Recent conceptualizations of science literacy, a key aim of contemporary science education, suggest defining it as a function of actual uses of science in daily life. We characterize expressions of science literacy in online authentic public discourse, using content analysis of a year's worth of widely-read Israeli online news site coverage of…

Environmental sustainability education should create eco-awareness and produce pro-environmental behaviors. Traditional instructional methods create eco-awareness but do not make people act. Purposefully designed digital games for attitudinal instruction provide cognitive knowledge, engage learners emotionally by showing the consequences of…

Adopting an explicit and reflective approach to the teaching of the history and philosophy of science is useful in promoting high school students' understanding of the nature of science. Whereas the history of science is usually signposted clearly in the school science curriculum, the philosophy of science is considered to be embedded in and…

Individuals have different opinions and views on many socio-scientific issues such as stem cells, influenza vaccine, cloning, nuclear power plants, and organ transplantation that affect social life. Scientific attitudes and scientific literacy of individuals can affect their approach to socio-scientific issues. This research aims to reveal how…

Students' argumentation skills are considered a central tool to contribute to scientific controversies in the science classroom. Scientific controversies of social relevance (socioscientific issues; SSI) are subject to multiple viewpoints that are often rooted in diverse disciplines. However, the relationship between issue familiarity and…

The interplay between culture and technology is dynamic. Since ancient times, science has had a major impact on people, and people have determined the general direction of science progress. In this way, there is mutual influence between society and science. Socioscientific issues have emerged as a result of the interaction process between science…

Until thirty-five years ago, climate change was almost exclusively a topic of domain scientists and deeply serious hobbyists. It was only discussed in science journals and at academic colloquia. Therefore, it should not be at all surprising that many fundamental questions persist about how to teach students about climate change science, including…

As the use of plastics expands, microplastic concentrations increase in aquatic environments and negatively impact water, soil, and animals inhabiting these areas. Microplastic research frequently incorporates citizen science to assist in data collection and environmental education. These projects provide opportunities for greater societal…

In both private and public education, several institutions may use game-based explanations. However, it does not rule out the possibility that most educational institutions use text-based explanations, which makes students tend to get bored because they only have to read and listen, so another alternative is needed: game-based explanations that…

Over the past several decades it has become increasingly important to understand nature of science (NOS) for scientific literacy in science education. Science education researchers have suggested using socio-scientific issues to create a context for that purpose. The present fast-moving coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic as a socio-scientific issue…

Background: Integrating public health into science courses helps students grasp the links between health recommendations and scientific principles. During COVID-19, a team of 19 educators, scientists and clinicians designed 25 science inquiry lessons to enhance disease knowledge and prevention strategies among school-aged children. The efficacy of…

The rapid advancements in science and technology have necessitated the adaptation of biology education to enhance students' understanding and critical thinking skills, aligning with the demands of the 21st century. The development of digital modules based on the Science, Environment, Technology, and Society (SETS) framework represents an…

This paper gives a grounded cognition account of model-based learning of complex scientific knowledge related to socio-scientific issues, such as climate change. It draws on the results from a study of high school students learning about the carbon cycle through computational agent-based models and investigates two questions: First, how do…

The purpose of this study was to examine the views of secondary school science teachers regarding the inclusion of socio-scientific issues (SSI) in the curriculum, and the factors that may facilitate or impede their inclusion. A survey administered to 130 science teachers of different background and experiences. The findings revealed that science…

In order to cultivate students to be able to participate in public affairs and make decisions about socioscientific issues (SSI), a web-based module was designed for students to collaboratively engage in the decision-making (DM) process. This study attempted to identify students' discourse characteristics that might lead to formulating an…