This paper examines differences in mathematics achievement among eighth-grade students using a secondary analysis of the data. The students, who are from Malaysia, had participated in the Trend International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 1999. A series of school, home, demographic and socio-economic variables were used to investigate the…

Students have continued to perform poorly in KCSE examinations in certain mathematics topics taught in secondary schools in Kenya. One such topic is commercial arithmetic. Successful teaching of mathematics depends partly on correct use of teaching methods in classroom settings. This study sought to examine how the use of advance organisers during…

This study has resulted in an elementary science methods course that facilitates the identification and description of the changes in students' conceptions and understanding of inquiry teaching, and the cultural influences, reflections, and situational factors influencing these changes. Written responses to open-ended questions, reflective…

In order to develop successful teaching approaches to transformations of matter, we need to know more about how young students develop an understanding of these processes. In this longitudinal study, we followed 25 students from 7 to 13 years of age in their reasoning about transformations of matter. The questions addressed included how the…

This study focussed on how secondary school students construct and use mathematical models as conceptual tools when solving word problems. The participants were 511 secondary-school students who were in the final year of compulsory education (15-16 years old). Four levels of the development of constructing and using mathematical models were…

The research reported in this case study explores the understanding of stoichiometry and related concepts of Thai science students in grades 10 and 11 after major national curriculum reforms. Students' conceptions and alternative conceptions were investigated using a questionnaire--the "Stoichiometry Concept Questionnaire" (SCQ) (N = 97), which…

The study described in this article is based on a long-term comprehensive series of investigations that were conducted in the context of teaching high school chemistry in the laboratory using inquiry-type experiments. The students that study chemistry according to this program are involved in an inquiry process that included all the inquiry skills…

In this paper we try to characterize the pedagogical approaches that mathematics teachers are developing to meet the challenges posed by education reforms. A key aspect is the identification of the perspectives that underlie those pedagogical approaches, using the term perspective to include a broad pedagogical structure composed of multiple…

Pre-service teachers from Texas and Indiana in the United States and from Queensland, Australia, observed the Moon for a semester and compared and contrasted their findings in asynchronous Internet discussion groups. The 188 pre-service teachers were required to conduct inquiry investigations for their methods coursework which included an initial…

Science teachers generally find inquiry-based laboratory work very difficult to manage. This research project aimed at facilitating chemistry teachers to implement inquiry-based laboratory work in Hong Kong secondary schools. The major concerns of seven chemistry teachers were identified. They were most concerned about the lack of class time,…

Researchers in educational technology have searched for factors to explain teachers' acceptance and resistance to using technology for instruction. Among the many identified factors, however, organizational and school factors have not yet been explored and discussed. This study investigates the effects of school size on science and mathematics…

Despite widespread agreement that "proof" should be central to all students' mathematical experiences, many students demonstrate poor ability with it. The curriculum can play an important role in enhancing students' proof capabilities: teachers' decisions about what to implement in their classrooms, and how to implement it, are mediated through…

This study assessed the effectiveness of an innovative science course for improving prospective elementary teachers' perceptions of laboratory learning environments and attitudes towards science. The sample consisted of 27 classes with 525 female students in a large urban university. Changing students' ideas about science laboratory teaching and…

The goal of this study was to examine the two related links of "research to teaching practice" and "teaching practice to research" that pre-service elementary teachers made during an action research project focusing on a conceptual-change teaching experience with elementary school students. Data were collected from the final written reports from…

This paper presents the results of a case study involving 282 Taiwanese elementary science teachers at the elementary level. These teachers provided responses to the science efficacy instrument (STEBI-A) and also provided personal data regarding how their years of general (YTE) and science (YTS) teaching experience may have influenced student…