Background: This study examined the effect of computer-supported collaborative argumentation (CSCA) on secondary school students' understanding of socio-scientific issues (SSI). Engaging students in collaborative argumentation is known to help with deepening their understanding of SSI. Methods: In this study, a mixed-method design is used to…

In today's rapidly advancing world, scientific literacy is becoming increasingly crucial. The ability to understand and critically evaluate scientific information is a key skill for navigating an increasingly complex and technology-driven society. Developing scientific literacy not only boosts individual knowledge but also promotes 21st-century…

Often, composition instructors struggle to encourage STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) students to see the relevance of writing courses to their personal goals. Students' lack of recognition of the importance of literacy skills can lead to disengagement in required college writing courses compared to their so-called…

The current study is about students' engagement with socioscientific issues (SSI). We explored the use of sources of knowledge about SSI and attitudes toward SSI among a sample of 1676 Dutch 8- to 16-year-old students. First, we developed a questionnaire that measured students' use of four sources of knowledge about SSI: Social Resources (online…

Programs that emphasize the important, multifaceted roles that soils play as the interfaces between humanity and the earth are needed to attract new students from diverse backgrounds. The Basic and Environmental Soil Science Training Research Experience for Undergraduates (BESST REU) site aims to provide undergraduates from a variety of science,…

Citizen science's (CS) deployment and benefit over the last ten years have been remarkably substantial in their contributions to the massification of citizen participation in tech-based CS projects. Insights into how CS projects influence community changes through proposals of actions and public policies are essential to understanding how they…

In an increasingly complex media environment, science educators must help prepare students to make decisions on science-related issues that are in the best interest of themselves and their communities. Researchers have suggested the use of socioscientific issues (SSI) to teach students how to think scientifically and to make good decisions…

This study aimed to develop a Nature of Science Understandings Questionnaire within Associated Approaches (NoSQ-AA) by discussing "consensus view" of the teaching of nature of science (NoS) in light of critiques and suggestions. The second purpose of this paper was to evaluate pre-service science teachers (PSSTs)' nature of science…

The demand for the Dongfeng Highway connecting Dongshi and Fengyuan, Taiwan, originates from a 7.3 ML earthquake disaster affecting residents' medical treatment and material transportation. The Dongfeng Highway route selection was identified as the socioscientific issues (SSI) and the Decision Factors Table and SageModeler (two representational…

A perennial goal of science educators is to develop functional scientific literacy in their students, especially those who will not become professional scientists. This article provides an example of implementing a socioscientific issues approach in an undergraduate environmental science course that enables students to develop the knowledge,…

Socially engaged engineering provides for student learning of the design, analysis, and practices of engineering as well as the ways that engineering is situated in sociocultural contexts. This paper provides a conceptual framework regarding socially engaged engineering for K-8 educators, researchers, and curriculum designers. The framework…

Environmental issues in online newspapers allow environmental course instructors to examine social scientific topics in a sustainable. However, it remains a problem for instructors to fully examine the dimensions of knowledge connected to the environment in online newspapers. The purpose of this research is to develop a fundamental framework for…

The instantaneous movement of information and imagery in the current era has fundamentally altered our constructions of reality as the outer world of media becomes a central aspect of the "inner world of society" (Beck, 1996, p.1). In this vein, the very stuff that makes up knowledge, the basic building blocks of our cognition are also…

Controversial scientific issues, or socioscientific issues (SSIs), demand the consideration of more than scientific content when constructing decisions. The Justification for Knowing framework (JFK) was developed to categorize the information sources drawn upon when making SSI decisions within the academic domain of natural sciences. These…

Teachers often struggle to facilitate open discussions about evolution when they perceive it to be at odds with cultural and religious norms. Little is understood about classroom discourse and teacher-student interactions during the teaching of evolution. This study analyzed classroom discourse and teacher-student exchanges in a 10th-grade biology…