Popularising science through television

Conclusion Currently the 26 films in the Science Territory series have been shown to audiences who watch Channel 8 commercial television in the vicinity of Darwin. They are still being shown to audienc who watch Imparja Television. There are no plans at the moment to shown Science Territory for any extra time on either Channel 8 or Imparja, once the Imparja programmes are completes. There are plans however to develop materials to complement the programmes, which could be used in schools and there are also plans to repeat the success of Science Territory and to expand it on a national basis to a series of programmes to be called “Science Oz”. This research note has described of the Scienc Territory project which has attempted to improve students' and parents' attitudes to science. It has alo attempted to explain how the issue of determining the effectiveness of the project has been addressed. Overall, Science Territory proved to be an interesting, exciting, successful and whorthwhile venture, particularly for the small scientific community of the Northern Territory. It also appears to be unique both in Australia and worldwide. There are therefore lessons that science educators can learn from this about new ways of improving students' attitudes to science. Specializations: Science education policy, curriculum development and science education development projects with industry. Specializations: Science teacher education, chemical education, science education in developing countries, educational Issues.     

Science and environmental education at the primary level in Malta: separate interests,different roles

Abstract

This paper traces the main stages in the path towards the recognition in 1988 of the place of science and environmental education in the Maltese curriculum for the primary level. A brief review is given of the development of the science curriculum while a more detailed account is given of the development of a project on environmental education. The project involved the adoption of a model of the child's view of the environment, the drawing up of an ensemble of attainment targets, and the exploration of ways of infusing environmental education activities into the curriculum. A draft teacher's manual was circulated and evaluated at a national seminar. Major points arising during the seminar are discussed and plans for the dissemination of the work are outlined. Comparing the roles that teachers are asked to play in these developments, it is found that environmental education offers them more opportunity for professional growth.     

Are Robust Standard Errors the Best Approach for Interval Estimation With Nonnormal Data in Structural Equation Modeling?

When the multivariate normality assumption is violated in structural equation modeling, a leading remedy involves estimation via normal theory maximum likelihood with robust corrections to standard errors. We propose that this approach might not be best for forming confidence intervals for quantities with sampling distributions that are slow to approach normality, or for functions of model parameters. We implement and study a robust analog to likelihood-based confidence intervals based on inverting the robust chi-square difference test of Satorra (2000). We compare robust standard errors and the robust likelihood-based approach versus resampling methods in confirmatory factor analysis (Studies 1 & 2) and mediation analysis models (Study 3) for both single parameters and functions of model parameters, and under a variety of nonnormal data generation conditions. The percentile bootstrap emerged as the method with the best calibrated coverage rates and should be preferred if resampling is possible, followed by the robust likelihood-based approach.     

I’d rather they did Experiments with us…. Than just Talking: Irish Children’s Views of Primary School Science

This paper reports on a national study that explored primary pupils’ attitudes towards and experiences of school science in the Republic of Ireland. The study focussed on collecting data from children and in doing so recognises the importance of children’s views as an essential part of reviewing curriculum implementation. The findings of this large-scale study are based on an analysis of data gathered from observations of 15 primary classrooms, 1,149 children’s questionnaires and 11 group interviews. In this paper the findings regarding the extent to which the children appear to be engaging in ‘deductive’ (didactic) and ‘inductive’ (inquiry-based) approaches in their science classes, and their attitudes towards school science are presented. Encouragingly, evidence from all parts of the study revealed that in general Irish children are very positive towards learning science in school and are being provided with some opportunities to engage in hands-on inquiry in science, commonly via group work. However, there were also indications that, for some pupils, hands-on science experiences were infrequent, and for a few did not appear to be happening at all. It was not especially evident that pupils were being afforded opportunities to lead their own scientific investigations. Teacher explanation, teacher demonstration, reading and writing featured frequently in pupils’ responses and while the pupils expressed mixed feelings about these methodologies, one thing was apparent: hands-on inquiry based approaches to science had far greater appeal to the children. The significance of the findings of this study are considered in light of the findings and recommendations from recent national and international reports on inquiry-based approaches in science education.     

M/G/c排队系统中顾客队长排队长的置信区间的Bootstrap估计

研究了M/G/c排队系统中顾客队长、排队长的置信区间的求解方法.利用Bootstrap原理,给出了正态区间法、枢轴量法和百分位区间法等三种计算方法.实际应用表明,三种方法都得到了较好的结果.以置信区间的长度为评价标准,正态区间法和百分位区间法较优.     

Progression in school science curriculum: A rational prospect or a chimera?

Science in schooling has for the first time been recently considered as a verified whole for the 10 or 12 of its compulsory years, rather than for a limited sector of schooling or for a particular group of students. This has also been occurring as part of a wider review and plan for the whole curriculum of schooling. A framework has been provided consisting of a matrix of strands of intended content for learning across a number of levels approximating the years of schooling. There is a sense and expectation of continuous progression in the learning of science. Earlier notions of progression in science curricula are explored and compared with what has now appeared in the national curricula in England and Wales, New Zealand and Australia. The notions of curriculum opportunity and curriculum purpose for science education are introduced as factors that would lead to a shift in the sense of progression from a focus on Science itself to an emphasis on the learners' changing need of Science as they progress through the years of schooling. Specializations: science curriculum, environmental education, equity in education     

Application of a new resampling method to SEM: a comparison of S-SMART with the bootstrap

Among the commonly used resampling methods of dealing with small-sample problems, the bootstrap enjoys the widest applications because it often outperforms its counterparts. However, the bootstrap still has limitations when its operations are contemplated. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine an alternative, new resampling method (called S-SMART) and compare the statistical performance of it with that of the bootstrap through an application of them to the most advanced modelling technique, SEM, as an example. The evaluation of the statistical performances of S-SMART and the bootstrap with respect to the standard errors of the parameter estimates was conducted through a Monte Carlo simulation study. This work, while potentially benefiting educational and behavioural research, conceivably would also provide methodological support for other research areas, such as bioinformatics, biology, geosciences, astronomy, and ecology, where large samples are hard to obtain.     

Gender inclusive Curricula: A focus on two responses

One of the requirements of the New Zealand Curriculum Framework (Ministry of Education, 1993a) is that all curricula developed in New Zealand must be gender inclusive. Developers of the recently released science curriculum, and the draft technology curriculum, have responded to this requirement in different ways. In this paper I discuss a theorisation of the term ‘gender inclusive’ within national curriculum development generally, and explore and analyse these different responses within the specific context of the science and technology curriculum developments. Particular emphasis is placed on the historical difference between science education and technology education in New Zealand schools, and on the impact theoretical discourses have on the way in which terms such as ‘gender inclusive curricula’ are conceptualised, and viewed as appropriate, or not, for specific purposes. Specializations: feminist theory, science education, technology education, technology curriculum development.     

韩国现行初中科学课程的特色

韩国现行初中科学课程反映了各种教育思想的综合,强调了科学概念与探究过程、科学兴趣与关心、学习内容的连贯性及与实际生活的关联性.该课程设置国民共同基础课程"科学"保证了国民共同核心的科学教育,又设置深化、补充课程,满足了个别化学习要求.     

Questioning Questions: Elementary Teachers’ Adaptations of Investigation Questions Across the Inquiry Continuum

Questioning is a central practice in science classrooms. However, not every question translates into a “good” science investigation. Questions that drive science investigations can be provided by many sources including the teacher, the curriculum, or the student. The variations in the source of investigation questions were explored in this study. A dataset of 120 elementary science classroom videos and associated lesson plans from 40 elementary teachers (K-5) across 21 elementary school campuses were scored on an instrument measuring the amount of teacher-direction or student-direction of the lessons’ investigation questions. Results indicated that the investigation questions were overwhelmingly teacher directed in nature, with no opportunities for students to develop their own questions for investigation. This study has implications for researchers and practitioners alike, calling attention to the teacher-directed nature of investigation questions in existing science curriculum materials, and the need for teacher training in instructional strategies to adapt their existing curriculum materials across the continuum of teacher-directed and student-directed investigation questions. Teachers need strategies for adapting the teacher-directed questions provided in their existing curriculum materials in order to allow students the opportunity to engage in this essential scientific practice.     

Public understanding of science as a separate subject in secondary schools in The Netherlands

This paper describes and analyses an attempt to introduce the public understanding of science as a subject in its own right to be taught to all students in upper secondary education in The Netherlands. The aim of this paper is to make some of the experiences gained in this attempt, especially those related to the development of curriculum content, available to others. As the large-scale implementation of the new subject is still in progress, we focus on the initial stages of the introduction, covering the period 1994-1998. This period includes: (i) the launching of the initiative by a departmental advisory committee; (ii) the subsequent formulation of attainment targets; (iii) a curriculum development project that produced four teaching units tested in classroom experiments and meant as specimens to guide and inspire the authors of schoolbooks; and (iv) the publication of the first schoolbooks on the new subject. We conclude that in spite of its status as a separate subject, the current version of the course does not yet have a clear identity that distinguishes it, in the eyes of students as well as teachers, unmistakably from the traditional science subjects in the school.     

Curriculum as Experienced by Students: How Teacher Identity Shapes Science Notebook Use

This mixed-methods case study examined the notebook entries of one class of 22 second graders as a way of examining how teacher identity shaped the way students experienced their science curriculum. These notebook entries were created during lessons with three different teachers over the course of one school year, using similar kit-based materials to teach science. The entries were coded for inquiry phase, percent missing or incomplete entries, and driving force (teacher-driven, student-driven, or balanced); chi-squared analyses revealed significant differences among the notebook entries created by the same students during lessons taught by each of the three teachers. Qualitative observations of each teachers' instruction around notebook use supported these quantitative differences, and suggested that the differences in curriculum as experienced by students could be attributed to differences in teacher identity, both who the teacher is and what they do in the classroom. These findings indicate that students' notebooks are useful tools for examining how teachers' identities might shape how elementary students experience science curriculum, and that they can be used to help structure more effective professional development plans for each teacher.     

Performance of Bootstrapping Approaches to Model Test Statistics and Parameter Standard Error Estimation in Structural Equation Modeling

Though the common default maximum likelihood estimator used in structural equation modeling is predicated on the assumption of multivariate normality, applied researchers often find themselves with data clearly violating this assumption and without sufficient sample size to utilize distribution-free estimation methods. Fortunately, promising alternatives are being integrated into popular software packages. Bootstrap resampling, which is offered in AMOS (Arbuckle, 1997), is one potential solution for estimating model test statistic p values and parameter standard errors under nonnormal data conditions. This study is an evaluation of the bootstrap method under varied conditions of nonnormality, sample size, model specification, and number of bootstrap samples drawn from the resampling space. Accuracy of the test statistic p values is evaluated in terms of model rejection rates, whereas accuracy of bootstrap standard error estimates takes the form of bias and variability of the standard error estimates themselves.     

Curriculum Planning For Training: The State of the Art

This article provides training practitioners with an overview of literature on long-term curriculum planning for training in business and industry. It also summarizes key results of a national survey of corporate business planners and trainers on the current status of curriculum planning for training in their organizations. In general, few respondents of the study indicated that their organizations have established long-term training plans (curricula) to meet the predictable orientation needs of new employees or support implementation of corporate strategic business plans.     

Analysis of students' assessments in middle school curriculum materials: Aiming precisely at benchmarks and standards

Assessment influences every level of the education system and is one of the most crucial catalysts for reform in science curriculum and instruction. Teachers, administrators, and others who choose, assemble, or develop assessments face the difficulty of judging whether tasks are truly aligned with national or state standards and whether they are effective in revealing what students actually know. Project 2061 of the American Association for the Advancement of Science has developed and field‐tested a procedure for analyzing curriculum materials, including their assessments, in terms of how well they are likely to contribute to the attainment of benchmarks and standards. With respect to assessment in curriculum materials, this procedure evaluates whether this assessment has the potential to reveal whether students have attained specific ideas in benchmarks and standards and whether information gained from students' responses can be used to inform subsequent instruction. Using this procedure, Project 2061 had produced a database of analytical reports on nine widely used science middle school curriculum materials. The analysis of assessments included in these materials shows that whereas currently available materials devote significant sections in their instruction to ideas included in national standards documents, students are typically not assessed on these ideas. The analysis results described in the report point to strengths and limitations of these widely used assessments and identify a range of good and poor assessment tasks that can shed light on important characteristics of good assessment. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 39: 889–910, 2002     

Mapping Curriculum Innovation in STEM Schools to Assessment Requirements: Tensions and Dilemmas

Specialized science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) schools create niche areas in an attempt to attract the best students, establish the school status, and justify their privilege to valuable resources. One Singapore STEM school does this in applied science learning to differentiate its curriculum from the national prescribed curriculum. Reflecting on the issues of curriculum innovation from the perspective of a teacher and head of department in this school, the second author discusses the constraints in curriculum innovation in a specialized school context embedded within a larger system of the national curriculum. We reflect on her experiences in designing, planning, writing, and implementing applied science courses and the challenges in having to simultaneously address the standardized assessment guidelines.     

Project Clarion: Three Years of Science Instruction in Title I Schools among K-Third Grade Students

The purpose of the study was to measure the effects of higher level, inquiry-based science curricula on students at primary level in Title I schools. Approximately 3,300 K-3 students from six schools were assigned to experimental or control classes (N?=?115 total) on a random basis according to class. Experimental students were exposed to concept-based science curriculum that emphasized ??deep learning?? though concept mastery and investigation, whereas control classes learned science from traditional school-based curricula. Two ability measures, the Bracken Basic Concept Scale-Revised (BBCS-R, Bracken 1998) and the Naglieri Nonverbal Intelligence Test (NNAT, Naglieri 1991), were used for baseline information. Additionally, a standardized measure of student achievement in science (the MAT-8 science subtest), a standardized measure of critical thinking, and a measure for observing teachers?? classroom behaviors were used to assess learning outcomes. Results indicated that all ability groups of students benefited from the science inquiry-based approach to learning that emphasized science concepts, and that there was a positive achievement effect for low socio-economic young children who were exposed to such a curriculum.     

Addressing the Nature of Science in Preservice Science Teacher Preparation Programs: Science Educator Perceptions

The nature of science (NOS) has a prominent role among the national science education content standards at all grade levels, K–12. Results from a national survey of collegiate science educators indicate the perception that the greatest contributors to preservice teachers’ understanding of the nature of science were science methods courses, research projects, and science content courses. Implications of findings are discussed, including connections to current research concerning teacher preparation for effective NOS classroom teaching and student learning.The Nature of Science course on the authors’ campus was initiated in the early 1990s, has evolved, and remains in the required core curriculum for preservice chemistry, earth science, and physics teacher candidates. It is the capstone for NOS insights. It adds to and refines impressions garnered implicitly from science content courses, the methods course, and, for some, an undergraduate research experience.     

Instructional Planning in a Centralized School System: Lessons of a Study Among Primary School Teachers in Turkey

The purpose of the study described in this article was to assess teachers' planning practices at the primary-school level in Turkey. Altogether 210 schools were surveyed, a questionnaire was distributed to all teachers in these schools, and 1194 teachers responded to the questionnaire. The results indicated that the main sources of influence on daily and unit plans are teachers' experience, the national curriculum and the course textbooks. In daily planning, teachers assigned the highest level of importance to student characteristics and availability of learning materials, and the lowest level of importance to evaluation procedures and writing objectives. The main problems faced by teachers in planning were: the gap between the national curriculum and the classroom needs, difficulties in using the standard format for preparing plans, shortage of time and resources, insufficient support from principals and inspectors, and lack of cooperation among teachers.