High school biology students are provided few classroom opportunities to learn natural history or to see themselves as scientists. This poses a risk to their gaining the basic knowledge needed to play a positive role in the biodiversity crisis. However, science-as-practice in the classroom introduces the opportunity to equip students with…

Teachers are eager for professional development on teaching evolution, especially if it includes direct ties to relevant curricula and detailed lesson plans. Howard Hughes Medical Institute's BioInteractive Online Professional Learning: Evolution course was developed to provide educators with free, in-depth, multimedia resources that highlight…

When our school implemented AP Physics 1, I wanted to include a project that would extend over time, use more advanced data analysis, and teach students about handling experimental error. Using a donated 5-inch Newtonian telescope and an entry-level digital camera, the students gathered data from digital images of the four Galilean moons, Io,…

Project-based learning is popular with many parents, students, and teachers because of its focus on problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, and real-world application (Gallup, 2019). It encourages teachers to act as facilitators while students actively engage in teacherand student-posed learning challenges, working alone and in groups on…

Using the water molecule as a metaphor, Marilyn Doerr presents a study of a Montessori high school that combines the elements of Montessori with International Baccalaureate (IB) and other institutions in the surrounding community that enrich the experience of the students. The pedagogy of the high school, she explains, must be based on an…

Economically disadvantaged and underrepresented high school students in many urban, rural, and small suburban communities don't have access to Advanced Placement® (AP®) courses either because of a lack of trained teachers, limited or no AP program, or a school history of low participation. Physics is often a "gate keeper" course to entry…

This "Science Note" looks at the way that the shapes of simple molecules can be explained in terms of the number of electron pairs in the valence shell of the central atom. This theory is formally known as valence shell electron pair repulsion (VSEPR) theory. The article explains the preferred shape of chlorine trifluoride (ClF3),…

This "Science note" examines the bromination of phenol, a reaction that is commonly taught at A-level and IB (International Baccalaureate) as an example of electrophilic substitution. Phenol undergoes bromination with bromine or bromine water at room temperature. A white precipitate of 2,4,6-tribromophenol is rapidly formed. This…

This report presents Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) examination participation and performance results in Texas public schools for the 2016-17 school year. Data are provided by student characteristics, including race/ethnicity; gender; and economic, at-risk, dyslexic, English language learner, homeless, immigrant, and…

We present a guided-inquiry biology lesson, using the plant-rhizobium symbiosis as a model system. This system provides a rich environment for developing connections between the big ideas in biology as outlined in the College Board's new AP Biology Curriculum. Students gain experience with the practice of scientific investigation, from…

This report presents Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) examination participation and performance results in Texas public schools for the 2015-16 school year. Data are provided by student characteristics, including race/ethnicity; gender; and economic, at-risk, English language learner, immigrant, and migrant statuses.…

Ask a typical high school student to draw a picture of how a bar magnet works and most of the drawings produced will show a "+" and "-" sign at the two ends. Some students will write "N" and "S." If you then ask some follow-up questions, they will often resort to talking about "charges" being responsible for the magnetism. For several years, I…

Science fairs can be good motivators, but as extracurricular activities, they leave some students behind. However, by staging a Science Challenge Day at school, educators can involve all students in doing everything from choosing activities to judging projects. This article presents a model for running a successful Science Challenge Day. The…

This report presents Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) examination participation and performance results in Texas public schools for the 2014-15 school year. Data are provided by student characteristics, including race/ethnicity; gender; and economic, at-risk, English language learner, immigrant, and migrant statuses.…

While perusing various websites in search of a more challenging lab for my students, I came across a number of ideas where replacing the string in an Atwood's machine with a simple ball chain like the kind found in lamp pulls created an interesting system to investigate. The replacement of the string produced a nice nonuniform acceleration, but…