The educational benefits of challenge- or problem-based approaches to learning are now well established. Action Research (AR) and Action Learning (AL) together provide educators with an ethic, a research methodology and a pedagogical strategy for harnessing and developing the motive power of purposeful activity for reflective enquiry in teaching…

This study systematically analysed, evaluated and synthesised published studies on 21stcentury skills and science achievement among secondary school students. By scouring 17 well-known online journal databases, 684 related studies were found. After the three-stage screening process, only 17 research papers were included in the study, which were…

While constructivism enjoys considerable popularity in higher education, both in Australia and internationally, it nonetheless takes a variety of forms. These different interpretations make it difficult to draw strong conclusions about constructivism as a whole. In this essay, we therefore take a psycho-philosophical approach: reviewing and…

Studies focusing on pre-service teachers have shown that the inclusion of the learning cycle model in a methods course result in improvement in understanding of and attitude toward the learning cycle model of inquiry. However, pre-service teachers' understanding and beliefs about the learning cycle model may remain varied and inaccurate and their…

There is currently a consensus in mathematics education that favors constructivist instructional models, which are based on the inquiry of knowledge by students. There are, however, different views that consider objectivist models, based on knowledge transmission (direct or explicit teaching) more effective in the teaching of scientific…

Today, science education demands preparation of scientifically literate people, emphasizing more the process of working with information than owning it. Such a task requires a deep understanding of pedagogical content knowledge by science teachers. This study focuses on revealing the beliefs of prospective chemistry teachers during their teaching…

This qualitative case study documents pedagogical changes from a traditional teacher-centred instruction to an inquiry-based integrated literacy/science instruction in an urban second grade classroom. Social constructivist learning, where teachers and learners engage in discussion, argumentation, shared collective discourse, guided practice and…

This article presents an exploratory study aimed at analyzing the instructional design of learning personalization practices in three secondary education centers that promote connections between students' learning and/or their learning experiences in and out of school. We propose three dimensions for analysis, according to a constructivist and…

This article presents and discusses experiences from a research and development project where Norwegian student teachers were encouraged to bridge theory and practice by following a pupil's learning processes over time, and to write papers based on empirical data and relevant subject theory. The evaluations of the project received high ratings…

In this paper, we investigate an approach to supporting students' learning in science through a combination of physical experimentation and virtual modeling. We present a study that utilizes a scientific inquiry framework, which we call "bifocal modeling," to link student-designed experiments and computer models in real time. In this…

Dialogue, as a communication form characterized by its commitment to inclusiveness and rationality, has long been advocated by educators as a mechanism for helping students become better thinkers. Unfortunately, numerous claims about the educational potential of participating in dialogue have not resulted in substantial changes in classroom…

The classical principles of action learning, based on the work of Revans, usually include working with problems as the core. This article aims, by contrast, to show how a recent project of change has incorporated principles of appreciative inquiry (AI) based on social constructionism and positive psychology into an action learning process…

Student outcomes of inquiry-based teaching and learning were explored through student-report. Participants were six teachers and their 181 students in grades 9 through 12. Classes were categorized by level of inquiry (least, middle, and most). A student-administered questionnaire assessed the extent to which the three groups experienced 23…

"Evaluative constructivism" is used to describe how students derived learning intentions and made choices about what they would do during a unit of work in a final-year high school biology class, as they conducted an inquiry into the social and ethical issues associated with cancer. The context of the study, theoretical background and…

A new approach to teaching method assessment using student focused qualitative studies and the theoretical framework of mental models is proposed. The methodology is considered specifically for the advantages it offers when applied to the assessment of inquiry-based teaching methods. The theoretical foundation of mental models is discussed, and…