Teaching cosmology at the undergraduate or high school level requires simplifications and analogies, and inevitably brings the teacher into contact with at least one of the pedagogical interpretations of the expanding Universe. The by far most popular interpretation holds that galaxies in an expanding Universe are stationary, while space itself…

This article describes an investigation into teaching and learning with student-generated animations combined with a representational pedagogy. In particular, it reports on interactive discussions that were stimulated by the students' own animations as well as their critiques of experts' animations. Animations representing views of states of…

Since the release of "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" in 2012, there has been a significant shift toward the use of science and engineering practices that mirror the way scientists do their work (NRC 2012). The "Framework" states, "A focus on practices (in the plural) avoids the mistaken impression that there is…

Sport-related concussions continue to be a serious epidemic for youth participants. A pathway to improper management, created by improper reporting by athletes, lack of recognition by coaches, and lack of access to athletic training services, must be mitigated through effective concussion educational initiatives. The purpose of this study is to…

This research report presents the preliminary findings of mixed-methods study examining the beliefs of trainee teachers regarding a number of 'learning myths', e.g., learning styles and multiple intelligences. Using a cross-sectional experimental design, survey data were collected from 65 pre-service teachers enrolled in a high-profile Bachelor of…

The benefits and deficits of rural education are under-researched. Clarity, in regards to the quality of education and student experience, is essential to guide future policies at all levels of power. Educators require a deeper understanding of educational research to guide their practice and dispel community misconceptions. Increasing student…

Prior research from the field of science communication shows that, upon reading journalistic articles about novel scientific findings, readers who recognize the tentative nature of the findings rate the journalistic article that reports these findings as less credible. Apparently, readers' appraisal is influenced by misconceptions about the…

Light has the most interesting phenomena among physics concepts. We designed the light phenomena conceptual assessment (LPCA) to help teachers measure their students' conceptual understanding of light phenomena. We expected to measure increases in student understanding of light phenomena after learning about the wave and particle nature of light…

Conceptual understanding of calculus is crucial in the fields of applied sciences, business, and engineering and technology subjects. However, the current status indicates that students possess only procedural knowledge developed from rote learning of procedures in calculus without insight of core ideas. Hence, this paper aims to assess students'…

The United States is currently experiencing its most severe measles outbreak in decades, driven in part by parents' belief that vaccines cause autism. That harmful misinformation is contrary to scientific evidence (DeStefano et al. 2013). The CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world's largest multidisciplinary…

The author reports the findings from a yearlong antiracist project involving three White male preservice teachers in a Midwestern rural U.S. state. Drawing on second-wave White teacher identity literature and Emotional Tools of Whiteness, the project focuses on collaborative critical self-reflection to explore the participants' individual…

This is a study that explored 117 Turkish preservice science teachers' views about evolution course. The data for the study were collected through a questionnaire that has open-ended questions. The preservice science teachers answered the questions by filling out the questionnaire at the beginning and end of the evolution course. Most of the…

Excellence has become a 'hoorah' word which is widely used in higher education institutions to legitimate practices related to the recruitment/progression of staff. It can be seen as reflecting an institutionalised belief that such evaluative processes are unaffected by the social characteristics of those who work in them or their relationships…

This paper offers a critical review of a report published in March by the Citizens Research Council of Michigan titled "Improving Oversight of Michigan Charter Schools and Their Authorizers." The report argues that charter schools and charter school authorizers need more oversight. Making the case for this position might include…

This study is a qualitative study that seeks to analyse the awareness of primary school pre-service mathematics teachers on famous mathematicians and to examine the change in their awareness. It is designed as exploratory case study. The study group consists of 30 primary school pre-service mathematics teachers, who are senior-level students in…