Allowing a student to “see” through touch what other students see through a microscope can be a challenging task. Therefore, author Joan Bradley created three-dimensional (3-D) models with one student’s visual impairment in mind. They are meant to benefit all students and can be used to teach common high school biology topics, including the Punnett square, cell membranes, photosynthesis, and an array of microscope experiences.
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The search for an AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) vaccine is truly a global effort, with university laboratories, biotech firms, pharmaceutical companies, nonprofit research organizations, hospitals, and clinics all working together to develop an effective vaccine as quickly as possible. The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) is one organization working to ensure the development of a safe, effective, accessible, and preventive HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) vaccine for use throughout the world. As senior director of vaccine vector design at IAVI, AIDS vaccine researcher Chris Parks works to create HIV vaccine candidates.
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The National Science Education Standards suggest that students work as real scientists in the classroom (NRC 1996; 2000). To accomplish this task, the authors developed community-based inquiry lessons (CBILs) that provide students with the opportunity to solve problems as a class, based on the concept of whole-class inquiry (WCI) presented by Gallagher-Bolos and Smithenry (2004; 2008; 2009). This article discusses the basic premises of CBIL and presents practical guidelines for teachers who want to learn more about building authentic inquiry-based classrooms.
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This issue of The Science Teacher marks our 15th annual issue devoted to the theme of “Science for All.” Ideas for reaching out to underrepresented groups are more important now than ever, as our classrooms become increasingly diverse. Despite some gains, significant disparities in achievement remain a major challenge for educators and schools. Closing America’s educational achievement gaps could have dramatic social and economic impacts, according to a new study by McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm (2009).
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How can you tell the difference between cold and airborne allergy symptoms?
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An Idea Bank published in the April/May 2009 issue of The Science Teacher describes an experiential physics lesson on vectors and vector addition (Brown 2009). Like its football predecessor, the basketball-based investigation presented in this Idea Bank addresses National Science Education Standards Content B, Physical Science, 9–12 (NRC 1996) and Math Standard GEO 9–12 (NCTM 2000). Through this activity, students partake in a life-size learning experience with measurements and vectors.
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In the hands-on, guided-inquiry lesson presented in this article, high school students create, calibrate, and apply an affordable scientific-grade instrument (Lapp and Cyrus 2000). In just four class periods, they build a homemade integrated circuit (IC) digital thermometer, apply a math model to calibrate their instrument, and ask a researchable question that can be answered using the thermometer they create. This activity uses the 5E learning cycle—engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate—to help physical science students discover the many connections between math and science (Karplus 1979).
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What makes an outstanding book for a young reader? Although it would be hard to create a rubric for every book, experienced teachers recognize them quickly. They fascinate and captivate with both their content and style. Award-winning trade books inspire young readers to want more… more information, more books, more inquiry, more science. The Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K–12 lists the best science trade books published in 2009.
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Students coming into science labs need initial and ongoing training about safety standards and best practices. They also need to develop good attitudes about their work and the health and safety of their teachers and fellow students. The School Chemistry Laboratory Safety Guide is a resource for science teachers and school administrators to help move students into the safety zone. The guide’s major divisions include some of the example items presented in this month’s Safer Science column.
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Probeware is the combination of sensors and software connected to a computer or handheld device. At the heart of probeware is a digital sensor that measures a particular physical parameter. One or more sensors are plugged into an interface, a calculator, and a handheld device. With the click of a button, probeware collects and graphs data in real time—a graph forms or a table is populated with measurements as the data is collected. When students use digital sensors, they not only learn science content more efficiently, but also better learn the processes of science.
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In 2007 and 2008, three science teachers participated in research “cruises” to the Juan de Fuca Ridge off the coast of Washington. This opportunity was made possible by a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER grant awarded to Daniela Di Iorio, an oceanographer at the University of Georgia in Athens. The cruises helped renew their spirit and passion for teaching and helped them encourage their students to consider science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers.
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According to the Center of Universal Design, universal design (UD) is “the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptations or specialized design” (Burgstahler 2009). When thinking about UD, teachers often think about students with special needs. However, the idea of UD is to apply principles to design products and environments that meet the needs of people with a wide variety of characteristics; disabilities represent just one of many. Therefore, UD instruction helps all students learn science—and that is what good teaching is all about!
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How can we teach science to English language learners (ELLs) when even our native English speakers have trouble reading the textbook? To help science teachers meet this challenge, this article presents six text-comprehension strategies used by English for Speakers of other Languages (ESOL) teachers: metalinguistic awareness development, classification activities, semantic webs, visualization, learning logs, and key-points reviews.
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To make the concept of biomes fresh for high school students and help them achieve more conceptual depth, the author Amy Slack created the “Who’s in the Zoo?” project. Working in groups, students design a zoo that represents five of Earth’s biomes and the climate found in their respective habitats. These groups prepare a proposal and a poster of their zoo design that they present to the class. The 5E learning cycle—engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate—provides the framework for this project (Trowbridge, Bybee, and Powell 2004), which takes six one-hour class periods to complete.
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