The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), are the biggest change to American science education since the National Science Education Standards (NSES) were published. While inquiry was central to the NSES, science assessment largely addressed factual knowledge acquisition. The NGSS represent a significant practical change for teachers as they…

This paper reflects upon a discussion via wiki, face-to-face, and telephone concerning the processes involved in the national accreditation of teacher education programs in science. Specifically, five professors and administrators from public and private institutions, across the nation were involved in the discussion. Our collective reflections…

The authors conducted a test to determine whether they could incorporate a discovery box into a preschool setting was successful. It stimulated the students' natural inquiry processes while promoting understanding of healthy foods and allowing for practice of fine-motor skills. It was easily incorporated into the curriculum and classroom space.…

Students' scientific investigations have been identified in national standards and related reform documents as a critical component of students' learning experiences in school, yet it is not easy to implement them in science classrooms. Could science demonstrations help science teachers put this recommendation into practice? While demonstrations…

This article is about an investigation of six middle school science teachers' beliefs and instructional practice about the coherence of the science they teach as articulated by National Science Education Standards (NRC, 1996). Many well intentioned reform efforts focus on improving content knowledge of teachers, but many classroom teachers…

Administrative support is essential for reform efforts to take place at the building and district level. This study explored barriers teachers encountered while implementing science education reform and the impact those barriers had on change in instructional practices and reform. Findings in this study reveal that support from administration is…

This study focused on two middle schools in the central US who participated in collaborative, sustained, whole-school professional development in implementing inquiry as part of National Science Education Standards, or standards-based instructional practices. Participants were involved in their second year of the professional development…