Numerous studies highlight the benefits of incorporating creativity in teaching, but practical experience shows that putting these theories and policies into practice often lacks the necessary resources. The current study focuses on three aspects of creativity in teaching: (a) Theoretical -- how do policy documents and educational researchers…

The use of questioning to elicit student thinking is one of the cornerstones of ambitious teaching; thus, supporting prospective teachers in this complex practice is a core objective of mathematics teacher education. In this paper, we examine the academic rigor of the sustained questioning sequences prospective teachers use during instruction to…

The design of algorithms is one of the hardest topics of high school computer science. This is mainly due to the universality of algorithms as solution methods that guarantee the calculation of a correct solution for all potentially infinitely many instances of an algorithmic problem. The goal of this paper is to present a comprehensible and…

This study investigates the characteristics of Japanese primary school mathematics lessons that adopt a problem-solving approach. We argue that these characteristics are reflected in three key aspects: collective teaching and learning, the lesson as a "drama" (i.e., its structured flow), and the focus on mathematical knowledge. In this…

Planning lessons and in-the-moment improvising during enactment of the plan are two central activities inherent to the practice of teaching. To what extent are these pursuits conflicting or inconsistent? What are the characteristics of improvisation during teaching and what are teachers' possible stances on it? We discuss these questions based on…

Four General Chemistry instructors investigated the use of ChatGPT-4 to improve their lessons plans for the historical experiments of Thomson, Millikan, and Rutherford. The instructors varied in their prior knowledge for these experiments and their initial lessons addressed somewhat different learning objectives. This led to different…

Open-mindedness is defined as one's willingness and ability to consider opposing beliefs and perspectives and give them a serious, impartial consideration by setting aside one's commitment towards one's own beliefs and perspectives. Learning to prepare and teach open-minded lessons is a crucial skill for student teachers because it fosters an…

This mixed-methods study utilized qualitative analysis and cross-tabulation, to identify differences in proportions between pre- and post-lesson plans for 16 secondary preservice general educators after having received instruction on UDL. Participants' lesson plans were qualitatively and quantitatively evaluated for the presence of UDL principles…

Global climate change is one of the most significant challenges of the twenty first century, requiring its integration into K-12 science education curricula to foster informed and climate-literate citizens. However, challenges remain in effectively teaching climate change, including a lack of instructional materials and a reliance on traditional…

To be successful in algebra, students need access to high-quality instruction that includes opportunities to develop their algebraic understanding. Yet research on algebra teaching suggests that instruction remains procedurally focused, indicating that teachers may need additional support to provide students such opportunities. One possible lever…

Performing music is one of the fundamental processes of music education. A musical performance includes not only singing or playing accurate notes and rhythms but also making interpretive decisions to convey music expressively. The author researched to find out the best strategies for developing expressive performance, and then created a lesson…

Background: Content of physical education, such as games, fitness or dance as well as their adequate didactical (re-)presentation for learning purposes are central topics of discussion in sports pedagogy. The concrete processes that constitute the content of PE lessons in situ tend to remain unconsidered in the discussion. Thus, there is a…

In recent years, there has been an increase in the integration of socioscientific issues (SSI) into educational practices, which are recognized for enhancing higher-order thinking, scientific literacy, ethical considerations, and civic engagement. SSI teaching equips students to tackle global challenges, although they are complex challenges for…

Regionality as a formative characteristic of religion-related education in Germany, Switzerland and Austria is the focus of the current project 'Models of Religious Education and the topic of Islam' ('MORE'). The project compares four different regional variants of religion-related education that are assigned to two competing models,…

In the era of the Framework for K-12 Science Education and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), research on preparing preservice science teachers (PSTs) for NGSS-aligned teaching practices is important. In this study, we explored PSTs' sense-making around planning for Ambitious Science Teaching (AST) during their discussions of teaching in a…