From Earth to Heaven: Using ‘Newton’s Cannon’ Thought Experiment for Teaching Satellite Physics

Thought Experiments are powerful tools in both scientific thinking and in the teaching of science. In this study, the historical Thought Experiment (TE) ‘Newton’s Cannon’ was used as a tool to teach concepts relating to the motion of satellites to students at upper secondary level. The research instruments were: (a) a teaching-interview designed and implemented according to the Teaching Experiment methodology and (b) an open-ended questionnaire administered to students 2 weeks after the teaching-interview. The sample consisted of forty students divided into eleven groups. The teaching and learning processes which occurred during the teaching-interview were recorded and analyzed. The findings of the present study show that the use of the TE helped students to mentally construct a physical system which has nothing to do with their everyday experience (i.e. they had to imagine themselves as observers in a context in which the whole Earth was visible) and to draw conclusions about phenomena within this system. Specifically, students managed (1) to conclude that if an object is appropriately launched, it may be placed in an orbit around the Earth and to support this conclusion by giving necessary arguments, and (2) to realize that the same laws of physics describe, on the one hand, the motion of the Moon around the Earth (and the motion of other celestial bodies as well) and, on the other hand, the motion of ‘terrestrial’ objects (i.e. objects on the Earth, such as a tennis ball). The main difficulties students met were caused by their idea that there is no gravity in the vacuum (i.e. the area outside of the Earth’s atmosphere) and also by their everyday experience, according to which it is impossible for a projectile to move continuously parallel to the ground.     

Students’ Expectations of Teaching in Undergraduate Physics

This article reports on a phenomenographic‐based study of the expectations of teaching among undergraduate physics students. Data are drawn from a range of course‐contexts at each of two quite different universities — one South African and one Swedish — and five qualitatively different expectations of physics teaching are identified and exemplified. These range from presenting knowledge to facilitating personal development and agency. Implications of possible mismatches between students’ and lecturers’ expectations of physics teaching are discussed in relation to students’ learning experiences.     

Using the SEE-SEP Model to Analyze Upper Secondary Students’ Use of Supporting Reasons in Arguing Socioscientific Issues

To achieve the goal of scientific literacy, the skills of argumentation have been emphasized in science education during the past decades. But the extent to which students can apply scientific knowledge to their argumentation is still unclear. The purpose of this study was to analyse 80 Swedish upper secondary students’ informal argumentation on four socioscientific issues (SSIs) to explore students’ use of supporting reasons and to what extent students used scientific knowledge in their arguments. Eighty upper secondary students were asked to express their opinions on one SSI topic they chose through written reports. The four SSIs in this study include global warming, genetically modified organisms (GMO), nuclear power, and consumption. To analyse students’ supporting reasons from a holistic view, we used the SEE-SEP model, which links the six subject areas of sociology/culture (So), environment (En), economy (Ec), science (Sc), ethics/morality (Et) and policy (Po) connecting with three aspects, knowledge, value and personal experience (KVP). The results showed that students used value to a greater extent (67%) than they did scientific knowledge (27%) for all four SSI topics. According to the SEE-SEP model, the distribution of supporting reasons generated by students differed among the SSI topics. Also, some alternative concepts were disclosed in students’ arguments. The implications for research and education are discussed.     

Secondary School Students’ Errors in the Translation of Algebraic Statements

In this article, we present the results of a research study that explores secondary students’ capacity to perform translations of algebraic statements between the verbal and symbolic representation systems through the lens of errors. We classify and compare the errors made by 2 groups of students: 1 at the beginning of their studies in school algebra and another 1 completing their studies on algebra in compulsory education. This comparison allows us to detect errors which require specific attention in instruction due to its persistence and to identify errors that disappear as students advance in their study of algebra. The results and conclusions have a pedagogic value to inform instruction and also lead to backed conjectures and research questions to push forward research on student’s translation capacity and students’ knowledge of algebraic symbolism.     

The Relationship of Discipline Background to Upper Secondary Students’ Argumentation on Socioscientific Issues

In the present STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)-driven society, socioscientific issues (SSI) have become a focus globally and SSI research has grown into an important area of study in science education. Since students attending the social and science programs have a different focus in their studies and research has shown that students attending a science program are less familiar with argumentation practice, we make a comparison of the supporting reasons social science and science majors use in arguing different SSI with the goal to provide important information for pedagogical decisions about curriculum and instruction. As an analytical framework, a model termed SEE-SEP covering three aspects (of knowledge, value, and experiences) and six subject areas (of sociology/culture, economy, environment/ecology, science, ethics/morality, and policy) was adopted to analyze students’ justifications. A total of 208 upper secondary students (105 social science majors and 103 science majors) from Sweden were invited to justify and expound their arguments on four SSI including global warming, genetically modified organisms (GMO), nuclear power, and consumer consumption. The results showed that the social science majors generated more justifications than the science majors, the aspect of value was used most in students’ argumentation regardless of students’ discipline background, and justifications from the subject area of science were most often presented in nuclear power and GMO issues. We conclude by arguing that engaging teachers from different subjects to cooperate when teaching argumentation on SSI could be of great value and provide students from both social science and science programs the best possible conditions in which to develop argumentation skills.     

The Perceptions of Students in Secondary School in Regard to Evolution-Based Teaching: Acceptance and Evolution Learning Experiences—The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Research in Science Education - The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake. The author would like to add the below text as acknowledgement.     

Interdisciplinary Mathematics–Physics Approaches to Teaching the Concept of Angle in Elementary School

The present study takes an interdisciplinary mathematics–physics approach to the acquisition of the concept of angle by children in Grades 3–5. This paper first presents the theoretical framework we developed, then we analyse the concept of angle and the difficulties pupils have with it. Finally, we report three experimental physics‐based teaching sequences tested in three classrooms. We showed that at the end of each teaching sequence the pupils had a good grasp of the concept of angle, they had truly appropriated the physics knowledge at play, and many pupils are enable to successfully grasp new physics situations in which the angle plays a highly meaningful role. Using a physics framework to introduce angles in problem situations is then pertinent: by interrelating different spaces, pupils were able to acquire skills in the domains of mathematics, physics, and modelling. In conclusion, we discuss the respective merits of each problem situation proposed.     

Assessing Secondary School Students’ Justifications for Supporting or Rejecting a Scientific Hypothesis in the Physics Lab

Research in Science Education - Justifications play a central role in argumentation, which is a core topic in school science education. This paper contributes to this field of research by...     

‘Teaching’ or ‘support’? The poisoned chalice of the role of Students’ Skills Centres

After the 1992 Further and Higher Education Reform Act enabled polytechnics and the qualifying franchised colleges to be renamed universities or higher education institutions, the dominance of the rhetoric of skill development aggravated long‐standing schisms between further and higher education about whether or not degree‐level courses should be available in further education. One aspect of these disagreements concerns the dominance of a skills deficit model and its influence in learning and teaching. This article draws on the findings of a study into the role of a Students’ Skills Centre (SSC) in a post‐1992 university. It focuses on how and why working in SSCs is envisaged as a subordinate function, as a ‘support’ and not a ‘teaching’ role. The research study utilised both quantitative and qualitative research methods in a case‐study design to examine the nature of students’ requests for help in an SSC. The article argues that academic skills, including writing, study and key skills, are more effective if taught in a subject/disciplinary‐specific context. Hence, lecturers in the SSC had to provide intensive teaching, which, at the same time, also addressed this contextual dimension. This is a complex and highly specialised teaching process, yet, despite the yearly increase in numbers of students attending the centre for help, university managers and some academic staff refused to acknowledge the complexity of the nature of students’ learning requirements or the teaching function of the role of lecturers working in the SSC.     

The Strategies to Stimulate Students’Interest in English Teaching

With the rapid development in different fields in China,especially the extension of its further opening to the outside world,English language teaching and learning has accordingly witnessed a fast development in recent years.English teaching has stepped into a new stage in our country.More and more people begin to study English.So there is an urgent need to implement interest-activated in English teaching accordance with the present situation of our country.To meet the demand of it,more and more people are aware of the ways to improve the efficiency in English teaching and learning.The article holds that"interest is the best teacher."And it is very important to improve the interest of students.So this paper pays more attention to the ways to stimulate the students’interest in English teaching.     

Effect of Computer Simulation on Secondary School Students’ Interest in Algebra

Education and Information Technologies - This study examined the effect of using computer simulation on students’ interest in algebra. A quasi-experimental design was employed. A sample of...     

Effects of an Ancient Chinese Mathematics Enrichment Programme on Secondary School Students’ Achievement in Mathematics

Ancient Chinese mathematics has been the focus of many research studies and scholarly works from a historical perspective. However, no move has been made to investigate its role in the teaching and learning of mathematics. This pilot study examined the effects of an Ancient Chinese Mathematics Enrichment Programme (ACMEP) on the academic achievement of second year students from a secondary school in Singapore—a strand of a principal study which had the intent of investigating possible roles of ancient Chinese mathematics in the Singapore secondary school mathematics curriculum. Analysis of covariance was used to examine the difference in mean scores on a variety of formal assessments in mathematics between students who participated in the ACMEP and those who did not. In addition, scores on formal assessments of other relevant subjects were analyzed to further investigate ACMEP’s scope of influence.     

How to Develop the Students’ Interest in English Teaching

It is the key for teachers how to develop the students’ interest because interest is the best teacher.This paper discusses how to develop the students’ interest.     

High School Students’ Exposure to Diversity in an Urban Teaching Academy and Their Conceptions of Its Place in Future Practice

This study explored the meaning high school Urban Teaching Academy participants ascribed to the critical term of diversity and how that translated into shaping their philosophies on how to address the issue in their future classrooms. Findings indicated that perceptions of diversity and its place in the curriculum were most likely related to the emphasis of the concept in the program. Thus, those participants who were taught by a teacher who included more discourse on the topic of diversity embraced a culturally relevant pedagogical stance. Whereas, those participants taught by a teacher who discussed diversity through the lens of differentiated instruction adopted a color-blind perspective.     

Linking ‘The Book of Nature’ and ‘The Book of Science’: Using Circular Motion as an Exemplar beyond the Textbook

Bacon exhorted the natural philosophers of his day to read and interpret the book of nature by clever and cunning experimentation. The increasing scientific activity after Bacon and Galileo, however, quickly produced a second book. This was a book of interpretations of nature, namely the the book of science. Newton went beyond Bacon and Galileo and developedan ongoing dialogue between these two books, a repeated give and takebetween mathematical construct and physical reality. Unfortunately, thephysics textbook, the book of science the students read, does not acquaintthem with this style of reasoning. As an example of high-grade scientificthinking this paper discusses Newton's long struggle with the concepts ofinertia and especially of centrifugal force. In his quest to understand thedynamics of circular motion Newton clearly progressed through four levelsof conceptualizations, leading to progressively less severe discrepancies, inhis ascent to a full understanding of centripetal acceleration. While it is notpossible or desirable to expect teachers or students to recapitulate high-gradescientific thinking, partial retelling of the intellectual struggle that was involved in establishing important scientific concepts must be seen as important. This kind of pedagogy, however, requires that physics teachers have a good understanding of the history of scientific ideas as well as the findings of cognitive science.     

Using Children’s Literature in the Middle School Science Class to Teach Nature of Science

Science & Education - In this study, we report the results of the content analysis of preservice middle school science teachers’ own written science storybooks and middle school female...     

Upper Secondary Students’ Understanding of the Use of Multiple Models in Biology Textbooks—The Importance of Conceptual Variation and Incommensurability

In this study we investigate students’ ability to discern conceptual variation and the use of multiple models in genetics when reading content-specific excerpts from biology textbooks. Using the history and philosophy of science as our reference, we were able to develop a research instrument allowing students themselves to investigate the occurrence of multiple models and conceptual variation in Swedish upper secondary textbooks. Two excerpts using different models of gene function were selected from authentic textbooks. Students were given the same questionnaire-instrument after reading the two texts, and the results were compared. In this way the students themselves made a classification of the texts which could then be compared with the researchers’ classification of the texts. Forty-one upper secondary students aged 18–19 participated in the study. Nine of the students also participated in semi-structured interviews. Students recognized the existence of multiple models in a general way, but had difficulty discerning the different models and the conceptual variation that occurs between them in the texts. Further they did not recognize the occurrence of incommensurability between multiple models. Students had difficulty in transforming their general knowledge of multiple models into an understanding of content specific models of gene function in the textbooks. These findings may have implications for students’ understanding of conceptual knowledge because research has established textbooks as one of the most influential aspects in the planning and execution of biology lessons, and teachers commonly assign reading passages to their students without further explanation.     

Teachers’ Evaluation of Enterprise Education in the Secondary School

Abstract

This investigation was undertaken as part of research into ‘mini‐enterprise'activity in the secondary school. The research aimed to evaluate ‘mini‐enterprise’ as an approach to learning and to offer different examples in practice. Fundamental to this evaluation was an examination of the views and attitudes of teachers towards ‘mini‐enterprise’ work. This paper describes the survey undertaken to determine teachers’ attitudes towards certain key ‘enterprise’ issues and offers a summary of the research findings concluding in a discussion of the wider educational implications.     

The Application of TBL Using Role Play to Introduce Vocabulary in Chi-na’s Private Language School

A specific application of task-based learning in teaching vocabulary to young learners and a complete task cycle using role play to present vocabulary in China’s private language school would be descri...