Describes a science teacher's views of Science-Technology-Society (STS) instruction after implementing a two-semester STS-oriented science course in a Taiwanese high school. Concludes that the heavy content load of Taiwan's national curriculum, regular cross-class standard tests, lack of peer or administrative support, resource limitations in the…

Examines the perceptions and self-reported practices of 18 scientists participating in a year-long seminar series designed to explore issues of gender and ethnicity in science. Offers insight into how scientists can address the problem of women and ethnic minorities in science education, constraints encountered in attempts to implement pedagogical…

Describes some features in the changing landscape of activities intended to improve both quality and access in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET) undergraduate education. Offers a framework for discussion of historical change endeavors as an aid in considering next steps. (Author/MM)

Discusses the relationships between physical, mathematical, and mental models in the process of constructing and understanding physical theories. Attempts to interpret research findings with college students regarding mental models and physics education under the framework of Johnson-Laird's mental model theory. (Author/MM)

Reports on a study designed to identify students whose attitudes had changed from negative to positive (i.e., attitude exchange had occurred) after participating in a one-semester elementary science education course, and to identify the course factors that were responsible. Identifies three main factors: (1) personal attributes of the tutor; (2)…

Explains the story of four sixth-grade students, of mixed race and social class, who worked together in a small group experimenting with colored solutions with different densities. Describes students' failures in achieving intersubjective communication using the sociolinguistic concepts of polysemy and privileging. (Contains 41 references.)…

Examines university oceanography students' use of evidence in writing considering the relative epistemic status of propositions comprising student' written texts. Defines the epistemic levels by discipline-specific geological constructs from descriptions of data, to identification of features, to relational aspects of features, to theoretical…

Investigates the relationship between students' conceptions of the nature of science and their reactions to evidence that challenged their beliefs about socioscientific issues. Stimulates students to reflect on their own beliefs and defend their opinions and suggests that the reaction of students to anomalous socioscientific data are varied and…

Argues that there are some fundamental, heretofore neglected, ways in which newcomers come to perceive and talk about natural phenomena. Explores the connection between worldmaking and how a hands-on science approach to science education facilitates the emerging communicative patterns. (Contains 60 references.) (Author/YDS)

Addresses the question in science education; "What is the nature of science?" and proposes that vital qualities of science are best illuminated by just the opposite process: by appreciating the uncommon, rather than common, features. Argues that by attending to individual variation, we are more likely to understand what makes science a creative…

Examines the influence of personal histories on the formation of early role identity as inquiry-oriented science teachers. Involves n=12 secondary science student teachers to illustrate the development of inquiry orientation. Discusses the role of learners' personal histories on their teaching identity development and implications for preparing…

Examines the process of action research and how it contributes to the professional development of a first-grade teacher. Explores the research process experienced by the teacher as she examined whether portfolios could be used as an effective means for facilitating and assessing young children's development of science process skills. (Contains 58…

Presents a theoretical mechanism for learning and a methodological approach for analyzing meaning making in classroom talk and action. Examines the potential of the approach for illuminating learning on a discourse level; i.e., how discourses change and how individuals become participants of new practices. Involves a high-resolution analysis of…

Describes a project on labwork at upper secondary and undergraduate levels that was launched in 1996 and funded by the European Commission. Presents new research questions focusing on three objectives: (1) conceptual; (2) epistemological; and (3) procedural. (Contains 28 references.) (Author/YDS)

Focuses on 9th grade students' difficulties in learning ecology. Identifies three dimensions as basic obstacles that might hinder students' meaningful learning in ecology: (1) the microlevel dimension; (2) the spatial dimension of ecosystem; and (3) the time dimension. Examines these dimensions in student understanding of the concept of food…