Many conversations surrounding improvement of large-enrollment college science, technology, engineering & mathematics (STEM) courses focus primarily (or solely) on changing instructional practices. By reducing dynamic, complex learning environments to collections of teaching methods, we neglect other meaningful parts of a course ecosystem…

Genetics is a core topic in the biology curriculum of many countries. Learning genetics is difficult for multiple reasons, including the need to reason about complex mechanisms--and to link mechanisms--that occur at different time and space scales. Previous research in genetics education explores students' understandings of inheritance patterns or…

Studies maintain that computational thinking (CT) is associated with science content and scientific processes as well as with many disciplines. It is thought that designing teaching processes in which science and CT processes take place together makes science learning more meaningful. With this in mind, in this study, the researchers integrated…

The purpose of this study was twofold: first, to examine the effectiveness of an inquiry-based laboratory course on preservice science teachers' (PSTs') science teaching efficacy beliefs. Second, this study also aimed to identify the ways in which efficacy change occurred in instructional strategies, classroom management, and student engagement…

To inform teacher education programs, it is imperative to uncover preservice teachers' (PSTs) implicit and tacit beliefs about teaching and learning science. The study of teachers' beliefs requires a range of methodological approaches to unearth their tacit beliefs. In that regard, this study used metaphor construction in conjunction with drawing…

The research examined the effects of hands-on teaching strategy on senior school learners' performance waves in Ilorin, Nigeria. Senior secondary school (SSS2) science students were sampled at intact classes using a purposive sampling technique. Researcher-designed instructional packages on waves and Physics achievement test on waves (PATW) were…

We propose cross-disciplinary learning as a construct that can guide instruction and assessment in programs that feature sequential learning across multiple science disciplines. Crossdisciplinary learning combines insights from interdisciplinary learning, transfer, and resources frameworks and highlights the processes of resource activation,…

Science education plays an important role at primary school level. Primary school teachers are the first to introduce science to students. Teaching-learning conceptions, attitudes and perceived self-efficacy of teachers towards science teaching are influential on pupils' science learning. The aim of this study was to investigate primary student…

The importance of critical thinking in science education is widely recognized. However, little research has been conducted on the teaching of critical thinking by teachers. If actual teaching conditions of teachers in the classroom are clarified, effective teaching methods for developing critical thinking in students could be developed. This study…

The current situation in education is characterized by an increased role for the environmental dimension. The purpose of our research is to develop an experimental verification and an effective methodology for shaping the readiness of students of biology, for environmental and local study activities. The research involved theoretical and…

The paper is about a study that investigated how the integration of assessment for learning enhances learning achievement among secondary school biology students in Tanzania. A quasi-experimental design involving pre-test and post-test of non-equivalent control and experimental groups was used to ascertain how the integration of assessment for…

We describe a novel, university-level, introductory biology course that uses evolution as a narrative framework. Our course conveys the content in an introductory biology course by telling the story of the evolution of life on Earth. We begin with early Earth environments in which biological molecules and processes evolved and led to the first…

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides a framework, based in brain research, to design instruction around the needs of all learners. By considering the UDL principles as educators design science instruction, they can proactively address how to engage students, how to make content accessible, and how to provide options for students to…

The flipped instruction methodology has increased in popularity in recent years. A fruitful area for flipped methodology helps to increase the self-efficacy and attitudes of students as a learner in their science course. This study investigates the effects of following a flipped classroom teaching methodology on Pre-Service Teachers' (PSTs)…

Science education researchers have highlighted how uncertainty can foster meaningful scientific sense-making, supporting students to re-evaluate their understandings of scientific phenomena and pursue deeper causal accounts. However, facilitating whole-class conversations motivated by uncertainty is complex and challenging, calling for further…