Recent reforms in science education advocate for a vision of learning where students "figure out" science ideas through engagement in science practices. Consequently, there have been significant efforts to engage K-12 students in the science practices. However, less research attention has been given to understand how this…

The Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) Model is a systemic approach to science learning and teaching based on five infrastructure pillars: research-based curriculum, differentiated professional development, administrative and community support, materials support, and assessment. This model uses the Science and…

NGSS Early Implementers is a six-year initiative created to help eight California school districts and two charter management organizations, supported by WestEd's K-12 Alliance, implement the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Administrators need learning opportunities if they are to adequately understand the substantial shifts of the Next…

Inverness Research has conducted a "legacy study" focusing on a series of philanthropic investments aimed at improving science education in the San Francisco South Bay Area that extended for over 15 years. Roughly nine school districts enjoyed a steady stream of support for science education improvement that began with funding from the…

In this paper, we examine the NCLB definition of a "highly qualified" teacher, the combined nature of federal and state highly qualified mandates, and how science teachers and their principals in one large, urban district have responded. In particular, we report on the kinds of licenses that teachers of science hold; the relationship…

Speak Up 2007 provided online surveys for K-12 students, teachers, parents (in English and Spanish) and for the first time, school leaders, defined as school principals, technology coordinators, district administrators and school board members. In addition to asking foundational questions about technology use, 21st century skills and schools of…

This document intends to guide school principals through a process for improving the quality of math and science teaching in schools. The project is guided in part by national standards in mathematics and science which provide a vision for student learning that includes a mastery of the basic fundamentals of the subjects complemented by a…

The "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) Act has made schools accountable for assuring adequate yearly progress of students. Therefore, it has become critical to identify school-level variables that can be controlled to affect student achievement, especially given that, thus far, most school reform efforts have failed to significantly affect…

The purposes of this pilot study were to determine if elementary and middle school teachers and principals have similar perceptions of science education, and to compare the teachers' perceptions of science education with their perceptions of the principals' enthusiasm for the teaching of science. The study used three elementary and two middle…

A middle school principal describes her school's exemplary hands-on science program. (PR)

This book contains a compilation of papers presented at the International Conference on Education and New Developments (END 2017), organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). Education, in our contemporary world, is a right since we are born. Every experience has a formative effect on the constitution of the…

This study examines the underlying structure of the teacher language arts and science questionnaires from a project studying the impact of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP). The dimensions of the questionnaire concerning practices and attitudes related to the MSPAP were studied, as well as the extent to which the on-grade…