Creating Personal Meaning through Technology-Supported Science Inquiry Learning across Formal and Informal Settings

In this paper, a novel approach to engaging students in personal inquiry learning is described, whereby they carry out scientific investigations that are personally meaningful and relevant to their everyday lives. The learners are supported by software that guides the inquiry process, extending from the classroom into the school grounds, home, or outdoors. We report on a case study of personal inquiry learning with 28 high school students on the topic of healthy eating. An analysis of how the personal inquiry was enacted in the classroom and at home, based on issues identified from a study of interviews with the students and their teacher, is provided. The outcomes showed that students were alerted to challenges associated with fieldwork and how they responded to the uncertainty and challenge of an open investigation. The study, moreover, raised an unexpected difficulty for researchers of finding the ‘sweet spot’ between scientifically objective but unengaging inquiry topics, and ones that are personally meaningful but potentially embarrassing. Implications for further research are shaped around ways of overcoming this difficulty.     

科学探究教学:在新课程标准下的探索与实践

引导学生进行科学探究,培养学生科学探究能力,是科学课程倡导的教育理念。科学探究既是学生的学习目标,又是重要的学习方式,更是一种教学理念,贯穿整个教学过程。科学探究具备一定的特征,包含诸多要素。本文在对科学探究的含义、特征及其要素的分析基础上,着重从在科学课程课堂教学中开展科学探究进行了探讨,并结合实例阐述了在探究教学中应注重的规律和方法。     

The Effects of Inquiry Teaching on Student Science Achievement and Attitudes: Evidence from Propensity Score Analysis of PISA Data

Gauging the effectiveness of specific teaching strategies remains a major topic of interest in science education. Inquiry teaching among others has been supported by extensive research and recommended by the National Science Education Standards. However, most of the empirical evidence in support was collected in research settings rather than in normal school environments. Propensity score analysis was performed within the marginal mean weighting through stratification (MMW-S) approach to examine the effects of the level of openness of inquiry teaching on student science achievement and attitudes with the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2006 data. Weighting subjects on MMW-S weight successfully balanced all treatment groups on all selected covariates. Significant effects were identified on both cognitive and attitudinal outcomes. For student science achievement, the highest score was achieved at Level 2 inquiry teaching, that is, students conduct activities and draw conclusions from data. For student science attitudes, higher level of inquiry teaching resulted in higher scores. The said conclusions were generally held in most PISA 2006 participating countries when the analysis was performed in each country separately.     

A Study on Teaching Gases to Prospective Primary Science Teachers Through Problem-Based Learning

The aim of this study was to compare the achievement of prospective primary science teachers in a problem-based curriculum with those in a conventional primary science teacher preparation program with regard to success in learning about gases and developing positive attitudes towards chemistry. The subjects of the study were 101 first year undergraduate students, who were in two different classes and who were taught by the same lecturer. One of the classes was randomly selected as the intervention group in which problem-based learning (PBL) was used, and the other as the control in which conventional teaching methods were used. The data were obtained through use of the gases diagnostic test (GDT), the chemistry attitude scale (CAS), and scales specific to students’ evaluation of PBL such as the peer evaluation scale (PES), self evaluation scale (SES), tutor’s performance evaluation scale (TPES) and students’ evaluation of PBL scale (SEPBLS). Data were analysed using SPSS 10.0 (Statistical Package for Social Sciences). In order to find out the effect of the intervention (PBL) on students’ learning of gases, independent sample t-tests and ANCOVA (analysis of co-variance) were used. The results obtained from the study showed that there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of students’ GDT total mean scores and, their attitude towards chemistry, as well as PBL has a significant effect on the development of students’ skills such as self-directed learning, cooperative learning and critical thinking.     

Closing the Gap: Inquiry in Research and the Secondary Science Classroom

Teaching students how to conduct authentic scientific inquiry is an essential aspect of recent science education reform efforts. Our National Science Foundation-funded GK-12 program paired science graduate students—fellows—with secondary science teachers in order to enhance inquiry-based instruction. This research examined the roles of the fellows, teachers, and school culture in the implementation of inquiry and the fellows’ conceptions of classroom inquiry versus that in their own research. Qualitative data were collected for two academic years. Overall, the classrooms shifted toward a more inquiry-oriented approach over the academic year. Several aspects of school culture influenced inquiry implementation. Fellows described their research as similar in overall structure but less constrained by known concepts, less guided by mentors, and more in-depth than that of secondary school students. The teacher-fellow scientist partnership is a potentially effective professional development model to create positive and lasting change within the science classroom.     

双语教学与语言-内容融合学习教学法

本文分析了语言-内容融合学习教学法产生的时代背景、依据和基本方式,认为该方法对我国正在实施的双语教学具有实际的指导意义.同时,本文提出了在实施双语教学中应注意的几个问题.     

学习性评价在小学科学探究式教学中的运用

探究既是科学学习的目标,又是科学学习的方式。它不仅关注学生的动手能力,更关注学生的思维发展。教师应在课堂上通过各种方式促进学生思维的发展,如在观察的基础上了解学生,从而对他们提出质疑,为他们设置挑战,对他们的科学记录内容予以反馈等,所有这些都具有学习性评价的特征。在小学科学课上,如何运用学习性评价来促进学生的探究活动及他们的思维发展是一个非常值得探讨的问题。     

Evaluating an Integrated Science Learning Environment Using the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey

This article reports the validity and use of a new form of the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES). As part of a larger study, a comparative student version (CLES-CS) was developed to evaluate the impact of an innovative teacher development program (based on the Integrated Science Learning Environment, ISLE, model) in school classrooms. Two separate response blocks for 30 items comprising five scales are presented in side-by-side columns to measure students’ perceptions on a five-point frequency response scale of the extent to which certain psychosocial factors are prevalent in the science class taught by a teacher who had attended the ISLE program (THIS), as well as their perceptions of other science and non-science classes taught by other teachers in the same school (OTHER). The five scales of the CLES are called Personal Relevance, Uncertainty of Science, Shared Control, Critical Voice, and Student Negotiation. Using data collected from 1079 students in 59 classes in north Texas, principal components factor analysis with varimax rotation and Kaiser normalization confirmed the a priori structure of the CLES-CS. The factor structure, internal consistency reliability, discriminant validity, and the ability to distinguish between different classes and groups were supported for the CLES-CS. Students whose science teachers had attended the ISLE program (THIS) perceived higher levels of Personal Relevance and Uncertainty of Science in their classrooms relative to the classrooms of other science and non-science teachers in the same schools (OTHER). Similar results were found when comparing the classroom environment perceptions of students whose science teachers had attended the ISLE program with the perceptions of students whose science teacher had attended alternative field trip programs (non-ISLE).     

Development and validation of an instrument for evaluating inquiry-based tasks in science textbooks

This article describes the development and validation of an instrument that can be used for content analysis of inquiry-based tasks. According to the theories of educational evaluation and qualities of inquiry, four essential functions that inquiry-based tasks should serve are defined: (1) assisting in the construction of understandings about scientific concepts, (2) providing students opportunities to use inquiry process skills, (3) being conducive to establishing understandings about scientific inquiry, and (4) giving students opportunities to develop higher order thinking skills. An instrument – the Inquiry-Based Tasks Analysis Inventory (ITAI) – was developed to judge whether inquiry-based tasks perform these functions well. To test the reliability and validity of the ITAI, 4 faculty members were invited to use the ITAI to collect data from 53 inquiry-based tasks in the 3 most widely adopted senior secondary biology textbooks in Mainland China. The results indicate that (1) the inter-rater reliability reached 87.7%, (2) the grading criteria have high discriminant validity, (3) the items possess high convergent validity, and (4) the Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient reached 0.792. The study concludes that the ITAI is valid and reliable. Because of its solid foundations in theoretical and empirical argumentation, the ITAI is trustworthy.     

刍议科学探究与物理教学

科学探究是新课程理念提出的卓有成效的教学方式.文章从科学探究的含义出发,挖掘其研究的理论依据,论述了科学探究的过程和设计策略,以教学案例为基础,讨论了如何在物理教学中实施科学探究.     

Contextualized Science for Teaching Science and Technology

A comprehensive view of science and technology in curricular reforms and materials is needed to promote public understanding and participation in science issues. This paper presents the results of an analysis of the treatment of the nature of science and technology in science curricular materials in India. Textbook sections on the conceptions of mechanics are the basis for this analysis. A contextualized curriculum for schools is offered as a more productive approach to learning and exploring science concepts, processes, and science-and-technology issues. The controversial Sardar Sarovar Hydro-Electric Project in India is used as an exemplary case that can further this effort. The paper concludes that a contextualized curriculum is potentially quite powerful for addressing the nature of science and technology in school curricula and materials.     

Teaching Partnerships: Early Childhood and Engineering Students Teaching Math and Science Through Robotics

This paper presents an innovative approach to introducing pre-service early childhood teachers to math, science and technology education. The approach involves the creation of partnerships between pre-service early childhood and engineering students to conceive, develop, implement and evaluate curriculum in the area of math, science and technology by using robotics and the engineering design process. In this paper we first present the theoretical framework for the creation of these partnerships. We then introduce an experience done at Tufts University in which three different forms of partnership models evolved: the collaborators model, the external consultants model and the developers model. We also present different case studies from this experience and finally we conclude with some remarks and observations for making this work scalable and sustainable in other settings and universities.     

成人高等教育教学中开展研究性学习初探

开展研究性学习是当前教育改革的新举措.文章从研究性学习的特点出发,分析了成人高等教育开展研究性学习的优势,探讨了开展研究性学习的基本要求.     

"科学"观与教学模式关系的探讨

“科学”现的发展与教学模式的变革之闻存在必然的联系,新的“科学”现与现代教学模式是相符合的,是互为依据的。     

构建网络视频公开课与大学课堂教学整合学习模式

随着网络技术和信息技术的飞速发展,网络视频公开课受到广大学习者尤其是高校学生的青睐,对激发其学习兴趣,提高学习质量,进而深化高校教育教学改革具有重要的推动作用。论文在梳理了中国网络视频公开课发展历程的基础上,阐述了构建网络视频公开课与大学课堂教学整合学习模式具有的特点,并对构建网络视频公开课与大学课堂教学整合学习模式进行了探究分析,以期对进一步研究做导引。     

Implementation of Real‐World Experiential Learning in a Food Science Course Using a Food Industry‐Integrated Approach

Success skills have been ranked as the most important core competency for new food science professionals to have by food science graduates and their employers. It is imperative that food science instructors promote active learning in food science courses through experiential learning activities to enhance student success skills such as oral and written communication, critical thinking, problem solving, and team work. The aim of this study was to incorporate “real‐world” experiential learning into a food product development course. Undergraduate students enrolled in a food product development course worked on a semester‐long product development case study developed by the Instructor of the course and the Manager from ACH Food Companies, Inc. The case study was presented to students in the form of a product development competition. Students were placed into groups and given the task to develop a cake mix with specified parameters. At the end of the semester, student groups participated in a case study competition to showcase their product concepts. Each student group gave a PowerPoint presentation and was evaluated using selected criteria. Students rated the course overall as being very good. Students perceived the case study to be beneficial and informative regarding employer (ACH's) expectations. Students recommended that the Instructor minimize restrictions/specifications for product concepts and increase the quantity of course/laboratory meetings per week. This approach will continue to be used and further evaluated as an approach to incorporate active learning and provide food science undergraduates with a sense of employer expectations.     

Relating Teaching and Learning of Science Through the Lens of Variation Theory

The relationship between teaching and learning is a most central issue in education research, but it is yet to be fully understood. Variation Theory provides an explanatory account for teaching and learning and offers a specific view on what it means to learn: to discriminate and to discern critical aspects of the object of learning. This paper explores the use of Variation Theory in a case study of two lessons on density in a secondary science classroom. By explicating what was made possible to learn and what was learned this study demonstrates potentials and limitations offered by Variation Theory in enabling a better understanding of the teaching learning relationship.     

Enhancing Inquiry, Understanding, and Achievement in an Astronomy Multimedia Learning Environment

As an example of design-based research, this study refined an assessment strategy for simultaneously enhancing inquiry-based learning and supporting achievement on conventional assessment measures. Astronomy Village ^® : Investigating the Universe? is a software program designed to engage secondary science students in authentic and inquiry-based learning over core topics in astronomy. The software was enhanced with a 20-hour curriculum and three levels of assessment to ensure successful inquiry experiences and high-stakes achievement. The first year implementation of Astronomy Village^® yielded significant gains on a curriculum-oriented exam but not a standards-oriented test, and provided useful design insights that were integrated into the second year implementations. Significant gains were obtained on the test during the second year as well. It is expected that many existing inquiry-oriented science curricula might be similarly enhanced, and is suggested that a large-scale effort to do so might have a lasting impact on science education.     

Science Engagement and Literacy: A retrospective analysis for students in Canada and Australia

Given international concerns about students' pursuit (or more correctly, non-pursuit) of courses and careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, this study is about achieving a better understanding of factors related to high school students' engagement in science. The study builds on previous secondary analyses of Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) datasets for New Zealand and Australia. For the current study, we compared patterns of science engagement and science literacy for male and female students in Canada and Australia. The study's secondary analysis revealed that for all PISA measures included under the conceptual umbrella of engagement in science (i.e. interest, enjoyment, valuing, self-efficacy, self-concept and motivation), 15-year-old students in Australia lagged their Canadian counterparts to varying, albeit modest, degrees. Our retrospective analysis further shows, however, that gender equity in science engagement and science literacy is evident in both Canadian and Australian contexts. Additionally, and consistent with our previous findings for indigenous and non-indigenous students in New Zealand and Australia, we found that for male and female students in both countries, the factor most strongly associated with variations in engagement in science was the extent to which students participate in science activities outside of school. In contrast, and again for both Canadian and Australian students, the factors most strongly associated with science literacy were students' socioeconomic backgrounds, and the amount of formal time spent doing science. The implications of these results for science educators and researchers are discussed.