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Recent research and reform efforts in science education have consistently stressed the importance of coherent science instruction, in which learning opportunities are connected and contextualized by meaningful phenomena, focus on a small set of core ideas over time, and generate a need-to-know about new ideas through a set of connected lessons. Yet, this type of instruction remains uncommon in schools. We argue that science teacher education has the potential to play a powerful role in promoting coherent science instruction in schools, but to reach this potential, science teacher education programs themselves must be coherent. Based on existing literature and our work in an international collaboration focused on effective practices in science teacher education, we identify key features of coherent science teacher education programs and present a new model that we refer to as the Science Teacher Education Programmatic Coherence (STEP-C) model. The STEP-C model illustrates how key elements of science teacher education are situated relative to each other, potentially serving as a powerful tool for program design.

The duration of on-campus academic engagements is an uncertain and highly debated indicator of study input. Researchers adopt this indicator with the expectation that student teachers must invest an amount of time and effort in their courses that more or less equals a normal workweek. In the present empirical study, we examine factors influencing the duration of student teachers' on-campus academic engagements in Norway and Finland using survey data (n = 567). While the teaching profession is highly respected in Finland, and universities make selections for teacher education programs, the profession has a relatively low status in Norway. To meet the objectives of this study, we conducted an OLS regression analysis and found that students' self-discipline and perceived study requirements are the most important predictors of the duration of their on-campus academic engagements. In addition, the motivation to achieve a goal is also significant, while no significant effect was found for intrinsic motivation. Finally, the study shows no significant differences between the coefficients for the Norwegian and Finnish variable.

Norway spruce cone crops in individual trees from two seed ripening years 2012 and 2014 were studied. Data were collected from five stands in southern Finland, managed by single-tree selection harvests since the 1980s. The upper third of living crown of each individual tree was photographed for digital cone counting with image analysis. The average number of cones per tree for trees bearing any cones was 92 in 2014 and 66 in 2012. Highest cone numbers found per individual tree were 526 in the year 2014 and 364 in the year 2012. Of all trees studied, 55.5% produced cones during both years, 9.6% produced cones once and 34.9% did not produce cones in 2012 or 2014. The number of cones per tree in 2014 was positively correlated with tree diameter at breast height and the presence of cones (at least twenty) in that particular individual two years earlier and negatively correlated with local basal area. The quality of the seed crop in 2014 as determined in two of the stands was poor. Based on X-ray analyses, 44% of seeds were empty, 29% were damaged by insects feeding on seeds ( Plemeliella abietina or Megastigmus strobilobius ) and only 25% were full and capable of germination. The results have implications for management practices in uneven-aged Norway spruce stands. It is suggested that at each harvest entry, some large, prolific trees should be retained in order to increase the total number of seeds produced in a stand to enhance regeneration and the recruitment of new seedlings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]