Current science education reform efforts highlight the importance of engaging students in scientifically oriented questions as a central dimension of inquiry-based elementary science. However, elementary teachers, particularly beginning teachers, must often overcome a variety of challenges to engage their students in reform-minded,…

This research presents a case study of two teachers' emphasis on students' academic identity as a means of facilitating their science literacy development. These cases support a theoretical position that deconstructs the notion of normative science literacy into its constitutive components: (a) being scientific and (b) appropriating its literate…

Classrooms across the United States increasingly find White teachers paired with ethnic minority students, but few of these teachers are prepared for the disparities such cultural integration presents. This is particularly true vis-a-vis science education. While classrooms have diversified, science instruction has not necessarily followed suit.…

Curriculum analysis, modification, and enactment are core components of teacher practice. Beginning teachers rely heavily on curriculum materials that are often of poor quality to guide their practice. As a result, we argue that preservice teachers need to learn how to use curriculum materials for effective teaching. To address this concern, the…

Investigates the effect of modeling analogy on learning of the concepts of electricity in grade 6, 8, and 10. Describes 2 analogies (train analogy and thermal analogy) with diagrams and examples. Discusses the accessibility, transferability, and difficulty of each analogy. Reports treatment effect and some further implications. (YP)

Examines the reading level and potential comprehension level of 10 fourth-grade science textbooks. Reports that there is a great deal of variability between and within the science texts. (YP)

Examines childrens' (age 8-14) conceptions of shadow formation through interviews. Identifies "the trigger model" of shadows and finds that there are multiple roles that children attribute to light. (YP)

Israeli children's (kindergarten to grade nine) explanations about the water cycle are described. Reports the children's views about the source of clouds and the mechanism of rainfall. It was concluded that understanding evaporation is a necessary condition for explaining a mechanism of rain containing the ideas of condensation and heaviness. (YP)

This study reports the preferences students expressed in regard to problem-solving modes for resolving environmental problems. There were many differences between students at different grades and between girls and boys. Implications for teaching are suggested. (YP)

Reported is a summary and review of over 300 research papers published in 1987. The review is organized into four sections: (1) "Learners and Learning"; (2) "Teachers and Teaching"; (3) "Curriculum and Instruction"; and (4) "Context and Settings." (YP)

Reported is a summary and review of over 300 research papers published in 1988. The review is organized into 10 sections: (1) "Professional Concerns"; (2) "Teacher Education"; (3) "Programs"; (4) "Curriculum"; (5) "Instruction"; (6) "Conceptual Development"; (7) "Problem…