Grade 10 students (n=1,564) perceptions of classroom practices and activities, as well as their attitudes toward science teaching and school science, were assessed in British Columbia. Major findings were that students do not appreciate the most prevailing contemporary practices in science classes and that they prefer science teaching and learning…

Presents a logical analysis of three vector concepts (position, displacement, velocity) in terms of their constituent characteristics and shows how they can be used to structure an empirical investigation into students' prior knowledge about these characteristics. Reports results of students' (N=20) conceptions about the vector characteristics…

Outlines arguments for action research approaches to the implementation of STS education. Presents six teachers' initial views and changing perceptions throughout the duration of an action research project in terms of four categories: nature of STS education, development of curriculum materials, personal/professional development, and collaborative…

The problem addressed in the study was whether 10- and 11-year-old children, collaborating within a computer-supported classroom, could engage in progressive inquiry that exhibits an essential principal feature of mature scientific inquiry: namely, engagement in increasingly deep levels of explanation. Technical infrastructure for the study was…

Describes how two teachers collaborated with a university-based researcher/teacher educator to design and implement more authentic science in a grade 7 classroom. Discusses the ways in which the teachers changed their views about science and science teaching, the anxieties they experienced, and the institutional constraints that impacted their…