Pilvi Sihvonen, Jaana Herranen, Veera Uusi-Äijö, Maija Aksela
This study investigates teacher agency when teaching about climate change (CC) using a question-based approach. The study was implemented as part of an international project in which teachers’ CC teaching was supported by teacher educators. Teacher agency was studied using semi-structured interviews, which were coded using theory-based content analysis. The study demonstrates that all theory-based agency factors can be identified using this data. In addition, teacher agency was shown to be affected by (a) teachers’ background, especially their sustainability and environment-related background, (b) cultural interaction, (c) the learning environment, (d) discourses in society, and (e) teachers’ thoughts regarding useful principles of CC teaching. We suggest that teacher education should support teachers and schools in the collaborative planning of challenging topics, such as CC. In addition, as teachers possess valuable knowledge and ideas on CC teaching, they should be participating in curriculum planning.
{"title":"Teacher agency in using students’ questions in climate change education","authors":"Pilvi Sihvonen, Jaana Herranen, Veera Uusi-Äijö, Maija Aksela","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13724","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13724","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates teacher agency when teaching about climate change (CC) using a question-based approach. The study was implemented as part of an international project in which teachers’ CC teaching was supported by teacher educators. Teacher agency was studied using semi-structured interviews, which were coded using theory-based content analysis. The study demonstrates that all theory-based agency factors can be identified using this data. In addition, teacher agency was shown to be affected by (a) teachers’ background, especially their sustainability and environment-related background, (b) cultural interaction, (c) the learning environment, (d) discourses in society, and (e) teachers’ thoughts regarding useful principles of CC teaching. We suggest that teacher education should support teachers and schools in the collaborative planning of challenging topics, such as CC. In addition, as teachers possess valuable knowledge and ideas on CC teaching, they should be participating in curriculum planning.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135817221","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This study analyzes pre-school children’s mental representations of their idea of a garden, before and after implementing an educational project. A total of 39 and 43 pairs of drawings (pre-post) are analyzed in children aged four and five years, respectively, using two methods: (1) a quantitative approach, based on counting the frequency with which elements linked to curricular scientific content appear (sun, water, earth, animals, plants and trees), and (2) a qualitative approach, based on the degree of richness and specificity of such elements in the drawings. Both methods provide important information on children’s interest in, and their affective-emotional relationship with, the garden and their learning of science. The choice of curricular scientific content that is explicitly focused on in the garden is considered important from the point of view of teaching, since such content can condition the construction of children’s mental models of a garden, as well as scientific content in higher educational stages.
{"title":"Are gardens useful for promoting early age science education? Evidence from analysis of children’s drawings","authors":"Lourdes Aragón, Inés Ortega-Cubero, Marcia Eugenio-Gozalbo","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13727","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13727","url":null,"abstract":"This study analyzes pre-school children’s mental representations of their idea of a garden, before and after implementing an educational project. A total of 39 and 43 pairs of drawings (pre-post) are analyzed in children aged four and five years, respectively, using two methods: (1) a quantitative approach, based on counting the frequency with which elements linked to curricular scientific content appear (sun, water, earth, animals, plants and trees), and (2) a qualitative approach, based on the degree of richness and specificity of such elements in the drawings. Both methods provide important information on children’s interest in, and their affective-emotional relationship with, the garden and their learning of science. The choice of curricular scientific content that is explicitly focused on in the garden is considered important from the point of view of teaching, since such content can condition the construction of children’s mental models of a garden, as well as scientific content in higher educational stages.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135815547","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In recent years, citizen science has emerged as a vital component of large-scale scientific research, relying on the collaboration of participants and scientists in gathering, analyzing, interpreting, and disseminating new discoveries. Research has shown that citizen science participants not only assist in data collection but also make significant contributions to their scientific and environmental education. However, the wide range of learning process and approach associated with citizen science has resulted in numerous studies using different theories to examine learning outcomes. This paper seeks to compile various learning theories that align with citizen science participation and engagement. The theories to be explored include experiential learning, sociocultural theory, social learning theory, free-choice learning, constructivism learning theory, and situated learning. By synthesizing these theories, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive reference for the growing body of research on learning with citizen scientists.
{"title":"Revolutionizing informal education: Intersection of citizen science and learning theories","authors":"Chia-Hsuan Hsu, Wei-Cheng Kao, Lei Chai","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13726","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13726","url":null,"abstract":"In recent years, citizen science has emerged as a vital component of large-scale scientific research, relying on the collaboration of participants and scientists in gathering, analyzing, interpreting, and disseminating new discoveries. Research has shown that citizen science participants not only assist in data collection but also make significant contributions to their scientific and environmental education. However, the wide range of learning process and approach associated with citizen science has resulted in numerous studies using different theories to examine learning outcomes. This paper seeks to compile various learning theories that align with citizen science participation and engagement. The theories to be explored include experiential learning, sociocultural theory, social learning theory, free-choice learning, constructivism learning theory, and situated learning. By synthesizing these theories, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive reference for the growing body of research on learning with citizen scientists.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135815717","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Research shows that middle school science teachers in the United States rarely integrate history of science or historical cases in their lessons (Hottecke & Allchin, 2020). History of science plays a great role in building robust foundational knowledge in science disciplines, especially in the hearts of middle school students. This article describes a step-by-step teaching technique on how to integrate historical cases in middle school science lessons. In this paper, the author used a historical case of Copernican revolution and the solar system as an illustration to demonstrate how middle school science teachers could effectively explain scientific concepts to their students through historical perspectives.
{"title":"Integrating historical cases in middle school science curriculum: Copernican revolution and the solar system","authors":"Adekunle Lawal","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13688","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13688","url":null,"abstract":"Research shows that middle school science teachers in the United States rarely integrate history of science or historical cases in their lessons (Hottecke & Allchin, 2020). History of science plays a great role in building robust foundational knowledge in science disciplines, especially in the hearts of middle school students. This article describes a step-by-step teaching technique on how to integrate historical cases in middle school science lessons. In this paper, the author used a historical case of Copernican revolution and the solar system as an illustration to demonstrate how middle school science teachers could effectively explain scientific concepts to their students through historical perspectives.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134910569","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kenneth Rolland Thompson, Carl D. Webster, Kirk W. Pomper, Rebecca M. Krall
There is a need for secondary schools to provide more authentic, hands-on experiences in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and, specifically, project-based investigation environments in the classroom that manifest the next generation science standards (NGSS) following practices they prescribe. This study investigated how, and to what extent, a contextualized aquaponics project-based investigation (APBI) 10-week model unit affected high school students’ understanding of standard-based ecological relationships and concepts concerning interactions in ecosystems and, specifically, the phenomena carrying capacity and bacterial nitrification process. Using a quantitative method, quasi-experimental research design, three different student groups who participated in the authentic, hands-on APBI curriculum (i.e., treatment groups) and a control group were given a pre- and post-content-aligned test (n=88), which measured changes in students’ ecological knowledge. The results in this study revealed that the curriculum was an effective method to provide meaningful learning and content understanding of standard-based ecological concepts and relationships. The evidence from this study suggests that authentic instructional experiences can facilitate students’ understanding of standard-based ecological concepts and knowledge of ecosystems, as the three treatment group students showed statistically significantly higher mean difference (improvement) sum scores after taking the pre- and post-content-aligned assessment when compared to the control group. Overall, the gain in understanding can be attributed to the project-enhanced unit implemented in this study. The implications of this study suggest APBI models may create authentic science learning environments that promote student learning of scientific concepts. In addition, APBI can offer engaging curricula that articulates NGSS.
{"title":"Use of a project-based aquaponics curriculum in rural Kentucky school districts increases secondary students’ understanding of ecosystems","authors":"Kenneth Rolland Thompson, Carl D. Webster, Kirk W. Pomper, Rebecca M. Krall","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13687","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13687","url":null,"abstract":"There is a need for secondary schools to provide more authentic, hands-on experiences in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and, specifically, project-based investigation environments in the classroom that manifest the next generation science standards (NGSS) following practices they prescribe. This study investigated how, and to what extent, a contextualized aquaponics project-based investigation (APBI) 10-week model unit affected high school students’ understanding of standard-based ecological relationships and concepts concerning interactions in ecosystems and, specifically, the phenomena carrying capacity and bacterial nitrification process. Using a quantitative method, quasi-experimental research design, three different student groups who participated in the authentic, hands-on APBI curriculum (i.e., treatment groups) and a control group were given a pre- and post-content-aligned test (<i>n</i>=88), which measured changes in students’ ecological knowledge. The results in this study revealed that the curriculum was an effective method to provide meaningful learning and content understanding of standard-based ecological concepts and relationships. The evidence from this study suggests that authentic instructional experiences can facilitate students’ understanding of standard-based ecological concepts and knowledge of ecosystems, as the three treatment group students showed statistically significantly higher mean difference (improvement) sum scores after taking the pre- and post-content-aligned assessment when compared to the control group. Overall, the gain in understanding can be attributed to the project-enhanced unit implemented in this study. The implications of this study suggest APBI models may create authentic science learning environments that promote student learning of scientific concepts. In addition, APBI can offer engaging curricula that articulates NGSS.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134911665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Project-based learning (PjBL) is an instructional approach that promotes active participation and helps students develop their skills and knowledge through engaging in real-world problems or situations. The success of PjBL is dependent on a well-defined method or plan, such as the 21st-century project learning bicycle model or the engineering design model, both of which emphasize the importance of teacher-student relationships. PjBL can be used in any class size and has shown to be effective in building 21st-century skills and deepening students’ understanding of the learning content through real-world experiences. PjBL can be successfully integrated into STEM subjects, and research has shown positive changes in student perceptions, self-efficacy, critical thinking, experimentation, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. Case studies and research have demonstrated PjBL’s effectiveness, including the successful implementation of an 8th-grade integrated science photosynthesis unit in a suburban charter school. Overall, PjBL provides an effective teaching approach that prepares students for success in the 21st-century through hands-on learning experiences.
{"title":"Effectiveness of project-based learning in a junior high science classroom","authors":"Leena McKinney","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13678","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13678","url":null,"abstract":"Project-based learning (PjBL) is an instructional approach that promotes active participation and helps students develop their skills and knowledge through engaging in real-world problems or situations. The success of PjBL is dependent on a well-defined method or plan, such as the 21<sup>st</sup>-century project learning bicycle model or the engineering design model, both of which emphasize the importance of teacher-student relationships. PjBL can be used in any class size and has shown to be effective in building 21<sup>st</sup>-century skills and deepening students’ understanding of the learning content through real-world experiences. PjBL can be successfully integrated into STEM subjects, and research has shown positive changes in student perceptions, self-efficacy, critical thinking, experimentation, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. Case studies and research have demonstrated PjBL’s effectiveness, including the successful implementation of an 8<sup>th</sup>-grade integrated science photosynthesis unit in a suburban charter school. Overall, PjBL provides an effective teaching approach that prepares students for success in the 21<sup>st</sup>-century through hands-on learning experiences.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135827575","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Scientific literacy is significant to follow the advancements in the 21st century. Science education enables raising scientifically literate individuals with educational approaches. One of the approaches that is used in science education is project-based learning (PBL). The aim of the study is to present the studies on PBL in terms of science education by using a comprehensive literature review. The studies between the years 2013 and 2023 were reviewed based on the determined keywords and a total of 25 journal articles were included in the study. The findings of the reviewed articles were categorized as PBL’s effects on students, PBL’s effects on teachers, and PBL’s implementations with opportunities, and challenges. Mostly, there was found a statistically significant effect of PBL on students and teachers. The opportunities and challenges of PBL during the implementation were presented in the study. The study also provides some recommendations for stakeholders.
{"title":"Project-based learning in science education: A comprehensive literature review","authors":"Gozde Kurt, Kemal Akoglu","doi":"10.29333/ijese/13677","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29333/ijese/13677","url":null,"abstract":"Scientific literacy is significant to follow the advancements in the 21<sup>st</sup> century. Science education enables raising scientifically literate individuals with educational approaches. One of the approaches that is used in science education is project-based learning (PBL). The aim of the study is to present the studies on PBL in terms of science education by using a comprehensive literature review. The studies between the years 2013 and 2023 were reviewed based on the determined keywords and a total of 25 journal articles were included in the study. The findings of the reviewed articles were categorized as PBL’s effects on students, PBL’s effects on teachers, and PBL’s implementations with opportunities, and challenges. Mostly, there was found a statistically significant effect of PBL on students and teachers. The opportunities and challenges of PBL during the implementation were presented in the study. The study also provides some recommendations for stakeholders.","PeriodicalId":495938,"journal":{"name":"Interdisciplinary journal of environmental and science education","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135826390","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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