All the cells of higher organisms have the same DNA but not the same proteins. Each type of specialised cell that forms a tissue has its own pattern of gene expression and, consequently, it contains a particular set of proteins that determine its function. Here, we describe a laboratory exercise addressed to undergraduate students that aims to…

In this article, the authors describe a fourth-grade lesson where 3-D printing technologies were not only a stimulus for engagement but also served as a modeling tool providing meaningful learning opportunities. Specifically, fourth-grade students construct an argument that animals' external structures function to support survival in a particular…

With regard to the moderate performance of German students in international large-scale assessments, one branch of German science education research is concerned with the construction and evaluation of competence models. Based on the theory-driven definition of competence levels, these models imply a correlation between the complexity of a…

Conflicting explanations and unrelated information in science classrooms increase cognitive load and decrease efficiency in learning. This reduced efficiency ultimately limits one's ability to solve reasoning problems in the science. In reasoning, it is the ability of students to sift through and identify critical pieces of information that is of…

Earth's easily seen surface features (mountains, volcanoes, and islands)--and the movement of the tectonic plates that lie below--offer hints about the processes that produced them. Inquiries in seismology, the study of earthquakes and other ground movements, can help students learn about Earth's geologic processes. This article describes an…

This article describes the kindergarten unit on environmental awareness, "Who Wants to Live and Grow in a Garbage Dump?," which integrated life science, health and nutrition concepts, and relationships around the topic of "soil." Science Technology Education and Mathematics (STEM) activities used in the lesson plans were…

The authors are all students in the final year of a three-year undergraduate teacher-training programme at St Mary's University, Twickenham, London. For one of their courses they were asked to identify their science-learning journey to date. In this article, trainee teachers talk about science and explore their reasons for becoming science…

The purpose of this research was to analyze the physics cognitive competence and science process skill of students using scientific inquiry learning model based on conceptual change better than using conventional learning. The research type was quasi experiment and two group pretest-posttest designs were used in this study. The sample were Class…

If you've ever asked yourself whether problem-based learning (PBL) can bring new life to both your teaching and your students' learning, here's your answer: Yes. This all-in-one guide will help you engage your students in scenarios that represent real-world science in all its messy, thought-provoking glory. The scenarios will prompt K-12 students…

An ultimate goal of higher education is to prepare our future workers with needed knowledge and skills. This includes cultivating students to become proficient reasoners who can utilize proper scientific reasoning to devise causal inferences from observations. Conventionally, students with more years of higher education are expected to have a…

Although creativity has drawn the attention of researchers during the past century, collaborative processes have barely been investigated. In this article, the collective dimension of a creative process is investigated, based on a dynamic and ecological approach that includes an affective component. "Dynamic" means that the creative…

In this study, a cohort of final-year undergraduate science students were surveyed to examine whether they fully read journal articles, including whether they seek to understand how the results support the conclusions. Their writing was also examined to see if they use deep or surface approaches to scientific writing.

As science subject leader, the author wanted to explore pupil questioning in the early years and find a lesson format that could be replicated throughout the school to engage all the children in regular short discussions focusing on science enquiry. The author planned a weekly programme of 30-minute "Science Talk" sessions with one of…

Research-oriented learning is a learning approach enabling students to do scientific research, work actively in the process, revise, reinforce, learn by living and doing, take responsibility, boost their self-confidence, put what they have learned into practice and solve the problems they have encountered in their daily lives. The aim of this…

Supporting the latest technology for inquiry is among one of the topics that is currently being discussed in the context of science education. The aim of this research is to examine the laboratory practices that use mobile learning to enhance the science process skills of the participants. The research is of qualitative design and has been planned…