The present study is based on a large cross-cultural study, which showed that a systemizing cognition type has a high impact on motivation to learn science, while the impact of gender is only indirect thorough systemizing. The present study uses the same structural equation model as in the cross-cultural study and separately tests it for physics,…

This paper builds on the current literature base about learning progressions in science to address the question, "What is the nature of the learning progression in the content domain of the structure of matter?" We introduce a learning progression in response to that question and illustrate a methodology, the Construct Modeling (Wilson,…

Successful STEM learning depends on the interaction of affect, cognition, and application of ideas. Simply put students who are unwilling to persist in STEM based endeavors do not suddenly develop into scientists, mathematicians, engineers or computer scientists, nor do they seek out STEM related courses or STEM based careers. The purpose of this…

Many countries, including the United States, emphasize the importance of developing students' scientific habits of mind and their capacity to think deeply about scientific ideas in an integrated fashion. Recent science education policies in the United States portray a related vision of science teaching and learning that is meant to guide the…

One of the goals of college-level introductory biology is to establish a foundation of knowledge and skills that can be built upon throughout a biology curriculum. In a reformed introductory biology course, we used iterative model construction as a pedagogical tool to promote students' understanding about conceptual connections, particularly those…

Understanding how geologists conduct fieldwork through analysis of problem solving has significant potential impact on field instruction methods within geology and other science fields. Recent work has highlighted many aspects of fieldwork, but the problem solving behaviors displayed by geologists during fieldwork and the associated cognitive…

In recent years, science education has placed increasing importance on learners' mastery of scientific reasoning. This growing emphasis presents a challenge for both developers and users of assessments. We report on our effort around the conceptualization, development, and testing the validity of an assessment of students' ability to reason around…

This study reports on our steps toward achieving a conceptually coherent and empirically validated learning progression for carbon cycling in socio-ecological systems. It describes an iterative process of designing and analyzing assessment and interview data from students in upper elementary through high school. The product of our development…

A neuromathematical model of information processing applied to science learning is expanded to include two coefficients representing the motivational state of the learner. The inclusion of these coefficients (which are described) permits modeling of the effects of variations in motivation on the rate and amount of information in learning tasks.…

Presents procedures, results, and conclusions of a study to see if psychological relations of association and similarity are consistent with a model to account for learned relations among concepts by college physics majors. The role of these relations in evaluating conceptual knowledge is dismissed. (DS)

Tested were six levels of a twelve-level hierarchical model for the attainment of concepts leading to the conservation of displacement volume. Presentation was by individual interview using either objects or drawings to present tasks. Results show five of six tested followed anticipated order and that method of presentation showed no significant…

This study aims at giving a systematic description of the cognitive activities involved in teaching physics. The most important conclusion from the results is that teaching by experienced university teachers can be described in terms of instruction processes belonging to the two-dimensional model described in this study. (PR)

Points out the fact that Piaget's objections to tests as ways of identifying cognitive structures and processes have been largely ignored in most of the replication studies conducted by English and American psychologists. (PEB)

A mathematical model of information acquisition is presented and empirically evaluated in comparison to evidence obtained from experimental studies of science content acquisition. Implications of the model for human information acquisition and future research are discussed in the context of the unique theoretical framework of the model. (Author/JN)

A model of memory developed by information processing psychologists is described, illustrating how such a model could be used to guide science education research on learning and problem solving. (Author/SK)