In North American teacher education programs, preservice students typically complete a substantial proportion of time practice teaching in schools, experiencing the extent to which professional school communities of inquiry contribute toward improving teaching and learning. Although there is extensive research about the experiences of new…

As the upcoming school year approaches, many science teachers may be looking for new ways to incorporate inquiry in their classrooms. Fortunately, teachers have an array of inquiry activities at their fingertips. But with so many resources available, it can be challenging for a teacher to make an educated decision about which experiments to…

A/r/tography is an arts-based research methodology that inquires into educational phenomenon through artistic and aesthetic means. A/r/tographical research engages in pedagogical inquiry where the distinctions between researcher and researched become complicated, responsive, and undone. A/r/tography, the authors argue, develops the relationship…

Skepticism is one of the cornerstones of scientific learning. Some pseudosciences in domains such as astronomy or pharmacy use a host of issues in everyday life as pretexts for work in the classroom (e.g., astrology) or laboratory (e.g., homeopathy). Chemistry also offers opportunities to promote skeptical thinking in students. Commercial devices…

Recent studies of American science education have highlighted the need for more inquiry-based lessons. For example, when the National Research Counsel evaluated the Advanced Placement (AP) Biology program, it pointed out, "AP laboratory exercises tend to be "cookbook" rather than inquiry based. This criticism is particularly apt for the lab…

Nokia is the world leader in mobility, driving the transformation and growth of the converging Internet and communications industries. A truly global business, Nokia makes a wide range of mobile devices and provides people with experiences in music, navigation, video, television, imaging, games and business mobility through these devices. Nokia…

This article is a review of applications of phenomenology, as a philosophy of knowledge and qualitative research approach, to the field of science education (SE). The purpose is to give an overview of work that has been done as well as to assess it and discuss its possibilities of future development. We ask: what attempts for connecting…

Many teachers struggle with meeting the needs of their most talented science students. How can these gifted students be challenged and learn as fast as they are able, especially in a classroom with a wide variety of abilities and interest in science? Many excellent teachers have found the answers in differentiating instruction by adding the…

This study explored the use of Garrison, Anderson, and Archer's (2000) version of Dewey's (1933) practical inquiry model for assessing the influence of social presence and teaching presence on the quality of critical inquiry experienced by online learners. Students (N = 33) enrolled in an online version of a graduate-level, educational statistics…

Effective uses of technology in social studies methods courses is an under-researched field. This study focused on the development of WebQuests to engage teacher candidate's exploration of the Internet as an authentic medium for inquiry in social studies education. Analysis of appropriateness of tasks in the WebQuests, depth of ideas and audience…

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) is an approach that could be used by undergraduate educators that appears to meet the suggestions by Dewey to integrate students' interests and experiences with content knowledge. The IBL approach has been described as "a range of strategies used to promote learning through students' active, and increasingly…

It has been increasingly recognised that classroom discourse plays an important social role as a semiotic mediator of knowledge construction with respect to curriculum content. The assumption is that through active verbal engagement with a topic of interest, students are enabled to master the modes of language use associated with schooling--the…

This study attempts to further our understanding of how expertise is acquired in a specific vocational context. Using unstructured interviews with both individuals and groups, carried out whilst engaged in practice, it examines what happens when dry stone wallers are developing their skills, how they gain expertise and how they communicate their…

This study compared students' investigations with an atomic force microscope and viruses in real-time synchronous and asynchronous learning environments. Student interactions with scientists (live videoconference versus email) were examined to see whether communication patterns were different for the different modes of instruction. Students'…

This paper presents a brief overview of the changes made during our department level reform (DLR) process (Grant Title: "A Systems Approach for Civil and Environmental Engineering Education: Integrating Systems Thinking, Inquiry-Based Learning and Catamount Community Service-Learning Projects") and some of the effects of these changes on…