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Professional development aligned with AP Chemistry curriculum: Promoting science practices and facilitating enduring conceptual understanding
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The recent revisions to the advanced placement (AP) chemistry curriculum promote deep conceptual understanding of chemistry content over more rote memorization of facts and algorithmic problem solving.…
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To examine the value of the electronic teacher guide (eTG) as a curriculum planning and teaching tool,
it was important to study it in the contexts of teachers’ actual planning, teaching, and reflecting.
This paper…
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An effective curriculum helps you support students' science learning, understanding, and achievement. But what does "effective" mean? This video gives you the inside scoop on what makes a curriculum effective and flags…
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"Content coherence"--ideas presented in a connected, sequential way--plays a big role in effective science instruction. Watch this video to find out how it works and how students benefit!…
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No one curriculum can meet the needs of all students and teachers. This video describes why a teacher might want to modify a curriculum and how he or she would go about it.
No one curriculum can meet…
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This brief gives an overview—and by no means a comprehensive one—of several NGSS-aligned projects in the areas of curriculum, instruction, assessment, and professional development.
This brief gives an…
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An electronic teacher guide (eTG) was developed to determine whether a digital guide could better support teachers in implementing an inquiry-based curriculum and in enhancing their practice. Developed as a proof-of-…
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Three middle school science curricular units on the topics of genetics, ocean biodiversity & discourse, and solar ovens & design critiques.
Three middle school science curricular units on the…
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Disruptions in Ecosystems is a middle school curriculum unit with supporting teacher materials. The unit includes five chapters, each focused on a specific phenomenon related to ecosystem disruption, including questions…
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Authors discuss insights from research on K-16 climate education.
Bhattacharya, D., Carroll-Steward, K., Sutter, A., Chandler, M., & Forbes, C.T. (2018). Climate literacy: Insights from research on…
Integrating a Space for Teacher Interaction into an Educative Curriculum: Design Principles and Teachers' Use of the iPlan Tool
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Authors describe the design principles of iPlan, a web-based tool provides access to educative curriculum materials in an online interactive learning platform, and discuss implications for designing educative and online…
The Impact of Multimedia Educative Curriculum Materials (MECMs) on Teachers' Beliefs about Scientific Argumentation
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Authors discuss how teachers used MECMs and whether that use impacted their beliefs about the practice of scientific argumentation.
Recent reform efforts in science education include a focus on science…
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In recent years, prominent organizations have released large-scale policy reports on the state of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the United States, with particular emphasis on…
How to support secondary school students’ consideration of uncertainty in scientific argument writing: A case study of a High-Adventure Science curriculum module
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In this article, authors discuss an online Earth science curriculum module called, “Will there be enough fresh water?” designed to engage students in thinking about uncertainty as part of writing scientific arguments…
Validating a Model for Assessing Science Teacher’s Adaptive Expertise with Computer-Supported Complex Systems Curricula and Its Relationship to Student Learning Outcomes
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In this study, the authors propose and validate a model of adaptive expertise needed for teachers to successfully deliver NGSS-informed computer-supported complex systems curricula in high school science classrooms…
Understanding Science and Language Connections: New Approaches to Assessment with Bilingual Learners
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Authors report on the use of bilingual constructed response science assessments in the context of a research and development partnership with secondary school science teachers.
We report on the use of…
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This lesson plan template centers the importance of including Elders and Environment in Indigenous STEM teaching and learning, and is a way for teachers to weave Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and Western Science…
The Impact of Engineering Curriculum Design Principles on Elementary Students’ Engineering and Science Learning
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This article reports an efficacy study of an elementary engineering curriculum, Engineering is Elementary, that includes a set of hypothesized critical components designed to encourage student engagement in practices,…
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From 2012–2015, Advanced Placement (AP) science courses underwent a large-scale curricular reform to include more scientific inquiry and reasoning, reduce emphasis on broad content coverage, and focus on depth of…
Investigating Classroom-related Factors that Influence Student Perceptions of LEGO Robots as Educational Tools in Middle Schools
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This paper investigates classroom-related factors such as pedagogical strategies and management of robotics-based educational content that contribute to the formation of student perceptions in robotics-enhanced classes…
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This paper will describe the process and result of developing a LEGO robotics, NGSS, and 5E aligned middle school curriculum during a three-week summer PD program for teachers who teach urban students-of-color…
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This paper describes a program to engage teachers to learn about mechatronics, robotics, and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) through hands-on activities and collaborative research.
Rapid…
Analyzing Successful Teaching Practices in Middle School Science and Math Classrooms when using Robotics
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This paper analyzes teaching practices that successfully integrate robotics in middle school science and math classrooms.
A robotics-based curriculum offers numerous opportunities to enrich science,…
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This paper describes how the design canvas of Kline et al. was adopted and implemented in our workshop and investigates its benefits.
Advances in science and technology are shaping every aspect of our…
Designing Robotics-based Science Lessons Aligned with the Three Dimensions of NGSS-plus-5E Model: A Content Analysis
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In this study, analyzing lesson plans using the rubrics provided opportunities for suggestions and feedback for improvement to developers and it informs the development of new lessons by the project team…
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A workshop to be presented at the Association of Science Teacher Educators International Conference.
Hapgood, S., Wilson, G., Heuring, J. & Czerniak, C. M. (Accepted for January 2020). 3DLA: Three…
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A poster to be presented at the Association of Science Teacher Educators International Conference.
Hapgood, S., Heuring, J. & Wilson, G., Czerniak, C. (Accepted for January 2020). Early Childhood…
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Paper presented at the European Science Education Research Association.
Czerniak, C. M., Kaderavek, J., Paprzycki, P., Hapgood, S., Mentzer, G., Molitor, S., & Mendenhall, R. (2019). Longitudinal…
Longitudinal Impact of Early Childhood Science Instruction on Middle Grades Literacy and Mathematics
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Paper presented at the Global Conference on Education and Research.
Czerniak, C. M., Paprzycki, P., Hapgood, S., & Kaderavek, J. (2019). Longitudinal Impact of Early Childhood Science Instruction on…
Scientific Inquiry for Young Children: Linking Teacher Professional Development and Family Engagement to Improve Student Achievement
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Paper presented at the Society for Research on Child Development Conference.
Hapgood, S., Paprzycki, P., Czerniak, C.M. (2019). Scientific Inquiry for Young Children: Linking Teacher Professional…
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22 Common Core State Standards-aligned middle school lessons for teaching STEM with robotics.
22 Common Core State Standards-aligned middle school lessons for teaching STEM with robotics…
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10 NGSS-Plus-5E middle school lessons for teaching STEM with robotics.
10 NGSS-Plus-5E middle school lessons for teaching STEM with robotics.
Engineering…
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Use the Ocean Tracks interactive map, curricular modules, and data analysis tools to explore and quantify patterns in the migratory tracks of marine animals in the northern Pacific Ocean and relate these behaviors to…
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Data Nuggets are free classroom activities, co-designed by scientists and teachers, designed to bring contemporary research and authentic data into the classroom. Students are guided through the entire process of science,…
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A free middle school science program that supports teachers in the effective instruction of an NGSS-aligned, EQuIP-reviewed body systems curriculum unit. Includes the complete middle school science curriculum…
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This site provides an engaging and scientifically accurate set of instructional materials and resources aimed at deepening high school students’ understanding of infectious diseases (including Ebola and COVID-19) and…
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Seasons is a free and innovative 8-day unit that provides interactive videos, hands-on activities, lesson plans, and student worksheets to explore the causes behind Earth’s seasons.
Seasons is a free…
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Moon Phases & Eclipses is a free and innovative 3-day unit that provides interactive videos, hands-on activities, lesson plans, and student worksheets to explore why the Moon's phase changes.
Moon…
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The Plate Tectonics module "What will Earth look like in 500 million years?" helps students build a systems view of plate tectonics through focused case studies and interactions with the Seismic Explorer (A…
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Free, standards-aligned, and research-based inquiry curricula that address NGSS 3D proficiency. Includes Interactive scientific models plus hands-on activities, personalized guidance, and rich embedded…
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This chapter describes curricula that use WorldWide Telescope in teaching key topics in Astro 101 and K–12 science, including parallax, Hubble’s Law and large-scale structure in the universe, seasons, Moon phases and…
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SOLID Start (Science Oral Language and Literacy Development from the Start of School) curricula are guided by a driving question and puzzling phenomena that engage young students and elicit their natural curiosities. The…
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This resource presents a curricular module for high school biology classes related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The module is made up of 8 lessons that will likely take about 10-15 hours of instructional time. Major themes of…
Building Argumentation Skills in the Biology Classroom: An Evolution Unit that Develops Students’ Capacity to Construct Arguments from Evidence
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Describes a scaffolded claims-evidence-reasoning (CER) argumentation framework that is embedded within a new eight-week, freely available curriculum unit developed by the Genetic Science Learning Center – Evolution: DNA…
Development and Pilot Testing of a Three-Dimensional, Phenomenon-based Unit that Integrates Evolution and Heredity
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Describes development and pilot testing of a 3-dimensional, phenomenon-based unit that integrates evolution and heredity. The 8-week unit is designed for introductory-level high school biology courses. Results from a…
Developing Transmedia Engineering Curricula Using Cognitive Tools to Impact Learning and the Development of STEM Identity
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This paper examines the use of Imaginative Education (IE) to create an NGSS-aligned middle school engineering curriculum that supports transfer and the development of STEM identity.
This paper examines…
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"Evolution: DNA and the Unity of Life" is an eight-week, comprehensive curriculum unit that sharply illuminates the underlying role of genetics in evolution by maintaining a conceptual connection to DNA and heredity…
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What kinds of questions should guide investigations of matter? The Questions to Investigate task is intended to elicit preservice teachers’ content knowledge for teaching (CKT) related to asking questions to frame…
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How can we align activities with instructional goals to support student understanding of matter and materials? The Building a Tower Task is intended to elicit preservice teachers’ CKT about descriptions and appropriate…