Background: There are frequent calls in the literature for school science and mathematics departments to collaborate, largely in response to perceived overlaps between the two subjects in the context of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Yet few studies explore how such collaborations might work. This paper is unusual both in…

The purpose of this work was to investigate ways in which everyday computers can be used in schools to fulfil several of the roles of more expensive, specialized laboratory equipment for teaching and learning purposes. The brief adopted was to keep things as straightforward as possible so that any school science department with a few basic tools…

This article describes how the Science Department at Shoeburyness High School in Essex introduced a space-themed year 8 (ages 12-13) science course to increase student engagement and motivation. As well as discussing the rationale for such curriculum change, it describes the processes of planning and resourcing the course, and the barriers that…

This naturalistic study focused on the perceptions of leadership and student performance in science from campus leaders in three purposefully selected secondary campuses of ninth through twelfth grades. Each school had experienced an improvement in student passing rates on the science TAKS test that exceeded the state's percent improvement in…

This ethnographic case study examined the roles of district and school macro-culture and teacher sub-group micro-culture in influencing the nature and extent of teachers' professional collaboration. Informed by the sociocognitive theory that learning is rooted in social relationships and develops through interpersonal discourse and activity, the…

The purpose of this study was to compare the science achievement and high school completion rates of students in a large high school implementing professional learning community concepts and practices with two large high schools not participating in professional learning community concepts and practices. The primary methodology employed was a…

The purpose of this study was to describe Markdale High School's change from separate college preparatory and general level classes to heterogeneously-grouped classes in English, mathematics, science, and social studies, with particular emphasis on the principal's leadership style, change process, and teacher concerns (Hall & Hord, 2006)…

This article investigates the metaphorical duality that exists when school subject departments are concurrently conceptualized as both communities and organizations. Employing a narrative methodology, we use the metaphorical duality to examine the manner in which science teachers negotiate two key aspects of their work; professional learning and…

The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), the IFT Foundation, and Discovery Education partnered to create and distribute food science information to science department and school counselor chairs in all 18,000 U.S. high schools in January 2006. Two multimedia "kits" were generated for teachers and counselors, each consisting of DVDs with food…

To examine how school characteristics are tied to science and engineering views and aspirations of students who are underrepresented in science and engineering fields, this mixed-methods study explores relationships between aspects of students' science identities, and the representation of women among high school science teachers. Quantitative…

In recent years, forensic science has gained popularity thanks in part to high-profile court cases and television programs. Although the cost of forensic equipment and supplies may initially seem too expensive for the typical high school classroom, the author developed an activity that incorporates forensics into her 10th-grade biology curriculum…

The Penn Department of Chemistry established a strong relationship with regional school districts to develop a unique program for current secondary science teachers, resulting in the June 2000 implementation of the Master of Chemistry Education (MCE) Program. The program has equipped teachers with the tools to conduct this inquiry, thus yielding…