The current study evaluates effects of teaching factors and extended day programs regarding both average achievement and socioeconomic achievement gaps. Analyses are based on data from the National Educational Panel Study in Germany. The sample comprises 1523 students in 120 classes in 71 secondary schools. The investigation period covers fifth…

Spatial visualization and mental rotations skills are considered a strong predictor of success in STEM fields (Wai, Lubinski, & Benbow, 2009). This study analyzed the malleability and amount of change in fourth through sixth grade students using the Revised PSVT:R. Participants engaged in a STEM camp driven by maker pedagogy and focused on the…

4-H is the youth development program of the Cooperative Extension and has identified Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) as a national priority. Conducting STEM education during summer months for hard to reach youth can be a challenge. However, it is during summer when vulnerable students most often experience learning loss. During…

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…

Research suggests that a girl's career interests in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) declines between grades 6 and 8. Similarly, in middle school, there is a decrease in physical activity among girls. Researchers at the University of Rhode Island (URI) conducted a chemistry-based science camp that took place…

Background: Nanotechnology education has become an urgent priority to nurture skilled human resources for the rapidly developing nanotechnology-related industries. The promotion of popular science education focusing on nanotechnology is an ideal approach to bridge the gaps in formal curricula, and to stimulate curiosity about and interest in…

This study examines the effect of a summer science camp involved in explicit-reflective Nature of Science (NOS) instruction on Turkish gifted students' views of NOS. During the teaching intervention, six experienced faculties and two teachers taught six explicit-reflective NOS activities (90 minutes per day through a seven-day period) to 30 gifted…