School Science Research Articles

The Effects of Pedagogy on Student Achievement in Science Classrooms

This mixed-methods study was designed to determine whether a correlational relationship exists between student achievement on the Florida Grade Eight Statewide Science Assessment and the predominant pedagogical practice (student-centered, teacher-directed) found across the three grade levels (six, seven, eight) of associated middle schools. Data was gathered by mining historical public domain and Likert scale surveys of middle school (grades six through eight) science teachers (N = 97). Data analysis procedures included Spearman’s rho correlation coefficient utilizing the Statistical Package for Social Science. Concerning student performance on this assessment, significant differences were established in the following categories: use of formative assessment in the classroom setting, teacher providing traditional notes, and collaborative student group work. Additionally, significant differences were identified regarding school socioeconomic status and school-wide science pedagogical approach. Implications for instructional practices in science classrooms, as well as for teacher preparation programs and current educator professional development, are discussed.

Science teachers’ perspectives and prior practices for science centre visit: strategies development

In ongoing science education, utilising informal learning environments such as science centres has emerged as a crucial strategy to enhance learners’ engagement and understanding of complex scientific concepts. However, despite their evident benefits, out-of-school learning environments often fail to produce lasting improvements in learners’ understanding of scientific concepts, largely due to inadequate integration with classroom teaching and a lack of strategic planning. This qualitative study, grounded in a moderate constructivist framework, investigates the perspectives of high school science teachers regarding the significant influence and strategic optimization of science centre visits. Through interviews and document analysis, informed by thematic analysis methodology, the study examines teachers’ perceptions and their prior practices when visiting the science centre. Teachers articulate a compelling narrative of how science centre visits serve as catalysts for active, experiential learning, and bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application. Furthermore, the study identifies and describes five strategic imperatives aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of science centre visits in science education. These imperatives encompass pre-visit curriculum integration, differentiated learning activities, teacher-led guided exploration, parental involvement, and continuous evaluation and improvement. Grounded in constructivist principles and contemporary educational theories, these strategies offer an inclusive framework to enrich learners’ learning experiences, cultivate their scientific curiosity, and foster a profound and enduring appreciation for the details of science. These findings highlight how crucial it is for teachers to have access to continual professional development opportunities and institutional support to enable them to fully utilise the pedagogical potential of science centre visits in science curricula.

Science teachers' perceptions and practice of uncertainty in science learning: The changes experienced after engaging in a practice‐based professional development

AbstractGrappling with uncertainty is an essential element of students' science learning and sense‐making processes, yet literature is limited regarding how teachers can facilitate and use student scientific uncertainty as a pedagogical resource in their classrooms. Furthermore, progress on pedagogical practice depends on both the ability to notice one's perceptions and engage in opportunities to experience and reflect on new instructional approaches. To date, there are few professional development experiences explored in literature that explicitly aim to enhance teachers' awareness and pedagogical practice regarding the use and facilitation of student scientific uncertainty. As such, this qualitative study follows a group of 11 middle school science teachers before and after participating in a week‐long practice‐based professional development (P‐BPD) specifically designed to foster teachers' ability to use student uncertainty as a pedagogical resource. Interviews were conducted and analyzed prior to the P‐BPD, immediately after the P‐BPD, and the year following to measure shifts in perceptions over time. Additionally, classroom practice was observed both before and the year following the P‐BPD. Overall, we found that teachers' awareness of how to use student scientific uncertainty grew both in their expressed perceptions and in their observed classroom enactment. After engaging in the P‐BPD, many teachers expressed an enhanced awareness of the productive potential uncertainty can have, as well as increased understanding of potential sources and responses to student uncertainty. Additionally, in the post‐implementation observations, most of the teachers demonstrated more diverse use of uncertainty navigation strategies, intentionally raising, maintaining, and reducing scientific uncertainty more often. Teachers were observed using student ideas and uncertainties to drive the trajectory of their lessons more consistently. Notably, we report counterexamples for teachers who demonstrated less or no shifts in perceptions or practice. Furthermore, teachers explicitly identified experiences from the P‐BPD that fostered shifts in both their perceptions and practice.

The Understanding of Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) Among Middle School Science Teachers in Lhokseumawe, Indonesia

This study aims to evaluate the understanding of Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) among middle school science teachers in public schools in Lhokseumawe. Employing a quantitative descriptive design, data were collected from 15 teachers selected through purposive sampling. A 15-item multiple-choice test was administered, with each question targeting specific HOTS indicators, such as Bloom’s Taxonomy, project-based assessment, and analytical skills. The results revealed that while teachers demonstrated strong foundational knowledge of HOTS, with 93% showing proficiency in basic concepts and 87% understanding Bloom’s Taxonomy, significant gaps were observed in the practical application of HOTS. Only 60% of teachers showed proficiency in project-based assessment, and just 53% demonstrated strong analytical skills. Furthermore, while 73% of teachers recognized the importance of HOTS in education, only 60% understood its long-term benefits for student growth. These findings highlight the need for targeted professional development, resource provision, and mentorship programs to enhance teachers' ability to implement HOTS effectively in their teaching practices. Addressing these gaps will better equip educators to foster critical thinking and problem-solving skills among students.

DIORAMA: AS A LEARNING MEDIA FOR SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES (IPAS) ON ECOSYSTEM MATERIAL IN GRADE IV OF SDI CENDEKIA ASSALAM BANGILAN

Teaching Science and Social Studies (IPAS) in elementary schools often faces challenges in delivering abstract concepts such as ecosystems. Conventional teaching methods, which are less interactive, make it difficult for students to understand the relationships between ecosystem components. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of diorama media in improving students' understanding of ecosystem material in Grade IV of SDI Cendekia Assalam Bangilan. The research used a quantitative approach with a quasi-experimental design, involving 27 students in the experimental group using diorama media and 25 students in the control group using conventional teaching methods. Data were collected through pre-tests and post-tests and analyzed using the t-test. The results showed that the average post-test score of the experimental group was higher (85.4) compared to the control group (73.8). Statistical analysis indicated a significant difference between the two groups (p < 0.05), demonstrating that diorama media is effective in enhancing students' understanding of ecosystem concepts. These findings support constructivist learning theory, which emphasizes the importance of visual experiences and interaction in learning. This study suggests that diorama media should be widely applied to other materials requiring concrete visualization. Additionally, further research can explore the impact of diorama media on other skills such as critical thinking or student collaboration.

A Comparison of Responsive and General Guidance to Promote Learning in an Online Science Dialog

Students benefit from dialogs about their explanations of complex scientific phenomena, and middle school science teachers cannot realistically provide all the guidance they need. We study ways to extend generative teacher–student dialogs to more students by using AI tools. We compare Responsive web-based dialogs to General web-based dialogs by evaluating the ideas students add and the quality of their revised explanations. We designed the General guidance to motivate and encourage students to revise their explanations, similar to how an experienced classroom teacher might instruct the class. We designed the Responsive guidance to emulate a student–teacher dialog, based on studies of experienced teachers guiding individual students. The analyses comparing the Responsive and the General condition are based on a randomized assignment of a total sample of 507 pre-college students. These students were taught by five different teachers in four schools. A significantly higher proportion of students added new accurate ideas in the Responsive condition compared to the General condition during the dialog. This research shows that by using NLP to identify ideas and assign guidance, students can broaden and refine their ideas. Responsive guidance, inspired by how experienced teachers guide individual students, is more valuable than General guidance.

The Effect of Human Presence on the Representations of Children 4-6 Years Old in the Case of Air Within Vases

A distinctive direction within the framework of Early Childhood Science Education research is the study of young children's mental representations of natural world phenomena and concepts in science. The study of representations offers the possibility of developing activities that address the real difficulties of children and lead to the construction of new representations compatible with school science knowledge. The current research presents a study on the potential effect of the presence of humans on the representations of children aged 4-6 years regarding the case of air within vases. 41 children attending a kindergarten in Patras (Greece) participated in the study. During individual semi-structured interviews, children were presented with 3 different images displaying a vase with people standing next to it in different settings and were asked to indicate whether there is air in the vase and whether this is related to that people. The results showed that the presence of air in the containers was best identified in the outdoor environment, while few children attributed the air to human presence, especially when the vases were placed indoors. Based on the frequency table, it seems that regarding the outdoor environment, there are more adequate responses, as the presence of human elements influences less the participants, while in indoor settings there are more intermediate and inadequate responses, suggesting that the presence of the human element has a greater impact in participant's responses.

Teaching and Learning Science as a Tool for Human Sustenance: The Non-Science Community’s Expectations for School Science

The world, through the UN and its agencies, is looking for ways to sustain the environment that we live in via the SDGs. The importance of school science in achieving the SDGs cannot be overstressed. The literature abounds on the need for school science to relate to the interests and expectations of students and the importance of teachers and scientists of school science in finding solutions to sustaining our world. However, little is known about the interests and expectations of other members of our society. Consequently, we studied the expectations of members of the non-science community whose children are learning science in schools and colleges. Using a phenomenological approach, we employed interview schedules to study 15 participants, comprising 5 women and 10 men, on what they thought about science and scientists and their expectations regarding learning science in school in the 21st century, saddled with global pandemics, global warming, flooding, and other natural disasters. The thinking and expectations of the participants were analysed using a thematic analysis with constant comparison procedures to arrive at five views and expectations of school science by the non-science community. Although the participants were grateful to the science community for rising to the challenge of COVID-19, they expected school science teachers to use innovative approaches to prepare their students for future challenges, as the world lost many human lives to the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings will inform science curriculum planners about the content and pedagogies to recommend for schools and colleges.

RESEARCH ON PRIMARY SCHOOL SCIENCE EXPERIMENT TEACHING BASED ON LITERACY GOALS

Primary school science experiments are crucial methods and pathways for achieving literacy goals. They play a significant role in cultivating primary school students' interest and thinking in science, enhancing their understanding of scientific concepts, and mastering scientific laws. However, the current state of primary school science experiment teaching is far from satisfactory. Students find it challenging to "learn by doing" and "think while learning" during science experiments. Primary school science teachers should focus on cultivating students' scientific literacy as their primary goal. This involves clarifying the connotation and characteristics of experiments, making comprehensive plans for experiment teaching, selecting appropriate teaching content, innovating experimental teaching designs, and implementing diverse evaluation methods. These measures are essential to achieving the literacy goals of primary school science experiment teaching. KEYWORDS: Literacy Goals, Primary School Science, Experimental Teaching, Science Teachers

Estimating Epistemic Practices Loads in Elementary and Middle School Science Curricula

Estimating Epistemic Practices Loads in Elementary and Middle School Science Curricula

ANALISIS PERMAINAN TRADISIONAL DALAM PEMBELAJARAN SAINS DAN SOSIAL DI SD

Every region in Indonesia has traditional games that have become values in daily life as entertainment and local culture. Not only do they offer fun entertainment, but they also have great potential to support science and social learning in elementary schools. This research uses a qualitative approach research method with literature study is an approach to explore in-depth understanding of a phenomenon or issue through the analysis of relevant texts and documents. This article shows that traditional games involved in science and social learning in the classroom can overcome problems in science and social learning. This is due to the positive effects of involving traditional games in student learning in elementary school, in addition to being a fun way to deepen learning and improve learning outcomes, traditional games also train social and physical skills, and also teach cultural values and cooperation which are very beneficial in the development of student character.

The Adoption of a Questionnaire to Evaluate High School Science Teachers’ Motivation for Reading and Teaching with Primary Scientific Literature

ABSTRACT The motivation of educators to select and utilize specific instructional tools, such as primary scientific literature (PSL), remains an unexplored area. PSL-based instruction has shown positive outcomes for undergraduate students, but its use in high schools remains limited, likely due to the significant influence of teacher motivation on the choice of instructional tools. Our study shed light on constructs that define teachers’ motivation to read and teach with PSL. We seek to adopt and validate an instrument that measures the identity (performance/competence and interest) and expectancy-value constructs (self-efficacy, attainment value, intrinsic value, utility value, and perceived costs) that shape teacher motivation. We hypothesize that our measurement of these constructs will reveal redundancies and that increasing motivation to participate in a task (reading PSL) will boost the likelihood of using that task as an instructional tool (teaching using PSL). The questionnaire was administered to high school science teachers in the United States and was validated using factor analysis. The finalized instrument revealed the redundancies across the motivation constructs, confirming that identity and expectancy-value constructs can be used to measure motivation in two different but valid ways. Overall, there was less motivation for teaching using PSL than for reading PSL in performance/competence and self-efficacy constructs. Higher perceived costs were associated with teaching, and there were significant differences between reading and teaching using PSL in attainment value and self-efficacy. Our questionnaire to measure motivation for selecting an instructional tool can provide valuable insights into teachers’ attitudes toward using specific instructional strategies.

فعالية طريقة أمثلتي للمبتدئين لترقية إتقان القواعد في تعليم اللغة العربية في المدرسة العالية الإسلامية الأهلية منبع العلوم مغالوه جومبانج

Grammar, which always seems difficult and complicated, is a big barrier for anyone who has never learned it, including students. This knowledge, which contains important rules in Arabic grammar, is also called the key that must be held before studying Arabic texts, especially the Yellow Book. So my example method comes as a solution to overcome this problem. The research questions of this paper are: 1) How to improve the mastery of grammar in Arabic language learning at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri "Fountain of Knowledge" Magaluh Jombang? 2) How is the effectiveness of example non example method in improving the mastery of grammar in Arabic language teaching at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri "Fountain of Knowledge" Magaluh Jombang? The method used in this research is quantitative method with quasi experimental research type. The sampling technique used saturated sampling technique and non-probability sampling. The number of experimental class samples was 21 people and the control class was 24 people. Data collection techniques using assessment tests and documents. The results showed the following: 1) There was an improvement in the mastery of grammar for tenth grade students of Islamic High School, Munaba'a Al-Uloom Magalouh. This was defined on the basis that the mean score of the experimental class was higher than the mean score of the control class. The mean score of the experimental class was 90.92, and the mean score of the control class was 63.82. 2) There is an effectiveness of the application of the optimization method in improving the mastery of grammar. This can be seen from the results of the Mann-Whitney statistical test with an Asymp. Sig (2-tailed) 0.000 which means 0.000 <0.05 at 5% significance. Then H0 is rejected and HA is accepted. Therefore, it can be concluded that there is effectiveness of applying Imthalati method for beginners to improve the mastery of grammar of tenth grade students of Maghalouh science school.

Pioneering Computational Culture Within Pharmacy Schools by Empowering Students With Data Science and Bioinformatics Skills.

As advancements in digital health lead to the generation of increasingly diverse and voluminous pharmaceutical data, it is increasingly critical that we teach trainee pharmaceutical scientists how to leverage this data to lead future innovations in healthcare and pharmaceutical research. To address this need, the University of Southern California Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (USC Mann) is incorporating data science and bioinformatics into the graduate and undergraduate curricula through introductory courses tailored for students without prior programming experience. These courses feature a teaching framework designed to make the fundamentals of data science and bioinformatics accessible to pharmacy students through step-by-step, Jupyter-based coding assignments with examples relevant to the pharmaceutical sciences. The framework supports PharmD students by focusing on the practical applications of data science in clinical settings, while for PhD and MS students, the emphasis is on research methodologies and advanced data analysis techniques. Here, we outline the design of this framework, highlighting the strategies we developed and the opportunities it provides to cultivate a computational culture within our institution and beyond.

“I’ll Do Some Soul Searching”: Navigating a Black Student–Teacher Relationship Within the Sociopolitical Terrain of Urban Science Education

Using a multitiered framework, embedded in anti-Blackness, this qualitative case study centers a Black woman teacher and Black girl who were subjugated to multiple layers of oppression in a middle school science classroom. Findings revealed that systemic pressures, like standardized testing and school choice, hindered genuine learning. The teacher-participant felt compelled to prioritize test preparation over holistic education and noted how the science fair exacerbated racial inequities while midyear teacher reassignments fractured student–teacher relationships. This study underscores the need to name sociopolitical and historical factors to address structural and systemic inequities in urban science education.

Scientific images from the history of science to primary education: Insights from historiographic research on the visual history of science for the compilation of primary school science textbooks

Since 2008, the author of this paper has conducted historiographic research on the visual history of science in the West since the mid-twentieth century. The findings show that the cognitive functions of visual scientific representations in the history of science are connected with theories of knowledge development in dialectical materialist epistemology and theories on children's cognitive features at different ages in developmental psychology, as well as the stage-specific curriculum objectives outlined in the Compulsory Education Science Curriculum Standards (2022 Edition). These insights provide essential inspiration and theoretical support for the establishment of the twin-theme logical structure in the Primary School Science Textbooks (Daxiang Edition)—core competencies as the warp and cognitive development as the weft—and for the intentional cultivation of students’ cognitive abilities using scientific images across different learning stages and textbooks.

Moroccan high school science teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs in the context of French medium instruction

The relationship between science teachers’ self-efficacy and the language of instruction is a critically under-research issue in education. This study aimed to explore public school science teachers’ self-efficacy with regard to the use of the language of instruction in teaching scientific subjects. Specifically, the present paper attempts to uncover the impact of the recent French medium instruction (FMI) policy on Moroccan teachers’ sense of self-efficacy for teaching science and to examine how demographic variables (age, gender, education and teaching experience) modify or change self-efficacy beliefs. To that end, 151 in-service high school science teachers completed a short self-efficacy Likert scale designed especially for the purposes of the study. The results showed that science teachers have low self-efficacy beliefs with regard to the use of French as a medium of instruction (MoI). Also, while age and teaching experience were found to have a statistically significant correlation with self-efficacy, teachers’ language proficiency did not. The study concludes that MoI can negatively impact teachers’ self-efficacy and that the latter becomes stronger with age and accumulated experience. Moreover, having teachers with good language proficiency does not guarantee high self-efficacy beliefs. The study discusses some implications of these results for educators and educational policymakers.

From vision to enactment: reflections on the practical impact of the Beyond 2000 report

ABSTRACT The Beyond 2000 report (Millar & Osborne, 1998) argued that the school science curriculum of the late twentieth century was designed primarily to provide a sound preparation for progress to more advanced courses in science. It proposed that the curriculum for students up to the age of 16 should instead be designed to develop all students’ ‘scientific literacy’, through a focus on the major ‘explanatory stories’ of science and a set of key ‘ideas-about-science’. Have the recommendations of Beyond 2000 had any lasting impact on curriculum and instruction? I will explore this question by considering the most explicit effort to act on these recommendations, the Twenty First Century Science project (Millar [2006] Twenty First Century Science: Insights from the design and implementation of a scientific literacy approach in school science. International Journal of Science Education, 28(13), 1499–1521.). The development of this curriculum programme for 14–16 year old students in England illustrates the scale and nature of the task of transforming a curriculum vision into an operational reality, and highlights the challenges of achieving significant change, and the main sources of difficulty and resistance. Despite evidence of positive impact on student engagement, external influences have steadily diminished its initial impact and the science curriculum has returned to its late twentieth century emphasis. Yet the Beyond 2000 critique remains as valid today as twenty-five years ago. The science curriculum in most countries does not reflect a clear vision of the contribution of science to a general education. The practical response to Beyond 2000 suggests that significant change requires clarity on intended outcomes and how they might be assessed, and the building of professional and social consensus around them.

Evaluation of a 70 kDa Excreted/Secreted Coproantigen Immunoassay for the Detection of Toxocara canis in Dogs.

We aimed to develop a sandwich ELISA, using polyclonal antibodies against excretory/secretory (E/S) antigens specific to coproantigens present in Toxocara canis-positive dogs. Antibodies were produced at Biological Sciences School, Autonomous University of Nuevo León, México in 2023 by immunization of rabbits with antigenic extracts from in vitro cultures of T. canis larvae. Assays were performed on 100 stool samples from pet dogs, measuring sensitivity, specificity, and cross-reactivity against other parasitic infections. High values of sensitivity (100%), specificity (90.9%), and positive (93.47%) and negative (95.45%) predictive values were obtained, respectively. We obtained an E/S protein with a molecular weight of 70 kDa, which showed high sensitivity and specificity by ELISA, but it presented cross-reactivity against Ancylostoma caninum and Strongyloides stercoralis. Additional studies are necessary to increase the specificity percentage since this assay demonstrated significant potential as a useful and inexpensive diagnostic tool for immunodiagnostic in dog feces.

Developing Affordable and Research-Grade Measurement Devices with Arduino for School Science: A Guide for Non-Coders

Developing Affordable and Research-Grade Measurement Devices with Arduino for School Science: A Guide for Non-Coders