Mathematical and Experimental Science Education from the School Garden: A Review of the Literature and Recommendations for Practice

The much-needed interest in promoting a healthy lifestyle among school-age students has found a context for development: school gardens. There are numerous studies where using gardens as a teaching–learning context also improves students’ performance in the experimental sciences. In this study, we proposed another interest that sets it apart and adds motivation: combining curricular mathematics with experimental science content in this context. The search for possible studies in the scientific literature has gave rise to the review presented herein. From this review, we obtained 21 studies, from which we extracted a series of categories: whether research was undertaken and with which tools; which curricular contents were covered and the impact produced; the ages of the participants and duration of the project; and, finally, whether the garden was cultivated. The main conclusion of this search was the lack of a clear line of research linking school gardens, the experimental sciences, and mathematics, in addition to the scant presence of studies framed in this context. For that reason, we send a call to action to the scientific community encouraging the interdisciplinarity of the two aforementioned subjects within the context of school gardens.

PENGARUH PENERAPAN METODE DEMONSTRASI TERHADAP HASIL BELAJAR PESERTA DIDIK MUATAN IPA KELAS IV DI SDN 102/II SUNGAI KERJAN

This examination is awakened by low learning outcomes of science content that has not yett reached the minimum completeness criteria (KKM). One variable that contributes is the low learning outcomes of practice, especially in science learning. Therefore, the right learning strategy is needed which affects the results of easy-to-understand learning. The aim in this study was to understand how much impact the demontrasion method on the results of learning in class IV at SDN 102 / II Kerjan River in Science learning. This type of research is a type of Pre Experimental Design research with a quantitative methodology. Design that uses the type of One Group Pretest Posttest Design. The subjects of this study were 27 students at SD Negeri 102/II Sungai Kerjan. In this examination, the data collection instrument of the researcher used an instrument in the form of test questions. The data collection technique utilizes up to 20 pretest and posttest questions. The data analysis technique used a statistical test, namely the Paired Samples T-Test test because the data were normally distributed. Information handled using SPSS 22.

Astronomy and Space-Themed Mobile Games

This chapter aims to contribute to the discussion of incorporating mobile games with astronomy and space themes in order to support science learning. One concern is when these games include erroneous science content. In this case, they may build or enhance misconceptions or misunderstandings, which eventually create learning barriers. The authors try to determine the learning strategies or pedagogies which can be used to incorporate such games in science education. Research on which characteristics these games should have is also presented. Game-based learning is in alignment with acquiring and developing 21st century literacy skills. One of these skills, information literacy, is related to domain knowledge learning.

Gamification of Middle School Mathematics and Science

Gamification, defined as the process of game-thinking and game mechanics to engage users and solve problems, is a fairly new and rapidly growing field. Literature suggests that gamification can contribute to develop higher order cognitive abilities such as problem solving and critical thinking skills. Using gamification in non-game situations enhances students' understanding and contributes on conceptual learning, especially in mathematics and science. This chapter introduces the concept of gamification in terms of its pedagogical underpinnings, integration of gamification into educational environments (with a focus on mathematics and science), a sample application of gamification in science content, and the future trends about possible directions of uses of gamification.

Extraneous Cognitive Load (ECL) Mahasiswa Calon Guru dalam Pelaksanaan Perkuliahan Pendidikan Biologi

This study aims to determine the ECL of prospective teacher students during lectures. ECL is obtained from the mental effort of students in attending lectures or teaching and learning processes because it will affect the process of constructing students' cognitive schemas from the information received during the learning process. Learning activities are effective and efficient if the ECL of students is in the low category. Data collection was carried out on biology education students who attended group lectures for pedagogic courses and biological science content in the odd semester 2020/2021. This is a descriptive study which was conducted in March-September 2021, with the determination of the sample, namely purposive random sampling. ECL was measured using a mental effort questionnaire in each course in the learning process. The data obtained were analyzed in the conversion of low to high scores, then compared between semester levels to provide an overview of student ECL. The results showed that the mental effort of prospective teacher students was in the low category. The ECL of prospective biology education teacher students is low.

Does context shape comprehension: evaluating the influence of presentation on inquiry strategies in science learning

Purpose Approaches to learning have the ability to influence knowledge acquisition, comprehension, retention and even motivation to learn. Previous work indicates that despite age, experience, or prior knowledge, students have a tendency to approach learning differently as a function of the presented content. The purpose of this study is to explore how context influences student approaches to learning science. Design/methodology/approach The authors adopt a question-asking methodology to evaluate if approaches to learning the same science content vary when presented within the context of Pure Science or the History of Science. Findings Results indicate that contextualizing the presentation of science content, shifts the approaches students take in attempting to learn science content as evidenced by the questions they ask to deepen their understanding. Additional variables of prior experience with each scientific concept, task persistence at a distractor task and later recall of the presented concepts were related to different inquiry strategies. Research limitations/implications Implications for instructional design and pedagogy are discussed. Practical implications The framework in which scientific information is presented may impact how students modify existing and create a new schema, impacting their beliefs about scientific knowledge and the way in which students question, hypothesize and engage within the domain of science. Social implications By studying the role of inquiry while students engage in science learning, the authors explore the role of context, content and knowledge retention. Originality/value The current study probes at the nature of student questioning and its reliance on the content, context and its relationship to outcome variables such as learning and, perhaps, even persistence as it relates to students’ prior knowledge within content areas which may, in turn, lead to varying levels of student self-efficacy.

Improving Creative Thinking Through Creative Responsibility Based Learning (CRBL) Model

The use of various models and approaches still shows that students have difficulties understanding science content. This obstacle causes psychological barriers for students, so creative thinking skills are needed. The purpose of this study is to analyze the differences in creative thinking skills between students who follow the Creative Responsibility Based Learning (CRBL) learning model and students who follow the conventional learning model in terms of students' self-efficacy in learning science. This type of research is an experimental study with a Non-Randomized Post-test Only Control Group Design. In this design, the subject is not taken randomly. The number of population members is 184 students. The techniques used to analyze the data are qualitative descriptive analysis, quantitative, and inferential statistics. The result of the research is that the science learning outcomes of students who follow the CRBL learning model are higher than students who follow the conventional learning model with a significance value of 0.044 < 0.005. There is a difference in creative thinking ability between fourth grade elementary school students who have high self-efficacy and low self-efficacy in science learning with a significance value of 0.00 <0.05). There is a significant interaction effect between the learning model and self-efficacy on students' creative thinking skills with a significance value of 0.00 < 0.05). It can be concluded that this learning model provides direct learning experiences to students in building self-efficacy and creative thinking skills in learning basic science concepts so that teachers can apply them.

Analysis of the Factors Influencing of Pre-service Science Teacher in Conceptualization of STEM Education: Self-Efficacy and Content Knowledge

This research investigates the factors that influence pre-service science teachers' conceptualization of STEM education. The factors involved STEM self-efficacy, STEM anxiety, science content knowledge, and mathematics content knowledge. The survey method was utilized in this research to collect a huge number of respondents at one time. The participants were 604 pre-service science teachers in Indonesia with different backgrounds (physics Education, biology education, chemistry education, Ingrate of Science education, and primary school education). The instruments were developed and share with participants using a google form to avoid the items that the participant did not fill in. The data analyzed using STEM showed that science content knowledge, STEM self-efficacy, and STEM anxiety were influencing the conceptualization of STEM education. This research suggested that to improve the quality of STEM education in the classroom. Pre-service science teachers should understand the concept of the content taught

Teaching for Emergent Disciplinary Drawing in Science? Comparing Teachers’ and Children’s Ways of Representing Science Content in Early Childhood Classrooms

This classroom-based study aims to contribute knowledge about children’s opportunities to make use of drawing to make meaning in science. Employing a social semiotic approach to drawing, we examine what ways of representing science content that are (1) made available by the teacher and (2) adopted in children’s drawings. We analysed observation data from 11 science lessons in early childhood classrooms (children aged 3 to 8 years), including the drawings that children made during those lessons (129 drawings in total). Our findings suggest that the semiotic resources that teachers provide have a large impact on how children represent science content in their drawings. Moreover, we interpret that teachers strive to support children’s ‘emergent disciplinary drawing’ in science, since they predominantly provided semiotic resources where the science content was generalised and decontextualised. Finally, we propose that ‘emergent disciplinary drawing’ is incorporated as an element of science pedagogy in ECE practice and ECE teacher education.

Exploring Teachers’ Approaches to Science Practical Work in Lower Secondary Schools in Malaysia

<p>Practical work in science is a teaching approach that aims to enable students to develop procedural and conceptual understanding and an understanding about the nature of science. Practical work is required by the Malaysian Science Curriculum at all school levels. The purpose of this research was to gain an understanding of teachers’ views and practices in conducting practical work in lower secondary schools. This research, which adopted a case study approach, was underpinned by constructivist views of learning and investigated the phenomenon of practical work in three co-educational schools in the state of Melaka. The participants were three science teachers and their classes of about 35 students each. Data were collected through teacher interviews, classroom observations, document analysis and focus group interviews with students. Findings suggest that teachers’ understanding about practical work were aligned with their purposes for conducting practical work. Practical work that teachers offered promoted low levels of inquiry and at best students were developing a view that in science we follow a set of procedures to arrive at a well-known conclusion. Teachers’ practices were constrained by limited resources, prescribed texts, the amount of content to be taught, and their science content knowledge. Student learning was constrained by the limited exposure to authentic science investigation, low teacher expectation, a focus on hands-on rather than minds-on learning, and the language of instruction. The findings have implications for teacher practice and science education policy for lower secondary schools in Malaysia.</p>