This study examined interrelations between three indicators of main challenges during adolescence: academic achievement, self-perceived peer acceptance, and self-esteem. An additional aim was to investigate whether the findings hold for girls and boys and across school types (academically oriented track vs. non-academically oriented track). We…

The internal/external frame of reference model (I/E model) posits that individuals' achievement-related self-concepts are formed through social comparisons (e.g., self vs. peers) within academic domains and dimensional comparisons (e.g., math vs. verbal) between distinct domains. A large body of research has supported the theorized pattern of…

Competitions are discussed as a measure to foster students' interest, especially for highly gifted and talented students. In the current study, participants of a cognitive school competition in science were compared to non-participants of the same age group (14-15) who either did not participate in any competition or who participated in a…

The aim of this study was to design and evaluate an inquiry- and activity-based learning unit for the classroom that uses biological collections to teach key evolutionary concepts and to support the understanding and appreciation of the work of a museum. The unit consisted of three parts that focused on the most important tasks of museums:…

Students' conceptions are a central learning condition. Until now there have only been qualitative results regarding the important geographical area of the desert, especially its location and formation. Therefore this study surveys students' conceptions (N = 585; n = 448 without pre-instruction on deserts and n = 137 with pre-instruction on…

In the educational learning process preconceptions are an important factor. Learners usually interpret new input on the basis of their own preconceptions that are the result of various experiences made before being confronted with the educational learning process. Hence, the investigation of preconceptions is a main task for educational research.…

Besides viewing knowledge about the nature of science (NOS) as important for its own value with respect to scientific literacy, an adequate understanding of NOS is expected to improve science content learning by fostering the ability to interrelate scientific concepts and, thus, coherently acquire scientific content knowledge. However, there is a…

Thus far, it is unclear how students can learn most effectively from their own errors. In this study, reflections on the rationale behind self-made errors are assumed to enhance knowledge acquisition. In a field experiment with pre/post/follow-up design, the authors practiced fractions with 174 seventh- and eighth-grade students who were randomly…

The so-called control-of-variables strategy (CVS) incorporates the important scientific reasoning skills of designing controlled experiments and interpreting experimental outcomes. As CVS is a prominent component of science standards appropriate assessment instruments are required to measure these scientific reasoning skills and to evaluate the…

Teachers make a difference for the outcome of their students in science classrooms. One focus in this context lies on teachers' professional knowledge. We describe this knowledge according to three domains, namely (1) content knowledge (CK), (2) pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), and (3) curricular knowledge (CuK). We hypothesise a positive…

Considering the essential role that socio-motivational relationships at school play with respect to achievement motivation, this study examined the differences between students with a low school self-concept and students with a high school self-concept in a large sample of 7th and 8th grade students (N= 1088; M[subscript Age]= 13.7) in secondary…

Currently, many societies are placing a greater onus on academic achievement--resulting in higher levels of stress being observed among adolescent students. Stress can have detrimental repercussions on adolescents' health and is also associated with anxiety and depression. However, since less is known about how high stress levels affect school…

This study examined predictors of the quality of parental homework involvement and reciprocal relations between the quality of parental homework involvement and students' reading achievement and academic functioning in a reading-intensive subject (German). Data from 2,830 students in nonacademic tracks and their parents who were surveyed in both…

Coping research has consistently shown that accommodative coping is positively correlated with individuals' health. Until now, however, there have been little to no studies on the prognostic impact of accommodative coping on health, and only a few studies investigating its buffering effect on the relation between stress and health in childhood and…

This cross-national study investigates the perception of the impact of students' relationships towards teachers and peers on scholastic motivation in a total sample of 1477 seventh and eighth grade German (N?=?1088) and Canadian (N?=?389) secondary school students. By applying Multigroup Confirmatory Latent Class Analysis in Mplus we confirmed…