It may be true that students are born with an innate interest in science and technology. However, teachers say many students do not sustain that interest through their school years. In this article, the author describes the Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision program. One of the world's largest K-12 science and technology competitions, ExploraVision is a…

Demand for students with a solid foundation in science continues to grow. Also important, science education needs to ready citizens who do not pursue careers in science to handle dilemmas they will face in their lives, such as selecting treatments for diseases, evaluating messages about climate change, or using new technologies. Instruction that…

This study draws upon qualitative case study to investigate the connections between the "funds of knowledge" that urban, high-poverty students bring to science learning and the development of a sustained interest in science. We found that youth developed a sustained interest in science when: (1) their science experiences connected with how they…

Gender discrimination has contributed to the gender imbalance in scientific fields. However, research on the effects of informing adolescent girls about gender discrimination in these fields is rare and controversial. To examine the consequences of learning about gender-based occupational discrimination, adolescent girls (n= 158, ages 11 to 14)…

Students' views about science were correlated with their approaches to lab practice. Three distinct cases are discussed in detail: empiricist-oriented, rationalist-oriented, and constructivist-oriented students. A coherent epistemological theory was constructed for each case, by considering the different degrees of certainty and confidence each…

Recognizing basic elements as building blocks is essential to the study of science, and looking closer at one element in particular, chlorine, can help ignite students' interest in chemistry. This document contains a 2-day study of building block chemistry using basic concepts and easy-to-find materials. Teaching materials include objectives,…

Some feminists have become discouraged because the theoretical and conceptual changes leading to a feminist science have not yet occurred. A scheme has been developed which charts the phases through which the disciplines in the social sciences and humanities progressed before reconceptualization from the new scholarship on women transformed those…

Presents a summary of recent trends in enrollments in the major subjects (with an emphasis on the sciences) offered in British secondary schools. (JR)

Lists some of the disadvantages associated with the didactic method of teaching science and suggests ways in which teachers can improve this method and stimulate student interest. (JR)

Scientific attitudes and interests of fifth form students who had had at least two years of experimental Nuffield O-Level courses in biology, physics, and chemistry were compared with those of equivalent students studying traditional courses. The author-developed tests contained Likert-type items measuring interests in science, attitudes to the…

There are numerous reasons why students fail in science. These include lack of interest, truancy, failure to do homework, lack of organizational skills, lack of test taking skills, do not study or lack study skills, cannot comprehend the text, cannot make connections between what they learn in school and the real world, and teaching quality. This…

National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), led by a panel of K-12 science teachers, has developed a new position statement, "Responsible Use of Live Animals and Dissection in the Science Classroom." This statement examines the issues surrounding the integration of animals into the K-12 science curriculum and highlights key…

This teacher's resource guide was created to accompany the Amazon Flooded Forest exhibit at the Oregon Zoo. The enclosed lessons and activities are designed to extend into several aspects of daily curriculum including science, math, reading, writing, speaking, and geography. The materials are intended for use in grades 3-6 although most activities…

This issue of Exploratorium Magazine focuses on the topic robotics. It explains how to make a vibrating robotic bug and features articles on robots. Contents include: (1) "Where Robot Mice and Robot Men Run Round in Robot Towns" (Ray Bradbury); (2) "Robots at Work" (Jake Widman); (3) "Make a Vibrating Robotic Bug" (Modesto Tamez); (4) "The Robot…

This teacher's guide is designed to accompany the PBS television program "NOVA" and features six activities. "Sultan's Lost Treasure" presents the attempts of an archaeologist and his team to salvage an ancient ship wreck. "Vanished!" investigates what happened to the Stardust airliner in 1947 which disappeared during…