A Call for Action (Research): Applying Science Education Research to Computer Science Instruction

In educational research, investigators in one field are often ignorant of similar research in other fields. Physics education in particular has undergone dramatic reforms in recent years, all based on insights gained from conducting educational research. Often, pedagogical methods resulting from research in one field can be revised and transferred to another. This paper demonstrates that many methods used in physics and other science programmes<fnr rid="b"> <fn id="b">Throughout this paper, programme will refer to the curricular concept and program will refer to computer programs.</fn> can be adapted to teaching computer science. The author has pursued action research in computer science and implemented ideas from science education, especially from physics education, in teaching computer science classes at a small religious secondary school in the southwestern United States. This paper presents ideas and teaching strategies with the hope of building bridges between computer science education research and other science education research.     

对当前文学阅读教学中几个基本问题的思考

文学阅读观念深刻影响着文学作品的阅读教学行为,而阅读教学行为又决定着文学的教育意义在个体身上的现实实现.当前,在文学阅读教学中,必须把握并处理好如下三个基本问题:第一,作者与读者的地位问题;第二,基于文本和超越文本的问题;第三,语文教师的文学修养及阅读观念、知识与策略的更新问题.     

Discipline knowledge and confidence to teach science: self-perceptions of primary teacher education students

There has been renewed debate in recent years about the relatively poor science discipline background knowledge of primary and preschool teachers, and their lack of confidence to teach science stemming from this. A reaction from teacher educators, such as recommended by theDiscipline Review of Teacher Education in Mathematics and Science Report, has been to provide more explicit science discipline units in pre-service teacher education courses. However, a few studies have cast some doubt on the notion that more science discipline studies (Skamp, 1989; Stepans & McCormack, 1985). This paper reports on pre-service students' perceptions of their cofidence to teach science before and after a science education unit adapted from the PECSTEP work (Kirkwood, Bearlin & Hardy, 1989), which included only a small amount of physical science, and took an explicit gender approach emphasising the students as learners. Specializations: primary teacher education, teaching strategies in science.     

Towards a theoretical basis for students' alternative frameworks in science and for science teaching

As there is nothing as practical as a good theory, there is a continuing need in the field of science education enquiry to look for theories which help to interpret the findings about students' alternative frameworks and to inform the design of teaching strategies which relate to a research focus on ‘how the student learns’. The developmental model of cognitive functioning based on the SOLO Taxonomy (Biggs & Collis, 1982) as updated in 1991 (Biggs & Collis, 1991; Collis & Biggs, 1991) is being applied in this way. Questionnaire data from two large studies of science learning of Australian students (conducted by ACER and NBEET) are being re-analysed in terms of the current theory. This paper illustrates the theory and describes a plan of further research. Specializations: science education, students' understandings of phenomena in science. Specializations: cognitive development, evaluation, mathematics and science education. Specializations: mathematics education, students' understanding of chance and data concepts.     

Promoting Self-Regulation in Science Education: Metacognition as Part of a Broader Perspective on Learning

The purpose of this article is to review recent research on self-regulated learning and discuss the implications of this research for science education. We draw on examples of self-regulated learning from the science education literature to summarise and illustrate effective instructional methods and the development of metacognitive understanding (Gunstone; 1999a; Rickey & Stacy, 2000; White & Mitchell, 1994). We also focus on the crucial role that metacognition plays in self-regulation (Baird & White, 1996; Nichols, Tippins, & Wieseman, 1997; White, 1998). We divide our discussion into two main parts. The first focuses on three components of self-regulated learning, including cognition, metacognition, and motivation. We relate these aspects of self-regulation to current practices in science education. The second section focuses on six general instructional strategies for improving self-regulation in the science classroom. We focus on the use of inquiry based learning, the role of collaborative support, strategy and problem solving instruction, the construction of mental models, the use of technology to support learning, and the role of personal beliefs such as self-efficacy and epistemological world views. These instructional strategies are selected because they reflect extensive research agendas over the last decade within the science education literature and are essential to metacognition and self-regulation (Butler & Winne, 1995; Gunstone, 1999b).     

Misconceptions,Knowledge, and Attitudes Towards the Phenomenon of Radioactivity

Science & Education - The teaching of the phenomenon of radioactivity is considered a key ingredient in the path towards developing critical thinking skills in many secondary science education...     

The Use of Journal Clubs in Science Teacher Education

This qualitative study explored how in a 7-month-long journal club pre- and inservice science teachers engaged with education research literature relevant to their practice to reduce the theory–practice gap. In the journal club they had the opportunity to critique and analyze peer-reviewed science education articles in the context of their classroom practice. Data sources included audio recordings of the meetings; semi-structured pre- and post-interviews of the teachers; focus groups; and artifacts (e.g., journal articles, reflective paper, email exchanges, and researcher’s field notes). Data were analyzed using the techniques of grounded theory (Corbin & Strauss in Basics of qualitative research, 3rd ed. Sage, Thousand Oaks, 2008). In addition we used some preconceived categories that we created from existing literature on journal clubs and communities of practice (Newswander & Borrego in European Journal of Engineering Education 34(6): 561–571, 2009; Wenger in Communities of practice: learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998) and from our previous research (Tallman & Feldman, 2012). We found that the journal club incorporated the three characteristics of a community of practice (Wenger in Communities of practice: learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998) into its functioning (mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and shared repertoire). The teachers mutually engaged around the joint enterprise of reading, critiquing, and understanding the research studies with the goal of improving practice. The teachers also asked each other analytical questions, which became a shared repertoire of the journal club. They reflected on their practice by presenting, reading, and discussing the articles, which helped them to determine whether and how the findings from the articles could be incorporated into their teaching practice. In doing so, they learned the skills needed to critique the research literature in relation to their practice as classroom teachers.     

A curriculum strategy that expands time for in-depth elementary science instruction by using science-based reading strategies: Effects of a year-long study in grade four

An integrative curriculum strategy emphasizing science process skills and hands-on activities expanded the time allocated for in-depth science instruction by replacing a district-adopted basal reading program with science-content reading designed to facilitate applied comprehension skills. This study investigated the combined effect of these curricular components (i.e., in-depth science, science-content-based reading) upon student achievement, attitudes, and self-confidence in both science and reading over the school year. In doing so, teachers in three fourth-grade classrooms each incorporated applied reading (and language arts) objectives into science reading activities as part of a daily, expanded, in-depth science teaching block that encompassed the total instructional time originally allocated to reading and science. Using multivariate covariance analysis, results showed that the students in the experimental group, compared to demographically similar controls, not only displayed significantly greater standardized test achievement as measured by the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills reading subtest and the Metropolitan Achievement Test science subtest, but also displayed a more positive attitude toward science and reading and greater self-confidence in learning science. Implications of the strategy for future curriculum research in science education are discussed.     

邓小平人才思想与高校师资队伍建设的若干思考

在科教兴国的战略布局中 ,高等教育担负着培养高级专门人才和知识创新、技术创新的重要历史使命 ,而高等教育的发展水平在很大程度上取决于教师队伍的整体素质。高等学校应认真学习邓小平人才理论 ,领会其精神实质 ,努力建设一支高素质的高校教师队伍 ,开创高校人才工作的新局面     

大学文学教育与大学生人文精神构建

文学教育是构建大学生人文精神的重要途径。通过问卷调查和对大学生的访谈了解,大学生普遍渴求文学教育,但大学文学教育复杂多元,实效性不高,理工科院校尤为薄弱。为此,应采取有效教育策略,如课堂教学、课外阅读、实践活动、网络互动等,通过策略选择,充分发挥文学教育对大学生人文精神构建的作用。     

Science Teaching: What Does It Mean?

This study considers the relationship between science, science teaching and the philosophy of science perceiving these three cultural phenomena as a semantic triad. This approach presents science teaching as being a form of a scientific reflection. The relationship of science teaching to the philosophy of science is advocated to be essential, revealing the conceptual meaning of science in the science curriculum and thus removing the semantic degeneracy taking place when the philosophy of science is ignored in science education. The study points at the bricolage as well as magic nature of the science curriculum preserving as long as science teaching preserves semantic degeneracy. Different types of meaning of Schwab’s commonplaces were recognized. The study challenges the common view of the relationship between science, science teaching and pedagogy and suggests effective representation of individual knowledge of science educators.     

浅论诵读及其共鸣研究与语文教学的发展

诵读教学是中国传统的语文教学方式,在古代是最重要的教学手段,所谓“书读百遍,其义自见”讲的就是这个道理。在现代语文教学中,教学方法与手段更加灵活多样,诵读只是其中之一。诵读不是简单读,诵读教学也不只是读与听的互动,真正的诵读教学应该确立训练目标体系和开展诵读教学研究,不仅促进学生的语言积累、表达、口语交际能力和习作水平的提高,而且促进教师的学习意识、创新意识、实践意识．从而助推语文教学的发展。     

Modeling Conceptualization and Investigating Teaching Effectiveness

Science & Education - Our research addresses the issue of teaching and learning concepts in science education as an empirical question. We study the process of conceptualization by closely...     

论小学科学教师PCK的内涵及其发展策略

学科教学知识(PCK)是教师知识的核心,发展PCK是教师专业发展的重要途径。文章阐述小学科学教师PCK的内涵,即教师为适应不同能力和兴趣的小学生,在将特定科学知识转化为学生易于理解的课堂教学形式时所使用的知识,它由小学科学课程知识、学习者知识、教学策略知识和学习评价知识构成。小学科学教师PCK的发展策略主要有:根据PCK内涵进行反思;加强专业阅读,进一步学习科学知识和科学教育知识;在学习共同体成员的交流中建构PCK。     

VCE chemistry as a curriculum innovation

Conclusion The difficulty of sharing meaning of curriculum intentions between different groups is highlighted in this study. The acceptance of the novel features of the Chemistry Study Design is mixed. The longitudinal nature of the study helped to identify the difficulty teachers had in understanding the meaning of these novel features although the experiences of teaching units in the VCE chemistry course have enabled some teachers to shift in their construction of the meaning of the words and messages around them. Specializations: chemistry and science education, technology and industry links with sicence in schools. Specializations: science and technology curriculum, environmental education, educational disadvantage. Specializations: curriculum change, science career paths. Specializations: science education, computers in schools.     

Students' learning in science lessons: towards understanding the learning process

Constructivist views of learning have been applied to science education largely as a response to attempts to understand the origins of students' misconceptions in science, and therefore the learning process. As part of this effort to understand learning in science lessons, Appleton (1989) proposed a learning model drawn mainly from Piagetian (1978) ideas and generative learning theory (Osborne & Wittrock, 1983). This paper explores the development and evolution of the learning model as other constructivist view were applied, and as the model was tested against students' responses in science lessons. The revised model finally arrived at is then examined. It was found to be a useful means of describing student's learning processes during a science lesson. Specializations: primary teacher education, teaching strategies in science, cognitive change and learning theories. Specializations: secondary science teacher education, chemical education.     

Keeping up: A dilemma for science teachers

This paper is based on interviews with seventy-five science teachers in twelve schools across Australia. The interviews were conducted as part of a D.E.E.T. Project of National Significance. The purpose of the project was to develop a strategy for the professional development of science teachers. The main purpose of our interviews was to listen to teachers' views on what such a strategy should try to achieve. We asked them to talk about conditions affecting the quality of their work, their attitudes to teaching, their professional development, their careers, the evaluation of teaching, and Award Restructuring. Through these interviews we came to understand how many science teachers are loosely connected with potentially valuable sources of support for their professional development. In this paper we focus on one group of “loose connections”; those between science teachers and scientists in other fields, research in science education, and their colleagues within science departments in schools. Specializations: Science education, reflective practice, teaching and learning. Specializations: Professional development, educational evaluation.     

《大学语文》课在素质教育中的地位和作用

《大学语文》课是普通高校中面向文 (除汉语言文学专业外 )、理、工、农、医、财经、政治、外语、艺术、教育等各类专业学生开设的一门素质教育课程。课程设置的目的是培养学生汉语言文学方面的阅读、欣赏、理解和表达能力。《大学语文》课所入选的作品 ,均是经过千百年筛选留传下来具有强大生命力的文约意丰 ,脍炙人口的古代和现当代最有成就的作家的代表作。它们代表了中国几千年灿烂文化和文明的进程 ,对于将来要担负着“传道”、“授业”、“解惑”的师范生来说 ,《大学语文》课在素质教育中的重要地位和作用是不容忽视的 !     

Teaching Young Children Science: Three Key Points

Many early childhood teachers report lacking confidence to teach science. Today, science education is defined as “doing science”, as opposed to memorization of facts (Seefeldt & Galper, 2002). This paper discusses developmentally appropriate practices in the context of teaching science. Knowledge of child development, individual differences and the role of children’s socio-cultural context are explicitly discussed. The use of questioning and the 5 Es (engaging, exploring, explaining, elaborating, evaluating) instructional model are also discussed. A sample science lesson is provided to model the use of 5 Es and questioning strategies.