The aim of this study was to determine the effects of selection, educational background, age and gender on strength of motivation to attend and pursue medical school. Graduate entry (GE) medical students (having Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences or related field) and Non-Graduate Entry (NGE) medical students (having only completed high school),…

In this paper, the authors analyse the conceptual contents related to plant nutrition in the widely-used school texts of six Spanish publishers. An analysis dossier was elaborated based on the epistemological and pedagogical study of this subject. The publishers deal with the issue of plant nutrition at three different levels (multicellular,…

The results are presented of a survey comparing the perceptions of first and second year bioscience students regarding their experience of feedback on coursework. The two cohorts displayed similar levels of satisfaction regarding the quantity and timing of feedback, even though changes in assessment format entailed different actual experiences. By…

Enterprise education at Newcastle University, UK, is embedded in the fabric of the curriculum via the Newcastle University Graduate Skills Framework. An example of this is the "Business for the Bioscientist" module. The authors discuss this module with regard to good practice, enterprise development and the wider arena of graduate…

Most developed societies have become increasingly multicultural and as such their educational institutions are required to educate increasingly diverse student cohorts. International students differ greatly in their education and language backgrounds and tend to fall into different age groups as well. It is a challenging task to accommodate all…

We estimate the magnitude of spillovers generated by 161 academic "superstars" onto their collaborators' research output. These life scientists died while still being actively engaged in science, thus providing an exogenous source of variation in the structure of their collaborators' coauthorship networks. Following the death of a superstar, we…

Rhetoricians have tried to develop a better understanding of the connection between words and things, but these attempts often employ a logic of representation that undermines a full examination of materiality and the complexity of scientific practice. A logic of articulation offers a viable alternative by focusing attention on the linkages…

In order to increase engagement and to consolidate skills, a tutorial-based skills course (module) was introduced as a compulsory component of first-year in the School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen. We evaluated whether students had attained certain "graduate attributes" during the course, comprising: transferable and…

We draw on the theory of allostasis to develop an integrative model of the current stress process that highlights the brain as a dynamically adapting interface between the changing environment and the biological self. We review evidence that the core emotional regions of the brain constitute the primary mediator of the well-established association…

The Science Learning Assessment (SLA) is an individually administered, instructionally sensitive science assessment for kindergarten students. The SLA is a 24-item objective test, broken down into two subtests. The Scientific Inquiry Processes subtest consists of 9 items designed to measure young children's functional understanding of the nature…

The purpose of this study was to examine the source, nature, and degree of influence of role models and mentors on female graduate students' choice of science as a career. Also examined was the existence of gender or area-of-study (engineering, biological science, physical sciences) differences. Results of a factor analysis of the Influence of…

This study investigates teacher content knowledge of candidates enrolled in an online graduate teacher certification programme. Descriptive data and linear regression were used to draw conclusions about the content area knowledge of individuals in the sample and the significance of the predictors examined. Descriptive data show 1/3 of the 8-12…

Issues surrounding gender discrimination have been addressed over the past 40 years with various pieces of legislation and federal policies that have made such discrimination illegal. The number of women in higher education as students and faculty has steadily increased since the 1950s, though only in certain disciplines and in the lower faculty…

The authors compare Spanish faculty use of library services and the interest they express in value-added services and improvement actions. The results are based on data from a survey of 546 faculty in the field of science and technology. The study differentiates between the areas of pure science, engineering and architecture, and life sciences.…

One of the guiding principles in curriculum design is the need to achieve constructive alignment between intended learning outcomes, learning activities, and assessment. Indeed studies carried out in the 1970s reported on the "hidden curriculum"; it was not in fact teaching but assessment that played the largest part in guiding students' learning.…