Although the benefits of early science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics (STEAM) education are understood, science is seldom found in early childhood education. One major impediment is teachers' perceived lack of their own competence with scientific skills. Many early childhood teachers feel that they do not know science sufficiently to…

Incorporating computational thinking (CT) ideas into core subjects, such as mathematics and science, is one way of bringing early computer science (CS) education into elementary school. Minimal research has explored how teachers can translate their knowledge of CT into practice to create opportunities for their students to engage in CT during…

Science teachers should be able to notice student preconceptions in order to adapt instructions to their students' needs and support the learning process. Noticing as a core practice of teaching should thus be implemented early in science teacher education. A crucial prerequisite for noticing is knowledge about students' preconceptions, which is…

The recent decades have seen an increased focus on improving early science education. Goals include helping young children learn about pertinent concepts in science, and fostering early scientific reasoning and inquiry skills (e.g., NRC 2007, 2012, 2015). However, there is still much to learn about what constitutes appropriate frameworks that…

This study aims to contribute knowledge about obstacles and opportunities for pedagogical continuity in science across early childhood education. We use activity theory to analyse individual interviews and group meetings with teachers from preschool (age 1-5), preschool class (age 6) and grade 1-3 (age 7-9) in three Swedish school units. The…

In early childhood education, the integration of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) are advocated as contemporary educational goals. However, integration of STEAM is not defined in the early childhood context. We claim to 'integrate' and 'devise integration pedagogies', but there is still no clear-cut message on what…

Since the rise of mass schooling in the 19th century, Americans have advocated for the teaching of science at nearly every level of the educational system. The reasons for its inclusion in the school curriculum, though, have varied over the years. The argument in the mid 1800s, for example, centered on the utilitarian value of scientific knowledge…

The present study reports an empirical investigation into concept formation of young children. Based on interviews conducted before and after participating in a playfully enacted chemistry lesson at a culture center, it is analyzed how 6-year-old children conceptualize water, molecule, and chemistry. Theoretically, the study is informed by…

This report describes the core standards process for Utah Public Schools. During fiscal year 2017-2018, the Utah State Board of Education (Board) continued revisions to core standards for Health Education, K-5 and 9-12 Science, and Early Childhood Education. The Health Education Core is currently out for 90 days of public review which closes…

Recent national focus on early childhood science education highlights the need for research on early science, particularly with children from low-income families, as science is the lowest performing school readiness domain in that population. Given this achievement gap, the Office of Head Start has emphasized the development of children's…

Mentoring relationships in academia have traditionally been described as a dyad between a mentor and a mentee. The mentor provides the mentee with both technical and psychosocial support to move toward obtaining their Ph.D. or gaining tenure and promotion. While there is an embedded assumption that mentoring is best suited when people of common…

Research misconduct has become an important matter of concern in the scientific community. The extent to which such behavior occurs early in science education has received little attention. In the current study, using the web-based data collection program REDCap, we obtained responses to an anonymous and voluntary survey about science fair from 65…

This study was carried out as collaborative action research aims to develop inquiry-based science activities in early childhood education. One volunteer teacher (T2) who desired to develop inquiry-based science activities, 14 of her students and the researcher participated in action research. The action phase consisted of six action cycles that…

The use of artificial intelligence has played an important role in science teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to fill a gap in the current review of research on AI in science education (AISE) in the early stage of education by systematically reviewing existing research in this area. This systematic review examined the trends and…

Young American children in today's public schools live in a world in which tensions around about identity (i.e., ethnicity and race, gender continuums, language backgrounds and proficiencies, cultural values and beliefs, economic resources, schooled experiences, literacy, and im/migration history) are part of everyday conversation. However, many…