This article seeks to provide researchers and practitioners in laboratory education, particularly those involved in the curriculum design and implementation of teaching laboratories at university level, with a conceptual framework and a working model for an integrated assessment of learning domains, by attending to a more holistic approach to…

Procedural understanding should be taught to students for an understanding of the 'nature of science'. Considers some of the concepts of evidence that are particularly important to biology, and discusses how and why these ideas could be taught. (Contains 21 references.) (Author/YDS)

Compared tutoring episodes where tutoring did and did not cause learning in university physics students to inform design of intelligent tutoring systems. Found that when students were not at an impasse, learning was uncommon regardless of the tutorial explanations employed. When students were at an impasse, tutorial explanations were sometimes…

Many studies of college chemistry students have found a gap between students' success in solving computational chemistry problems and their success in solving conceptual chemistry problems. This paper examines college students' understanding of the concept of stoichiometry, the particulate nature of matter, and chemistry problem solving. This…

Argues that the nature of science has not been emphasized effectively in the professional training of scientists in Pakistan. Describes how the development of science-process skills, an inquiry approach, and constructive learning is delayed. (DDR)

Focuses on human information processes and problem solving. Although a large body of knowledge is prerequisite to acquiring skill, the authors state that knowledge must be indexed by patterns that guide the person in a fraction of a second to relevant parts of the knowledge store. (Author/SA)

A set of computer implemented models are presented which can assist in developing problem solving strategies. The three levels of expertise which are covered are beginners (those who have completed at least one university physics course), intermediates (university level physics majors in their third year of study), and professionals (university…

Discusses problem-solving strategies and the successful strategy used to solve stoichiometric problems in general college chemistry courses. Reports that rereading problems, recalling a related concept, and reasoning deductively/inductively are the most heavily used strategies among 13 categories. (YP)

Expert reasoning in the natural sciences appears to make extensive use of a relatively small number of general principles and reasoning strategies, each associated with a larger number of more specific inference patterns. Using a dual declarative hierarchy to represent strategic and factual knowledge, a framework for a robust scientific reasoning…

Plant tissue culture has developed into a valid botanical discipline and is considered a key area of biotechnology, but it has not been a key component of the science curriculum because of the expensive and technical nature of research in this area. This manual presents a number of activities that are relatively easy to prepare and perform. The…

Describes a study of college students who designed and conducted experiments involving control of variables after being assigned to one of four versions of a computer-based biology simulation learning environment. Finds that reason-justification prompts directed students' attention to understanding the employment of experimental design principles…

Described in this article is a problem-solving activity which integrates the application of microcomputers with the learning of physical chemistry. Students use the program with spectroscopic data to calculate the thermodynamic properties and compare them with the values from the thermochemical tables. (Author/KR)

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)

Describes a course created for preservice elementary teachers entitled "Discovering Chemistry with Lab" which covers basic principles of chemistry and their applications in daily life. The course promotes reasoning and problem-solving skills by utilizing computer-based technologies and hands-on, discovery/guided-inquiry and…

This book offers broad, practical strategies for teaching science and engineering courses and describes how faculty can provide a learning environment that helps students comprehend the nature of science, understand science concepts, and solve problems in science courses. The student-centered approach focuses on two main themes: reflective writing…