For decades the National Science Foundation has been funding the development of instructional materials whose design is based upon the recommendations of educational research. These recommendations include the idea that learning be sequenced and organized using an experiential learning cycle or an instructional model such as the Biological Science…

The authors argue that leadership networks when comprised of regional stakeholders including university faculty, school system administrators, and teacher leaders can begin to work together towards common reform goals. (Contains 1 figure.)

Using a national survey of more than 7,000 students from 128 different college introductory science courses, the authors compared students who experienced Block scheduling and Traditional scheduling in high school. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)

The Iowa Chautauqua Program was developed in 1983 with support from National Science Foundation (NSF) which awarded the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) a major grant to study an inexpensive in-service model for stimulating reform in K-12 science classrooms. Iowa was one of the six Chautauqua sites which were modeled after a program…

The author examines the museum as a valuable resource for providing professional development within informal learning environments, especially in the area of science instruction and curricular methods. (Contains 6 tables.)

With the dramatic growth of environmental science as an elective in high schools over the last decade, educators have the opportunity to realistically consider the possibility of incorporating environmental science into the core high school curriculum. Environmental science has several characteristics that make it a candidate for the core…

This article describes the efforts of a combinatorial approach of Schools Around the World (SAW) and Understanding by Design (UbD) to create a foundation for lesson study efforts based on the Japanese model. UbD provides a framework for study units rich in essential content, assessment practices and well-crafted activities. SAW and lesson study…

This study investigated the interaction between students' academic background (high school grades, standardized exams, and enrollment in advanced high school courses) and how much autonomy they reported having in high school science through labs and projects. The objective was to see if students who reported experiencing more or less self-directed…

In this article the authors present an analogy, "Apple Activity," designed to help science teachers and students reflect upon science instruction and learning at the three conceptual levels of scientific understanding--macroscopic level, sub-microscopic/particle level, and symbolic level. Analogies are useful instructional tools that improve…

Shortages of qualified science and mathematics teachers are a ubiquitous problem in the United States. Many schools face both sides of the problem: recruitment and retention of those teachers. Since bringing new teachers in and keeping them are equally important, where should school districts look for teachers that are most likely to stay? While…

Instructional planning has increasingly been recognized as an essential element for good teaching at different levels of education. Instructional planning constitutes many things which teachers consider and do when they are planning for teaching. It provides a roadmap that assists the teachers to focus on achievable objectives and learners' needs,…

Project TIES (Technology Integration Enhancing Science), a four-year K-8 Technology Literacy Challenge project, combined technology as a tool for teaching and learning with earth and environmental science education. This project provided teachers in two North Carolina school systems with professional development as well as technology equipment and…

The author explores current efforts by educators and policy makers to harness the power of educational technology for both assessment "of learning" and assessment "for learning" in K-12 classrooms. (Contains 1 figure.)

A group of middle school science teachers and a university researcher recount some of their experiences as they individually and collectively worked toward improving their everyday assessment practices to better support student learning.

Teachers who conduct research in the context of their own teaching practices can contribute to knowledge about reform-based instruction. This article provides examples that illustrate research by elementary, middle school, high school, and college faculty as well as the use of data such as transcripts of discussion, reflective journals, and copies…