While national curricula in science education highlight the importance of inquiry-based learning, assessing students' capabilities in scientific inquiry remains a subject of debate. Our study explored the construction, developmental trends and validation techniques in relation to assessing scientific inquiry using a systematic literature review…

Interactive computer simulations and hands-on experiments are important teaching methods in modern science education. Especially for the communication of complex current topics with social relevance (socioscientific issues), suitable methods in science education are of great importance. However, previous studies could not sufficiently clarify the…

The aim of this study is to investigate pre-service teacher's cognitive load types (intrinsic load-IL, extraneous load-EL, and germane load-GL), academic achievements, and affective characteristics (attitude and self-efficacy) at two stages of experimental learning processes. The first and the second groups used explanatory instructional…

The authors investigated whether the amount of instructional guidance affects science learning and self-efficacy. Sixty 9- and 10-year-old children were randomly assigned to one of the following three instructional conditions: (a) guided instruction consisting of examples and student-generated explanations, (b) direct instruction consisting of a…

Nowadays, outreach labs are important informal learning environments in science education. After summarizing research to goals outreach labs focus on, we describe our evidence-based gene technology lab as a model of a research-driven outreach program. Evaluation-based optimizations of hands-on teaching based on cognitive load theory (additional…

The purpose of this study was to reconstruct writers' reasoning process as reflected in their written texts. The codes resulting from the text analysis were related to cognitive operations, ranging from simple to more sophisticated ones. The sequence of the cognitive operations as the text unfolded represents the writer's cognitive pathway at the…

Discusses: how thought experiments (TES) are presented and used in physics textbooks; how and why teachers include TES in their explanations; and what understandings students draw from TES. Indicates that TES are only one of a broad class of "acts of imagination" which are essential in physics education. (JN)

Defines learning and memory and presents experimental evidence that indicates that learning and memory are chemical in nature. (JR)

This study was an attempt to identify the epistemological roots of knowledge when students carry out hands-on experiments in physics. We found that, within the context of designing a solution to a stated problem, subjects constructed and ran thought experiments intertwined within the processes of conducting physical experiments. We show that the…

Appraises current explanations of how visual processing occurs. Highlights the basics of simultaneous and serial levels of processing. Discusses the results of a series of experiments on visual-search tasks and also on the role of prior knowledge in processing. (ML)

Describes experiments which focus on the perception of three dimensions. Discusses the cues about distance and depth and the role they have in perceptions of three dimensions. Evaluates the effect of color on the illusion on depth. (ML)

Investigated the role of "a priori" ideas in planning experiments and data processing leading to inferences. Thirty-one students (ages 11-13) observed a "combustion/candle in a closed container" experiment and were asked to interpret sets of measurements. Findings, among others, show that children preferentially experiment on…

Discusses briefly Piaget's views on intellectual development as related to science teaching. Describes intellectual activities observed in science classrooms and shows how specific science lessons can be designed to encourage cognitive development. (GA)

Reports on a case study in which students identify their diverse views on electric current and design a critical test to discriminate amongst those views. Employs a two-part model that differentiates charge from the agent causing it to move. Contains 43 references. (DDR)

Reported is a study to investigate the effects of a free-choice program on children's ability to interpret experiments, design simple investigations, and recognize variables that could affect the outcome of observed events. (Author/SA)