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The article discusses the reforms in the science education curriculum in the developing country of Israel. The author reflects that Israel's drive to modernize science teaching was directed entirely towards elementary and secondary schools. He highlights the country's educational structure and system, with the Ministry of Education controlling the entire school system. Efforts on shortening the elementary years has been hampered due to lack of suitable teachers. He also highlights reforms on various subjects such as physics, chemistry and biology and the introduction of computer science study. He suggests that other developing countries may find Israel's educational system relevant in learning other systems.

The article discusses the challenges faced by biologists in the peak of space exploration in the 20th century. Accordingly, biologists will likewise soon face a wider perspective within their own fields now that nearby planets are being examined and scrutinized. Considered entailed with outer space exploration are several tests like determining whether extraterrestrial life similar to that of Earth life is existing; examining whether some chemical basis which is allegedly fundamental to Earth life subsists; and testing whether the theory of the origin of life or the hypothesis of panspermia is creditable. Moreover, aside from these responsibilities, the era of exploration likewise gives biologists extra burdens by seeing whether there may be biological consequences itself.

The article discusses the history of the conflict concerning genetics in the Soviet Union. The conflict between the Soviet political philosophy and biology teachings started in the misinterpretation of Darwinism. Darwin's theory of evolution was rejected by the Russian protagonist T. D. Lysenko, for it does not require the assumption that the genes of an individual can be transmitted by heredity to their offsprings. Gene theory was formulated by Gregor Mendel that traces hereditary traits to submicroscopic elements, the genes. The anti-Westernism by the Soviet leaders after 1945 lead Lysenko and his followers to attack the free scientific inquiry of genetics. In Lysenko's speech, he pointed out that Michurinist principles are the only scientific principles.

The article studies on the problems of preservice biology teachers on decision-makings. The study was carried out in the period of 1970-1973 at the Department of Agricultural Education of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel. In order to establish an objective external criterion, the test was administered to a handpicked group of 20 experienced secondary-school biology teachers, personally known to the authors, and known to be exhibiting the desired type of teacher behavior. The desirable teacher in the study was defined as process oriented.

The article presents a study which examines the relationships among achievement in science, directiveness of teaching style, and cognitive preferences through the use of high school biology students. Data gathered from each subject were analyzed by analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and correlation coefficients. Results of the study indicate that students who display a string preference for application tend to achieve more than those who display a strong preference for memory. Moreover, data suggests that a nondirective teaching style produces greater achievement than a directive teaching style.

The article focuses on the risk-taking in the explanation of biological events. Risk-taking is measured by the Extremity-Confidence of Hypothesis Test and the Risk-Taking Verbal Observation Scale, was analyzed within 2X2 and 2X3 factorial designs. The independent variables consisted of two levels of group arrangement for discussion. Results of the study have shown that verbal risk-taking is influenced by differential knowledge of the information and the composition of a discussion group based on the members' measured achievement motivation. No differences were noted in the comparison groups on risk-taking as measured by the Extremity-Confidence of Hypothesis Test. Based on the results of this study, the suggestion that risk-taking is a multidimensional trait is supported, and the magnitude of its expression may be influenced by differential treatments.

The article focuses on the analysis of the relationship which exists between cognitive and affective educational objectives. The analytical study was designed to probe the relationship which exists between cognitive and affective educational objectives in the biology. The results of the study support the view that effective affective evaluation is more evasive than effective cognitive evaluation. The three types of educational products described above lack generalizability and other behavioral objectives.

Causal modelling procedures developed in economics and biology provide social scientists with powerful methodological tools that permit them to bridge the gap between theory and research. In this paper one type of causal modelling technique involving a structural set of equations that are recursive in form has been used to reanalyze the data from two empirical studies that have appeared in the literature. The paper demonstrates how models of this form broaden the scope of the usual regression analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the design of natural science as a subject in primary and grammar grades. Three closely related courses are presented; Course I, deals with the pedagogics of nature study and includes practical works like asking the students to describe and interpret the landscape with which they are most familiar and requiring them to make a sketch of the landscape in color. Course II, focuses on Chemistry and includes the investigation of the composition of different leaves and fruits, the study of the ultimate composition of the substances found, and the subject's pedagogy, its place in the work of the elementary and of the secondary school. Course III, on the other hand, deals everything with relation to biology.

This study compared inductive and traditional methods of teaching high school biology laboratory experiments. The use of an open-inductive method yielded different results for laboratory behavior, for learning environment in the classroom and for academic achievement from that of the traditional deductive method. The inductive method resulted in more independent behavior on the part of students and less direct behavior on the part of teachers. These results indicate that a teacher who hopes to foster greater independence in his science students may try using laboratory activities which are constructed as open-ended investigations. The teacher should use behavior which is indirect and maintain passive supervision.

This section presents a list of articles related to historical documents of significance to science educators published in several journals. The articles include "Science in Elementary Education," by Frances P. Boyd, "Natural Science in the Common Schools," by C. Dewey, "Vitalizing High School Physics," by Jay Hyde, "A History of Nature Study, Part I," by Dora O. Mitchell and "Origins of High School General Biology," by Sidney Rosen.

In examining achievement between students in college biology, one group (N=41) was taught using conventional methods; the other group (N=38) was taught using the audio-tutorial method developed after the Posflethwait model. The Pretest-Posttest Control Group Design described by Campbell and Stanley, was used; students were also grouped by aptitude as described by the ACT composite percentile rank. Both the conventional and audio-tutorial groups of students were given identical content areas in biology during a Fall semester. Results indicated no significant difference in achievement between the two groups, nor was there a significant difference in achievement among the aptitude subgroups. This result is in agreement with Durst, but in disagreement with Russell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which aims to identify currently credible concepts in biology considered to be important for inclusion in K-12 curricula. The procedures employed in this study make use of scientists at the front of knowledge from the beginning and include scientists and educators with a variety of orientations. This resulted in a free flow of new information; evaluation of each statement by panels of colleagues for precision, credibility, completeness, and importance; and judgment by educators and teachers at to their importance to the education of youth. The concepts identified in this study and the importance attached to them by the national panel should be considered in developing K-12 science curricula. Hence, the concepts resulting from this study should, like all lists, be re-evaluated and revised periodically.

The article focuses on the priorities and expectations in the teaching objectives in biology. Furthermore, it is generally conceded that a definition of teaching objectives has to precede curriculum construction as well as curriculum evaluation, and must serve as a guiding principle for any teaching process. The aims and objectives of the study includes: (1) securing the views and preferences of teachers regarding the relative merits and importance of stated teaching objectives; (2) procuring data on the expectations possessed by teachers to the relative attainment of certain objectives by students; and (3) establishing the relationship between priorities and expectations expressed by the same teachers.

The article presents a study on the use and evaluation of selected industry-sponsored publications for teaching contemporary biology. A series of investigations was conducted to examine the potential of selected industry-sponsored learning aids for increasing levels of knowledge about specific aspects of contemporary biology in various academic groups. The investigations were undertaken for the following objectives: (1) to determine levels of knowledge relating to certain contemporary notions about molecular and cellular biology among various academic groups, and (2) to determine the relative effectiveness of various methods of utilizing industry-sponsored publications to extend knowledge and concepts about biology at the molecular and cellular levels in general education science courses for non-science majors, or in science education courses for prospective and in-service teachers.

The article provides a regression analysis of antecedent measures of slow sections in high school biology. The problem associated with the identification, selection and placement of students into slow sections of science classes continue to frustrate the science teachers. This frustration has been in part due to the difficulty of defining a slow-learner and specifically, within the context of a science class.

The article focuses on the pre-service and in-service education of Biology teachers. The author foresees a positive future of a course such as this for in-service and preservice training. Certainly in the years to come, work will be carried outside the formal classroom. There will be a spreading of valuable educational centers and mass transportation facilities by which to reach them. The mechanized storage and retrieval of the massive accumulation of knowledge will put it within the reach of all. Finally, there will be a movement away from regional emphasis of teaching biology and toward universal application.

The article presents a study of cognitive subsumption in the life sciences. The purpose of the study is to test the hypothesis that acquisition and retention of unfamiliar, but meaningful, verbal material can be facilitate by the advance introduction of relevant subsuming concepts or organizers. This is based on the assumption that the cognitive structure is hierchically organized in terms of highly inclusive concepts under which are gathered less inclusive subconcepts and information. The study utilized two major concepts of modern biology as expository organizers: level of biological condition and homeostasis.

The article focuses on the use of electronic response system in teaching biology. An electronic response system has been designed and built by the Biology Department at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. The Ball State electronic response system was constructed for use in a large enrollment general education biology course. In a research study, nine group-paced linear programs were written for use with the system. Results of the study indicate that with the well-designed programs, electronic response teaching is highly effective and offers colleges a significant new approach to instruction.

The article focuses on the various aspects of content-learning in a process-oriented curriculum of BSCS Biology in Israel. Three main questions were asked which relates to: (1) the level of subject-mastery attained by BSCS pupils; (2) the level of subject-mastery of BSCS pupils as compared with matched conventional groups; and (3) the degree of functionality of acquired subject-matter. The author generalized that: (1) absolute subject-matter mastery by BSCS pupils within the selected biological topics did not reached levels hoped-for; (2) BSCS pupils gained more information than matched-comparison groups; (3) the measure of functionality of acquired information was unsatisfactory in both populations; and (4) further research is necessary to show whether the unsatisfactory achievement by BSCS pupils.

The article focuses on the study which aims to determine the effect of using the demonstration method in teaching biology. Furthermore, the study examines the historical role of the demonstration method in biological pedagogy. The factors that have influenced the trends in the use of demonstrations in teaching biology includes: (1) the nature of biology; (2) the social and economic climate of the time; and (3) the prevailing philosophy of education. The author assesses the major historical periods in the development of the demonstration method. The changing role of the method is not due to positive educational research but the inconclusiveness of the research.

The article focuses on the examination of the relationship of academic achievement to success in content centered and process centered biology laboratories. Significantly, the effects of the differential treatments were ascertained through the analysis of results on pre test and post test administration of various educational tests and measurements. The relationship of academic achievement to success are ascertained through the computation of correlation coefficient between quantitative estimates of high school achievement and student scores. The results of the study reveals that high school achievement cannot be used as a basis for predicting success in process-centered laboratories. The conclusions presented in the study support certain recommendations regarding the laboratory experience to be associated with general laboratory course for college freshmen.

The article focuses on the examination of the relationship of student values to success in content centered and process centered biology laboratories. Significantly, the laboratory settings includes: (1) the content-centered laboratory is where student activities revolve around explicit directions as presented by the laboratory manual or instructor; and (2) the process-centered laboratory is where students are engaged in the solution of problems which have been defined by the teachers or by themselves. Furthermore, findings have indicated that neither the two laboratory environments categorically more effective than the other. The author noted the following observations: (1) there is a negative correlation between social value scores and process-centered gains in science attitude; and (2) negative correlation between gains in interest in biology and religious value scores.

The article presents a study on establishing a biology team by the Millikan High School in an effort to improve instruction. The primary reason for establishing a biology team was to improve the quality of teaching and learning by providing a greater variety of better planned through the maximum use of personnel and equipment. Four teams each consisting of four periods during the day. Students were divided by period into eight groups of no more than seventeen students. Groups were designated by period, segment and sub-segment group. The sub-segment groups contained no more that seventeen students. The segment groups consisted of no more than thirty-five students and the period groups of no more than 136 students. Students were randomly assigned to team classes and to traditionally taught classes. The test was administered to both groups.

The article examines the academic science preparation of Idaho high school biology teachers for the 1964-65 school year. Table I presents a recapitulation of the undergraduate majors of Idaho biology teachers. Table II shows general preparation among biology majors and minors and non-majors and non-minors in all science areas. Table III lists some comparative data between teachers prepared in Idaho and those receiving their biology preparation from Utah institutions and those prepares in states other than Idaho or Utah. The descriptive areas of biology and college biology courses is being presented in table IV.

This article presents a research on the concepts of biology teaching in secondary schools in the U.S. The biology teaching and its implications for the citizens are discussed in this article. An examination of the errors in orthodox biology teaching are being done. The results of the research on the scientific literacy were also presented. Sample test questions to illustrate the types of response required was also given in this article. A suggestion that researchers in the field of transfer of learning are unanimous in holding that transfer must be specifically thought was made.

The article presents a research which aims to determine which pattern of instruction, team teaching or conventional, produced greater achievement in high school biology. Team teaching was defined as a situation structured through the cooperative efforts of two or more teachers, collectively responsible for planning, instruction, testing, grading, scheduling, disciplining, counseling, and effecting parent relations with the experimental group of students. Conventional instruction on the other hand, is a situation structured through the efforts of a single teacher and including a number of pupils that was usual for the particular school involved. The tests employed in the study include a Biology Pretest and five unit achievement tests.

The article demonstrates the extraterrestrial life detection techniques used in the study of exobiology in the high school biology laboratory. Introducing the study of exobiology to students at the high school level can serve to enhance and reinforce the biological learnings of a terrestrial nature. The study of exobiology will introduce the rarely seen science of astronomy into the interdisciplinary structure of biology. The Gulliver is a life detecting instrument which detects bacterial growth by determining the formation of radioactive carbon dioxide from carbon labeled substrates. Another instrument, the Multivator, attempts to detect microbe life by the presence of specific catalysts, particularly phosphatase. Measurement of microbiological growth is the basis of an instrument known as the Wolf Trap.

The article discusses the effect of a year's study of chemistry on the standardized Biological Science Curriculum Study (BSCS) Blue Version biology taken in the sophomore year at the Oak Park and River Forest High School in Illinois. The study also examined the effect of a selected freshman class having BSCS Blue Version biology on the standardized chemistry study course. It also evaluated the feasibility of teaching a mathematically oriented chemistry course to freshmen with an algebra background. According to the article, the BSCS course was based on the book "Biological Science: Molecules to Man" while the chemistry course was based on "Chemistry: An Experimental Science".

The article describes a study investigating the effect of critical-thinking ability on final grades received by students in biology courses. Critical thinking is defined as one of the activities which are essential to problem solving at the stage when various hypotheses are being examined. When a student encounters a problem, he should be able to evaluate the hypotheses and select the appropriate method for attacking the problem. The course grade given to a student is a symbol of evaluation by the teacher. The study sample consisted of twenty biology classrooms of 416 students, which were selected from suburban high schools of Chicago, Illinois. A total of 11 teachers were involved in the study. The critical-thinking test was used both as a pre-test and as a post-test. There were 100 items in the test, called the Critical Thinking Appraisal, and these were to be completed in forty minutes by most pupils in the ninth grade and above. The test has been designed to provide problems and situations which require the application of some of the important abilities involved in critical thinking. The students who received the highest final grades were the ones who possessed the highest critical-thinking ability.

The article reports on findings of a study of Missouri science programs conducted at the University of Missouri under the direction of Dean Bob Woods during the 1966-1967 school year. According to the study, about three-fifths of the 182 schools surveyed had changed their science curriculum during the period from 1960-1961 to 1966-1967. It adds that 90 percent of both the urban and suburban schools had revised their curricula during the period as compared to less than 50 percent of the rural schools. Several curriculum projects funded by the National Science Foundation include the Biological Science Curriculum Study, the Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) physics and Chemical Education and Materials Study (CHEM).

The article presents information on the oppositions that have been made against three textbooks on evolutionary biology in Texas. These biology textbooks were the result of a project sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation. There exists an increasing opposition to teaching evolution in biology courses in Texas. In October 1964, those who were opposing to teaching the subject were provided with an opportunity to express their opinions. The said three books, published by the Biological Sciences Curriculum Studies (BSCS), are: "High School Biology," "Biological Science: An Inquiry Into Life" and "Biological Science: Molecules to Man." The Texas Textbook Commission had considered these books for adoption. The commission had advised to submit protests, if any, against these textbooks in writing. Several protests were received against the BSCS textbooks because they explain the theory of evolution. Church organizations have urged chiefly to reject these BSCS textbooks. Several quotations from those written protests are given here.

The article examines the factors relating to the success in teaching modern high school biology. The article cites previous studies which showed that the average number of total college credits in biology of teachers ranged from 20.5 to over 30 hours. Several factors that contributed to the unpreparedness of biology teachers include time, the quality of course offerings in the biological sciences and the specific courses making up the 20 to 30 hours of biology preparation which the average biology teacher possesses.

The article focuses on the teaching of sex education and biology on junior and senior high school students at Newark State College in Union, New Jersey. The author notes that students prefer lessons on endocrinology, human reproduction and genetics over other areas connected with Homo sapiens. He expresses his dissatisfaction over the increasing rate of sexually-transmitted disease among teenagers, the rising number of dropouts of girls due to illegitimate pregnancy and the ill-advised early marriages. He describes the findings of a doctoral study of sex education at the secondary-school level in Georgia.

The article discusses the findings of a study of the relationships between the achievement of students in selected high school biology programs and their mathematical aptitude and achievement. The study was based on the data provided by the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) which engaged in the evaluation of developed curriculum materials for high school biology. Data gathered include the measures of achievement in biology, mathematics and verbal reasoning. The study showed no significant differences for degrees of relationship between achievement in biology and mathematics.

The article discusses the findings of a study of the achievement of a group of 100 student-teachers in General Science in India. A description of the test setup and measurement method is given. The test covers the subjects of biology, physics and chemistry. The study showed that student-teachers do not have an adequate knowledge of the concepts of the three subjects that comprise General Science. The study concludes with a recommendation that the Department of Education should prescribe a compulsory pass in General Science at the high school stage for the selection of prospective elementary or Junior Basic teachers.

While it is impossible to evaluate properly the implications involved in changing biological curricula, several things are evident. Students entering colleges are better prepared to enroll in more rigorous courses than ever before. Chemistry, physics, and mathematics departments are presenting more sophisticated courses than in the past. The challenge to modern biology teaching, then, is to make full use of this improved background. Mediocrity can not be tolerated, and the challenge must be met by greater professional competence and streamlined course offerings which stimulate and excite our students to pursue excellence in their chosen fields of endeavor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on employing field of ecology for initial teaching experiences in biology. One of the challenges that personnel involved in the training of teachers deals with supplying important teaching experiences. This problem was encountered by the development of a Methods and Materials For High School Biology course. This course allowed students to take a nine week off campus student teaching assignment. An important aspect of the methods course involves a chance for student teachers to teach a unit of material to students in the laboratory school.

The article presents the findings of a study of the expressed learning problems of two-hundred-sixty pupils enrolled in the college preparatory biology course of a large suburban senior high school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Ninety-two percent of the boys had elected ninth grade general science, but only fifty-five percent of the girls had elected this course. It appears that boys should achieve additional scientific knowledge in tenth grade biology than girls if previous experience in ninth grade science included basic teachings in biology.

The article evaluates the issues involving contemporary biological thinking and education. The origin of the essentially temperate zone oriented approach to biology might readily be explained in terms of the history of science in general and the history of biology in particular. Systematic attempts to expose undergraduate and graduate students of biology to the richness and diversity of tropical life have hardly begun. Widespread and intensive training of young biologists in the tropics seems beset with numerous severe difficulties.

The article presents a study on the ability of high school biology students to retain biological facts. Students involved in the study knew significantly more two years after the biology course than they did when they first enrolled. The students made significant increases from pre-test to post-test and from pre-test to retention. The author of the study postulates that meaningful well structured material will be retained to a much greater degree than nonsense syllables or material learned by rote memory.

The article presents a comparative study on interests in biology by adolescents in the U.S. and Egypt. The topics on the questionnaire that was administered include plants, animals, human body, diseases, health and evolution and development of species. The study concluded that biology is an interesting subject for adolescents but the Egyptians had a higher interest in biology compared to Americans. The most interesting topic for Egyptian group were human body and evolution for the American group. The researcher found out that the two groups had shared little interests on the interrelationships of animals and plants. The results showed that culture played a vital role on the determination of adolescents interests.

The author of this article explores the immensity of biology and the students' difficulty of getting a solid foundation in it. The author claims that many of the arguments against biology in college seem to be concerned with its specialism, the lack of concern for the biological foundations of human nature serves to force the vital part of biology out of human context, and to fence biologists more off into fields of specialized technologies. He asserts that the most important thing about biology is that it introduces ecology, the study of things and its relation to all other things. In addition, he suggests the need to emphasize the history of scientific methods, the results of their application to various fields of man's environment, and their place in culture and society to students.

This article presents a study on facts and concepts of chemistry which might be important for understanding introductory high school biology. The curriculum materials analyzed were either specifically intended for the introductory high school biology course or have had widespread acceptance and use by teachers of such courses. Included in the analyses were textbooks, workbook-laboratory manuals, curriculum guides, films, and professional methods and materials in the teaching of biology. Each fact or concept of chemistry dealt with one or more of the following: the structure, composition, or properties of chemical substances; a change which alters the identity of a chemical substance; the causes or processes which bring about the changes; and energy changes which accompany physical or chemical changes.

The article focuses on a study, which investigates how zoology departments or their equivalents are mechanically organized for the presentation of the introductory course in zoology in the U.S. The principal topics, for which data are collected, are time allotment, credit allowance, course duration, laboratory-lecture apportionment and personnel. The questionnaire method was applied to get information on the mechanics of organization in introductory university zoology courses. From the analysis of the questionnaire replies, it was found that the majority of state universities offer one course in general zoology, whereas a minority offer no introductory zoology. 19 per cent list a general biology in lieu of zoology per se. The most frequent type of offering is a one-semester course in zoology. 31 per cent of the department presented two semesters of general zoology. The most popular method of time appointment in first year courses is that of having two fifty-minute lectures per week followed by the three fifty-minute lecture plan.

The article attempts to determine whether studying scientific facts and concepts relating to fallout and race produced a positive shift of student attitudes in both areas. It ascertains whether or not there is a difference in regard to any positive shift of attitudes between students having intelligence test scores of 96 and above, and students having intelligence test scores of 95 and below. The article details the construction of two attitude scales to measure fallout and race. It reviews government publications of the May and June 1959 hearings on fallout before the Special Subcommittee on Radiation of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy of the U.S. Congress.

This article presents an opinion on criteria for a biology and life sciences teaching methods course for New Jersey high school science teachers. 28.4 percent of teachers colleges and 13.5 percent of liberal arts colleges, and universities with schools of education offered a course in the teaching of biology.