The recent inclusion of the "Depth Study" in the New South Wales (NSW) Years 11 and 12 science curriculum has generally been well received by secondary science education leaders. The Depth Study is designed to present an opportunity for students to engage in inquiry-based learning (IBL). However, the integration of this new curriculum…

One of the important questions for any educator is, "How can I teach difficult and abstract concepts in a way that connects with students' real life?". This is especially true in the senior years, when students are often confronted with ideas that don't appear relevant to their lives, are primarily explainable using mathematics rather…

The ability to represent the world like a scientist is difficult to teach; it is more than simply knowing the representations (e.g., graphs, words, equations and diagrams). For meaningful science learning to take place, consideration needs to be given to explicitly integrating representations into instructional methods, linked to the content, and…

Using a mixed-methods approach the authors compared the associated practices of senior physics teachers (n = 7) and students (n = 53) in a 1:1 laptop environment with those of senior biology teachers (n = 10) and students (n = 125) also in a 1:1 laptop environment, in seven high schools in Sydney, NSW, Australia. They found that the physics…

This paper reports on the nature of the conceptual understandings developed by Year 12 Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) physics students as they made the transition from the essentially deterministic notions of classical physics, to interpretations characteristic of quantum theory. The research findings revealed the fact that the…

A variety of factors are associated with students' achievement in secondary school physics, including cohort size--the total number of students studying Physics in the school--and socioeconomic status. Earlier studies also showed boys achieving better in Physics, while more recent research has shown better results for girls. Statistical analysis…

In 2009 the Faculty of Health Sciences at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia is introducing a common first year for 11 different undergraduate courses in the faculty. Current prerequisite science entry requirements vary with course and range from none to at least two science or mathematics subjects and from [approximately]50 to 99 in…

The aim of this research was to explore Australian high-school students' argumentation and informal reasoning about biotechnology. Data were obtained from semi-structured interviews with 10 Year-8 students (12-13 years old), 14 Year-10 students (14-15 years old) and 6 Year-12 students (16-17 years old) from six metropolitan high schools in Perth,…

Describes a year 12 preemployment science course which includes (1) the study of human physiology; (2) construction, maintenance, and repair of science materials; and (3) teaching science to year three and four students at a local primary school. (DS)

This study describes the multiple analogical models used to introduce and teach Grade 12 chemical equilibrium. We examine the teacher's reasons for using models, explain each model's development during the lessons, and analyze the understandings students derived from the models. A case study approach was used and the data were drawn from the…

Volume 1 of the Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank, consisting of two volumes, contains nearly 2000 multiple-choice items related to the chemistry taught in Year 11 and Year 12 courses in Australia. Items which were written during 1979 and 1980 were initially published in the "ACER Chemistry Test Item Collection" and in the "ACER…

The second volume of the Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank, consisting of two volumes, contains nearly 2000 multiple-choice items related to the chemistry taught in Year 11 and Year 12 courses in Australia. Items which were written during 1979 and 1980 were initially published in the "ACER Chemistry Test Item Collection" and in the…

Gender differences in participation and performance at "high stakes" examinations have received much public attention, which has often focused on mathematics and science subjects. This paper describes the innovative forms of assessment introduced into mathematics and science subjects within the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)…