The introduction of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools like ChatGPT has raised many challenging questions about the nature of teaching, learning, and assessment in every subject area, including science. Unlike other disciplines, natural science is unique because the ontological and epistemological understanding of nature is…

There is often a steady trajectory of curriculum change under the surface of developments that might seem arbitrary or inconsistent. This article traces the change from key competencies to science capabilities and, most recently, to enduring competencies. All these changes (and names) respond to increasing awareness of the challenges involved in…

This article offers an outline of 3D science that conceptualises science around three dimensions: domain knowledge, evidence-management procedures and psychological energy. We propose that this model could underpin a rigorous, effective and motivating approach to science education in schools. We show how self-determination theory offers useful…

Science education policies and standards have called for educators to teach students about the Nature of Science (NOS) and engage them in Culturally Relevant Science Teaching (CRST), which requires critical shifts away from traditional science teaching. As such, teachers are being asked to possess or take up conceptions of science that challenge…

Developing students' understanding of the nature of science (NOS) is seen as critical for educating scientifically literate citizens, and has emerged as an important curricular goal internationally. In Norway, a new curriculum reform has recently been implemented, intended to improve the Norwegian education in several ways. The reform aims to…

The article describes the analysis of the Italian physics curriculum documents in terms of the coverage of nature of science (NOS). NOS is not explicitly presented as part of the Italian high-school physics curriculum. The article focuses on analysing the implicit aspects of the curriculum documents. The Family Resemblance Approach (FRA) to NOS…

Background: There is a growing view that 'Big Ideas of science education' are useful for teaching science but there is not much knowledge of how teachers work with them. Purpose: This study explores the conceptualisation and practice of the use of Big Ideas of science education by primary and secondary teachers in Chile. Sample: A total of 63…

The history of education in the United States has been a contentious one. This holds true for science education in Georgia. Throughout history, there has been much debate on what should be taught and how it should be taught. There have been many influences on education including politics, economics, religion, and immigration. This multi-method…

[This paper is part of the Focused Collection on Curriculum Development: Theory into Design.] Fifteen years ago, following recommendations from research on science education for prospective teachers and for students more broadly, "Physics and Everyday Thinking" introduced activities within an inquiry-based undergraduate physics course…

In this article, we report on a three-pronged effort to create a hypothetical learning progression for quantification in science. First, we drew from history and philosophy of science to define the quantification competency and develop hypothetical levels of the learning progression. More specifically, the quantification competency refers to the…

Nature of science (NOS) is a key component of scientific literacy, so science teacher education on NOS is critical to ensure students' scientific literacy. According to mainstream NOS literature, explicit and reflective interventions are recommended to effectively teach NOS. This paper presents an experience for the initial education of secondary…

Many young women do not see a place for themselves in science evident from the lack of young women entering and persisting in science majors and careers. This problem persists despite progress in young women's performance on various science achievement measures and degree attainment. This is an equity problem and also a loss of human capital. As…

The purpose of this Executive Position Paper project was to develop educational resources to support the teaching of nature of science topics to undergraduate students at Delaware Technical Community College. The investigation was driven by two exploratory projects and a review of the literature. The first exploratory project examined the…

Two fundamental questions about science are relevant for science educators: (a) What is the nature of science? and (b) what aspects of nature of science should be taught and learned? They are fundamental because they pertain to how science gets to be framed as a school subject and determines what aspects of it are worthy of inclusion in school…

To enhance students' understanding of nature of science (NOS), teachers need adequate pedagogical content knowledge related to NOS. The educational design research study presented here describes the design and development of a pre-service chemistry teacher education course on NOS instruction. The study documents two iterative cycles of…