The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of information mapping strategy on mathematics conceptual knowledge of junior high school students in Rokan Hulu Riau, Indonesia. The study also examined the relationship between mathematics conceptual knowledge and mathematics achievement. Using a quasi-experimental method, the study was…

This study aims to examine the knowledge of basic concepts of children starting primary education. The sampling for the study is constituted by total 183 children, 89 girls and 94 boys. The knowledge about the concepts of the children making up the sampling was evaluated using Boehm's Test of Basic Concepts (Boehm-3). Moreover, the Family…

In 2004, a group of engineering and education faculty at Virginia Tech received a major curriculum reform and engineering education research grant under the department-level reform (DLR) program of the NSF. This DLR project laid the foundation of sponsored research in engineering education in the Department of Engineering Education. The DLR…

Qualitative research methods were employed to investigate characterization of preservice teachers' mathematical understanding. Responses on test items involving algebraic relationships were analyzed using with-in case analysis (Miles and Huberman, 1994) and Pirie and Kieren's (1994) model of growth of mathematical understanding. Five elementary…

The development of expertise is seen as a crucial element in higher education, but the nature of expertise has been clouded by assumptions of the centrality of intuition and tacit knowledge. In this paper the authors contend that much knowledge that has been described as tacit can be surfaced for examination through the application of concept…

The purpose of this study is to explain prospective science and technology teachers' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) about the cell. Lesson preparation, laboratory plan, interview with teacher candidates, and concept mapping were used to collect the data for prospective teacher's PCK. The study was conducted with six prospective science and…

This article considers the problematic nature of primary headship. It reviews evidence of some of the most significant problems encountered by new and experienced heads derived from two sources: the UK dimension of a European questionnaire survey undertaken in the mid 1990s and more recent reports gained from interviews with serving school…

This study explored the effectiveness of an inquiry-based cellulase laboratory unit in promoting inquiry in undergraduate students in biotechnology. The following tools were used to assess the students' achievements and attitude: conceptual understanding test, concept mapping, students' documents, CLES questionnaire, students' self reflection, and…

There has recently been significant emphasis placed on environmental education through, for example, the UN's Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. Despite this, there is still considerable debate within the literature as to how the aims of environmental education can be achieved within schools. It seems likely that if there is a lack…

Purpose: This paper aims to describe a method of teaching that is based on Novak's concept-mapping technique. Design/methodology/approach: The paper shows how concept mapping can be used to measure prior knowledge and how simple mapping exercises can promote the integration of teachers' and students' understandings in ways that are meaningful.…

In the 1990s, courses on sustainable development (SD) were introduced in technological universities. After some years of practice, there is increased interest in the evaluation of the most effective ways for teaching SD. This paper introduces the use of conceptual maps as a tool to measure the knowledge acquired by students when taking a…

Despite its importance as a central goal in environmental education, there appears to be little consensus about how best to document, assess and evaluate understanding of environmental concepts. This illustrative case study describes and demonstrates the use of the concept mapping strategy as an effective tool for assessing environmental…

This study assessed the influence of training in, and use of, metacognitive strategies on the development of prospective elementary teachers' views of nature of science (NOS). Participants were 49 students (92% female) enrolled in two sections of an elementary science methods course. The sections were randomly assigned to an intervention group and…

A rich narrative-style bibliography of concept mapping (reviewing six articles published between 1992-2005). Articles reviewed include: (1) Cognitive mapping: A qualitative research method for social work (C. Bitoni); (2) Collaborative concept mapping: Provoking and supporting meaningful discourse (C. Boxtel, J. Linden, E. Roelofs, and G. Erkens);…

Theories about reflective thinking and deep-surface learning abound. In order to arrive at the definition for "reflective thinking toward deep learning," this study establishes that reflective thinking toward deep learning refers to a learner's purposeful and conscious activity of manipulating ideas toward meaningful learning and knowledge…