Publications

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, science instruction in many countries, including Israel, shifted from face-to-face (F2F) instruction to distance learning (DL). DL made new professional demands on the teachers, who were largely unaccustomed to teaching in this environment. Using goal orientation theory and the TARGETS framework, this study investigated shifts in Israeli junior high school students science motivation, their perceptions of their science teachers motivational practices, and the relations between them, shifts that were associated with the transition from F2F instruction to DL. We surveyed (n = 137) and interviewed (n = 11) students who learned with the same six science teachers before (F2F instruction) and after (DL) the pandemic began. A significant drop in students science motivation was identified when they compared their motivation during F2F instruction to that during DL. Several changes to the students perceptions of their science teachers motivational practices in the Task, Autonomy/Authority and Time dimensions of TARGETS were identified as possible antecedents to the decline in the students science motivation. Recommendations are made regarding motivational practices that may support students science motivation, in both F2F and DL environments.

Issues-based science education represents a suite of approaches for science teaching and learning that prioritizes contextualization of learning experiences in real-world issues that are societal problems. These approaches have grown in prominence in terms of research and classroom applications over the last decade, but issues-based teaching remains challenging and has not been fully realized in educational settings. The gap between the positive potential of issues-based science education and the reality of science learning spaces creates opportunities for innovation. The purpose of this special issue is to explore ways in which educational technologies can be used to promote innovations that narrow this gap. This introduction to the special issue offers a brief overview of how technologies could be used to enhance issues-based teaching and summarizes trends that emerge across the seven articles that make up the special issue.

While students tend to enjoy their science learning at a young age, as they mature, they tend to distance themselves from science, becoming less motivated to engage with science and holding negative attitudes towards science. In parallel, a career choice in science often begins to develop during early adolescence. To understand how the environment and students' inner worlds shape the development of their self-positioning in relation to science, this longitudinal study followed nine adolescents, aged 10-14, over 3 years, in and out of school, and created nine individual stories describing these participants' self-positioning in relation to science, and how these positions changed, from their perspective, over time and contexts. We found some common experiences that played a role in the participants' self-positioning in relation to science. In several of these experiences, the longitudinal nature of this study became apparent. This study highlights the complexity of adolescents' self-positioning in relation to science and how these positions change over time.

Triggered by the pilot of the \u201cGao-Kao\u201d reform, the avoidance of physics courses in senior high school has aroused the concern of society in China. The factors that influence the motivation to learn physics are an important research topic, especially for countries that have a disciplinary-based education tradition in secondary school. However, there is a lack of instruments for evaluating secondary school students physics learning motivation, as most motivational studies consider science learning motivation as a single construct and do not distinguish between the motivation to learn different science disciplines. Therefore, we developed an instrument for measuring physics learning motivation and used this instrument to investigate the trend of physics learning motivation from middle school to high school and how physics learning motivation was influenced by teachers, parents and peers. Adopting achievement goal theory as the theoretical foundation, we developed a survey for physics learning motivation by adapting previously validated instruments. After pilot testing, 502 middle school and senior high school students completed the survey. Statistical tests, such as factor analysis, were conducted to test the reliability and validity of the instrument. Descriptive statistics confirmed some of the findings from past research (such as an overall decline in motivation to learn science), but more detailed analysis also led to new findings. Using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) we investigated the relationships between students perceptions of the environments goal emphases, their personal goal orientations, and their engagement in physics learning in and out of school. The results showed that the students goal orientations were influenced by teachers and parents, but primarily by their peers. Finally, we discuss possible explanations of the findings and their implications for follow-up studies and policy adjustments.

Studies that investigated the relations between the environment and students motivation to engage with science have typically looked at the state of students motivation at a given time and its relations with the environment. This study took a different perspective; it looked at the changes to students motivation to engage with science that occurred over a school year and investigated what drove these changes. According to goal orientation theory, students typically shift their personal goal orientations towards their perceptions of the goal emphases of their environment. For example, if students perceive their science teachers as highly emphasizing mastery orientation, they are likely to become more mastery oriented towards science with time. However, different environmental influences, such as parents, peer, teachers, and general school culture, push and pull the students in different directions. Using survey data gathered from Israeli adolescents that came from low SES backgrounds, we demonstrated that any shift in students mastery orientation towards science was not related to their perceptions of the environmental emphases, but rather to the differences they perceived between the environment and themselves. In addition, we identified which environmental influences were stronger predictors of shifts in students mastery orientation towards science. These results help to clarify the influence of the environment on students motivation to engage with science, can help understand why interventions may sometimes lead to counter-intuitive results, and can provide the basis for a model that may be useful for predicting how students motivation for science may change over a school year.

While students tend to enjoy science at a young age, as they grow older, they tend to become less engaged with science. This decline in motivation for science has been documented in several studies and is evident in many countries, for both genders. On the other hand, studies have shown that a career choice in science often begins to develop at a young age. The goal of this longitudinal study was to accompany young adolescents over three years, in and out of school, and to try and understand how the environment and their inner world shape the development of their interests in, attitudes toward, aspirations, and motivation to engage with science. The study used a mixed-methods approach. This study reinforces the importance of the relations between the science teacher and her students. In addition, I identified indicators that can predict students' resilience to science studies in school, such as, a significant area of interest in life (not necessarily in science), the thought of future pursuit of science, and more. There appear to be certain conditions that increase or decrease the chances that a student may consider science positively.

In a rapidly changing world, the ability to transfer ones knowledge is critical. Using the conceptualization of transfer as preparation for future learning, we investigated how students from two approaches to teaching energy that conceptualize energy differently, perform in a transfer task. We present first results that suggest that emphasizing energy ideas that are relevant across disciplines prepares students better for future learning than emphasizing those valued by the disciplinary tradition of physics.

To deal with the environmental, scientific, and health challenges facing the world, individuals throughout the globe will need to experience science education that will allow them to develop usable STEM knowledge. Contextualization plays a crucial role in developing usable knowledge. Without appropriate contextualization, most knowledge remains inert. Although contextualization can provide meaning to an otherwise abstract science topic, inappropriate contextualization can also distract, confuse, and activate irrelevant knowledge. We review the prior chapters and identify four challenges in designing appropriately contextualized learning environments.

The important role of self-efficacy (SE) in students' motivation, engagement, persistence, and academic achievements has been reconfirmed by ample research, both in general and for STEM disciplines. As most studies focused on traditional school systems, additional research is needed on how science SE develops in different educational environments, which was the goal of this study. Data were collected from 1979 students in Grades 5-9 from 19 traditional, Waldorf, and democratic schools in Israel. Students completed a questionnaire that assessed their science self-efficacy (SSE), general and academic self-efficacy (GASE), and the sources of their SSE: teachers', parents', and peers' social persuasions, vicarious experiences and mastery experiences. Results revealed that SSE and GASE differed in their levels and in the way they changed with grade. These differences, and variations in the roles of the various sources of SSE, appeared to be influenced by the schools' cultures and curricula. Quantitative results are accompanied by verbal illustrative examples from interviews with students and teachers.

Employing achievement goal theory (Ames Journal of Educational psychology, 84(3), 261-271, 1992), we explored science teachers' instruction and its relation to students' motivation for science learning and school culture. Based on the TARGETS framework (Patrick et al. The Elementary School Journal, 102(1), 35-58, 2001) and using data from 95 teachers, we developed a self-report survey assessing science teachers' usage of practices that emphasize mastery goals. We then used this survey and hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analyses to study the relations between 35 science teachers' mastery goals in each of the TARGETS dimensions, the decline in their grade-level 5-8 students' (N = 1.356) classroom and continuing motivation for science learning, and their schools' mastery goal structure. The findings suggest that adolescents' declining motivation for science learning results in part from a decreasing emphasis on mastery goals by schools and science teachers. Practices that relate to the nature of tasks and to student autonomy emerged as most strongly associated with adolescents' motivation and its decline with age.

Israeli students and their families can choose between state-funded secular, religious, orthodox, and other alternative schools (e.g., Waldorf, Montessori, democratic). Earlier studies showed that the motivation to engage with science differs greatly between Israeli students in secular schools and democratic schools, with these differences being attributed to differences in school culture rather than home influence (Vedder-Weiss & Fortus, 2011, 2012). In this study we extend earlier studies by looking at religious state-funded schools that serve 18% of Israel's Jewish population. These schools provide a unique research environment since from grade 6 they are gender-separated. We examined the science-related mastery, performance-approach, and performance-avoid goal orientations, perceptions of the science teachers, parents, schools, and peers' goal emphases in relation to science of the students in these schools. We compared between students in religious schools (newly collected data) and secular schools (data reported in prior studies), and found that there is a distinct difference between these two populations that is associated with differing attitudes toward gender and science at these schools. This study provides additional evidence for the influence of culture on students' motivation to engage with science, suggests mechanisms by which this influence may occur.

In Israel, the TEMI team at the Weizmann Institute of Science led two types of training programs: One which was open to all chemistry and science teachers (four cohorts), and the other which was part of a chemistry teachers' course at the Weizmann Institute (two cohorts). Overall, 120 teachers underwent intensive TEMI training at the Weizmann institute. The teachers were recruited through: (1) personal communication (via teachers who have undergone a CPD course at the Weizmann Institute previously), (2) the National Center for Chemistry Teacher, and (3) advertising in appropriate local science education websites. [first paragraph]

Why is motivation so important? Learning is typically the result of intellectual, emotional, and physical engagement, and engagement is an outcome of motivation. Without motivation there is little engagement, and without engagement, little learning can occur. This is true in general, not only for the learning of science; one is not likely to become proficient at tennis, carpentry, or any intellectual activity unless one is motivated, for whatever the reason, to become proficient at these activities.

Continuing motivation for science learning may be manifested through engagement in extracurricular science-related activities, which are not the result of school or other external requirements. Very few articles have appeared in the last decade on this important aspect of science learning. This article presents a survey based on seven Likert-type items for measuring adolescents' continuing motivation for science. It describes how the survey was developed, tested, and used to explore the relations between school type, grade, and gender and adolescents' continuing motivation for science learning. Data on the continuing motivation of 2,958 Israeli 5th-8th grade students, from traditional and democratic schools, were collected and analyzed using polytomous Rasch techniques and hierarchical linear modeling. The results indicate that in both types of schools girls had lower continuing motivation for science than boys, and that while the continuing motivation of both boys and girls in traditional schools decreased between 5th and 8th grade, the continuing motivation of students in democratic schools remained constant during this period.

Energy is one of the most important ideas in all of science and is useful for predicting and explaining phenomena within every scientific discipline. Yet, there are substantive differences in how the energy concept is used across disciplines. While a particle physicist relies heavily on the idea that energy is conserved during interactions between subatomic particles, an ecologist is typically more concerned with the idea energy transfers across system boundaries.

Chemical bonding knowledge is fundamental and essential to the understanding of almost every topic in chemistry, but it is very difficult to learn. While many studies have characterized some of the central elements of knowledge of this topic, these elements of knowledge have not been systematically organized. We describe the development and testing of a matrix that represents: (A) a systematic organization of the conceptual knowledge on chemical bonding required at high school level and (B) a tool for representing students' conceptual knowledge of this topic. The matrix contains three strands: the structure of matter at the nanoscopic level, electrostatic interactions between charged entities, and energy aspects related to bonding. In each strand there are hierarchically ordered cells that contain fine grain elements of knowledge. Using various instruments, students' conceptual knowledge of chemical bonding was assessed and mapped onto the matrix, generating graphical representations of their knowledge. New computational and online technologies enable automatic data collection and its analysis. Therefore, we believe that this organization and representation of small grain size elements of knowledge can be a useful for the development of a detailed diagnostic tool of knowledge of chemical bonding.

Curriculum materials that support learners in building and linking ideas are essential in developing integrated understanding. We refer to such materials as coherent. There are several types of curricular coherence content standard, learning goal, intra-unit, and interunit coherence. Learning progressions, which are descriptions of successively more sophisticated ways of thinking about how learners develop understanding of key disciplinary concepts and practices within and across multiple grades, can help designers build coherent curriculum. Learning progressions can align standards, curriculum, and assessments across grades and grade bands. This chapter describes the different types of coherence and discusses the role that learning progressions play in the design and development of coherent curriculum materials, and why coherent materials are critical in supporting students in building integrated understanding.

There is a growing awareness that science education should center not just on knowledge acquisition but developing the foundation for lifelong learning. However, for intentional learning of science to occur in school, out of school, and after school, there needs to be a motivation to learn science. Prior research had shown that students' motivation to learn science tends to decrease during adolescence [Anderman and Young [1994] Journal of Research in Science Teaching 31: 811-831; Lee and Anderson [1993] American Educational Research Journal 30: 585-610; Simpson and Oliver [1990] Science Education 74: 1-18]. This study compared 5th through 8th grade students' self-reported goal orientations, engagement in science class, continuing motivation for science learning, and perceptions of their schools' and parents' goals emphases, in Israeli traditional and democratic schools. The results show that the aforementioned decline in adolescents' motivation for science learning in school and out of school is not an inevitable developmental trend, since it is apparent only in traditional schools but not in democratic ones. The results suggest that the non-declining motivation of adolescents in democratic schools is not a result of home influence but rather is related to the school culture.

פרויקט "מחר 98 "היה ניסיון ארצי רחב היקף לקדם את החינוך המדעי, המתמטי והטכנולוגי בארץ. הפרויקט כלל בעיקר שינויים פדגוגיים, אך גם שינויים מבניים שנראו חיוניים לתמיכה בשינויים הפדגוגיים. עשר שנים לאחר סיומו הרשמי של הפרויקט למדנו על תהליך יישומו, והערכנו את השפעתו בעיקר בחטיבות הביניים, אך לא רק בהן. מקורות המידע העיקריים שלנו היו מסמכים ודוחות שהונפקו על ידי יחידות ממשלתיות וראיונות עם מגוון רחב של אנשים שהיו מעורבים בפרויקט, החל בחברי הועדה שיזמה והגתה את הפרויקט (ועדת הררי), מנכ "לי משרד החינוך וחברי מינהלת הפרויקט , וכלה במורים, מנהלי בתי ספר, מובילי השתלמויות מורים, מנהלי מרכזי מורים, מפקחים, מפתחי תכניות לימודים וחוקרים. ממצאינו העיקריים הם אלה: (א) כל המרואיינים דברו על הפרויקט כעל תקופת צמיחה והתפתחות מקצועית; (ב) נותרו מעט תוצרים שפותחו או הוקמו במהלך הפרויקט שעדיין נמצאים בשימוש נרחב במסגרת לימוד והוראת מדע וטכנולוגיה בחטיבות הביניים; (ג) תחלופת שרים מהירה והיעדר קונצנזוס לגבי יעדי מערכת החינוך מולידים פרויקטים קצרי- מועד שממילא אינם מניבים תוצאות בנות-קיימא; (ד) משרד החינוך אינו ארגון שמפיק לקחים מנסיון העבר; (ה) מינהלת הפרויקט לא יצרה תכנית עבודה מסודרת וברורה עם יעדים ויעדי ביניים, דבר שהביא לחוסר קוהרנטיות בשילוב האגפים השונים במשרד ולהיעדר יכולת להעריך בזמן אמת את התקדמות הפרויקט; (ו) לא היתה הגדרה חד-משמעית ומוסכמת של מהות מקצוע הטכנולוגיה בחט"ב ושל האופן שבו אוה משתלב עם המדע; ו (- ז) כנראה שלפרויקט היה השפעה עקיפה על פרויקטים אחרים שאינם מזוהים כתוצרים של "מחר 98) "כמו "אופק חדש")

Science is a social process--one that involves particular ways of talking, reasoning, observing, analyzing, and writing, which often have meaning only when shared within the scientific community. Discussions are one of the best ways to help students learn to "talk science" and construct understanding in a social context. Since inquiry is an important strategy for teaching science (NRC 1996; AAAS 1993), teachers face the challenge of facilitating meaningful discussions in an inquiry- or project-based setting. This article presents three types of discussions that can be used in inquiry-based activities and provides an example of each in a sample investigation.

Coherent curricula are needed to help students develop deep understanding of important ideas in science. Too often students experience curriculum that is piecemeal and lacks coordination and consistency across time, topics, and disciplines. Investigating and Questioning our World through Science and Technology (IQWST) is a middle school science curriculum project that attempts to address these problems. IQWST units are built on 5 key aspects of coherence: (1) learning goal coherence; (2) intraunit coherence between content learning goals, scientific practices, and curricular activities; (3) interunit coherence supporting multidisciplinary connections and dependencies; (4) coherence between professional development and curriculum materials to support classroom enactment; and (5) coherence between science literacy expectations and general literacy skills. Dealing with these aspects of coherence involves trade-offs and challenges. This article illustrates some of the challenges related to the first 3 aspects of coherence and the way we have chosen to deal with them. Preliminary results regarding the effectiveness of IQWST's approach to these challenges are presented.

It is often difficult to engage students, especially younger students, in authentic scientific inquiry. By authentic, the author means that the classroom activities are both good simulations of scientific inquiry as experienced by professional scientists and something that the students can relate to on an intuitive level. However, by engaging students in Design based Science, DBS does just that. Students can gain experience in DBS contexts that will support their forays into scientific inquiry, because they will already be knowledgeable and well-acquainted with many of the aspects of scientific inquiry. As examples of the DBS pedagogy, three ninth-grade units that were developed at the University of Michigan are described here.