A photocopier or scanner can be used to produce not only the standard motion graphs of physics, but a variety of other graphs that resemble gravitational and electrical fields. This article presents a starting point for exploring scanner graphics, which brings together investigation in art and design, physics, mathematics, and information…

Enrollment by students in degree programs other than traditional horticulture, agronomy, and soil science has increased in basic plant and soil science courses. In order to broaden the appeal of these courses to students from majors other than agriculture, we developed a hands-on laboratory exercise relating the basic concepts of a soil energy…

High diversity of microorganisms in the soil matrix has been the focus of extensive research in the fields of soil biology and microbial ecology, and is a key concept that students in the environmental or biological sciences should understand. Two activities to demonstrate diversity and highlight the challenges faced in studying soil microbial…

Describes some elementary science and technology programs and what can be learned about them from the Internet. Discusses what is available from each. (Author/NB)

Explains the benefits and strengths of having safety checklists in science laboratories. Presents a checklist that reflects important components of safety that address many situations in school laboratories. (NB)

Examines the debate about how science should be re/presented in informal science settings, specifically the possibility of science centers and science museums addressing socio-scientific issues. Situates the debate within the current science education literature on the nature of science (NOS) and science, technology, society and environment (STSE)…

Analyzes the role of science curriculum materials in educational reform concluding that materials can and should play a vital role. Concludes also that the use of new curriculum materials must be accompanied by transformative professional development in a supportive school and community environment. (Author/MM)

Science lessons are often too strongly content-driven and focus exclusively on scientific knowledge. Discusses how students fail to see the relevance of science and often do not see the connection of science to either everyday life or the future. (Contains 26 references.) (DDR)

Explains how to maintain biosafety in high school level biotechnology and microbiology courses. Focuses on laboratory skills, biohazard containment, and defense perimeters. (YDS)

Develops the case for the inclusion and central role of argument in science education. Discusses the function and purpose of dialogical argument in the social construction of scientific knowledge and interpretation of empirical data. (Author/CCM)

Reports in detail on a year-long case study of multiple-model use at grade 11. Suggests that students who socially negotiated the shared and unshared attributes of common analogical models for atoms, molecules, and chemical bonds used these models more consistently in their explanations. (Author/CCM)

Follows 168 Greek students ages 13-14 involved in a new sociocultural situation--a specially-designed introductory chemistry sequence. Results show that conceptual development occurred during the sequence. (Author/CCM)

Provides a synopsis of the UNITWIN/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Chairs scheme in science and mathematics education in southern Africa. Examines the possible impact of the brain-drain phenomenon. Discusses the successes and failures that have attended efforts directed at capacity building in science and…

Describes how to use weekly reports and addresses three questions: (1) What did you learn this week?; (2) What questions remained unclear?; and (3) If you were the professor, what questions would you ask to find out whether students understood the material? Student writing was used as a two-way feedback tool in teaching science. (Contains 21…

The cumulative result of almost 100 years of mining, milling, and smelting has left areas of Jasper County, Missouri, contaminated with high levels of the trace metals Pb, Cd, and Zn. The site was listed on the National Priorities List in 1990 and is now known as the Jasper County or Oronogo-Duenweg Mining Belt Superfund Site. The U.S.…