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College instructors often teach scientific thinking by asking students to review and analyze a primary research article. The main purpose of this study was to explore how classroom response systems (CRS) could help impact the quality of written analysis papers submitted for this assignment by students taking 100-level biology courses at a medium-sized suburban, two-year college in the northeastern United States. Students in all participating course sections received written instructions on five key elements of critical analysis (CA) to include in scientific study analysis papers. Classroom instruction on recognizing these key elements in primary research papers was provided either via CRS or via an instructor-facilitated classroom discussion enhanced by the same PowerPoint presentation. A rubric, designed specifically for this assignment, was validated prior to its use in this study. Fifty students participated in the study, and those who received the CRS intervention achieved significantly higher CA scores for identifying implications of study findings, while the group that received only written instructions achieved significantly higher CA scores for discussing the credibility of the references used by the authors in planning the critiqued study. The implications of this study are discussed along with ideas for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper brings together research on slope from mathematics education and research on line of best fit from statistics education by considering what knowledge of slope students transfer to a novel task involving determining the placement of an informal line of best fit. This study focuses on two students who transitioned from placing inaccurate to accurate lines of best fit during a task-based interview. The analysis focuses on describing shifts in slope reasoning that accompanied the change to accurately placed lines, and investigates factors that may have influenced the shift in reasoning. The results have implications for the teaching of both slope and the line of best fit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing attention has been given over the last decade by the statistics, mathematics and science education communities to the development of statistical literacy and numeracy skills of all citizens and the enhancement of statistics education at all levels. This paper introduces the emerging discipline of statistics education and considers its role in the development of these important skills. The paper begins with information on the growing importance of statistics in today's society, schools and colleges, summarizes unique challenges students face as they learn statistics, and makes a case for the importance of collaboration between mathematicians and statisticians in preparing teachers to teach students how to understand and reason about data. We discuss the differences and interrelations between statistics and mathematics, recognizing that mathematics is the discipline that has traditionally included instruction in statistics. We conclude with an argument that statistics should be viewed as a bridge between mathematics and science and should be taught in both disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construct of science achievement -- what K-12 students should know and be able to do in science--is central to science education reform. This paper examines current conceptions of science achievement in major reform documents in the context of standards-based and systemic reform. The paper reviews documents on (a) science content standards, including the National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996) and Project 2061 (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1989, 1993); (b) performance standards in the New Standards Project (National Center on Education and the Economy, 1997a, 1997b, 1997c, 1998); and (c) assessment frameworks, including the 1996 National Assessment of Educational Progress (National Assessment Governing Board, 1994, 1996) and the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (Martin & Kelly, 1996; McKnight, Schmidt, & Raizen, 1993; Robitallie et al., 1993). Although there is an overall agreement on the conceptions of science achievement among the documents, there are also noticeable differences. Based on the analysis of the five sets of documents, an aggregated view of science achievement is presented in terms of science content and process. Implications for promoting science achievement in standards-based and systemic reform are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines secondary science teachers 'perspectives of the role that mentoring by a scientist and science educator pair played in their professional development. Multiple data sources from three years of a professional development project, including interviews, participant reflections, and a focus group, were used to examine the benefits, supporting characteristics, and challenges of the mentoring relationship. Results indicated that primary benefits of the mentoring included assistance in translating science content and inquiry- based pedagogy from the professional development into practice and breaking the isolation felt by secondary science teachers. Specific characteristics that were found to support the teachers in the mentoring relationship included: (1) mentors who were seen as objective, outside observers; (2) a sustained relationship with the mentors; and (3) accountability. Challenges included matching scientists' and science educators' content expertise with teachers' curriculum and the negotiation of roles and expectations between the teachers and mentors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper documents the development of the Geometric Spatial Assessment. We detail the development of this instrument which was designed to identify middle school students' strategies and advancement in understanding offour geometric concept domains (geometric spatial visualization, spatial projection, cardinal directions, and periodic patterns) after experiencing a carefully designed integrated lunar unit. Previous research with students using this lunar unit showed students making significant gains on lunar-related concepts (both scien4fic and mathematical) on a Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) (Lindell & Olsen, 2002). Following the administration ofsingle domain assessments, clinical interviews were conducted to ascertain students `problem solving strategies. Results allowed us to select four suitable multiple-choice items per domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This theoretical paper proposes a way to extend the partitive and measurement interpretations of whole number division to fractional contexts focusing on the issue of units. We define the unit-changing and unit-keeping interpretations for division and suggest a stronger and earlier focus on the concept of units in courses for prospective elementary teachers. As we highlight the importance of the concept of unit, we use the proposed interpretations in the analysis of one example that emerged in our methods course, discuss the idea of inverting and multiplying, and suggest implications for teacher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An enduring concern among science education researchers is the "swing away from science" (Osborne, 2003). One of their central dilemmas is to identify--or construct--a valid outcome measure that could assess curricular effectiveness, and predict students choices of science courses, university majors, or careers in science. Many instruments have been created and variably evaluated. The primary purpose of this paper was to re-evaluate the psychometric properties of the Image of Science and Scientists Scale (ISSS) (Krajkovich 1978). In the current study, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to examine the dimensionality of the 29-item ISSS, which was administered to 531 middle school students in three San Antonio, Texas school districts at the beginning of the 2004-2005 school year. The results failed to confirm the presumed 1-factor structure of the ISSS, but instead showed a 3-factor structure with only marginal fit with the data, even after removal of 12 inadequate items. The three dimensions were "Positive Images of Scientists" (5 items), "Negative Images of Scientists" (9 items), and "Science Avocation" (3 items). The results do not support use of the original form of the ISSS for measuring "attitudes toward science," "images of scientists," or "scientific attitudes. "Shortening the scale from 29 to 17 items makes it more feasible to use in a classroom setting. Determining whether the three dimensions identified in our analysis, "Positive Images of Scientists," "Negative Images of Scientists," and "Science Avocation" contain useful assessments of middle school student impressions and attitudes will require independent investigation in other samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This" paper reports on creative partnerships to create learning communities to benefit students', parents', and teachers in the urban, setting. Science Camp is a university day camp offering problem-based science exploration for urban middle school students' and an introduction to college life. For parents it is an opportunity to learn about college opportunities for their children and to gather information about funding sources. For middle school science teachers and preservice teachers it is a learning laboratory for conducting problem-based learning in the urban setting. The findings describe the effects of the learning communities on the transformation of students, parents, preservice teachers, and in-service teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past 7 years the authors have been involved in the development of a new model for the education of science teachers that has the potential to address teacher education in challenging urban settings characterized by problems such as teacher turnover and retention, low job satisfaction, and contradictions arising from cultural and ethnic diversity. An intensive research program accompanied the development effort; the research results were used as resources in redesigning the evolving model to make it more appropriate for the situations at hand The science teacher education program at an urban university was built around a yearlong field experience, during which all prospective teachers learned to teach in an urban high school while coteaching, that is, while teaching at the elbow of a mentor teacher or one or more peers. Over this period a number of different configurations of coteaching and the associated cogenerative dialoguing were tried tested, and investigated The paper describes the historical development of the different configurations of the model and the emergent contradictions that led the researchers to enact changes to their approach. The central idea in the development effort was the creation of an environment that (a) best affords the learning of how to teach in urban high schools, (b) decreases teacher isolation, (c) mitigates turnover and retention, and (d) addresses contradictions arising from the cultural and ethnic diversity of students and teachers. Most importantly, this model of teacher education and enhancement simultaneously multiplies the resources and opportunities to support the learning of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores what happens when students engage with mathematical tasks that make no attempt to be connected with students' everyday life experiences. The investigation draws on the work of educators who call for a broader view of what might count as real and relevant contexts for studying mathematics. It investigates students' experiences with two imaginative tasks and reports on the students' intellectual and emotional engagement. This engagement is examined and described in terms of the character and quality of the class and group discussions generated. Findings suggest that students can indeed engage productively with mathematics when it is explored in imaginative settings and that such contexts can help students support and sustain their engagement with the mathematics in the task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For two summers, week-long residential mathematics' programs were held for high school women, with the primary goal of encouraging them to continue their study of mathematics. The activities were designed to rekindle their excitement about mathematics and to support the idea that women should learn advanced mathematics. This paper reports the findings of the data collected to assess the programs. Statistically significant changes were found in student attitudes, confidence level, willingness to continue working on a problem, and perception of the value of group work. Journal entries confirmed the statistical analysis. Follow-up surveys also indicated that the summer programs changed the way the participants perceived mathematics and mathematics courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]