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Since inquiry was first introduced to science education, a lot of inquiry-based tasks have appeared in textbooks for supporting an inquiry-based approach. These tasks have great potential to direct the implementation of an inquiry-based approach, as teachers rely heavily on the use of existing instructional materials in most K-12 classrooms. However, these tasks would not actually take effect unless they could accomplish the mission of assisting in the achievement of the educational goals of an inquiry-based approach, for which it is necessary to assess the design quality of inquiry-based tasks in textbooks. Content analysis is an effective way to evaluate the design quality of textbooks. This study adopted the instrument - the Inquiry-based Tasks Analysis Inventory (ITAI), which fits the purpose and has strong reliability and validity - to analyse the inquiry-based tasks in current high school biology textbooks in Mainland China. The results show that (1) some of the inquiry-based tasks separate the inquiry process from scientific content, (2) current textbooks do not present balanced dispositions to use inquiry process skills, and (3) inquiry-based tasks in current textbooks do not reflect a proper understanding about scientific inquiry. The findings call for revisions of inquiry-based tasks in textbooks and indicate the ambiguous understanding about inquiry that may be held by the textbook authors. What is more, the problems revealed by this study are very similar to those found in previous studies in other regions, which highlights the need for continuous attention to the evaluation of inquiry-based tasks in textbooks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experimentation is a complex problem-solving process. In biology lessons, experiments involve creative thinking and open discovery; however, they still require some degree of instructional guidance. The right balance between discovery learning and instructional guidance depends substantially on students' prior knowledge. Students with low prior knowledge in particular might have difficulties with conducting and understanding experiments. Incremental scaffolds might be a valuable tool to meditate between pure discovery and strong guidance while simultaneously taking learners' individual knowledge and skills into account. In the current study, we examined the effects of incremental scaffolds (IncSc), no scaffolds (NoSc), and worked-out examples (WoEx) on students' knowledge acquisition while doing inquiry-based experimentation with a special focus on students with low prior knowledge. In a pre-posttest design, 193 students (Mage = 13.02 ± 0.81 years) participated in a four-hour teaching unit on animals' overwintering strategies. In the pre- and posttest, we assessed the students' conceptual and procedural knowledge. Our results partially confirmed our hypotheses: Regarding the conceptual and procedural knowledge of all students, incremental scaffolds showed no additional benefit regarding students' knowledge in the posttest when compared to working with no scaffolds or worked-out examples. For the students with low prior knowledge, working with incremental scaffolds led to higher conceptual and procedural knowledge after the teaching unit than working with worked-out examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although understandings of scientific inquiry (as opposed to conducting inquiry) are included in science education reform documents around the world, little is known about what students have learned about inquiry during their elementary school years. This is partially due to the lack of any assessment instrument to measure understandings about scientific inquiry. However, a valid and reliable assessment has recently been developed and published, Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI; Lederman et al. [2014], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51, 65–83). The purpose of this large‐scale international project was to collect the first baseline data on what beginning middle school students have learned about scientific inquiry during their elementary school years. Eighteen countries/regions spanning six continents including 2,634 students participated in the study. The participating countries/regions were: Australia, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mainland China, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States. In many countries, science is not formally taught until middle school, which is the rationale for choosing seventh grade students for this investigation. This baseline data will simultaneously provide information on what, if anything, students learn about inquiry in elementary school, as well as their beginning knowledge as they enter secondary school. It is important to note that collecting data from all of the approximately 200 countries globally was not humanly possible, and it was also not possible to collect data from every region of each country. The results overwhelmingly show that students around the world at the beginning of grade seven have very little understandings about scientific inquiry. Some countries do show reasonable understandings in certain aspects but the overall picture of understandings of scientific inquiry is not what is hoped for after completing 6 years of elementary education in any country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Beijing Normal University is the property of Beijing Normal University, Institute of History and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article titled "Förderung von Erkenntnisgewinnung im organisch-chemischen Laborpraktikum durch geöffnete Versuchsvorschriften" in Chemkon - Chemie Konkret discusses how existing experiments in university laboratory practices can be utilized to promote scientific inquiry and knowledge acquisition. The authors, Bicak, Borchert, and Höner, present guidelines on how to adapt these experiments for this purpose. The article emphasizes the integration of opportunities for scientific reasoning and discovery within laboratory settings. The accompanying image showcases the materials used in an open experiment in the "Organische Chemie 0" practical course, highlighting the simplified path to knowledge acquisition. [Extracted from the article]

• Science practices at home within the scope of open inquiry-based science laboratory practices had a significant effect on the critical thinking dispositions of pre-service science teachers. • Science practices at home within the scope of open inquiry-based science laboratory practices had a significant effect on the science learning skills of pre-service science teachers. • The science process skills, creative thinking skills, critical thinking skills, research skills, questioning skills, problem-solving, and communication skills of preservice teachers have improved in science practices at home within the scope of open inquiry-based science laboratory practices. • Pre-service teachers actively carried out research and inquiry and that they took responsibility for time management, learning outcomes, and learning experience. • Home science practices within the scope of open inquiry-based science laboratory practices have a positive effect on the scientific inquiry skills of prospective science teachers. • The characteristics of individuals with accommodating learning style such as planning, executing decisions, and making new experiences come to the fore. • Prospective teachers' reflections on designing experiments on the kitchen table that enhance novelty and critical thinking. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of home science practices on science teacher candidates' critical thinking dispositions, science learning skills, scientific inquiry skills, and learning styles within the scope of open inquiry-based science laboratory practices. For this purpose, the opinions of prospective science teachers within the scope of home science laboratory practices are explored. Participants included 79 third-grade elementary school level (i.e., 8+ year olds) science teacher candidates. Convergent parallel mixed design from mixed methods was used in the study. As a result of the quantitative analysis of the research, a statistically significant difference was found between the pre-test and post-test results of the science teacher candidates' critical thinking dispositions and science learning skills of home science practices. Within the scope of open research inquiry-based science laboratory practices, science teacher candidates' home science practices increased in the informed category at the end of the term in all sub-dimensions of scientific inquiry skills. It was concluded that science teacher candidates experienced shifts in their learning styles relating to (i.e., Diverging, Assimilating, Converging, and Accommodating) their home science practices. The qualitative results of the study were examined based on the following themes: skills, learning environment, application process, and affective changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined how background knowledge, scientific reasoning ability, and various scaffolding forms influenced students’ science knowledge and scientific inquiry achievements. The students participated in an online scientific inquiry program involving such activities as generating scientific questions and drawing evidence-based conclusions, while being scaffolded either directly or indirectly. Results indicated that student knowledge and scientific reasoning can predict scientific inquiry ability development. Only scientific reasoning has a significant effect on student comprehension. Level of scientific reasoning and types of scaffolding significantly influenced students’ scientific inquiry abilities. In particular, prior reasoning skills significantly affected how they identified variables and made conclusions in both post- and retention tests. Students who used the online program benefitted from direct scaffolding, which helped them make hypotheses and draw conclusions better than indirect scaffolding. Direct scaffolding was especially useful for students with high prior reasoning skills. Students with high prior reason skills who used direct scaffolding were better able to make hypotheses and draw conclusions.

Professional vision is a key ability in the professional development of pre- and in-service teachers as it determines how professionals perceive and interpret situations. The aim of this study was to conceptualize an instrument for professional vision focusing on formative assessment in the context of scientific inquiry. This focus is highly valuable, since formative assessment contributes to the quality of science teaching and learning. The four-dimensionality of the construct of professional vision with its abilities (perception, description, explanation, and prediction) was confirmed by means of our text-vignette-based instrument. The professional vision of pre-service teachers (N = 80) was fostered in training, involving a seminar phase and a teaching phase in an out-of-school laboratory. In a pre-post design significant interaction effects of groups (training vs. comparison group (N = 39)) and time for the ability description (F(1,117) = 29.14 p < 0.001) and prediction (F(1,117) = 14.81 p < 0.001) were found, indicating the sensitivity of the instrument. Our instrument allows the assessment of the abilities description and prediction. The scales for the abilities perception and explanation need further refinements. Nonetheless, our instrument could be a starting point to further investigate professional vision in science contexts as it incorporates the essential key features such as a situated approach.

This study focuses on a youth science camp for pupils in sixth to ninth grades that is organized annually by the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. The main idea of the science camp is to learn to do guided inquiry in nature. The study investigates the significance of science camp for encouraging young participants to learn science and how the camp supports their learning. The research method used was a survey. Altogether, 47 youth participated in the camp in 2012 and 2013. The results show that the participants wanted to learn more about science than secondary school could offer, and science camp had a positive impact on their interest in science. It was possible to introduce important concepts of chemistry and biology in a comprehensible manner through experimentation in an authentic context. The participants worked as researchers in a positive and non-formal learning environment and they received concrete experience with the various phases of scientific research.

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) represents the student-centered approach that focuses on encouraging learners to scientifically construct new knowledge. The study aimed to explain science teachers' and students' perceptions about applying IBL in a private school in Dubai. Furthermore, to explore the degree to which the science textbook of Grade 8 promotes inquiry instruction. A mixed-method approach was applied where two questionnaires were conducted and an evaluation rubric was used to analyze the textbook to explore the extent to which it supports IBL. The findings revealed that teachers showed progress in applying inquiry instruction and students became more engaged in learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background With the increased attention on the implementation of inquiry activities in primary science classrooms, a growing interest has emerged in assessing students’ science skills. Research has thus far been concerned with the limitations and advantages of different test formats to assess students’ science skills. Purpose This study explores the construction of different instruments for measuring science skills by categorizing items systematically on three subskill levels (science-specific, thinking, metacognition) as well as on different steps of the empirical cycle. Sample The study included 128 fifth and sixth grade students from seven primary schools in the Netherlands. Design and method Seven measures were used: a paper-and-pencil test (PPT), three performance assessments, two metacognitive self-report tests, and a test used as an indication of general cognitive ability. Results Reliabilities of all tests indicate sufficient internal consistency. Positive correlations between the PPT and the three performance assessments show that the different tests measure a common core of similar skills thus providing evidence for convergent validity. Results also show that students’ ability to perform scientific inquiry is significantly related to general cognitive ability. No relationship was found between the measure of general metacognitive ability and either the PPT or the three performance assessments. By contrast, the metacognitive self-report test constructed to obtain information about the application of metacognitive abilities in performing scientific inquiry, shows significant - although small - correlations with two of the performance assessments. Further explorations reveal sufficient scale reliabilities on subskill and step level. Conclusions The present study shows that science skills can be measured reliably by categorizing items on subskill and step level. Additional diagnostic information can be obtained by examining mean scores on both subskill and step level. Such measures are not only suitable for assessing students’ mastery of science skills but can also provide teachers with diagnostic information to adapt their instructions and foster the learning process of their students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Science education frameworks in the United States have moved strongly in recent years to incorporate more dimensions of learning, including measuring student use of scientific practices employed during scientific inquiry. For instance, the Next Generation Science Standards and related multidimensional frameworks adopted or adapted recently by more than 30 United States include numerous complex science performance skills required of students. This article considers whether valid and reliable evidence can be obtained in online performance tasks to yield an estimate of both student inquiry practices and of the ability of students to explain their understanding of scientific concepts. A data set from a Virtual Performance Assessment (VPA) task, There's a New Frog in Town, is examined. Delivered through an online system, the VPA task engages students in guided inquiry through problem solving, modeling, and exploration. The VPAs are designed to produce evidence on more than one latent trait in the respondent performance. Results of the case study reported here indicated that maps of student proficiency in scientific inquiry were possible to generate from the VPA data set, using measurement models. Addition of process data through a new hybrid measurement model, mIRT‐Bayes, improved reliability of results. Results indicated overall that virtual performance tasks may be helpful for science assessment, especially if assessment time is short and a goal is to increase the validity and quality of performance measures with authentic and engaging virtual activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study aimed to provide elementary preservice teachers with an opportunity to engage in an authentic inquiry experience that shifted the focus from the hypothesis-testing model of inquiry to one that more accurately and completely reflected the process of scientific inquiry in its entirety. The aim of this qualitative case study was to explore 4 preservice teachers’ experiences and interpretations of these experiences during their independent inquiry journeys, their understanding of the process of science as experienced during the inquiry project, and their perceptions of the implications of their inquiry experiences and willingness to implement an inquiry approach. The findings of this study highlight elementary preservice teachers’ inquiry experiences and their perceptions of the process of science. The participants experienced the fluid and cyclical nature of scientific inquiry; the significance of gathering and interpreting evidence; as well as other essential elements of the process, such as connection to society, collaboration and communication with other scientists, and the importance of questioning in driving inquiry. Their reflections suggested an enhanced and accurate understanding of the process of scientific inquiry and a greater willingness and sense of preparedness in incorporating authentic inquiry experiences and teaching through inquiry in their future classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides psychometric data for the Scholastic Inquiry Observation instrument and 6 years of research data from an inquiry-based professional training program. The rating instrument provides a resource for measuring 16 inquiry-related learning activities based on level of inquiry implementation and level of active student engagement. Observational data at the item level can be useful for inquiry-based professional development programs. Four scale score options are available for inquiry summarization (Inquiry Implementation for Hypothesis Usage; Implementation of Inquiry Communication; Student Engagement in Hypothesis Usage; Student Engagement in Inquiry Communication) and two scales measuring Student Interest and Mastery of Objectives. Comparisons of the types of inquiry most commonly used and those with the highest levels of active participation by middle school students in science and math classrooms are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Mehmet Akif Ersoy University Journal of Education Faculty is the property of Mehmet Akif Ersoy Universitesi Egitim Fakultesi Dergisi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: The Framework for K–12 Science Education (National Research Council, 2012) outlines eight practices to represent the diverse ways scientists construct and evaluate knowledge. Engaging students in these practices is a key instructional target in the science classroom. This target, however, creates particular challenges for online instruction, which has predominantly focused on delivering content. This study shows the possibility of addressing disciplinary practices online, here in the context of a professional development course for in‐service science teachers, which we designed based on previous work in responsive teaching. We examine an episode of the participants’ engagement in an online text‐based message board and identify evidence of disciplinary practices in their work. We discuss design elements and instructional choices that supported disciplinary engagement: building instruction around learners’ ideas, developing online spaces in interaction with learners, and privileging learners’ engagement in disciplinary practices as an objective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a conceptual systematization based on theoretical contributions, definitions, and classifications made in the field of natural science teaching about practical activities in the lab. The goal is to explain the current debate in scientific literature on the usefulness of these activities and their influence in student motivation, since some authors believe they promote interest but not motivation. We present a series of definitions and characteristics that allow us to identify what we define as practical activities in the laboratory and their difference with the idea of practical work in the laboratory. We also list different classifications according to objectives, established from various theoretical proposals. The theory of inquiry in the classroom is introduced as a proposal to address laboratory activities, and particularly, the problem-solving inquiry method (psim). Lastly, it is proposed that lpas promote cognitive processes that facilitate comprehension, problematization and reflection on the studied phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study proposed a computerized inquiry‐stage‐dependent argumentation assistance and investigated whether this can help improve elementary students' performance in science processes and the construction of quality arguments. Various argumentation assistances were developed and incorporated into each stage of scientific inquiry in a computer‐supported scientific inquiry system. A nonequivalent quasi‐experimental design was adopted to evaluate the effectiveness of this approach. Two intact sixth grade classes (N = 55) participated in this study, and each student used a tablet computer to accomplish the designated inquiry activities. One class of students was arranged to use the stage‐dependent argumentation assistance, and the other used a generic text‐based interface. The findings indicate that students who used the stage‐dependent argumentation assistance could acquire significantly better science process and argument construction skills than those using the generic text‐based interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Inonu University Journal of the Faculty of Education (INUJFE) is the property of Inonu University Journal of the Faculty of Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Nominalism seems natural for defending a decent economy of research. However such a program may and has been achieved by such a strongly realistic pragmatism as the one endorsed by Peirce: he shows that there is no risk of "blocking inquiry", no tension between adopting a cost-benefit program and aiming at truth and knowledge, provided, on the negative side , our economy of research is able to stress the impossible reduction of theoretical matters to vital ones, the impossible assimilation of epistemic virtues to mere ethical virtues; and on the positive side , it is able to embrace a strong conception of normative rationality and epistemic virtues, make room as much to "uberty" degrees of belief, propensities as to validity, full-fledged justifications, absolute certainties and mere practical concerns, and develop a conception of knowledge as a virtuous process of inquiry within a genuine intellectual ethics firmly based on a Critical Commonsensist approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The question whether increased interaction among scientists is beneficial or harmful for their efficiency in acquiring knowledge has in recent years been tackled by means of agent-based models (ABMs) (e.g. Zollman 2007, 2010; Grim 2009; Grim et al. 2013). Nevertheless, the relevance of some of these results for actual scientific practice has been questioned in view of specific parameter choices used in the simulations (Rosenstock et al. 2016). In this paper we present a novel ABM that aims at tackling the same question, while representing scientific interaction in terms of argumentative exchange. In this way we examine the robustness of previously obtained results under different modeling choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent reforms in K-16 science education advocate for the integration of science content and practice. However, engaging students in authentic science practices can be particularly challenging for certain subjects such as evolution. We describe Avida-ED, a research-based platform for digital evolution that overcomes many of the challenges associated with using biological model organisms in the classroom. We then report the findings of a nationwide, multiple-case study on classroom implementation of Avida-ED and its influence on student understanding and acceptance of evolution. We found that engagement in lessons with Avida-ED both supported student learning of fundamental evolution concepts and was associated with an increase in student acceptance of evolution as evidence-based science. In addition, we found a significant, positive association between increased understanding and acceptance. We discuss the implications of supporting reform-based pedagogical practices with tools such as Avida-ED that integrate science content with authentic science practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elementary teachers are often required to teach inquiry in their classrooms despite having had little exposure to inquiry learning themselves. In a capstone undergraduate science course preservice elementary teachers experience scientific inquiry through the completion of group projects, activities, readings and discussion, in order to develop a sense of how inquiry learning takes place. At the same time, they learn science content necessary for teacher licensure. The course exposes students to different pathways of scientific discovery and to the use of the computer both as a tool for conducting inquiry-based investigations and as a means of collecting and sharing student opinions. The students involved have many misconceptions about science and it is often difficult for them to distinguish science from pseudoscience. Computer simulations are used to help students understand that difference. In addition, a classroom response system using “clickers” is used to poll student opinions on controversial issues and to stimulate discussion.

One major concern relating to teaching scientific inquiry is that many teachers show epistemologically naive beliefs about nature of science (NOS). In this study, we use in-depth interviews to identify an upper secondary science teacher’s beliefs about NOS and scientific inquiry in school. We found that what seemed to be a teacher’s positivist position was embedded in broader concerns regarding pedagogical considerations and personal engagement relating to the students. This broader ecology of a teacher’s beliefs enabled us to understand why positivist epistemology and related myths concerning NOS are seemingly robust in school versions of scientific inquiry. We suggest that implications for science teacher education and professional development are that teacher (students) need opportunities for guided reflections on personal experiences and commitments towards scientific inquiry to increase conscience with respect to how they might affect their situated practice.

VASI (views about the scientific inquiry) questionnaire was applied to a sample of 149 7th grade students. When assessing each aspect of VASI, pupils' views were categorized into one of four categories: informed, mixed, naive, and unclear. According to the diagnostical test, 7th grade students did not possess informed conceptions of NOS in average, while certain questions were better understood. E. g., question #4 which measured the possession of the VASI aspect "Data does not equal evidence" was relatively well understood indicating that Finnish students had good reading ability and logical deduction skills without prior explicit teaching of VASI concepts. FULL ARTICLE IN FINNISH.