Towards an indigenous science curriculum

The recent development of a national science curriculum in Māori opened up space to contest whose knowledge and whose ways of knowing are included. This paper outlines the background to the curriculum development work in Aotearoa New Zealand with respect to the indigenous Māori people and science education. Concern is expressed about the fitting of one cultural framework into another and questions are raised about the approach used in the development of the science curriculum. Further research in the area of language, culture and science education is discussed along with how Māori might move forward in the endeavour of developing a curriculum that reflects Māori culture and language. This paper forms part of an MEd thesis. For a fuller analysis of the development of “Te Tauākī Marautanga Pūtaiao: He Tauira” (Draft National Science Curriculum in Māori) see McKinley (1995) in the references. See alsoSAMEpapers 1995 (Hamilton, New Zealand: Centre for Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, University of Waikato).     

Impact of model-based science curriculum and instruction on elementary students' explanations for the hydrosphere

Developing scientific literacy about water systems is critical for K-12 students. However, even with opportunities to build knowledge about the hydrosphere in elementary classrooms, early learners may struggle to understand the water cycle (Forbes et al., 2015 ; Gunckel et al., 2012 ; Zangori et al., 2015 ; Zangori et al., 2017 ). Scientific modeling affords opportunities for students to develop representations, make their ideas visible, and generate model-based explanations for complex natural systems like the water cycle. This study describes a comprehensive evaluation of a 5-year, design-based research project focused on the development, implementation, revision, and testing of an enhanced, model-centered version of the Full Option Science System (FOSS) Water (2005) unit in third grade classrooms. Here, we build upon our previous work (Forbes et al., 2015 a; b; Vo et al., 2015 ; Zangori et al., 2015 ; Zangori et al., 2017 ) by conducting a comparative analysis of student outcomes in two sets of classrooms: (1) one implementing the modeling-enhanced version of the FOSS Water unit developed by the research team (n = 6), and 2) another using the standard, unmodified version of the same curricular unit (n = 5). Results demonstrate that teachers in both conditions implemented the two versions of the curriculum with relative fidelity. On average, students exposed to the modeling-enhanced version of the curriculum showed greater gains in their model-based explanations for the hydrosphere. Engagement in scientific modeling allowed students to articulate hydrologic phenomena by (1) identifying various elements that constitute the hydrosphere, (2) describing how these elements influenced the movement of water in the hydrosphere, and (3) demonstrating underlying processes that govern the movement of water in the hydrosphere.     

Factors associated with students' intentions to engage in science learning activities

The determinants of fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth graders' intentions to perform science learning activities were investigated. Ajzen and Fishbein's theory of reasoned action was used to assess students (n = 254) on their laboratory and nonlaboratory behavioral intentions, which required using the two determinants included in the theory (attitude toward the behavior and subjective norm) as well as five external variables identified by the researcher. The five external variables were gender, grade, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status as determined by the range of the family's annual income, and attitude toward science. Two models were tested. The first model included the two determinants as predictor variables and behavioral intention as the criterion. The second model involved the analysis of the two determinants as they were considered in subgroups according to the five external variables. This model also included interaction terms. For laboratory learning activities, the two determinants (attitude toward behavior and subjective norm) were found to contribute collectively to the prediction of behavioral intention, accounting for almost a fourth of the variance. For nonlaboratory learning activities, the two determinants accounted for over a fourth of the variance in behavioral intention. Testing of the second model revealed that for both laboratory and nonlaboratory behavioral intentions, no interaction terms were significant. The results of post hoc tests on significant predictors of behavioral intentions for laboratory and nonlaboratory activities are reported. Implications of this study on future research are also discussed. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 455–473, 1999     

Evaluating students' science notebooks as an assessment tool

The idea of using science notebooks as a classroom assessment tool is not new. There is general agreement that science notebooks allow teachers to assess students' conceptual and procedural understanding and to provide the feedback students need for improving their performance. In this study we examined the use of science notebooks as an unobtrusive assessment tool that can also be used by individuals outside the classroom (for example, school district personnel), and as a means for obtaining information about students' learning and their opportunities to learn. More specifically, in this study students' science notebooks were used as a source of data about the (a) implementation of a curriculum's intended activities, (b) students' performance, and (c) quality of teachers' feedback. Our results indicated that: (1) Students' science notebooks can be reliably scored. Unit implementation, student performance, and teacher feedback scores were highly consistent across raters and units. (2) High and positive correlations with other performance assessment scores indicated that the student performance score can be considered as an achievement indicator. And (3) low performance scores across the two units revealed that students' communication skills and understanding were far away from the maximum score and did not improve over the course of instruction during the school year. This result may be due, in part, to the fact that no teacher feedback was found in any of the students' notebooks across the six classrooms studied. This may reflect some characteristics of the teachers' assessment practices that may require further professional development.     

Undergraduate science students' images of science

This article describes views about the nature of science held by a small sample of science students in their final year at the university. In a longitudinal interview study, 11 students were asked questions about the nature of science during the time they were involved in project work. Statements about the nature of science were characterized and coded using a framework drawing on aspects of the epistemology and sociology of science. The framework in this study has three distinct areas: the relationship between data and knowledge claims, the nature of lines of scientific enquiry, and science as a social activity. The students in our sample tended to see knowledge claims as resting solely on empirical grounds, although some students mentioned social factors as also being important. Many of the students showed significant development in their understanding of how lines of scientific enquiry are influenced by theoretical developments within a discipline, over the 5–8 month period of their project work. Issues relating to scientists working as a community were underrepresented in the students' discussions about science. Individual students drew upon a range of views about the nature of science, depending on the scientific context being discussed. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 201–219, 1999     

研究生闲暇生活现状浅谈

闲暇生活是研究生生活的重要组成部分,对研究生的全面自由发展起到重要作用,关注研究生的闲暇生活是社会发展的必然要求。本篇论文通过对研究生的闲暇生活现状进行调查取证,发现部分研究生的闲暇生活存在着一定程度的偏差并进行分析。     

Teaching data science: an objective approach to curriculum validation

Emerging careers in technology-focused fields such as data science coupled with necessary graduate outcomes mandate the need for a truly interdisciplinary pedagogical approach. However, the rapid pace of curriculum development in this field of inquiry has meant that curricula across universities has largely evolved in line with the internal disciplinary strengths of each institution rather than in response to the needs of graduates. To assist with the development of data science subjects the themes and content that contribute to each subject should be objectively validated. We propose the use of an objective test for data science curricula to quantify whether a particular degree programme maintains an interdisciplinary perspective unconstrained by single discipline bias. The test analyses a given curriculum and quantifies the subject components by category using natural language processing (NLP) techniques.     

Effect of instruction using students' prior knowledge and conceptual change strategies on science learning

One of the factors affecting students' learning in science is their existing knowledge prior to instruction. The students' prior knowledge provides an indication of the alternative conceptions as well as the scientific conceptions possessed by the students. This study is concerned primarily with students' alternative conceptions and with instructional strategies to effect the learning of scientific conceptions; i.e., to effect conceptual change from alternative to scientific conceptions. The conceptual change model used here suggests conditions under which alternative conceptions can be replaced by or differentiated into scientific conceptions and new conceptions can be integrated with existing conceptions. The instructional strategy and materials were developed for a particular student population, namely, black high school students in South Africa, using their previously identified prior knowledge (conceptions and alternative conceptions) and incorporate the principles for conceptual change. The conceptions involved were mass, volume, and density. An experimental group of students was taught these concepts using the special instructional strategy and materials. A control group was taught the same concepts using a traditional strategy and materials. Pre- and posttests were used to assess the conceptual change that occurred in the experimental and control groups. The results showed a significantly larger improvement in the acquisition of scientific conceptions as a result of the instructional strategy and materials which explicitly dealt with student alternative conceptions.     

The effect of reflective discussions following inquiry‐based laboratory activities on students' views of nature of science

This research investigated the effect of reflective discussions following inquiry‐based laboratory activities on students' views of the tentative, empirical, subjective, and social aspects of nature of science (NOS). Thirty‐eight grade six students from a Lebanese school participated in the study. The study used a pretest–posttest control‐group design and focused on collecting mainly qualitative data. During each laboratory session, students worked in groups of two. Later, experimental group students answered open‐ended questions about NOS then engaged in reflective discussions about NOS. Control group students answered open‐ended questions about the content of the laboratory activities then participated in discussions of results of these activities. Data sources included an open‐ended questionnaire used as pre‐ and posttest, answers to the open‐ended questions that experimental group students answered individually during every session, transcribed videotapes of the reflective discussions of the experimental group, and semi‐structured interviews. Results indicated that explicit and reflective discussions following inquiry‐based laboratory activities enhanced students' views of the target NOS aspects more than implicit inquiry‐based instruction. Moreover, implicit inquiry‐based instruction did not substantially enhance the students' target NOS views. This study also identified five major challenges that students faced in their attempts to change their NOS views. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 47: 1229–1252, 2010     

Gardening with grandparents: an early engagement with the science curriculum

In many cultures, elders are revered within the extended family as a source of wisdom gained from long experience. In Western societies, this role has been marginalised by changes in family structure, and grandparents' significant contribution to children's upbringing often goes unacknowledged. A research study with families of three‐ to six‐year‐olds in East London reveals how grandparents from a variety of cultural backgrounds passed on knowledge about growing fruit and vegetables to their grandchildren through joint gardening activities. Children learned to identify different plants, and to understand conditions and stages of plant growth. Grandparents from Bangladesh introduced children to a wide range of fruits and vegetables, and concepts were reinforced through bilingual communication. Analysis shows that these intergenerational learning encounters fostered children's scientific knowledge in ways that supported and extended curriculum work in the early years.     

Effect of format on learning disabled and non-learning disabled students' performance on a hands-on science assessment

Students with learning disabilities often perform poorly on multiple-choice tests that emphasize recall and factual knowledge. This study compared the effect of two alternative assessmentsa constructed diagram test and a written questionnaireon fourth-grade learning disabled (LD) and non-learning disabled (Non-LD) students' learning. As part of a larger investigation of different approaches to hands-on science learning, 172 students (including 33 LD students) in six urban and two suburban classrooms participated in the study. Results indicate that students' assessment outcomes are a function of learner status (LD, low, average and high achieving) and level of domain specific knowledge after instruction. After controlling for domain specific knowledge, students with LD, and low and average achieving students obtained higher scores on the constructed diagram test than on the questionnaire. High achieving students were not sensitive to format differences, performing comparably on the two measures. The facilitative effect of the diagram format may have been due to differences in the primary symbol systems (graphic vs. text) and the openness of the response format (constrained vs. open) of the constructed diagram and questionnaire, respectively.     

The influence of history of science courses on students' views of nature of science

This study (a) assessed the influence of three history of science (HOS) courses on college students' and preservice science teachers' conceptions of nature of science (NOS), (b) examined whether participants who entered the investigated courses with a conceptual framework consistent with contemporary NOS views achieved more elaborate NOS understandings, and (c) explored the aspects of the participant HOS courses that rendered them more “effective” in influencing students' views. Participants were 166 undergraduate and graduate students and 15 preservice secondary science teachers. An open‐ended questionnaire in conjunction with individual interviews, was used to assess participants' pre‐ and postinstruction NOS views. Almost all participants held inadequate views of several NOS aspects at the outset of the study. Very few and limited changes in participants' views were evident at the conclusion of the courses. Change was evident in the views of relatively more participants, especially preservice science teachers, who entered the HOS courses with frameworks that were somewhat consistent with current NOS views. Moreover, explicitly addressing certain NOS aspects rendered the HOS courses relatively more effective in enhancing participants' NOS views. The results of this study do not lend empirical support to the intuitively appealing assumption held by many science educators that coursework in HOS will necessarily enhance students' and preservice science teachers' NOS views. However, explicitly addressing specific NOS aspects might enhance the effectiveness of HOS courses in this regard. Moreover, the study suggests that exposing preservice science teachers to explicit NOS instruction in science methods courses prior to their enrollment in HOS courses might increase the likelihood that their NOS views will be changed or enriched as a result of their experiences with HOS. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 37: 1057–1095, 2000     

The impact of scienceware and foundations on students' attitudes towards science and science classes

In this paper, we describe changes in students' ideas about science classes, attitudes about science, and motivations for studying science, in a classroom designed to support projectbased science learing. Using a survey designed to provide a measure of students' attitudes towards science classes and science, we have compared students enrolled in a traditional high school biology course, with students enrolled in an integrated, project-based science course called Foundations I. Survey responses were analyzed to look at differences between and within two groups of students over the course of one school year. In general, the results of this study suggest that providing students with opportunities to collect and analyze their own data in science classes results in a change in students' ideas about science classrooms. Foundations I students' increased tendency to agree with statements about using information, drawing conclusions, and thinking about problems, implies a change in their understanding of what it means to do science in school. These students, in contrast to students in the traditional Biology course, no longer describe their science experience as one of memorization, textbook reading, and test taking. Instead they see science class as a place in which they can collect data, draw conclusions, and formulate and solve problems.