Researchers, educators, and science education organizations have accepted the importance of developing informed conceptions of the nature of science (NOS) among students. Despite attempts to improve both students' and teachers' perceptions of the nature of science, research shows that the desired understanding has not been attained. Evaluation of…

On any night, the stars seen in the sky can be as close to Earth as a few light-years or as distant as a few thousand light-years. Distances this large are hard to comprehend. The stars are so far away that the fastest spacecraft would take tens of thousands of years to reach even the nearest one. Yet, astronomers have been able to accurately…

In today's climate of content standards and high-stakes testing, science teachers are under more pressure than ever to focus on the "ready-made" knowledge of science content. Yet, science educators have long advocated a more balanced approach to science instruction, including emphasis on the processes by which scientific knowledge is produced, as…