The aim of this report is to encourage enhanced richness and relevance of the undergraduate engineering education experience, and thus produce better-prepared and more globally competitive graduates, by providing practical guidance for incorporating real world experience in US engineering programs. The report, a collaborative effort of the…

This study of a County in New York State gathered information about the means for teaching the intermediate science curriculum in middle schools. The study collected 43 surveys and conducted ten follow-up interviews with administrators responsible for curriculum. Data included the division of content among grade level, starting grade level,…

This article reports on our work of developing a learning progression focusing on K-12 students' performances of using energy concept in their accounts of carbon-transforming processes in socio-ecological systems. Carbon-transforming processes--the ecological carbon cycle and the combustion of biomass and fossil fuels--provide all of the energy…

In this exploratory case study, we sought to understand teacher's integration of multicultural curricula in science curriculum units, and how personal experiences influenced the level of integration in light of Bank's typology of ethnic content integration into school curricula. Five research participants volunteered and were selected so as to be…

This research was conducted with 291 Junior/Intermediate (J/I) pre-service teachers in a ubiquitous laptop Bachelor of Education program at Nipissing University. The authors modeled a lesson using three different teaching styles using flight as the content medium, a specific expectation found in the Ontario Ministry of Education grade six Science…

This study explored practicing elementary school teacher's conceptions of teaching in ways that foster inquiry-based learning in the science curriculum (inquiry teaching). The advocacy for inquiry-based learning in contemporary curricula assumes the principle that students learn in their own way by drawing on direct experience fostered by the…

Environmental degradation is a general problem but it is often more serious in developing nations where levels of awareness are lower than in industrialized countries. There is, therefore, a need particularly in developing countries to increase pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors. In this paper, we report the results of a quasi-experimental…

A very limited questioning of undergraduate Environmental Science students at the start of their studies suggests the age of the Earth is being successfully taught in high schools. The same cannot be said for the teaching of the structure of the Earth.

Teachers' feelings of uncertainty are an overlooked, though crucial, condition necessary for the promotion of educational change. This article investigates the feelings of uncertainty that preservice teachers have toward the conduct of science as inquiry and the extent to which methods courses can confront and embrace those uncertainties. Our work…

Teachers often struggle with controversy when teaching biological evolution in American schools. Research indicates that curriculum with a nature of science (NOS) focus quells controversy (McComas 2004; Scharmann 2005; Staver 2003). This article presents a 5E NOS series that is a first step in a NOS curriculum that situates student understanding…

Successful science students have mastered their field of study by being able to apply their learned knowledge and problem solving skills on tests. Problem solving skills must be used to figure out the answer to many classes of questions. What this study is trying to determine is how students solve complex science problems in an academic setting in…

Undergraduate research experiences have been adopted across higher education institutions. However, most studies examining benefits derived from undergraduate research rely on self-report of skill development. This study used an empirical assessment of research skills to investigate associations between undergraduate research experiences and…

Science, Technology, Society and Environment (STSE) education has received attention in educational research, policy, and science curricula development, yet less advancement has been made in moving theory into practice. There are many examples of STSE-based teaching in science at the elementary and secondary levels, yet little has focused…

A potential method for teaching geospatial thinking and reasoning (GTR) is through geospatially enabled learning technologies. We developed an energy resources geospatial curriculum that included learning activities with geographic information systems and virtual globes. This study investigated how 13 urban middle school teachers implemented and…

The rapid diversification of communities in Ontario has necessitated the provincial government to reevaluate public school curriculums and policies to make schools more inclusive and reflective of its diverse population. This article critically analyzes the content of the latest revised science curricula for Grades 1 to 10 and assesses the degree…