This book attempts to reflect on the value and purpose of practical work as part of the science curriculum: why are practical exercises so necessary and what do they contribute to the science learning process? The chapters in this book examine issues such as: how practical work is perceived by students and teachers; the possibilities and perils of…

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…

Reviews the traditional definition of practical work in science, offers a different definition of it, and points out that practical work is not always laboratory based. Discusses the logistics of coordinating fieldwork. Contains 17 references. (DDR)

This study reports cross-validation results for an Indonesian-language version of a modified form of the What Is Happening In this Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire and its use in investigating the nature of science classroom learning environments in Indonesian lower secondary schools. Following administration of the WIHIC to approximately 1400…

This proceedings covers the domain and content areas of learning and learners; curriculum and materials; instruction (including computer-assisted instruction); assessment and evaluation; history and philosophy of science; teacher preparation and professional development; and related areas of interest including environmental, special, health,…

Given the important role of science teacher educators in developing science teachers' understandings of nature of science (NOS), this study explores 15 Turkish "prospective" science teacher educators' beliefs about NOS in the context of teacher education reform in Turkey. A reflection-oriented qualitative approach was adopted in the…

This study reports research findings on assessment of the science classroom learning environment and its association with two student outcomes--attitudes toward science and national examination scores. Modified versions of the WIHIC and TOSRA questionnaires in the Indonesian language were administered to 1400 students and their teachers. This…

The superposition principle is used to explain many phenomena in physics. Incomplete knowledge about this topic at a basic level leads to physics students having problems in the future. As long as prospective physics teachers have difficulties in the subject, it is inevitable that high school students will have the same difficulties. The aim of…

Perspectives on the nature of subject matter in science are offered in this paper. It is proposed that science and its context are better viewed as shifting rather than remaining fixed. The rational, moral, and authentic nature of science is explained in reference to education in general and more specifically to the contexts of the science teacher…

The interpretation of data and construction and interpretation of graphs are central practices in science which, according to recent reform documents, science and mathematics teachers are expected to foster in their classrooms. However, are (preservice) science teachers prepared to teach inquiry with the purpose of transforming and analyzing data,…

Scientific literacy and authenticity have gained a lot of attention in the past few decades worldwide. The goal of the study was to develop various authentic assessments to investigate students' scientific literacy for corresponding to the new curriculum reform of Taiwan in 1997. In the process, whether ninth graders were able to apply school…

Students' conceptual understanding of Newton's third law has been the subject of numerous studies. These studies have often pointed out the importance of addressing the concept of interaction in teaching Newtonian mechanics. In this study, teachers were interviewed in order to examine how they understand interaction and use it in their…

Recent years have seen a growth not only in biological knowledge but also, and more significantly for teacher education, in the types of knowledge manifested in biology. No longer, therefore, is it adequate for teachers to retain a Mertonian or a Popperian conception of science. Today's teachers of science need also to be able to help their…

This proceedings contains a copy of the conference program and more than 75 papers and presentation summaries from the meeting, placed in order by conference session. Paper topics include science assessment issues; science for special needs students; science teachers' self-efficacy; teaching science to at-risk students; online inquiry…

We are delighted to welcome you to the International Conference on Education and New Developments 2015-END 2015, taking place in Porto, Portugal, from 27 to 29 of June. Education, in our contemporary world, is a right since we are born. Every experience has a formative effect on the constitution of the human being, in the way one thinks, feels and…