Background: Although there is an increasing recognition of the importance of critical thinking in science education across the world, the relevant research literature is extremely thin. There is an urgent need to generate more empirical evidence. Purpose: We examined two essential issues concerning critical thinking (the relationship between…

Background: STEM education, which features interdisplines and integration of disciplines, influences the reform of curriculum and teaching, and is reflected in Chinese science textbooks. Purpose: This study aims to analyse how STEM and its integration factors are presented in Chinese science textbooks. Sample: Three sets of high school science…

Background: Researchers have acknowledged that examining ICT in relation to disciplinary learning outcomes could offer a promising, synergistic research path forward. A number of empirical studies have been done to determine the relationship between ICT-related variables and students' science achievement. However, the mechanism of the…

Background: Inquiry-based learning has been widely adopted in educational practice especially in science education. Scaffolding plays an important role in fostering learning in sophisticated inquiry. Meanwhile, it is important not to undermine the open-endedness of inquiry activities and the nature of student-centred learning. Purpose: This study…