While interdisciplinary approaches in the STEM subjects are widely advocated there are concerns that disciplinary learning can be compromised, especially in mathematics. The Interdisciplinary Mathematics and Science (IMS) project is a three-year longitudinal study in four Victorian primary schools that has developed a pedagogical approach to…

Constructing Direct Current (DC) electric circuits is simple and engaging for primary students, but that is not all there is to learning about electricity. Mandatory learning in the Australian Curriculum: Science (ACARA, 2018) expects Year 6 students to explain some of the processes underlying electric circuits. The abstract nature of key…

Einsteinian physics represents a distinct paradigm shift compared to Newtonian physics. There is worldwide interest in introducing Einsteinian physics concepts early in school curriculum and trials have demonstrated that this is feasible. However introducing Einsteinian concepts from an early age requires more than suitable curriculum and teaching…

University-led science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) outreach plays an important role in addressing declining rates of student participation in tertiary STEM programs and declining interest in pursuing careers in STEM fields (Sadler, Eilam, Bigger & Barry, 2018). One type of outreach program that is becoming more popular is…

The Indigenous Sky Stories Program may have the potential to deliver significant and long-lasting changes to the way science is taught to Year 5 and 6 primary school students. The context for this article is informed by research that shows that educational outcomes can be strengthened when Indigenous knowledge is given the space to co-exist with…

Effective feedback can build self-assessment skills in students so that they become more competent and confident to identify and self-correct weaknesses in their work. In this study, we trialled a feedback code as part of an integrated programme of formative and summative assessment tasks, which provided feedback to first-year students on their…

Many secondary schools, both in Australia and internationally include community service initiatives as an integral component of students' school experience. This practise is widely based on the assumption that young people benefit from helping others outside of the economies of exchange. Service projects linked intentionally to the regular…

Based on research conducted as part of the project Learning by Design: creating pedagogical frameworks for knowledge building in the 21st century, funded by the Australian Research Council, the article explores the learning experiences of two students in a primary school in the Australian Capital Territory. In communities where ordinary citizens,…

Describes "learnscape" projects which are places that a learning program has been designed to permit users to interact with the environment. Explores teachers' perceptions of the nature, value, and effects of learnscapes on teaching and learning. (Author/MM)

An Australian secondary school physics course utilizing an electronic programmable calculator and computer is described. Calculation techniques and functions, programming techniques, and simulation of physical systems are detailed. A summary of student responses to the program is included. (BT)

What Australia, Alaska, Qatar, Indiana, and Ohio have in common is the authentic writing More Observations Of Nature (MOON) project. In this unique project, teachers from these disparate geographic locations teamed up to instruct children in grades four through eight via the internet on a nearly universally challenging subject for teachers in the…

The calls for the transformation of how science is taught (and what is taught) are numerous and show no sign of abating. Common amongst these calls is the need to shift from the traditional teaching and learning towards a model that represents the social constructivist epistemology. These calls have coincided with the Internet revolution. Through…

Describes characteristics of and instructional strategies related to an applied physics course offered by the New South Wales Institute of Technology in Sydney. The course has a number of unique features which enable its students to be of immediate use to industry upon graduation. (JN)

For more than 50 years, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) has been conducting comparative studies of educational achievement in a number of curriculum areas, including mathematics and science. TIMSS 2011 represents the fifth cycle of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS),…

In 2001, the Australian Government released a report, commissioned by the then Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs, entitled "The Status and Quality of Teaching and Learning of Science in Australian Schools" (Goodrum, Hackling, & Rennie, 2001). Its recommendations included actions to address raising community…