One of the challenges of context-based science education is to construct high quality teaching materials. This paper presents results from a study investigating the heuristic value of an activity-based instructional framework for transformation of authentic scientific practices for use in the science classroom, in line with cultural historic…

Context-based curriculum reforms in chemistry education are thought to bring greater diversity to the ways in which chemistry teachers organize their teaching. First and foremost, students are expected to perceive this diversity. However, empirical research on how students perceive their teacher's teaching in context-based chemistry classrooms,…

In this study, questions in context-based and traditional chemistry textbooks were analysed from two perspectives that are at the heart of chemistry curricula reforms: a content perspective and a learning activities perspective. To analyse these textbook questions, we developed an instrument for each perspective. In total, 971 textbook questions…

Science education should foster students' epistemological view on models and modelling consistent with formal epistemology in science and technology practices. This paper reports the application of a curriculum unit in the classroom using an authentic chemical practice, "Modelling drinking water treatment", as the context for learning.…

In this paper, we report on a study of the beliefs of chemistry teachers about the teaching and learning of chemistry in upper secondary education in The Netherlands. This study was conducted in the context of the planning of a national revision of the chemistry curriculum towards a context-based approach. Chemistry teachers' beliefs were…