Recent research on what students know about complex systems shows that they typically have challenges in understanding particular system ideas such as nonlinearity, complex causality, and decentralized control. Yet this research has yet to adopt a systematic approach to learning about complex systems in an ordered way in line with the Next…

Making decisions about the production and use of chemical substances is of central importance in many fields. In this study, a research team comprising teachers and educational researchers collaborated in collecting and analyzing cognitive interviews with students from 8th grade through first-year university general chemistry in an effort to map…

In an era in which information is rapidly growing and changing, it is very important to teach with the goal of students' engagement in life-long learning in mind. This can partially be achieved by developing transferable thinking skills. In our previous paper--Part I, we conducted a review of the transfer literature and suggested a three-attribute…

It has long been noted in research literature that there does not exist a shared definition of integration of science and mathematics. Classifying a particular set of integration practices by one of many labels has limited value. Moving past the definition debate, this study describes the development and testing of the Mathematics Integrated into…

The concept of energy is central to all the science disciplines, seamlessly connecting science, technology, and mathematics. For high school and upper middle school teachers, this compendium comprises inquiry-based activities, lesson plans, and case studies designed to help teach increased awareness of energy, environmental concepts, and the…

Many students believe they are equipped for college only to discover that they need additional preparation in understanding how to apply content and/or improvement of study skills. How can public schools work together with colleges to better prepare students? Great scrutiny of the curriculum in conjunction with determination of college-entrance…

This study reports on our steps toward achieving a conceptually coherent and empirically validated learning progression for carbon cycling in socio-ecological systems. It describes an iterative process of designing and analyzing assessment and interview data from students in upper elementary through high school. The product of our development…