The problem-solving strategies of students enrolled in general chemistry courses have been the subject of numerous research investigations. In most cases, the investigators were interested in the specific areas or concepts that posed the greatest difficulty to a student's success in achieving the correct answer. However, the investigation…

This study assessed the quality of preservice primary teachers' written arguments in an open inquiry laboratory task. An analysis of the features of the laboratory task was also undertaken to ascertain the characteristics of the task that facilitated or constrained the development of participants' written arguments. Australian preservice…

The purpose of this design research is to improve the quality of environmental literacy and sustainability education in chemistry teaching through combining a socio-scientific issue, life-cycle analysis (LCA), with inquiry-based learning (IBL). This first phase of the cyclic design research involved 20 inservice trained chemistry teachers from…

Sustainable development is a central concern of today's politics across the world. Different political agendas have been developed to promote sustainability and make it a political goal worldwide. As stated in Agenda 21, the political debate seems to agree that education has to play a key role in achieving sustainability. But practices…

The goal of this study was to understand which factors, related to school science, can interfere with engagement of students-at-risk-of-dropping-out with school science and to know what kind of activities and teaching strategies are adequate to these students. This case-study involved a chemistry-teacher and ten male students. Data was based on…

This research inquires into the effectiveness of the two predominant forms of questions--multiple-choice questions and short-answer questions--used in the State University Entrance Examination for Chemistry including the relationship between performance and gender. It examines not only the style of question but also the content type examined…

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of case-based learning (CBL) over traditionally designed chemistry instruction (TDCI) on 10th grade students' perceived motivation about chemistry as a school subject. Two classes were randomly selected from a high school. One class was assigned to be an experimental group and the other…

This paper explores the impact of teacher involvement in a context-based teaching project, involving continuous professional development and classroom module implementation two years after the event. Five chemistry and biology teachers were interviewed to ascertain the degree of ownership gained from the project related to continued use of the…

In view of student shift away from science at advanced levels, and gender and locale based divergence in interest in studying physics, chemistry and biology, this study explores experience categories that significantly contribute to interest in science on a sample of upper primary school students from Kerala, India. A series of multiple regression…

The current study, undertaken in the Sultanate of Oman, explored twelfth grade students' common misconceptions in seven chemistry conceptual areas. The sample included 786 twelfth grade students in Oman while the instrument was a two-tier test called Chemistry Misconceptions Diagnostic Test (CMDT), consisting of 25 items with 12 items…

This paper describes results from a study on the career choices of women earning doctorates in chemistry in the United States. Presented here are findings related to the participants' identification with traditional female gender roles and expectations for behavior in the male-dominated field of chemistry. Underlying a career decision-making model…

This paper presents an exploratory study of Jordanian chemistry student teachers' and experienced teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning. Different instruments were used, focusing on different aspects of teaching and learning. The first instrument is based on teachers' and students' drawings of teaching situations. It includes open…

There is concern in some counties about the number of able young people entering degree level study and careers in physical science, including chemistry. Too few of the most talented young people are selecting "STEM" subjects to ensure the future supply of scientists, engineers and related professionals. The present paper sets out general…

This paper reports on data collected via an audience response system, where a convenience sample of 300 adults aged 17-50 pressed a button to register their answers for twenty multiple choice questions. The responses were then discussed with the respondents at the time. The original dataset includes physics, biology and chemistry questions. The…

This paper describes the development of different lesson plans dealing with authentic and controversial socio-scientific issues in the framework of climate change. These lesson plans orient themselves along the socio-critical, problem-oriented approach to science teaching. They deal with the use of bioethanol as an alternative fuel and with the…