In this paper we report on an aspect of a larger study and explore whether a framework for teacher STEM Capability Sets (SCS) enhanced teacher planning and the implementation of mathematics active STEM tasks. A case study approach was employed to understand how a classroom teacher used the digital resource, Gapminder, to teach a Year 5/6 cohort of…

Exceptional talent includes the ability and willingness to solve varied, complex problems, and having a knowledge structure that facilitates problem solving and creativity. The purpose of this study was to determine changes in students' knowledge structures resulting from fidelity of implementation of Real Engagement in Active Problem Solving…

Real Engagement in Active Problem Solving (REAPS) is an evidence-based model for building on and extending the characteristics of gifted learners, enabling them to develop their exceptional talents. The purposes of this study were to (a) identify teachers who implemented the method at a high level of fidelity and (b) describe their ways of…

The purpose of this study was to explore general education teachers' perceptions of their experiences while implementing the Real Engagement in Active Problem Solving (REAPS) model. REAPS is an evidence-based teaching model for challenging and engaging gifted students in a variety of settings. Twenty-three teachers answered 7 semi-structured…

Teaching is more effective when students are taught through research-based teaching approaches that have been found to be successful in producing the outcomes they advocate. However, use of an effective instructional strategy does not ensure learning, because the success of a sound approach is determined by how well it is implemented. The purpose…

Educational policy and management emphasise the role of science (e.g., earth science, geography) as a fundamental aspect of societal advance, but student enrolments at universities in these disciplines remain low. This commentary explores ways to foster more collaboration between university academics and high school teachers to implement…

Integrated approaches to curriculum planning and delivery are not a recent phenomenon. In the 1930s John Dewey advocated for a more cohesive conceptualisation of students' learning. Yet, despite state and national endorsement of curriculum integration in Australia, it is generally considered an alternative curriculum design that has failed to gain…

The implementation of student-centred learning programs can improve student outcomes in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) domains. The required approaches to teaching and learning in such programs, however, are only slowly being adopted in the Asia-Pacific region. This article focuses on a STEM module, 'Water in the 21st…

In recent years, calls for the adoption of inquiry-based pedagogies in the science classroom have formed a part of the recommendations for large-scale high school science reforms. However, these pedagogies have been problematic to implement at scale. This research explores the perceptions of 34 positively inclined early-adopter teachers in…

While professional development has been emphasised in many countries, few comparative studies have examined the degree of teachers' participation in professional development and its effect on teachers. Using the TIMSS 2007 data, this study analyses to what extent teachers participated in professional development in 50 TIMSS countries and examines…

Project-based learning (PBL), a learning environment in which projects drive learning, has been successfully used in various courses in the educational programs of different disciplines. However, concerns have been raised as to the breadth of the content covered and, in particular, whether PBL can be applied to specialized subjects without…

This autoethnography focuses on a study undertaken during the writers 15 month employment in a Muslim girls' school in the United Arab Emirates. The paper outlines a school improvement project in the Abu Dhabi Emirate and the imposition of an Australian curriculum on the schools involved in this program. The teachers in these schools were exposed…

A traditional approach centred on weekly lectures, perhaps supported by tutorials, still predominates in modern legal education in Australia. This approach tends to focus on the transmission of knowledge about legal rules and doctrine to students, who adopt a largely passive role. Criticisms of the traditional approach have led to law schools…

This paper is a history of the adoption and implementation of "The Web of Life", an inquiry based biology course for senior secondary students in Western Australia. It focuses on the period from 1965 to 1990, outlines the issues at the time, events, and timeline of implementation and reflects on inquiry teaching and learning. It is a…