As increasing numbers of families migrate from a range of countries into communities where Western science is viewed as valued curriculum content, a need for understanding the cultural nature of teaching Western science has become more urgent. The study reported in this paper sought to investigate pedagogical responses to everyday and scientific…

As part of a project concerned with developing a better understanding of the detail of appropriate teaching of direct current (DC) electricity concepts, extensive individual interviews were conducted with a number of experienced senior high school physics teachers. These interviews explored teachers' perceptions of difficulties in student learning…

Typically-Perceived-Situation (TPS) refers to the situation rising spontaneously in an individual's mind when she/he first thinks of a phenomenon or concept. The purpose of this study is to go well beyond the many studies that describe conceptions of force and explore children's TPS of "force is acting on a thing" and "force is not…

When Peter Fensham was appointed to the new Chair of Science Education at Monash University in 1967 he was the first Professor of Science Education in Australia, and, we think, may well have been the first such professor anywhere in the world outside USA. Over the subsequent 40+ years he has made/still makes remarkable and diverse contributions to…

This study investigates the ideas and beliefs of a small group of high school science teachers about student observations in the science classroom. Student views on science classroom observations have been previously reported on, but teachers and their students' ideas about observation is a very little researched area in science education. There…

Science faculty at one Australian school initiated a school-based professional development program that accommodated their needs through a collaborative approach to observation and discussion of their classroom teaching. Interviews indicated that they considered the program valuable and adapted it to their changing needs. The impetus for change…

Reports on how science teachers might work to improve their students' use of science process skills in ways that will contribute to their meaningful learning during laboratory activities. (Author/WRM)

In order to improve physics education some believe that it is necessary to consider teachers' view of quality learning in a specific content context. This report was developed to provide descriptions and comparisons of the conceptions of quality learning held by twelfth grade teachers (n=14) and academics of physics. Results revealed that among…

As is the case with most developed countries, pressures from various sectors of society have seen computers make a big presence in Australian education systems in the last decade. In the state of Victoria, integrating learning technology (LT) into all key learning areas of every school's curriculum has been a priority policy of governments. Over…

Presents the idea of teachers as researchers in Australia. Summarizes each study presented in Research in Science Education, volume 30. (YDS)

This paper describes the rationale for and progress in a substantial research project that aims to develop an understanding of science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge. The background to and purposes for the project are explained. Related projects that study pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) are also described. Approaches to identifying…

In coming to better value teachers' knowledge and practice, there is a need to be able to articulate and document what teachers know and are able to do. This is central in coming to understand pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This paper presents a working understanding of PCK as it has emerged through a research project and describes the…

Describes a Conceptual Understanding Procedure (CUP) designed to improve students' understanding of difficult concepts in senior secondary physics. CUPs are based on a constructivist view of learning, target individual students' ideas, and use cooperative learning. Though designed in a physics context, CUPs have equal applicability in other…

Describes three physics-related structured discussion tasks developed in cooperation with high school physics teachers. Presents the reactions of teachers and students to classroom use of the tasks. (Contains 23 references.) (Author/WRM)

This paper explores perspectives on self-study in teaching and in research through a longitudinal school-based professional development program for science teachers. The exploration focused on two broad perspectives: (1) self-study can be both personal and collaborative; and (2) self-study can be of teaching and of research. The professional…