Science Education Standards Research Articles

What is (or should be) scientific evidence use in k‐12 classrooms?

AbstractResearch and reform efforts frequently identify evidence as an essential component of science classroom instruction to actively engage students in science practices. Despite this agreement on the primacy of evidence, there is a lack of consensus around what counts as “evidence” in k‐12 classrooms (e.g., ages 5–18): scholarship and standards in science education define evidence in a variety of ways including empirical data, analogy, personal experience, and scientific theories. We argue that this disagreement results in a wide range of classroom activities around evidence, including ones that recapitulate traditional science instruction focused on final form science and teachers as disseminators of information. In this paper, we develop design heuristics to inform the design of classroom learning environments that productively use scientific evidence for student sensemaking about the natural world by (i) selecting from the range of information a subset to use as scientific evidence; and (ii) designing classroom activities that support students collaboratively making sense of the natural world. In particular, we argue for three design heuristics that could potentially shift science classroom activities away from traditional “problems of practice” to align more closely with the vision of science as a set of practices including: phenomena‐based, transformable, and used dialogically. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 54:672–689, 2017

Floating Fishes: An Activity Investigating Overfishing, Buoyancy & Gas Compressibility

Fish species are an important food resource all over the world, but the fishing practices of human beings are slowly driving many fish species to extinction. However, little is being done to communicate the problem of overfishing to the general public. In this three-part activity, students are introduced to the concepts of buoyancy and overfishing in an effort to provide a glimpse of how interesting fish are, and to raise awareness of overfishing. The students investigate buoyancy and gas compressibility by recreating a mysterious boat-sinking in the classroom, and by manipulating the buoyancy of artificial fish. By engaging in “fishing expeditions” with diminishing returns, the students learn why fish populations decline when we take too many of them. Throughout the activity, students have the opportunity to learn science as inquiry and the nature of science as presented in the National Science Education Standards.

Student Interest in Engineering Design‐Based Science

Current reform efforts in science education around the world call on teachers to use integrated approaches to teach science. As a part of such reform efforts in the United States, engineering practices and engineering design have been identified in K–12 science education standards. However, there is relatively little is known about effective ways of teaching science through engineering design. The study explores the approaches or strategies used by a sixth grade science teacher to teach science and engineering in an integrative manner. Classroom observations, teacher interview, and student surveys were used to study the features of engineering integration implemented by the teacher and the changes in student interest in science and engineering by participating in an engineering design‐based science unit. Findings suggest that the teacher explicitly included practices and core ideas from engineering and science; used an engaging, motivating engineering challenge; and provided students with opportunities to be autonomous. Students engaged in the activities in the engineering unit and their interest level slightly increased. The results suggest that the three strategies that the teacher used to teach engineering and science are important foundations of integrated science and engineering education.

Understand technical standards in health science and medical education

Facilitating access for students enrolled in health science and medical education requires a more nuanced process. One key difference is the existence of specific skills that students must meet for admissions, progression and graduation.

Interview with Science Education Pioneer Bob Yager

In a recent interview, Dr. Yager spoke about his participation in the changing field of science education, the challenges that still persist in implementing exemplary science teaching, STEM Education and his views on the current science education standards.

Professional Development of Elementary and Science Teachers in a Summer Science Camp: Changing Nature of Science Conceptions

Many countries all over the world have recently integrated nature of science (NOS) concepts into their science education standards. Providing professional support to teachers about NOS concepts is crucially important for successful implementation of the standards. For this purpose, a summer science camp was offered to elementary and science teachers. The main objective of this research study was to investigate the progress in specific NOS concepts made by the participant teachers. The responses of the teachers regarding the NOS concepts were obtained through VNOS-C questionnaire and scored using a rubric developed by McDonald (2008). The scored teacher responses were analyzed conducting MANOVA and Repeated Measures MANOVA statistical tests. It was observed that ‘naïve’ or ‘limited’ views of NOS were predominant in the pretest results of the participant teachers. At the end of the summer science camp, some of the participant teachers’ conceptions experienced a transition to more ‘informed’ views of NOS. The amount of the progress made by the teachers appeared to be free from their specific teaching disciplines.

Standard-based science education and critical thinking

This study investigated pre-service teachers’ perceptions and utilization of critical thinking in standard-based science education. A convenience sample of 120 pre-service teachers participated in the study by examining the United States’ National K-12 Science Education Standards, using the Critical Thinking Attribute Survey (CTAS) originally developed and validated by the authors to measure critical thinking attributes. The main results of the study identified the science standards that exhibit critical thinking from the pre-service teachers’ perspectives. The process-oriented standards, i.e., the inquiry, nature of science, technology, personal and societal perspectives had higher means than the content standards, of life, physical and Earth sciences. Several specific standard objectives are presented from top and bottom attribution to critical thinking. For example, standard benchmarks that are rated the highest included: think critically and logically to establish relationships between evidence and explanations; design and conduct scientific experiments; and acquire the abilities necessary to do inquiry investigations. Examples of the least standard benchmarks included: structure and function in living systems, transfer of energy, and properties and changes of matter. Discussion is provided to connect results with the current literature review and models of critical thinking, along with recommendations and implications to teacher education and K-12 science education practice and research.

Teacher's Toolkit: Explanations Across the Curricula: Integrating Common Core State Standards in Literacy With the National Science Education Standards

Teacher's Toolkit: Explanations Across the Curricula: Integrating Common Core State Standards in Literacy With the National Science Education Standards

Assessment of scientific reasoning: The effects of task context, data, and design on student reasoning in control of variables

Scientific reasoning is an important component under the cognitive strand of the 21st century skills and is highly emphasized in the new science education standards. This study focuses on the assessment of student reasoning in control of variables (COV), which is a core sub-skill of scientific reasoning. The main research question is to investigate the extent to which the existence of experimental data in questions impacts student reasoning and performance. This study also explores the effects of task contexts on student reasoning as well as students’ abilities to distinguish between testability and causal influences of variables in COV experiments. Data were collected with students from both USA and China. Students received randomly one of two test versions, one with experimental data and one without. The results show that students from both populations (1) perform better when experimental data are not provided, (2) perform better in physics contexts than in real-life contexts, and (3) students have a tendency to equate non-influential variables to non-testable variables. In addition, based on the analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data, a possible progression of developmental levels of student reasoning in control of variables is proposed, which can be used to inform future development of assessment and instruction.

Analysis of Individual Test Of Astronomy STandards (TOAST) Item Responses

<p>The development of valid and reliable strategies to efficiently determine the knowledge landscape of introductory astronomy college students is an effort of great interest to the astronomy education community. This study examines individual item response rates from a widely used conceptual understanding survey, the Test Of Astronomy Standards (TOAST). The TOAST, a 27-item, multiple-choice format, criterion-referenced test, addresses both the full range of topics commonly taught in a one- or two-semester undergraduate introductory astronomy survey courses, and concepts described in various national science education standards, frameworks, and reform documents. The present study involves an examination of responses by 1104 participants, allowing for a rigorous item-by-item and distractor-by-distractor analysis of students’ responses. The results suggest that each individual TOAST item is functioning appropriately across a broad range of students, and has sufficient sensitivity to identify notable student misconceptions. These results also provide an opportunity to identify target areas of opportunity for astronomy education researchers that remain largely unstudied.</p>

Representation and Analysis of Chemistry Core Ideas in Science Education Standards between China and the United States

Chemistry core ideas play an important role in students’ chemistry learning. On the basis of the representations of chemistry core ideas about substances and processes in the Chinese Chemistry Curriculum Standards (CCCS) and the U.S. Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), we conduct a critical comparison of chemistry core ideas between these two documents in this paper. We also discuss the following reasons why there are differences in the representation of chemistry core ideas between them: different research perspectives on science education, different understandings of chemistry core ideas, and different understandings of the nature of teaching process. Our primary intent in this comparative analysis is to promote a deeper understanding of chemistry core ideas, provide advice and resources for chemistry curriculum research and chemistry teaching practice, and raise more attention on goals of science education and aims of chemistry.

An Analysis of Engineering Educational Standards and Outcomes Achieved by a Robotics Summer Camp Experience

Summer camps can be an effect method of encouraging children and teenagers to learn about career options and grow interest in careers for which there is a national shortage of young professionals, such as engineering. These camps can offer opportunities beyond what a normal school can offer, and achieve specific educational goals that would be difficult to realize in a traditional classroom setting. A robotics summer camp curriculum was developed in accordance with the age specific standards from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and the National Science Education Standards (NSES). To link this to the engineering skills that are developed in college, the resultant student experience was evaluated in the context of the engineering outcomes for a four year engineering degree defined by the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET). The robotics summer camp was evaluated for its effectiveness building a foundation and supporting the skills that a student should develop in a college engineering program. Pre and post tests were given and scored with a standard rubric. The questions were mapped to the specific ABET outcomes which best align with the goals of the summer camp. The test scores will show the degree of improvement in various areas of engineering and problem solving. The resulting data shows the strengths of the summer camp and identify areas that can be targeted for improvement, to make a larger impact on the attendees.

Using Microscopy for Authentic Science Teaching: A Learning Sciences Perspective

We are currently experiencing a new national effort to improve science education in K-12, one that is building on a somewhat failed effort from the mid-1990s to introduce “inquiry” into the science classroom. This new movement is build around the adoption and implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards [1], which themselves represent a faithful translation of a National Research Council report that provided the basic guidebook for these new standards, entitled A Framework for K-12 Science Education [2]. In contrast to previous science education standards from the 1990, the new ones are formulated as so-called “performance expectations”; performance expectations specify what a student should be able to do or demonstrate in terms of scientific or engineering competency that can be observed or tested. The NGSS are therefore not curriculum guidelines, but the endpoint of a learning or teaching effort that is oriented towards a student outcome. How this is achieved is left to curriculum developers or teachers.

3Hs Education: Examining hands-on, heads-on and hearts-on early childhood science education

Active engagement has become the focus of many early childhood science education curricula and standards. However, active engagement usually emphasizes getting children engaged with science solely through hands-on activities. Active engagement by way of hands, heads, and hearts are kept separate and rarely discussed in terms of getting all to work together, although inquiry-based education and student interest have been accepted as important in science education. The current study is an inquiry-based research. It aims to describe and examine projects and activity stations for preschoolers in a Turkish preschool classroom bringing together the pieces of the puzzle of science education, called here ‘Hands–Heads–Hearts-on Science Education'. The study, conducted from a qualitative-interpretivist paradigm, reveals that activity stations and projects create a context for hands-on (active engagement), heads-on (inquiry based or mental-engagement), and hearts-on (interest based) science education. It is found that activity stations and projects, when maintained by appropriate teacher-support, create a playful context in which children can be actively and happily engaged in science-related inquiry.

Building an Understanding of How Model-Based Inquiry Is Implemented in the High School Chemistry Classroom

Modeling as a scientific practice in K–12 classrooms has received a wealth of attention in the U.S. and abroad due to the advent of revised national science education standards. The study described herein investigated how a group of high school chemistry teachers developed their understanding of the nature and function of models in the precollege classroom through participation in a yearlong professional development program designed using model-based inquiry (MBI) as a framework. Further, we sought to understand the factors that catalyzed or hindered the incorporation of this pedagogy into the participants’ classrooms. It was found that the program positively influenced the teachers’ understanding of modeling as a scientific practice and facilitated growth in navigating pedagogical and conceptual challenges towards implementing modeling practices in their classrooms.

Science teachers’ perception and implementation of inquiry-based reform initiatives in relation to their beliefs and professional identity

The purpose of this study was to understand how early career science teachers perceive and interpret the calls for inquiry-based instruction (as suggested by National Science Education Standards) in relation to their emerging professional identity and beliefs. Further, this study explored how the school and classroom contexts influenced teachers’ implementation of the reform-based teaching practices. Using semi-structured interviews with twelve early career science teachers, this study revealed that teachers often showed limited understanding about inquiry-based instruction, such as hands-on lab activities, and devoted small amount of time for implementing inquiry teaching. However, interestingly, their beliefs about teaching science were aligned with the assumptions of inquiry-based instruction. The lack of inconsistency between beliefs and practices seem to result from the influence of contextual factors. School and classroom environments that limit teachers’ agency and sense of power lead teachers to experience unpleasant emotions, which may eventually threaten their identity as a teacher. This paper ends with implications for school administrators and policy makers.

U.S. Science Teaching and Learning of Evolution: A Critical Review of the Literature 2000-2014

This critical analysis examined research on evolution in the United States between the years 2000–2014, spanning early classroom implementation of the National Science Education Standards to current research findings. First, we sought to understand how the research literature published between 2000 and 2014 contributed to knowledge of evolution education as well as areas required to further illuminate our understanding of evolutionary acceptance and rejection. Two hundred thirteen studies were reviewed using identified criteria that included the approach to teaching, attitudes and perceptions, religiosity, and proposed teaching methods, with particular emphasis on evolution teaching and learning. Following multiple rounds of article examination, seven general directions appear to be present in evolution education research: (1) approach to evolution in the classroom; (2) knowledge, understanding, and acceptance of evolution; (3) attitudes and perceptions of evolution; (4) factors impacting the teaching and learning of evolution; (5) evolution conflict and coping strategies; (6) evolution and religiosity; and (7) proposed evolution teaching method, courses, and assessment. The analysis pointed to four areas in need of further exploration: (1) elaboration on how worldview affects acceptance; (2) exploration of specific factors (intrinsic and extrinsic) that influence the acceptance of evolution; (3) examination of experiences to define these factors, especially among preservice teachers; and (4) exploration of evolution acceptance across geographical regions of the United States.

What about a dimension of engagement, equity, and diversity practices? A critique of the next generation science standards

AbstractIn this paper, I offer a critique of A Framework for K‐12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas (NRC, 2012) and of the Next Generation Science Standards (Achieve, 2013). While the new version of the science education standards and the arguments put forward to support them are an improvement from the previous version of the NRC Science Education Standards, we must pause and reflect on the implications on jumping on another education reform, fast moving train. Using sociotransformative constructivism as a guiding theoretical lens, I argued that the Conceptual Framework and NGSS documents fall short due to the lack of retrospection, the on‐going contradictory discourses, and the lack of voice and representation in the development of these important policy documents. Suggestions for improvement and discussion are offered in hope that we might prevent the NGSS from having as little impact on teachers' practice and on students' learning as the previous version of the national science education standards had. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 52: 1031–1051, 2015.

Using Concept Mapping Method for Assessing Students’ Scientific Literacy

The Natural Science Education Standards (NSES) has defined scientific literacy as knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts which helps us to make personal decisions, participate in cultural and civic speculation and take part in economic productivity. In order to assess students ‘cognitive components of scientific literacy we need a reliable and valid instrument, appropriate for the survey and easily usable by students, teachers and researchers. The aim of the study is to evaluate concept mapping as an assessment tool for determining cognitive aspects of scientific literacy. Students ‘concept maps can be assessed by different measures, for example, number of concepts, number and quality of propositions, concept centrality, size and hierarchy of the concept map, clusters in the maps. Our aim is to identify measures which are relevant and valid for assessing students ‘cognitive components of scientific literacy. Concept mapping was used as an assessment method in an Estonian large scale study (LoteGym, 2011-2014). The results from the PISA-like test were compared with the results obtained from the concept maps. The correlation analyses showed that as a predictor for students’ cognitive components of scientific literacy are better suitable the quality measures of concept mapping (e.g. number of high quality propositions). The analysis of the concept maps also showed, that students intend to create more propositions inside the “everyday life” cluster than inside the “subject” cluster or between these two clusters.

Participation in a Multi-institutional Curriculum Development Project Changed Science Faculty Knowledge and Beliefs About Teaching Science

Despite significant pressure to reform science teaching and learning in K12 schools, and a concurrent call to reform undergraduate courses, higher education science content courses have remained relatively static. Higher education science faculty have few opportunities to explore research on how people learn, examine state or national science teaching standards for K12 schools, or learn and practice research-based instructional strategies. The contrast between what is expected of future and practicing teachers in their K12 classrooms and what they experience in content and instruction in typical college or university science courses can be striking. This paper describes a multi-institutional collaboration among content-area science faculty and K12 teachers to develop undergraduate content courses for future elementary teachers in life and Earth science. Using data from the project evaluation, we report evidence of change in faculty knowledge and beliefs about science teaching and learning, and how that this translated into pedagogical practice in their courses.