material properties. Here, a two-point and four-point probe station for measuring electrical properties of solid materials is fabricated via 3D printing utilizing an inexpensive benchtop…

Modeling is considered an important scientific practice, and modeling instruction has the potential to support conceptual change in students in physics. However, when students are not taught how to think about modeling, and how to develop and use models, the learning potential of modeling may be limited. This paper argues that the use and explicit…

This 45 minute inquiry lesson can be used for a high school world geography or AP Human Geography course when the class discusses various issues regarding world energy resources. The lesson focuses on two particular issues: fossil fuel dependency and the growing energy demand. Students will examine the geographic distribution of current energy…

University students, faculty, and staff from science, engineering, education, entrepreneurship, and design (SEE(E)D) backgrounds developed a video game to leverage outreach efforts promoting sustainability, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics ((S)STEM) to underserved students. This was accomplished by transforming a board…

This study makes use of a pre-test/post-test design (with a control group) to test the effect of an interdisciplinary energy course on student attitudes and values related to energy issues. The interdisciplinary energy course was co-taught by engineering, political science, economics, and oceanography professors at the United States Naval Academy…

Purpose: Approximately 700 colleges and universities have committed to climate neutrality, which will require significant reductions in energy consumption. This paper aims to explore the effectiveness of an Annual Energy Challenge in curtailing electricity use by changing consumption behaviors at one liberal arts college.…

Since 2011, the government of British Columbia (BC) has focused on building the Canadian province's economy through the development of a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) sector. In service of this endeavour, the government launched the "Skills for Jobs Blueprint," which attempts to more clearly align BC's education system with resource…

School instruction is critical for helping students use energy as a lens for making sense of phenomena, however, students often struggle to see the usefulness of energy analysis for interpreting the world around them. One reason for this may be an over-reliance on the idea of energy forms in introductory energy instruction, which may…