Science education research and cognitive science

Cognitive science has the potential for offering explanatory models for many of the findings of empirical research in science education. In this paper, I use recent editions of international journals of science education to produce a categorisation of types of science education research, and what possible contributions each might make to cognitive science or the potential of results from cognitive science for enriching the science education research accounts. In a short, final section, the relationship of our own cognitive work to cognitive science is explored.