This paper reports how a teacher-researcher partnership examined a biology teacher's existing pedagogical practices and attempted, through a task design innovation, to create the circumstances under which more interactive and emergent assessment for learning practices could flourish in her classroom. This work involved the use of digital video…

In recent years, technological advances such as computers have been employed in teaching gross anatomy at all levels of education, even in professional schools such as medical and veterinary medical colleges. Benefits of computer based instructional tools for gross anatomy include the convenience of not having to physically view or dissect a…

For the past 5 years I have been teaching my introductory geology class using a case-based method that promotes student engagement and inquiry. This article presents an explanation of how a case-based curriculum differs from a more traditional approach to the material. It also presents a statistical analysis of several years' worth of student…

The overarching purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the patterns of development and implementation of Body of Evidence (BOE) science systems throughout the state of Wyoming, using an emerging and relatively open mixed methods design. BOEs were first launched throughout Wyoming a decade ago, and are ongoing today. Through interviews…

We suggest one redefinition of common clusters of questions used to analyze student responses on the Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation. Our goal is to propose a methodology that moves beyond an analysis of student learning defined by correct responses, either on the overall test or on clusters of questions defined solely by content. We use…

Teachers often engage in curricular planning by critiquing and adapting existing curriculum materials to contextualize lessons and compensate for their deficiencies. Designing instruction for students is shaped by teachers' ability to apply a variety of personal resources, including their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This study…

To supplement the summer reading of National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) members, the NSTA Committee on Research in Science Education suggested a list of science education research articles that were published in the journals of NSTA's affiliates in 2012. These articles covered a variety of topics that include learning about…

In order to be successful in an educational setting, a student must acquire a particular register of language specific to academia, or an academic register. It cannot be acquired through ordinary social intercourse. It is specific to school. Acquiring the academic register is the greatest challenge English Learners (EL) face during their academic…

Ogbu and Simons (1998) defined voluntary immigrants as individuals who chose to migrate to the United States (U.S.). Involuntary immigrants are defined as individuals whose ancestors were brought to the U.S. by force (Ogbu & Simons, 1998). There have been recent reports indicating that voluntary immigrants are outperforming involuntary…

The success of all students, including students with disabilities, on statewide assessments in mathematics and reading/English language arts has been examined closely. This is due, in part, to the role of these content areas in school accountability for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) known as "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB).…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Georgia's Choice reading curriculum on third grade science scores on the Georgia Criterion Referenced Competency Test from 2002 to 2008. In assessing the effectiveness of the Georgia's Choice curriculum model this causal comparative study examined the 105 elementary schools that…

In New Zealand, as in many other countries, recent curriculum revisions have seen a change in focus in science education. There is an increased emphasis on students knowing about how the discipline of science works, with the aim of equipping them to become more critical users of science. In the New Zealand Curriculum document (Ministry of…

This quantitative study intends to better understand the impact of the location of the first deleted word upon the estimation of text difficulty yielded by successive cloze tests based on random deletion from a single passage. The variation in sampling of language features across five cloze tests based on the same passage is random and thus not…

Tiering is a multi-stage test design whereby teachers allocate students to a particular difficulty level (tier) of a test. This approach to the challenge of delivering assessments to students with a heterogeneous ability distribution is normal practice in UK public examinations at the age of 16. This study uses Item Response Theory number-correct…

Students of a required biology course for non-science majors were given an opportunity to take online multiple choice quizzes during the weekend interval between classes. Incentives were that they would be given extra credit for their participation. Questions from the quizzes were then placed on the next exam. After the exam was given, the number…